Program Reviews

I have advanced degrees and thought this course would be like Community College—worth doing but not too demanding. Instead I found it required me to stretch to do well. Of course, that means I got more out of it than I expected. I took the course while I was also learning how to teach English 8 in public school online. It made for endless hours on the computer. Still, I had to push myself to complete the project required each week to my own satisfaction. It was worth the effort. But No Homestay!

Zoe and the crew at Greenheart and IEP in Auckland are super friendly and approachable and were a ton of help. I wish the "orientation" and "tour of the Auckland" were a little more informational because I feel like everything they taught us was pretty self explanatory and things I had already learned in the day or two I was already in New Zealand. Otherwise I appreciated all of the help and the program brought me together with friends I will have for a lifetime. It was really helpful for my bank account to be set up for me, but the program says they "include a sim card" but honestly that was not that helpful because SIM cards are free and I had to go to the phone store to set up my own plan. Obviously the expense was a lot and I could've figured out the working visa on my own but it was nice having a helping hand and the program led me to meet some of the greatest friends I've ever had.

I have been very lucky in my placement here. I live in a smaller city that provides me with the best of city and rural life. I only teach at one school and have wonderful co-teachers and lack nothing that I require to do my job. My home is within walking distance of my school and is very comfortable. I have loved every minute of my time here! For those thinking about this program I have a few pieces of advice... First, this is a teaching program, I am a certified teacher in the US so my transition has been fairly easy. I do know some however that have zero teaching experience or relevent course work that a struggling in their positions. Please keep in mind that this is a full time job, not just an extended vacation...Second, everyones experience is different. There will be bad co-teachers and apartments and you may live somewhere you werent expecting. You must be flexible and able to roll with the tide so to speak. Take advantage of this opportunity to experience a new culture. Eat the food! Speak the language! Meet the people...this is how you will get the most out of your experience here.

I went to Fukuoka, Japan the summer after my sophomore year of high school when I was 16, and it was the best experience of my life! I met so many incredible people from all over the world at Genki JACS and my host family was the best anyone could ask for. I was originally only supposed to go for 4 weeks but I was having such an amazing time that I extended it a 5th week.

Host family: I was nervous when I first met my host family, but they turned out to be some of the kindest, sweetest people I'd ever met! They spoke some English, but I used Japanese with them as much as possible. I ate dinner with them every night for about the first 3 weeks (I later started to go out with friends as I got closer to people) and my host mom would always make wonderful meals. My favorite dinner was when my host mom prepared okonomiyaki for us. It was SO GOOD! I would also have lots of interesting conversations with them during and after dinner comparing different cultural things. Staying with them helped my Japanese improve significantly, as I always had my Japanese-English dictionary app with me so I could look up words I didn't know. This improved my vocabulary significantly. My host family also took me a few places such as to a baseball game, a music festival, and a shinto shrine (Dazaifu). Overall, they were the best host family I could've asked for!

Daily life: Usually I would wake up, go to school, get lunch out, and then explore around Fukuoka for a little bit. Fukuoka is extremely safe and I never felt even slightly in danger. I could walk around with my phone in my back pocket and my wallet with my bus pass in my hand and didn't have to worry about a thing. The train station Hakata Eki is also a huge shopping center, so sometimes I would go up to one of the higher levels where there was a stationary store and I would buy postcards to send to family and friends. There is also a Japan Post Bank very close to the station so I could easily send them there and the staff were very friendly and helpful. You can also take out money from your account at any Japan Post Bank, so look for those! I also enjoyed either walking or taking the bus to Tenjin where there is an underground shopping center around the train station and food hall where I would often try different foods. Then I would take the bus home, shower, eat dinner with my host family, and do homework in the living room while my host dad watched TV. Sometimes I would also call my family or friends from home from inside my room. As I made more friends, though, I would sometimes go out to dinner with them or explore around the city and hang out at Kego Kouen (Kego Park), which is where lots of young people hang out on Friday nights and weekends.

School: Genki JACS was a fantastic school with very kind, friendly, and patient teachers. I learned a lot there and always felt comfortable. I also became friends with many of the people in my classes, and I still keep in touch with some of them! People there are a range of ages and many are in their 20s (the youngest I met was 14), but it never felt uncomfortable. Everyone was friends regardless of age and was supportive of each other. We usually got about one worksheet a night and would go over it the next day in class.

Friends: Most of my friends actually ended up being other foreigners attending Genki JACS, but they were all incredible people. I would hang out with them a lot after or in between class and explore parts of the city with them. I even ended up going on a hike with some of them at a nearby mountain!

Fun experiences: By far my favorite experience was actually something I coordinated outside of the program with some friends, so I encourage people going on this trip to not be afraid to seek out some of their own adventures! I went on an incredible hike with a bunch of people from my program through the rain. It was super challenging, but well worth the breathtaking view at the top. We could see the city, the mountains, and the land for miles. Another fun experience was when I went with Genki JACS to Shikanoshima, a nearby island. The water was so clear and blue and we went to a hotel for part of the day where we had the option of onsen as well as a huge meal. My host family also took me to onsen about a week before the trip to Shikanoshima on the same day we went to the shrine. It was a very positive experience and I felt a lot less awkward than I thought I would've. I got a few curious glances being a foreigner, but everyone was pretty unconcerned and was just enjoying the relaxing experience. I'm glad I went with my host family because my host mom and sister were able to show me the whole cleansing process before getting into the water. I would highly recommend onsen to anyone going to Japan, as it was very body positive and helped me realize how unique all bodies are. Another interesting experience I had was doing some modeling! I'm biracial (African American and Caucasian) and so my tightly coiled hair was a marvel to many people in the country. I was walking in Tenjin station one day when a man asked to do my hair! So we coordinated and I brought some friends with me to his salon as a precaution and he styled my hair and we did a photo shoot! It was a lot of fun and made me feel a lot more confident in a country where I very clearly looked like no one else.

Take aways: I feel like I definitely matured a lot during my trip. I learned to be independent, to not shy away from new experiences and adventures, and to make decisions on my own. I would highly recommend this trip to high school and college students especially because the city is so safe and is a wonderful environment for growing and maturing without many risks. The people I met from around the world at Genki JACS really expanded my horizons and increased my desire to travel even more (my trip actually lead me to visiting a friend in their native country a few months later!). My Japanese language skills improved a lot and my vocabulary in particular expanded. Between classes and my host family, I started to be able to just shoot out phrases without thinking, which was an amazing feeling.

If you have any questions or want more info, I posted about it on my Instagram @graceinnihon. Feel free to message me about it!!

i'm Sculable Jovany , i won a scholarship from Greenheart Travel to volunteer abroad as a First Time Traveler in the Tropic Ventures & Sustainable Forestry in Puerto-Rico !
Travel as a first time traveler to discover a new culture,a new place you never been before is exciting, you'll feel this when you landed.
arriving in Puerto-Rico, my homestay was in the southeast of the island in the mountains, 1 hour from San Juan. i was received by Thrity Vakil and Andrés Rúa, both the director of the Tropic Ventures,
My Bedroom and surrounded a mountains and near to a river i spend seven days in this paradise !
After hurricane Maria 'Las Casas De La Selva" wich is the home of the Tropic ventures has suffered a lot of majors damages to its infrastructure and the forest lost 99% of his trees ,since then many volunteers come to this place to bring their help in a way or another to the sustainable forestry !
During my days i accomplished my volunteers tasks like clearing and pruning the overgrowth in the Waste Water , keeping the house clean and help my host family with the dinner.
By afternoon my host family takes me out to discover the cities around, while there i have learn how to dance salsa, i have appreciate a lot my host family!
my experience in one word was amazing ! for sure i'll be back,
I recommend this program for everybody who open-minded, love exploring nature and have ability to work in in team ! you'll have such a great experience there!

Overall, the Greenheart organization and its staff were easy to work with as was their local partner, Experiment Chile. The application process was smooth and efficient. I especially liked how they made all the arrangements to get me from the airport when I arrived to my host family. The first day of orientation was a nice bonus. My host family was kind and generous. During my time in Chile, the country was undergoing the most significant turmoil in the last 30 years. I was a bit surprised that neither Greenheart nor Experiment Chile checked in with me to see how things were going. For me, as an older, seasoned traveler, this was not a big issues. However, for a younger person that hasn't traveled much, this situation may have been disconcerting. Overall, my experience was very positive and I would recommend the Greenheart Homestay and Teach English program.

My experience with Greenheart was absolutely amazing! I was placed in the South of France with a small and sweet family. We all got along really well and the girls always made effort to learn and speak English! My experience was very unique because of my family's schedule. I would spend weekdays with them, but on weekends they would leave so I got to explore and do my own thing! Greenheart made my experience such a breeze! With such a reliable and responsive team, I never really felt like I was alone being abroad (especially as it's my first solo trip!). I loved my experience so much I decided to stay for the rest of the year here in France. It's an excellent program that I would recommend to anyone wanting an immersive, cultural adventure whether it be for professional or personal reasons!

I had a really good experience taking my TEFL course with Greenheart. Kara was incredibly helpful and responsive. She answered all my questions, enrolled me, and solved any issues quickly and efficiently. Thanks Kara for making my overall experience a breeze! With Greenheart you don't necessarily have to take a TEFL course, you can opt to do one of their programs alone (check the site). But if you are also interested in doing TEFL it is great! The program helps you take care of the administrative work and you can then use your experience in the program towards your practicum hours! 2 in 1!

I recently have returned from a trimester abroad in Spain and I could not be more happy with how my exchange went! From the beginning, GreenHeart Travel stood out to me when I was searching for study abroad programs because of their communication skills and adaptability to my needs. They have a great team and always keep you updated before, during, and after your program. I feel this program prioritized my family and location program, trying to match my likes and interests with a potential host family. One of the best parts of my exchange was my host family! I am a volleyball player, so GreenHeart's team placed me in a city called Albacete, an area with many endorphin-burning activities, and with an active host family. It was perfect because we would run together and sometimes participate in marathons! I definitely recommend this program and my parents and I could not be more happy with my time in Spain!

I stayed with a host family for 3 months in Italy. The family Greenheart Travel found was amazing. The program also took into account what I was hoping to have in a host family and then went and found a family that was an absolute perfect match. This program is very good at giving you resources as well, for actually teaching the family. They provide you with a google drive of lesson plans that you can search through and find which ones work best for you and your family! They also give you advice and support on culture shock and reverse culture shock so that you’re as prepared as you can be for that!