Pod Volunteer Reviews

Name: Pod Volunteer
Address: 5, Noverton Lane, Cheltenham, Prestbury
Rating: 4.79

4.8 Rating 598 Reviews

97 %

of reviewers recommend Pod Volunteer

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4.8

Based on 598 reviews

Customer Service
Communication Channels	Email, Telephone, Live Chat
Queries Resolved In	2 - 3 Hours
Customer Service	4.8 out of 5

About Pod Volunteer:

Pod Volunteer is an award winning non-profit organisation arranging ethical, inspiring and supported volunteering opportunities around the world since 2001

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Email:

info@podvolunteer.org

Location:

5, Noverton Lane, Cheltenham
Prestbury
GL52 5BA

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Pod Volunteer 5 star review on 19th December 2025

Perky H

Pod Volunteer 5 star review on 4th October 2025

William D

Pod Volunteer 5 star review on 19th September 2025

Harriet W

305

Anonymous

Anonymous // 01/01/2019

Filter: Rated 4 None 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Stars Helpful

“I had Gemma lay as my co-ordinator and she was great, really helpful and always replied quickly. I had a great experience on the island in Belize with reefci also”

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Posted 3 months ago

Thanks so much for your lovely review about your Reef Conservation project in Belize which you completed for your Gold DofE award! All the best, Gemma & the Pod team

Posted 3 months ago

“Volunteering at the Big 5 Animal project was truly fantastic and life-changing. I had the most amazing 3 weeks in South Africa at the Big 5 Animal volunteering in the summer of 2025. Our activities included animal observation, nature conservation and community activities. We had a great camp life with other volunteers hanging out, cooking and dining together every day. Every weekday we were either out at the reservation/safari or helping out in the nearby village school or soup kitchen. The weekends are free for other activities such as sand boarding, surfing, pottery or horse riding on the beach, or simply just chilling – your choice! Everyone was so friendly and helpful, and we all felt very safe and supported. We saw all the safari animals very close by; the elephants, hippos, giraffe families, rhinos, and lions which was just out of this world! This is the best in the world experience, and I would recommend a minimum stay of two weeks to really see and do everything that the Big 5 experience has to offer! If you go in June-August, please just remember to bring winter clothes as the South African winter can be very cold in the early mornings out in the safari. Also, be mindful to look into and sort out vaccines and travel insurance, and your travel plans early. POD Volunteering Organisation was very reliable, shared useful information on what to expect from the volunteering and arrangements, and provided a global 24/7 contact for any emergencies/queries which I didn’t need to use. The Big 5 Camp workers and organisers were the most amazing people and very knowledgeable about the Big 5 Reservation, all the animals, nature conversation and local community activities. They made my stay really special My experience was absolutely amazing and cannot recommend it more!”

Pod Volunteer 4 star review on 2nd October 2025

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Posted 4 months ago

Hi Mia, thanks so much for your amazing review of your time at the Big 5 Conservation and Community project in South Africa - the pictures look incredible! Thanks for your helpful advice for other volunteers and for all your help while at the project! Best wishes, Alex and the Pod team

Posted 4 months ago

“Such a good experience!! I would HIGHLY recommend choosing to do this trip as it has created the most amazing memories with the most amazing people. This programme offers such a unique experience that no one would never normally do in their day to day life and I’m so greatful! Will miss the team and everyone involved lots!”

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Posted 5 months ago

“We went as a family of 6, 2 grandparents, 2 parents and 2 children, aged 8 and 10. The experience was very special, and the wildlife sense team were so passionate and informative an about the turtles and the conservation of their habitat. Many special memories!”

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Posted 5 months ago

Thanks so much Nina and it was lovely to meet you all in Kefalonia! Best wishes, Alex and the Pod team

Posted 5 months ago

“Very fun experience, loads of chances to see and save turtles and lots of fun had. All staff on the ground and online incredibly professional, helpful and all lovely to speak to.”

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Posted 5 months ago

Thanks for such a glowing review of your time volunteering at the Turtle Conservation project!

Posted 5 months ago

“This was an incredible experience eye-opening and extremely interesting I learnt many things about the culture and mostly about elephants and their behaviours etc. The whole experience was very smooth from the transfer being there when we arrived and everyone being very lovely. I would recommend this to anyone who is looking for an adventure of a lifetime.”

Pod Volunteer 4 star review on 24th August 2025

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Posted 5 months ago

Thanks for a lovely review from your time at the Elephant and Wildlife Conservation project in Sri Lanka! Many thanks, Gemma - Pod Volunteer

Posted 5 months ago

“Loved working with the elephants the company was great, information was perfect just wish I had read it more carefully”

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Posted 6 months ago

Hi Heather, so pleased you enjoyed volunteering with elephants in Thailand and thanks for encouraging others to read our information! Best wishes, Alex and the Pod team

Posted 5 months ago

“Great organisation with lovely offer for volunteering opportunities, great expertise and perfect response times”

Pod Volunteer 4 star review on 11th August 2025

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Posted 6 months ago

Thanks Maya for all your efforts in South Africa and that's a brilliant photo of the lions!! Best wishes, Alex and the Pod team

Posted 6 months ago

“very good at organising and had a lovely time in south africa”

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Posted 6 months ago

Thanks so much Rosie, I'm really glad to hear you enjoyed your time helping with the horse rehabilitation project, I know Georgie and the team are missing you! Best wishes, Alex and the Pod team

Posted 6 months ago

“I enjoyed the trip a lot. The activities we did along with the new people I met made the trip a lot of fun and an experience I won’t forget. One area of improvement I can suggest is the range in food. I understand you can only offer what the campsite, however I would have liked a bigger range in food at lunch to fuel me for the rest of the day. That is the only negative I can think of, the food for dinner was perfect as there was a big selection.”

Pod Volunteer 4 star review on 28th July 2025

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Posted 6 months ago

Many thanks for your helpful feedback Sam - I'm glad you enjoyed your U18 Turtle and Marine Conservation project in Greece! Gemma - Pod Volunteer

Posted 6 months ago

“WFFT has been one of the greatest and funniest experience I’ve never had in my life. If you’ve always dreamed of travelling around the world, doing volunteering with animals and live and unforgettable and memorable experience, don’t wait any longer and join us! I’ve spent 6 weeks in total at WFFT, including 3 weeks in Wildlife and 3 weeks in Elephants. I’ve really enjoyed both and I would recommend anyone to experience both as well. In my opinion, the longer you stay the better it is. You get to know every animal’s habits and and specific needs. They are adorable, amazing and endearing. Moreover, the staff/coordinators/volunteers are awesome and I’ve made wonderful Friends. You only got one day off a week, so there is no long rest. The work days are really long and exhausting, But it’s worth it and your help is precious and meaningful. Go for it!!!”

Pod Volunteer 4 star review on 28th March 2025

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Posted 10 months ago

Hi Chloe, thank you so much for all your hard work during your 6 weeks in Thailand doing a combination of Elephant Care and Wildlife Rescue! Hard work and a lot of fun, exactly what we aim for! What an amazing set of pictures too, it really shows what life at the centre and in Thailand is like. Hope you are settling in well at home after a long time away with your other travels too. Best wishes, Alex

Posted 10 months ago

“My daughter had a really brilliant time in Kefalonia, she enjoyed the activities very much especially the night shift. She found camping and sharing a tent with girls she didn't know a challenge, but she made several new friends by the end of the week. A big thank you to all the leaders for being supportive.”

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Posted 1 year ago

Hi Terry, thanks very much for your comments, your daughter did so well and really rose to the challenges of the trip. It was a very nice group and great to see so many people mixing well and making new friends. Best wishes, Alex

Posted 1 year ago

“I had a great week in Kefalonia with Pod Volunteer the accommodation was good and the food was really good, the leaders make us feel very safe the whole week, thank you. I enjoyed the activities on the beach with the night shift and morning survey. However, if I’m being completely honest, some of the tasks weren’t what i expected going on this trip, i expect the snorkelling to be deep in the sea seeing lots of turtles but it felt quite monotonous and pointless looking at sea grass for an hour everyday. For the actual turtles, it was amazing watching them going into the sea and that was a moment i won’t forget but I felt that I wasn’t very helpful overall I don’t feel we made a difference to the turtles since we just observed and watched the staff handle the turtles, I understand that we aren’t as knowledgeable as them but watching back trailers from previous trips of the turtle saving on Pods instagram it led me to believe that we would be more involved with the turtles. I still had a great time and. it was a trip I’ll never forget.”

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Posted 1 year ago

Thanks very much for your feedback on the U18 Turtle and Marine Conservation trip and for letting us know about some of the tasks that weren’t quite what you expected, it’s really useful to hear this. With the snorkelling, the reason for doing these surveys is to monitor the sea grass meadows and collect data that feeds into the database, so it can seem repetitive but it’s really valuable data that is being collected about the state of the vital sea grass. In terms of handling turtles, we always try to minimise this and as we are there for a week it’s more of an observational role. We’ll review our info to try and make this as clear as possible. I’m really pleased that you enjoyed the nesting check shifts and the overnight shift and that you had a great time overall! Thanks for all your efforts and hope you have a great last bit of the summer hols! Best wishes, Alex

Posted 1 year ago

“I am attaching my evaluation I completed for SLWCS”

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Posted 2 years ago

Thanks so much Carolyn, great to hear about your time with the elephants! Best wishes, Alex

Posted 2 years ago

“pod have been amazing- very quick in responses and answered any questions o had really well. All i would say is that in the info booklet a lot of the info i was given about the sea turtle conservation i did in greece was outdated/incorrect. For example the 'no wifi' etc. Otherwise, pod have been great, and i had an amazing time!!”

Pod Volunteer 4 star review on 12th June 2023

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Posted 2 years ago

Thanks so much for your comments and amazing pictures, looks like you had an incredible experience and really makes me want to go back to Greece! I'm sorry there were a few bits of information that weren't up to date, I'll message you privately to check on those so we can change them. With Wifi, we hadn't wanted to say it was always available, as in previous years it had been rather unreliable but hopefully it's better now! Best wishes, Alex

Posted 2 years ago

“Helpful, with links to organise getting to one part of my travels to the other. They check up on you to make sure that you arrived safely. But not sure it’s not worth the ton more money than booking directly.”

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Posted 2 years ago

Hi Alannah, thanks very much for your feedback and I’m really glad the travels between different parts of the country all co-ordinated well. We do appreciate that it can sometimes be a little more cost to book through us than going directly to a project, but it’s important to consider that it’s not easy to find ethical and good quality volunteering experiences on your own. Going directly tends to be more suited to a repeat visit. We do always keep volunteer fees as low as possible and we operate on a non-profit basis to ensure this. We are also always there to support our volunteers, before and during their time away. Best wishes, Alex

Posted 2 years ago

“Had a great experience doing early learning in Ghana. Pod has been supportive from the start, had no issues organising the trip and everything went smoothly. The charity I volunteered with was friendly and opened up a variety of opportunities beyond early learning, including construction and tech teaching.”

Pod Volunteer 4 star review on 27th April 2023

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Posted 2 years ago

Hi Molly, thanks so much of your review of your time volunteering in Ghana and all the different roles you were able to get involved in with the community there. Best wishes, Alex

Posted 2 years ago

“It was very helpful having Pod Volunteer as our contact person who answered all the questions we had. The project description (AERU - South Africa) was quite updated and complete. Even though it is possible to book directly with the project, I would always prefer doing this via Pod Volunteer. They have a good connection with Christina from the AERU project, so you have two partners who are taking care of you and guarantee that your volunteering time will be a life-changing experience! Enjoy!”

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Posted 2 years ago

Hi Viola, thanks so much for your comments and it was lovely to meet you out in South Africa and see you in action monitoring the elephants. I hope you are settling in well back at home after this project and your other amazing Africa travels! Best wishes, Alex

Posted 2 years ago

“Tortuga reserve in Costa Rica lived up to expectations with a wonderful array of projects ranging from turtle release to sting ray fishing, butterfly care and crocodile hunting. The only reservation I have was that if spare time during the day was a bit less it would have been possible to have a two day rather than one day weekly break to be able to explore further away from the reserve which was implied in the description given for the project.”

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Posted 2 years ago

Hi Keith, thanks very much for your feedback on your time in Costa Rica, it sounds like you got involved in some incredible wildlife projects! That's very helpful to know about the free time, I'll discuss with the local team and also review our information to make sure this is as clear as possible. Best wishes, Alex

Posted 2 years ago

“Very good (customer) service”

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Posted 3 years ago

Thanks so much Caitlyn, great to hear about our customer service as this is so important to us. Best wishes, Alex

Posted 3 years ago

Pod Volunteer is rated 4.8 based on 598 reviews