Loop Abroad: Wild Tropics Program in Thailand

The 2 week study abroad to thailand was an amazing experience. If your planning on attending I would definitely recommend. It was great hands on experience with the chance to see temples ans other part of their colulture. The food was great and the people where super friendly! Everyone we met new a lot about the culture and did a really good job teaching us. The program was a good mix of educational and fun. I would definitely go back giving the opportunity. The night markets, zipping, temple days, and even clinical days were something I would have never been able to see without the people who organized the trip. They did amazing!

This experience was a once in a lifetime opportunity. The first week at Elephant nature park was unbelievable. You got great vet experience with not only the elephants but with the rescue dog and cats. I felt very safe while working with the elephants. The employees at the park and the loop abroad guides were very helpful and friendly. The second week at the dog clinic was even more in depth vet experience with dogs and cats. When not working with the vets, loop abroad brought you out to see the sights and taste some local food. I felt safe the whole time at the night bazaar, the temples, and all the restaurants. The food was the same while at elephant nature park for the week, which I didn't mind. While in the city the food was different every night, I never had a bad food. The hostel at elephant nature park was a great new experience, and the hotel in the city was clean and had A/C. The would recommend to any one who is thinking about going to vet school, likes biology, loves elephants, and even if you just like adventures and new travels.

I studied abroad with Loop Abroad in Thailand for the two-week college veterinary service. This experience was so enriching and I learned so much about veterinary medicine in Thailand, elephant medicine, shelter medicine with stray dogs and cats, and more! We also had so many opportunities to get hands-on experience practicing the skills we learned in class.

In addition to veterinary lessons, I grew to appreciate Thai culture, food, and language. Loop Abroad organized the two-week trip in a way that afforded me the opportunity to feel like I truly experienced Thailand to the fullest! I tried new foods, wore baggy Thai pants, learned a few traditional Thai dances, and even went zip-lining through the jungle! I would recommend studying with Loop Abroad to anyone looking for adventure, rich culture, and personal growth as a future veterinary medical professional!

I have been apart of many different trips and organizations over the years where I went through the motions. I never made any real connections with people and never had an experience leave an imprint on me like this trip did. If you want to light a fire under your butt and you want to come home excited this is the trip for you. I was able to experience so much in three weeks: conservation workin the forest, SCUBA diving, conservation survey in the ocean, meeting a monk, visiting temples; The list never stops. I feel like Wild Tropics is the best program to give you a true taste of Thailand because you go everywhere. I do think that a lot of my fantastic experience came from the people I was with. The tour guide our group had was hands down the best person to ever walk on the face of the earth. Jing cared about all of us and tried every second of the day to make us happy. Also the group of students I was with quickly became like a family to me. I can honestly say that Loop gave me a summer that made saying goodbye at the end of the program so hard.

I loved going on the trip with people from my university as well as people from different states since the trip ended with friendships I could carry on after the trip. The staff and every one involved were incredible, I formed friendships with many of the staff members and felt they were the perfect fit for the trip. I only wish there were more scholarships available to help with the costs, but appreciate the fundraising tips. The process of signing up for credit was somewhat confusing, but that was mostly the fault of my university. The food, activities, people were all amazing and every part of this trip shaped my life and changed my perspective on a lot of things. I learned so much about conservation, veterinary medicine, and it was taught it an exciting and engaging way.

This past summer I was able to travel to Thailand with loop abroad. I chose the wild tropics program because it had it all! We experienced Thai culture with an excellent local guide, learned about reforestation, explored temples, had an introduction to Buddhist meditation and ziplined through the jungle all just in the first week in Chiang Mai!

Our second week we flew down south to the island of Koh Tao which was my favourite part of the trip! In this week we learned about coral reef ecosystems from the incredible team at New Heaven reef conservation, scuba dove, snorkelled helped the New heaven team rebuild mooring lines and even got to see a few turtles and sharks!

These 2 weeks were jam packed with crazy experiences and opportunities, I met some amazing people, got to eat tons of delicious food and experience Thailand on a more cultural/educational level!

My adivce would be to prepare for a busy 2 weeks, try something new and maybe a bit crazy (I ate a cricket!) and make the most of Thailand, the stories and friends you make on this trip will stay with you forever!

This summer, I took the trip of a lifetime with Loop Abroad. Not only did I work hands-on with animals of all different species (sharks, sea turtles, elephants, bats, fish, water buffalo, dogs, cats, etc) I got to experience the lovely culture of Thailand. While spending my time in Chaing Mai or Koh Tao, I was immersed in extremely valuable knowledge and life lessons. The experience opened myself up to a whole new world of possibilities. The wild tropics program through Loop Abroad also confirmed I want to go to graduate school for biology!