Costa Rica House Building Volunteers

Sunday – Monday: Arrival and Orientation

On arrival at San José International Airport, Costa Rica, you will be met by one of our representatives who will take you to your first night’s accommodation in the historic town of Alajuela. The following day, Monday, you will receive a detailed orientation from our local team which will cover important information about your programme and provide you with lots of information about Costa Rica along with tips on the best places to visit during your free time.

Tuesday

After spending two nights in Alajuela, you will be transferred to San Ramón to start your programme, volunteers usually travel by public transport. On arrival in San Ramón you will be introduced to the delightful family who will be your hosts for the duration of your programme, before having a bit of time to settle in and get familiar with your new home. Later on you will be taken to your project so that you can meet the people that you are working with and witness first-hand the wonderful work that has already taken place. If there is time you may even be able to start getting your hands dirty and stuck in to the project work!

Wednesday – Friday

Having settled in and got to know your host family, Wednesday will be your first full day of project work. Don’t worry if you are unsure of what to do, there will be plenty of people around that will be able to help and show you the ropes!

The working day is normally from 8am to 4pm, with a lunch break in the middle of the day. Your evenings are your free time so you are welcome to spend them as you wish, you may like to spend some time with your host family and practice your Spanish or perhaps meet up with your fellow volunteers.

Saturday – Sunday

The weekends are your free time, this is a great opportunity to explore Costa Rica and visit some of the splendid things it has to offer. From canopy walks to volcanoes to beaches, there is something for everyone!

Following weeks

For the remainder of your time on the programme your work schedule will run from Monday to Friday, starting at 8am and finishing at 4pm; your free time will be in the evenings and at weekends.

On the final day of your programme, you will need to make your own way back to Alajuela where you will be able to arrange a transfer back to the airport.

Please note: Itineraries are subject to change without prior notice.

Each house can take between ten and 24 weeks to build from start to finish, the stage of building work that you will be involved in will very much depend on the progress of the houses that are being built at the time you arrive.

As the programme is funded by the Costa Rican and Canadian Rural Housing programme and is a scheme to provide affordable to housing to the lowest income families in the rural areas; one of the requirements of the scheme is that the family for whom the house is being built for is very much involved in the building process as well. So as well as working with your fellow volunteers and builders from the scheme, you will be working alongside the people that you are helping and this will be give you the wonderful opportunity to get to know the people that will benefit from the house that you are building and gain an insight as to how much of a difference the new home will make to their lives.

The project work is likely to be very tiring and physically demanding but in return the sense of achievement will be incredible. You will be required to get involved in lots of different aspects of the building process, some of these tasks may include the following:

• Carrying materials and tools to the building site
• Digging trenches for the foundations
• Laying floors
• Mixing concrete
• Putting roofs on the houses
• Building septic tanks
• Preparing frameworks for the buildings

It is not a requirement of the project for you to have any building experience or skills, as the team you will be working with will be able to teach you everything you need to know. However, if you have any previous building or construction experience then please do tell the local team know so that they can put your skills to good use.