So, after reading part 1 – Gap Year Expeditions - you still want to jet off for a year for some adventure, well here is the eagerly awaited ………
Are You Looking For Gap Year Expeditions? Part 2
You’ve played with Google Earth, watched the Discovery Channel and made your mind up ….. You have chosen to visit Belize on your gap year. Now what? As we mentioned in our previous article when you type into Google ‘gap year expeditions’ up comes 1,160,000 results. So let’s narrow that down.
Type into Google ‘gap year expeditions’ and you will see the following list appear (we have broken it down into specific companies and agencies) -
‘Specific companies’ are where you are thoroughly under their umbrella of care and all expedition planning, preparation, the project and your well being is covered 100% by the company and their staff – they include the following:
- Trekforce – gap year expeditions to a variety of countries, can be quite hardcore, the usual places are covered in their itineraries – Belize, Borneo, Papua New Guinea, Morocco, etc. Trekforce Expeditions was once a non profit organisation ran by our very own MD, Rob. They now are part of a larger chain of operators who offer various trips to suit all tastes.
- Greenforce – part of the same network as Trekforce, offering a more ‘grass roots’ conservational approach to their gap year expeditions.
- Raleigh International – this is where it all began. The original gap year expedition company, started life as Operation Raleigh (which I nearly signed up to as a boy/young man). They offer 10 week and 5 week gap year expeditions to Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Borneo and India.
- Coral Cay Conservation- this company didn’t rank very well in the search engine but we will mention them because they do gap year expeditions underwater. They do marine conservation in Tobago, Philippines and Cambodia. They have also just finished work in the jungles of Papua New Guinea.
- World Challenge – normally offering more educational based expeditions to a large variety of countries, now branching out into the gap year expedition market. Covering Borneo, Iceland, Morocco, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Borneo and Belize.
What you have next in the search engine results are many companies offering gap year expeditions and adventure travel for people having career breaks but they are companies where they do all the planning and take care of bookings, then they have in-country operators, sometimes not part of their own company structure, taking the expedition into the field. If you go with one of these companies (and we are NOT saying don’t go with them!) make sure you are aware of who will be running the trip, who is responsible for health and safety issues in-country, such as casualty evacuations, and see if a permanent member of the company staff will accompany you at all times on the expedition, especially if it is in multiple countries.
So, basically there are two options. Go with companies like Trekforce, Greenforce, Raleigh International or Coral Cay Conservation where there is a definite umbrella of care and set staff and procedures or a companies that work through other operators – now that last option is by no means the worst, just look into the company who provides the groundwork and be happy you will receive the best trip possible.
Just Wait a Minute…… What Does S2Si do?
S2Si is similar in all respects to Trekforce, Greenforce, Raleigh International and Coral Cay Conservation. We provide gap year expeditions to Borneo, Papua New Guinea, Morocco, Chile (Patagonia), Russia, Bolivia, New Zealand, Canada… we will soon be adding Namibia, Botswana, Zambia to our list as we develop our in-country base there.
The only other issue is that many of the above companies offer “projects” where you are in one fixed position for the entire time (sometimes as much as 3 months!). Which is ok for some but you may want something a little more active! At S2Si we specialise in more activity orientated projects which gives you a much more intense experience! Taking advantage of pre-existing skills that you may have in activities ike rock climbing, diving or sailing we will incorporate these activities into your gap year experience which will add a little bit more ‘spice’ than your average project!
We also do bespoke, custom made expeditions, so if you have an idea and a group of like-minded friends we can plan your expedition, we can lead the expedition or you can hand the whole thing over to us and we will give you a trip of a lifetime!
Tags: What are the best gap year travel ideas, What can I do on my gap year, Where can I go on my gap year
