Frontier

Very late review and the dates may not be exact but I thought it necessary to share my experience with Frontier in Cambodia. It was a total scam: we went on the pretense that we would be assisting the ministry of environment on a conservation project, this was not the case and in fact the two government reps with us were at a loss as to what we were doing there. We were told that one day a week we could go to the local town and mingle, to buy supplies and interact with the community; in fact we were banned from leaving the site and forbidden to interact with villagers. We were even told not to use our medical kits to help the local rangers, and kids who would stop by from time to time to say hello. The work we did was a total farce and served no purpose whatsoever besides providing graduates with something to put on their CV. Myself and a friend wrote letters to head office explaining our disappointment which were taken from our hands by staff who then refused to mail them. The company, sorry, the non-profit organization profits by diverting the income to sister companies owned by the same people. Eg, Frontier Marketing Ltd will receive a nice big invoice that happens to be the same as the NGO's income... see how it works? They are a total scam, don't give them a penny or a minute of your time.

Not great - I attended the teacher training the month before, in a rather hard to find location and they know I was going in July. Arrived in Bangalore on 1st July - no one there to pick me up from the airport. Stranded. I didn't know what to do, so I rang my sister in London who got in touch with them and read the riot act! The training itself wasn't really that helpful and I was lucky enough to have already taught in a different situation in another country so I used that to help me.

DO NOT USE FRONTIER - UNETHICAL SCAM I worked for Frontier as a staff member on the Madagascar project until evacuating under the advice of the UK embassy in April due to Covid-19. Frontier then refused to pay mine or my colleagues contractual wages and flight contributions once we had got back to the UK. I had worked for them in-field for 4 months and had received less than 1 month's pay. We each also had to cover the high cost of the evacuation ourselves. Furthermore, mine and one of my colleagues' personal camera equipment was stolen in-field by one of the camp security guards hired by Frontier, for which I received no sympathy, support or compensation from Frontier. This supposedly-paying job, which I had hoped would kick-start my career in marine biology and diving, has instead left me severely out of pocket and feeling taken advantage of by Frontier. I urge all prospective employees and volunteers to avoid this unethical company. Do not fall for the marketing, Frontier is a scam!

It was an overall complete scam. I paid almost $2,000 USD for 3 weeks in Bali. I signed up for 3 weeks volunteering at the sea turtle conservation, come to find out I only get 2 weeks working at the conservation because the first week is an "intro week" of basically doing nothing. I met other friends there who went through a different program and paid around $1100 for 4 weeks!! They paid way less than I did for a longer stay. What a rip off. Staff was horrible and barely spoke English. I know it can be hard to find within foreign countries, but these people were extremely difficult to understand. The staff is supposed to "take us on a tour of the nearby town." No, the woman giving me my tour just randomly left me in an alleyway and ran away from me? It was really confusing and I was left alone in the dark. Extremely scary. The program ended up working out okay, however it's really dumb to hear that other people doing the same exact activities as I was paid WAY less through other programs. Also, the room was extremely small, it's meant for 4 people but we could barely fit any of our stuff in it. We also had to share a bathroom with 9 other girls, while some boys' rooms got their own bathrooms. Extremely poor planning with the accommodation. The accommodation was WAY better on the island of Nusa Penida even though they told us it would be "worse." (?) People spoke better English and we had some really good food. I guess it just depends on where you go. Overall, do NOT go through Frontier, it is a waste of your money. Go through programs like IBHQ. Cheaper and better.

It is a disappointment that this project would be listed as a 'volunteer opportunity' in which you are supposedly making an impact. Let me be clear - this organization cares only about collecting your money and feeding you this lie. They are not a non-profit organization. Your money will not go toward anything beneficial in the Country/ Cause you have chosen to support. They will barely put funds back into the project to improve your accommodations/ conditions. These funds are for the founders of this organization (who are millionaires because of it).

In Tenerife, expect a dirty house that is falling apart, ants everywhere including on your bed, and bedroom temperatures that easily climb above 30 degrees with no fans or anything to cool you down. Expect staff to be unpaid and treated poorly, all for corporate gain. Expect to be ridiculed and immediately suspended if you bring up any issues, or would prefer to leave your project early and be refunded for the remainder of the project (hint: you will not be refunded, but they don't tell you this). I would be extremely weary of these positive reviews and whether or not they are legitimate.

Please, look for more local programs in the location you are visiting, not this potentially fraudulent UK company. This organization is not worth giving your money to.

I have used frontier and without getting too long winded STAY AWAY FROM FRONTIER. At best it's a completely disorganized, poorly functioning "volunteer service". At worst they are a fradulant scam led by false advertising to steal your money. I sincerely believe it is the latter. I spent roughly 25 weeks in one form or another with frontier. The London staff is laughable. They don't pay their field staff (some of which are terrible and others are good) or support the projects above the bare minimum. The living conditions are awful compared to how much you're paying and you can see the minimal investments into improving this. The lodging/equipment, was falling apart and constantly breaking. Also don't expect the money to be used for the cause you actually signed up or care about. It's painfully obvious after my time with them that all the money goes to (misleading) advertising and lawyers (and I'm sure to the board members of this so called "nonprofit" which is likely a front for tax purposes). They only survive by new volunteers getting tricked by their slick ads and website but be warned they will try to steal your money. I was swindled out of over 2000 usd. And they know the cost of trying to sue them is prohibitively expensive to try to do, and they purposely make you sign ambiguous contracts to make sure they don't have to refund you even if they cancel the project/trip on you. Bottom line. Avoid at all costs. My recommendation, if you know where or what kind of project you'd like to do, search for local NGOs, etc. You'll save a ton of money, use your money to actually support your desired cause and it'll probably be much more functioning and pleasant. Also in regards to the terrible field staff, they hire anyone with or without any knowledge or credentials often. Had one "guide" that was harassing one of the other volunteers. Another that made up rules, at one point walked away while crying, was just an absolute mess from day 1.