GIVE Volunteers Avis 

My experiences with GIVE have truly changed my life forever. I first participated in the Southeast Asia programs in Thailand and Laos where I had such an impactful and self-transformative experience that I went on two more trips with GIVE - Tanzania and the WILD PNW trip! GIVE introduced me into the world of sustainable travel and I was hooked immediately. Whether this is your first time traveling or you’ve been doing it for years - GIVE opens up so many doors and opportunities to immerse yourself in new cultures and make lifelong connections. These trips inspire you to become the best version of yourself and you truly gain extended family all around the world.

Now 5 years after my first trip, I’ve gained my TEFL certification to teach English internationally and have become more empowered than ever to be the solo female traveler I've always dreamed of! If you are on the fence, just take the leap and say YES!!!!

Everything about this trip was better than I could ever imagine. From the guides to the locals to my fellow travelers this trip exceeded all of my expectations. I had the best time and would do the whole trip over from the beginning if I could. Thank you Chiang Mai and thank you Give!

Being my first trip with GIVE, I was extremely nervous about what the experience would be like. When I had arrived in Costa Rica with the rest of my group, I immediately felt welcomed by all of the GIVE staff and fellow trip goers. When our group arrived at our first volunteer location, it was hard work but also very fulfiling. I left that trip with over twenty new friends and some incredible memories. I highly recomend using GIVE to see the world and give back as well.

I can’t even put my trip to Tanzania into words. It was the most inspiring and incredible trip I have ever done. I have never traveled outside the States and this is by far the best choice I have ever made. Waking up in the village of Kairo with amazing volunteers, the kindest staff, and locals was rewarding enough. I highly recommend this trip and traveling with a purpose. Nothing was better than teaching the local women English, having dance parties, swimming in the Indian Ocean, exploring the island of Zanzibar, and traveling on the mainland on a boat and jeep safari. If you're looking for a sign to be spontaneous and travel without knowing anyone, take this as your sign! I can’t wait for my next GIVE trip!!!!

I can not even put the words together to justify how amazing this opportunity was. I went into it without very many expectations and I was blown away. I learned so much about the company, such a wonderful organization truly working out of kindness with only the best intentions for the people and communities they are serving. I was able to see firsthand how the company works to provide not only service but also jobs and knowledge to the communities they work with. The guides are amazing people inside and out and I could see how much of a community is built by the long relationships between give, the volunteers, and the local community members. I will definitely be taking another trip with Give!

This was one of the most amazing experience of my life. I traveled to Hawaii and spent 9 day immersed in the culture. I met some amazing people and got to help out with local non - profits and communities. I would recommend to anyone to go on any trip with GIVE.

I have been lucky enough to travel independently but when I began searching for a company to help me volunteer & travel sustainably no one else came close to GIVE! I was shocked at not only all they offer/provide within the trip itself but how much they genuinely cared about my experience leading up t my departure. From my first phone call with the office, who had the patience to answer every question I had, to the moment I touched down in Thailand & Laos I was supported, heard, and truly taken care of.

GIVE puts so much love and time into creating trips that actually support and empower the communities they travel to and it shows when you're working alongside the actual leaders and students of the communities who welcome us with open arms. I have never felt such a profound amount of love from people I didn't even know. My guides, students, and fellow travelers have impacted my life for the better and they will forever be in my heart.

What a life changing experience!!! The guides were not only well-informed, but also incredibly warm and welcoming. Their commitment to providing a top-quality experience was evident in every aspect of their service. Their love for what they do is evident, and it made my experience truly unforgettable.

I went on this trip to give back to a community that gave a lot to me. I grew up in the Lao community my whole life so I'm very familiar with their culture. Some GIVE volunteer guides could have benefitted from learning the culture beforehand. One moment that really disappointed me on this trip was that one of the GIVE volunteer guides used a racial slur to describe the students we would be teaching. This slur has not only been used to describe Lao people, but all Southeast Asians, which is what I am, and took great offense to this. Due to this, I will not be going on another GIVE trip.

What an incredible experience!

Habari Marafiki! 🇹🇿

A year ago, I encountered a bright green flier with the words “GIVE” in bold while sitting in my math class at Illinois State University. Feeling reverse culture shock after a transformative first semester of college living in Costa Rica, I can’t explain the happiness I felt when I saw this bright green opportunity in front of me. I now realize these moments we encounter, when our heart beats, our smile grows, and our minds turn their gears, are signs of a manifestation awaiting our presence. ✨

“If you have YOUR WILL, you’ll find YOUR WAY”. 🗺

This summer, I was blessed to travel to Africa, the motherland, for the first time, volunteer as an English teacher to a hardworking Masai tribe, sweat with the construction crew as we built cement pavements for the Yakairo GIVE primary school in Zanzibar, Tanzania, and go on insightful excursions: safari, swimming with dolphins, visiting the original slave market and museum in Stone town.

“Travel is not a place outside of reality, but into reality”. - Professor Kent, Suny Cortland, Ecotourism Course 🌏

Thank you GIVE (Growth International Volunteer Excursions) and the family of Kairo for touching me deeply with your smiles, your laughter, your dreams, your pole pole “slowly slowly” and hakuna matata “no worries” lifestyle. Above all, thank you for sharing your abundant love and care, without hesitation of giving me the shoes off your feet or a warm meal inside of your home. Thank you GIVE guides, volunteers, teachers, chefs, and the many helping hands that continue to help build our community up from its roots. 🌳

“Thank you again for supporting my beautiful village of Kario, it misses you all very much”. - Baboi, GIVE Tanzania Guide ❤️

I cannot describe how this GIVE trip to Thailand benefited me with words. This was truly an experience that I will never forget. The activities were organized so perfectly - I truly feel like I got to see and experience so much of Krabi's breathtaking landscape and joyful culture. My group's guides were so helpful, encouraging, knowledgable, passionate, and personable. I am so thankful that I was given the opportunity to engage with Krabi's incredible people - some of the happiest and most sincere people I have ever met. I will never forget any of them! And of course the scuba diving was absolutely phenomenal, and the organizations that helped us get dive certified, rock climb, kayak, snorkel, and so much more - like Fast Manta, Shark Guardian, and Nature Minded - were so kind, patient, and overall WONDERFUL! Thank you so much GIVE!!! My fellow travelers and I are already planning on all doing another GIVE trip together! I learned so much during this trip and gained such a heightened appreciation for cultures outside of my own, and I am so excited to hopefully experience others soon!

Such an amazing experience. While the country of Thailand was STUNNING, our guides, locals, and the other volunteers made the trip! Have never met a more warm, loving, and welcoming group of people in my life. All the locals and guides have such big hearts and are so kind to share all of their knowledge with us. I have learned so much about myself and how to care and cultivate a rich life- forever grateful

GIVE is an absolutely incredible organization and you would be silly to chose anyone else. When you travel with GIVE you are fully immersed in the culture, you live and feel like a local. With GIVE you get experiences like no other tourist will ever get, you get to do good by volunteering in your host communities while having fun too! I was transformed by my time in Southeast Asia with GIVE, I got to experience a culture completely different from the one I was raised in a safe and meaningful way. When traveling I became apart of the communities we were volunteering in and I felt like I was family to these communities that had only known me for a few days to weeks and it was so wonderful. GIVE has opened my minded to a whole new world of possibilities, they have shown me through a number of experiences how amazing it can feel going outside your comfort zone - it is there that life truly begins! I urge you if you are unsure or on the edge about traveling with GIVE just do it, take that leap of faith, it will be the best decision you ever make!

This trip was perfect in absolutely every aspect, it was more than I ever expected it to be! They planned out every second of our time and are so organized with each thing we had to do with and amazing timely manner. Each day was filled with new adventures and I enjoyed the layout of the itinerary because it had several exciting experiences for us, but it also provided us with some downtime to relax and reflect on the activities we do and teachings we learn. The guides were one of the best parts of being on this trip because they made each moment special and memorable while also feeding us so much information about their local culture! It was the best part of my life and I would do this time and time again!!!

I spent 2 weeks in the beautiful village of Kairo on the island of Zanzibar. From teaching the awesome Maasai Tribe to mixing concrete to make pathways for the students (with dance breaks of course) I have made memories that I will cherish forever. This was my second trip with GIVE and this program will always be my favorite to travel with. From the locals to my fellow volunteers, I ended my trip with a family who I can always count on. If you are on the fence about booking a trip, I urge you to just go for it. It may seem scary but I promise you, that you will have the best time of your life. You will be accepted for who you are as a person and loved for it.

It was the first real time I put myself into an unknown situation, let myself really have an adventure without holding back. Everything was a new experience and I'll treasure it forever.

The leaders were absolutely amazing! They never failed to make me feel comfortable and safe! The whole trip was incredible! I experienced things I never would have dreamed of doing, and it was better than the dream! They made it so easy to plan and follow through, and always gave us all the information for day to day. 100/10 experience would highly recommend!

This trip was one of the best things I have done in my life. I had such an incredible time in Tanzania. The guides, both American and Zanzibarian, were friendly, knowledgeable, and easy to talk to. I learned so much! I love that GIVE actually talks to and works with the places that they send volunteers to so that we can best help the people with what they actually want and need, and we take the lead from them in terms of projects and work. Definitely was worth the money that I spent on the trip, and I think that everyone would be better off if they could go on a GIVE trip at least once.

GIVE gave me such an unforgettable experience that I will always cherish. I went on the Hawaii trip and I can’t explain how lucky I was to be able to experience the beautiful culture there as well as make life long friends. Not only did I learn how important it is to travel sustainably, but l also learned the importance of preserving Hawaiian culture. Getting to hear the amazing stories and experiences from the local natives brought so much more meaning to the projects we were working on. Getting to go through this journey with such amazing, like-minded people really made this trip so memorable. Honestly this was the best decision ever and I can’t wait to go on my next GIVE trip!