Volunteer in India

Programs in India start from $550 for one week, deposit included — one price that covers your accommodation, the meals listed for the program, airport pickup, orientation, placement and 24-hour in-country support. Longer stays cost less per week and each program page shows the full week-by-week total. Flights, the e-Visa, insurance and vaccinations are your own cost.

Accommodation (hostel in Delhi; volunteer house or host family in Jaipur), meals (two a day Mon–Sat in Delhi, three a day in Jaipur), airport pickup on your start date, orientation, your project placement, 24-hour local assistance, a pre-departure guide and a certificate on request. The 1- and 2-week specials also include the sightseeing named in their itineraries. Not included: flights, visa, insurance, vaccinations, local transport and personal spending.

Most volunteers travel on an Indian e-Visa, applied for online before departure. Your passport must be valid for at least six months beyond your return date with two blank pages. Rules and fees change, so confirm the current requirements on the official Indian government e-Visa portal — our pre-departure guide walks you through the application.

Yes, with sensible precautions. We have run programs in Delhi and Jaipur since 2007; you are met at the airport, stay in accommodation the local team knows, get a full orientation and have a 24-hour support line. Dress modestly, keep valuables zipped away, use the Metro, pre-booked taxis or ride-hailing apps rather than street hails, and go out in groups at night. Most of our India volunteers are women, many traveling solo. Read our article Is it safe to volunteer in India? for more.

17 on most programs (with a signed parental consent form for under-18s) and 18 on some, such as the Jaipur childcare and teaching placements and the Delhi special needs program — each program page states its own minimum. Five India programs carry our family-friendly tag; children's minimum ages vary by project, so tell us their ages and we will confirm the fit.

From one week to 18 weeks. The Delhi placements run from 1 to 18 weeks and the Jaipur placements from 1 to 12 weeks, in whole weeks. The 1-week and 2-week specials are fixed-length programs that combine volunteering with Delhi and Agra sightseeing. Start dates are every Sunday in Jaipur and twice a month in Delhi, all year round; the next available start is 27 Sep 2026.

In Delhi, at a shared, air-conditioned hostel in South Delhi a five-minute walk from the Metro, with breakfast and dinner Monday to Saturday. In Jaipur, at our volunteer house in the north of the city (Wi-Fi, filtered water, hot showers, washing machine) or with a local host family in a twin room, with three freshly cooked meals a day. Food is Indian home cooking with vegetarian options always available, and placements are about 20–30 minutes from the accommodation.

Yes. Airport pickup is included on your program start date: at Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi (scheduled pickups between 8am and 8pm; other times can be arranged at extra cost) and at Jaipur International Airport or Jaipur railway station. Jaipur programs also include your drop-off at the end; in Delhi a departure transfer can be arranged for a small charge.

There are no compulsory vaccinations for entry from most countries, but routine vaccinations should be up to date and hepatitis A and typhoid are commonly recommended, along with precautions against mosquito bites. Check NHS Fit for Travel or the CDC for current advice and see a travel clinic six to eight weeks before departure; bring a basic first-aid kit and drink only filtered or bottled water.

October to March: dry, sunny and mild, with Delhi and Jaipur winter days around 18–20°C and the Diwali festival season in October–November. April to June is extremely hot and July to September is the monsoon. Programs run all year, so if you travel in summer or the rains, pack light cottons, a rain layer and plan indoor sightseeing.

Almost certainly. Delhi and Jaipur are among our busiest destinations, most volunteers arrive alone, and you share the hostel or volunteer house with people from all over the world. Group orientation, shared meals and weekend trips make it easy to team up for Agra, Udaipur or Rishikesh, and the coordinators help solo travelers plan safe weekend travel.

Light, modest clothes in cotton or linen (long sleeves and trousers or below-the-knee skirts), comfortable closed shoes for the project, a small zipped bag for valuables, a refillable bottle, sunscreen and mosquito repellent, a basic first-aid kit including something for stomach upsets, and your own towel. If you are joining a childcare or teaching placement, stationery, coloring books or teaching aids are welcome — you can also buy them locally to support small businesses.