South America

From this past September to February, I spent four and a half months volunteering with A Broader View (ABV) during my gap year. I went to Ecuador AND the Galápagos Islands, Peru, and Colombia, participated in six volunteer programs, and stayed with four amazing host families-all of whom I'm still in active contact with! I couldn't be more pleased with my volunteer experience.

I began my journey in Quito, Ecuador where I stayed for two and a half months. While there, I volunteered at both a school for children with special needs and a catholic school teaching English as a second language. Both experiences opened my eyes to educational systems abroad and to my passion for working with children. Before going to Ecuador, my Spanish was conversational with a basic grasp on grammar. After living with a host family, taking private Spanish lessons for three hours a day, and interacting with the local people, I left with an advanced intermediate understanding of the language.

Learning Spanish was a highlight of my gap year and a gift I will cherish for the rest of my life.

After Ecuador, I went to Peru where I participated in two completely different volunteer programs, both equally rewarding in their own ways. My first was in the Manu region of the jungle working on environmental conservation projects for two weeks. I lived in a group home with other volunteers and a couple who had grown up there. Living with limited electricity and no internet access was an amazing escape from the westernized world in which I have grown up. It was also incredible meeting the locals; people who had never left this tiny region of the jungle. Hearing their perspectives and stories was eye opening.

After the jungle, I spent two weeks in Cusco, Peru volunteering at an orphanage for adolescent girls and living with a host family. The girls made me laugh so much, and it was inspiring to see the family they had formed there.

After my Christmas vacation spent in the USA with my family, I ventured once again to South America! My first stop was Cartagena, Colombia. I stayed with a host family and worked at a center helping the elderly for two weeks. I loved that I got to chance to work with people of all ages from young children all the way through the elderly. Unbelievable!

After Colombia, I flew once again to Ecuador and visited my host family from the fall before continuing into the Galápagos Islands. The Galápagos were phenomenal. I could have stayed there forever; 14 days was far too short! I lived in a hotel run by a couple who works with ABV. I worked on an ecological reserve helping with turtle rescue and preservation.

I cannot recommend A Broader View enough. I never waited more than 24 hours for an email response. Not once but twice, the coordinator helped change my placement with only two weeks notice! I had incredible support both while in the USA and abroad. I was provided everything I could have needed while away: three meals a day, wifi, air conditioning, hot water, you name it!

Bottom line: the people I met along the way are the memories I will cherish most. Every host family I stayed with made a lasting impression on me and are people I will never forget and never be able to thank enough. I am a different person after the time I spent volunteering with ABV. Without their never ending support, I wouldn't be able to speak Spanish fluently. I wouldn't have realized how much passion I have for working with children. I wouldn't have experienced cultures so different from my own. I have grown more in this past four and a half months than all my years of school combined. Thank you ABV for opening my eyes to a world I would have never had the chance to discover and an entirely different part of myself!

Really a very poorly put together program. I had another child go on an API study program and was thrilled to see they had taken over an intern abroad company-until using said company.
It was obvious my daughter was being looked after by her program administrator, whom was very kind and helpful, but not by the woman in charge of the company. The woman in charge consistently gave misleading and contradicting information to my daughter and I, frustrating both of us. Many of the promises made by her were not fulfilled and it seems like my daughter is not the only one to have this disappointment based on other reviews seen on this site. Her program administrator apologized many times and we could tell it was no fault of hers, but of her management and those above her.
It's unfortunate that API would let such a poorly run program ruin their good name. I will not allow those I know to go on either an API or Cultural Embrace by API program, due to the inexcusable negligence in the leadership at CE by API. I have to say I was surprised to be so disappointed by this API program and am writing this only as a warning to other parents; choose another company.

I visited Bolivia & Peru with Quest in 2011.
It was honestly the best thing I have ever done. Although I had already studied Spanish for GCSE and A Level, the language course at the beginning was really helpful. We had varying levels of Spanish speakers in our group but we all found it as useful and enjoyable as each other.
Despite seeing some amazing sights and having exciting new experiences during the expedition part of the trip, the highlight for me was the volunteer work we did with Inti Wara Yassi. The construction work that we did was so rewarding and showed me how much I can actually do. I also worked with a Jaguar named Katie, and 3 Pumas named Inti Wara and Yassi. It was amazing get so close to them and walk them through the jungle.
Quest also helped me to learn how to travel on my own, making it possible for me to be confident enough to meet up with some friends, also in South America, after the trip was over.
I have been back from my travels for over a year now and still often think of my time out in South America. If I had the chance I would not hesitate to go again and I intended to return to South America after university.
My trip with Quest Overseas was not only an amazing experience but also taught me great life lessons. Not only do I feel more confident in myself but my friends and family tell me they can see the difference in me. I would recommend the trip to anyone!

I am currently working for Frontier as a Trail Leader on the South America Adventure Trail.
During my time in this position I have been impressed by the support offered by Frontier Headquarters. They are focused on volunteer health and safety and are always monitoring local conditions to ensure the Trail is safe. You never feel alone on the Trail, even when thousands of kilometers away!
I am also pleased with the quality and character of the volunteers. Frontier´s recruitment and interview process is extremely efficient in finding people with the necessary characteristics to handle the challenges of the Trail (passion for travel, interest in local culture, flexibility, patience and thirst for adventure).
The South America Trail includes all the main sites in the region including Machu Picchu and Bolivian Salt Flats. In addition to this the itinerary is left as flexible and the final route is up to Tail Leader and Volunteers. This is one of the main advantages this Trail has over some of its competitors. It allowed us to also visit the Amazon for 4 days and relax on the beach in Northern Peru for a few days!
Looking forward to many more experiences with Frontier in some remote corner of the world!

I recently spent three amazing months in South America with Quest Overseas. Quest provide the ultimate gap year experiences allowing you to learn a language, volunteer, travel and have lots of fun. The three month trip was comprised of three different phases and the group consisted of twelve young people aged 17-23 and 1 or 2 leaders depending on the phase. The three week language phase took place in Quito, Ecuador. We undertook 4 hours of Spanish lessons a day – a 2 hour one to one session and a 2 hour group lesson. When we were not learning Spanish we got to know each other through trips and activities in the afternoons. Activities included a trip to the equator, laser tag, salsa lessons and a treasure hunt around Quito. Each weekend we travelled out of Quito to see the rest of Ecuador including a weekend at the Cloud Forest and a fantastic weekend at the beach in Mompiche. The second phase was the project phase, a month of hardcore volunteering. We organised and ran games and holiday activities for the deprived children of Villa Maria, a large slum on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. We visited two communities a day, playing games and activities ranging from football and volleyball to jenga, colouring and painting. Each day ended with an hour in the local pool being used as human climbing frames by dozens of excited kids. Several evenings a week we would also organise Film nights where we would take a projector to one of the local communities and play a film for the children – Despicable Me seemed to be everyone’s favourite film. Every Saturday we organised a feria (fair), which involve dressing up in costumes and running a range of games where children could win sweets as prizes. Sundays saw the group put on costumes and face paints and perform group dances at the Sunday show. During our last week we swapped toys and costumes for safety gear and power tools constructing a new classroom at the Quest school. The trip ended with the awesome expedition phase. We travelled through Peru, Chile and Bolivia and finally back to Peru stopping along the way at some of South America’s most breathtaking landscapes including the Bolivian Salt Flats, the pampas, the Atacama Desert, and the Ballestas Islands . In six weeks we undertook 3 treks lasting 3 to 4 days each, as well as sandboarding, white water rafting, kayaking, ice climbing, horseriding, cycling, swimming with pink river dolphins and much more. It was an amazing and action packed three months. Quest did a great job of organising everything and ensuring that everyone had an enjoyable and safe trip. The leaders created a great balance between providing support, advice and direction and allowing us freedom and independence. The office staff provide excellent advice and support before you leave the UK and stay in contact with the leaders whilst you are abroad. It was a life changing experience that I will never forget and I recommend Quest Overseas to anyone looking to take a gap year before or after university.

I have just returned from South America having spent three months learning Spanish, working with kids and an expedition. Hands down the best continent in the world, the best organization to go with and the best experience of my life. Gutted to be home!

This Compnay over charges and does not pay any donations to the organaziation what so ever... The brothers from Nepal who own this company are only in it for the money.. they do not care about you as a participant.. although the countires you are wanting to go to all have a program coordinaotr that you can reach in the actuall country and they are less expensive and are there for the right reasons.... i would strongly recommend that you find someone else to help you with volunteering abroad....

The reason I originally chose CCS was because of the initial support and contact I had even before I had enrolled in the program. The program fee is more than other programs I looked into but the amount of support you receive before and during the program is amazing. The staff in country are local and from the area and are excellent support whether about the volunteering or even just fro a hug because you are homesick! They provide cultural activities such as language lessons, dance lessons, cooking lessons and much more which allow you to gain a great insight to the culture.
Everything is taken care of once you arrive in country which really allows you to focus on the volunteering and cultural immersion.