Four years on, her initial encounter with the UK through an AFS Intercultural Exchange trip is still clear in her mind. 'It was very hard in the first camp in Norfolk as I had never used an axe before,' she said. 'In Hong Kong, you never have to do anything like this. I didn't know how to take care of plants as we don't have a garden.'

The next camp proved even tougher, working in water and very long hours. But Ms Yeung, then a 20-year-old City University student studying for a higher diploma in English for Professional Communication, found the independence gained rewarding. 'You needed to cook, wash dishes, which I never normally have to do,' she said.

By the time Ms Yeung went to Britain, she had already undertaken a year-long exchange to the US and a summer environmental programme in Switzerland through AFS. 'I've always wanted to see what it was like to live in other places. My parents like to travel so I'd been to the US and Canada before and I enjoy meeting people,' she said.

More recently, she spent six months on an AFS community service exchange in Paraguay, where she lived with a family and taught English and handicrafts. She returned to Hong Kong in January. 'My friends agreed with my decision to go on the first trip. After that they said: 'Why are you paying to do such hard work?' And when I went to Paraguay, it was: 'Please don't go, you'll starve'.'

But Ms Yeung loved her time away. 'They are not trips where you are going to enjoy every moment because there will always be times when you find it very hard ... it is a way to get to know yourself. You learn so much,' she said.

AFS, founded in 1947, operates in 56 countries and started in Hong Kong in 1982. It is a non-profit, volunteer-based educational organisation that provides a chance for cultural immersion and self-development through worldwide exchanges. Student programmes are open to those between 15 and 18 after a selection process.

'We are not looking for a particularly high level of English, but students must understand what they will be doing,' said Tara Boyce-Hofmann, director of AFS in Hong Kong. 'They must be interested in an intercultural experience and living with another family.'

AFS selects 150 out of about 300 applicants in Hong Kong for the year-long course with shorter programmes available in Finland (for ages 14-18), Japan (15-18), Australia (14-18) and the UK conservation camp (17-22) in the summer. Those chosen must pay a participation fee to help support AFS but scholarships are available. About 20 students usually go on the UK summer programme, the higher age requirement reflecting the nature of work and maturity required.

Another programme testing stamina, inner strength and a sense of adventure is the Conservation Volunteers Australia (CVA) programme available in Hong Kong for the first time this year via the Work and Travel Company.

CVA is a national, non-profit organisation that completes more than 2,000 conservation projects a year. Participants spend two to six weeks in one of 13 different locations in Australia, assisting in projects ranging from counting frogs to planting rainforest species. 'You can mix with international volunteers and practise English in a real situation so we thought it would be good for young people in Hong Kong,' said Rachel Yau Chiu-wah, Work and Travel chief programme co-ordinator. Participants are aged 17 to 70 but work and travel chief programme co-ordinator Rachel Yau Chiu-wah thinks the programme most suitable for those between 18 and 35 in Hong Kong as they have to be fit for outdoor activities and prepared to work from 8am to 4pm under sometimes fierce weather conditions.

Are twenty somethings in Hong Kong ready for this? 'Not many, actually,' Ms Yau said. 'But they should be. It's a new experience for Hong Kong people. The concept of a gap year is not that popular here but this is the kind of programme for those who have been working for some years and want to escape Hong Kong for a while.'

Peace of mind

Look at how information is presented and the type of services provided, then compare it with other organisers.

Ask about medical provision, facilities and safety in accommodation and classes.

Check a programme meets your child's needs.

Enquire about teachers' qualifications.

Ask for a reference from a past participant.

Look at provision for accompanying adult and ratio of staff to students.

Check travel insurance.

Ask about additional expenses.

Find out how best to contact children while abroad.

Enquire about travel agents' licence and provision for refunds.

Compiled with the help of the Consumer Council, ACE, Australian Education Centre, Canadian Education Centre, British Council, Institute of International Education.