Program Reviews

I have been on four TFT trips now, and my passion for the company and what TFT has to offer would not have been possible had I not gathered the courage to travel overseas alone for the first time. My expectations for this trip were exceeded beyond imagination; these three cities are each highlights of Eastern Europe and each offer their own unique culture that I was lucky enough to explore. Aside from the delicious trdelníks in Prague (a must have dessert if you’re there), I met friends on this trip and made connections with people I still keep in touch with to this day, almost 5 summers later. This program is extra special to me as it is what got me hooked on TFT, and it was the perfect introduction to the experience of being a traveler, not a tourist.

From paragliding in New Zealand to snorkeling at the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Australia, I had the best 21 days of my life with Travel for Teens. I will never forget looking out the window on Air New Zealand as we flew through the snow-capped mountains to land in Queenstown. The beauty of this foreshadowed the once-in-a-life time experiences I had the privilege of doing on this amazing adventure. The counselors made me feel so at home in places I’ve never been, and the friends I made gave me memories I will cherish forever. I recommend this trip to anyone who loves adventure and lives for the moment. While in Australia, we visited Cairns, Brisbane, and Sydney. We completed our service at Sheoak Ridge, which took us deep into the outback of Australia. The service portion of the trip brought our group closer together and, in my opinion, was the best part of the trip!

Last summer I went to Amsterdam, Munich, Swiss Alps, and Venice with Travel for Teens! This was my second trip with Travel for Teens and I was just as amazed by this one! The councilors are so knowledgeable when it comes to travel and made everything so much easier, especially for teens leaving the country for the first time. It's always scary to travel without anyone you know, but the councilors make everyone so comfortable with each other and you end up leaving trips with lasting friendships. Through my TFT trip, I was able to see so many different parts of Europe that I never thought would be possible in one trip. I tried different foods from every culture and interacted with locals. On TFT trips, you see the major landmarks in each city, but also the smaller, locally loved hidden gems. I always come back from my TFT trips with too many incredible stories. My tips would be to pack lightly and have a lighter suitcase! On my trip we were on the train A LOT and we had quick transfers. Suitcases are much easier to carry and store in train cubbies if they're smaller! There's also time to do laundry. My trip had such memorable activities like jumping into canyons of the Alps and seeing the Anne Frank house. Traveling with TFT showed me how valuable travel is and I hope to continue with studying abroad or working for TFT!

My trip with TFT was a wonderful and eye opening experience. We got to go to so of the most incredible places and some truly amazing people. This trip was an fantastic way to spend a summer. We got to meet a wonderful family and live with them for two weeks. Our group got to do some awesome projects with other volunteers. We work on building toy for children in the community and picking lavender in the field near their house. We visited Taormina and got to swim in some of the most beautiful beaches. We also climbed Mount Etna - the largest active volcano in Europe. The views on top of the volcano were breathtaking and completely amazing. We also took trips into Syracuse and Catalina. There we explored the cities and learn their unique histories.

I went on the 21-day Tanzania service trip and it was life changing. Nothing can ever prepare you for the feeling you will get staring into the clearest sky and seeing millions of stars staring back at you. Being immersed in the culture of these inspiring people was such an eye-opener and really taught me to be grateful for what I have. We went on three safaris, visited an orphanage, spent a week at a girls school, and even took a cooking lesson! From the exotic animals in Serengeti National Park, to the beautiful, young girls at SEGA school, exploring Tanzania was a soul search I never knew I needed. I have changed for the better because of this experience. I personally guarantee your child will have an amazing time on this trip. I recommend it 100% for all ages and all personalities.

Going to Spain with TFT was amazing. The itinerary was stacked with fun, interesting, and unique experiences. We enjoyed a private cooking class, learned to paddle board on the coast of Barcelona, explored caves in Nerja, and shopped our way through Madrid. There was always something for everyone, like stadium tours of the famous soccer clubs, or beach time of we wanted it. The food, the people, and the places were outstanding. I encourage anyone with any interest in the beauty and culture of Spain to go with TFT. They do a fabulous job of leading tours as travelers, not tourists. Every minute I spent there was a dream come true, and the plane ride home was so sad! Some advice is to bring sunscreen and lots of it! We spent a perfect amount of time relaxing on the sands of many Spanish beaches. Also get ready to walk! Some of the cities have to be seen by foot (or bike) to really get the feel for them, so make sure you have comfortable walking shoes.

Thailand. We have all heard of this incredible country before. It’s your perfect tropical Southeast Asian paradise. Everything from encounters with amazing wildlife to some of the best beaches on the planet put this country on everyone’s bucket list. Unfortunately, with this being such a popular tourist destination, it has become overrun with foreigners in recent years. I realized this when I signed up for Thailand Elephant Service & The Islands trip, and I was quite worried that my trip would not live up to the “Thailand paradise” expectations. Fortunately, Travel for Teens understood this as well, and the only time I saw large amounts of foreigners throughout my entire vacation was at the airport, as you would expect. Outside the airport, I was blessed with what I can confidently say is my absolute favorite trip I have ever had the pleasure of going on (and I have been to 30 countries and 6 continents in total, including Antarctica). Travel for Teens seeks out activities to participate in that your standard teen tour group will not do. Nearly all other Thailand “adventure programs” listed on this website will in fact not be much of an adventure at all. They will instead take you to major tourist destinations, and that’s it – that’s where Travel for Teens sets itself apart from the crowd. Of course, one of the major highlights of this trip were the incredible few days up in Northern Thailand where we had the privilege to work with elephants in their retirement parks. Here, elephants rescued from the lumber business and street performing in Bangkok were provided a safe haven to live out the rest of their days in peace. Being able to get up close and personal with these creatures allowed my group and I to see how gentle they truly were. There was a sense of kindness in their eyes that I haven’t seen before – anywhere. It’s truly an incredible experience. We were quite a ways away from the city and in an area where there were more elephants than people, and in this situation we were able to escape the “standard Thailand vacation”. We helped bathe the elephants alongside feeding the baby elephants – they were very cute. We learned a ton about these massive creatures: everything from how they only sleep 4 hours a day on average to how it costs upwards of $300,000 per year for food for each elephant to how riding an elephant for a prolonged period actually gives them back problems later on in life. All of this wouldn’t be possible on a standard Thailand vacation where you may actually ride an elephant yourself, or just see them briefly perform. Travel for Teens gives you the unique experience to work with the elephants themselves and that is something I truly treasure. Another incredible experience this Thailand Elephant Service & The Islands trip provided me was a two-day rafting trip out in the remote Thailand jungle. For nearly two full days, we saw no trace of civilization: no roads, no houses – nothing. This is a true Thailand adventure, given we traveled over one hundred miles downriver between the towns of Pai and Mae Hong Son in far northwestern Thailand close to the border with Myanmar. We camped overnight alongside the river, and despite it perhaps not being your “luxury” overnight stay, it was the time when everyone bonded the quickest. Being in a raft for many hours amounted to great conversations and before long, I realized just how incredible the group I traveled with was. They made the trip fantastic as much as the trip itself did, and that’s saying quite a lot considering just how amazing the itinerary was. Everything else from scuba diving in some of the most pristine reefs imaginable to trying some of the most delicious food you could possibly fathom summed this trip up to be my absolute favorite I have ever been on with Travel for Teens. I have participated in nine trips in total with the company, and this is number one on my list. Do not miss out on an incredible opportunity to see and experience things you will be unable to see anywhere else on Earth. This trip is the trip of a lifetime.

Many people consider Fiji to simply be an island paradise – that’s it. Now, don’t get me wrong: Fiji is indeed a beautiful, relaxing country; however, so much more is offered throughout this remote chain of islands in the Pacific Ocean. When I signed up for the Travel for Teens Fiji Service & Adventure trip, my parents were quite skeptical of the trip, bombarding me with questions: “what are you going to do for 13 days on a small island??” Truthfully, I didn’t know, but once I got to the islands, I was so thankful I signed up. While it is true you will always feel the ocean breeze and warm temperatures across the island, I never once thought the trip wasn’t worth it. I live in Florida, and I could just as easily travel to The Bahamas, Dominican Republic or Jamaica; however, Fiji is entirely different. Everything from the community service aspect of the trip to the great personalities of my peers throughout the duration of my stay made Travel for Teens’ Fiji Service & Adventure trip unforgettable. Right from the very beginning, people tried bonding. It worked. It is true we traveled across the entire world to a remote island unlike anything we’ve experienced before, and this unfamiliarity created a bond far quicker and stronger than one that would be formed in a more familiar setting. A good chunk of the trip was spent in a small island chain called the Yasawa Islands a few hours from the largest Fijian island where we helped a local school for a community service project. It was a wonderful experience. We could play and interact with the kids at the school, all between ages 5 and 15, and all these kids spoke English – certainly a nice benefit. They absolutely loved us. They had so much energy, running alongside us around their soccer field and dirt track, making days felt like minutes, and minutes feel like seconds. They taught us Fijian songs and games, and I still remember how to count from one to ten in one of the native Fijian languages all thanks to two kids by the name of Bill and Abel. Now, I am not someone who is the best with kids (I feel rather awkward in those sorts of situations), but I didn’t feel any amount of discomfort with these. I was very happy in this regard. We built an incinerator for the school so they could burn their trash (small islands like this cannot have landfills; therefore, burning trash is their best option) and the neat thing about this was the fact that we could see each and every Fiji service trip’s work before us while we were there. Each Fiji Service & Adventure trip contributes a bit more to the school, and we could ask kids that went to the school what last year’s group accomplished. Upon leaving, some of the kids presented a few of their favorite travelers some gifts, and I was one to receive a handmade bracelet from Abel. It had a Fijian symbol that supposedly brings good luck to its wearer and I still wear it every single day as it helps remind me of my wonderful experiences I had in Fiji. Once we finished our community service project, we engaged in other extraordinary activities across multiple islands, and some highlights included scuba diving in what I consider one of the most beautiful reefs in the entire world (and I have been to the Great Barrier Reef previously – Fiji tops it), a zipline adventure in the hills overlooking local villages, farms and beaches, and my personal favorite: an early-morning hike to the top of a mountain to see the sunrise. We were doubtful about getting up very early, but it was entirely worth it. Eventually, a few minutes after reaching the top, the reds and pinks began to show, and we saw that big, bright red ball rise up from the perfectly calm sea one thousand feet below. That was likely the most spectacular sunrise I had ever seen (quite possibly the most spectacular one I will ever see, unless I have the fortune to travel back to Fiji once again). As I said in the beginning, “they thought I would get bored for 13 days on an island. They were wrong.” Fiji is entirely worth putting on your bucket list, and not only that – Fiji should be at the very top of your bucket list. Travel for Teens is able to check off that list for you, and the 13-day Fiji Service & Adventure is your perfect choice to experience a group of islands unlike any other. Fiji is far more incredible than any island you can experience in the Caribbean, far more incredible than Hawaii, and far more incredible than nearly anywhere else on the planet. I only hope one day I can return.

Travel for Teens provided me with the opportunity to not only explore new cultures and sights, but also allowed me to experience life as a local not a tourist. My trip to Italy, Switzerland, and France completely changed my life by instilling an appreciation for other languages, foods, and traditions. One of my favorite parts was traveling with a group of students my age and the extremely knowledgeable and passionate counselors who I still communicate with to this day. Each day gave me the chance to do a varied array of activities from hiking, going to museums, the beach, shopping, eating, and even paragliding. This trip made me want to study abroad in college and continue traveling throughout my life. I look forward to continuing to travel with Travel for Teens next summer and in the future!

Over the summer going into my senior year of high school I took a trip with TFT to Hawaii. I wanted to go out of the country, but my mom was skeptical. I honestly decided to go to Hawaii because it was the farthest state away from home for me. Before going on the trip, I never really thought about what I wanted to major in at college. I can honestly say that TFT gave me the push start on my current major and helped me find my passion. During the trip, we did beach clean ups, learned about sea turtles, and hung out with some local children. I got volunteer service hours while having so much fun. I had the best time and met so many amazing people. I am a freshman in college now studying conservation biology at the University of Minnesota. I still to this day keep in contact with some of the people I met on that trip and I am so thankful I did it. To anyone thinking about traveling with TFT- I highly recommend it.