Tanzania Volunteer Programs from $24/day | Most Affordable & Trusted

When I arrived in Tanzania I was unsure of what to expect. I was very nervous, as this was my first time overseas. When I arrived the local staff was incredibly helpful supportive and ready to help me feel comfortable and succeed in Tanzania. My first day at placement , I was again nervous, but the support of the fellow volunteers as well as the local staff eased my worries. My time in Tanzania was beyond words. When people ask me how was your trip I honestly am at a loss for words on how to respond. I know that I made a difference in the lives of the women who rely on IV HQ and TVE, however it's beyond true when they say you get more than you give. Tanzania showed me a side of people that I've never experienced before. The amount of kindness and love that I felt was overwhelming. I will forever be grateful for the lessons Tanzania taught me and for the beautiful people I met there. They will forever be a part of me and will definitely influence my life forever. Asante sana

Going to tanzania with IVHQ I had the chance to meet a bunch of amazing people, at my house, at my placement, doing activities, in the streets, everywhere. I met people that made the biggest impact in my life. Not only we would go at the orphanage during the day, but we had the chance to go hang out with street kids at night with the IVHQ staff connections. We learned about their everyday life, got to know them and helped them as simply as buying them and talking to them. Kelvin, one of these guys litteraly changed my life by my way to see things. They don't have an easy life and we already knew that. But seing it with your own eyes, realising that you could help him long term simply by doing one less thing back home. I had to. A friend and I brought him to the hospital after he got burned by oil sleeping in the street, and after seing him in his hospital bed there were no way he would go back sleeping in the streets.
I didn't meet Kelvin through the program, but the program helped me being comfortable enough in this country to want to help more, to make me see how much these people deserve it.

The summer I volunteered will forever be one that I will keep close to heart. Deciding to open myself to adventure and to the world, I signed myself up with IVHQ to volunteer in Tanzania, Africa for three weeks. For six months, I was slowly counting down the days with hopeful anticipation to what awaited for me to experience across the globe. Once I had finally arrived and started to work in the orphanage, I felt so happy and blessed to be able to help and give back to the community. At my placement, I would play with the children aged between four to six and teach alongside the teacher with basic english and arithmetics. The children were so happy even though they had so little and consequently, they became my teachers. They had taught me a valuable life lesson : happiness is not found in the material world, but through your experiences with the world around you.

Tanzania will change you.
Tanzania will push your limits.
Tanzania will help you grow.
I have hundreds of stories but Im going to narrow it down to just a few moments that were worth the trip.
Day 1 I gave the teacher enough rice and beans for a month and she fed all her students and she found their starving parents from down the street. Back home I would of spent that money on one sit down dinner.

Day 8 One child had shoes 3 sizes to small I took 5 dollars and bought her her first new pair of shoes. She had the biggest smile Ive ever seen.

Day 15 Ususally only 3 of 28 kids have food to eat at lunch. We brought in chocolate. best day ever for those 6-8 year old beauties.

Every beginning is tough. I headed for Tanzania with time on hand, an open mind, a craving for new experiences and a desire to contribute where I can.

I could tell you about my time as a volunteer teacher for a third grade class at an orphanage in Arusha, Tanzania; I could talk about my majestic journey on safari in the Serengeti; or I could tell the tale of how I struggled to haul my arse (excuse my french) up Mt Kilimanjaro for 6 days. But you would probably find similar stories from others. I'm going to talk about the unique experience I made being part of the volunteer house, Twiga house (Swahili for giraffe) in Arusha.

When I first got to the Twiga house, everyone was sick with food poisoning and a water-born parasite known as Amebas, lying spread across the living room watching 50 shades of grey. Yes, I know. It was a pretty picture. I was one of only 4 boys in the house and for me that was great, since there was about 13 girls there. Oh yeah.

After settling in to the house in the following days, everyone started to recover and gain some spirit. What I noticed straight away, was that this group was very much like a family and the dynamics were very open with individuals from all over the world. I started to bond with the group. A girl caught my eye and we hit it off from the start, despite her spending most of her days sick, crying on the toilet from sheer desperation and sickness. Oh yeah.

The next few weeks, as I fell in love with the country of Tanzania the individuals in the house and a young girl, I began to change my views on life and what matters most to me. The longer I removed myself from the hustle and bustle of day-to-day life back home, the more I felt free from the shackles of western society. I began to believe in people making a difference. Seeing kids smile even though they have absolutely nothing to hold onto in their lives gave me a sense of hope. It not only changed my perspectives but opened me up to grow as an individual.

Having spent nine weeks in Tanzania, I left with no money in my pocket, my mind blown from the unique experience, a growing thirst for further travel and a one-way plane ticket to my new girlfriend in Canada, whom I met in Tanzania. Oh yeah, you guessed it. That sick girl who spent our first three days on the toilet. She's a keeper.

While taking the Dala to my volunteer placement, The Charity School, I was looking out the window to see something that would summarize Tanzania in a nut-shell. I saw a man running to help a women and her young child carry their bags/groceries. Every one in Tanzania was happy, smiling, and would go out of their way to say hello. The atmosphere, the culture, is one that emphasizes togetherness, collective, and sharing.

I would head back right this moment if I could. While in Tanzania I met the most incredible people, every day was a new adventure. I think about the children and the other volunteers that I met almost everyday. One weekend we went to the hot springs, on our way our "tuk tuk" got stuck in the mud various times and popped a few tires (to say the least), so we had to stop off in a near by village for a while. During our stay we conversed with locals, played with the kids, and forgot about the fact that we were headed somewhere. The entire trip was so inspiring and enjoyable that it made me want to run on "Africa time" forever!

When I first decided to begin my travels abroad, I dove right in and chose to go to Tanzania, Africa. Thanks to the endless support from the staff (both local and international) this trip was easily the most memorable period in my life. My work in a rural preschool felt valued by the local teachers and the children were thrilled and eager to learn everyday. I also met some lifelong friends, which always makes travel and volunteering an even more exciting experience.

Anybody looking for a once in a lifetime trip, check out IVHQ!