GLA Costa Rica - Volunteer Programs for Teens

This program is a great opportunity to earn volunteer hours. Not only does it look great on a college application or a resume, but its fun and means a lot to the people you help! Volunteering as a group is so much fun! When I was in Costa Rica, I volunteered in a turtle hatchery. My group and I built turtles nests,, picked up trash along the beach, and helped build an erosion control barrier. Global Leadership Adventures gave me the opportunity to push myself to do what was scary at the time by doing super fun adventures! The adventures that I got to participate in were ziplining, snorkeling, and visiting a farm. Previous to this trip, I had ziplined but the ziplines that I went on in Costa Rica were so high and more of an adventure as we ziplined upside down. The farm was a unique experience as we got to milk a goat and taste raw goat milk. Overall, I gained something out of each excursion I went on in Costa Rica from facts to lessons and even learning more about myself.

Living for ten days in the Guanacaste region of Costa Rica was truly eye opening. Experiencing the culture and helping out with the sea turtles nests along with talking with local community members and organizations created a whole new appreciation for different cultures and travel.

GLA Beachside Service Adventure is the perfect trip. It's an amazing mix of meaningful service in a turtle hatchery and adventures. Through my time on the program I learned so much about myself and different cultures. You come home feeling like an entirely new person after a trip like this. GLA staff also plays a large role in enjoyment. I was lucky to have the best staff who made the entire experience 100 times better! I was taught to take risks, make a difference, and most importantly BE THE CHANGE!

My son was open to the experience when we signed up, but wasn't particularly excited about it. However, he came back transformed. The maturity he gained while in Costa Rica was noticeable and he grew so much as a person while he was gone. We are a family that travels internationally regularly, and he has traveled with peers and his school a few times as well--however, upon arriving home, he said without a doubt that was the best trip he's ever been on! The group of teens really bonded from what I can tell, despite the range of ages and kids coming from many different places. He still keeps in touch with many of the kids from the trip. The counselors were incredible as well. If you are thinking of this trip for your teen, go for it!!

I had a great time in cost rica with GLA. It was truly eye opening for me experiencing the culture and helping out with the sea turtles nests. It was an experience i will never forget and i would recommend it to all.

I had a great time in cost rica with GLA. It was truly eye opening for me experiencing the culture and helping out with the sea turtles nests. It was an experience i will never forget and i would recommend it to all.

We sent our 16 year old to Costa Rica for the 10 day Beachside service project. Prior to signing up, parameters were clearly explained. Pre-travel arrangements were easy to follow and GLA representative answered any and all questions that we had. Each day GLA shared a camp service blog which included pictures of my son and others. We asked him if he would go again and he said definitely. YES! The trip was a a nice balance of service learning in a foreign country and fun at a beachside camp. We also appreciated that parameters were put the place around screen/phone time for participants . All, in all, 5 stars with a balance of service, fun and adventure.

As a parent of a 16 year old who went abroad for the first time, it was an amazing experience for her and she absolutely loved it. As a parent I never felt that she was unsafe, or not being taken care of. When she arrived in CR we got a call from the director letting us know they had her. After that call all my worries went away! The blog that they kept was wonderful, it was nice to see what they did on a daily basis. I thought it was a great idea for the kids NOT to have their phones during the day, so they could be completely present and in the moment. I think that was my favorite thing of the program. It was just perfect!

I seriously had so much fun on this trip and I’ve learned so so much. I think it’s really helped me grow as a person and I’m so thankful. I made some close friends. My favorite activity was working with the kids to paint signs in their community. I was really touched and realized that we really were making an impact.

The Parismina 10 in Costa Rica excursion was so much fun! I had an amazing time meeting new people and learning about sea turtles and their environment! It made me feel so great to learn more about other cultures!

I would like to specifically give praise to to the Mentors for providing myself and the rest of my mentor group with a safe sharing space by forming a comfortable environment. We really got to know other students in our group on a level we would not have otherwise. I gained new perspectives that will shape my future decisions and relationships. As for the learning, through the Guanacaste Water Center I have learned the value of every living thing and how everything connects to create a whole. Really eye-opening!

There was excellent flexibility to those of us with any food allergies or restrictions and they were so helpful to my vegan diet and always made sure i was well fed. Swimming in the ocean was memorable but my favorite activity in the program was the service day with the guanacaste water center when we went to the school garden

I think I grew by becoming a better leader and taking initiative in group settings. I also think that I learned a lot about friendships and being more outgoing in social settings. We had a talent show at the end that was great, so cool to see everyone's performances and secret talents. I also loved the dance class we did.

I had the wonderful opportunity of traveling to Costa Rica with my best friend for the sea turtle initiative! During the trip I met some of the sweetest people which lead to long lasting friendships from all over the world! I saw so much wildlife and beautiful nature that I don't get to experience on a daily basis while living in the desert. Most importantly I was a a part of finding and acting to resolve a local issue, poaching of sea turtles and their eggs. We spent hours walking on the beaches at night making sure there were no poachers, to see if we could find tracks or spot a sea turtle laying eggs. We didn't see much for a few a days until the second to last night we saw a sea turtle laying her eggs right in front of the house we were staying at! we let her lay her eggs and one of the local guides put a tracker on the mom, we counter eggs and took them to a hatchery, where they were placed in an incubator overnight and buried into a fenced area where they can continue their hatching process safely without the worry of poachers. I would definitely go to Costa Rica again and will be going on other GLA trips!

I feel like I grew as a leader in taking action and working with my peers. I also feel as thought I grew in my passions to pursue a career in the medical field. I also feel I grew by stepping out of my comfort zone in a new place and learned a lot about culture, my values, and medicine while making lifelong friends. My favorite leadership activity was working with vida for the vaccines and surgeries and home visits. I felt really connected to the community there and like what we did made a difference.

Best trip of my life, so much thanks to everyone for EVERYTHING! Learned how to teamwork effectively and have fun with people I wouldn’t normally talk to, keep working when things seem pointless, work hard play hard :) Loved the talent show, and the catamaran activity.

I met the coolest people I’ve ever met that I’ll forever look up to and have changed my perspective on so many things. I’ve learned to work amazingly as a team and how important it is to take care of our environment, which I already knew but this made it so much more real and in perspective. The mentors were so sweet too, and I felt taken care of.

My name is Shamus Davenport and I am a senior in high school currently. Every single high school summer I have participated in a GLA program. During the Summer of 2023 I chose to go on GLA’s Costa Rica: Sea Turtle Initiative program from July 7th through the 16th. One thing I want to highlight about this program and GLA as a whole is that there are ways to make it cheaper! If you put in some time and effort, there are available scholarships which I have done on all three of my programs! Focusing on the actual trip, this was life changing. I can talk endlessly about the people this organization attracts. Locals, counselors, and fellow campers alike every trip I’ve been on leads to lifelong friendships and connections. Fun fact, I have flown across the country to see friends from every single program I have been on! This time specifically I made close friends that I am still close with and go on more adventures with. Then, our home base manager, raft guide, local tour guide, and many more locals all showed such passion for their jobs, sharing the environment, culture, and traditions with everybody. Something I have learned through this program and really took to heart during this one was, there are endless opportunities to grow, learn, and broaden your perspective, whether you do this 10 day program or another one of GLA’s various programs. The main thing you need to know is to engage in every possible opportunity and to stay present! It will change your experience in the program and maybe, like it did for me, your life. This was a huge theme throughout this one specifically. Every GLA program restricts phone use to different extents, but with this one, being the most remote program even during times where we had our phones there was not a lot of service so we were, in a way, forced to engage more. I have always disliked phones, I feel like they take away from actually living life, but this trip really strengthened that value for me. I feel like since then I have applied that concept and seized moments more so than before which brings a lot more value to every experience. I am a very outdoorsy person which checks out seeing as I love these trips and there were so many fun adventures from rafting to checking out the small village close by. It’s so hard to pick a favorite one. I loved playing soccer with the local kids, but I think rafting was my favorite. Nothing could compare to the beauty we saw along the volcanic river. There were cool buildings and areas for people to stop at and explore and the nature was unreal, not to mention the rapids were large and very fun. Speaking of rapids, I can speak a lot for the wonderful balance between safety and fun this program provides. GLA always does a good job setting reasonable rules depending on where we are while also creating an environment that nurtures the spirit of adventure. While most programs have pretty strenuous service work, a really nice thing about this one is that it is just another adventure. The main chunk of service consists of doing turtle walks from 8-12 at night. Even though we were attentive and watching for turtles the entire time, something about walking on the beach at night with the moon and stars shining overhead just makes the work so much fun and leads to great conversations. Not to mention we saw over ten turtles consisting of different species. I would never do a GLA program twice because they offer so many more around the world, but if I did, it would definitely be this one.

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When I first got there I had no doubt that I was going to have an amazing time. All the staff made it so fun and a safe environment. I had a good session with everyone there. The volunteering was incredibly rewarding and amazing because the got to see the smiles on peoples’ faces. The adventure days were so fun and exhilarating. Overall my trip through GLA was life changing and amazing I had a great time in Costa Rica and can’t wait for my next trip

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My experience with GLA made me more globally aware and makes me want to volunteer within my community more. I believe everyone should have a once in a lifetime experience like this one and I'm eternally grateful for this gift. Thank you GLA!!!!!