Including non-EU students in school tour

I am frequently asked about the problem of taking students in a school group who are passport holders of non-EU countries.

Well, one possibility is to tell the parents to obtain the necessary visas (which will cost).

The other, provided you are visiting only member-states of the EU (or Iceland, Norway or Switzerland), which covers the vast majority of school trips, is to get a List of Travellers form from the British Council.

It's free of charge and simple to to do - just take a look at http://www.britishcouncil.org/home-information-centre-list-of-travellers-scheme.htm

Iceland even more accessible!

I wrote here before about the increasing number of flights to Iceland.

I have just heard that WOW Air is increasing its service between Gatwick and Reykjavik to twice daily Sunday to Friday plus once daily on Saturdays, a total of 13 per week.

Considering next year's study visit?

When you are comparing quotes for your study trip from different tour operators, do be sure that you are comparing like with like.

What standard of accommodation is included, and what meals?  There is a big difference in quality of experience if you stay in a hotel, rather than a hostel, and students (not to mention staff) enjoy the experience of eating in different restaurants when compared with eating in the same place every day.

Are all visits, guides, entrance fees included in the basic price, or are they "optional" extras?  There's not much point in a study trip without relevant visits.

Ask yourself, and ask the tour operators, about their knowledge of the destination and how the visits you will be making tie in with your studies.  Can they tell you in detail, for example, how to use public transport to get from one visit to another, or do they intend to just give you a map of the general area?