GIVE is literally an acronym for Growth International Volunteer Excursions and their motto is, “travel with a purpose”. Little did I know that this would be the best volunteer organization for newcomers! And yes, their motto is the first thing I noticed, haha! So far, I have been on two trips in Tanzania and Thailand.
My Africa group and I in our symbolic GIVE shirts! Featuring children of Kairo village!
How I discovered what is now the best volunteer organization
I discovered GIVE Volunteers in 2019 during my freshman year of college when I saw two recruiters painting a rock green with the slogan “travel with a purpose.” Intrigued, I approached them to learn more about it.
One recruiter was the lead guide for the Laos trip, and the other for Tanzania. They excitedly detailed GIVE’s mission, volunteer locations, and projects, while also asking me questions about myself.
Fittingly, they were the most enthusiastic recruiters I’ve ever encountered! I was utterly captivated by the organization and its glowing reviews describing experiences as “life-changing” and “worth the money.” The excitement was so palpable that I almost signed up for the Tanzania trip just two days after discovering GIVE! Alas, my parents weren’t ready to let me embark on this journey overseas, but in hindsight, I’m grateful, as that summer turned out to be during the COVID crisis!
The recruiters for GIVE Volunteers mentioned a safari as part of the Tanzania trip!
I waited nearly two years to register for the Tanzania trip, one of my most exciting announcements. I hadn’t flown overseas since 2015, so it would be quite an adventure. GIVE creates a volunteer profile for registrants, and your deposit is good for life, allowing easy transfer to another date if needed.
Before the Trip
GIVE cares about their volunteers and offers to guide them through planning their trip, and gives them to-do lists and deadlines in their volunteer profile.
They have flight partners that assist volunteers in booking their flights. The partners also do all the work for them in the case that the flight is delayed, canceled, and/or changed.
They arrange for volunteers booking through the flight partner to meet during layovers and fly to the volunteer location together.
I signed up through partners for my Tanzania trip because I felt uncomfortable booking alone. I was glad I did, as I met several other volunteers during our layover in Qatar.
The next year, I used a partner for my Thailand trip as well and flew from Taipei to Chiang Mai with a couple of volunteers as well. The flight system is just the start of why GIVE is the best volunteer organization!
We also did a passport photoshoot in Qatar!
The volunteer profile allows volunteers to upload required documents and purchase travel insurance easily by following their instructions. GIVE also provides instructions for obtaining a visa if required for your location. When I applied for a Tanzania visa, I just followed the provided link and copied the information, leading to my approval days later. While you can apply for a visa upon arrival, it’s easier to do it in advance. I didn’t need a visa for Thailand since my stay was under 30 days. Overall, GIVE’s guidance for both processes makes it the best volunteer organization.
The Actual Trip
Aside from the support volunteers receive prior to their trip, going on the actual trip gives a deeper understanding on how GIVE works. When my group and I first arrived at the Zanzibar airport, we walked out of the exit and saw two of our guides wearing the iconic bright green GIVE shirts. Yes, that’s how they wanted us to notice them, haha! They greeted us and loaded up all our luggage onto a Dolla Dolla (which is basically a Zanzibarian cab). This is basically the same thing that happened in Thailand.
The Dolla-Dolla
The Thailand Truck
Upon Arrival
Day 1 of the trip is basically a rest day and time for the guides to retrieve all the volunteers from the airport, since people arrive at various times.
It was the second day in Tanzania when we actually traveled to the village of Kairo Kiwengwa in Zanzibar, where our volunteering would take place.
In Thailand, we flew into Chiang Mai and spent two days and nights there and then traveled to our volunteer location in Mueang Khong.
The view from our hotel in Zanzibar!
The view from our bungalow in Mueang Khong!
Volunteer Orientation
Our volunteer orientation coincided with our arrival in the village, where we got our cheesy green GIVE t-shirts and checked out our volunteer spot.
They showed projects like teaching English to the locals and laboring on a preschool in our faces. We even glimpsed the so-called first school in the village, built by GIVE ages ago. Before that, students were once forced to trek 60 miles to Stone Town just to get an education.
In Thailand, GIVE cozying up with a permaculture farm only adds to the list of their volunteer antics. If this isn’t the best volunteer organization, I don’t know what is.
The outside of the school GIVE built in Zanzibar! Yes, the best volunteer organization built this!
Our permaculture squad for GIVE’s Thailand trip!
The Daily Schedule in Tanzania
A common question I get from peers is if the GIVE trip is constant volunteering, and the answer, believe it or not, is NO! Another reason why GIVE is the best volunteer organization is because of the volunteer and leisure balance.
Orientation day on both trips took place on day 2 and consisted of our leaders giving us a planned schedule for the entire trip and in Tanzania, it included only six days of volunteering but not consecutively.
While it varies between programs, Tanzania had two days of volunteering, a culture day where we would go back to Stone Town for the day, two more days of volunteering, an adventure day where we would go snorkeling, our two final days of volunteering, a travel day to Dar Es Salaam, and our final two days at a safari.
Our volunteer projects had two shifts (8-11, 2-5), allowing volunteers to choose a morning construction shift, afternoon teaching shift, or vice versa.
During our break times in between shifts, we had our lunch break, voluntary Swahili lessons, downtime, and one day a special day trip to a reef in the middle of the ocean!
A couple of my co-volunteers and a couple of our students! Best volunteer organization with the best class!
The Daily Schedule in Thailand
In Thailand, our volunteering was consecutive, but for only five days out of the trip and only two days were full-day volunteering.
We got to choose if we wanted to do education for the day or permaculture, and unlike Tanzania, we only did one volunteer activity for the day instead of both.
During the three half-days of volunteering, we joyfully celebrated a ceremony at a new school. We also had the wonderful opportunity to spend a morning watching Thai children delight us with a traditional dance performance!
Our Thailand schedule written by a GIVE Volunteers guide!
Food on the trip
I have also had peers ask about the type of food we eat on the trip and the simplest way to put it is local delicacies but modified to be foreigner friendly.
Oh, the joy of our culinary adventures! We delighted in rice almost daily, savoring every bite, and shared an unforgettable fish meal on our first lunch together, a moment etched forever in our hearts. And then there was the heavenly Zanzibar pizza, a simple yet divine creation of bread, red sauce, and gooey cheese that tantalized our taste buds and left us craving more!
In Thailand, we enjoyed delicious chicken and rice almost every day, and we even had an exciting day dedicated to making our own Pad Thai! The trip is incredibly well-catered, with no meals being rationed at all!
In addition, GIVE is also accommodating for people’s allergies and/or if they are vegetarian, vegan, or have religious exemptions. And yes, your meals are one of the things included in the trip price!
Not all group travel companies include all meals, but because this one does, it is the best volunteer organization AND group travel company.
On the left next to the fork is the Zanzibar pizza! Also included is chicken and rice!
Our first dinner in Thailand: Fried rice!
Safety Precautions
Although everything went as planned, the GIVE guides are prepared for any situation and always book our activities and accommodations ahead of time. Traveling with such an organized group alleviated my anxiety! The guides ensured no one got lost in busy Stone Town and at the Chiang Mai Night Market. They never allowed anyone to go off alone and conducted head counts as needed.
It is important to note that it is quite common for volunteers to experience illness during any GIVE trip. Fortunately, the guides are fully aware of this and arrive equipped with a comprehensive medical kit. They are also certified through a mandatory wilderness first aid course.
A testimonial from a trip
When many of us got sick from street food in Stone Town, the guides cared for us by ensuring we stayed hydrated, providing medicine, and checking in regularly.
I developed a cold after the contamination pains, but the guides provided tissues and Dayquil, which helped me feel better. A way to avoid illness from street food is Travelan, and not taking it was my biggest regret from the trip. I’ve learned my lesson!
Item of note: the GIVE Tanzania program reportedly no longer visits the Stone Town market. I’m pretty sure it’s likely due to my trip’s events! These precautions contribute to why GIVE is the best volunteer organization.
The notorious market ahaha! (JK, the food was good when I was eating it)
I was doing well at not getting sick in Thailand, but during the last days of the elephant excursion, it finally happened.
I thought it was altitude sickness from being high in the mountains. However, when I learned that wasn’t possible in Thailand, the fever, chills, and lightheadedness became a mystery. A guide took me to a hospital in Chiang Mai, where doctors found it was a viral infection from mosquito bites!
It was my first visit to a foreign hospital, but your GIVE guides will take you there if needed!
Huay Pakoot-where the sickness started but beautiful scenery!
The End of the Trip
The end of the trip is sad and reflective, but the guides lighten the mood with goodbye gifts, including a thank-you letter and a list of benefits as GIVE alumni.
In addition, we also received a special green GIVE TANZANIA bracelet, only for people who have been on an actual trip. I also got one in Thailand.
GIVE asks its volunteers to complete a brief survey at the trip’s end, and I had no suggestions for improvement. I was truly impressed with their organization and care for both volunteers and the communities we served!
All I said was that I would like to see more locations as the organization grows! (I know some potential places and projects haha).
Nyerere National Park, final day of the trip in Tanzania! Only the best volunteer organization would put together a perfect ending!
Not ready to go home after 2 weeks? Check out GIVE’s add-ons!
For almost every volunteer trip, GIVE offers add-on trips. These include summiting Mt. Kilimanjaro, a scuba diving program in Hawaii and Thailand, and an elephant excursion trip.
These trips are generally only a week along, and the point of them is dive deeper into the GIVE experience! This is an opportunity only the world’s best volunteer organization would provide!
I missed out on Mt. Kilimanjaro, but I did the Thailand elephant experience. During the add-on, we visited different locations in Northern Thailand to learn about the significance of elephants.
Our first day was hands-on where we dressed in mahout uniforms and fed them, gave them a mud bath, and bathed them in the river! Such a surreal experience in just a day!
Yes, those are our mahout uniforms!
The next day was at a no-contact sanctuary where we still got to feed the elephants, and other days were trekking for them in the jungle!
The experience taught us that in Thailand, elephants symbolize strength and intelligence. They are efficiently cared for by their mahouts due to their dwindling population.
We also got to experience what mahouts do daily. This includes treacherous hikes into the jungle to care for the elephants, feeding them, and cleaning them.
I highly recommend the add-on trips as much as the initial 2-week volunteer trip! These excursions elevate your adventure and immerse you in cultural understanding, and you won’t regret it!
One of our jungle hikes!
Bottom line, if you are looking for the best volunteer organization, GIVE is the answer
If you’re considering a GIVE trip or have signed up but are unsure what to expect, don’t worry! Especially if you book flights through their partners.
One of GIVE’s many goals to make volunteers feel safe and free from anxiety so I want people to know that GIVE CARES.
Don’t believe me? Read these numerous testimonials from past volunteers right here!
Questions about my own experience or about GIVE per se, feel free to connect with me!
Apply to be a GIVE Volunteer right here!
Our last night in Mueang Khong! Only the best volunteer organization would do something so celebratory!
Leave a Reply