Group Travel

Amanzi Travel can put together a fantastic travel experience for groups of friends, classmates, colleagues or family, providing opportunities for team building and leadership for a corporate client or an incredible adventure for a group of friends wanting to do something different. Alternatively give your teenagers a real insight into life in the developing world, where as a family you can make a real difference - this could be a fantastic family holiday before your children leave the nest to embark on their chosen career or university.

Schools, colleges and universities

An African adventure brings learning to life for young people. It will stretch comfort zones, teach life skills and expand minds outside the classroom. It will challenge boundaries and expose your group to the real Africa. The aim of each school trip abroad is to promote a sense of adventure, leadership, responsibility and international understanding, preparing young people to meet challenges of the future with confidence and compassion.

This is possible for groups from all schools, colleges, universities or any youth group such as sports teams, clubs or societies. Our specialists are here to inspire and inform you and help you design an unforgettable and life-changing opportunity for young adventurers, whether it is to achieve specific learning objectives or simply to experience a period of personal discovery in a foreign environment. We will recommend a project based on ability, duration, activity, cost, location and personal skills. Safety is always a priority, especially for young people. Our pre-departure pack includes a great deal of information to help prepare for the trip ahead, we can recommend specialist travel insurance to ensure you are covered for specific projects and a full orientation is given to each of the group upon arrival at the project, as well as a 24 hour support system.

These fulfilling trips will provide young people with an opportunity to improve team-building, leadership and motivation within a school travel group. It will encourage transferrable skills and develop an understanding of the world. It will encourage student personal development and self-fulfilment set in a unique and dramatic backdrop of Africa. It can even improve career prospects and help you stand out from the crowd. A volunteer project with Amanzi Travel is a school trip abroad out of the ordinary. They are exposed to new and stimulating situations, helping to build their confidence both now and for their future. By participating with hands on volunteer work at a local school, community development or other projects in Africa, students have a wonderful opportunity to experience two cultures interacting in harmony with a common aim. But there is a fun side too; white water rafting, bungee jumping, canoeing, fishing, quad biking, overland trips and even courses can be built into your programme.

To get the most out of your African adventure, we would encourage your young people to get involved in the planning and research of the country and the project, and understand their priorities, and where possible, allow free time for favoured activities. It may be possible to set up blog pages on the trip, obviously ensuring that all information and photographs are reviewed before going live, as it reflects the school/group. It may be worth considering how to fundraise for the trip and encouraging the young people with particular ideas and suggestions. This may seem a daunting prospect for some but for many the process of raising the necessary funds can be extremely satisfying and often great fun. People are very generous if it is for a good cause. For more suggestions for fundraising, please see our FAQ section

A recent example for Amanzi Travel was arranging for a group of 17 students from an academy in Scotland, aged 15 to 18 years old, to volunteer for 2 weeks on the Zanzibar Rural Teaching and Community Project, followed by a 5 day Tanzanian Safari, an overland trip that begins and ends in Nairobi, the focus being on the spectacular northern game parks of Tanzania. The itinerary included organised flights, airport transfers, orientation meetings lead by the project staff as well as transfer and accommodation bookings between the two activities.

Another example was arranging for a group of 20 students from a private college in Abu Dabi, aged 16 to 18 years old, to volunteer on the Kenya Teaching and Community Project, plus a short safari to Nakuru. The itinerary included organised flights, airport transfers, orientation meetings lead by the project staff as well as transfers, excursions, accommodation and meals.

"We have had an amazing experience learning and laughing alongside these wonderful young men and women.

In one day our students painted a two-story 14 room building with two coats of paint.  They also served the kids breakfast and lunch and cleaned the dishes so the staff could take a break.  The children helped the teachers on recess duty by dancing and playing with the kids.  They gave them more one-on-one attention than they have experienced in a long time and they loved it.  We can truly say that our hearts grew today – they ached in the process seeing little ones so young and with so little – but the growth is inspirational.

Today was our last day at worksite and we are happy to report that we finished the job!  Our students worked like crazy to finish everything – we really saw them come together as a team to complete their goal!  The art work is beautiful; the orphans will be so excited to live in such a bright and colourful place that was decorated with so much love.

The last day of our trip was a phenomenal success. We began by organising some playtime on the playgrounds and doing some face painting.  The little ones loved having their faces coloured in different designs by our students.  After that we moved to the soccer pitch where the group organised games for the orphans, parachute games, limbo, balloon bounce, finger painting, bubbles, etc.  It is not easy to maintain 75 – 6 and under – kids who speak Swahili, but with patience and care our students managed to have a fantastic time.  The day ended with heart-felt goodbyes."
Courtney, teacher and team leader, (Kenya Teaching & Community Project)

If you would like us to help prepare an experience for your group of young adventurers, please do contact Amanzi Travel on +44 (0)117 904 2638 and we'd love to help.

"Volunteering takes you out of your comfort zone but it was rewarding to meet the challenges head-on. Meeting the locals and helping them is an experience I will never forget. You can learn so much from how happy they are despite having so little."
Katie

 

Family and Friends

Whether you are in the fortunate position of travelling with your children, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins or any other family member, or whether you are travelling with a group of like-minded friends, let our committed travel team find the perfect volunteer project for you, for your own amazing African experience (with savings to be made for groups of 5 or more). There are a number of volunteer projects that are more suitable for younger travellers, and likewise for older volunteers, and there are particular overland trips that specifically welcome young persons aged 6 – 17 years travelling with parents on a tour. For those seeking adventure and discovery, our team of dedicated specialists will be delighted to suggest ideas to complement your own, so please call Amanzi Travel now on +44 (0)117 904 2638.

"I was shocked because I took so many things in my life for granted and these children had literally nothing and still you could see so much happiness in their faces. They had nothing, but somehow had everything and enjoyed every minute, they saw their world with very different eyes than how we, the volunteers, saw it."
Stephanie & Adriana (sisters), Venezuela/USA (St Lucia Orphan & Aids Education Project)

"We were lucky enough to find the five male cheetahs which the Cheetah Conservation Fund had released 6 months earlier; twice we saw them devouring their breakfast! Being able to observe their behaviour and eating habits in their new environment made sure that most days were once-in-a-lifetime experiences that none of us will forget."
Pila, Barbara, Georgie and Steff, Germany (Cheetah & Leopard Conservation Programme)

 

Corporate Travel

Amanzi Travel provides high quality business travel services, whether you are a multinational organisation or an individual corporate traveller. Our reputation has developed through a deep knowledge and interest in the countries and regions we operate in, and our specialists regularly travel to the regions you will be visiting, so we can offer invaluable advice and suggestions and finally arrange a bespoke trip. We offer a dedicated staff member assigned to your account, who will advise and fulfil your individual requirements.

There are significant benefits in volunteering, as many organisations are aware:-

Staff Development - Embarking on a group voluntary project with Amanzi Travel is an excellent way of developing the leadership and team working skills of your employees, as well as considerably boosting motivation. Supporting individual career break opportunities is a valuable and fulfilling alternative for staff and can complement a company's investment in the more tradition methods of staff training. Quite often the difference in staff returning from a period of volunteering abroad is phenomenal!

Corporate Social Responsibility - Amanzi Travel's volunteer career break opportunities can provide a means whereby organisations can meet their Corporate Social Responsibility objectives. By supporting employees to undertake volunteer projects in developing counties organisations are contributing to the wider community on an international level - this can form a valuable part of a company's CSR policy.

Attract great graduates and experienced staff - Organisations are increasingly competing for the brightest graduates and experienced staff - companies who are flexible and offer career break options often attract and retain some of the best employees.

Reward key personnel - What better way to motivate staff than by rewarding them with an incredible opportunity to take time out and volunteer in Africa through Amanzi Travel! This will not only provide an amazing experience for your rewarded staff but will also act as an attractive incentive to the whole workforce.

Many large organisations actively encourage their staff to develop links with local communities but Fresenius Kabi, a leading European provider of clinical nutrition and infusion therapy, has taken the idea one step further. Following a company conference in Zambia, Amanzi Travel arranged for 100 members of the Fresenius Kabi staff to volunteer with the local community at the Maramba Township, Livingstone, Zambia. Here, they helped with a number of community development projects (such as painting newly built classrooms, building a security wall at the clinic to encourage locals to seek medical attention and offering advice on malnutrition to the local Care Group who go out into the community to offer care and advice to patients with HIV, TB and Malaria), as well as being involved in the English classes and some sports coaching for the local children.

Amanzi Travel is committed to working with corporate partners to offer mutually beneficial opportunities to their staff, working with organisations that already have a defined career break scheme, as well as with companies who are keen to establish one. As a corporate partner, Amanzi Travel will work with the company to promote volunteer opportunities and offer a discount to all staff members. Please call our dedicated team if you would like to discuss options for you or your organisation on +44 (0)117 904 2638 or email: info@amanzitravel.co.uk.

"I just wanted to touch base to say a huge thank you for enabling the Community Project experience in Zambia for Fresenius Kabi conference delegates. The team were a pleasure to work with and the event was well organised given the size of our group. Needless to say, the experience had an overwhelmingly positive effect on our delegates, they absolutely loved the day and many cited it as 'one of the best days of their lives'. The memories of their contribution to the local community will remain with them forever and we consider ourselves very lucky to have had this opportunity through your facilitation". Fresenius Kabi Corporate Volunteer Day, Zambia - 2008