When choosing a summer program for your teenager, we encourage you to carefully consider the qualities that set Broadreach apart.

Experience Course Design Our Diversity of Extraordinary Program Offerings Safety Our Staff Personal Growth Education and Skill Building Accreditation

Our Participants Cultural Exploration Community Service Family Atmosphere Lifelong Friendships The Best Program Locations Our Approach to Scuba Instruction No Experience Necessary

Experience

Broadreach is a world leader in educational adventure travel camps for teenagers. We’ve been leading trips to over 35 countries since 1993, and our knowledge and knowhow should give you peace of mind that your teen is in good hands. Years of experience, planning and scouting go into developing each Broadreach program, and we constantly strive to improve and refine our trips to take advantage of new opportunities. Our extensive experience gives us distinct advantages with respect to staff training, course design, risk management and safety.

Course Design

All Broadreach trips are designed with a common approach to educational travel. It’s how we explore and learn that drives our experiential education philosophy, reputation and success. The cornerstone of our course design is our focus on small groups and hands-on learning in an environment that fosters global awareness and self confidence while helping students discover their true potential and passions. We limit our group size to 10 to 14 participants and do not allow more than two students from the same school on any particular trip. This small group atmosphere allows us to maximize learning, safety and fun while creating opportunities for true leadership, an atmosphere of teamwork and the flexibility to cater the program to the dynamics, age and goals of each group. Finally unlike teen tours or trips with many students, our course preserves the sense of discovery and adventure… When our participants explore a village, hike through a rainforest, dive a pristine wreck or try something new, they do it just with their team of like-minded adventurers. The resulting friendships can last a lifetime.

Our Diversity of Extraordinary Program Offerings

Our wide variety of unique and exceptional programs and locations offers something for almost everyone, and guarantees something new, exciting and different for our participants to do summer after summer. Most of our participants come back year after year, building on their experiences and discovering a different part of the world on each adventure. Although the program focus and backdrop may be vastly different from one trip to the next, our consistent program design and philosophy allow each participant to get the same unparalleled "Broadreach experience" regardless of which trip they choose.

Safety

Safety is our priority, from conception to completion of each program. We are proud of our excellent safety record, and we understand that safety is perhaps the most important concern of families looking for a summer program for their teenagers. Our course design gives us distinct advantages in achieving our goals and standards with respect to safety. Broadreach begins with well-planned trips and a well-trained staff. Our students learn skills in a small group setting, allowing us to give individualized instruction. Our goal is to allow participants to experience success through accomplishment, not success through high-risk adventure. At least one staff member on each trip has completed over 80 hours of training to receive their Wilderness First Responder or Emergency Medical Technician certification. We understand no summer program can guarantee safety, but we are proud of our approach to risk management. To learn more about risk management and safety, please see the safety page, or call us at 888-833-1907.

Our Staff

With hundreds of applicants every year, Broadreach can be selective in who we hire. From Coast Guard licensed sailing masters and PADI scuba instructors to college professors, marine biologists and experiential education professionals, they all come with experience in their fields and a genuine desire to work with teenagers. A large percentage return each year. Each year, Broadreach conducts extensive staff training, and each trip has at least one staff member certified in emergency medicine as either a Wilderness First Responder (WFR) or Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) with a minimum of 80 hours of emergency medical training. Our phenomenal leaders are fun, energetic and work well with teens. Many return year after year and several were once Broadreach participants. Most trips have both female and male leaders, and the average age of our staff is 26. For more information on our staff, please read the Our Staff page on our website.

Personal Growth

Broadreach’s approach to experiential learning, travel and global exploration maximizes opportunities for personal growth with the goal of empowering our students’ futures. Our programs create an environment that promotes a strong sense of teamwork and group awareness, yet recognizes the importance of leadership and individual success. Living side by side in small groups in foreign lands, participants face the timeless concepts of honesty and integrity, responsibility and dependability, commitment and respect for others. Ultimately, Broadreach participants learn defining life lessons that are in many ways more valuable than those learned at school. They are challenged to push beyond the familiar and discover their true potential.

Education and Skill Building

Reaching beyond the traditions of passive learning, Broadreachers are introduced to a wealth of educational experiences and environments that are dynamic and interactive. Everything we do is based on a non-competitive, hands-on, performance learning philosophy. Whether the activity is sailing, scuba diving, sea kayaking or surfing, proficiency is built sensibly through a step-by-step, learn-by-doing approach.

Accreditation

Broadreach is accredited by both PADI (Professional Association of Dive Instructors) and Lesley University. A fully accredited PADI Five Star Gold Palm facility, Broadreach offers the most comprehensive dive training programs available to teenagers, from Open Water Diver through OWSI Instructor. No company has more experience teaching scuba diving to teenagers. Broadreach was recently recognized by PADI for having the highest percentage of continuing diver education of any PADI facility worldwide. Each summer our students complete thousands of dives and sail countless miles while earning thousands of diving and sailing certifications. Our Academic Treks programs are college-accredited, and transcripts are provided through our partnership with Lesley University.

Our Participants

Broadreachers come from 50 states and 30 countries, with a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences, but they all share a desire to have an exceptional summer by doing something different. Our pre-program conversations, student questionnaires and correspondence help us build groups that are eager for and motivated to make the most of their adventure. A vast majority of our participants arrive without knowing anyone, and we actually limit each trip to no more than two students from the same school.

Cultural Exploration

Students on Broadreach and Academic Treks programs become part of the places we travel, experiencing extraordinary destinations in a way tourists cannot. While exploring the sights, sounds and smells of the countries we visit, Broadreachers interact with native people and gaining unique perspectives and respect for local customs. Traveling to new places and learning about new cultures can teach us as much about ourselves, our own way of life and our role as global citizens as it does about others.

Community Service

All Broadreach and Academic Treks programs include a community service component, which provides us with unique cultural insights while giving back to the communities and ecosystems we visit. We can provide a letter for participants that wish to use this experience to help fulfill a school requirement.

Family Atmosphere

Broadreach strives to have every parent and teen feel well-informed and a part of our family. Our year-round staff is small and very experienced, and when you call our office you usually speak directly with the individual that leads and/or designed your chosen trip. For example, families interested in our Caribbean programs talk to our Caribbean Course Directors – Motts and Tiffany – who also work with their teens in the islands. Our experienced staff is dedicated to helping you find the best trip to meet your goals, while also making the enrollment and trip preparation process easy and informative.

Lifelong Friendships

Living in a small group allows your group to truly bond, forming real friendships that will last long after the trip is over! There isn't the problem of cliques which form in larger groups. Your crew quickly comes together, learning how to effectively work as a team and cohesive group. You don't have to worry about getting lost in the crowd, as your group and your trip leaders spend down time together rather than heading off in different directions. On our Caribbean programs, you frequently see other Broadreach yachts and meet up with other groups, but your real focus will be on your adventure and your crew. Broadreachers frequently tell us how much they love the small group atmosphere.

The Best Program Locations

On every Broadreach and Academic Treks adventure, we travel to incredible places that are off the beaten path. Each trip is designed to make the most of a given destination, and all locations maximize cultural, educational and skill building opportunities. Many of our students return year after year to explore a range of our world’s magnificent environments and cultures.

Our Approach Scuba Instruction

Scuba diving is taught on a continuing education model, and Broadreach is the only organization dedicated to teenagers to teach the full range of certifications from beginner all the way up to the instructor level. Most of our students first learn how to dive on a Broadreach Caribbean program, and then build upon their experiences and certifications on our scuba programs that span the globe. Regardless of your certification level, Broadreach’s expert instructors will teach you new diving skills at your own pace. In the Caribbean, our yachts are fully outfitted with all the gear we need to maximize dive training opportunities. Broadreachers are issued their own scuba gear and each yacht has tanks, an air compressor and a dive-ski boat. Students are more comfortable diving with equipment that is theirs for the entire trip. We don't spend time assigning gear and waiting around for our scheduled turn to dive, so we have more time for skill development and having fun. We have the flexibility to do more diving and earn more certifications. Early morning dive anyone? Night dive after dinner? Let's go!

No Experience Necessary

We have programs for every ability and experience level. On most programs, no previous experience is required. We strive to teach you step-by-step, at your own pace. Come with a desire to try new things and broaden your experiences.