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To start, I absolutely loved my experience with GVI! I spend 12 weeks in Tenerife as an intern and I couldn't have wished for a better group of people to be with :)

The whole booking process was a bit confusing, however there were a lot of people I could reach out to with any question. The whole enrolment proces took quite some time, but that did ensure that everything was clear and well organized for my departure and arrival.

The arrival was very well organized. Me and a few other participants got picked up at the airport by someone from the team, which was very nice and took away a large part of the stress you already have when going to a completely unfamiliar place. And after we arrived at the base, everything went very smooth, I was well received and shown around, which made me feel welcome right away.

Subsequently, I had the best 12 weeks of my life, under good guidance and support that was available 24/7.

Beautiful destination! Lovely experience with great individuals. The experience has deepened my passion and love of marine life! Would recommend to anyone!

Really enjoyed my time in Fiji, met lots of friends there. Highly recommend!

I made incredible friend from all over the world who come visit me in Australia. I learnt the language and culture of Madagascar, spent my time in the ocean and learnt to breath and move slowly. A truly incredible experience.

What keeps me coming back to GVI isn’t just the destinations, it’s the lasting impact each experience has had on me.

Over the years, I’ve taken part in three programmes in South Africa, Seychelles, and Madagascar, and each one has offered something completely different while reinforcing why I started this journey in the first place. With a strong interest in wildlife, conservation, and sustainable development, I wanted something hands-on and meaningful, that’s exactly what I found.

Since my last programme, I’ve stayed connected with GVI in a new way by becoming an ambassador. I’ve had the opportunity to attend events and speak to prospective participants, sharing my experiences and helping others understand what these programmes are really like. Being able to support others at the start of their journey has been just as rewarding as the programmes themselves.

What stands out to me most is how immersive and purposeful each experience is. From contributing to conservation work to engaging with local communities, everything is rooted in making a genuine, ethical impact. You’re not just observing, you’re actively involved and learning every step of the way.

Another big part of what makes GVI special is the people. Being surrounded by passionate staff and volunteers who all share a similar mindset creates an environment that’s both inspiring and motivating.

I’m already looking forward to my next step, I will be heading back to South Africa this October for a two-week wildlife internship. It feels like a natural continuation of a journey that keeps evolving every time I take part.

If you’re looking for something that challenges you, teaches you, and allows you to contribute to something bigger, I’d definitely recommend GVI. It’s been a hugely meaningful part of my life, and one I’m excited to continue.

I’m still waiting for my in-person GVI professional apprenticeship to start, but the process has been very easy with my apprenticeship managers helping me out with my questions. So has their contact at the South African Mission. The only thing is that whenever there’s an ambassador event where I live, they cancel it. I can’t make connections online like I do in person, but I had the opportunity to speak at a virtual event.

I had a wonderful time, I not only got more experience with wildlife conservation but I got to learn more about the culture where I was and made great friends in the program.

Once in a lifetime opportunity! I travelled for turtle conservation and met great people. Had an amazing team leader and group at turtle base. Advertising and website need to be more clear between kekoldi and turtles

Very proud to give out information and work with colleagues from GVI who are so passionate about their careers .
Thank you

It took me almost a year to write this review because I have mixed feelings and didn’t want to write anything while my emotions were still fresh.

I value my experience overall in Tenerife because of the people I met, the places I saw, and the training I received in marine conservation. I feel like I have a better understanding of some of the prevalent issues in the Teno-Rasca Marine Reserve. The other volunteers and interns were kind and amazing, and I was lucky to meet some extra staff who were there at the time to chaperone a group trip. Both Pierre and Loz were funny and did their best to make me feel welcome, and after I got sick there, they were kind enough to check in on me. I think GVI is an amazing program to help build credentials if you want to work in conservation or environmental science. I wouldn’t trade this part of my experience.

Now, the downsides: I felt unwelcome by the base leader, and I still don’t know what I did to warrant that. It got to the point where I felt so uncomfortable that I would hide in my room downstairs to avoid her. She often spoke to me in a way that felt unkind and unprofessional, and there were times I would go to the bathroom and cry after interactions with her. Toward the end of my stay, I avoided her as much as possible because of how frequently she would snap at me. While there were occasional moments where she was nice, most of my experience with her felt tense and uncomfortable.

Because of this, my experience is very mixed. While I’m grateful for certain aspects, I also don’t want to sugarcoat the challenges I faced. After a year, I don’t hold any hard feelings anymore, but I do think it’s important to share an honest account for future participants.

My time spent with GVI was amazing the experience that I've gained and learned is immeasurable.

Lovely staff and participants, amazing opportunities, and such important work to be a part of. Would definitely love to return :]

Back in March 2025 I decided to take a big step and enrol myself in a project abroad. After weeks of searching I came across a Women’s Empowerment Project in Cape Town, South Africa, advertised and provided by GVI. I applied, had a video call interview, and then was accepted to the project. It was due to start in the September (2025) and I was advised that I would be contacted 2 weeks prior to the course beginning to partake in online training, as well as be added to a WhatsApp group with fellow participants in the project, though I was to arrange my own flights and travel vaccinations. Fast forward to 10 days before I was due to fly out - since I live in the UK I had booked a flight to depart the day before the project, which would have taken 11 hours - I received an email advising that the project had been cancelled.. this was the beginning of the nightmare to come. I had a telephone call, with the person who had originally enrolled me, advising me that they’d not had enough interest and due to that they were unable to effectively run the project and had made the decision to cancel. I was offered 2 options: enroll in a different project, or receive a refund. I would have been unable to partake in another project so took the option for refund and was provided the details and contact on how to proceed with that. It took 2 weeks for me to get my first response from the team, which directed me to complete a survey like application for my request. So I did that. Another 2 weeks later I received a response advising that they will process my refund and it would be received WITHIN 180 DAYS, AND THAT I WOULD BE CHARGED A $20 FEE. Since this meant it could be at up to 6 months until I would receive my money back, incur a fine, and lose out on the interest that I would have gained from that money being in my own account, I appealed and requested this be reviewed. Since that I have not had any response from the feedback team (that was 24th September 2025), and despite having sent countless emails asking for one. I emailed the person that had enrolled me and informed me the project had cancelled, but Jerome has still not replied to me either. Including flights, vaccinations, supplies and of course the project itself, in total I spent just under £5000. The cost of supplies and vaccines I have no expectation of getting back as those I can use again. But I would have expected at least some reimbursement for flights due to the fact that GVI cancelled the project, and only 11 days before the project was due to start, not even a full 2 weeks, however GVI have also refused the reimbursement of any cost for flights. I’m heartbroken that I did not get to experience the trip of a life time, as that was everything it was supposed to be and more. Instead I’ve been left £5000 out of pocket for a trip I never even got to experience. It’s taken me a long time to get to doing this review, as I felt that eventually someone from GVI would get in touch and make amends for the poor handlings of the situation, though now I feel like that will never come, not at least in the genuine and sincere way I would have hoped. So all I can now do is share my experience and hope that it may prevent anybody else having to go through the same thing. All I wanted was to give back and contribute to the world in some way. I suppose somehow this is still me doing that, in a bittersweet way.

Since writing thd above review on google (I now can’t seem to update or put a new review so I’m doing one here) GVI emailed me asking for details to issue a refund, I provided this, they assure my refund would be processed on the 23rd March, they have since not responded to me, they refuse to provide details for a human being, as they only sign ‘feedback team’ on emails, and I have still not received any money back. I’ve lost out on so much money because of this scamming/thieving/deceitful company, who’ve stolen my money and gained even more than my £5000 on the interest from holding my money. I am at a loss of what to do and how else to get my money back, other than going via action fraud. GVI you are a horrible company, with unlawful ways and have left the worse impression possible. I hope I get my money back soon and after that I hope to never have to ever deal with you again.

UPDATE April 2026: After 7 months of being ignored and GVI missing multiple refund deadlines, my bank (Monzo) successfully recovered my money via a formal dispute. GVI only attempted to offer installments once I escalated the matter legally. Proceed with caution.

impossible to stop getting spam emails!! i’ve reached out multiple times asking them to remove me from the mailing list, unsubscribed using the link at the bottom of their emails, nothing has worked! they have so many different emails to contact you from and the whole scheme anyway is insanely expensive. you’re paying a huge fee to volunteer, and you don’t get paid for it, so you’re just losing a ton of money even if you apply for their funding.
the most frustrating company with no customer service.
i’ve been getting emails for months, at least twice a week.

180 days to refund on a trip that GVI cancelled as they were unable to achieve enough participants to make the event worthwhile.

I question the stability of this company and would not recommend booking with them.

I signed up for a 6 months program in Costa Rica between September 2025-March 2026 to experience wildife conservation in Kekoldi and CloudBridge Nature Reserve.

Animal Abuse on Site
When you visit Kekoldi on the site, the local are not treating their dogs with respect. There are times, when dogs are tied up against the wall for number of days, leading in them getting vicious attack. There was also a turtle in the box, when I raised this concern with staff, not much was done about it. It lead to another volunteer I knew to leave and I wanted to leave also. What is the point of doing wildlife conservation, when you can't even respect your local animals and pets.

Miscommunication in regards to break.
When I signed up for this apprenticeship, on the guide it says Kekoldi has a 2 week holiday during Christmas, but it was not mentioned about the placement program, CloudBridge Nature Reserve.

The staff tried to LIE to me, saying that CloudBridge Nature Reserve also had a 2 week holiday period also, which was false and couldn't take the accountability of their mistake of not arranging for our stay over there at the placement sight.

Please be careful before signing up to these so called professional apprenticeship because 6 months is not even enough in conservation when i spoke to many of the staff at Kekoldi base.

The most unsafe and dehumanising company I’ve ever interacted with.
I did a 3 month marine conservation internship in Fiji. Before even leaving, the communication and organisation around visa forms was so poor that I ended up paying over £1500 extra just to get things sorted.
When I arrived, I found out there had been a bed bug infestation for 6 months that they were doing nothing about. It got so bad over Christmas when there were only two volunteers on site and I was alone in a cabin, that every time I got into bed I had to kill multiple bugs. I was being eaten alive to the point my legs became infected, and I was having extreme fevers.
I spent Christmas Day crying my eyes out. My bed was covered in bed bugs, I was ill from infection, completely exhausted, and I had nowhere safe to sleep. Every cabin was the same. I missed multiple dives, and it took them over a month to do anything about it.
In my second month, I helped with a rescue course. The instructor allowed students to surface me from behind three times. I ended up with decompression sickness and spent two weeks in hospital in Fiji undergoing chamber treatment. After that, I wasn’t allowed to dive for the remaining 5 weeks of my trip. For weeks afterwards I had neurological symptoms and I could barely feel my legs.
When I returned from hospital, the instructor became petty and started excluding me from other activities.
The insurance GVI recommended still hasn’t paid my medical bills after 2 months, and show no signs of doing so.
I’ve spent months trying to speak to an actual person in GVI. I’ve been redirected to feedback forms more times than I can count, and now I’m just being ignored. There’s been zero concern, zero empathy, and no attempt to resolve anything.
In the 3 months I was there, I personally knew 5 people who were treated for decompression sickness while diving with GVI over a 4-month period. Not once did I use a regulator that wasn’t faulty in some way.
With flights, visas, and the internship, I spent over £10,000. I maybe got 2–3 weeks of decent diving out of it. That was my entire experience.
They won’t refund me anything, and they won’t even give me the decency of a reply. It’s disgusting.

They mention they contacted me yesterday, but I haven't received a thing. I haven't been given a timeframe when this might be complete. The only responses I've gotten are automated ones directing me back to a feedback form. To be treated like this after everything I went though is dehumanising.

One of the best experiences of my life! I gained so many useful skills such as data collection. I highly recommend it to anyone. I did the Big Cat Conservation volunteering in Limpopo!!

I volunteered with GVI in the Elephant Conservation program in Chiang Mai Thailand.

I got to stay with a host family in the village of Huay Pakoot. The village residents were very kind and welcoming. They treated everyone like family.

The staff were amazing and very helpful while preparing for my trip and adjusting to life on the base. They were also very knowledgeable on the species native to the area.

How I spent the day would vary, but usually in the morning we would get to choose between an elephant hike, gibbon hike or assisting with teaching English at the local school.

Being able to witness semi-wild elephants in their natural habitat was such an incredible experience. On the elephant hike, we would monitor their foraging habits, behavior, physical health and how they interacted with their mahout.

Occasionally we would also conduct biodiversity surveys where we would record sightings of birds, reptiles, and other mammals in the area.

In the afternoons we had lessons where we learned how to speak Pakinyaw which was the primary spoken language in the village.

If you are interested in wildlife conservation, and are looking for a one-of-a-kind travel experience, I would highly recommend volunteering with GVI.

I hope I was able to leave a positive impact on elephant and gibbon conservation, but above all else I am thankful I got to experience a new culture, make new friends from different parts of the world, and create fun memories.

Had yet another great time volunteering with GVI.