Program Reviews

This past summer I got to travel through Europe. We started in Florence where we explored magnificent art museums and got a feel for the Italian city life. Next we hopped on the train to Monterosso. Here we hiked the Amafi Coast and got to make our own pesto. Our next stop was Interlaken, Switzerland where we got an adrenaline with paragliding. We also filled up on fondue and chocolate! Our adventure ended in Paris, France. We got a beautiful view of the city from the top of the Eiffel Tower. For dinner I tried escargot and rabbit! One day we got to tour the city via bike and even got to see the Mona Lisa up close! This trip has been such an amazing experience and I have made life long friends. If I had the chance to do it again I would. Thank you Travel for Teens!

I am so glad I chose to sign up for two trips with TFT the summer of 2019! At first, I was nervous about traveling without my parents to a country I had never been to before, but this trip showed me my passion for traveling. My favorite thing about TFT is all the amazing people I met. I went on my trips not knowing anyone but everyone was so excited to meet new people so we quickly became a little family. I loved my counselors, they were so fun and amazing role models. They always made me feel safe and I knew I could talk to them if there was ever any problem. If you want to travel TFT is an amazing program and I definitely recommend you take the opportunity. My favorite memory in Iceland was climbing a volcano and roasting marshmallows at the top!

I had so much fun on the japan trip. Not only did I enjoyed the food and beautiful views, I also learned about Japanese culture. It was an amazing experience, and I’m so glad I chose to travel with TFT. I loved the local food and my favorite the part was taking pictures in yukata! Other than the yukata, I also learned how to make sushi. We experienced karaoke night which was so fun! Tokyo Disney sea was an unforgettable adventure for me because there’s no other Disney park like this. I loved the day we visited a Japanese high school, that was amazing we got to talk to local Japanese high school students. They were super nice, friendly and welcoming. I enjoyed every moment in japan, my favorite place was Harajuku, the fashion styles you find there are just absolutely so unique and amazing!

What an amazing experience! This trip was truly 3-weeks that changed my life and perspective forever. Spending this time in Costa Rica will be the best choice you will ever make, I know it’s the best choice that I made. Expect to join a group of teens that are also interested in exploring the world and helping out animals. I still stay in touch with these friends 2 years later, and even have made trips across the country to New York City to visit my Costa Rica pals! The best part of the whole trip to me was the animals and working at the rescue center. Learn the proper care for these exotic animals and work with other volunteers from all over the world who share the same interests as you. Some of the amazing experiences I had were babysitting the baby sloths, taking a baby anteater into the forest, or feeding the young monkeys. Outside of working at the rescue center I tried so many things that were out of my comfort zone, a night hike in the jungle, salsa dancing in front of a whole restaurant, and ziplining through the jungle. I recommend this trip to anyone who is interested in immersing themselves into a new culture, and not afraid to get dirty and work hard to help this animal sanctuary.

My trip was a blissful experience, from the beautiful scenery to friendships that I built, I could never anticipated bonding so closely with the other travellers and leaders. We became like a little family together, we ate, laughed, learned, explored, and adventured together. From the water activities, to helping out the less fortunate, there were always opportunities to experience the finer things in life. Those memories I will hold close to my heart.

The benefits of the trip is not only. that you can service people in need, but it is also a create play to get volunteering experience that could benefit you in the future. Leaving the trip all I wanted to do was to think of opportunities to go back, or become a staff member to give teens that same amazing experience I got.

I've been traveling with TFT since I was 13, and it has been one of the best learning and growth experiences in my life. Through TFT, I've met great friends from all around the world, experienced amazing places, and was pushed out of my comfort zone and grew so much. It even helped me pick my career. In the summer of my 11th year of high school, I went on the Japan Discovery & Service trip. I had recently picked up an interest in digital photography and it just so happened that the trip director for my trip was a professional travel photographer. After traveling with him for only 2 weeks and seeing my photographic growth, I started taking courses in photography at my school and have ended up going to college for Fine Art Photography. Without the experiences TFT allowed me to have, I never would have found one of my biggest passions. The people I've met on the trips are good friends of mine to this day, and the experiences I had with them on the trips I've been on were unforgettable. Karaoke in South Korea with a crew of wacky friends, doing a two hour hike up one of the steepest mountains I've ever seen to take one picture, and other once in a life time experiences like that have made the TFT experience so special to me.
The South Korea trip is the most recent trip I've been on, and it was a great experience. It was a great time exploring South Korea with a brand new group of friends.

My experience traveling with TFT was nothing but extraordinary. In the summer of 2017 I set off, by myself for the first time, to travel abroad in Europe. Not only did Travel for Teens place me in a group with amazing people that I grew to be very close with, but I was guided through this trip with knowledgeable group leaders who cared about giving us the best experience possible. Through TFT I was able to visit the countries of Italy, Switzerland, and Paris. Each day was jam packed full of different activities including museums, hiking, eating delicious local cuisine, and creating new relationships with my group. My leaders, Taylor and Holden, knew facts regarding each area we ventured to, which made the trip so much more interesting and thoughtful. My favorite part about this trip, and the TFT company as a whole, was that travel, accommodation, and each experience was local and unique. We never loaded onto a tour bus, did not wait in long lines, stand in big crowds, or follow someone with a giant sign to each destination. Travel for Teens was personal, giving chief importance to an authentic experience abroad. I felt so secure with my team throughout the whole trip, with each activity being very well researched and planned, so there was never any confusion or worry. It was through this safe environment I was able to experience the true beauty of travel, which has inspired me to go out of my comfort zone, not to be timid, but to run towards any new opportunity in my life with an open mind!

This past summer I traveled to Thailand on TFT’s Thailand Elephant Service and the Islands program. This trip was by far my favorite trip that I’ve been on with TFT. The combination of working with elephants, the breadth of activities, as well as the great counselors and campers made it by far one of the most memorable two weeks of my life. One of the highlights of the trip was the service we did with elephants. We volunteered with elephants at sanctuaries learning about proper elephant care, we got to bathe them, prepare food and feed them, cleaned their enclosures, and went on a walk with them. This trip as a whole pushed me out of my comfort zone, it helped me become much more comfortable with trying new things. Each day was filled with new activities which enabled us to experience and learn about the Thai culture. The activities included exploring traditional Thai markets, cooking classes, exploring Thai temples, and much more. Our counselors were amazing, they were always understanding, were easy to come to with any issues, and were just really fun to travel and hang out with. Not only were the counselors great but I met some of the best people on this trip. I’m certain that I will be friends with a few of them for the rest of my life. I’m so grateful to have been able to go on this trip and I wouldn’t trade this trip for the world.

My trip to Thailand was one that I could have never imagined, from the days with elephants to meeting the most amazing people it was definitely a trip of a life time. This was the first trip I had ever gone out of the country by myself with people I had never met, and to be honest I was very nervous but when meeting the counselors they made us feel right at home and the campers soon after a couple nights of never have I ever’s/games established bonds that we knew could never be broken. Everyday we took on a new adventure, I remember when I first heard that we were going to be “hanging” out with elephants I thought it was going to be from a far little did I know we would be getting up close and personal feeding them, bathing them, and cleaning up after them. It was astounding how gentle the elephants were and how much they were just like big puppies with how they wanted to play with you. Saying goodbye to the elephants was definitely hard and sad but I know that someday I will go back and see them again. After we finished our community service hours with elephants we then went on a very windy 3 hour drive to Pai where we the most amazing massages. Over the trip two other campers and I got 3 massages and only ended up paying $11. Then we went on a 2 day trip to the jungle which was honestly one of the hardest things physically on this trip, the white rafting was long but the campers and the view make it all worth it. After returning to the hotels the first thing we all did was shower and let me tell you it was the best feeling. Now I was not able to stay for extra 7 days and explore the islands so at the final dinner it was very sad to say goodbye to everyone because even though I had only known them for 10 days we all felt like we had known each other for much longer. The kids I met are already planning on having a “reunion”. These trips not only open up your mind to new places and cultures but also to new people.

My experience going on an adventure with Travel For Teens was incredible and unforgettable. Last summer, I went on the two week trip to Florence, Cinque Terre, Switzerland and Paris with Older Teens. My trip had a rough start, since I did not go on the group flight, and my flight missed a connection in Portugal. I was scared that I would be missing out on activities and that it would be difficult to make friends if I joined the trip after it started. It was such a relief when I finally arrived in Florence and was greeted by my counselor Mike at the airport. He made me feel comfortable right away. It turned out that multiple people on my trip had problems with flights and TFT was able to keep track of everyone and collect them one by one from the airport. Once I got over the sleep deprivation from the long overnight flight, all of my worries went away and I had the best time travelling around Europe with people from all over the country, none of whom I had met before yet all of whom I became friends with. From Italy to Switzerland to France, we saw all of the famous sites and tried all of the amazing food. Just a few of the memorable experiences included learning how to make delicious homemade pesto in Cinque Terre, sampling fondue in Interlaken, paragliding through the Alps, and climbing up the Eiffel Tower in Paris. I must have taken over two thousand pictures over the span of the trip, and I look at them all the time to keep the memories of the trip intact and to put a smile on my face. I had the best summer of my life, and I couldn’t have done it without TFT.