Program Reviews

Had a great time with my instructor and met some interesting people, I believe the communication between Gapforce and my instructor could have been better and I did feel like I somewhat missed out on one aspect of my diving because not all parties were made aware of me already having my open water (which Gapforce was made aware) and being scheduled to get my open water as opposed to my advanced open water

I cannot recommend this program enough. I'm 19 years old and had never left the United States before this trip. This experience opened my mind to not only Thai culture, but culture from all around the world. In my program alone, we had people from America, England, Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, and Wales. These are people that I now call some of my best friends, and that now give me a place to stay in 5 countries in the world. That in itself is amazing when reflecting upon the experience. This trip gives you opportunities to step out of your comfort zone, emerge yourself in nature, and try hundreds of new things. I highly recommend this program for anyone who feels stuck in a rut, or just wants to get out there. Gapforce provides opportunities to travel spontaneously, but also with structure. Having leaders to make reservations for you, ensure safety, and be there for anything you need is extremely reassuring when in a new place. Pack light, turn your phone off, and make it happen. Its now or never (:

i was really freaked out to travel by myself (without my family or friends) but ive always wanted to and this trip was literally worth the two years of waitressing i did to save up for it. EVERY DAMN PENNY. so worth it! the lugging around backpacks is a bit naff but thats really about it.
The people i met were incredible and it was my favourite trip i have ever been on:)
You can party, you can sightsee, you can do both! its pretty laid back!
Thank you so much!

The Expedition Leader program has been one of the biggest highlights of my life. Trekking jungles in Costa Rica, hiking mountains in Wales and diving in Volcanoes of Nicaragua. It wasn't all fun and games. There were hardships and pressure to perform. All lessons were taught on a hands on basis and every aspect of your performance will be graded and reviewed. It was comprehensive but achievable with the right attitude.

I would like to praise the program for the in-depth interpersonal leadership skills and soft-skills. I believe this was the best skill to take back from the course as the program emphasized on the mental training of a leader which by far is the most important and transferable skill thought throughout the program.

However, I would like to mention that I would personally like the in-house training we've received to be certified on an international basis; cave rescue training, river rescue training and remote first aid.

With everything being said, the program has proved itself to be a 'Leader competent' type of training with the technical skills to compliment.

I stumbled across this course a month before the departure date. To sign up would require quitting my job, letting my house out and a few other boring real world problems, so after 3 days of trying to talk myself out of it I bit the bullet and booked my place.

I’m writing this review sat in my office - a beach in Thailand, or at least that’s today’s view. This is my first contract working with Gapforce having graduated the Expedition Leader Training Course and it’s reaffiriming my decision to do it every day.

If you have an adventurous spirit and fancy the idea of being paid to travel to exotic locations, inspiring like-minded people in the world of adventure travel and exercising invaluable skills in leadership, logistics and interpersonal relationships then this is for you.

The course itself is fantastic in every way. Even if you have no aspiration to be an expedition leader, as an experience and for the transferable leadership skills you learn that could be taken just as easily into the field as into any corporate environment, it is a worthy investment.

For any outdoors enthusiast with a penchant for travel, a thirst for adventure and a need for a challenge I cannot recommend this course highly enough!

I volunteered with Gapforce for 4 weeks over the summer of 2017. I had the most amazing experience and it had major impact on my life. It was definitely a minimalist lifestyle but nothing compares to waking up on the beach every day. The food was also pretty basic but I learned how to be creative in the kitchen and ended up making a lot of great memories cooking with friends. As for the diving, I learned so much from diving almost every day and the reefs were stunning. It's really cool to learn how to take surveys and contribute to necessary research on the reef health. The staff and other volunteers were all such amazing people and we all bonded over a shared passion for the environment and reefs. I learned so much from our marine scientist and gained new perspectives on environmentalism that impacted my career aspirations. I would not recommend this program if you are looking for a beach resort type of holiday. The conditions are very basic and that’s honestly part of what made the experience so great. I realized how few materials I really need in my life while also learning about the amazing reef ecosystem and how to protect it.

I always wanted to go to south Africa and the trip was better then i expected.
The country, the culture are beautifu! I never thought of going to Lesotho, Swaziland and Mozambique but they where totally worth the visit
And that we had the chance to go to two volunteerprogramms was wonderful.
All the hostels we went to where great and the people we met.
I will never forget my time in Africa.
I would recommend to everyone who is thinking about going.

Had an awesome time with some amazing people. White water rafting, Jeep Safari, Everest base camp and so much more. Loved it so much I had to stay for a few exra weeks afterwards! Colin and Fergus were fantastic leaders, always ready to answer questions, offer advice, and have a laugh. Highlight of the program was definitely summiting Kalla Pather to watch the sun rise over mount Everest.

From busy Kathmandu bars
to arctic trekking, this was a very varied trip that I'd recommend to everyone outdoorsy!

I throughly enjoyed my time in Nepal and India with Gapforce.
Within the group I made some friends for life that otherwise I would have never crossed paths with. However if you savour solitude this trip may not be for you. Spending intense time with people was hard but ultimately we grew to understand each other and came away from the experience as a family.
I loved my time in Nepal and definitely want to go back there at some point. Volunteering at the orphanage in Pokhara was a humbling experience and really opened my eyes to how privileged I am.
The Everest trek was my favourite part of the whole trip, having no contact with the outside world and spending days in picturesque surroundings was fun but definitely take a few books up there as you arrive to each place at 3/4pm and end up sat around with nothing to do at times.
India for me seemed to go by too fast as we only stayed in places for a few days. My favourite places in India were Udaipur, Dharamsala and Jaisalmer. Camping under the stars was by far the best night in India, however watching other members of the group exploit the camels by riding them was difficult for me to watch as someone who cares about animal welfare.
Our leader Colin was incredible and looked out for all of us while giving us space to get what we wanted out of the trip.
Fergus who only got to stay for 2 weeks due to health problems was also lovely, I felt comfortable talking to them both about anything that was bothering.
Overall I highly recommend gapforce as a company this was an experience I will never forget and has defiantly helped my develop as a person.

This trip was an experience like none other. I didn't know exactly what I was getting myself into when I signed up, I simply had an itch to travel to India! While I was expecting more volunteering throughout the program, I still had a great time and met wonderful people. If you're looking for more of a volunteering based trip, then this one probably isn't for you. But if you want to go an ultimate bucket list trip and help a few people along the way, then you've found the right program! The trip was challenging at times because our group was together 24/7 for two months and it's hard to please everyone at all times. Some parts were more enjoyable than others as well. Of course Base Camp was great, but it got to be mentally exhausting, as to be expected. While in India, we traveled to many many places, a little too quickly at times it felt. But because we did so many different things while in India, there was definitely something for everyone to enjoy at any given time. I personally preferred the second half of the India trip, but that also happened to be the time when we all fell a bit ill with food posioning or the famous Dehli Belly... Overall I had a great time, and while I didn't enjoy 100% of it 100% of the time, I definitely benefitted from the trip as a whole and made great friends along the way!