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FAQs

For many of our volunteers, it's their first time visiting Africa. If you're the same, you've probably got lots of questions. Don't worry, we've got all the answers.

The great thing about travelling with African Adventures is that you’re supported every step of the way.

Whether you’re a group leader interested in launching a new trip, or the parent of a young person looking to join one, we’ll answer any questions you have. Our team has decades of combined experience volunteering and travelling in Africa, and planning trips.

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The Basics - African Adventures FAQs

General Questions

Yes, return flights are included as standard in all our group trip packages.

We have groups travelling throughout the year. Just let us know when the best time for your group to travel is.

In a word, yes! Of course, there are risks with any form of travel, whether you’re going to Los Angeles, Lima or London but hundreds of thousands of Britons travel to Africa every year and the majority of visits are trouble free.

At African Adventures, we have organised trips for over 7,000 volunteers and hold a wealth of experience. From pre-departure support and in-country orientations to knowing nearby hospitals and medical centres, we know how to deliver a safe and exciting experience. We are accredited by reputable travel bodies (see Trusted and Experienced) and we follow Foreign & Commonwealth (FCO) advice at all times; www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice.

Once you sign up, you get access to a wide range of fundraising support. You can set up your own sponsorship page on your My African Adventure account to help raise money for your trip (if you’re making all your payments directly to African Adventures), you can join free six-weekly online fundraising workshops, and there are lots of downloadable posters/bucket wraps to use too. You also get a fundraising t-shirt from African Adventures a few weeks after booking.

Participating in the trip means that every individual is responsible for their trip costs, so they must take ownership of their fundraising plan. African Adventures provides ongoing support but is not responsible for individual volunteers’ fundraising. 

The best way to approach fundraising is to split the total amount into monthly targets, and split that smaller target between personal savings, work, individual fundraising events and group fundraising events. 

If a volunteer wishes to cancel their place, they can do so at any time. Their deposit (£195) is non-refundable and there are cancellation fees from the date of your first instalment.

Whilst you are in Africa you will experience a variety of local cuisine. You will be able to find more information on My African Adventures once you are booked on to the trip. 

In Kenya, you will have lots of local stews with chapati and potatoes, plenty of fresh tropical fruits and you’ll get to sample mandazi – the local doughnuts!

In Ghana, you will get to sample lots of tropical fruits, local staples such as yam, plantain and red-red (a pepper and bean stew) alongside fish, chicken and plenty of vegetables. 

In Zanzibar, you’ll experience local staples such as ugali and cassava, alongside stews with plenty of vegetables. There are lots of tropical fruits to try and Zanzibar is also famous for its fresh seafood. 

We can cater for all dietary requirements/allergies; however, we do need to be made aware of these prior to travel.

The visa and vaccination requirements differ for each of our destinations. Once you have booked your place on a trip you will gain access to your My African Adventure portal which will provide you with all the information you will need to know about your trip and preparation before you go.

If you’ve not been to this part of the world before, you’ll need some vaccinations before you go. Please visit your local GP or travel nurse for advice regarding which vaccinations you need. You can also visit www.travelhealthpro.org.uk or www.fitfortravel.nhs.uk for helpful information relating to each of our volunteering destinations. Most vaccinations needed are available on the NHS. However, you will need to pay for the Yellow Fever vaccination and antimalarial tablets. More information is available on the My African Adventure portal.

Around three months prior to your departure, we will be in touch to guide you  through the visa application process, providing in depth instructions and all the necessary supporting documents.

Once everyone in your group has booked on, including group leaders, we can then place the order for your groups t-shirts. Your t-shirt will be sent to your group leader, who will then give this to you.

more information - African Adventures FAQs

Volunteering

We work with some primary and some secondary schools, and a mixture of government and private schools. We currently support over 20 schools in developing areas of Ghana, Kenya and Zanzibar, and have so far helped over 22,000 children in Africa through our work.

We offer two volunteering roles on our trips:

Building & Renovation
Volunteers who are hands-on and like to see a project through from start to finish should choose the Building & Renovation role.
Depending on what work needs to be carried out at your school, you could be doing anything from making bricks and painting classrooms, to screeding floors and fixing new doors and windows. No experience is necessary, and you will always be under the supervision of local tradespeople. 

Teaching & Sports Coaching
Classrooms at our partner schools are often overcrowded and under-resourced. By choosing a Teaching Assistant role, you’ll be assisting teachers in the classroom, providing some 1-2-1 support, and even running some lessons if you fancy the challenge! You’ll also have the opportunity to run some casual sports coaching sessions. You do not need any previous experience of sports coaching, and there are lots of helpful tools on My African Adventure to help you plan.

more information - African Adventures FAQs

For Parents

Your child will be accompanied from the UK by their group leader/teacher, and once in-country the group will be met by their dedicated Trip Host. Our Trip Hosts stay with each group throughout their stay in Africa, accompanying them to their host school each day and also on their adventure activity. 

All our Trip Hosts are either Ghanaian, Kenyan or Zanzibari and this means the staff know the local schools and regions far better than UK based staff ever could. They will be on hand throughout the trip to provide support and answer any questions.

more information - African Adventures FAQs

For Group Leaders

Your volunteers will:

  • Develop invaluable skills and qualities such as budgeting, organisation, resilience, communication, independence, and teamwork.
  • Enjoy a unique educational experience which enhances college, apprenticeship, and university applications, as well as CV’s. 
  • Return as more responsible and culturally aware global citizens.
  • Help to create lasting change and develop their understanding of sustainable development.
  • Feel proud of the impact they have made whilst volunteering.
  • Have an immersive experience of a new culture, which will alter their world view.
  • Build new relationships and make new friends.

For every 10 volunteers, we provide one staff place completely free of charge.

Each group will have a dedicated Trip Host who will stay with your group throughout your stay in Africa. Once in-country you will be met by your Trip Host, who will accompany you to your host school each day and also on your adventure activity.

All our Trip Hosts are either Ghanaian, Kenyan or Zanzibari and this means the staff know the local schools and regions far better than UK based staff ever could. They will be on hand throughout the trip to provide support and answer any questions.

From helping to launch your trip to your safe return home, our team are on hand to support you from start to finish, meaning there will be very little extra work for you to do.

Yes, our trips have been fully risk assessed and we’re here to help you complete your own risk assessment if required.

Yes, we have worked with a number of schools whose students have ADHD, Autism and other additional needs and have also worked with non-mainstream schools.

We will partner you with a school which matches your school’s needs and will organise suitable volunteer work for your students.

about us - African Adventures FAQs

About African Adventures

No, African Adventures is a for-profit social enterprise.

Lots of our volunteers fundraise to cover their trip costs, which is an important part of the African Adventures experience. The money that volunteers raise pays for their travel costs, so things like flights, accommodation, tours, and the staff who deliver our trips. A portion of every volunteer’s trip cost is also given to the partner school hosting the group, as a donation to fund the work being carried out.  

We do, however, have a charity arm called African Adventures Foundation. African Adventures Ltd funds the running cost of our charity, which means 100% of donations given to the charity are spent at our partner schools in Africa. You can read more about our official charity by visiting www.african-adventures.co.uk/foundation.

At African Adventures all our work supports the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Sustainable Development Goals are a call for action by all countries – poor, rich and middle-income – to promote prosperity while protecting the planet. We are committed to the Sustainable Development Goals and provide an end-of-year report on our progress. This holds us accountable for the decisions we make and the work that we do, and it ensures that we retain a focus on the goals in question, giving our work real meaning.

We are so committed to minimising our carbon footprint and reducing the amount of waste we produce that we have written our environmental aims into our business development plan. This holds us accountable and helps guide our day-to-day decision-making. We already adopt a Reduce, Reuse and Recycle policy to minimise waste, and we run a carbon neutral UK office. We are working on a carbon offsetting scheme in Ghana that provides communities in the Volta region with energy-saving stoves.

If you didn’t find the answer to your question in our African Adventures FAQs, please contact us here and our team will be happy to help!