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Scuba dive into the surreal waters of the Atlantic Coastline in Portugal to help clean up pollution that threaten local marine life.
Program Highlights
First Week Itinerary:
Day 1, Sun: Arrival pickup at the airport by the local team, settle down at the volunteer’s accommodation, get to your group of volunteers.
Day 2, Mon: Welcome orientation and city tour.
Day 3-6, Tue-Fri: Scuba diving lessons and certification. Learn from professionals how to scuba dive and clean the ocean floor of debris. Also, learn the basics of underwater exploration and get certified.
Day 7-8, Sat-Sun: Free weekend. Explore Portugal, take Portuguese lessons, or enroll in other activities we have programmed. Departure is on a Saturday.
Location of the Project: Cascais, Portugal
Project length: Minimum 1 week – Maximum 8 weeks
Arrival Airport: Aeroporto de Lisboa Humberto Delgado
Volunteer Work: Volunteers will scuba dive to help clean the seabed of pollution, debris, and help protect Lisbon’s rich marine ecosystem.
Age: Minimum 17
Number of Volunteers: Maximum 8
Important Note: The MC in Lisbon includes an internationally recognized CMAS (World Underwater Federation) diving certification. There are three different levels according to the volunteer diving experience, from beginners to people with some prior experience to advanced divers. The diving and volunteer equipment will be included.
What’s Included
Accommodations: Accommodation will be at a dormitory, at a sustainable, and social hostel (Private rooms are also available for an upgrade).
Food: Three meals a day: breakfast, lunch, and dinner (Local style, Vegetarian, gluten-free, and meals for lactose-intolerant are also available upon request).
Airport Transfers: Pick-up at the airport (On the Saturday or Sunday prior to an Introduction Day). Alternate options include a taxi from the airport to the program site for €25.
Orientation: Held the day after arrival with a responsible guided city tour (2 hours.) This includes free maps, city guides, and the best tips to discover the city!
Support: Comprehensive and professional pre-departure travel guidance, 24/7 GoEco emergency hotline, experienced local field team.
What’s not Included
Flights, visas (if required), travel health insurance, daily transportation from the hostel to the volunteer project (around 5 EUR per day), personal expenses.
Lisbon, Portugal. The diving club, where the volunteer work takes place, is in a recreational port that was opened in 1999 and is located very close to the center of Cascais and the citadel stronghold. It is a place with splendid views and a diverse range of shops and restaurants. Volunteers stay in a sustainable hostel around 30 minutes by public transportation from the diving club.
Volunteers’ daily tasks may vary depending on the time of the year, but can include:
A typical weekday will look like this:
08:00-09:00 am | Breakfast at the volunteer’s accommodation.
09:00-12:30 am | Take the train to the project and do your first dive of the week. You will start by learning the fundamentals and after a couple of days you will start the eco-diving.
01:30-02:00 pm | Take the train back to the volunteer accommodation.
02:00-02:30 pm | Lunch time.
02:30-07:00 pm | Relaxing & Travel time. The afternoons are free to travel around the city, learn Portuguese, or relax. Sometimes, you can also dive during the afternoons depending on the specialties or certification you are doing. Your instructor will inform you about this on the first day.
07:30-09:00 PM | Dinner at the volunteer accommodation along with the other volunteers.
Sample of Diving Plan – Depends on your diving level and the number of weeks you join:
week 1 | week 2 | week 3 | week 4 | |
Beginner (No certification) | Open Water Diver Certification (4 dives + confined + theory) |
Marine Ecology Specialty (4 dives + 1 exploration dive) |
Advanced Open Water Certification | 4 exploration dives |
Open Water Certification | Marine Ecology Specialty (4 dives + 1 exploration dive) |
Advanced Open Water Certification | Fish ID Specialty (4 dives + 1 exploration dive) |
4 exploration dives |
Advanced Open Water Certification | Marine Ecology Specialty (4 dives + 1 exploration dive) |
Fish ID Specialty (4 dives + 1 exploration dive) |
Deep Sea Specialty (5 dives) |
4 exploration dives |
Note: Volunteers with no diving experience will learn to dive before engaging in any underwater conservation activities. The program fee covers the cost of the required online and in-person training, full scuba equipment, and volunteer supervision from an experienced dive instructor. All volunteers complete internationally recognized diving certifications (CMAS). Depending on the current diving experience and the length of the stay, the volunteer will complete a certification ranging from Open Water Diver to Advanced Open Water Diver and specialties such as Marine Ecology and Fish. The project works with a local diving school, therefore the volunteer is always supervised by an experienced dive instructor.
Internet: Wi-Fi is included.
Laundry: Available for use, extra fee €5
Accommodations: Volunteers will stay in a hostel devoted to sustainable practices. They provide accommodations in dorm-style rooms with shared bathroom amenities. Private and double rooms are available for an extra fee. The communal areas boast a commodious lounge area, a stunning garden and veggie patch, a vast external area, a swimming pool, a dining room and an events space. There is also a complimentary yoga session every Friday!
Food: Three homemade meals are provided each day. Special diet accommodations (e.g. vegetarian, vegan, etc) are available.
We want volunteers to know the natural and cultural surroundings and will provide you with helpful tips and tricks that will help discover Lisbon like a local!
The shifts will last between 3 and 5 hours per day, the shifts take place either in the morning, in the afternoon, or in the evening (depending on the program), which will leave them with plenty of free time to go explore, take a stroll around the surroundings, catch the most important sites, interact with the locals or relax, and of course, weekends off as well! The most popular options are Belém, Lisbon Downtown and Cascais beaches.
© 2022 GOECO | All rights reserved
Develop & Design | Msite
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