Volunteering in France, recommended kit list.
Please note this may not be an entire kit list – your host, or Country Manager or Volunteer Coordinator may have instructed you to take with you extra items including disposable items that are not listed (for example medication, sun screen and other toiletries). So please do use your common sense when packing. The list below are suggested items that will almost certainly be useful to you and that you may not already have. They are linked through to where these items can be bought on Amazon.co.uk
Pre-departure & useful items
• France Guidebook - get to know the country your going to!
• Backpack - to put everything in!
• Rucksack - for day to day use
• Travel padlock
• French phrasebook
• Water bottle
• First aid kit
• Sunglasses
• A spare pair of glasses (if you wear them)
• Notebook / diary
• Books to read in your down time
• Photocopies of passport, vaccination details and insurance documents
• Spare passport photos
• Money belt
• Cash (see ‘money’ section in your briefing pack)
• Games to play in the evening - such as chess, scrabble and cards etc. Your host family may enjoy playing games with you. A few ‘English’ type games may be popular.
Where can I get these items?
Some of these items are not ‘everyday’ as such we have linked to recommended products on Amazon.co.uk to give you an idea of where you can get them and how much they may be.
>Traveller’s First Aid Kit |
> France Guidebook |
>Sunglasses 100% UV Filter |
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| >Traveller Drinking Bottle | >Money Belt | >Box Single Mosquito Net |
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>Travel Backpack |
>Backpack - 20 lt |
>Travel Chess Set |
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>Travel Padlock |
>French Phrasebook |
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Clothes & Shoes
• Clothes suitable for all types of climate, including a coat and umbrella
• A pair of Flip flops or other rugged sandal. Some volunteers suggest Crocs, which have straps, so they don’t slip off your feet)
• Trainers or lightweight walking shoes (or both)
• Sunhat (particularly up in the mountains, the sun can be very strong, even when it feels cold)
• Smart clothes and shoes for wearing at school
Where can I get these items?
>Crocs sandals  |
>Flip Flops | >Explorer Hat |
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>Men’s Walking Shoe |
>Women’s Walking Shoe |
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Toiletries
• All your normal toiletries (toothbrush and toothpaste)
• Sunscreen (enough for a while, but it is readily available)
• Hand sanitizer
• Contact lens solution (if needed)
• 2 towels
• Nail file or clippers
Where can I get these items?
>Liquid Hand Sanitizer |
>Sun Screen |
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Electronic items
• Radio w/batteries or wind up radio (very much optional as most hosts will have radios etc)
• iPod speakers (again optional, but maybe useful if you like listening to music in your own time)
• Camera and spare memory cards for camera
• Torch – either a wind up one or a small LED one with a long lasting battery and can fit in your pocket (useful if you plan trips to cloud forest, jungle etc)
• Cheap waterproof watch
• Travel adapter )
• Cheap, durable mobile phone (SIM cards available in country)
Where can I get these items?
>Wind up radio - with USB charger cable |
>Speakers for iPods | >Bright LED Torch |
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>Casio Digital Watch |
> Worldwide usb Travel Adaptor |
>Sim Free Mobile Phone |
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>Digital Camera |
> 32GB Memory Card |
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Things for school
• Stickers
• Pictures from home (including local postcards, pamphlets etc)
• Word games/ English games to play with kids
• CDs / cassettes of children’s songs (or mp3 with speakers)
• Dice, laying cards, shiny UK coins (for heads and tails decisions)
• Stationary (pens, paper, envelopes, chalk, rulers, highlighters, erasers, sharpeners, blue tack, glue, calculator)
• Soft balls for in-class games
Where can I get these items?
>Reward Stickers |
> 40 Children’s songs |
> Dice mixed |
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> Soft Football |
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Other things that may be of some use
For all things that you pack you will need to assess which is most relevant to you and your placement, below we have included some items that may be of use to you, but are perhaps less essential than the items listed above.
• Travel pillow
• Travel sewing kit
• Ear Plugs
• Travel alarm clock
• Condoms
Where can I get these items?
>Travel Sewing Kit |
>Travel Alarm Clock | >Ear Plugs |
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>Travel Pillow |
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Please note, the above products are merely recommendations. The brands are not associated to Lattitude Global Volunteering and are recommended only as an example of the item suggested on the kit list. You do not have to have purchase the exact item listed, feel free to make your own decision based on your needs and preferences. This includes making appropriate purchases based on regions volunteers are placed in, taking into account weather conditions and accommodation that will be provided.
The links above are affiliate links. purchases bought through these links donate a % of the price back to Lattitude Global Volunteering. These donations are used in our core charitable funds, such as helping run programmes and used in our bursary scheme to help towards the costs of volunteers who may otherwise not be able to afford to go
