Volunteer Abroad Blog, Articles & Experiences

Volunteering in the Maldives – Seeing Sea Turtles for Days!

Posted By: Sikanderjit

#Maldives,#Wildlife,#Marine Conservation,#Asia,#Marine and Coral Reef Conservation

I learned so much from this trip especially about sea life and the beautiful Green Sea Turtles...I enjoyed our work every day, but it was an even better time because of the amazing people on the project. I went on excursion trips to uninhabited islands and snorkeled for the first time. Snorkeling was truly spectacular; it was like a dream!

Posted By: Julie

Volunteer in Maldives - Marine and Turtle Conservation

#Maldives,#MarineConservation,#Asia,#Marine and Coral Reef Conservation

Volunteer work started our first morning & continued every day until we left. The center takes in turtles ranging from hatchlings to more mature juveniles – from 1 week olds at about 7cm’s, and 12 month olds about 25cms. Every single turtle there will make you fall in love with them. Caring for them alongside the marine biologists & other volunteers was a hell of a lot of fun.

Posted By: Yun-Chieh

#Maldives,#MarineConservation,#Asia,#Marine and Coral Reef Conservation

I can still remember how excited I was having the chance to touch a turtle for the first time. They are just so adorable, especially the hatchlings. It was also interesting to see that every turtle had its own characteristics, some were calm and some more energetic!

Posted By: Prithvi

#Maldives,#MarineConservation,#Asia,#Marine and Coral Reef Conservation

I learned a lot during my three week stay and made some great friends. Waking up early every day, going to the marine center to feed the turtles and carrying out the rest of our duties taught me a lot about marine life. We also got to release a few hatchlings and grown turtles into the ocean.

Posted By: Jaimi-Lee

#Maldives,#MarineConservation,#Asia,#Marine and Coral Reef Conservation

A daily routine was split over two shifts a morning shift and afternoon, each taking two hours to complete. We would feed the turtles and drain the tanks, clean them and refill them. Once a week we would do a deep clean and all volunteers are roistered on and we scrub ALL the tanks and rocks with betadine to ensure everything is clean. Once a week we would also measure each individual turtles weight, length and width once a week.

Posted By: Brandi

#Asia,#Maldives,#Marine and Coral Reef Conservation

Each turtle seemed to have different personalities that made it easy to tell the difference between each turtle. It was really incredible! One of my favorite days was when we did weights and measurements because we took measurements for every single turtle and it was so cute to watch.

Posted By: Ashika

#Maldives,#MarineConservation,#Asia,#Marine and Coral Reef Conservation

My second day on the island is when I got to meet and start working with the turtles – which was great! Our main tasks were emptying and refilling the tanks and feeding and numbering the turtles, but once we also had to measure and weigh all of the turtles too. Once a week we also had to scrub all of the tanks to keep them clean which takes a whole day!

Posted By: Hannah

#Maldives,#Wildlife,#Marine Conservation,#Asia,#Marine and Coral Reef Conservation

Volunteering in the Maldives... was everything I could have ever imagined, but the biggest surprise to me was how much I gained from the program. Working with the turtles in itself was incredible. To watch them grow, get to know their personalities and then release them back into the ocean. To know that you have had a positive impact on saving such a beautiful creature from extinction, it is very rewarding. It’s not an experience that comes around often and I’ll hold it close to me for the rest of my life

Posted By: Andrea

#Maldives,#Marine Conservation,#Asia,#Marine and Coral Reef Conservation

Apart from the daily routine and some other work that we did, there was always enough time to go snorkeling. There were different snorkeling grounds close by (and once a week we went on an excursion a bit further away) and I discovered something new every time. Another part of the experience was living on a local Maldivian island – which seemed worlds away from the resort islands.