Volunteer Thailand | Village Homestay
Travel to Teach runs a volunteer homestay program in a small village located in the Phon Phisai district of Nongkhai province, Thailand. Volunteers can stay in a traditional Thai house with a local family, gaining a real insight into the Thai rural way of life.
Spending time in a village is the best way to fully submerge oneself in Thai culture. Village life allows volunteers to enjoy the simple pleasures of rural Thailand, increase their understanding of Buddhist cultures and intergrate into Thai life in a way which is often difficult in larger towns and cities.
Encouraged by the governments OTOP project http://www.thai-otop-city.com many villages will produce handicrafts that are distributed and sold throughout Thailand to subsidize their traditional agricultural lifestyles. Life in the villages in the north and north eastern parts of Thailand revolve around the Wat (the Buddhist Temple) and the rice paddies. Unlike the highly industrialized places that many of our volunteers come from, these rural communities are particularly scenic, offering beautiful views of stunning nature, free from the pollution caused by city life.
Many of the people working in the big cities grew up in the countryside, so spending even a short amount of time in a Thai village can increase your understanding and affinity with the multifaceted Thai culture. Homestays are not for volunteers who seek the commodities of western life, the types of food available may be limited and there is little nightlife, just people going about their normal daily lives.
You will find more information about Thai village life at http://www.isanpeople.net
Volunteer work in our home stay villages is predominantly English teaching, either in local schools or at summer camps during school holidays. We also have some computer teaching opportunities and are looking to develop eco tourism programs in the near future.
Travel to Teach are offering a discount of 340 USD for couples or friends applying to volunteer in Thailand or Mexico. All the more reason to encourage your partner or friends to join you on your adventure!
Please note discounts are only available for people applying to volunteer together in the same location in Thailand or Mexico.
Apply now to volunteer in Thailand during the months of May, June or July and receive a 135 USD discount!
Please note the spring and summer discount is only available for people on a single placement in Thailand and cannot be used in conjunction with any other discount or offer.
| 2 Weeks | 4 Weeks | 8 Weeks | 12 Weeks | 24 Weeks | Extra Weeks |
| $615 | $750 | $1025 | $1295 | $1950 | $55 |
Read how your fees are spent or compare our
prices with other volunteer organisations.
View our prices in other volunteer locations's or
combine your stay in Thailand with stays in other locations as part of a
combination
stay.
Our application process typically takes two or three weeks, but can
be speeded up if there is a need for that. When we receive the initial
application from you, we will send you our full application form.
(1) Complete the Initial Application Form:
The first stage of the application process is to fill out the brief initial application form. Upon
receiving this we will send you the full application form.
(2) Complete the Full Application Form:
Fill out the application form. After receiving this we will assess your
suitability and place you on one of our programs.
(3) Placement info:
We will return detailed placement information and an invoice. If you
accept the placement you should pay the invoice and send us receipt of
payment by email or fax.
(4) Program Fee:
The program fee should be paid to us at least 2 months before you are
due to start your placement. However please be aware that we have a limited
amount of placements, so placements will only be secured when we
have received your payment.
(5) Communication:
Once you have made your traveling arrangements you should mail your time
of arrival and the means of transportation and we will confirm pickup.
You can join us for any amount of time, from a week to six months. We do recommend a trip of three to six months since it offers the best value. Regardless of the length of your stay, you will be able to learn some Thai and you will have time to get to know a new culture, come to know its people, and form relationships that will outlast the duration of your stay.
Dates of arrival: All teaching will start on the Monday after the introduction.
|
August: Sat 7, Sat 21 September: Sat 4, Sat 18 October: Sat 2, Sat 16, Sat 30 November: Sat 13, Sat 27 |
December: Sat 11, Sat 25 |
| January: Sat 8, Sat 22 February: Sat 5, Sat 19 March: Sat 5, Sat 19 April: Sat 2, Sat 16, Sat 30 |
May: Sat 14, Sat 28 June: Sat 11, Sat 25 July: Sat 9, Sat 23 August: Sat 6, Sat 20 |
September: Sat 3, Sat 17 October: Sat 1, Sat 15, Sat 29 November: Sat 12, Sat 26 December: Sat 10, Sat 24 |
Accommodation will vary according to the village you are staying in. You can expect your own bedroom however you should be prepared to sleep on Thai beds and use Thai style bathrooms and toilets.
There are many great activities provided in the village lifestyle. Besides teaching, which is the greatest way to get to know the people, the natural surroundings provide many opportunities to hike. The Monks at the Wats are more than enthusiastic to include you in their daily prayer ceremonies, and it is also possible to meditate with them several times a day. Depending on your location a short commute (sometimes only a few minutes on the bike) will get you to a local town center where you can find local convenience stores and internet cafes.
Weekend Retreats
Many of our homestay villages are located close to larger Travel to Teach volunteer locations and so its often possible for homestay volunteers to visit the larger locations during weekends to socialize with other volunteers and enjoy more Western comforts. We have homestay programs in close proximity to Nongkhai and we will always endeavor to find you a bed in one of our dorms during weekends.
Because of the extremely friendly culture of Thailand, you will find yourself being offered breakfast, lunch, and dinner with many different people. This experience is highly recommended as it gives you a chance to taste the real foods of Thailand. Eating lunch with the Monks (at 11:30, for they cannot eat after 12:00 o'clock) is especially rewarding because the people strive to provide them with the best of foods. There are also food stalls in every village where you will always be able to get Pad Thai or Fried rice. Because you end up eating so much with the locals, you will be surprised at how little money you spend!
Weather varies depending on which village you are staying at and what time of year you are there.
Nongkhai Weather Chart
Travel to Teach will accompany you to the village by either train or bus and introduce you to your local contact person.
Joe currently works as project manager for Thailand. A qualified accountant, Joe volunteered with Travel to Teach for 9 months in 2004 / 05 and was only too happy to come back to Thailand to work for us. Originally from Nottingham in England, Joe enjoys watching and playing all sports (although he says that sadly he’s better at watching than playing).
Contact Joe: joe@travel-to-teach.org
Jim graduated from Khon Kaen University's tourism program in 2007 and initially completed a 3 month internship with Travel to Teach before joining us permanently. After working with us in Chiang Mai for 2 years Jim now helps manage our programs in Nongkhai. She is responsible for contact with schools and organising English camps and looks after our volunteers giving Thai language lessons and cooking classes.
Contact Jim: jim@travel-to-teach.org
Having graduated from Universtiy in Bangkok Jack has returned to his native village of Ban Thin Dung, Phon Phisai. Another former FGCC student Jack's English is excellent and he looks after our Phon Phisai volunteers. Jack has also developed his own program in "Isan-Survivors" taking people into the forests and on the rivers of Isan.
There are many options for your visa depending on the length of your stay.
One month tourist visa (free)
This is valid for 30 days and is granted free on arrival in Thailand by air. If you arrive at a land border you will currently only be given a 15 day visa. Please note you can only have three free one month visa stamps in any six month period.
Two/Three month single entry tourist visa (1,200 Baht - approx. 24€)
This is valid for two/three months after your arrival in Thailand. If you leave the country during this time your visa will become invalid. This can be arranged in advance at any Thai Consulate/Embassy. For a list of Thai Embassy's around the world see www.thaiembassy.org.
If you are staying in Thailand for more than a month and do not have time to arrange a 2 month visa, you can simply get your free stamp on arrival and then cross over into Laos after 30 days and apply for it there.
It's quite a simple process:
To revalidate your visa you will have to come to Nongkhai. Simply catch a tuk-tuk to the friendship bridge where you
will be able to get a bus across to Laos. On the far side of the friendship bridge you will get your Laos visa (approx $35).
Once in Laos you have two options, you can either return directly to Thailand receiving a 15 day visa extension or if you want a two month visa you will need to visit the Thai Embassy in Vientiane and spend one night in the city. Please note that for your Laos visa and for a two month Thai visa you will need passport photos and a photocopy of your passport. Vietiane is a 30 minute bus or taxi ride from the border.
You can also use your time in Laos to explore the country further and there are regular buses running from Vientiane to most of Laos including Vang Vieng and Luang Prabang.
You should tell your doctor that you are likely to go on a jungle trip in Northeastern Thailand and that you will live in villages in Isan. Keep in mind, Nongkhai is considered to be an urban area and one need not worry about malaria pills for staying exclusively in Nongkhai.
Also visit the WHO's (World Health Organisation) Travelers health informationOne of the conditions of entry onto our programs is that volunteers have travel insurance. Most importantly the insurance needs to include medical treatment and repatriation in case of unforeseen accidents or illnesses. Volunteers should purchase insurance independently and bring a copy of their insurance certificate with them for their local co-ordinator to check before starting their program. Read our terms and conditions.
Thai rural classroom
David, UK