Australia Adventure with Gapforce

I had been wanting to travel to Australia for years, but not wanting to go to the opposite side of the world all by myself, I looked into group trips. Gapforce’s Australia program stood out to me right away. They had one of the longer programs available, and the itinerary looked great too.
When I arrived at the airport in Sydney I had no idea what to expect, but was immediately greeted by our wonderful Expedition Leader Joe and another group member. They were so warm and friendly, and made me instantly feel comfortable. There were 11 of us on the trip, and within just a few days they all felt like family.
The first 4 weeks of our trip were spent traveling up the coast while doing many fun activities and trips along the way. Highlights for me were Byron Bay - the cutest little beach town, Australia Zoo, Fraser Island, Airlie Beach and sailing the Whitsundays + sleeping overnight on a sailboat. Every day was a new adventure!
The last 3 weeks were spent in Cairns, two of which were spent volunteering for the Cairns City Council. The work felt rewarding, and the people we worked for were very kind which was a plus! I enjoyed staying in one city for multiple weeks as it gave us a chance to really familiarize ourselves with it. We had our favourite burger restaurant, and our favourite ice cream spots - it really started to feel like home!
Joe was always there to make sure we were awake on time and ready to go (which some of us were not very good at), but also gave us a lot of freedom. He was able to answer any question we threw at him, and happily coordinated anything we needed. He was a great leader and also a great person. The other group members were amazing people and we quickly all became good friends. When the 7 weeks came to an end, it was very sad to leave.
I would definitely recommend the Australia trip. If you are ready for the adventure of a lifetime while in the company of great people, it is perfect!

I have never traveled abroad by myself before, and needless to say I was anxious when I got off the plane. However, my fears were immediately put to rest when I met up with the GapForce group. Being a relatively small group (11), it made it easy to get to know one another and made it much easier to stay together as a group instead of splitting up. We formed strong bonds throughout the journey, and I am grateful for the friends that I made. Our trip started in Sydney and we went all the way up the coast to Cairns. Along the way, we participated in numerous activities that were simply breathtaking. I will never forget when we went kayaking in Bryon Bay and whales swam right under us. There was also the three day camping trip on Frasier Island, which was one of the best experiences of my life, aside from getting rid of the spiders for my tent mates. We also went sailing at Whitsundays and got the chance to snorkel and see tons of marine life and sleep overnight on a sailboat. Those were just a handful of all the activities we were able to participate in, and I loved every one of them. However, none of that would have been possible without our group leader Joe. He made sure that the group was organized and prepared for everything. He made sure we all got the most out of this trip and even suggested some additional activities. They were mainly nature walks, but the ones I did go on were great. He made sure I got everything I could have out of this trip and I can't thank him enough for that. I would highly recommend this trip to anyone who wants to travel abroad because this was one of the best experiences of my life.

The Australia adventure was the first trip with Gapforce that I have done and I would highly recommend it. There was only a small group of us (11) including our leader Joe who made this experience even better. I couldn’t have asked for a more amazing group of people to spend the 7 weeks with. I learnt a lot about the Australian culture along the way as well as involving myself in many activities at the different locations visited.

We started in Sydney and although the weather was a bit miserable, we all got to know one another while visiting the harbour bridge and opera house on our harbour cruise tour and after visiting the blue mountains. One of my favourite locations we visited was Byron Bay. This was where we kayaked in the ocean and got to see dolphins and whales which swam right underneath us. Such a breathtaking experience and definitely once in a life time.

Many other activities which were included was the Australia zoo. We got to stroke koalas and crouch right next to kangaroos and also feed them. Later on in the trip we spent 3 days on Fraser Island. We travelled around in 4x4’s and camped out right next to the beach where we could get up to see the sunrise.

Additionally, we spent 1 night on a sailing boat on Whitsundays. This experience is something that drew me to the trip originally when i signed up and I was not disappointed. Our leader Joe, was always organised as to where we were going next, where we were staying and made sure our trip ran as smoothly as possible.

When we arrived in Cairns we spent 3 weeks here which is also where we said our goodbyes to the few people who only signed up for the 4 weeks. The rest of us spent the time volunteering for the Cairns council, mainly gardening and helping within the wetlands and botanical gardens. It was very rewarding knowing you were helping the community and especially as the leaders from the council were lovely people themselves.

Within Cairns, our leader Joe found out about different activities we could do whilst we were here as 3 weeks can go slow if we weren’t doing a lot but it flew by. Joe told us about how we could do our Open Water diving course which allows you to dive to 18m when qualified. He organised everything for us and all we had to do was the payment and getting outside our hostel for the bus to pick us up. It was the best thing I could have done while I was there! Not only did I learn to dive but I did it on the Great Barrier Reef where we saw turtles, reef sharks, stingrays along the way.

Joe gave us enough space and freedom for the group to get out of the trip what they wanted and enjoy the trip as much as they could, but enough structure when we needed it and asked for it for us to feel comfortable ‘alone’ on the other side of the world.

I’d highly recommend this trip to anyone looking to get away from home to travel but not wanting to do it alone as you get to meet some amazing new people, and I can easily say I’ve got friends for life who I will keep in contact with. The memories I have will last forever and I can’t wait to share it with my family.

An amazing seven week trip going up the east coast of Australia. This 7 week trip allowed 12 strangers (unfortunately mainly American) to bond and become great friends whilst doing unbelievable activities which have created lifelong memories. Personal highlights include skydiving in cairns (a must do for anyone on the trip), the overnight boat trip to the Whitsunday Islands and snorkelling the Great Barrier Reef.

Michael Milner’s tip: Goon.

An amazing trip! The people were amazing! The places were amazing! I really enjoying Magnetic island and Fraser Island as there were beautiful places to visit on those islands as well as the people there. The animals over in Australia were spectacular with parrot fish, Turtles, kangaroos, wallabies. My favourite animal over there has to be the koala as they are incredibly cute. The program staff on our trip were really nice and great leaders as well.

I enjoyed the trip very much and I saw some amazing sights and had some unforgettable experiences. I particularly enjoyed the Blue Mountains hike and Byron Bay was a fun seaside town that I would definitely like to return to at some point. The destinations never failed to disappoint and the leaders were lovely and were able to help me whenever I had a query about the trip. The hostel experience was unique and really fun to be around friends all the time. The volunteer weeks were tough but overall they were rewarding.

Overall my experience was amazing. I could not have asked for a better group of people to spend 7 weeks with and I feel like this trip really helped me grow a bit. I feel like I’ve learned so much about different different people that live in different places. The activities were unbelievabley cool and this country was breathtaking. I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a trip across the world to leave home for a bit and meet amazing people and make many memories that will last forever.

Overall it has been a good trip to Australia. There have been tons of beautiful views and sights. There has been lots of hiking and walks. The conservation work was rewarding both personally and for the environment. Get ready for many beautiful beaches and bodies of water. Some waters you cannot go due to crocodile exposure but all water is gorgeous. Cool wildlife all around. Many birds and many bats