Every June, three hundred counsellors arrive at Camp Towanda from over thirty countries. Some have done this for the last four or five summers, while others stepped off a plane from Manchester or Glasgow hours ago and have never seen a baseball diamond up close. By August, many have become inseparable after weeks of sunny afternoons on the lake and evenings around the campfire. That's been the pattern at Camp Towanda since 1923.

If you're a UK uni student weighing up where to work this summer, AmeriCamp UK places counsellors directly at camps like Camp Towanda. The programme fee starts at GBP £399 (or GBP £419 split into three instalments), the guaranteed minimum salary is $2,250 USD for the season (specialists may earn more), and your J-1 visa gives you 30 days of post-camp travel across the U.S. before you fly home.

A Hundred Years on Sunset Lake

Camp Towanda has been running continuously since 1923, which puts it in a category of American camps that most people only read about. The routines at Camp Towanda work because they've been tested across generations of campers and staff.

The 400-acre camp sits in Wayne County, Pennsylvania, in the Pocono Mountains near Honesdale. It’s about a two-and-a-half-hour drive from New York City and around a three-hour drive from Philadelphia. If you've never been to the Poconos, picture forested hills, summer heat, and the kind of lake that sits perfectly still at six in the morning before anyone else is up. 

At Camp Towanda, that lake is Sunset Lake, a 35-acre spring-fed private lake at the heart of the property. You will spend a lot of time there. Beyond Sunset Lake, the camp also boasts: 

• An outdoor amphitheater
• Baseball and softball diamonds
• Soccer, hockey, and lacrosse fields
• 12 tennis courts
• An Olympic-sized pool
• A 500-foot toboggan slide
• Dedicated arts and crafts workshops
• A Lego room
• A huge mess hall
• And more!

Camp Towanda is ACA-accredited, meaning it meets the American Camp Association's standards for health, safety, and programme quality.

Camp Towanda Staff: 300 People, 30 Countries, One Cabin

The staffing model at Camp Towanda is one of its most distinctive features. Roughly 300 people from more than 30 countries, plus counsellors from across the US, work a single summer together. That creates a dynamic where you’re learning about different cultures and languages, all while forming new memories with your co-counsellors at Camp Towanda. 

There are a few different counsellor roles. General Counsellors live in cabins with a group of campers aged 7 to 17. You're not primarily an activity instructor; you're more like an older sibling. You're the one who knows when a kid is having a rough week before they say anything. You wake up with them, eat with them, travel through the day's activity schedule with them, and do lights-out with them. 

Activity Specialists lead instruction in a specific area: a sport, an art form, a water activity, or an adventure skill. You're running structured sessions and sharing your passion with groups of 20-40 campers (boys and girls, ages 7-17). Specialists may earn more than GCs and often have additional responsibilities in planning activities for all skill levels and age groups. 

Group Leaders are in charge of a group of 20-45 campers across several bunks and also supervise 8-12 staff. They need to be resourceful, motivated leaders with strong planning and organizational skills. An endless supply of energy also helps. 

For more on what being a camp counsellor actually involves day to day, the experience section on the AmeriCamp UK site is worth reading before you apply.

A Day at Camp Towanda

The honest version of a day at camp doesn't fit cleanly into a schedule, because things move, weather changes plans, a cabin group takes twenty minutes longer than expected, and you adapt. With that in mind, this is roughly what a summer day looks like.

A typical day starts at 8:15 am, with wake-up, breakfast, and morning announcements. After breakfast, the morning activity periods begin. Camp Towanda runs 65-plus structured activities across its facilities. Depending on your role, your morning could involve running a tennis drill, supervising the ropes course, taking a ceramics class through its first glaze firing, or standing waist-deep in Sunset Lake for a swimming period. The campers rotate through sessions built around their age and interests. You follow your cabin group if you're a General Counsellor, or you receive your assigned groups if you're an Activity Specialist.

Before you know it, it’s time for lunch and a break from the action. Rest hour after lunch is one of the more underrated parts of the day. Cabins go quiet. Kids read or sleep. Staff catch their breath. Then the afternoon activities run much like the morning, usually with more energy behind them because campers have found their rhythm by mid-session.

Dinner brings the whole camp back to the dining hall. Meals are typically served kosher-style, with lots of variety and plenty of options to choose from, including a fresh salad bar. After dinner, there’s usually a group activity that brings the whole camp together, like campfire songs or a talent show. 

Cabin time and lights-out vary by age group. Once the youngest are down (usually around 9 PM), the rest of the evening belongs to the staff. Curfew on nights off is 12 midnight, with counsellors “on duty” with their campers after lights out twice a week. 

For a fuller picture of what the schedule covers, the typical day at camp and camp activities pages are both worth a look.

What Camp Towanda Costs and What You Earn

The programme fee through AmeriCamp UK is GBP £399 if you pay upfront, or GBP £419 if you split it across three instalments. A GBP £49 deposit secures your place when you're accepted. That fee covers everything involved in placing you: J-1 visa sponsorship, documentation support, pre-camp training, and an in-country emergency contact should you need one.

Here's what the season includes once you're there:

• Free accommodation for the full season (in cabin or staff housing)
• All meals at camp
• Medical insurance for the duration of your placement
• 30 days of post-camp travel in the U.S. on your J-1 visa

What it does not include:

• Flights to and from the U.S.
• Personal spending money for your travel window

The guaranteed minimum camp counsellor salary through AmeriCamp UK is $2,250 for the season. Activity Specialists, because their skills are harder to recruit for, typically earn above that floor. Specific salary figures are worked out during the placement process based on your role and experience.

For the full breakdown, the what you pay and what you get pages lay it out clearly. 

How to Land a Camp Towanda Spot Through AmeriCamp UK

Camp Towanda is a sought-after placement. It fills up. If you want to be there in June, you need to be moving by late autumn at the latest.

AmeriCamp UK has a 99% placement rate, which means if you're eligible and you complete the process, you will almost certainly end up at an incredible summer camp in the U.S. 

Here's the process:

1. Check the requirements. You need to be 18 by 1 June, have good English, hold a passport with 12-plus months of validity, be available for the full season, and be eligible for a J-1 visa. The full list is on the requirements page.
2. Start your application. Create a profile through AmeriCamp UK. You'll be asked about your skills, experience with children, and availability.
3. Interview with an AmeriCamp UK representative. We’ll organize a virtual call to learn a bit more about you and the type of experience you’re looking for. This is also a great opportunity to get answers to your questions. 
4. Complete your DBS check. This is mandatory for everyone working with children. AmeriCamp UK will guide you through it.
5. Interview with camp directors. We’ll circulate your application among our partner camps in the U.S. When someone thinks you’d be a great fit, they’ll reach out to schedule an interview.
6. Get matched and confirm your placement. If your interview goes well, you’ll receive an official offer letter from the camp. Once you accept it, AmeriCamp UK can start the visa process.
7. Sort your J-1 visa. AmeriCamp UK handles the J-1 visa sponsorship. You follow their instructions, provide all necessary documents, and attend your visa interview at the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate in your country. 
8. Arrive. Camp Towanda runs an eight-week full season, which includes one week of staff orientation and seven weeks of actual camp.

The application process page has everything you need to begin. Start early. It is not a stressful process if you give it time.

What Camp Towanda Does for Your CV

Camp counsellor experience reads particularly well in UK graduate applications. The reason has less to do with the activities and more with what the role demands of you: a summer responsible for the well-being of children in a live-in setting, in a country where you started knowing no one, working alongside three hundred people from thirty countries.

The skills employers in graduate schemes (Big Four, civil service, banking, consultancy, NHS leadership, teaching, and the charity sector) actually look for are the ones a camp season makes obvious: leadership in unstructured situations, pastoral judgment, cross-cultural communication, accountability when no manager is watching, and resilience. 

On your CV, skip the line about a summer of fun. The line that lands is that you led a team in a high-stakes environment for seven weeks, and you learned to read people quickly because the job required it.

Apply for Camp Towanda Through AmeriCamp UK

Camp Towanda takes applications seriously, and it fills its staff roster early. If this is the camp you want, the time to move is now.

AmeriCamp UK is your path to an incredible summer in the U.S. The requirements page confirms eligibility in about two minutes. If you're 18 by 1 June, available for the full season, and hold a valid passport, you're likely in the right position to apply. 

Three hundred counsellors. Thirty countries. One summer. The application is the only thing between you and being one of them. When you’re ready, head to the apply page to start your application.

Camp Towanda FAQs

Where is Camp Towanda located?

Camp Towanda is located near Honesdale, in Wayne County, Pennsylvania, in the Pocono Mountains. It's approximately 2.5 hours from New York City and around 3 hours from Philadelphia. The address puts you in rural northeastern Pennsylvania, surrounded by forested hills and accessible lakes.

Is Camp Towanda still operating?

Yes. Camp Towanda has run continuously since 1923 and remains operational under directors and owners David “Mendy” Mendelowitz & Alana “Pines” Mendelowitz. UK applicants are placed at Camp Towanda through AmeriCamp UK every season. 

Is Camp Towanda a Jewish camp?

The camp has a predominantly Jewish clientele and participates in certain rituals like saying the "motzi" in Hebrew and English before each meal, having a wholesome Shabbos dinner, and a brief Friday evening service. There is also an optional havdallah service in the garden on Saturday evenings during Free Play. 

Food is typically served kosher-style; however, one can have a cheeseburger if so desired. The camp is open to everyone, and many campers and counsellors at Camp Towanda are not Jewish. As long as you’re respectful and open to new cultural experiences, you’ll be a great fit. 

What's the salary for Camp Towanda counsellors through AmeriCamp UK?

The guaranteed minimum salary for the season is $2,250. Activity Specialists, whose skills are in higher demand, often earn above that figure. Free accommodation, all meals, and medical insurance are included on top of your salary. 

What are the cabins and bunks like at Camp Towanda?

Counsellors live in a cabin with their campers, which is the norm at American sleepaway camps. The cabin is your base. You'll have your bunk space and shared facilities. The experience is close-quarters and cosy by design. You’ll also be perfectly comfortable, with amenities like electricity, hot and cold water, windows, screens, smoke detectors, and wood platform beds. 

What should I pack for Camp Towanda?

Standard camp packing: enough clothes for a week without laundry (at least two full sets of everything), sturdy trainers and water shoes, a good rain jacket, sunscreen, a torch, a power bank, and any medication you need. Camp Towanda will send a formal packing list once you're confirmed. 

What's the Timothee Chalamet connection to Camp Towanda?

Timothee Chalamet, the French-American actor, reportedly attended Camp Towanda as a camper. This is widely reported rather than officially confirmed in detail. What it means for you as a counsellor is roughly nothing, except that you might be asked about it by people at home, so it's worth knowing.

What are the dates for the Camp Towanda season?

Camp Towanda runs a seven-week full season each summer (plus one week for staff orientation), with a four-week session option also available for campers (you’ll still be there for the whole eight-week duration, though). Specific dates for the upcoming summer are confirmed through AmeriCamp UK during the placement process. The camp year typically runs from mid-June through mid-August.