Iceland trip - worth it?

[LoftyPeachEagle]

DS has asked us if he can go on the school trip to Iceland next year. He will be 17 but will travel.with Yr 7s upwards. It's expensive at over £1000, and I was shocked to find out it was 4 days long and that's including flight days. I'm amazed at how much the school is claiming to cover in so little time. Just wondered if anyone's kids have done a similar trip - was it worth it?
Thanks in advanced...

AGH NOW I WANT TO GO THERE!

I simply don't understand how society can't see how many parents can't afford it.
On MN teachers complain non stop about participating and want thank you mails from parents.
It's 100% luxury and a lot of children are definitely excluded.

Oh £1200 - trip and pocket money is what a lot of families have for a holiday!
Are people bonkers about economy in this country?

Your £1000 will also be covering the cost of the teachers' holiday trip.

@KnickerlessParsons can I ask if you are a teacher who has organised and been on a school trip abroad? If not please be aware that it is very much not a holiday to be responsible for a group of teens 24 hours for the period of the trip. It’s a massive headache and very stressful. We ran a trip to France and I kept the costs as low as possible but still parents complained. It was really really hard work. It was worth it tho bc of what it meant to so many of the students. But no, not a holiday.

I never wanted a thank you either which is just as well tbh. I always made a point of thanking all the staff when I picked my DC up from similar trips.

If they are studying A level geography they will get a huge amount out of visiting volcanoes, glaciers etc

I’m not a teacher, but I’m always so grateful to teachers giving up their holiday time to go on these trips. Having the responsibility of keeping 30 teenagers safe doesn’t sound like much of a holiday to me.

@clary Ok. Poor English from me!

The cost of school trips includes the very necessary and important presence and work of the teachers on the trip. I have always 10”% values that and I did also say it was great they were organising a trip. Yes, I have accompanied school trips. However teachers are not free with no one paying. My inference was it was good value. So apologies if if read incorrectly.

Im not sure anywhere is £1000 for a family holiday in the school holidays. That’s very difficult to find. I also know people who prefer trips for dc and prioritise those. I also don’t believe schools should give up on trips. They are a great way to learn and I speak as someone who never went in one and we didn’t have a family holiday either. Nothing. That’s why I value schools that have teachers who bother.

Agree with all that @TizerorFizz - it wasn’t your post I had an issue with lol.

ofc the cost of the trip covers x number of teachers; I just get fed up when ppl call it a holiday (an actual teaching colleague once said this to me).

@LoftyPeachEagle my DS1 went to Iceland in year 10 and will always treasure the memory. It was organised by the geography department.

It would have been much more expensive to do the same trip as a family. It is somewhere I have always wanted to go, so is on the list for me & dh to do together at off-peak prices after DS2 goes to uni this year.

As well as being educational, trips like this give students cultural capital that their families might otherwise not be able to afford to give them or think to give them. It's usually done in school holidays to minimise the impact on children who can't go.

The glaciers may not be there for much longer due to global warming, so it's a privilege to see them.

@clary I agree. Not a holiday. Cannot type either - 100% value the teachers who do these trips.

A lot of children are automatically excluded because the school only take a handful e.g. 30 children so it is unlikely a child whose family cannot afford it will feel marginalised.
It is great for children whose families maybe able to afford to pay for one child but not both the child and themselves.

I agree that is not the case for whole year group residentials but these may be cheaper or heavily subsidised. Some schools may offer financial assistance.

Edited to say: trips are generally expensive these days, as with everything.

The glaciers may not be there for much longer due to global warming, so it's a privilege to see them.

Oh the irony!

My daughter did this trip last year with school. It's probably with the same company. If you can possibly afford it, do! She had a fabulous time and they did so much, it really was a trip of a lifetime. And going with school friends is a very different experience than going with family. Not better or worse, just memorable for different reasons.

If no-one ever flew on holiday again it would have no measurable affect on iceland's glaciers, the contribution is tiny.

I don’t see why every single aspect of school life should be removed due to some not being able to afford things. Unfortunately that’s life. However, for me, it spurred me on to get a decent job and have holidays. To see the things I didn’t get the opportunity to see at school. Never once did I think others should not have the chance at school.

I was so supportive of your comment until your last little dig at teachers- why was that needed? I can promise you that no teacher is merrily swapping 4 days with their own families, to be on a trip with teenagers and other members of staff (that they possibly don't even know). I have had the stress of trying to get students on/off planes, through passport control, in/out of hotels, dealt with travel sickness vomit, tears and homesickness, 2am complaint from hotel staff that teen is trying their luck in the bar....honestly it's endless and stressful.
Obviously it's nice to be in Iceland. But no-one has ever stood and gone "gosh I'm so pleased to be here with 50 teens instead of my family/friends".
It's not a fricking holiday.
Piss off
Regards

Dd y12 is there now! Saw northern lights last night - looks amazing. School funded the trip (deprived area). Be warned, I have still spent hundreds getting all the cold weather kit! It’s very fortunate the cost of the trip itself is covered and investment has been made in the school following v poor a level results. That’s obviously a big concern for us.

It depends - if it's only travelling on days 1 and 4 with two days experience between then I'd say not worth it. Whereas if they travel out early and leave late, so there is some experience on all four days then yes, worth it. So you need to see the itinerary before agreeing.

What will the kids get out of being in Iceland over staying in the uk? Is this for real? Wholly ignorant about Iceland. Does anyone truly need a list of what you can see in Iceland that you cannot see or experience here? Why do we wish to become so uneducated?

It depends on what the purpose of the trip is.

If it's sightseeing, then I agree with you - Iceland is great. Although I'd prefer to spend not that much more to take my whole family rather than send one child on a trip there.

If the trip is intended to support personal development eg social, emotional, confidence, self management etc, then you don't need Iceland for that.

Personally, I don't support schools organising sightseeing trips.

Ds3 did a similar trip w school as part (a major part) of his 18th birthday present. He had a great time and went on to study geography at university (the trip wasn't just for geographers but obviously there were a lot of geography related field trips).

Iceland is expensive so going with the school was a cost effective way of visiting.

Was it worth it? I'd say yes as a 1 off.

Eh? Could be Geography trip? What teachers just take dc on a jolly? Iceland really does enhance the study of Geography and all trips support personal development. What’s wrong with that? Yes, parents can take dc to Iceland but most won’t link it to school study. The best school trips there will do this. I feel sorry for dc who never get an opportunity to do this as parents just think it’s a holiday. Of course it’s not and why would you think teachers would do a trip if it didn’t enhance learning?

Yes some children are excluded through price. But the majority are excluded by the trip only taking, say a total of 40 pupils, out of 400. So there's no stigma in not going. It's like the ski trips that mumsnetters also complain about. 20 kids go, 1,980 stay behind and don't care.
As long as schools offer a wide range of opportunities I don't see the problem.

@Porcuporpoise As long as a school caters for everyone in some aspect of school life. Other kids might be in all the sports teams! My dc had no chance of these.

Both my dc have done it and really loved it.