expensive school trips - worth it?

Laurie

DD is doing yet another PGL-type thing - about £300 for 5 days, so they must be doing something ultra-exciting for £650! That is a week in a cottage for a family!

Not that I know of - they're staying in dorms, going up on a coach - no proper itinery yet though.

That's a bit steep Laurie are they doing something out of the ordinary?

School Lake District trip this year is £650.

To the Lake District

Not sure if this will help or hinder, but DH went on a trip to Washington when he was in secondary school. It inspired a life-long interest in politics particularly US politics and his career now is related to this. He still talks about the trip to Washington and that he can't wait to take our kids when they are older.

Poor Boppard, your son goes home and mine arrives, DS goes on June 29th

You can be so smug then when I post my stressy thread regarding what to pack the week after!!!

He goes on 18th June Piste. Watch out for my stressy thread regarding what to pack the week before.

Poor Boppard

Poor Boppard.

It's a lot of money, but Washington DC could be very interesting - what have they got planned? A friend's DS recently went on a trip to China and he absolutely loved it, sounds like it was definitely worth the money.

So far DD has not been interested in the really expensive trips at her school, thank God - our whole family goes skiing for the same cost as the school one! And some of the trips don't sound that well thought-out for the money....

So I'd find out exactly what is planned before parting with any money

I resent the prices of these, it's jsut absurd. I'd rather do as Alfalfamum - take them myself and we can all for the price the schools charge.

dd's school wanted I think £300 for two nights in Paris. We all went for a week last summer for around £500!

Sorry, posted too soon. The problem we have is that I could afford for one to go, but not all of them (big family).

Having said that, they have all (or will go on) the language exchange trip, I think that is really worthwhile. £350 each. They also went on pilgrimage to Rome which was ridiculously priced- £670 for 4 days!- but FIL wanted to pay for that.

I confess that I'm a sucker for trips. Any old trip. I will see all sorts of reasons why said trip is essential.

Two friends of DCs who have turned out pretty well so far - unchecked strings of A*s, Oxbridge, quietly and sensitively cool, the sort you'd happily bring home to meet your mother - have somehow got through their school lives all but not going on trips, including a raft of "GCSE" trips. Over the years we first thought it a little strange, then amusing, then unnoteworthy.

Which of course goes to prove to me that if mine didn't go, they wouldn't be able to keep up with these stars. Apart from which I'm all for the path of least resistance, unlike some. Deffo.

I'm absolutely astounded at the price of some of these! The pr

I am agog at some of the prices of some of these school trips

DD1's secondary had a trip to Australia a few years ago; luckily that was before she started. I'm dreading anything like that recurring...

I am taking her on our own 'school trip' to practice her German in Berlin for 4 days - 100 Euros each for the return fligths, and staying in a friend's apartment, so we're getting off lightly.. and I get to come with her

oohermrs I would baulk at DD1 being away with school for 2 weeks, and I'm not all that precious.. I remember what 'supervision' was like on my (far less exotic) school trips

DS 2 came home yesterday with details of a world challenge trip to morocco for 14 days cost £900 it's next July. Thought it wasn't a bad price considering all that they will be doing. My only thing is 2 weeks away he will be 13 (yr8) is a long time or am I being a wimp?

"Clearly a trip of a lifetime. This is not the kind of holiday we could afford for the family to go on"

I totally agree ja9. We would never all be able to do this so I am delighted that DS can.

I might add that DD will be doing at least 3 school 'trips' during her time at the school - enrichment week at the end of yrs 7,8 and 9 while yr 10s are on work placements. And probably at least one MFL trip and geog is she is doing that for GCSE.

DD2 is going to Barcelona this year -£650 for 4 nights. It's expensive but it includes all meals and sightseeing. She is looking forward to it and I'm sure it will help her Spanish.
DD1 went skiing - about £850 I think. I have been skiing before but have no intention of ever going again so worth paying for DD to go in my opinion. If DD wants to go next year then finances permitting at the time, then she can .
I did say no to Borneo at around £4000!

Atm we are struggling to afford a trip we agreed to last year for DS1. £1680!

But it's too the Space Camp in Alabama and will be fantastic! We justified it to ourselves on the basis that DS was interested in aero-engineering. Sadly since then he seems to have lost interest and wants to be a musician But it will still be an amazing trip and we've paid a deposit so we're going ahead.

Since that time life seems to have become outrageously more expensive and it won't be happening again! Have already come to an arrangment with DD that she won't be going on the same trip 2 years later (she wasn't all that interested TBH) but will be going to Disneyland with a friend this summer (she is only paying for her entrance ticket) and a riding holiday with a mate in August. Both of which are costing about a 3rd of DS's trip.

DS2 won't be at that stage for another 4 years so will have to review nearer the times

Waves to Sparkling - my son is going on a similar German trip, I can imagine he will speak no German

DS1 is off to Germany Monday-Friday. £395. I thought that was quite good, it includes a packed itinerary.

He is keen to try out his German, he has only been learning it since September.

I'm convinced DD's school is on commission for Trailfinders!

The trips this year alone have come to £1700!!!! She is year 8.

Lord knows what the GCSE trips will cost.

I should say that she has hugely enjoyed them all and got a lot from them, though not necessarily of subject value IYSWIM.

Aah - I do know there is a GCSE Washington history trip at my son's school. I had better start saving as he's chosen history and he's in year 10 next year! I'm not sure how much that would benefit them. I understand the emotional impact that the WWI battlefields or Auschwitz would have, but a trip to Washington sounds like more of an excuse for a big jolly.

Having said that we would probably try and scrape the money together.