Volunteer Programs in Cochin, India

From the preparation till my farewell at the share house the experience was amazing. Organisation was good, facilities excellent, camaraderie fantastic but the opportunity to do something worthwhile while one experienced another culture was the best part.

Very satisfied - lots of information and support. Very welcomed and the schools were friendly. Reshhia was a great support in the lesson planning and in class. The house was comfortable and had everything we needed. We were given a tour and told clearly where everything was. The food is delicious! Light and tasty with a good range of dishes and perfect portion sizes! One of the highlights! The schools were easily accessible via tuktuk or walking. Reshma made transpo very easy and always made sure we got where we needed to be.

Everything was perfect. We loved the kids. We forgot to give our gifts to the teachers so it would be great if you could distribute our chalk and markers. The accommodation was very good. The actual accommodation was much nicer than what the information on the website made us think. The food was basic but good food. The best payasam we had and the biryanis were incredible. The transportation was very good. It is a bit pricey when you book it through IVHQ.

The project was very satisfying lessons are organized in a flexible way, so that you can adapt day by day. Lovely accommodation with all the indispensable comfort. And Baby is a very good chef. All the food was good!

We had the BEST time whilst here! The rooms are good- clean and comfy! Thank you Sajna and Sanee. Worm telling people that their stuff may go moldy due to humidity- this is not a criticism :) The food is incredible - we absolutely love everything that the ladies cooked. My mouth is watering thinking about it. We only used Rickshaws and Ubers/taxis as transpo which were all great. George & Sebastian (the drivers for Munnar & backwaters) were Amazing!! Can’t recommend enough. The cleaning was really good and the incense smelt amazing! The staff was amazing! The girls were all really helpful whenever we needed and would go out of their way to help every day.

The kindergarten classes are more like teaching classrooms rather than child play. You associate with a KG in the UK. This may be a surprise for some volunteers who may expect less in terms of “lesson” preparation. The accommodation was excellent - however, I had a lovely en suite single room! The food was excellent as well - freshly prepared, authentic Indian cuisine. Transfer to and from the airport is good. Transport to program was easy and cheap.

The project is good. The handover from old volunteers to new volunteers could be handled better. Good accommodation. Very clean and we were well taken care of. The food was lovely, local and Herala. The ladies really helped when we cooked fo something special. The transport is always available and very reasonably priced.

I am very satisfied with both the women's program & gathering for Raksha Schol. Both projects have been managed exceptionally well. The women's project has proven to be highly effective & impactful while the gathering efforts have provided valuable support & enhancement for Raksha School. I am also satisfied with the accommodation arrangements, the facilities were comfortable and well maintained. The living area was comfortable and a welcoming treat, the TV provided a nice excuse for some downtime. The food was truly exceptional. A huge credit to Saneera Sagria and Raneeka. Furthermore, the food provided an insightful understanding of the rich culture in Kerala. I have also felt very inspired to replicate some of the dishes at home. THANK YOU! The transport services were reliable, timely, and cost-effective. The rooms were cleaned in timely, but thorough manner. I particularly appreciated fresh bedding on the weekends. The mattresses were very comfy. Great staff support which helped ensure I had a positive experience. All staff were readily available and approachable. The WhatsApp chat is a great way to communicate quickly. I recommend to stay two nights in Mumna. The spice garden was very disappointing, the spice tour guide was extremely rude. The tea museums was also closed which was disappointing. Yoga, swimming, cafe hopping, art galleries, museums, walking to shopping, restaurants, cooking class & indigo dying were local and amazing. Highly recommend the cooking class and dying - SUPER!

I am extremely satisfied and extremely grateful for the opportunity given to teach. Reshma was lovely and so were the other members of staff who were friendly and made me feel at home. I felt very safe in the accommodation, with no worries at all! Very comfortable and couldn’t ask for more. The food was incredible - I loved it and was very similar to what I had at home, so did not miss home :P The transport was incredible- Das and Mukesh were great!

Very satisfied. The housekeeping and cooking team are amazing, the food is delicious. Thank you Saneosa, Renuka and Sajna! Also thank you to Ridhi, Shamla, Fami and Reshma! <3 The accommodation was lovely; very clean and good location. The food was delicious, healthy, and varied. We mostly used public transport. The house is in a good location and was always nice and clean. Our drivers for our trips to Munaas and Backwaters were excellent. All the staff were very welcoming and helpful.

We have loved our time here. Everyone at the house has been great and it has been wonderful to meet all the children. A really great experience. The accommodation A/C was great! The rooms were very nice. And the food was excellent.

The medical project was really good. I was able to change departments if I wished I was able to observe procedures and understand cases. The women’s project was incredibly inspiring. The women were so kind and generous. Only improvement would be to ensure clear communication. Accommodation was clean and enjoyable. As a tall girl, I found the beds were too short for me, but other than that it was pleasant. Food provided was amazing and very billing. The chef’s were AMAZING and we could request food if we wanted. At the medical placement, I had to buy my own lunch, which got expensive, but otherwise okay. Transport to and from airport was good. However, I had to pay for uber to and from medical placement which was an hour away, and I was not prepared to pay so much in transport.

I really enjoyed the project. The children were amazing. The staff were very supportive. Maybe a bit more information earlier in regards to what the lesson plans are I had these one week before, but couldn’t download them until 2 days before. I was very happy with the accommodation, no issues. I liked the lock situation. The food was good. The cooks are amazing very good, really enjoyed the food very reliable always on time, and very helpful and friendly.

I went to Kerala, South India for a month to do volunteering “women’s empowerment”. It was best experience ever! Staff in the house were super lovely, friendly and helpful! I felt so welcoming! Missing everyone already! I highly recommend it!

The project was amazing the school and the staff I think volunteers should be given an hour or 2 to do activities that they plan each day. This would require communication from VHQ staff to the school due to minimal English. The accommodation had comfy beds and clean areas in the house. Staff always around cleaning Food is lovely, it's nice to my preference foods. Sometimes small portions due to others eating more or miscommunication to who's eating and who isn't. Good transport, quite expensive compared to an Uber, But more reliable. Friendly drivers.

I'm very satisfied with this project. It gave me a great perspective and lots of knowledge in how Kerala manages health in citizens. Accommodation was great. Food was excellent, always hot and ready when needed. The trasport was also nice.

I was very much satisfied with the project I chose. I got to see new ways to treat patients (pt) while also getting to know the culture around here. I will miss being here. The room, beds, bathrooms and common areas were wonderful. Couldn't ask for a better place to have stayed. Unfortunately, I only ate breakfast in the house, but I can say that It was delicious. The taxi driver was friendly, plus tuktuks and Uber were lifesavers.

It was a unique experience. It was a month of full new experiences, new culture, new people, new faces and smiles! I had an amazing staff and other volunteers that always had made this experience even more pleasant!

Dear all of you wonderful people who make volunteering journeys so special... Thank you thank you thank you. This has felt like my my home and you have become like my Indian family! I will never forget the happy times with my lovely, energetic, adorable, sassy kids at the school and my week with the wauen-watching then blossom with confidence. I'll cherish these memories of fun, laughter, and lots of tears (sorry! haha) I love you all!

It was great working with the different schools and seeing the differences in how they run their schools and the differences between SA and Kerala's system. It's really hard to see that some of the kids at DBha School don't have people that are trained to work with them. Every school was welcoming and grateful for what we were doing for the children. I enjoyed every moment and hoped it helped in some way. The accommodation was sufficient, It has everything we needed. The cleaning was fine, a lot of the time it was just volunteers being untidy and needing to clean up after themselves. The food was interesting and different to what I am used to. Very wholesome and fresh, spicy at times but really good. For transportation, I still need to learn to clap to call a tuk tuk. But overall good experience and seeing the none tourist areas when going to the schools was great too. The staff support was super duper fantastic... always willing to go the extra mile! Tours and excursions were really amazing. (Backwaters and Toddy excursions). I loved the yoga here and ayuverda massage, it was an experience I won't forget. The yoga - I learnt a lot.