How to increase your school trip group size

We all recognise that school trips are an essential part of a student's educational experience & personal development. Still, teachers can come up against it when trying to launch a trip if they've only got a small group.

The optimum group size for any trip travelling by coach is 40 students. At this point you fill the coach and significantly reduce travel costs. We understand this more of a challenge for some schools, so here are 5 of our travel experts' top tips on how to maximise the size of your group.

1. Offer the trip to other year groups

One of the simplest ways to increase the size of your group is to combine year groups on the same on the trip. Though this may mean running the trip every other year, it makes it more viable. You could even reach out to neighbouring schools or other schools in your federation to buddy up, something Orchard House School and Bassett House School do for their annual trip to Château de la Baudonnière. We can organise multiple pick ups to make this as easy as possible for you.

2. Plan a cross-curricular trip

Combining multiple subjects into a single trip is an excellent way to attract more students and drive down the per person price. Any big European city like Paris, Berlin or Barcelona can offer so many educational opportunities for every kind of learner. The most common are combining French & art in Paris as well as French & history in Normandy. We even run our drama, business studies and travel & tourism learning conferences at the same time so that teachers can combine their classes and travel/stay together.

3. Don't forget the fun!

Adding one fun stand-out excursion to your itinerary can greatly boost the appeal of your trip and increase student sign ups. Consider a day at a theme park, zoo, or beach, where students can let loose, bond, and have a great time. One of the most obvious examples of this is adding a day at Disneyland® Paris or the more affordable Parc Astérix to your Paris trip. And rarely do we organise a school trip to West Germany without factoring in a stop at the popular Phantasialand.

4. Launch the trip with a bang

Spreading the word about your trip well ahead of time throughout your school is key to generating interest amongst students and gathering sign ups. Speak with your colleagues and make sure your proposed trip doesn't clash with another. When you're ready to launch the trip, use our range of promotional materials such as letters, posters and presentations help communicate the educational outcomes and demonstrate value for money to parents. Plus share our videos with students to bring the trip to life!

5. Involve students in planning

Involve students in the planning process to ensure the trip aligns with their interests. Conduct surveys or hold brainstorming sessions to gather ideas and propose some of the excursions and activities we've suggested for you on each trip page to see what they're interested in. When students feel a sense of participation, they're more likely to spread the word and encourage their peers to join the trip.

Get in touch today for help in planning your next school trip.

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