Volunteer Programme

Volunteer Program

How to Prepare for JTP

What You Should Know Before Coming

• The sea turtle nesting season here starts in March/April, peaking in June, July & August, and then finishes by November. The monsoon season typically starts in late December and ends around March, and it varies slightly every year in recent times partly due to rapid climate change that is occurring all over the word.
• Pulau Tioman is a semi-remote island that lies off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia, in the South China Sea. It is a nature reserve, ringed by beaches. The island is covered in tropical rainforests, home to butterflies, lizards, snakes and monkeys. On the east coast is Juara Turtle Project which is located in the Juara village.
• JTP is a people’s project! It operates an information centre for visitors to come visit and get an educational tour to learn about the work that is being done to help the sea turtle population. Throughout the year, volunteers come in to support and contribute to the sustainability of the project.
• We want you to do some reading or research about sea turtle conservation and Tioman Island before you come here so you can be familiar with the conservation issues sea turtles are facing on Tioman and other parts of the world. It will help put your trip here in context. If you are coming from another country with different culture, it is common to experience some “culture shock” when just arrive. It happens because life here is different from where you are living or working and it is normal to take some time to adjust and acclimate.
• JTP is different from hotels, guesthouses and some other, as we have activities and work which we expect you want to get involved in. However JTP is different from an all-inclusive program, as we do not plan activities for your entire day. During the day, you will help out at the project for anywhere between 3-4 hours, have a short break and continue with some turtle work and patrolling later. The project facility and volunteering programme is very free and open. There is a list of work to do, but take do your time to get comfortable with the location, materials and methods.
• We have a minimum stay requirement of two weeks (one week can be considered for ASEAN countries). Otherwise the time is too short for volunteers to learn and be trained up to speed.
• All new volunteers will arrive on Sunday (starting from 2024) because of the volunteer programme structure. This will allow JTP staff to prepare and properly orientate all volunteers

  

Requirements

General *

• Age 18 & above
• A passion for marine life
• Strong work ethics
• Willing to get hands dirty
• Good physical fitness & healthy
• Able to adapt to various tasks
• Able to withstand potential long working days

Coral Rehabilitation Project

• Valid SCUBA diving certification (Advanced or higher)
• Minimum 40 verified logged dives, with last dive done within last 6 months

* If you are under the age of 18, you are required to come with at least another friend and must print out a copy of the “JTP Memorandum of Understanding” form which will need to be signed by your parent or guardian, then brought to JTP and submit to JTP staff upon arriving at the centre.

  

What to bring

• Sufficient cash in RM to spend on snacks and food, adventure trips or for items at the local convenience store. *There is only ONE automated teller machine on Tioman island. It is located in Tekek village. Trips to Tekek are about 30 minutes each way and incur charges.
• Bring camp clothes (i.e. clothes that you do not mind getting wet and dirty), your towel, and personal essentials. We do not provide shower gel or shampoo. *Also bear in mind to bring clothes appropriate to the Malaysian culture. When swimming, rash guards and board shorts are recommended.
• Essential footwear: Sports or trekking shoes, slippers, aqua shoes. Optional: strap-on sandals and rubber shoes.
• Bring torch-lights or head lamps that has a good red light function for beach patrol at night.
• Insect repellant, mosquito net, reef-safe sun-protection cream/ spray, a hat or cap, personal medication if any.
• If you are feeling generous, you are welcome to bring working equipment/ items/ tools for the outdoors, kitchen, garden, rooms etc. to be donated to the project.
• Feel free to bring anything that you can share around.
• For example; food, candy, coffee/ tea and books too. Any type of books within a range of subjects are appreciated sea turtles, biology, novels, how-to, field guides , education etc. *If you are unsure about something that you are bringing, please communicate with us prior to coming so that we are able to advise you accordingly.

  

What to know Upon Arriving

• When you arrive to Tioman via ferry, get off at the Tekek village stop. To get across the island from Tekek to Juara, we encourage you to take a taxi car. On the street it will cost around RM70-80/ person or RM35-40/ person if sharing with more people.
• When you arrive, you will be showed to your accommodation and then a JTP staff will give a short orientation.
• Lastly, you will be brought around and get introduce to the project centre area/ facilities.
• Depending on your arrival time, your initial volunteer activities may differ. Do not worry because we do not expect you to know how to do everything and we will do our best to get you up to speed over time.
• The project centre will have volunteers and staff from many different countries. Take your time to get to know everyone and have an open mind to the new environment.

* The orientation will explain about the project and your time here, during that time we will also go over our liability papers and operating procedures. During the orientation, volunteers will be briefed on the currently on-going activities which can be anything related to research, community work, outreach programmes etc.

  

Volunteer Activities

  

What else

• We “cannot guarantee sea turtles!” We do not keep any sea turtles because they belong in the ocean which is their natural habitat and there they are able to fulfil their roles & responsibilities in maintaining a balance ecosystem.
• If you only want to see and photograph sea turtles, we advise you to go on a snorkelling trip or scuba diving and you may have a better chance to see them.
• Volunteering and helping at JTP is contributing towards all the hard work that is being done in order for the natural population of sea turtles to rejuvenate. Then we can all go stand on the beach and be able to see nesting sea turtles all summer long.

  

Example of weekly schedule

  

Costs and Fees

“Staying with JTP costs more than a usual hostel, but it is less than an average volunteer programme.”

March – October 2026

*The sea turtle nesting season here starts in March/April, peaking in June, July & August, and then finishes by November. The monsoon season typically starts in December and finishes in February/March, and it varies slightly every year in recent times partly due to rapid climate change that is occurring all over the word.

Payment can be made upon arrival at the project and during orientation. We prefer to receive cash (RM), unless necessary we can discuss online bank transfers.

Your stay here includes:

• Volunteer programme activities, accommodation, facilities on site, breakfast supplies, cooked lunch and dinner, drinks (coffee, tea), drinking water, refrigerator, plenty of work to do, internet WiFi.
• Recreation equipment like kayaks, snorkeling mask, snorkel, fins, volleyball, frisbee, board games.
• There are a plenty of local restaurants nearby and we encourage our volunteers to support local restaurants/ café/ business in the village. The average cost of a meal is RM20-25.

  

Rooms

• • The dormitory style rooms has 6 single beds with two western-style bathrooms each. It can accommodates up to 6 people in each dormitories. Unless necessary or for group programmes, we can accommodate 12 volunteers or less at a time.
  • Volunteer will be allocated to a room with the same gender volunteers.

• The private rooms (one double bed) with ensuite bathroom equipped with water heater.

  

How to get here

• Tioman Island is located around 32km off the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia, on the border between the Johor and Pahang states of Malaysia.
• You can reach Tioman easily;
• By Bus/Car/Taxi and then a ferry from Mersing (Johor state) or Tanjung Gemok (Pahang state) ferry terminals Important Note: The ferry timetable changes daily, due to the tides. The ferry timetable for a particular month is only released around the 15th of the previous month, so it is therefore difficult to plan too far in advance. Please check timings when planning travel.
• Below are the links for the bus and ferry booking website:
  Bus:www.redbus.my
  Ferry:ww.cataferry.com | www.juaramutiararesort.com| bluewater.my