Program Reviews

I was very impressed with my daughter’s service-learning experience with GLA in Tanzania last summer. She received thoughtful guidance and immersion into the local culture and day to day living in the village of Arusha near Kilimanjaro. Here the students give of their time and knowledge to teach and help in executing community projects that improve the lives of local citizens. In turn they learn what it is to engage another culture through their traditions and beliefs. And they are introduced to the diversity of the natural environment that my daughter could only describe as wonderfully strange. This intense three week international experience was inspiring and enriching and reminded my daughter and our family of the promise for what it is to be a global citizen.

My daughter went on a a 3 week program in Tanzania with the GLA last summer 2017. I had never heard of GLA prior to 2017 but after her expressed interests in taking part in this program, I read everything I could find about it and felt good enough to register her. Everything went without a hitch, all preparations prior to departure were done quickly and painless ourselves because everything was prescribed. And before long, it was departure time, and off she goes to Africa, on her own, meeting up with other teens going to the same program on their flights there to Tanzania. While she was in Africa, I didn’t worry at all because I got email and blog updates on what the kids are up to, with pictures even. I could call her if I needed to, and she could call me and text me while there. All in all, she had “the best 3 weeks of her life so far” and the memories and lessons learned are priceless! I would let her do it again, if she so inclined. I am glad she got to experience this incredible adventure on her own with other teens her age and with experienced guides and a local organizer. This is something that will affect her long after the trip is over.

My name is Madison and I participated in the two week animal rescue project in Costa Rica. This was an unforgettable experience of a lifetime! I learned so many new things, met amazing people and had a blast! Before deciding if I was going to go on this trip, I was extremely nervous. I had never been out of the country without my parents before. This was going to be my first time away from my family, and for two whole weeks! This fear quickly went away when I was sitting at the airport waiting for my plane to board and I saw a girl wearing the GLA shirt that I was wearing. I went up to her and we talked about our love for dogs and how excited/nervous we were to go on this trip! When we arrived in Costa Rica we were greeted with our amazing mentors! I will never forget these lovely ladies! They made me feel right at home and I felt prepared to take on the next two weeks. When we arrived at our base, some other kids and I played card games while waiting for everyone to arrive. This was a real bonding experience and we all connected so quickly. Being only 14 at the time, I was the youngest one there but everyone was so kind and included everyone in things. My favorite thing about this trip was the relationships I built with everybody. In fact, everyone on the trip made a group chat and we text each other every day on it! We have maintained a close relationship and I am so glad to have these lifelong friends. The activities we accomplished every day made me feel like I was really making a difference. We helped clean dogs at the shelter, paint fences, pour cement, and much more! After a hard day's work, the mentors took us on amazing "relaxing days". These includes hiking to a beautiful waterfall, going to a hot spring, and learning how to surf. The mentor did a great job of making everyone feel comfortable and they made sure we took advantage of every minute we had together! When we returned to the base at night after working at the animal shelter, we would have team bonding games, movie nights and game nights. These were a blast! I remember one night we were watching Moana and everyone was singing along to the songs! Also, we played charades and more fun singing games. Clearly we had a group that loved to sing very much because when we were on our long bus rides, everyone would sing karaoke together! This was an amazing trip and to anyone who is considering going, I say do it! You will not regret it and you will make lifelong memories!

I have been on 3 trips with GLA and every single one has made a incredibly lasting impact on my life. Last summer, I went on the Building a Sustainable World Program to the Dominican Republic. I cannot rave enough about the 3 weeks I spent there. The staff, home base, activities, lectures, and service projects were all amazing. We worked on several different projects during my session including building a bottle room onto a local school, constructing an addition onto the Haitian-Dominican Center to become a pharmacy, and repairing water tanks in a rural community. This particular GLA program involved a lot of physical activity and teamwork. We all learned how to mix a mean batch of cement! In addition to the service, which we did in the morning most days, we also had tons of fun activities planned in the community and occasionally some free time at the base, which we sometimes used to walk to the nearby beach. Some of the activities included exploring caves with Taino drawings, visiting the bustling market on the Haitian border, going swimming, hiking up a mountain to a waterfall, and doing a scavenger hunt in a nearby city. We also usually had some sort of lecture, documentary, or discussion every night, which were actually really interesting and changed the way I look at a lot of things like the effectiveness of different types of charity. Most 3 week GLA trips also have a getaway for about three days and on this one we went helped repair water tanks in a rural mountain community, where the altitude was so high that we were actually living in the clouds.

Some of my favorite parts of the trip were the spontaneous things that can't be planned in an itinerary. My roommates and I bonded so well that every night we talked for hours until a mentor begged us to go to sleep. One morning we realized that we didn't have any fruit so on the way to service we stopped on the side of the road and bought a huge watermelon that we sliced up and shared. I truly value all of the relationships I made with everyone on my trip and I will never forget the incredible experience that we shared.

The only note I would make is to make sure that your child is emotionally and socially mature enough to go on this trip. This is not a summer camp or just a place to send your kid off to for the summer; it's about learning to make a difference and it's very important to have the social skills and maturity to do so.

Review part 2
My daughter, traveled to Ecuador, and Galapagos the summer of 2017.
She had an amazing trip and now is taking her second GLA trip this spring break 2018. GLA staff was great. I recommend GLA for teens who are independent, spirited and looking for a way to give back to the world. It was a truly amazing experience that has changed her for the better.
Pam Prast, mother of 15 year old traveler.

Hello, my name is Iman and I went on a Global Leadership Adventures 3-week program to Tanzania this past summer. I have traveled out of the country with my family multiple times in the past, but I had never flown internationally alone. Naturally, I was extremely nervous. However, when I met most of the other GLA participants before our flight to Tanzania, we hit it right off. When we arrived, all of us 30 students got to know each other so well and became extremely close in a matter of days. The fact that we could all relate to each other, yet we were all so different, made volunteering in the Tanzanian community (primarily teaching English at a local school and refurbishing the school) and exploring the country a blast. Throughout the program, I felt safe wherever we went--even if we were in the middle of safari among giraffes,
lions, and elephants! (There's a bodyguard on watch at the home base at all times.) In addition, the mentors are extremely caring about making your experience reflective and memorable. This trip opened me up to a world of travel that I had never before been exposed to. I highly recommend any teen who is seeking an opportunity to make an impact on a foreign community and to be immersed in another culture to look into a GLA program. Personally, I would recommend the 3-week programs (if possible for you) in order to get the full experience.

The two week Children of the Maya program is truly outstanding! During the two weeks my group of twenty-nine other high schoolers and I traveled around the country of Guatemala to the vibrant cities of Antigua, Lake Atitklan, San Andres, Quetzaltenango, and Xela. The main community service component we completed was creating and delivering lesson plans to teach in a Guatemalan primary school. This experience working one-on-one with Guatemalan children from PreK-6th grade revealed our positive impact. I was called into a leadership role utilizing my strong Spanish speaking skills. This hectic, high energy, primary school environment in rural Quetzaltenango lacked structure and disciple. Initially the challenge was simply maintaining kids’ attention. However, we quickly discovered ways to successfully teach the lessons. We kept students engaged through a variety of games as well as interactive and verbal lessons. Understanding came slowly. Our leadership and teaching remained positive and hopeful and during recess on day four, I witnessed beauty! Some of my students were asking my peers their names and how they were- in English! The children were utilizing my lessons and our positive impact was evident. Our physical and mental capacities were tested through a series of epic adventures including zip-lining over mountainous tree tops, swimming in hot springs, visiting Mayan ruins, taking a boat ride across sacred Lake Atitlán, attending a ceremony with a Maya shaman, and shopping at the largest indigenous craft market in the hemisphere. With all these experiences, I am forever grateful for my trip to Guatemala and highly recommend this program & Global Leadership Adventures as a whole to any high school student wanting to "be the change."

My 16 year old daughter went on the 14 day animal rescue program last summer. I was hesitant at first since she had never traveled alone. We then found out one of her teammates had done a trip the summer before and she and her mother spoke highly of the experience. I gave in. Jules had the most amazing experience. Everything from the service work, the cultural learning, and of course the friendships. The staff were attentive to the students and Jules expressed that she always felt safe. Jules is a vegetarian and had no problem eating on the trip. The blog posts that were supposed to be 2-3 times a week, were almost daily which was very helpful for a nervous parent. To be able to read and see pictures of what they were doing, how much fun they were having, and how happy everyone seemed eased my concerns. She would have stayed longer if she could have and is already signed up for the upcoming summer for trips to the Galapagos and Thailand.

My daughter Hollie did the 2 week Tanzania trip with GLA in June, 2017. Hollie absolutely loved the entire trip, and was so inspired by it, that her feet have not touched the ground since! Thanks to the meaningful service work that GLA did on her trip (refurbish the classrooms), Hollie even took her service a step further when she returned home, by creating a fundraiser for the kids school, to further refurbish. Her fundraiser has gone very well so far, and she even has future plans to return back ASAP. Also, Hollie made several amazing friends on her trip, three of which happen to be from the same state as us, so they have gotten together multiple times, as well as two who live in the town where she will be attending college, and ones who stay in touch over the phone. GLA sparked a passion in Hollie that I know will be lifelong. If your child is thinking about going on a GLA trip, stop thinking and just GO. They will come home with so much more appreciation of the life they live in the USA.

Last school year, I decided on a whim that I wanted to go on a service trip abroad and began my search online for a well-qualified program that would meet my desires. I came across Global Leadership Adventures, and with reviews such as these, I made the decision to trust my travels with this organization. Throughout the application and admission process, the GLA staff was super helpful with any questions me or my mother had and could answer anything I threw at them by email within a day.
I left Virginia not knowing what to expect but once I met up with other girls in New York, some more in Amsterdam, and everyone else in Ghana I knew these next few weeks were going to be the best of my life because I was already becoming such good friends with the people on my trip.
Everyone from the people on the plane, the GLA hired staff, and the members of the Krobo community were so welcoming and positive which was a great start to the trip. This was by far the best experience I've ever had from playing with the kids, participating in local traditions, learning at the krobo girls high school, building bricks, and teaching the kids English.
The goodbyes were the only bad thing about this trip because the kids wouldn't let go and it was hard to make them do so. Ghana will forever hold a special place in my heart.