Most Affordable & Trusted Volunteer Programs in Vietnam from $275

I had a wonderful experience volunteering with IVHQ for the medical program in Ho Chi Minh City.

Pros: Incredible local team support, organized daily schedules, fun activities in the city, meaningful volunteer work, wonderful learning experience, hands on, made great friends

Cons: Accommodation wasn't very nice, a little dirty/messy, Ho Chi Minh is a busy busy city so be prepared for chaos, some days could be a little boring while working in the hospital, very very hot (thankfully the accommodation has AC so you can cool off in the evenings)

I would do the program again, definitely, and I did realize that the longer I stayed, the better it got. With an authentic program like this, it takes time to assimilate to the culture, the food, the hospital or whichever placement you are on, and once you're in the grove, you start to make connections and really enjoy your time! I highly recommend!

My returning trip to Vietnam was an amazing experience. As a prior volunteer, I was excited to work hands on with fellow volunteers and staff. The doctors and nurses were very friendly and happy to answer my questions. I learned more from the different departments of the hospital than last year. My volunteer friends were one of the main highlights of my IVHQ trip because we got to experience the culture and work together. Even though I was able to communicate to the doctors and patients in Vietnamese, I learned that laughter has no language barrier. Overall, I am thankful for another opportunity to volunteer with IVHQ! I would recommend this program for anyone interested in helping the community, learning new culture and meeting new people!

Wow! IVHQ was an amazing program and they really prepared me for my time abroad. The programs were reasonably priced (unlike some of their competitors!) Everything was included as well, which definitely eased some of my worries before the trip. There were very clear instructions leading up to my trip and they were very receptive to feedback. The hosting program made sure everyday that we had no issues and they were more than happy to help us if there were. The staff was amazing as was the food and the total atmosphere. They took a scary experience (going on your own to a foreign country) and turned it into an
experience of a lifetime. I met a family there and it was very sad to end my trip but I can’t wait to go on more. I completely recommend this program as they really care about not only the volunteers but the countries in which they are located! Thank you IVHQ!

Simply an amazing experience! I was only in Vietnam for two weeks, but I worked with so many amazing volunteers and staff members and saw so many beautiful areas in and around the city. The program coordinators here are amazing! Not only are they good at their jobs, providing safe, meaningful volunteer opportunities, but they also are great people to spend time with and get to know. I had high expectations coming into the program, but IVHQ and Green Lion still managed to exceed those expectations! I will definitely be traveling with them again in the future. :)

For the medical placement specifically, just come in with an open mind ready to observe. I learned a lot just from watching the doctors, nurses, and therapists. I even got to watch a couple of surgeries which were very interesting!

Before this opportunity, I already have a lot of experience working with disability groups and with children by being a Community Support Work at Saskatchewan Abilities Council, and I really enjoyed the work I did with them. This volunteer trip was a great experience to see the differences in mental health support between developed countries and developing countries. It gave me a better picture of how I can utilize my skills to support diverse groups. I was surprising that there is so many skills I used at work are from my study at school. This industry is for sure a place of interest for me in the future.
Overall, I enjoyed this experience very much. First, this hospital is way more organized than I thought, due to language barrier, the hospital specifically signed coordinators who speak English to work with us. Second, I was able to walk out of my comfort zone to work at a developing environment. Most importantly, I was able to use the skills and knowledge I so far learned at school at real work place, it made me enjoy the program at school more and made me more certain that this is the area I want to study and work for in the future. I learned so much from this trip.

Overall, it was a pleasant experience. The local staff and my IVHQ support was great. The program itself Food Outreach did not met my expectations. The local team doesn't have its own budget for this project so they have partnered with another local organisation that is running a soup kitchen. We were there just to give them a hand on whatever it is, that was needed and mostly spent our time cleaning and scrubbing walls. All other programs I heard was good. The local team was very supportive though with everything. Food and accommodation was good. The coordinator and their manager was excellent and will do everything for you to help in whatever issues you might have. I shall surely do it again with them but maybe on a different program. Overall... good.

I am beyond impressed by IVHQ and their service to organizing and assisting international volunteers. Many aspects drew me to IVHQ including there being no application fee, the variety of programs, and the reasonable fees. There are so many destinations through IVHQ, just about anywhere you would want to travel has a volunteer program! I attended the 2-week program in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and volunteered with the medical project. This program was the most popular in my volunteer group, for good reason. Working in the rehabilitative hospital was an amazing opportunity for me as a Kinesiology undergraduate student. The hospital staff was kind, informative, and appreciative of the IVHQ volunteers. We were challenged on a daily basis, and constantly learning so many new things about the healthcare system in Vietnam. The daily routine of waking up around 7:00 am and returning to our accommodation around 4:00 pm made for long volunteer days, but they were worth all of the time spent. The accommodation was comfortable, the food offered was delicious, and the facilities were both clean and well functioning. Overall, this trip was a great time and the staff of IVHQ did an amazing job at facilitating this positive volunteer experience for me.

This was a great experience! I was a part of the "Teaching English" program in Vietnam and I learned so much. The local team was very accommodating and the people I met will be friends I will have for the rest of my life. The people in Vietnam are some of the most welcoming and kind people I've ever met. People would say hi to me on the streets and ask if they could practice their English with me on the bus! I had the opportunity to travel on the weekends and found some of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. I recommend the waterfalls in Da Lat, walking at night in Hoi An, kayaking through Ninh Binh, going to as many pagodas as possible, taking a cruise in Ha Long Bay, and seeing the floating market on the Mekong Delta!
I highly recommend Vietnam!!

Honestly one of the best things I have EVER done. My time with IVHQ was the perfect blend of travel, service, experience, and relationship building. 10/10 would recommend. I loved every minute of my time in the hospital, whether it was in surgery, or doing wound care, or interacting with patients. I had ample free time to travel with new friends, and I think I made the right decision to come alone - I met so many cool people! I would recommend going longer that a week, longer than two even, if you can manage it. The most rewarding component of the trip was the knowledge that I had really gotten to know Ho Chi Minh City and establish real relationships. I would also recommend utilizing all the resources that IVHQ offers, they helped us plan some cool things last minute because of their connections - they usually know what they're talking about. Very worth the cost, although I did do the Vietnam program which is a more affordable one.

The volunteering trip was super rewarding as I was able to meet some amazing people from around the world and share the experience with working with the local team who were all so helpful and kind. Everything from the process of booking the trip as well as the actual organisation when arriving in vietnam was so easy and quick, as well as the accommodation being super clean and tidy. Everything was well planned plus allowed us to have time to explore the city for ourselves with the help of the team giving us advice on places to visit and the best ways to travel to places. The placement options were diverse, and having done the food outreach it was well established for volunteers to work and interact with the locals. I would definitely recommend IVHQ as it truly gave a very rewarding and memorable experience.

I recently volunteered teaching English in Ho Chi Min City..the city itself is such an experience, the heat, the smells, the motorbikes! What I enjoyed most about the volunteering is being involved with the local people, helping them learn English, making an effort myself to speak the language (and practice it on the helpful and lovely local cafe staff, students and volunteer co-ordinators, I think they had more fun than we did helping us speak the language), meeting fellow volunteers from all over the world and the supportive environment of the local co-ordinators. I did get sick while I was there and the Program Co-ordinator and the kitchen staff were so lovely in providing me with ginger tea and food that would help me. I was hesitant at first about taking the leap due to my age, not being in my 20's or 30's anymore, however, there were a number of volunteers my age and older as well as many volunteers in their 20's, so I needn't have worried. All up, a good experience and the culture week element is helpful and worth doing.

I really wanted to start volunteering and didn't know how to go about it. To try and find a good program and company that I could do it through was challenging. I had heard through a friend that a few years ago she had Volunteered through IVHQ and even after looking them up and reading the amazing reviews, I was still a little hesitant.
My volunteer program was in Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh) and it was nothing short but amazing.
Helping out with children who had disabilities and providing them support every single day for 2 weeks was such a rewarding experience. Just to see the smile you put on their faces was more than enough.
I've met some amazing people and have made new friends through this experience!!

Volunteering in Vietnam has been an incredible experience. Vietnamese people are joyful, kind and welcoming and Vietnam is a wonderful country. The food and the accommodation were very good. I met such amazing people and even if I was there only for a few weeks I felt I've known them for years. The medical program gave me the chance to see for myself how different the vietnamese health system is from my country's, and I think this knowledge and experience will help me in my future career.

I absolutely loved working with IVHQ and the leaders of my program throughout my 3 weeks in Vietnam. The program directors and our mentors were so helpful and really made the experience unforgettable. They were amazing teachers, role models, and friends during the entire journey and I am so thankful for them because the trip would not have been the same without them. I especially loved working with the special needs children at the daycare because that was an experience I have never had before. Working with them was truly life changing and I am already taking steps to travel back with IVHQ so I can make a further impact.

During my four week stay in Ho Chi Minh with IVHQ I had such a fantastic time. The staff there, run by the organisation The Green Lion, were very welcoming, helpful and approachable with regards to any problems or questions we had. Accomodation was clean and comfortable and culture week was both great for settling in and learning some history of the country/city. As for the volunteering side, the program I participated in was ‘Food Outreach’ it is fun, fast paced and hard, dirty work. More time is spent setting up and cleaning as apposed to preparation of any food. Although if you have precious cooking experience you are able to help with the preparation a lot more. Overall, I would not have changed my experience at all. I loved every minute of it and will remember my experience forever. I highly recommend IVHQ and volunteering overseas. A life changing experience.