Greece

30 Years Experience

IVI is an Australian charity & non profit organisation founded in 1989 and is one of the pioneers of overseas volunteering successfully placing over 20,000 volunteers globally.  We accept volunteers from all over the world and place them in meaningful overseas missions.  

Affordable Volunteer Travel

As the southernmost country in Europe, Greece enjoys the longest coastline in Europe and with over 6000 islands in total and around 3000 years of history it is a fascinating, diverse and unique cultural destination.  

Greece is considered the birth place of civilisation and highly influential in ancient times, is often called the cradle of Western civilization. Athens, the capital, features historic landmarks including the 5th-century B.C. Acropolis citadel with the Parthenon temple. Greece is also known for its beaches, from the black sands of Santorini to the party resorts of Mykonos.

Greece has gennerally sunny climate throughout the year but can get quite cold in the north during winter, with snow in some areas. 

Greece enjoys a Mediterranean climate, with its summer from June to August. Temperatures get go up to 40 degrees celsius in the summer, but may be cooler up north or by the coast. This is a popular time to visit.

March to May (Spring) and September to November (Autumn) are good times to travel when days are still warm.

Greece has a rich and vibrant culture and it’s people are very passionate about their traditions, language, food and music. The Greek people will often gather their large families to eat around the dinner table, where they love to socialise.

Around 98% of people in Greece are Orthodox Christians, so many traditons and festivals are celebrated around this faith. Greece is also the home of ancient civilizations, going back 5000 years. From the ancient ruins to modern day art galleries and museums, Greece is full of culture and history. 

Chios, the 5th largest Greek island is bulging with character and culture. Chios is most famous for it’s medieval villages, ghost villages, castles and monasteries. Also with incredible beaches and clear blue waters, it’s a destination for tourists that want a unique Greek experience. Due it’s close location to Turkey, Chios has been inundated with refugee’s. This has taken a significant toll on tourism on the island and the economy is very weak with the local residents largely divided between helping the refugee’s or blocking them in order to sustain their livelyhoods. It’s a very difficult situation. 

Shared accommodation is included for the duration of your volunteer program. Volunteers have access to comfortable and safe accommodation within close proximity to the volunteer projects and local facilities such as cafe’s and grocery stores and other amenities.

Please see individual projects for more info. 

Meals are not included in the cost of the programs in Greece. Volunteers can purchase meals locally from the local cafes and restaurants or cook in the kitchen at the Volunteer accommodation. Due to the local economy, food costs are very reasonable. A good dinner meal would cost between 10-15EUR.  

Refugee projects
Due to the difficult nature of the refugee crisis, we require all volunteers to complete a pre-departure training kit. The training takes approx 3 hours and provides a full overview of the local challenges, customs and sensitivities that all volunteers must be aware of due to potentially dangerous and confronting situations. While in country, our local coordinators provide you an orientation on your first day which introduces you to all the local staff, township facilities, transportation as well as operational safety and emergency procedures.

Construction & teaching projects
Orientation will be held on the first Monday morning of the program and is split in two parts. During the first part, our local team will provide an introduction to the program, rules and expectations, health and safety, do’s and don’ts in Chios, basic vocabulary in Greek language and basic cultural knowledge.

Volunteers will also be asked to read carefully and sign the  “Code of Conduct” and “Child protection Policy” as well as learn about their specific placement during the orientation. During the second part our local team will provide a short tour around the city in order to familiarise with the city (closest supermarkets, pharmacies, etc.).  

An arrival airport transfer is included in the program fees. Please see program pages for specific information. 

If you would like to explore some of the country before or after your volunteering, there are plenty of things to do and see in Greece. 

The number one attraction is probably a visit to the Acropolis. This is home to the Parthenon, as wel as many other spectacular ancient temples. Another popular spot is the whitewashed houses of Santorini, with it’s classic blue water backdrop.

Other things you can do are climb Mt Olympus, trek through the gorge at Samaria (on the island of Crete), check out the monasteries of Meteora, visit the stunning Balos beach, discover the Corinth Canal, Melissani Caves, or wander around the ruins at Corinth, Delphi or Hephaestus Temple. 

GoGetFunding is a Crowd funding site which offers a simple and professional online fundraising solution to help fund a portion of your trip or even a donation toward your chosen project. Simply create a fundraising page to share your story via social media platforms such as facebook & twitter.

We encourage all our Greece volunteers to fundraise to supply as many resources as possible to the local people and also to cover volunteer travel costs where required.