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Southern England School Day Trips

Our educational travel experts have pulled together our top recommendations for school day trips in Southern England. Learn about sustainability in Hampshire, try out ancient crafts in Dorset, discover Britain's industial heritagel in Hertfordshire, uncover Roman mosaics in Chichester, or explore the galaxies in Winchester - there's so much more to Southern England than London!

Overview

Engage your students with these school day trips located in Southern England

Our educational travel experts have pulled together our top recommendations for school day trips in Southern England.

Your next school trip could be on your doorstep with these educational visits, attractions and experiences located in Hampshire, Sussex, Isle of Wight, Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire and Surrey. We’ve selected our favourite day trips in Southern England to support your teaching of Geography, History, Science as well as some fun visits to incorporate into Activity Week.

Each excursion has been chosen because it delivers a specialist school programme which mean you can be confident that your students will get the best learning experience outside the classroom.

When organising a day trip it is essential that your coach is punctual and reliable. Voyager School Travel owns a specialist coach company called Pegasus Coaches, and wherever possible our school groups are transported by Pegasus coach, driven by our own professional driver, so you can be sure of a safe and reliable service.

With expertly designed itineraries, free planning visits, door to door coach transport and the financial security of an ABTA backed service we will help you create a unique and memorable learning experience for your class.

Excursions

Our most popular Activity Week day trip ideas

When organising a day trip it is essential that your coach is punctual and reliable and that's why, wherever possible, all our day trips include transport with Pegasus Coaches, our very own specialist school coach company based in Hampshire. 

With expertly designed itineraries, free planning visits, door to door coach transport and the financial security of an ABTA backed service we will help you create a unique and memorable learning experience for your class.

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Stonehenge, Wiltshire
fishbourne roman palace
Fishbourne Roman Palace, Chichester
bucklers hard
Buckler’s Hard, New Forest
frogmore paper mill
Frogmore Paper Mill, Hemel Hempstead
portsmouth historic dockyard
350 years of naval treasures at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard
south downs flowers
Learn to protect our planet - South Downs Sustainability Centre, Hampshire
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Isle of Wight Geography Field Trip
Science Centre and Planetarium Winchester v2
Winchester Science Centre & Planetarium, Hampshire
paultons park
Paulton’s Park, Hampshire
Ancient Technology Centre Dorset
Ancient Technology Centre, Dorset
battle of hastings
1066 & The Battle of Hastings
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Stonehenge, Wiltshire

Stonehenge’s iconic ring of standing stones has to be one of the most well-known and outstanding prehistoric monuments in Britain. The site offers a fascinating backdrop to History, Geography and Science lessons covering topics such as the Bronze Age, hunter-gatherers of the Neolithic period, physical and human geography, and the science behind how our ancestors might have moved and raised the stones. Free teacher resources available.

fishbourne roman palace

© David Spender https://www.flickr.com/photos/dspender/

Fishbourne Roman Palace, Chichester

The largest roman home in Britain where students can experience the luxury that would once have surrounded the original Roman owner. The Palace contains the largest collection of in situ mosaics dating back to the first century as well as recreated Roman gardens – the earliest found anywhere in the UK. Each visit includes a learning workshop with Fishbourne’s award-winning educational team which brings to life the story of the site and of Roman Britain giving students the chance to handle objects which are thousands of years old.

bucklers hard

© Mike McBey https://www.flickr.com/photos/158652122@N02/

Buckler’s Hard, New Forest

Once a thriving shipbuilding settlement which provided ships for Nelson’s victory at Trafalgar, the historic village of Buckler’s Hard now hosts a maritime museum, shipwright’s workshop, historic riverside walk and a period cottage decked out to show how families lived in the 18th century. The award-winning educational team offer a variety of educational programmes covering History (Nelson, Trafalgar, 18th century village life), Geography (development of an industrial settlement in the 1700s) and Science (ship construction) as well as programmes for children with special educational needs.

frogmore paper mill

© Paul Woolley

Frogmore Paper Mill, Hemel Hempstead

See Britain’s industrial heritage in action at the Frogmore Paper Mill. The first paper machine was installed here in 1803 and the story of paper is a fascinating; history of invention, science, engineering and creativity. The enthusiastic education team offer hand-on school workshops including papermaking, letterpress, and braille as well as tours of the working mill which still produces paper using a heritage machine from 1902. Make a day of it and include a skippered boat trip along the Grand Union Canal. Free teacher packs also included.

portsmouth historic dockyard

350 years of naval treasures at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard

School groups can spend a fascinating day visiting the Royal Navy museums in and around Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. Learning highlights include HMS Victory where students experience life on board the world’s most famous warship, HMS Warrior, the steam-powered pride of Queen Victoria’s fleet and the chance to explore the decks and narrow corridors of the only remaining WW2 era submarine. We will organise an interactive workshop with the museum’s enthusiastic learning team using artefacts, archives and historic buildings to provide a unique learning experience.

south downs flowers

© Trevor Harris

Learn to protect our planet - South Downs Sustainability Centre, Hampshire

Based in the heart of the South Downs National Park, the learning and study centre is considered a beacon for sustainability education. The centre offers both day trips and residentials where school groups can conduct a range of geography and science field studies on topics including rivers, renewable energy and water treatment, food, farming and permaculture, sustainability and biomimicry in building design and woodland management.

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Isle of Wight Geography Field Trip

Visit one of the islands major natural attractions - Alum Bay and Needles Park and study the beautiful and varied coastline looking at geology, processes of erosion, coastline management techniques as well as vegetation succession in the salt marsh. We can also organise to visit a specially-selected beach for a guided fossil hunt.

Science Centre and Planetarium Winchester v2

© Peter Facey / Intec Science Centre and Planetarium, Winchester

Winchester Science Centre & Planetarium, Hampshire

Winchester Science Centre & Planetariums is guaranteed to spark your student’s enthusiasm for science and maths with live astronomer-led shows featuring the stars and planets in the largest standalone planetarium in the UK. The centre’s education team are highly skilled science communicators who lead interactive challenges and school workshops on Rockets, Sounds, Matter, Space and Life Science for students in KS1 – KS3. Sleepover experiences are also available for school groups.

paultons park

© Paultons Park Home of Peppa Pig World, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Paulton’s Park, Hampshire

A favourite with schools groups with more than 70 theme park rides and attractions, such as thrilling rollercoasters The Flight of the Pterousaur and the Cobra, the Raging River Log Flume and, new for 2021, a brand new world called Tornado Springs. The education team also has a choice of curriculum bases workshops including Professor Blast's Learning Lab, the UK's first dedicated theme park interactive education facility, designed especially for schools.

Ancient Technology Centre Dorset

© Clive Perrin / Viking Longhouse, Ancient Technology Centre, Cranborne, Dorset

Ancient Technology Centre, Dorset

Students step back in time to experience the realities of life of their predecessors from the Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Roman, Anglo Saxon and Viking eras. This outdoor education centre provides curriculum-based historical experiences where students learn ancient skills from blacksmithing, rope-making and fire-making in an authentic setting of reconstructed ancient structures including a Viking longhouse, Roman forge, Saxon workshop and Iron Age earthouse. Day trips, field trips and residentials available for school and college groups.

battle of hastings

© Patrick Roper and licensed for reuse under Creative Commons Licence

1066 & The Battle of Hastings

Take your students on an immersive trip to Battle Abbey to learn about one of the most famous battles in English history which changed the course of England forever. Your students will explore the events leading up to the famous battle for the English throne in 1066 between William of Normandy and King Harold. The highlight of the visit is an immersive expert-led session where students can re-enact the battle with replica weapons on the battlefield – a truly memorable experience!

Included

All our UK school day trip packages include:

  • A detailed itinerary with pre-booked excursions
  • Door to door transport on a Voyager-owned Pegasus coach (Pegasus coach subject to availability)
  • Free teacher place for every 8 students on the trip
  • Dedicated person to support you before, during and after your trip
  • 24-hour emergency back-up – we won’t leave you stranded
  • No quibble cancellation policy – full refund if we have to cancel your trip
  • The security of an ABTA-backed financial guarantee
  • Comprehensive travel insurance
  • Assistance with inspection visits

Voyager School Travel owns a specialist coach company called Pegasus Coaches, and wherever possible our school groups are transported by Pegasus coach, driven by our own professional driver, so you can be sure of a safe and reliable service.

Benefits for schools

The benefits of using Voyager to organise your day trip

One stop shop – from transport to excursions we take care of every detail. We make it easier to organise a day trip with just one point of contact, a single invoice and help with risk assessments, leaving you more time to deal with students and parents.

Get the most from a short trip – as educational travel specialists we have the expertise to recommend an inspirational day trip which is packed full of learning. You’ll be surprised by what can be achieved in just one day. 

Travel safely – we are one of the only school travel companies with our own specialist school coach company which means you benefit from preferential rates, door to door service and drivers who are experienced in looking after school groups (indeed other school travel companies use our coaches too!).

We’ve got your back – book your trip as a package so if you encounter a problem you can rely on our experienced team to sort it out. And with our own coach fleet, we can guarantee that we’ll never leave you stranded.

Peace of mind if plans change – if we have to cancel your trip because of COVID or any other reason, your group is eligible for a full no-quibble refund.

Financial protection - by booking your day trip as a package with us, your trip is completely protected by the ABTA financial guarantee.

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