Sri Lanka Volunteer Programs from $27/day | Most Affordable & Trusted

I signed up for a 2-week project with IVHQ doing rural community development work in Sri Lanka.

It was truly a rewarding experience where I got to:
1) learn about the local culture (via the comprehensive orientation week) and
2) give back to the local community (via volunteering at the local pre-school)

From the get go, the volunteers were treated very well. Transportation was arranged accordingly to get me to Kandy from Colombo Airport. Accommodation and meals were provided and a Project Liaison Officer was assigned to each volunteer to ensure our utmost safety.

Depending on the duration of your volunteer, you may find yourself wanting to achieve more but unable to due to limited time. And this may cause you to feel dissatisfied. My urge to volunteers is to ensure you go through the programme guide thoroughly and to take the recommended online courses as it will help you better manage your expectations to avoid any dissatisfaction or disappointments.

Lastly, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to IVHQ, Green Lion & the people of Sri Lanka for making my experience such a rewarding one!

I loved it so much. If you want some friends for life and make a difference, go here. I ended up getting a few new best friends (volunteers ánd coordinators) while doing my projects. They gave the option to do more then one project once you arrive so I did the thing I wanted to do anyway, which was temple renovation, and taught some village kids some english. The teaching was quite a challenge since you have to prepare your own lessons, but it was fun as well.

Through volunteering with IVHQ, I was able to understand Sri Lanka as a country, rather than just a tourist attraction. From playing volleyball with locals, to leading a class of English to young monks; these were experiences I would never have come across as a traditional tourist. Travelling in general helps a person change their outlook on life but volunteering while travelling does so much more. More than just gaining new experiences for yourself, the impact you have on the locals through sharing knowledge and goodwill really does come through and the love they give back is what volunteering is all about. Beyond the project itself, the friendly and like-minded volunteers I came across made the whole experience worthwhile. After arriving in Sri Lanka on my own, I left having made friends with some of the nicest people around from all over the world. It’s amazing how far a little kindness and love can go, because after all everyone smiles in the same language :)

The volunteer experience in Sir Lanka is really a precious treasure in life. The program i attend is called "Teaching", including different forms. What I have tried is Special Needs, we came to a place which is similar to church, managed by nun. we offered the help to these disabled children and adults, including teaching and nursing. every morning, all volunteers will stay together to pray, we learned the sentences from Bible with the background of soft music, it is really amazing. We have learned a lot, such as the right attitude towards our own life and these people who in trouble. I have attended the 'hope' and 'peace' group and I really gain a lot of meaningful things. These people rely on me and I am so pleasured to be with them. Also, all volunteers here are good, we worked like a group. help each other. i am so appreciate to have a such a wonderful volunteer opportunity.

I had absolutely no idea what to expect as I was stepping off the airplane Sri Lanka. I had done a lot of research as it was my first time traveling alone and I am really happy that I choose to go via IVHQ. From the airport pickup to my taxi ride back to the airport three weeks later I feel like I was constantly supported by the local staff. Everyone was incredibly friendly and helpful, always willing to answer any questions I had.

There were a number of projects available in Sri Lanka, but I chose to spend my three weeks in Dambulla and loved every second. Despite feeling very nervous at first, the project coordinators helped me feel very comfortable and at home. The accommodation was very clean, the food was delicious, and the coordinators were some of the nicest people I’ve met. Auntie (who prepared our food) was also very sweet, she was always willing to teach us how to cook and plant. We were also able to partake in yoga lessons every morning.

Volunteering in the temple and in the pre-school was a very rewarding and I feel like I learned a lot. I was able to paint a classroom and parts of a temple, clean, teach some English, and lay bricks. I feel like I learned a lot about the role of religion in daily life and about different cultural traditions. Living with locals allowed me to try very authentic food and being in a non-touristy area allowed me to really immerse in local culture. IVHQ offers a great project for a very affordable price. It was a very humbling experience. I made very meaningful connections with both the locals and other volunteers and was able to challenge myself both physically and mentally in ways that I had never expected.

Through IVHQ I was able to meet awesome volunteers from all over the world. Great support from IVHQ staffs since the enrollment and during the project period. IVHQ is a big volunteer organiztion so it is well organized and many interesting projects are available. I am intested in visiting another destination through IVHQ.

The city Kandy was cool place to stay where authentic Sri Lankan lifestyle and strong buddism culture remains. I did the teaching for pre school kids and monks. There were texts available but every lesson kids were different in terms of age and English level so it was challenging to decide what to teach while the class in going on. But I really enjoyed it and it was what I was expecting!!

During the month of may 2018 I went to Sri lanka to participate in IVHQ's volunteering program. This was my first time traveling alone. IVHQ gave me that opportunity to travel alone and made sure I never felt unsafe.

With IVHQ you can decide at the moment itself what kind of program you want to do, and also you can switch right before the program starts if the program is not a good fit. I switched at the last moment, and it was the best decission I could have made. The switch I made was from rural development to the elephant experience. I don't think many people can say they have been on a stroll with an elephant. Especially with that program I felt like I was making a difference, I actually helped. We fed the elephant and cleaned it. The elephant was rescued out of the jungle where she was forced to do hard labour. Because of that she is not unable to ever live outside of captivity.

IVHQ gives you a very good value for money, you don't pay that much, but then again it's not very luxerous either. Not that you need much more than they offered. I really liked going back to the basics. Sleeping in bunkbeds, eating local food and not having wifi. You we're really away from where you live, but you also felt like you we're at home. Most of the volunteers are really openminded which is great for making new friends.

I would/ and already did/ recommend volunteering with IVHQ to everyone. It was an amazing experience and I can't wait to do another volunteer program.

I recently got back from a volunteer trip to Sri Lanka through IVHQ. I would definitely recommend this to anyone. As an older (than the average volunteer) person I was slightly anxious about safety, but I admit that from the moment I was met at the airport I felt well supported. The program was extensive and I was able to mix and match my projects. The people were great and I had an amazing experience while feeling that I had contributed to helping some vulnerable children.