Peru Volunteer Programs from $23/day | Most Affordable & Trusted

Traveling to Peru and working with Tarpuy Sonqo resulted in two unforgettable, humbling, educational, and incredibly enjoyable weeks and I would go as far as to say these were two of the best weeks of my life. From an extremely kind family with whom I stayed with to the medical program coordinator, everyone was always there to help if they were needed. The medical volunteering program itself exposed me to a new life. Nothing was more humbling than being able to do my part in working with the Peruvian children and seeing the smiles on their faces was more memorable than even Machu Pichu itself. I felt safe at all times and we even went on a tourism day which gave us a chance to explore Lima. I would recommend this program to anyone who is interested in traveling abroad!

My overall experience at the program was amazing. Everything was well explained and I definitely made an impact on the children. I definitely recommend knowing Spanish though because of the language barrier! I got to help out a lot in the classroom working with the children, and the teacher I was working alongside with even let me teach the children some English (animals and colors). I had a great time working and traveling and met amazing people.

Overall, if I can do this program again I would! The attitude you have is very important when teaching english is important. Especially if the kids are only 7 years old and up! Bear in mind when teaching (If you can not teach and explain the topic to someone like they are five years old then you are making it too hard!) this was a rule of thumb I tried to use when teaching and helping each student. Ensuring they understand, numbers, words, climate, landscapes, and Animals each with a simple lesson. With pictures, worksheets, games, tandem conversation, one on one practice and repetition.

Key tip if you are doing this program for over two weeks take the time to learn spanish it greatly improves the learning for the kids and your growth and experience while teaching english. I took spanish classes for a total of 3.5 weeks and the kids will help you learn spanish! Funny enough it is like an exchange or tandem conversation sometimes my Spanish greatly improved with the combination of lessons, and kids helping me. Correcting me and laughing at my broken spanish! Practicing with kids is one of the best ways to improve your spanish. You have nothing to lose they are young and only care to laugh, learn, and help you! Just like how you might find it funny when they are speaking english and say some words with a different accent. You are a team help each other get better at English and Spanish. I was very glad to have practiced spanish and if there is one additional recommendation I would try to have done more tandem conversations or one on one spanish lessons in addition to my group lessons as I have come to the final week my Spanish has really gotten stronger as a result of working with the kids and teaching English.

Be prepared do not show up to the class with no plan, I did my best to have at least 2 different lesson plans to adjust for different student groups and skill levels. Always have a back up plan because there will be days where the students are not motivated! That is alright not one person can be motivated everyday that is your job to adjust and see what makes the student more interactive. Colour worksheets, games, and getting students to write on the board really helped them. Another technique is to understand what each student may want to get out of english one of the students really enjoyed to have vocal basic conversations with me each day in English. As a result I made it a goal to have at least one full conversation in English when I saw him.

Another student she really enjoyed to write on the board. As a result she would listen to me say a topic in english or a word/number and she would be instructed to write on the board. This helped with her listening, communication, and writing skills in english. If you can find the benefit and reason the students want to learn you will do great!

Go out, explore, talk to the locals and embrace the chance to be here. I loved the kids, local life and hiking of course the food was great!

For as long as I could remember I had wanted to explore the Amazon. In 2017, with the help of IVHQ, I did just that. The experience was a highlight of my travels and something I will never forget.

We were an hour's boat ride from the nearest town, with limited electricity and no cell coverage or WiFi. The Rio Madres de Dios provided us with a means of showering, and our diet relied almost solely on non perishable foods. It was remote, basic and awesome.

For the reasons listed above, there was plenty of time for cards, board games and banter amongst the volunteers. By the end of the two weeks I'd made a lot of cool and interesting new friends, some of whom I caught up with again later in my travels.

The volunteering was interesting, valuable and at times challenging. Helping to develop an agroforestry plot, night time reptile monitoring missions, cutting jungle tracks and more; it was definitely varied.

What I'll remember most though, is the pure thrill and excitement of being in the Amazon. Wading at chest depth through Aguajales, keeping an eye out for anacondas. Paddling though caiman filled lakes in a leaking canoe. Discovering a tarantula crawling on my boots just as I'm about to put them on.

A unique experience such as this is probably best suited to a unique type of person, but don't be too put off, it's not all snakes and spiders. Just make sure you bring a head torch!

Jungle Experience of a life time!!!

I volunteered for 2 weeks in the Peruvian Amazon, 1 hour down the Madre De Dios river from the small town of Puerto Maldonado. It was an unbelievable experiences, and couldn't recommend it anymore.

We spent our days cutting tracks, performing plant transplant, reptile monitoring and at nights we hunted for snakes in the jungle and camen on the river. For a man who isn't a fan of snakes I managed to wrap one around my neck and remove trees in an anaconda riddled swamp on the second day. Not only did the experience test my fears and introduced me to fantastic people from around the world , it also gave me the opportunity to contribute the sustainability of the sanctuary, benefiting the local community.

IVHQ were excellent from the start to the finish, ensuring everything went smoothly and helped with every question asked. Big shout out to Clover from IVHQ, you were a big help!!

I went to Cusco in June-July, for 5 weeks! I voluntered 3 weeks in a school with kids and 2 weeks in the zoo of the University. Both of programs was so much fun ! Just a little warning : dont accept the food at the school , the kid and the teacher can put some pression but it's important to say NO! I said yes and i've made an indigestion 2 hours after, for 5 days... nice ! Aditionnaly, the staff is really amazing and always there if you need help! My host-family was really cool and we were 13 volunteers in the same house , so its easy to make activity with them during the evening! In perou, I've discover some wonderful people, amazing places, good food and a different culture! My best memories was to visit Plaza del Armas, the Macchu Picchu, rainbow mountain, Moray, salt mines and the lake Titicaca during the weekend. The organisation American Inca Trail is a great staff to organize your tours! Finally, Just do it !

I was truly blessed to have had the opportunity to volunteer for 2 weeks in Lima with IVHQ. We partnered with a local organization called, "TarpuySonqo" and my particular project entailed organizing lesson plans and activities for teenage girls (aged 12-18) who were either victims of rape, abuse, prostitution and/or involved in petty crime. Some of these girls were pregnant or had young children, so we not only got a chance to interact with them but also their infants. It was such a pleasure volunteering at this site each day because despite their individual circumstances, you felt genuine warmth and love from each teenage girl, their babies, as well as the entire staff (i.e. psychologists, cooks, gatekeepers etc).
If you enjoy mingling and meeting new people then the homestay is a great fit for you. I got to meet fellow volunteers from all over the world and not only did friendships develop but we got to plan and go on weekend excursions together.
My only suggestions are 1) If you want to improve your Spanish be proactive, step outside of your comfort zone and speak Spanish to anyone you come across (hosts, cooks, cleaners, local coordinators etc) because it's easy to resort to English with your fellow volunteers 2) When booking your plane ticket give yourself a few extra days in the country (post-volunteering) to account for bigger excursions (i.e. Machu Picchu etc) 3) If you're able to, consider volunteering for 2 weeks or more in order to build a solid foundation and have a greater impact at your placement site.

My trip was amazing and very life meaningful. Not only did the employees and host family make sure I was comfortable at my host house the staff was unbelievably helpful and useful. I Met some amazing people on the way and helped the community as a whole instead of small issues and it was such an amazing experience to be able to be apart off. The program was very safe and effective and put the money paid to very good use such as anything the program may require or need.