Program Reviews

This was an amazing projects I loved everyday. All the workers were friendly and made me laugh. They were great company and were always making jokes. The work was good however there were some times where we were just sitting around and waiting for someone to tells us what to do. Out of the two projects I construction was my favorite because there were other people in my position unlike in the research where it was only me and the two guides. however I know this is not because of the staff. However at the construction on my second week there were four of us which I felt was too many for that project at one time. The problem with research station was that I didn't know what to do when the Guides weren't there. They would leave me to do my own research if I had some but I didn't so I would just have to sit there and wait.

I had an amazing experience with this program. To begin, the staff was consistently available and offered advice and assistance each week. They also placed me in a homestay with a family who not only helped me to experience Guatemalan culture but fully immersed me in the Spanish language so that I was able to improve vastly during my time abroad. Second, my internship placement, which was teaching English at a school to children aged 5- 18 years old, allowed me to both teach the students and to learn from them. I was able to teach the students and to learn new methods that I could utilize in my own classes in the United States, and I learned about the students and their culture through teaching. I would highly recommend this program to anyone who is looking to broaden their horizons by experiencing teaching in another culture because it was an unforgettable and worthwhile experience.

During my time at the internship, I gained lots of valuable information that I otherwise would not have had to opportunity to acquire. Definitely worth it and would recommend to others that may be thinking about doing this program! Cesar, Reyna, and their entire family welcomed me with open arms. They cooked amazing meals, played games with the entire family after lunch, and ensured I had no concerns or worries. I was only about a 20 minute walk away from the Centro de Salud, which is where the internship was held, and I felt very safe both on my walk to work and back home from the Centro. I got involved at the local gym and really enjoyed the atmosphere of Patzun. After my four weeks there’s it truly began to feel like home. I hope I am able to return in the near future!

Initially my program was scheduled for 4 weeks in Villa Blanca and a two week Spanish course. The time I spent there was extremely rewarding because I was given the liberty to modify my work to be done. For example: I built a new pond, conducted research, review footage of trail cameras and gained the knowledge of the guides. These things were curtailed specifically for me. The Spanish classes were fantastic too with an exceptionally good teacher! Thank Tanya!
One thing that would be nice is to diversify the activities for example, in my 6 weeks in country I only visited a single school, a home for the disabled, and a Christian mission. I wished to spend more time in these various locations and perhaps other locations. With that said I understand I don’t not have the qualifications required to fulfill these roles. Thank you so much!

I interned in a small Guatemalan town for five weeks teaching English at a private school. During my intenship, I developed my abilities to communicate information and build relationships with others in a different language, actively listen to others, reflect on my perspective and privilege, and adapt to new environments and circumstances.
I also took five weeks of Spanish lessons. Doing so improved my teaching a lot because I needed to teach the students English in their language. Additonally, it improved my ability to connect with others, ask them questions, and comprehend their answers. I highly reccommend that interns take several weeks of lessons in-country. Being able to communicate with my host family and students at the school improved my experience exponentially.
Sometimes my days were very long between my internship, Spanish lessons, and prepping for the next day's classes, but I feel like it was totally worth it. I also highly encourage volunteers to make the most out of their time in-country. Being immersed in a new culture can be disorienting, and it can be easy to fall into negative thinking and staying in your bedroom all day. But, in my experience, you will have an unforgettable experience if you try your hardest to stay positive, flexible, and learn as much as you can.
Additionally, the in-country support team was very friendly, helpful and caring. I always felt comfortable with asking them questions or advice. They really care about their interns!
There are also many tourism opportunities in Guatemala. I recommend visiting the city of Antigua, Lake Atitlan, and the Mayan pyramids of Tikal!
Overall, my trip developed me in countless ways. I now feel more confident, experienced, and have a drive positively affect the lives of others.

This experience exceeded my expectations! I came with the goal to help others with their English and to improve my Spanish and I feel I have done both of those.

At weekends, I had loads of free time to travel, going to different parts of Guatemela and even visiting other countries! The programme is well organised in that it gives you a lot of rewarding work to do but also a lot of time to relax and do your own thing.

Being placed near the city of Antigua (only 20-30 minutes away) was fantastic. You can't get bored of that place! There is so much to do there, and you can easily book trips from the travel agencies there.

The staff at the organisation are incredibly helpful. The doors of their office are always open and they are willing to help in any way! I would 100% recommend this learning experience to others.

The program is very interesting for people into nature and physical work.
The work is normal very diverse, but can become repetitive for volunteers working in the Project eg. 6 months.
The guides and employees of the hotel are all very kind and willing to help.

I spent 10 great weeks in Costa Rica to work in a wildlife project with marine turtles. The project was locaded in a very beautiful place in Guanacaste, in the north of Costa Rica.
When I arrived at the first day, I felt a little bit lost because I didn't spoke Spanish that well and the project was remote from bigger cities and had no Wifi. But the people were very friendly and after a few days it felt like we were a big family. That was a thing I enjoyed very much, just like the beautiful beaches and the work with the turtles. I had the possibillity to learn many things about conservation and the nature of Costa Rica. The work showed me how important it is to protect the environment and how interesting biology is.
All in all I had an unforgetable time in Costa Rica and made many new and interesting experiences. Actually it was much more than I expected and I just can recommend this project.

Translation: First volunteering and I had the opportunity to meet some amazing kids, every day I learned many more things from the people who helped there and the children, who have an incredible discipline at all times, are very applied and friendly.
This home offers a lot of love, reason more to leave all my help there.

Between adventures, help in the tasks and meet each of these people, I managed to strengthen my confidence in social work. I also had the opportunity to travel to Peru for the first time, and to explore how beautiful Cuzco is, its culture and tradition.
Walking through the streets of Oropesa with the children was quite an experience, they told me their school days and the way they could help was unequaled.

Primer voluntariado y tuve la oportunidad de encontrarme con unos chicos increíbles, cada día aprendía muchas mas cosas de las personas que ayudaban allí y de los niños, quienes tienen una disciplina increíble en todo momento, son muy aplicados y amistosos.
Este hogar ofrece mucho amor, razón mas para dejar toda mi ayuda allí.

Entre aventuras, ayudas en las tareas y conocer a cada una de estas personas, logre afianzar mas mi confianza en la labor social. Así mismo tuve la oportunidad de viajar a Perú por primera vez, y recorrer lo hermoso que es Cuzco, su cultura y tradición.
Caminar por las calles de Oropesa con los pequeños fue toda una experiencia, que ellos me contaran sus días de colegio y la forma en que podía ayudar, fue inigualable.

Although I only undertook my placement for two weeks, I feel like I have learnt a lot of things in that time! I have discovered an environment completely different from those which I am used to, and I have been able to understand the importance of conserving that environment. It’s been amazing to see animals that I would never see in England, and to see many different places as well! Not only have I done the placement at Villa Blanca, but I have also had the opportunity to travel around as much as I could in two weeks, to beautiful places such as Puntarenas, La Fortuna and La Isla Tortuga. As well as this, I have met some really nice people who hopefully I will stay in contact with, and I think that my Spanish has improved a lot! I would definitely recommend staying with a host family, since they are so kind and generous, and I will be sad to leave! All in all, coming to Costa Rica has been a great experience, and I would love to come back one day! Also, do not be scared about coming on your own, because the country is very safe and you stay with the host family, so it is not like you have to stay anywhere on your own.