When volunteering holidays go wrong

Volunteer holidays abroad are increasingly popular among young Irish people but for some, the experience doesn't live up expectations. John Holden and Emma Browne speak to volunteers who felt mislead by programme operators

Chris Moore and his tennis-coach partner paid to volunteer their sports- and English- teaching skills in Thailand in July 2006. They paid over €1,700 for a four-week programme , which entitled them to teaching placements in a school in Thailand, an online English-language teaching course, accommodation, airport pick-up, insurance and general support.

"We thought we were going to a place called Suphan Buri," says Chris Moore, "but we ended up in Ayuthaya. Our coordinator was supposed to pick us up at the airport, bring us to our apartment, bring us on a weekend trip to Bangkok, as well as check up on us in our school and accommodation. None of these things were done."

"The main reason I went was to teach tennis," says Moore's partner, who did not wish to be named. "However, this brand-new project had no opportunity for sports coaching whatsoever, even though it is advertised as providing facilities for teaching football, volleyball, basketball, swimming, tennis and athletics."

The two were also disappointed by the accommodation supplied, although litereature they were given prior to departure warned not to expect luxuries that are customary in the West. "No food was provided as part of the fee, but we had no cooking facilities either. Our accommodation was so bad that we eventually moved into a hotel out of our own expense," says Moore.

The programme was run by I-to-I, a privately-run international organisation which provides voluntary work placements for people who wish to get involved in various activities in the developing world. It is not a non-profit organisation.

When Chris Moore and his partner complained to their I-to-I coordinator upon their return, they were told via email that the "organisation's objective is to provide basic accommodation to get the experience [of] how people are living here with limited modern facilities and equipment. If you forgot your purpose of coming here and [the] idea of volunteering then I am sorry for that."

"I feel cheated by the company," says Chris. "I-to-I are taking advantage of young people like us who wanted to do something different and positive. They are just a big business like any other."

Village contacted other participants on the trip who made similar complaints.

A spokesperson for I-to-I told Village, "We contacted the school in question who said there would be sports, but unfortunately they prioritised English-teaching. It is our intention that all projects are marketed accurately and we are sorry the volunteers were misinformed in this case...

With regards to the accommodation, we aim to make clear to all Thailand travellers that the standard of accommodation in this country is basic and that many of the things we have to make our life comfortable at home may be considered a luxury in Thailand. This is outlined in a pre-departure booklet issued to all volunteers.

"We are extremely sorry that this situation occurred. I-to-I aims to give our volunteers a worthwhile experience and we are concerned when this is not the case. We have taken this up with our in-country team and have taken steps to make sure that the outline of our projects are met..."

I-to-I is not the only company in the voluntary holiday sector to be the subject of complaints from unhappy Irish customers. Two young Irish women, Sarah Wood and Lorraine Kiernan, paid over €4,000 to the Irish franchise of Experiment in International Living (EIL), a non-profit organisation, for a trip to Argentina to work at a community centre for disadvantaged children. Their fee was to cover travel expenses within South America (not flights to the continent), accommodation, Spanish classes, insurance, medical liability, a walking tour and two day-trips.

They were told that any money remaining from their fee would be donated to the children's centre.

Having arrived in Argentina, the two women began gathering receipts and, using those, along with information garnered from local people, estimated that the bulk of their expenses in Argentina came to around €1,600.

This left a balance of around €2,400, which was to cover insurance, medical liability, a walking tour, two day-trips and administration costs in Ireland and Argentina. The two women felt this would leave a significant amount for the children's centre but when they made inquiries they discovered that the children's centre received just €80. At the request of the women, EIL donated €500 to the project after the women cancelled 30 hours of Spanish classes.

EIL Ireland refused to give the women, or Village, a breakdown of the costs of their trip because the information is "commercially sensitive" but said that the women's estimations are wrong. Village has seen the receipts obtained by the women. These show that EIL donated $100 (€80) to the children's project; that the cost of a return bus ticket from was $120 (€90); that the six weeks' accommodation cost $400 (€320). The women estimate that 60 hours of Spanish classes cost €1,000 (they received a €500 refund for 30 hours of cancelled classes). They also estimate that three nights' accommodation in their hotel in Buenos Aries cost €70 and their airport transfer was €15. These costs come to a total of around €1,575.

When contacted by Village, a spokesman for EIL Ireland issued this statement: "Village's article is full of factual errors and poorly researched. The project where the women worked received a donation of $940 (€725), and not $100 (€80)... The costs of the following are missing: medical and accident insurance, meals in Buenos Aires, taxi/transfer in Buenos Aires, two days accompanied by a private teacher/guide in Buenos Aires, orientation briefing in the EIL office in Buenos Aires, day-trips with private teacher/EIL representative in Cordoba, other local supports in Cordoba and a 24 hour, seven-day emergency support in Buenos Aires, Cordoba and Ireland. [Village] also underestimates the cost of airport meet-and-greet by an EIL representative and language classes.

"[EIL] is run by a board of volunteer directors consisting of former participants and a team of 10 staff. The directors of EIL received no emoluments in 2004, 2005 or in any other year."p