Provide a home to mistreated bears and give them the wilderness they need
Bears have had a tough time of it in Romania. It's early days for animal rights legislation and until recently it was normal to see them forced into cages for tourism, made to dance in the streets or used as circus performers. This sanctuary on the outskirts of Brasov rehabilitates bears after years of misery, and it's fantastic to see them living happier, healthier lives.
BEAR VOLUNTEER REVIEWS- click here
What will I do at the Sanctuary?
The Carpathians really are one of Europe’s last wild places - home to brown bears and wolves - and this purpose-built sanctuary is currently home to 56 bears. You need to be a jack-of-all-trades, enjoy being outdoors in all weathers, relish physical work and - of course - to be passionate about bears. The way the centre works means that spare hands are always needed, so the placement is pretty flexible - volunteers are welcome to stay from 2 weeks to 3 months.
- Daily tasks: You will be helping the full time staff with the day-to-day tasks at the Sanctuary. Most of your time will be spent sorting out the food (donated by local supermarkets) for the bears to eat. You will assist the staff with feeding the bears and monitoring their behaviour. To add some variety to the placement, you may decide to volunteer at a local dog shelter for a day or two during your stay.
- Location: Brasov, the capital of Transylvania in the Carpathians, is a beautiful medieval walled city surrounded by modern suburbs. You will stay in the centre of the town in a flat, shared with other volunteers, and may share a room.
- Additional highlights: Volunteers staying for two or more months receive some basic Romanian language lessons. Our rep Razvan informally organises trips to the local sights to Dracula’s castle and other places, if you want to go, for minimal cost.
Read our blog for more information.
Getting there
Your placements have been arranged by Razvan, who will often be the one meeting you at Bucharest airport and driving you the 2-3 hours up to Brasov to settle you into your flat. You will live with other volunteers and you may be sharing a room. You will have a couple of days to visit the various projects and find your way around Brasov.
Representative
Razvan
A perfect English speaker and probably the most dynamic person you will ever meet, Razvan has run our Romania programme since 2003. A veteran rep - he has dealt with over 200 volunteers so far - he always goes way beyond his Oyster job description, organising wonderful trips (to Dracula’s castle and the Black Sea among others) for participants. He was personally involved in the fundraising and subsequent building of one local orphanage and champions both the bear sanctuary and children’s homes.
Supporting you
It doesn’t matter if you’re a short or long-term volunteer, you still get full support from Razvan, who is there to steer you through any difficulties. You will see him regularly at work and informal outings and his aim is to ensure that you have a happy and productive time in Romania.
‘[The programme] was excellent, very reliable, flexible enough to keep volunteers using the best of their abilities. The representative is brilliant. It's no surprise so many people return to Romania and with Oyster. I definitely will.' (Tamsin Clube, 2007)
Accommodation
You will be based in Brasov living in a comfortable, central flat that Oyster will rent for you and your fellow volunteers. Please expect to share a room. You can go out or cook for yourself in the evening.
We believe that living in relative comfort is important and should help you unwind when you are working hard in the fresh air all day.
Short term volunteers for the bear sanctuary can be placed in very central comfortable hotel or self catering accommodation.
Cost and what is provided
Shorter placements in the bear sanctuary are available from £995 (exc. flights)
2 weeks between October to March is £995
2 weeks between April to September is £1145
Extra £250 for each week up to 1 month, following weeks £100 p/w - subject to availability
What is Provided?
EU VAT at 17.5% on UK cost elements
- Phone or face-to-face interview and informal briefing
- Placement information covering work issues and placement advice
- Help and advice from our UK office before and after departure
- Finding you a suitable volunteer placement, organizing your accommodation, liaising with our contacts in Romania
- (Optional) flights from London with flexible return date (modest fee levied by airline for date changes). We charge £275 to organise your return flight.
- Transportation to your accommodation from the airport.
- Accommodation costs in a shared central apartment.
- Assistance and support from our representative whilst on your placement including regular social ‘meet ups’
- Daily return transport to the sanctuary
- Thorough orientation and basic Romanian language guide
- Donation to project
- Excludes food (approx. £1.50 per day)
- A book about the sanctuary, its history and of course the bears
What do I need?
- A passport valid for 6 months after your planned return
- Insurance (we can recommend a specific policy)
- Cost of changing your return flight date if you need to (approx £30)
- Independent travel costs or cost of journey to airport (about £10 by bus) at end of placement
- All home country travel costs (to airport and interview if face-to-face)
- If you want to combine Childcare and Bear work - medical tests before departure (expect to pay a fee to your doctor)
- If you want to combine Childcare and Bear work - Criminal Record Bureau check (approx £30)
- Provide your own lunch, water and hot drink (in a flask) at the Shelter
- Cost of food and going out (£25-£50 per week dependent on lifestyle)
And one more thing...
People often think that Romania's bears are quite small. This is certainly not the case. A male bear, standing on its hind legs can be 2.80 metres tall!
