Your Complete Thailand, Australia and New Zealand Gap Year

Spend up to 12 months on an amazing Gap Year in Thailand, Australia and New Zealand. This programme provides all the structure you need, such as lots of activities, detailed orientation meetings and help when you need it but there are also lots of opportunities for you to do your own thing. You choose when you go and how long you spend in each country as well as when and where you work (or if you work at all!) and what sort of activities you experience.

Programme Age Limit
Minimum 18 years, maximum decided on potential participants health.

Your Programme in Thailand

Fly from the UK to Bangkok where you will have a 3 day/2 night stop over before travelling to the base camp which is located 142kms North of Bangkok in Sing Buri province. The camp is situated about 10 km from the town of Singburi and takes about 15 minutes from the Eco Houses you will be staying in. This part of you trip gives you the chance to learn the language, experience the unique opportunity of living with monks at a temple, trek through jungles, or help the locals with community development projects. Relax on the beautiful island of Ko Samet and if you want to stay longer you can volunteer at an orphanage, teach children English or live with a hill tribe in Northern Thailand.

Week One – Orientation Week

Week Two – Temple Stay & Outdoor Activities

Week Three
For week three you have 2 options:

Option A - Community Project
During this week you will have the opportunity to help the local community by teaching children English and Maths. You don’t need to have any previous experience. This week is about being as creative as possible to make learning English fun for the children.

Past volunteers have taught through:

Please be aware of the following school holidays:
Mid-end of March until mid-May
12 – 17 April – New Year
End of September/Beginning of October – End of October/beginning of November

If you are on the programme during this time or during any examination periods you will be teaching English to the local village children rather than in a school/classroom environment. You will teach the children at either one of the Eco Houses or an alternative camp.

Option B - Trekking (3 days)
For the next 3 days you and all other participants will go trekking in the jungle & rainforest of the Phutoei National Park.

This will be a unique experience, you will be roughing it in beautiful surroundings, sleeping in tents or hammocks and generally surviving on the basics whilst at the same time having a lot of fun! The guides are very friendly and you will really enjoy yourself!

Please note: The trekking is not for the faint-hearted and the itinerary is subject to change depending on seasons, weather conditions etc.

Week Four –Beach time and Final evaluation (6 nights) Travel to Ko Samet Island for beach time and relaxation

Please note: This 4-week itinerary is subject to change depending on weather conditions, seasons etc.

Accommodation and Meals
Your first two nights accommodation will be at a hotel in Bangkok. When in Singburi you will be staying at one of our 3 Eco Houses. Some schools are within walking distance, others are around 5km/10km and transport will be provided.

The houses sleep from 20 to 50 people. All houses have single sex dorm rooms with the number of beds ranging from 3 to 12. All houses have western style toilets and one even has an Asian toilet! Each bathroom has a shower and the water is always cool – nice and refreshing in the heat.

All houses have a communal area where you can eat, relax and meet.

All meals are included. Breakfast and dinner will be served at the Eco House. Lunch is either provided at the school or you will receive a packed lunch.

Whilst on Ko Samet Island your accommodation is twin share and is always in resorts close to the beach.

Weeks Five to Eight - Three Additional Projects:

(1) Thailand Orphanage Project
This project offers you the opportunity to help children in a Thai Orphanage and motivate, enrich, and give hope and direction to young people. If you are patient, caring and compassionate, and have a real desire to give joy, happiness and education to Thai children then this is the project for you.

Most large orphanages in Thailand have their own primary (and secondary) school for the pupils, the school is also open for poor families. The orphanage provides housing, food and teaching materials for all poor students.

The Samakkeewitthaya orphanage is home to 350 orphans and is located in Singburi about 142 kms north of Bangkok.

Duties and activities that you may be involved with include:

Accommodation
Accommodation will be at the Eco House about 10 km from the orphanage and transport will be
arranged each day for you.

(2) Thailand Hill Tribe Project
After week 4 on Koh Samet, you will travel back to Singburi. On Monday you and the group will travel to Mae Chan in northern Thailand by bus in the afternoon, arriving in the early hours. In weeks one and two you will stay in the district of Mae Chan. Mae Chan is just 40km away from Chieng Rai City. Our centre is located between the youth hostel of our friends AFECT and the school where you can teach English. Chiang Rai province covers 11,678 square kilometres with a population of 1.23 million! The average elevation is 580 meters above sea level, Myanmar borders on the north, and Laos on the north and northeast. The provincial capital is north of Bangkok.

This volunteer project gives you the ideal opportunity to really get to know the Thai culture and people. You will meet local rural communities, whilst having the chance to really experience the culture and traditions of this fascinating part of Thailand.

Week One – Orientation week, introducing you to the Hill Tribes, the culture and language.

Week Two - Continue to help and teach in the School. Take a trip to the highest village in Thailand – Mae Serong, visit the Golden Triangle and also the Burmese hill border. Visit a Temple viewpoint to see the border between two villages in Thailand and Burma.

Week Three - Spend the week in one of the first AKHA tribe settlements, living in a village called Saeng Chai and staying with a traditional Thai community. You will learn how to produce your own chopsticks and drink from homemade bamboo cups and cook food AKHA style.

Week Four - Depart Saeng Chai to trek through forests and over hills, along the way you will learn about the use of the forest by the AKHA tribes for building food and medical use and also meet the hill tribe elephants. During this week you will be staying at homestays and in tents or hammocks and perhaps again be able to visit the Burma border.

(3) Teaching Children English Project
This volunteer programme provides an excellent opportunity to work with Thai children and contribute to the local communities in a positive way. The children are really keen to learn English as this enhances their future employment opportunities.

Most teaching projects are based in villages near and around the town of Singburi. By this time you will already be familiar with the area as you spend most parts of weeks 1-3 in the surrounding areas.

You will receive information, tips and suggestions from us and also when you arrive on what and how to teach. As well as teaching English you can help with other classes and activities such as maths, sports and games. You can use games to make learning fun, past volunteers have played things like twister that helps with your left and rights & also colours. Being creative about learning makes in school activities fun and interesting, giving the children an animated lesson.

Please be aware of the following school holidays:
Mid-end of March until mid-May
12 – 17 April – New Year
End of September/Beginning of October – End of October/beginning of November

If you are on the programme during this time or during any examination periods you will be teaching English to the local village children rather than in a school/classroom environment.

You will teach the children at either one of the Eco Houses or an alternative camp.

Accommodation
The accommodation for weeks 5-8 is basic but comfortable. Due to the culture, the accommodation is in single sex rooms. There is no hot water, however you really won’t want a hot shower. The shower is warm and very refreshing in the humid conditions. There will be limited laundry facilities so expect to wash your clothes by hand. All participants are expected to be environmentally aware and to use all resources with restraint, especially water, paper and electricity. You will be expected to clean up after yourself, and to play your part to keep the accommodation neat and organised.

Your Programme in Australia

Your next flight will take you to Sydney, Australia. On arrival at Sydney Airport you will receive an airport transfer to your hostel in Sydney. For the first 7 nights you will be staying in shared dormitory style rooms, meeting other young travellers, attending orientation meetings and having job consultations. We find you jobs – fast. You choose when you start working.

Your 12 month Work Package
What is included?

Working Holiday Visa
Before you leave the UK we will process your working holiday visa for you. The visa is available to anyone age 18 – 30 and valid for up to 12 months. If you want to stay for longer than 12 months it is now possible to extend your visa whilst out in Australia for up to 24 months - speak to one of our sales advisors for more info. We do not recommend getting a working holiday for Australia if you plan to spend any less than 3 months in the country – the visa can only be granted once in a lifetime and so it’s best to make the most of it!

Job Finding Services
Upon your arrival, our priority is to find you a job, all you need to do is let our team of job consultants know when you want to work and the rest will be done for you! You will then be safe in the knowledge that you have up to 12 months of job offers, all with reputable employers, a nice feeling considering that over 110,000 people enter Oz on a working holiday each year.

The jobs available are likely to be in hospitality, call centers, office temping, accounting, childcare, teaching, retail, IT and fruit picking are among the many types of jobs on offer.

Loads of other stuff
Our Aussie team organises parties at various different venues. This is a great way to meet other travellers as well as having fun times. In addition they regularly organise social and cultural activities such as wineries trips, bush walking, sporting events, and festivals. When you decide to travel around Oz, there is 2 months free luggage storage for you at the Sydney office. Each month you will receive a newsletter with the entire latest goings on, events and offers. You will receive a beach bag, some flip flops and a water bottle, plus a booklet of discount vouchers.

Amazing discounts off exciting activities such as Jet Boating, Museums, Zoos and tours. Also loads of discounts on useful stuff like travel, accommodation and perhaps most importantly – beer!

Fun & Travel in Oz
5-day surf school adventure
On this trip you get to live the surfer’s dream of freedom, travel, good waves and good times. You spend 5 days travelling between Sydney and Byron Bay, stopping along the way at some of Australia’s most pristine beaches. Your transport is the luxury surf party bus, which will take you to your destinations in style, many of which will be off the“conventional” backpacker route.

The full surfing tuition covers all abilities from beginners to advanced, and the full accredited instructors will make sure that you will be standing and riding those waves. On top of this, they will pass on the skills of paddling, wave selection and ocean knowledge, as well as many other hints too.

All equipment, transport, accommodation and meals are included, involving the great Aussie BBQs, beach buffets etc. The trip is an absolute dream, as you ride the waves by day and party away at night.

OZ Experience Bus Pass
You will receive the “Strewth” pass allowing you to travel between Byron Bay and Cairns, letting you see the main sights of the amazing East coast, such as the Great Barrier Reef, the Whitsundays, Airlie Beach and Fraser island. Not only that, the “Oz Experience” buses like to take you on out-of-the-way trips en route, showing you areas of natural splendour and adding local stories and legend, to teach you more about what makes Australia a fantastic place.

Your Programme in New Zealand

Your Work Package
Your flight will be from Sydney airport to Auckland Airport, where you will receive a shuttle bus
transfer to the hostel in the city centre. Here you will have your first 7 nights’ accommodation at Auckland’s largest and most vibrant hostel, conveniently located in the city centre where all the action is. The accommodation is in shared dormitory style rooms and breakfast is included every morning.

The hostel is famous amongst travellers for its Globe Bar and is generally the meeting place for social outings in Auckland.

What is included?

12 months of Job offers
You are entitled to a 12- month job finding service. Our team specialises in finding jobs for working holidaymakers visiting New Zealand. Employment ranges from labouring and construction, short to long term temping assignments, bar and café work, seasonal fruit picking, travel and tourism, all trade positions, work in the health sector, clerical and office administration work, accountancy and much more. As part of the service you will receive assistance with opening up bank accounts, applying for tax numbers, preparing a Curriculum Vitae and arranging interview times with employers.

Types of jobs

Other Stuff
Within your first few days of arrival, you will receive a full and detailed orientation with our local NZ co-ordinator. They will give you lots of advice with regards to living and work in NZ, plus the best places to have fun. They will also give you all the following items and information.

Kiwi Experience bus pass
Your “Funky Chicken” pass incorporates the main sights, ranging from the beautiful glaciers and alpine towns of the South island, to the volcanic and thermal regions of the North. You will also be taken to the centres of adrenaline filled activities, however, whether you will do a sky dive in Taupo or a bungee jump in Queenstown is entirely up to you! By the end of your time in New Zealand, you will see why it is known as “God’s own country.”

Flights
Once you have booked, we will talk through the best flight options. The airlines will depend on your departure dates. The inclusive price covers the airline ticket and the tax. The flight sectors are:

Initially we will book your flight sectors with dates as close as possible to the ones you would like. However, often airlines cannot book your return flight dates as far in advance as you may like but you will have the flexibility to change all of your flight dates once you have departed the UK for a small fee.

Insurance
Our Gap Year comprehensive insurance policy is with Endsleigh. You will receive a policy document in your final pre-departure pack, which outlines exactly what you are covered for within your final pack.

Full details of coverage are also available on www.realgap.co.uk/Insurance

Programme Support
Throughout your programmes you will have the support and guidance of the programme coordinator and team. You will be provided with competent assistance and help with any questions or advice you may need during your stay.

You will be assigned a personal travel advisor who will coordinate your programme with you. Feel free to contact them at any time before you go, or when you are on your travels.

In addition, you will have access to a 24 hour emergency contact number so you can contact one of our UK staff at any time should you need to.

If you are interested in the Complete Thailand, Australia and New Zealand package then please feel free to contact Lisa, our Complete Gap Programme Manager at lisa.fiddimore@realgap.co.uk or call the team on 01892 516164. We can also tailor make a similar itinerary just for you to fit in with your budget, time scale and ideals to make this your trip of a lifetime!