The African Hockey Experience is organised by Hockey Dreams Foundation. The AHX is a unique fundraising trip to on of our sporting communities in Afrika. This year the destination of the trip is Kampala, Uganda and will be held from July 3rd until July 13th 2020. For Hockey Dreams this is a way to provide hockey players and other people interested the opportunity to work together with the coaches and children from our African programs. The money participants raise is to fund these projects and therefore they can personally experience what their money can do.
We challenge you!
For the African Hockey Experience we are looking for excited people who support our mission: a future through hockey. Are you at least 18 years of age and do you want to make the world a better place? Do you love what we do, and are you ready to have a fantastic adventure in Africa? Then you should go on this trip! As a participant, you will experience an awesome trip and will see what your fundraising money will be spent on. Take action for our coaches!
Kampala & Murchison Falls We will start our trip in Kampala, where we stay at the Bushpig Backpackers Hostel, which will be our home base for most of the trip. The hockey pitch is approximately a five-minute drive from the hostel. Day 1/2/3 will mostly be about getting to know each other and the coaches, hockey and exploring the city with her markets, environment and night life. The coaches will organise the Super Juniors: play hockey, sing, dance and play games with the youngest hockey players. On day 4/5 we will do the house- and project visits. The coaches will guide us through the poorest areas of Kampala, where they proudly welcome us into their homes and introduce us to their families. We will also visit their own sport projects they have at schools and small fields in the area where they run clinics with kids on a weekly basis. For day 6/7/8 we'll trade Kampala for Murchison Falls where we will stay at a Red Chili Hideaway Basecamp. We will hike to the top of the falls, have two game drive, a sunset cruise on the Nile and enjoy the campfire back at base-camp. On day 9/10 we will organise - together with the coaches - a hockey camp for kids from Kampala including lunch. A lot of clinics, play, fun, a tournament and of course an award ceremony! Unfortunately, on day 11 we will leave and head home. Time to say goodbye!
Sport, work together, culture and environment As a participant of the AHX, you will experience our sport community from within. You will be part of the daily routines of our coaches and get to know more about their projects, school, family, motivation, culture, traditions and dreams. You will also meet (a lot!) of kids on and around the hockey pitch, everyone involved at the different projects, other athletes, supporters and the locals. Through the AHX, you will see the impact of Hockey Dreams on their lives. How does their life look like, how do they develop as a coach and a role model and what is their impact on the kids? You will see with you own eyes that our programs make a difference. Together with the coaches, we will collaborate on the camp, help during clinics, visit their houses and meet their families. You will surprised by the technique and enthusiasm the coaches and kids - mostly bare foot - bring to the pitch and what the sport means to them. In the program will also be time to explore the country, with a visit to Murchison Falls and the possible extras like Rhino tracking.
Because the trip is worth it
We have estimated the costs for each participant in the African Hockey eXperience 2020. This indication is based on airline ticket, visa, vaccinations, overnight stays, meals, transportation and a three-day Safari Game Drive in Murchison Falls. We've estimates your own contribution to the trip to be between € 1,300 and € 1,500. A ticket to Entebbe is approximately € 500- € 700. Visas, vaccinations, overnight stays, meals and transportation will amount to approximately € 800.
In addition, each participant must raise a sponsorship amount of at least € 1,250 for Hockey Dreams Foundation. Below the costs at a glance:
€100 registration fee Your registration will be final when you have paid your registration fee of €100. You will now be a provisional participant, get your personal donation page and start fundraising!
Ticket After your registration, it's time to book your ticket. Arrival and departure are Entebbe, Uganda. The arrival date in Kampala is Friday July 3; possible days to depart are Sunday 12th and Monday 13th. Prior to the event we will of course be in close contact with the participants to make sure everyone arrives safely.
€ 800 trip Your own contribution concerns accommodation, transportation in Uganda, meals and Safari. The estimated costs for this are +/- €800. Hockey Dreams arranges these facilities and reservations. You must pay for this yourself on the spot. Costs for overnight stays are based on a dorm room at Bushpig Backpackers hostel. Do you prefer a private room? This is of course possible for a small extra charge.
€ 1.250 fundraising You will change the world on a small scale by fundraising for Hockey Dreams Foundation. The minimum is €1.250. Got the 100%? That's your entry ticket to the AHX!
How to be a fundraiser! Every participant of this amazing trip to Uganda will fundraise € 1.250 for Hockey Dreams Foundation. We will invest your money in our programs in which our coaches are developing for their own better future. By access to education, sport and development, we improve the quality of life of our coaches and the kids. During the trip, you see Hockey Dreams projects with your own eyes. Former participants have found different, creative ways to fundraise successfully. Everything is possible! After your registration, you will receive a sponsor toolkit and a personal donation page to get it going.
Airline ticket You must book your own airline ticket. KLM has direct flight to Entebbe from Amsterdam. These tickets cost bewteen €500-€700.
Visa You need a visa for Uganda. You also need to be vaccinated for Yellow Fever, you need proof of this for your visa. The visa is $ 50 and a Yellow Fever vaccination € 49.95.
Accommodation In Kampala we stay at Bushpig Backpackers Hostel (dorm 6 pers.) In Murchison Falls we sleep in a safari tent (2 pers.). It is also possible to get a double or private room at an additional cost. We will arrange the booking for you.
Transport All transport, incl. airport pick up & drop off (we arrange this for you) and Uber's in Kampala, and transport to and from Murchison Falls
Meals Breakfast is included at the hostel. We will enjoy lunch and dinner as a group. When and where will depend on the programme, during the camp for example we have lunch with the kids and coaches on the pitch.
Three-day Game Safari in Murchison Falls We will be picked up at our hostel in Kampala to drive to Murchison Falls. On our way to the base-camp we will stop at the Falls and have a guided hike up to the top of the Falls. We will sleep in real safari tents, where at night you might even hear the hippo's eating the grass around the tents! We get up early the next day for a four-hour game drive though the national park. Where if we might spot leopards, elephants, buffalo, lions, giraffe, antilope and many birds. After the game drive we have some time to relax and enjoy lunch at the lodge. In the afternoon it is time for a lovely boat cruise over the Nile toward the Falls we have seen from the top the day before. One certainty is we will see hippo's. The nile is also the only water source for the north-side of the park during the dry season, so it is also likely we will see wildlife at the shore. In the evening it is time for a lovely meal and time to enjoy the cosy campfire, fireflies and beautiful starst. Next morning we get in the car for another game drive and then head back to Kampala.
Not included • Travel insurance (required) • Malaria tablets (often covered by insurance) • Extra activities, like a bike or a boda-boda tour (moterbikes) through Kampala or going out for a fancy meal.
Guidance
Before and during the trip there is an event manager from Hockey Dreams who provides information and tips for the correct preparation and a successful trip. We provide you with a toolkit that helps you prepare for your trip and your fundraise activities. In addition, we take care of the reservations of the overnight stays and other activities such as the safari.
Fundraise page
We provide you with a fundraise page via Pifworld.
Pre-departure meeting
Before leaving to Uganda we will plan a get together with all participants so we can meet for drinks and get to know each other.
"What inspired me most about the trip to Zambia was the attitude and dedication of the local coaches. Their individual projects are executed with professionalism and a contagious positive energy. It really showed that they are more than 'just' hockeyplayers; they are important role models in the lives of the younger children they coach, which was a joy to experience." (Ayuk Bakia, AHX 2018)
"For me, the whole trip has been a fantastic experience. But if I need to point out something, it was definitely meeting the coaches and bungee!" (Anniko Kanters, AHX 2017)
“Being on the pitch in Lusaka and visiting the compounds, was very special. So many impressions!” (Paulien Rauwenhoff, AHX 2016)
“Visiting the coaches at their own homes was very interesting to do, because we got a real view on their ordinary life.” (Roxanne Verfaellie, AHX 2016)
“The planning of the the African Hockey Experience is very organized to make sure you visit many different places and projects. We went to a SOS Children’s Village and a school for deaf children.” (Julien Bekaert, AHX 2015)
“The incredible enthusiasm of the Zambian people is so contagious! That joy and vitality is something we, as Europeans, could learn so much from.” (Jan Willem Bredius, AHX 2014)
“At the local projects, I actually got a clear view of what the Hockey Dreams Foundation is capable of in Zambia. I noticed that the coaches take their projects very seriously, which turns out in a very structural way of working.”” (Tessa Roell, AHX 2014)
