Experience:
Organisation:
Name: Gabriel
Hometown: Worcester
Destination: Costa Rica
Project type: Conservation
Organisation: i-to-i
What were your impressions of your destination?
The destination was stunning. I love Costa Rica.
Was the work interesting and challenging?
Well, over 6 weeks I participated in 3 projects. I would say that only one of the projects was actually "worthwhile" and worthy of the title "Conservation". You could say that the other 2 projects were worthy of the same title, but not if you are paying someone 800 pounds to organise it for you, especially seeing as all of i-to-i's brochures made me feel that I would be doing very worthwhile projects. There were too many people on each project, so most of the time, two thirds of us were hanging around doing nothing.
What was your accommodation like? Did you feel comfortable and welcome at all times?
Accommodation was fairly basic, but this was as I had expected. We were well fed and the hosts were lovely.
Were you happy with the organisation and the staff that were responsible for you during your stay?
Regarding i-to-i, the answer would be no. When we complained to them that there was not enough work we felt that they just fobbed us off. Regarding the staff of the national park, they did exactly as they could be expected to do.
Do you feel that you got value for money on the project?
I do not feel I got value for money. If I want to do this again, I will organise it myself. HOWEVER, I would still recommend going with one of these companies to a first time traveller especially if going it alone and 18 years old. During the first week, when we had a week of Spanish tuition, I made loads of friends, who were my travelling companians for the next 4 months and several of whom I am still good friends with. I would say that this alone was worth the money I paid, even I felt that if i-to-i were poor.
Would you recommend the project to others?
Yes
