British Virgin Islands
Community Service: Environmental Conservation & Infrastructure Development with Sailing
A vision of paradise? Yes… yet the tourism it attracts threatens to upset the delicate ecological balance, and our core environmental community service projects are based around some of these issues…
This unique environmental camp is run as part of our GoBeyond service programs where you will live with the rest of your service team aboard a sailing vessel. Living aboard allows us to visit most every island while providing a perfect floating home. It’s refreshing to be out on the water where there are cool breezes, and a great sense of camaraderie comes from working together as a crew.
While service work forms the core of this wildlife conservation camp, you’ll become an accomplished sailor as you and your team navigate the waters of the BVI. As you volunteer in the Caribbean, we’ll also find ample time to snorkel the reefs, climb Mount Sage, barbecue on the beach, listen to steel bands as the day winds down and sleep in a hammock out on deck under a blanket of Caribbean stars.
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Appropriate Age
High school ages
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Students & Staff
14 students and 3 staff per boat
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Vessel Type & Fleet Size
Typically catamaran / 1 - 2 boats
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Flotilla Grouping
This program follows a unique itinerary exclusive to Preserving Paradise that hops in and out of our larger AQ fleet in the BVI
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Program Detail
This adventure is run in conjunction with our sister program GoBeyond
| Dates | Days | Availability | Tuition | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Session 1 | 6/17/24 - 7/7/24 | 21 | Closed | $7,370 | ||
| Session 2 | 7/9/24 - 7/29/24 | 21 | Limited | $7,370 | ||
| Session 3 | 7/31/24 - 8/16/24 | 17 | Limited | $6,670 |
The Adventure
It all starts here
Preserving Paradise Overview
Below you will find all the specific details about our Preserving Paradise environmental camp, but there’s no better way to learn more than to watch for yourself!
First Day Out
After a morning briefing from ActionQuest directors and staff, the student leader of the day will take our monohull or catamaran off the dock and set sail across the Sir Francis Drake Channel. Students get acquainted with the BVI waters by snorkeling the infamous caves of Norman Island. After the student chefs of the day serve dinner to the crew, we’ll have a crash course in the environmental issues facing the BVI.
ARRIVING TO ACTIONQUEST IN THE BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS
Your community service trip begins! The majority of students will be flying to St. Thomas (STT) in the US Virgin Islands. For students flying via STT, ActionQuest’s professional staff meet them and assist with the beautiful ferry ride to Tortola then on to the entire camp which awaits you in West End, Tortola. There you will go through the formal check in process and make your way to your new comfortable and clean floating home. For those flying directly into the BVI (EIS), students are met by an airport representative.
Students then get to spend the rest of the first day preparing for their community service trip spent rebuilding the BVI by getting to know one another while the sun sets over the water.
After the first night spent sleeping on your new floating home alongside 13 other excited students, you are ready for…
Preserving Paradise Activities
Community Service
The Need We Address
The British Virgin Islands are well known for their astonishing natural beauty and pristine marine environment. Their location within the Tradewinds and Atlantic currents give the wind shaped hills an almost fantastic appearance. The sheltered waters, breath-taking beaches, and low-lying forests provide an ideal waypoint for many threatened animals at vulnerable points in their life cycle. These same features also make the islands sensitive to even small changes in the environment. Marine ecosystems are particularly fragile. Human interference and an increase in hurricane activity have strained the delicate balance that has been at work since the archipelago’s formation.
We partner with local organizations whose objectives are as diverse as the islands themselves. On the environmental community service side, we team up with the BVI National Parks Trust in a long-term effort to replant Tortola’s decimated mangrove forests and survey beaches for trash. The Association of Reef Keepers (ARK) trains GoBeyond students to tag and release sea turtles for an international monitoring initiative. We also partner with schools, youth organizations, and community centers to get our hands dirty and beautify the human infrastructure. The service work often jumps around as much as we do since the community needs change faster than the Caribbean weather. With several projects happening in multiple locations, our community service abroad program for high school students gives our campers the flexibility to lend a helping hand wherever the wind may take them.
Time to Say Goodbye
There’s always a mix of emotions on departure day. The excitement to go home is always overwhelmed by the realization that the Adventure is over and that it’s time to say goodbye to the people you’ve grown so close to over the last few weeks. Day 1 will simultaneously seem like the day before and a lifetime ago as you and your crew take a private ferry for the last leg of your journey together.
“I created unbreakable bonds with my shipmates like I had never experienced with anyone else before. Living so closely with fifteen different people, all from fifteen different places with fifteen different perspectives on life has given me a much broader view of the world. One I will take with me for the rest of my life.”
Need More Information?
Partner Organizations
Preserving Paradise is a focused environmental community service project run through our sister program GoBeyond Student Travel. In addition to the incredible BVI experience, you’ll have the chance to work alongside some of these organizations during our summer volunteer camps.
Association of Reef Keepers
- The Association of Reef Keepers seeks to manage the natural resources of the British Virgin Islands in a sustainable manner. It was formed specifically to address the growing environmental stresses that the British Virgin Islands are experiencing.
Virgin Islands Search and Rescue
- VISAR is a voluntary organization dedicated to saving life at sea. It is the officially recognized search and rescue service in the British Virgin Islands, where it provides 24-hour cover every day of the year in close cooperation with the Royal British Virgin Islands police, fire and ambulance services.
National Parks Trust
- The mission of the BVI National Parks Trust is to preserve and manage designated natural and cultural areas in order to improve the quality of life in the British Virgin Islands.
Need to know
Is this adventure right for me?
On Preserving Paradise, you will become a seasoned sailor and earn up to 80 hours of community service. The service projects include turtle population studies, mangrove reforestation, beach clean-ups, and educational initiatives for local school children. The hours you dedicate to the BVI will satisfy any school requirement and you’ll also be helping to ensure that others can enjoy the BVI for years to come.
How many people go on this adventure?
Preserving Paradise environmental community service summer camp generally consists of two catamarans, but regularly sails along or near the Vega Voyage, our largest program. The Vega Voyage has up to eight boats sailing together in a flotilla, each with 12 to 14 students aboard. It’s a lot of fun sailing as part of a larger fleet where you can interact with many other teens and staff from all over the world. For other advantages of Flotilla Sailing, please refer to the specific sections in the general FAQ’s.
How do you split up the ages across the boats?
Given that we sometimes have 2 yachts sailing together, this allows us to berth students aboard based upon their age and grade. Within the fast paced and team-oriented environment onboard, age differences seem like less of a factor than they might at a typical summer camp. Please contact us if you have any specific considerations in this regard.
What type of boat will I be on?
The Preserving Paradise environmental community service program typically runs aboard double-hulled sail yachts (catamarans). We use only the finest charter yachts available, all of which are in the 50-foot range. Each vessel has 5 cabins, a large salon which converts to a 6th cabin, and 4 full bathrooms (heads). The world’s largest charter company, Moorings/Sunsail, maintains all of our yachts to the highest standard.
Where do we sleep?
From the moment you arrive at our environmental community service camp, you’ll move aboard your yacht and live on board full-time. It’s true to say that living on a boat is A LOT tighter than living at home. With up to 14 students and 3 staff living together, it can feel cramped for those not used to it, yet this close community environment is where so much of the experience is created.
All of our vessels have 5 cabins and a large salon that converts to a 6th. While there’s just about enough room for everyone to sleep down below should it rain, on our typical clear and dry evenings many of us like to sleep out on deck, swinging in a hammock under the stars.stars.
Who will be my staff?
AQ is proud to attract and recruit the best in our field. Our summer staff includes professional maritime captains and medical professionals. Above all, we hire responsible and experienced facilitators and educators. All members of our team are dynamic, multi-talented, and passionate individuals with a devotion and commitment to the safety and experience of our students.
Two or three staff members live with you aboard your vessel full-time. All staff are CPR and First Aid certified. There will be your skipper, and other staff members may hold certifications in professional sailing, Wilderness First Aid or EMT, or have a Marine Science background.
What's the food like?
At AQ, we strive to provide meals that meet the fundamental needs of all members of our team, yet when considering our experience, it is important to remember that there are natural limitations when provisioning in remote places and cooking for a large group on board a small yacht.
We understand that each individual has personal preferences and that some students have specific dietary restrictions or limitations. While we strive to accommodate these as best we can, our meals maybe a little different from what you are used to at home. We design our menu around meals that are simple to prepare, quick to clean up, suit the majority of teenager’s palates, and deliver the calories needed for long, busy days on the water.
Mealtime is often a highlight of each day! Students prepare all of the meals with help from the staff using a combination of packaged and canned goods we import from the US and fresh produce we pick up locally about every four days. While we mostly eat all meals onboard the vessel, occasionally, students have the option to eat at a restaurant during shore time.
After enrollment, we ask families to inform us of all dietary restrictions and allergies. We can accommodate vegetarians, and vegans, as well as those with various food allergies. However, if you have a severe allergy or specific dietary expectations, please call our office before enrolling.
What do I need to bring?
Given that all students will be living aboard a sailboat for the duration of their adventure, we recommend that you keep things simple and avoid over packing. Students are given the opportunity to do laundry once in the middle of the trip, so there’s no need to pack several weeks’ worth of clothing.
Our hope is that families will have minimal purchases prior to the trip, so we’ve compiled our packing lists in a way that you’ll find most of what you need in your closet at home. Around mid to late March, we make available our Pre-Trip Packet to enrolled students, which contains a detailed packing list for this year’s adventures. If you’d like to see last year’s packing list as an example, you can download it here.
Nitty Gritty
Are flights included in the tuition?
Since students join us from all over the world, the cost of transportation to and from the British Virgin Islands is not included in the program tuition.
Who should we contact to book travel?
Helping to coordinate our students’ travel is of vital importance – and a mammoth task! For this reason, we strongly suggest that all families start by contacting our travel coordinator:
Leah Hernandez – AQ and GB Travel Coordinator
Tel: +1.281.528.7727
Toll Free: 800.329.9000
Email: leahctn68@hotmail.com
Even if you are not originating in the U.S., Leah will be able to provide options and guidance.
How do we get there?
Our recommended route is via St. Thomas (STT) in the USVI although students also have the option of flying to Beef Island (EIS).
Does AQ provide support on travel days?
Yes. We understand that travel days can be stressful for both parents and students, so no matter what time of the day or night, our office team actively monitors and supports our participants during travel. We require students to travel with a mobile phone with domestic data capability so we can monitor their progress and communicate directly if necessary.
For students flying via St Thomas, ActionQuest arranges for a staff member to assist with the transfer to Tortola via ferry. After arrival in Tortola, students are met at the ferry dock by more of ActionQuest’s professional staff, then collectively continue onto a taxi that takes them to the boats.
Looking for more detailed information on travel?
AQ Tuition Covers the following:
- All accommodation and group meals once the adventure is underway
- Vessel charter and related government fees
- Staff, local guides, and tips
- The use of all sailing, and water sports equipment (except for wetsuits, if needed)
Not included in the AQ tuition:
- Travel expenses from home to the program start location in the British Virgin Islands – flights PLUS ferry, taxi, baggage, taxes, visas, etc. (est. add’l $235)
- Required emergency evacuation insurance & International SOS and MedAire Membership (est. $100). LEARN MORE >
- Medical insurance, and optional trip cancellation insurance
- Spending money for souvenirs, drinks/meals ashore – We recommend $300 – $350.
- Emergency money for unanticipated events such as doctors visits etc. – We ask that all students bring $300, which is held by staff and returned at the end of the program.
Discounts and Savings
- A one-time total tuition fee deduction of 5% is granted for any two adventures or for two or more students from the same family.
- Any two consecutive programs may be joined to form one extended course. In the interim between programs, students stay with staff. The total cost is determined by combining the cost of each program and subtracting the 5% extended course discount. (This discount also applies toward any trips adjoining our sister program GoBeyond.) ActionQuest and/or GoBeyond enrollment for any two programs in the same summer will be considered as a single extended program in the event of withdrawal or dismissal from the trip at any time.
Travel Docs & Visas
All students traveling to the BVI need to have a passport which is valid for a minimum of three months after the date of departure from the BVI. Visitors from certain countries other than the US, UK, and Canada may require visas.
For the most up-to-date and thorough information, please visit travel.state.gov. Students traveling on non-U.S. passports should verify passport and visa requirements for your nationality by contacting your local British Embassy or consulate or the nearest BVI Tourist Board Office.
One important point to mention is that most students joining us in the BVI do so by flying via St. Thomas, which is part of the US Virgin Islands. This means that those students not flying on a US or Canadian passport need to consider whether they need to apply for a U.S. visa or ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization). Please call us with any questions.
COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement
We do not currently require proof of vaccination in order to enroll.
Other Immunizations
For visiting the BVI, the CDC recommends that all travelers are up-to-date on routine vaccinations that most of us had as children (measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccine, varicella (chickenpox) vaccine, polio vaccine.
That said, we understand that families have varying opinions on vaccinations. Some greatly desire the precaution; others prefer to avoid possible side effects of certain medications. Coupled with the fact that each student has unique medical considerations known best by his or her doctor, AQ does not supply medical advice. For this reason, we recommend that all families refer back to the expertise of the CDC from time to time (wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel), their health care providers, and/or a travel clinic to gain the most up to date information.
Living in the moment
Though the fundamentals of our adventures don’t change, specific logistics evolve as we get closer to the summer and then day by day based on weather. The animated map along with the adventure overview portions on this page should give all families a basic understanding of the kinds of activities we do on the voyage. We also suggest looking through last summer’s Trip Logs for a more detailed travel log created by the students.
With this in mind, we encourage all participants to “live in the moment”. Traveling by boat requires flexibility and a willingness to accept adversity and change. We hope you’ll take any bumps in your stride, and enjoy the adventure!
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