Best Volunteer Vacations in Latin America: Trips to Central & South America

International Volunteer HQ (IVHQ)

Founded in 2007, IVHQ is a B Corp and 100% carbon-neutral leader in volunteer travel. Over 17 years, it has sent 148,000+ volunteers to 328 projects in 48 countries, supporting sustainable development and fostering cultural exchange worldwide.

For volunteer work in South America and Central America, IVHQ offers plenty of choices. For example, you could choose one of the following three programs:

• Volunteer in Costa Rica: IVHQ has several project options in Costa Rica, including opportunities to be a dentist volunteer, help with turtle conservation, or assist with community construction and renovation. 
• Volunteer in Peru: Head to Cusco or Lima and teach English, help with jungle conservation in the Amazon, or be a medical volunteer. 
• Volunteer in Argentina: Immerse yourself in enriching projects in Buenos Aires and Cordoba. IVHQ offers diverse opportunities, including Teaching and Healthcare. Experience cultural integration while making impactful contributions.
• Volunteer in Brazil: With programs based in the vibrant city of Rio de Janeiro, choose from unique projects like Carnival preparation, Teaching English, and Community Development. Make a lasting impact while enjoying a fully supported, culturally immersive experience.
• Volunteer in Colombia: Engage in impactful projects like Environmental Conservation, and Elderly Care in the scenic city of Medellín. 
• Volunteer in Ecuador: Based in the scenic Andean city of Quito, engage in varied projects like Teaching Music, NGO Support, and Community Development.

GoEco

Founded in 2006 by volunteers, GoEco has earned a great reputation for its award-winning, ecologically-minded programs. If you love tortoises, volunteer at the Giant Tortoise Center in the Galapagos, Ecuador. There, you’ll work to conserve this iconic species (and get ample chances to encounter them up close!). 

Another great choice is GoEco’s Animal Rescue and Release Sanctuary in Peru, where you have the opportunity to experience living in the Amazon jungle while helping to rehabilitate injured animals back to the wild. 

Or check out this program in Costa Rica, which lets you rescue and rehabilitate sloths and other native species! If sea turtles are more your interest, GoEco has a conservation program on the Pacific and Caribbean coasts.

Explore more of GoEco’s programs in: Belize, Guatemala, and Argentina.

Maximo Nivel

Founded in 2003, Maximo Nivel provides high-quality, affordable volunteer programs, internships, teach abroad opportunities, and lots more in Latin America. For this part of the world, they’re a top option for volunteers and interns. Maximo Nivel provides everything you need in a Spanish-immersion experience,, from educational institutes that focus on language skills, to volunteer programs that positively impact communities.

This award-winning, intercultural organization is locally based, with satellite institutes staffed by full-time employees in Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Peru. Maximo Nivel operates all of its own projects and supports local NGOs through volunteer programming. If you’d like to brush up on your English Teaching skills before you depart, check out Maximo Nivel’s online course. You can enroll early, and study the language with instructors via Skype tutorials before arriving.

Through Maximo Nivel, you could take on exciting projects in Costa Rica like assisting with sea turtle conservation or working on an organic farm. In Guatemala, you could work at a dog shelter, rescue exotic animals, build schools, and more. And in Peru, you can teach English, engage in Amazon reforestation, work at the Cusco University Zoo, and more.

Projects Abroad

Since 1992, Projects Abroad has become a global volunteer and internship travel provider, mobilizing over 135,000 participants for sustainable development, education, and conservation. Each year, it sends more than 10,000 people to 1700+ projects across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Oceania.

For volunteer vacations in Central America and Latin America, they offer numerous programs, including:

1. Volunteer in Ecuador on the Galapagos Islands: Participate in the Galapagos Island Conservation, do a social work internship, teach sports after school, and much, much more.
2. Volunteer and Intern in Peru: Travel to the Amazon jungle, engage in a medical internship at local clinics, or immerse yourself in the local culture with community development projects. Explore ancient Incan history with archaeology projects as well!
3. Volunteer and Intern in Argentina: Visit Cordoba, where you can participate in human rights initiatives or help rehabilitate horses. There are also a variety of other programs you can be part of here!

Involvement Volunteers International (IVI)

Founded in 1989, IVI has placed over 25,000 volunteers in 200+ projects across 20+ countries. As an ACNC-registered charity, it partners with NGOs, schools, and hospitals to provide safe, responsible placements, offering pre-departure prep, in-country orientation, 24/7 support, and emergency assistance.

In Costa Rica and Ecuador, volunteers can participate in diverse projects such as beach clean-up, animal rescue, and healthcare. Meanwhile, in Guatemala, volunteers have opportunities to work in childcare, do community construction, and support local medical clinics. 

IVI’s Volunteer in Colombia program places you in Cartagena to assist teachers in under-resourced primary and secondary schools with interactive lessons and classroom support. Participants immerse in local culture alongside teachers and students and gain hands-on educational experience in lesson planning, mentoring, and STEM projects.

Whether helping in the lush rainforests of Ecuador, the biodiverse regions of Costa Rica, or the vibrant communities of Guatemala, IVI ensures that volunteers make a substantial impact while experiencing the rich cultures and environments of Central and South America.

Volunteering Solutions (VolSol)

Volunteering Solutions, founded in 2007, has placed over 25,000 volunteers in 150+ projects across 25+ countries. Programs welcome participants aged 17+, offering accommodation, meals, visa assistance, pre-departure prep, in-country orientation, 24/7 support, and partnerships with vetted local NGOs for safe, affordable, impactful experiences worldwide.

Volunteering Solutions’ Argentina program places volunteers aged 18+ in Córdoba for two to 24 weeks. Projects include wildlife conservation, women’s empowerment, and sports coaching, blending impactful work with authentic cultural immersion.

In Costa Rica, volunteers can participate in projects like Turtle Conservation, Childcare, and Animal Rescue, located in and around San Jose and regions such as the Caribbean Rainforest and the Osa Peninsula. 

Ecuador offers projects such as working at an Amazon Animal Rescue Center and supporting street children programs in Quito.

In Peru, opportunities include Teaching English, assisting in Day Care Centers, and participating in Medical Volunteer Programs in and around Cusco. These programs allow volunteers to immerse themselves in the local culture and explore iconic locations like Machu Picchu during their free time.

Global Vision International (GVI)

In Central and South America, Global Vision International (GVI) offers volunteer programs in Nicaragua, Panama, Costa Rica and Peru.

Each of these programs focuses on different aspects of conservation and community engagement, tailored to the unique environments and needs of each location.

• Nicaragua: Volunteers engage in sea turtle conservation efforts on the Pacific coast, focusing on protecting endangered species like hawksbill and olive ridley turtles.
• Panama: The program in Bocas del Toro involves coral reef conservation, where volunteers help monitor and protect the marine biodiversity, including sea turtles and various species of fish and coral.
• Peru: Volunteers work in the Amazon Rainforest, contributing to biodiversity conservation efforts that include monitoring wildlife and supporting sustainable community practices.

GVI’s Costa Rica programs are diverse:

• Marine Conservation: Participating in the protection of sea turtles by helping with beach patrols, nest monitoring, and data collection on critically endangered species like the hawksbill turtle.
• Wildlife Conservation: Engaging in the conservation of diverse fauna, including tropical birds, reptiles, amphibians, and jungle cats like ocelots and pumas.
• Teaching English: Working alongside local teachers to provide supplementary English lessons to school-aged children.
• Women’s Empowerment: Facilitating workshops and training programs that aim to uplift local women and equip them with skills to enhance their economic opportunities.
• Childhood Development: Implementing programs that promote early childhood education and development in collaboration with local communities.

Love Volunteers

Love Volunteers began in 2009 with the goal of building sustainable projects that uplift the communities they serve, while also aiming to take away the sticker shock of volunteering.

They have tons of programs in Latin America, notably:

1. Animal Rescue in Buenos Aires, Argentina: Care for domestic and wild animals in need. 

Plan My Gap Year

With a commitment to running transparent, transformative, and affordable projects, Plan My Gap Year gets great reviews from past volunteers. They have three volunteer vacations in Latin America, which are:

1. Volunteer in Costa Rica: Teach English or volunteer with children. Or, learn the Spanish language and local culture.
2. Volunteer in Ecuador: Be a medical volunteer in Quito or teach English.
3. Volunteer in Peru: Head to Cusco and teach English or care for local children. Or, get the first-hand experience of a healthcare clinic, helping treat patients.

Fronteering

Immerse yourself in the local culture and natural environment with Fronteering, an organization known for their unique volunteer vacations throughout Central and South America.

You could go to Guyana and engage in wildlife research or teach in an Amerindian community. There are lots of other Fronteering programs in Guyana to check out as well.

Or, you could go to Panama and assist with community development initiatives aimed at uplifting indigenous communities. You get plenty of free time to surf and get to live in a national park!

Fronteering also has programs in Belize that are great, including Venture Belize. You get to travel deep into the jungle and explore ancient Mayan lands.

Ready to Volunteer?

A volunteer vacation in Latin America is an opportunity to glimpse a new country and culture, and to get off the tourist path. There are numerous adventures awaiting in amazing, diverse destinations – all you have to do is pick one.

You can choose to volunteer in the bustling metropolitan city of Lima, Peru, in a Costa Rica cloud forest, or at a remote research station on the Galapagos. Dive into coral reef conservation in Panama, or work with street children in Ecuador. On days off, hop aboard a colorful “chicken bus” for a short trip to outdoor markets, or join a tour and travel across the country, winding your way through vibrant, thriving communities.

Whatever you choose, you’ll make memories and friends and return home with a profound appreciation for Latin America and its people.