Costa Rica
2026 HIGH SCHOOL TRIP GUATEMALA
July 6 – 15, 2026
$2,700 (*airfare included out of SFO)
Scholarships available to those who qualify.
This trip is intended for high school students. Participants will spend ten days volunteering in the mountainous village of El Astillero, where they will support the development of the community’s first elementary school and experience what daily life is like in rural Guatemala. Their free time and evenings will be spent in the colonial tourist town of Antigua. Volunteer work on this trip will include construction in El Astillero.
Trip Experience
Fees
The cost of the trip covers virtually all in-country experiences, including:
✓ Airfare
✓ Housing and meals
✓ Excursions and cultural activities
✓ Coordination
✓ Service project materials and coordination
✓ Daily transportation
✓ Airport pickup and drop-off
✓ Dedicated group leader and experienced local guides
✓ 24-hour emergency contact
✓ T-shirt
The fee does not cover visa expenses or immunizations (if necessary). With the exception of meals during your free time on the arrival and departure days and any shopping you do, all trip costs are covered from the minute you arrive until the minute you return.
Housing & Meals
Volunteers on this trip will be housed as a group in a guest home in Antigua run by our in-country staff. They will commute daily to projects and activities in Vuelta Grande or El Hato. Students will share a room with at least one other student and sleep in twin or bunk beds. Some rooms have private bathrooms, others will use a common bathroom just down the hallway.
At the guest house, volunteers will be served Guatemalan and international cuisine. The cooks are accustomed to cooking for Western stomachs. There are vegetarian dishes available in every meal, but meat or eggs are also included at least once per day. Packing trail mix and/or energy bars is recommended for people accustomed to a protein-rich diet. Volunteers will have access to purified drinking water, as it’s always available at the guest house. You can fill your own water bottles using the water dispensers.
Sample Itinerary
Preparing to Travel to Guatemala
BOOKING YOUR FLIGHT
If airfare is included in your trip fee, Dream Volunteers will coordinate flight arrangements for the group on a major commercial airline so that you may all travel together. If airfare is not included, then Dream Volunteers will send you instructions for purchasing your ticket individually.
WEATHER
Weather in the mountains varies greatly from season to season. In the dry season (November to May) days are sunny and warm with mild evenings. Average temperatures are in the 70s(F), with highs in the 80s and lows in the 60s. It can tend be windy and cooler in the villages. We recommend layers.
In the rainy season (from June to October), heavy afternoon rainfall is typical. We recommend raingear and boots. Average temperatures are in the 70s(F) but it can be windy and cooler in the villages. We recommend layers.
VACCINATIONS
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends the following immunizations for travelers to Guatemala.
- Up-to-date boosters for routine vaccinations
(measles, mumps, chicken pox, etc.) - Hepatitis A & B
Zika has been reported in Guatemala and the CDC recommends travelers to exercise rigorous prevention against mosquito bites. The mosquitoes that spread Zika are not prevalent in the highlands areas where most of our service projects are located and travelers to these regions are generally at less risk of getting Zika from a mosquito.
Many of these vaccinations should be started four to eight weeks in advance so please check with your healthcare provider or Travel Medicine clinic. Please refer to the CDC website or your doctor for more information on necessary vaccinations and insect repellents.
WHAT TO BRING
Laundry facilities are not easily accessible and clothing worn for service is likely to get quite dirty. We recommend you plan accordingly with clothing you are not worried about damaging and enough to get you through the week.
Attire
- Casual & Light (Layers)
- Short sleeve shirts, jeans, raincoat
- Old clothes that can/will get stained/dirty
- Layers for temperature changes
- Sneakers / Rain boots / Work boots
- Extra socks (to avoid blisters)
- Sandals for free time
- Swimsuit and towel
Other
- Bug repellent
- Work gloves
- Flashlight
- Umbrella / poncho
- Water bottle
- Spanish/English Dictionary
- Sunglasses / hat
- OTC Medicine
- Journal and pen
- Ear plugs if you are a light sleeper
- Spending Money ($150-$200)
- Camera
DONATIONS & GIFTS
- Most of our time in Guatemala will be spent working in schools with kids from impoverished homes. These kids/schools often lack sufficient clothing, toys, art supplies, and books. If you have the capacity to collect bring such items with you, it would be greatly appreciated, though is not at all expected. You may also wish to consider small gifts for the directors and caregivers at these facilities, including such things as t-shirts, hats, sweets and other speciality items representing where you live.
- Monetary donations are most helpful. If each of us could raise at least $100, we would be able to send 1-2 teens to school for an entire year, as well as improve the physical structure of the local elementary school.
Due to the humanitarian nature of this trip, you may find creative ways to ask friends, relatives, colleagues, neighbors, business owners, etc. for monetary and in–kind donations. We can provide you with two documents, which may aid you in your efforts. These Google Docs are read-only. To be able to edit them into your own version, you will first need to make a copy
1. In-Kind & Monetary Donations Letter for Store Managers/Business Owners
2. In-Kind & Monetary Donations Letter for Friends, Relatives, Neighbors
All tax-deductible checks can be made payable to our 501(c)(3) non-profit, Dream Volunteers, and mailed to our headquarters: Dream Volunteers, PO Box 390726, Mountain View, CA 94039.
FUNDRAISING
View Funding Your Trip for more ideas about financing your trip or Fundraise for how to involve others in the cause.
Have Questions?
To learn more, please submit your name and email address.
