Why not visit one of the new Seven Wonders of the World?

Cut adrift in the Pacific Ocean 1000 kilometres off the coast of Ecuador, volcanic forces deep under the sea have thrown up a unique wildlife paradise that’s so popular the Ecuadorian government are about to limit the number of visitors dropping anchor on its unique shores. This makes it the best time to visit this amazing island for yourself, and remember to take a camera so people believe your stories! You’ll be based in a fascinating biological station whose aim is to help preserve the natural habitat of the island and introduce new organic farming methods to the islanders. Tasks include planting new crops, assisting in light building and helping maintain island trails. You can also take advantage of your colleagues’ expertise on various hikes to the island’s lagoons, forests and villages and learn about the ecological and human dynamics of Galapagos.

When you book this trip US$75 of your fee is used to purchase essential resources such as machetes, matlocks, hammers and screwdrivers through our Big Giving programme.

Trip Highlights:

Itinerary & Details

Day 1 (Monday): Arrival into Quito (Airport Code UIO)

Welcome to Ecuador! You will be collected from the airport by our i-to-i team who will be waiting in the arrivals hall for you; you’ll know who they are as they’ll be carrying our logo and they’ll be ready to give you a warm welcome!

You’ll be transferred to your home stay accommodation for tonight. Our home stay families are fantastic and so welcoming; it’s also your first opportunity to test out your Spanish skills!

You’ll stay with your home stay family for the next two nights so feel free to unpack, get stuck in with family life and enjoy the lovely home cooked local food!

Day 2 (Tuesday): Orientation time!

Today you’ll have an early start, tuck into a hearty wholesome breakfast then head off to your orientation, which will be held at one of the home stay accommodations.

This will give you a good insight into Ecuador - the culture, things to do and see, what to do in case of an emergency and much more! It can also be a good way to meet other i-to-i travellers and ask any questions you may have. You’ll then be given some lunch and will have the afternoon free to explore or relax.

Day 3 (Wednesday): Transfer to the Galapagos Islands

Today is the day you’ve been waiting for! You’ll be transferred back to Quito airport in time for your flight to the Galapagos Islands! The flight from Quito to San Cristobal is about an hour, this flight will be booked for you and the cost of this flight is included in the price.

You’ll then take a taxi/pick up truck from the airport to the project and this usually takes around 30 minutes, so sit back, enjoy the ride and welcome to the Galapagos!

Days 4 – 5 (Thursday – Friday): Let’s get conserving!

Today is your first full day of volunteer work and we’ll make sure you get a good night’s sleep tonight! You’ll be busy getting involved in ongoing activities which could be planting trees, digging up old roads, cutting down weeds and dead plants with machetes (training is provided don’t worry!) identifying bird, plant or insect species amongst many things! It’s all fascinating work and you’ll be amazed at the skills and knowledge you’ll pick up every day.

Take time to learn the aims and plans of the project, you’ll enjoy it so much more when you learn what you’re a part of, and the staff there are always willing to tell you stories about the project!

Days 6 and 7 (Saturday to Sunday): Free time

It’s the weekend! Hooray! You’ve earned yourselves a nice little break from work so kick back and relax! You might like to take some of our suggestions or just head off on your own adventures…

We can recommend heading off on foot to the town of La Lobería, here you’ll find sea lions, iguanas, exotic birds and even the famous tortoises of the Galapagos! It’s a beautiful town to explore with a gorgeous coastline and apparently the plants are an unusual colour near the beach there! We won’t tell you what colour they are as you’ll have to go yourselves and find out!

Ooh but how about this for a list of potential activities? Mountain biking, hiking, surfing, sunbathing (terribly important) scuba diving, lava beach walks, day cruises and excursions around the Galapagos. Yes please. All of them.

It’s also possible to visit the most beautiful of all of the Islands – Isabella Island! Even the name is beautiful! The Island is named in honour of Queen Isabella of Spain…lucky lady.

Following weeks

Settle down in to the local pace and way of life on the Islands as you spend your days hacking, planting, bird watching, digging, cultivating and pretty much any other verb that ends in ‘ing’.

However many weeks you have booked for, you’ll be making a difference every day as you see your work take shape before you and see tangible results from what you are doing!

The day before your Last Day (Sunday)

Oh no! It’s your last day on the Galapagos and you’re terribly sad to be leaving! Don’t worry; you’ll have lots of amazing memories to take with you and new friends you’ve made and around 1,000,000 photos too!

We’ll book your return flight to Quito in time to make your flight back home don’t worry. We book your return flight the day before your official last day with us and we’ll put you up in a local hostel in Quito. If you are travelling in 2012 then your accommodation for your last night in Quito will be in a homestay.

You’ll need to make your way from Quito airport to the hostel or homestay but you’ll have been given directions from the team on the way to the Galapagos anyway so you will be fine!

Your last day (Monday): Time to head onwards

Well, what can we say? We hope you’ve had an amazing time and we’ll miss you. If you’re heading back to the airport, the transfer is not included but our team will be on hand to make sure you know where you are going. The cost of the transfer is around US$20 so please budget for this.

If you are heading onwards around Ecuador or exploring more of Latin America, don’t forget to ask our in country team for advice or help if you need it!

Project

What does the project do?

The name and aim of the game is CONSERVATION. We’ve tried wrapping it up in pretty paper and putting a bow on it, but essentially, everything this project does is centered round protecting habitats, planting trees, eradicating invasive species, maintaining areas of natural beauty and agricultural activities.

The project that we work with on San Cristobal has been in existence since 2003 and is dedicated to the research, conservation, and management of ecologically important habitats, as well as environmental education and community development.

The highland forests, and indeed the Islands themselves, that the projects are based on have changed a lot in the last few decades, and not necessarily for the better.

There is a huge lack of quarantine regulations when it comes to importing goods on to the islands, such as foods and plants, so as a result invasive species have flourished on the islands. Now calm down, invasive species might sound like something out of a sci-fi film, and you might think that you’ll be visiting something from an Arnold Schwarznegger film – you won’t!

It just means that there is plenty of work to carry out to retain the natural beauty of the islands and assist in maximising the local produce!

There are many ongoing initiatives that you can get involved in, and these range from bird observation, planting trees, coffee production to environmental education with local experts or schools.

What’s the project like?

You’ll be living and working in a reserve in a rural and tranquil part of San Cristobal Island. The weather is hot, sticky and humid, the people are friendly, the work is hard but great fun and based around constantly improving the natural habitat you’ll be living in. There’ll be plenty of bugs to squeal about and the rain might dampen everything you own (except your own spirit!) but it will be the experience of a lifetime!

The reserve is located on a 200 hectares site in the stunning highlands of the island, 45 minutes by truck from the capital of the Galapagos Province, Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, where there is still local native vegetation. The reserve is mainly an organic agricultural and habitat restoration project.

Why does the project need volunteers?

The project exists in its own right and has local help, but as the old saying goes ‘many hands make light work!’ we’ll get more finished in a quicker amount of time and be able to move on to lots more exciting tasks too!

It’s also important to get help from all over the world so that everyone spreads the word about the Galapagos Islands and helps the tourism industry boom! So little is actually exported or even used within the Galapagos that help is needed to make the trade thrive through development and cultivation.

Activities and schedule

Trust us - by the end of your working day, you’ll be ready to flop into bed and get a solid eight hours of sleep!

Monday to Friday will be your typical working days and a normal days work will take place from 8am – 10am, then you’ll take a much needed break followed by a few hours of work before taking a lunch break and your day will typically end at 4pm. Dinner might seem a little early at 6pm, but you’ll be tempted to eat the hunger with a huge appetite you’ve built up by the time it is served!

You will be busy during the day getting involved in ongoing activities which could be planting trees, digging up old roads, cutting down weeds and dead plants with machetes (training is provided so you don’t need to worry!). You will also take time to identify different species of birds, plants or insects! It’s all fascinating work and you’ll be amazed at the skills and knowledge you’ll pick up every day.

Below is an overall list of activities at the project but these depend on the time of year and the needs of the project, you may not get involved in all of them;

Habitat restoration: removement of introduced vegetation.
Reforestation with native species: seed collection and classification, nursery work,
reforestation lines maintenance.
Organic agricultural activities and agroforestry to help maintain and secure food production for the station.
Station maintenance.
Personal project (develop your own project or support different conservation projects that are being developed at the station at the time).
Trail maintenance.
Sign elaboration for trails.
Basic construction activities. 
Help clean fresh water supply.
Help in the kitchen
Petrel’s observation: nests finding, clearing around the nests to facilitate the mother’s entrance, bird’s behaviour.
Fenology studies and flora inventories: observation and classification of native, endemic and invasive species.
Bird’s observation at the reserve to determine if they are native, endemic or invasive.
Germination Project: Determine the most effective method for germination in vegetable production and other species.
Coffee production to see the possibility of exportation coffee. 

Project resources and advice

Most of the equipment you’ll need on this trip will be provided for you, but we’ve based this list below on our returned volunteer feedback to help you!

What exactly do i-to-i provide?

It may seem like a strange concept to pay for your volunteer experience. You'd be right if you think you shouldn't and the truth is you actually don't! Your placement is free; it's the benefits around it that you pay for. It's important to note that i-to-i is a travel company and not a charity. We provide a professional travel service. We are responsible for finding and assessing worthwhile projects across the world, preparing you fora the volunteering experience and supporting you whilst you're there.

Here’s some more information about what your placement fee covers….

Project sourcing and assessment

We work with hundreds of locally run partner projects around the world and are constantly sourcing new opportunities. We visit all projects to check that they are worthwhile and legitimate and we also conduct a thorough safety assessment before we'll send volunteers there. More

Expert help-desk

Almost everyone who works for i-to-i has traveled extensively or worked overseas. This means we're a goldmine of information; we're always available to offer support and guidance before, during and after your trip.

Thorough project briefing materials

Once you book on to a project you'll receive a Welcome Pack that contains loads of general information about volunteering, about your chosen country and how to have fun and stay safe. We'll also give you advice on visas and inoculations.

Airport pickup

It can be pretty daunting arriving in a different country for the first time - especially after a long flight! If you arrive on your project start date, there'll be a welcoming face at the airport to pick you up and take you to your accommodation.

Arrival orientation

Soon after you arrive you will attend a thorough orientation with our in-country team. This is to cover important safety and security information. You'll also get some tips about sight-seeing options for your time off and maybe even learn some of the local lingo!

Accommodation and meals

Accommodation is included with all projects and meals are even included with some. We only use locally-owned and operated accommodation so that part of your placement fee is filtering back into the local economy. Most projects offer homestay, guesthouse or shared volunteer houses as standard accommodation, but some offer the chance to upgrade to a more comfortable living standard. More

Local in-country coordinators

Your in-country team will arrange a pick-up for you at the airport and will conduct your orientation upon arrival. All coordination teams are English speaking and are locals of your destination country. They won't be at your project every day, but will be on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week if you need them. More

24/7 emergency support

Aside from the local support from your in-country team you'll be given access to a 24/7 emergency phone line manned by our response team in case any problem should arise while you're overseas. We also hire crisis management professionals to be on hand in case of a situation that requires additional expert support. More

Ongoing training

The safety and security of our volunteers is paramount. For this reason we provide ongoing crisis management and emergency response training to our local teams around the world. We also fly in our in-country coordinators to the UK regularly for thorough training to help them offer the best safety to the thousands of volunteers they support each year. More

Supporting our projects

We don't fund our projects directly from the project fee that you pay us. Instead we choose to support a number of projects every year through a grant scheme for tangible long-term initiatives. In the last 3 years we have distributed over US$250,000 to our most needy projects to help them in the great work they do. 

Recruiting people like you

We make no secrets of the fact that part of your placement fee is reinvested in to recruiting volunteers just like you! The volunteers recruited in one week will typically deliver over 2000 man-days of service. The difference this makes to projects overseas is immeasurable. Many of our overseas projects rely on assistance from international volunteers, so it's necessary for us to put together brochures and websites to find the people who can support them. This recruitment process is vital to ensure programs have a constant stream of reliable volunteers.

The intangible benefits

Volunteering through a company like i-to-i has a lot of intangible benefits to developing overseas communities and the individual projects that we work with. To find out more about our placements. click here

Next Steps

What we will do after you've booked:

Orientation Information

Having arrived on the Monday, you will be taken to your orientation accommodation in Quito, this will be in a comfortable homestay and likely to be a shared room with another volunteer. You will have a group orientation meeting with the in-country coordinator on the Tuesday morning, and a trip to Mitel del Mundo in the afternoon.  Your flight to the Galapagos will be booked to leave on Wednesday morning and arrive in to start your project on Thursday.

If you choose to take the language lessons add-on you will spend the remainder of the week in Quito - please contact the us for more information on what this involves. You will then start your placement the following Monday, travelling on Saturday if outside of Quito.

Flights & Insurance

Insurance

It's important that you get adequate travel insurance for your i-to-i experience and as many of you will be working this often means standard policies won’t work. The good news is that no matter where your coming from we have already found a policy to suit you.

The best time to get your insurance is when you book your project as this means you can get a fully tailored policy exclusive to i-to-i, just ask your consultant for further details at the time of booking.

EU Customers – find out more here >>

Australian customers - find out more here >>

All other customers - find out more here >>

Flights

As with insurance we advise you get these booked as early as possible to avoid high prices and to make sure you arrive on the right day. The i-to-i team is right up to date with the best deals no matter where you’re flying from; their insider knowledge could save you some time and money.

Early Airport Pick-up

If you are arriving before your designated arrival date, we can arrange for an extra meet and greet service for you. For an extra supplement we will be there to meet you at the airport and take you to your orientation accommodation. One additional night a

The cost of this Early Pick-up service is US$ 90.00

Accommodation

What type of accommodation will I be in?

You’ll be living in a rustic house in the middle of the forested area of San Cristobal! The accommodation is basic but quaint and fully geared up to help you relax after a hard day’s work.

Accommodation facilities

During your stay at this project, you’ll be living in a rural area, surrounded by forests and within walking distance of wildlife reserves, stunning coastlines and did we forget to mention that you’re living and working on the GALAPAGOS ISLANDS?! Lucky you!

The accommodation site is located up on the highlands of the island and is nestled into the hillside. Constructed from native bamboo, some might call it basic; we call it home and relative luxury when comparing it to the forested area around you!

The accommodation is made up of two houses, both containing 11 bedrooms with four beds in each room and there are plenty of living spaces to chill out in. There’s no shortage of hammocks to lie in and waste time in too!

Each bedroom has bunk beds, bedding (although you might prefer to bring your own sleeping bag liner), mosquito nets are provided but you might find bringing your own is better) and you will have your own space to store your luggage and somewhere to store valuables.

At night when the stars above the houses are so bright, it’s so quiet and you’re surrounded by forests, you feel so close to nature – apologies if we’re sounding cheesy here, but you wouldn’t want to be anywhere else in the world at that moment!

The facilities in the accommodation are basic; you are after all, in the middle of the jungle! There is limited electricity for you to charge your phone and camera but that’s about it so don’t forget your torch! You will have the opportunity to access the internet in the nearest town at weekends.

The bathrooms have cold water but think of a cold shower as refreshing and being at one with nature!

Things to bring from home

Based on previous volunteer feedback, we’d recommend you bringing the following: