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This was my first time doing an overseas volunteering program and it was absolutely amazing! The placement in the school was quite nice and the students really enjoyed your company there. Although they clearly were not used to English, they put effort and they were very eager to show their culture. The hostel accommodation was very safe, clean, and the family was superbly fun! I really miss the hotpots and the delicious curry! Ayutthaya is a gorgeous city and I have plenty of time to explore it (to the point of getting a sunburn from trying to visit all the places!). I was checking the photos of took there the other day and there is none where I'm not smiling. It was my first time in Thailand and I think I never learned so much about a foreign culture as I did this time. I definitely recommend it!

I spent two weeks volunteering in the elephant village. It was extremely rewarding a lots of fun. Be prepared for physical labor and to be fully immersed in the Thai village life and culture. The local staff was great, the food we ate everyday was amazing and I just loved living so close to the elephants. Few comments: although I volunteered for 2 weeks, you were only allowed to stay in the elephant village Monday to Thursday and stayed in a volunteer house for the weekends (some people traveled on the weekends but I would have preferred to stay with the elephants), the overall crowd of the others there was very very young (teenagers to young 20s) and although I enjoyed the company of the other more mature volunteers I was not expecting such a young group. Overall, a really life changing experience - I will cherish those two weeks with the elephants for the rest of my life. Such a beautiful memory. Thailand is just lovely - I didn't meet a single person I did not like in Thailand.

I did the teaching volunteer in Ayutthaya, Thailand in December 2019. The teaching experience has been rewarding for me as I have gained my confidence in leadership skills and made an impact on the students' educational experience. My experience with accommodation and the tour was great. My teaching programme was about 2 weeks and this is efficient for me to learn about how to;
1. Lead and manage the kids aged from kindergarten to middle school (from grade 1 to 6) through effective communication strategies, while keeping the lesson engaging and
2. The importance of teaching & speech preparation before the lesson to maximise students' learning

I would recommend staying for more than 2 weeks to gain much more valuable experiences.

I did the medical volunteering in/near Surin, Thailand in November 2019 initiated through IFRE and carried out by Starfish (a UK company).
IFRE was superb in answering a lot of questions I had ahead of time and for ensuring I made the right connections with the local group. They were also diligent about checking in on me during the experience.
The Starfish support staff was awesome. They were very friendly and supportive and treated me like a family member from day 1. They were constantly checking in on us and seeing if we needed anything. The coordinator assigned to the medical team has no medical certification but through training functions at the level a Medical Assistant would in the USA. She was energetic, engaged and highly competent. I would hire her in a minute for my own clinic!
The accommodations are very basic but clean. Shared room if there are many people and shared bathroom. The guest house is near some conveniences and a short tuktuk ride away from the center of town.
The clinical activities take place in several small villages surrounding Ban Ta Kook northeast of Surin. There is a very high-functioning team of NPs and volunteers deployed to this clinic and they provide many types of screening, diagnostic and treatment activities that the volunteers support. Transportation to the Ban Ta Kook clinic and surrounding areas occurs in the bed of a pick up truck outfitted with benches and a cover. Activities include basic wound care/dressing changes, dental fluoride sealant application, blood pressure and diabetes screening, and home visits for their immobile patients.
The volunteer activity is meaningful to the local clinic I think mainly by way of providing enough manpower to efficiently do a lot of screening and to free them up from mundane wound care tasks to do other things.
The food is out of this world if you like Northern Isan-style Thai food.
Weekends are free to explore Surin or any part of Thailand (islands, Bangkok or National Parks) or Cambodia (Angkor Wat complex for example) and the staff will set up the transportation for any of these excursions including transport to Siem Reap.
If you're a physician or an NP/PA or Registered Nurse, if you don't have a Thai license you can't really be left alone to do diagnosis or treatment but their NPs are certainly happy to hear what you would do in the same situation in your country. And unless you speak fluent Thai it would be difficult anyways. Just figuring out the medical system for the remote villages, the organization and application of practice protocols and how the community cares for its members is really interesting.
I had a blast in my 2 weeks and would do it again!

You are never too old! My son, daughter, and I made this journey together from Texas. On our "Thailand Elephant "volunteering adventure we experienced the wonders of a part of the world that still believes in kindness, family, and the saving the Asian's elephants population.

Taking this journey was something I have always have wanted to do but would tell myself ... "Next year when I have more time." Now, at 60ish I did it and I will do it again. Volunteering overseas and at home is my now my passion.

We meet and made lifelong friends from all over the world.

The daily agenda always included laughter, hard work, and a kinder love for our gentle swaying giants.

Our guides in Surin, Thailand - were our favorites. Shout out to Worn and Ing!!

So, add this volunteering program to your bucket list.

Honnestly,It really felt amazing to join the medical program in Thailand. Things were mostly as mentioned in the IFRE website. The visit in Bangkok was just wonderful and khao san road is one of those places that make you smile whenever they cross your mind. Working in the clinic in suring was undeniably instructive for me. Moreover,i was given the chance to feel useful for the community wich was awesome. We helped with the wounds dressing,packing the medications,home visits,baby vaccinations... Most importantly, i appreciated how patient and warmhearted the personnel were. On weekends,our coordinators usually organize some leisure activities for those intersted. I've once went to the elephant village and it's memorable and actually the highlight of my trip. Thank you IFRE for the opportuniy you have given me to broaden my horizon.