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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think that a school trip to NYC is excessive? Aibu to say no?

145 replies

ENormaSnob · 15/02/2012 18:43

Probably outing myself here as I have moaned rather a lot about this irl Grin

Ds1(year 7) brought a letter home yesterday about a school trip to new York next year. There are 40 places for the whole school.

It is £800 for 3 days Shock

They will see the empire state building, ground zero, the guggenheim museum, a broadway show and a drama workshop. Plus ice skating and lunch in planet Hollywood.

Aibu to think this is not an educational trip for a 12 year old?

We could stretch to finance it by doing overtime and saving but I am so reluctant to say yes.

Aibu? Wwyd?

OP posts:
BellaVita · 15/02/2012 22:21

Out of interest, apart from the OP those that are saying no do you have teenage/secondary school children yet

wherearemysocka · 15/02/2012 22:26

Siverbay:

In my experience the 'reccy' trips are never paid for by school funds. The tour companies do it so you book with them again and again. I get 2 nights in the hotel - everything else - petrol, food, Eurotunnel/ferry crossing I have to pay for myself, so it's not really a free holiday.

Although it is possible to do the risk assessment without visiting the hotel, personally I feel I can do a much better job of it and prepare much better for the trip if I can see the place for myself, talk to the hotel owners, look at where the traffic is heaviest etc. It's a lot easier to do on your own than with 40 children in tow - and I don't think you can over prepare for the trip.

£800 does seem like a lot of money, I would hope that the school runs cheaper trips as well. I do think 12 is rather young as well. My trip costs the grand total of £350 - plus you get the added bonus of me leading the karaoke on the coach home...

catsrus · 15/02/2012 22:38

If you can afford it and think it will benefit your dc then do it - otherwise don't Confused.children are different - what would be great for one is a waste of money for another!

one of mine went to NY when in 6th form and did lots of cultural things, museums etc and had a brilliant time - don't think I would have paid for her to go when younger tbh. When my dcs were younger it was the sporty trips they benefited from, skiiing and tennis unlike me who did the whole cultural Italy thing at 12 and loved it

mrsjay · 15/02/2012 22:46

yes Bella i have 1 secondary school child and and a left schooler Grin
I let them go to things they would get something out of
They didnt get to do to italy they maybe huffed a little but they havnt missed out at all , well imo , and i dont see £800 school trip value for money however much my dc got out of it
, 6 hours there and back on a plane check in and outs rushing to places would stress quite alot of young teens out i think

, I dont see a problem with senior pupils but i would expect them to contribute if they wanted to go on holiday with the school ,

BellaVita · 15/02/2012 22:57

Just checking mrsjay Grin

Oh and DS2 will be contributing to his skiing holiday by way of getting goggles, thermals etc in his Xmas stocking rather than the usual stuff of DVDs, Guiness Book of Records, selection box etc Grin

ImtheDD1 · 15/02/2012 23:06

YANBU IMO

However, a lot of people here were. To say that schools are ridiculous to put on these trips is completely unfair, many times the parents wouldn't think to take the children to the places that schools decide to go to.

I went to an average comprehensive school, and they offered some amazing trips. My agreement with my mum was that I had to pay half for any trip over £50. So I did.
In year 7 I went to Hadrian's Wall (History)
In year 8 I went to the Rhineland (German)
In year 9 I went to the French Alps (Skiing - only thing it taught me was I can't ski!)
In year 10 I went to Berlin (German again)
Year 11 was GCSEs
In year 12 I went to Russia: Moscow and St. Petersburg (History, which I didnt actually do)
In year 13 I went to Washington DC in February with Government and Politics, and then I spent July on a school trip to Kenya.
Kenya was the most expensive trip by far, but we were going out to do charity project work. I was only allowed to go on that if I raised the £3645 needed, and I did. All of the lower school trips were under £600 for at least 5 days, and 6 days in Russia and 4 days in DC were both less than £1000 each.
Other trips run by the school went to Italy (Geography GCSE), Paris (French), Barcelona (Spanish) and NYC (A level Textiles/Food Tech/Graphic Design)

I'm so glad my mum was able to afford to pay for these; I fully appreciate that there are people who don't have disposable income in this way. But nontheless, especially at my school, even those whose parents were not well off were able to go on the MFL trips and the A level Russia and USA trips too.

marriedinwhite · 15/02/2012 23:13

YANBU if you don't want him to go and can't afford it.

YABU if you can afford it and it will open up an opportunity that you wouldn't necessarily pay for for the whole family at the exorbitant school holiday rates.

Trips are about life experience as well as educational experience imo. If you don't want him to go you don't have to agree so there isn't really an issue is there?

sameyeam · 15/02/2012 23:26

Forget it, waste of time. Instead, send her to me, I am still in NYC till the summer. I'll take her to all those places for free. In return she can watch my brood (5,3,1) deal?

Our kids don't even go on school trips like that. Really, there is nothing from that trip that she couldn't get educationally from the UK.

Isn't the Tate in London? Guggenheim isn't all that. Ice skating, please, a waste, a bore and too cramped. What else, Empire State building...nothing compared to the Ol' Towers :(. She's not missing a thing.

Like I said, send her over, I will show her real New York...Jacob Astor's place, Rockefellers....real history.

mathanxiety · 15/02/2012 23:41

I am the mother of teens and I would say no. Too little bang for the buck.

seeker · 15/02/2012 23:48

40 across th school? How do they organise that? Whwt qbout the social side of it if its a mix from 11 to 18?

Our school doesn't do mixed trips like this- is it usual?

PinkPanther27 · 15/02/2012 23:50

In my opinion it doesnt sound like the best use of time in NY and its a long way to go for 3 days, particuarly for a 7 year old. You could suggest using the money towards a family holiday somewhere different instead?

thecook · 15/02/2012 23:59

NYC. Bloody hell, it was day trips to York and Fountains Abbey in my day!

LineRunner · 16/02/2012 00:05

I woouldn't send my DCs on a mixed age trip, not after DD's experience when she was 13. The older kids were too much. A couple of the teachers were pissed.

clawedbawls · 18/02/2012 00:36

This will not be a school trip, as in organised by the school. It will be a package tour run by an agency and offered through the school. The agency will be offering enough teacher freebies for the school for them to be happy to push it to the kids.

I wouldn't touch it with a bargepole...

ibizagirl · 18/02/2012 08:39

I had TWO letters brought home just before xmas to say that there are trips going to Italy and also New York. Both expensive for what they are. The Italy one is about 600 for 5 days and the New York is 1100 for 5 days!!. Dd doesn't want to go on them anyway, thank goodness. They will be stopping at a ymca in nyc and it doesn't even include all meals??

Bonsoir · 18/02/2012 08:48

"This will not be a school trip, as in organised by the school. It will be a package tour run by an agency and offered through the school. The agency will be offering enough teacher freebies for the school for them to be happy to push it to the kids."

That sounds very plausible.

We also get letters home saying that "the school has partnered (my italics) with such-and-such educational publisher" to offer books and magazines. It's just publishers pushing rubbish at parents, with the stamp of approval of the school/teachers to make their expensive rubbish look good. Grrrrrrr.

ChippingInNeedsCoffee · 18/02/2012 09:16

Glad you have made your decision and DS isn't :)

Even if money was no object I wouldn't have let him go unless a couple of his friends were going as I don't think a lone 12 year old is a good idea on a trip covering such a wide age group, I think he'd end up feeling lonely & left out - much better to wait until he's one of the older ones.

Some people are really bitter and self absorbed - saying the school shouldn't offer the trips because they can't afford it or not everyone can go etc. and saying they'd be up the school complaining, putting caps on the cost of school trips. Really, not a nice attitude 'if I can't afford it no one else should have the opportunity'... not nice, not nice at all.

ChippingInNeedsCoffee · 18/02/2012 09:17

Sorry - laptop doing its own thing again! First line should be '... and DS isn't bothered'

QuickLookBusy · 18/02/2012 09:37

Not all trips are organised outside the school. My DDs NY trip was organised by a Head of Dept who had been leading the same trip for 6 years.

SkivingAgain · 18/02/2012 09:56

I know £800 is a lot of money, but in terms of value for money I think it sounds pretty good as they are getting a lot for it. My DS is going on a school trip to Italy, by bus Hmm and that costing £580.

But I agree with others that the whole thing has got out of hand, the trips do seem to go ridiculously far afield when the same 'learning objectives' could be met by staying closer to home. That would enable more pupils to take part as well. DS trip is sports related, nothing that isn't already done locally.

HJisthinkingofanewname · 18/02/2012 09:58

4 of us had a week in NYC for just over 2k including everything. £800 sounds over priced.

It's a fab place though, do the over time and save up for you all to go!

SkivingAgain · 18/02/2012 10:08

Wow HJ can I come to you for help to book my next holiday Wink. £2k for a week in NYC is fantastic, who did you fly with and what was your accommodation like?

Original poster
ENormaSnob · 18/02/2012 10:09

Thanks for all the responses.

We have started saving so he can go on the France trip next year.

Seeker, the mixed ages was a worry as I think a 16 year old needs different things to a 12 year old. Plus I don't think it would be as enjoyable if none of his pals are going (which they aren't).

OP posts:
StepAwayFromTheEcclesCakes · 18/02/2012 10:49

wait for a more relevant one for him, also ground zero is an incredibly emotional place to visit especially when Mum and Dad are so far away. just saying.

Lunabelly · 18/02/2012 12:21

Even though I am so bitter, not nice and self-absorbed, (I eat babies and unicorns when no-one's looking too), I should like to say, from the bottom of my cunty little withered heart, that this whole overpriced school trip thing has got out of hand, some people do get really upset by the fact that they cannot afford to send their kids; especially when the schools whip up the kids into an excited frenzy about the trips before even sending a letter home.

Can you honestly, hand on heart, say that is a good thing? Do you honestly think, when we're in an economic climate of people needing food parcels from charities, parents go without food to feed their kids, people are losing their jobs and homes all over the shitting shop, that it's perfectly ok for the one place you expect your kids to be free from this sort of thing, to push expensive holidays of often dubious educational value at them? £350 for 2 or 3 nights in the Isle Of Wight was our primary's one of choice. When they finally realised that A) they're pushing it in a deprived area and B) We're all too busy trying to put food on the table and money in the meter to play along, they quietly dropped it in favour of proper school trips to museums and galleries.

Schools constantly harp on about equality, then throw this into the mix, where it becomes "OOOH, are YOU going to XXX?" and a negative answer brings sneers. People who have the money to do this can do it off their own backs - but I will NOT feed my children bread and water and go without heat just so I can play along with what I view as a quite nasty little sideline.

But then, I am a nasty cunt, so what, really, do I know? (Except about trying to never sink to personal invective) Ciao x