School Trips to France (g)rumbling back to life…
October 24, 2021
Have you booked a school trip to France for 2022?
We are now taking bookings for school trips to France in 2022. This is very encouraging but lots of uncertainty still remains around school residential visits. The traditional “off season” is nearly upon us which disguises the impact of a restricted winter. The potential of looming lockdowns will hang over into the 2022 season. Switzerland announced just a few days ago that it will no longer accept an NHS Covid pass because we are not a European State. Will this set a precedent for EU states or remain an anomaly? We have the highest infection levels after the United States and there’s no sign we’re doing anything major to alter this. While this allows centres like ours to market ourselves and trade, it provides little guarantees for our ability to actually operate.
But there is some Good News for School Trips...
In France direct legislation targeting activity centres benefits school trips. The French government sends legislative updates to activity centres used for school trips every quarter. They are based on common sense. Numbers are not restricted, but there are requirements for social distancing in various communal areas. These include bedrooms and dining rooms. This allowed us to operate brilliantly over the summer for our colonie de vacances (English Language Summer Camps). French schools are already booking for our classes de découverte. These are English language-based school trips with English lessons, without ever leaving our activity centre in the Northern Loire Valley.
School Trips depend upon confidence...
Insurers must address cover for schools and providers of school trips. However, most reputable activity centres have adapted their Terms and Conditions to reflect this. Confidence in booking depends on confidence around protecting your money after all.
What are you waiting for...?
As such, we are ready to welcome you on your next school trip to France! School residentials are our bread and butter! In our next post we’ll highlight key things to bear in mind so you can book a school trip to France with confidence.