Summer Teen Travel in the USA with Bold Earth

I’ve been on THREE Bold Earth Trips and all of them have been uniquely amazing. The first one I went on was the first trip I’d gone on without my family so I was a little nervous, but it turned out to be so fun and exciting that I decided to go again the next year. I got to connect with teens from all around the country. On my second trip, I got to connect with teens from around the globe! I still keep in contact with friends from France and Vietnam which is incredible to me. The no phone policy was a little bit tough on my Mom the first time, but I thought it was a great policy because it allowed everyone to connect and anyways, we barely had time to be on our phones as new adventures constantly awaited: white water rafting, white water kayaking, rock climbing, hiking up fourteeners, spotting all sorts of wildlife (I hadn’t even heard of a pika before going on a trip into the Rockies) and so much more! Honestly I can’t say enough about how great the trips all were. From learning how to go on belay (rock climbing) to planning out and cooking a good meal for everyone to share around a campfire, the experiences have left an unforgettable impact on my life and allowed me to find the adventurer in me.

The trip I went on with Bold Earth was a three week long camping trip around the western United States. It was awesome! Bold Earth’s no phone policy allowed all twelve of us and two leaders to become very close during that time without the distractions of the internet. It was a great way to spend time in the outdoors and create memories of a lifetime. I recommend this trip to anyone who is looking for an adventure and wants to unplug from their regular routines. thank you Bold Earth for a great summer!

I went on the Ultimate Costa Rica trip with Bold Earth last summer, and it was such an unforgettable experience! I made so many new friends around the world through this trip and they quickly became family as we spent 3 weeks together. This trip pushes you out of your comfort zone by allowing you to interact with people you've never met and pushing you to do activities that you may not be able to do back at home. We did so many fun activities that I can't do in my state like surfing, snorkeling, and ziplining! We also got the chance to participate in service work which gives back to the community and gives you the opportunity to connect with the locals. This trip not only improved my Spanish, but it also taught me a lot about the culture as we stayed with host families, ate local food, and explored different areas of the country! I would definitely recommend traveling with Bold Earth!

I loved the Costa Rica trip and feel like it helped me grow not only in my Spanish but as a person as well. It pushed me out of my comfort zone constantly with all of our adventures and doing stuff that I had never done before. Traveling by myself to a new country was probably the scariest thing I have ever done but I met some of the coolest people who I still talk to today. Staying in homestays with strangers who speak a different language is something I will never forget. This trip taught me how to live courageously and be willing to take risks. It exponentially improved my Spanish as well as my ability to look at things through a new perspective. Costa Rica was life changing and I would highly recommend to everyone!

I was a part of the Hawai’i trip in the summer of 2019. The leaders of the trip became my friends and I created life long bonds with the other campers. Everyone was so nice and I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect community! Coming in I was an introvert and was scared of not making any friends. After only one week it felt like you hade known these people for years and years. There wasn’t one day that I went to bed hungry do to the amazing cook crews. I would recommend this trip for anyone looking for a big adventure and some new friends.

My daughter Allison went on a summer trip with Bold Earth to Hawaii, and I can't say enough about the experience. When we signed her up, we thought it would be a fun teen tour (which it was). We were grateful to hear that she learned some useful skills (cooking), and that the counselors were kind and focused on teaching her leadership skills. She continues to stay in touch with all the kids from the trip, and she's planning to do an international trip with Bold Earth. Thanks to Bold Earth for taking such great care of her!

This was definitely my most diverse, fun, educational, and memorable summer. I went to camp knowing 2 people from school, but it didn't impact my bonding with the other 10 people and our two leaders. Since we traveled all over the West Coast during the Bold West trip, we got to do everything from rock-climbing to white-water rafting to surfing to exploring Vegas. When I first heard that we would cook all of our own meals, I was terrified that we'd all starve to death, because I didn't know how to cook. During the course of the trip, I learned how to improvise meals and how to cook with limited supplies. (I also really enjoyed food shopping, as I usually got driven around in a cart.) I made so many friends who I still keep in touch with. I'm even meeting up with a friend during the Costa Rica trip I'm doing this summer!! All in all, this was a great experience and I definitely recommend it to every teen out there.

My son Tyler died while on the Bold Earth Hawaii tour in the summer of 2012. He was swept out to sea after tour guides failed to follow high surf warnings and lead the group into an unsafe tide pool. These guides, who were responsible for leading the teens on a kayaking and hiking trip that day, were not trained in oceanic conditions - they had no cell phones, and no safety equipment on hand. After my son went missing, company leaders waited 5 hours to contact us and let us know what happened. When we arrived in Hawaii the following day, we discovered that the tour had continued, and no one from Bold Earth was there to meet us. Parents should use extreme caution when selecting a tour company for their children. Research backgrounds and experience of tour leaders and the company as a whole.