Making a difference while seeing the world

What are your skills and talents? What more would you like to know, do, or be? What inspires you into action when you feel compelled to experience something more, lend a hand, or contribute to a cause? Volunteer travel is a way to see the world while making it a better place. It can nourish the soul, challenge the mind, exercise the body, warm the heart, enrich your life experience, and allow you to make a difference wherever you go. Whether you teach English or plant a tree... fix a fence or repair a tooth... restore a building, cook a meal or hold a child in your arms... there's a form of volunteer travel that’s right for you.



Dozens of organizations offer hundreds of programs that send thousands of volunteers to work on a variety of projects in countries on every continent. These are non-profit, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) interested in supporting the public good. Programs range from providing humanitarian assistance and protecting wildlife to improving cultural relations, communities, and the environment. The idea is to find an organization with a program that fits your personality and abilities for the experience of a lifetime.

In most cases, you'll pay a fee to the host organization for food, lodging, project materials, insurance, team management and on-site transportation. Normally you pay for the airfare yourself (and 2% of your netTrav airfare booking is donated to sustainable-development programs on your behalf). Your costs for volunteer travel can be tax-deductible if the nonprofit organization adheres to IRS requirements for the volunteer team, and you devote the prescribed amount of time to the project.

The host organization will pre-qualify you through an application process. Once accepted, you'll be part of a service-learning team trained to live and work together and with the communities you visit.

Here’s a small sampling of volunteer travel organizations. When you find the volunteer program that’s right for you, book your flight with netTrav for the best possible rates. And be sure to stay in touch! Start a blog, post pictures, upload videos, and connect with like-minded travelers in the netTrav Traveler's Lounge.



Global Volunteers is a volunteer-travel pioneer. In 1984, the organization’s helping-hand activities abroad helped lay the foundation for "volunteer vacations" a decade later. Today, GV manages more than 150 service-learning teams in 20 countries on six continents, offering opportunities to live and work directly with local people in short- and long-term programs. No special skills are required.

SCI International Voluntary Service began in 1920 when a small international team of volunteers helped reconstruct a village in France that had been devastated in World War I. Since then SCI volunteers have served as emergency teams in the wake of natural disasters and as service teams contributing to social, humanitarian and environmental causes everywhere. Each year SCI sends more than 5,000 volunteers to participate in two-to-three-week workcamps in 60 countries including the U.S.A. Want to work with the poor in India? Teach organic farming in Kenya? Help a children's theater group in Kosovo? These and hundreds more opportunities are available at SCI.

Cross Cultural Solutions was founded in 1920 by a small international team of volunteers helping reconstruct a village in France devastated in World War I. Since then, SCI volunteers have served as emergency teams in the wake of natural disasters, and as service teams contributing to social, humanitarian, and environmental causes around the world. Every year, SCI sends more than 5,000 volunteers to participate in 2-3 week work camps in 60 countries, including the U.S.

The Global Service Corps has year-round programs in Thailand and Tanzania, including English instruction, healthcare, HIV/AIDS prevention, and sustainable agriculture. Programs run from two weeks to six months. GSC has become a part of each community it serves and tailors its development programs to benefit the community while providing an unforgettable experience for volunteers.



The Earthwatch Institute is engaged in conserving our planet with programs spanning the globe, enabling you to participate in scientific field research and environmental conservation in more than 50 countries. Every year, more than 4,000 volunteers go on Earthwatch expeditions, helping improve the lives of people, protecting endangered animals, and assisting scientists compiling field data in the interests of rainforest ecology, wildlife conservation, marine science, archaeology and more. Volunteers range in age from 10 to 90, and no special skills are required.

Landmark Volunteers offers high school students a wide range of summertime opportunities. Working with more than 50 nonprofit organizations, Landmark engages volunteer groups in missions such as repairing or building trails, restoring historic buildings, working on farms, upgrading cultural sites, and assisting in environmental-preservation projects. These activities take young people to national parks, seashores, and historically rich locations all over the U.S.