South Africa - Great White Shark Conservation

Seeing a great white shark breach the water 2 meters from the boat. Incredible! Fantastic project that is very well established. It's good because your days are structured, but flexible. The coordinators help to ensure you get to do what you want.

Volunteering with GoEco was a dream come true. They helped me pursue my passion of marine conservation and made my volunteering experience a breeze. GoEco was there to help me every step of the way by providing timely and accurate information about my trip and always being a phone call/email away. GoEco provides a huge array of volunteer programs so it was really hard to narrow my search down to Great White Shark Conservation in South Africa but I'm so happy I did. I learned so much about great white sharks, got to go into the cage, go out on the boat everyday, and even learn about penguins and whales. It was the experience of a lifetime!

It was an amazing time. We got to go out on the boat almost every day and experience the sharks one on one. I thought we would have a tough time finding them but they came up to the boat as soon as we anchored. There were many people on the boat to insure we were safe and an onboard biologist kept us educated about the animals throughout the trip. It didn't stop with sharks. We also had the opportunity to work with penguins and got a beautiful view of thousands of cape fur seals. Back at the lodge we got to hangout with our leaders and volunteers. There we would make dinner for each other and be visited by educators in the industry. There I made life long friendships and got to do many positive things for the world. It was the best experience and I would recommend it to anyone.

I had the time of my life in South Africa. I cage dove with Great Whites multiple times and met and worked with people from around the world. I made outstanding friendships and learned so much. I got to see sharks every sea-worthy day and got to be a tourist on bad-weather days. I had an unforgettable experience. The staff there was excellent and were continually helping us have an awesome volunteer and tourist experience.

I had the opportunity to meet some wonderful people, interact with the animals on a daily basis and contribute to there care, well being and comfort and one that I look forward to doing again. It was an enjoyable, memorable experience. The staff were polite, pleasant and helpful at all times.

I had an incredible month in beautiful Gansbaai working with my favorite creatures on this planet. I am truly blessed to have seen Great Whites in their natural habitat. I will never forget the people and experiences I encountered. I have made life long friends from all over the world and have even found a new place to call my 'second home'. I will return to Gansbaai as often as possible. South Africa is a truly beautiful place and it will always hold a soft spot in my heart.

The staff there was excellent and were continually helping us have an awesome volunteer and tourist experience. I had the time of my life in South Africa. I cage dove with Great Whites multiple times and met and worked with people from around the world. I made outstanding friendships and learned so much. I got to see sharks every sea-worthy day and got to be a tourist on bad-weather days. I had an unforgettable experience.

This was the best experience I could have asked for, a little unsure at first but GoEco did a wonderful job arranging everything for when I arrive in South Africa. The volunteer work was well worth it for the scenery and experience of the entire stay amazed me everyday. The people from the group were fantastic and very welcoming, I think that its safe to say that I found a family down in Gansbaai South Africa that I will never forget!

I volunteered with International Marine Volunteers in Gansbaai, South Africa and assisted with daily boat outings for great white shark cage diving. It was such an amazing experience and the people running the program could not be nicer. I got the opportunity to see numerous great white sharks every day of my volunteer program (but that's not guaranteed), and was able to cage dive on multiple occasions. I also took part in shark tracking, beach cleanup, helping out at a nearby animal shelter, and helping out at the program's penguin sanctuary. Not many people can say they have done something like this! And it feels good to be a part of something that seeks to educate the public on these amazing creatures while leaving a minimal impact on the environment.

My experience through GoEco was nothing short of amazing. This was my first time volunteering abroad and traveling on my own and everyone made my trip stress free. The program was made so that anyone could volunteer, no matter what your background. The marine biologists and trip coordinators were so friendly and caring. They made me feel so comfortable and were up to answer any questions that I had. Because this was a marine based trip, our days were planned around "sea-days" or "no sea days". So even if there were days where we were not able to get on the water, the coordinators planned out activities for us to do all day long. I learned so much and was able to even get to spend some time volunteering with the African Penguins! My only criticism is that I chose to volunteer for one week. I'm 100% doing this again, but this time I'll be staying for at least two weeks!