I teach Medical Office Administration to high school juniors and seniors in Versailles, Indiana. I am racking my brain trying to think of possible field trips for this group in our area.
I was looking at taking them to a Health Careers Fair, but this year it is offered in the evening hours. While I could make this an extra credit assignment for them, I still need to come up with some kind of activity that would be beneficial for all of them to participate in during the school day outside of the campus setting.
We had no surprises on the trip, the flights were good, and the hotels were great except in Paris, one of the rooms got broken into. The Tour Director was very professional and paid close attention to all of my students. I would highly recommend CHA.
Sue Morgan, Dayville High
n 8/14/08, Joan Applebaum wrote: > On 8/10/08, maestra 646 wrote: >> Did anyone use CHA tours this summer to go on a student >> trip? If so, how was your experience? Were the prices as >> quoted? Any surprises? >> I have used EF and NETC and am looking for a new company to >> plan a trip to Spain during Spring break for my high school >> kids. I would appreciate any suggestions. >> Also, if anyone did travel to Spain this summer, how did the >> value of the Euro affect the kids? Were they able to get a >> decent meal without spending a fortune? With most tours >> dinner and breakfast are included so it would just be lunch >> and snacks. > > You can try Prometour, they actually have an office in Spain.
ACIS seems to be a preferred company and seems to do a decent job. What you must watch out for is if something happens during the trip. I am a teacher that sent my daughter to Spain with them this past year. She lost her passport and the costs associated with replacing it were all born by my husband and me. The insurance we purchased didn't kick in...See MoreACIS seems to be a preferred company and seems to do a decent job. What you must watch out for is if something happens during the trip. I am a teacher that sent my daughter to Spain with them this past year. She lost her passport and the costs associated with replacing it were all born by my husband and me. The insurance we purchased didn't kick in till we complained to "high heaven" and then we only got back a small amount of money. There appears to be two insurance brochures and it is amazing how we only received one of them. But when you go to make a complaint, they refer to this second brochure and it does not have the same wording as the other brochure. Therefore they do not have to pay you any extra money. I tried to complain directly to the company's president but his secretary shielded him from my complaint. I could never recommend this company to anyone ever. It cost me over $1500 to deal with the lost passport and they refunded me $150.00. They even tried to stick me with the cost of the plane ticket for a chaperone who stayed with my daughter when she couldn't get on the plane! They eventually refunded that when they realized it wasn't legal.
On 8/23/08, De...See MoreSurely no insurance provider would compensate for a lost passport that was due to the fault of the individual. Would they be expected to reimburse you for a flight you missed because you were late too? I hardly think that this is the fault of the company in question...unless there are details I don't know about?
Joe
On 8/23/08, Denise wrote: > ACIS seems to be a preferred company and seems to do a > decent job. What you must watch out for is if something > happens during the trip. I am a teacher that sent my > daughter to Spain with them this past year. She lost her > passport and the costs associated with replacing it were > all born by my husband and me. The insurance we purchased > didn't kick in till we complained to "high heaven" and > then we only got back a small amount of money. There > appears to be two insurance brochures and it is amazing > how we only received one of them. But when you go to make > a complaint, they refer to this second brochure and it > does not have the same wording as the other brochure. > Therefore they do not have to pay you any extra money. I > tried to complain directly to the company's president but > his secretary shielded him from my complaint. I could > never recommend this company to anyone ever. It cost me > over $1500 to deal with the lost passport and they > refunded me $150.00. They even tried to stick me with the > cost of the plane ticket for a chaperone who stayed with > my daughter when she couldn't get on the plane! They > eventually refunded that when they realized it wasn't > legal.
Perhaps you don't understand the concept of insurance. You can purchase all the insurance you want, but if you lose a passport due to your own negligence, then you're out of luck? Do you think Insurance would reimburse you if you said you "lost" thousands of dollars. If that's the case, then please let me know which Insurance Company you use because I need to give them a call. If insurers covered all people who were negligent, and careless...then they' be broke. I feel sorry for your daughter...but seriously, she is the one at fault here, not anyone else.
Joe
On 9/03/08, Denise wrote: > Perhaps the complaint was not understood. I paid insurance to cover > the cost of my issues that may come up. However, when we went to > collect on the insurance, we were told that our expenses were not > covered. > > > First, the company could not even tell us how to get a new passport. > I had to use my contacts and the internet to figure out how to get > her a new passport. Second, leaders insurance is covered via ACIS > and they still wanted me to cover the cost of the hotel and flight > for the leader...when I pointed out that she had insurance, then > they said "Oh yes you are right, we will refund the cost of her trip > to you" > > Second, a complaint to the company was handled in a rude manner. > The customer service representative hung up on me because I asked if > I could talk to a supervisor to find out why I was paying for the > teacher when she had insurance. Also, when I called back to say > that hanging up on someone who was not being rude and was not > faulting her, just looking for a solution, she lied about it...even > though I have phone logs showing that I had to place a second > call...there was a claim that I did not call originally. > > Then I was told that if I was not satisfied with the company that > the president wanted to hear any comments. So, I sent a letter and > also left a message for him. His secretary called and as stated in > the earlier post, shielded him by not having him contact me. > > The ironic part is that while I was at the passport office, a > teacher from another state was in line with me. He said that this > same situation happened to him with ACIS while in France and that > they were not helpful at all. He said that I would never be able to > collect on the insurance for the trip because it is set up to > benefit them and for them to make money. So while they may be > "helpful" if something happens...depending on what you think > customer service is all about, they will not let you collect on your > insurance. > > I never said that the situation was the fault of ACIS...what I > pointed out was that if you have an issue, they do not pay out with > the insurance company. > > On 8/25/08, Maria D wrote: >> I've traveled with numerous companies and ACIS is a lot better >> than most. They are a little more expensive, but the service is >> great. ACIS is honest and up front about their charges and they >> really do look out for you. One year I tried switching over to >> NETC and paid more money, but had the worst trip of my life. >> >> MAria >> >> On 8/24/08, genef wrote: >>> I am wondering just what you think would have been fair. >>> Your child loses her passport and will miss the return flight. >>> The chaperones have two choices. Leave the kid alone in a >>> strange city to handle things by herself, or have an adult >>> stay behind and miss a flight to help the child. Option 1 is >>> obviously incorrect, so who will bear the extra costs of >>> option 2? It is always easy to say someone else should pay, >>> but how is this situation the fault of ACIS? >>> >>> We actually had this situation come up last year on our trip >>> the night before our return. Through fast action and hard >>> work we replaced the passport in time for the flight, but a >>> call had been made home to let the parents know that >>> additional expenses might be incurred and the responsibility >>> of the parents. We had also discussed this possibility and >>> responsibility in our pre-trip planning meetings. There is >>> no way I would personally incur $1500 of extra costs for your >>> child and not expect reimbursement. >>> >>> On 8/23/08, Denise wrote: >>>> ACIS seems to be a preferred company and seems to do a >>>> decent job. What you must watch out for is if something >>>> happens during the trip. I am a teacher that sent my >>>> daughter to Spain with them this past year. She lost her >>>> passport and the costs associated with replacing it were >>>> all born by my husband and me. The insurance we purchased >>>> didn't kick in till we complained to "high heaven" and >>>> then we only got back a small amount of money. There >>>> appears to be two insurance brochures and it is amazing >>>> how we only received one of them. But when you go to make >>>> a complaint, they refer to this second brochure and it >>>> does not have the same wording as the other brochure. >>>> Therefore they do not have to pay you any extra money. I >>>> tried to complain directly to the company's president but >>>> his secretary shielded him from my complaint. I could >>>> never recommend this company to anyone ever. It cost me >>>> over $1500 to deal with the lost passport and they >>>> refunded me $150.00. They even tried to stick me with the >>>> cost of the plane ticket for a chaperone who stayed with >>>> my daughter when she couldn't get on the plane! They >>>> eventually refunded that when they realized it wasn't >>>> legal.
I am looking for ideas for a social studies display for next Spring --of -09. I have been assigned "Australia" for my second grade class. Anyone have any websites/info/ideas? Thanks! :)
We have a new, big beautiful house in Richmond, B.C Canada. Private room with private bathroom, queen size bed, desk and big closet , etc..Laundry, wireless internet and 3 meals are included. Very close to school, malls, gym and bus stop. Only $780/month!
On 9/16/08, John ...See MoreI have traveled with Georgia Hardy Tours several times. What sets them apart is their customer service and attention to detail. There is always someone in their office to speak to if I have any concerns.
I would strongly recommend staying away from big organizations like EF and travel with Georgia Hardy instead
On 9/16/08, John wrote: > I went on a March Break trip with Georgia Hardy Tours to > Italy and it was amazing. Everything was well organized, > their company rep who traveled with us from North America > was exceptional. Hotels were 4 star or better and they > guaranteed the departure dates in advance. They are also > not afraid to let you know what the hotels they are using > are. This is a small family run organization and they take > care of their clients. Anyone who wants to travel with > students to Europe should not hesitate to contact them > directly.
On 1...See MoreWe have started using Global Travel Alliance and they have been very affordable and very good. They have customized each of the trips we have put together. In the past we had problems with other companies because they would not allow any changes to their "set trips" and would not let us pick the things we wanted to do.
Brian
On 10/03/08, Ephrem Klein wrote: > I'm a Tucson, AZ, middle school science teacher interested > in planning a 4 day trip out of the state. In the past > I've run 4 day trips from Florida to Washington, DC and to > Chicago. Each of those were extemely science and local > culture based trips and were in the range of $900-950. Now > that I've relocated to AZ, I'm not sure where the most > affordable and educational destination may be. Is there a > tour company that can still arrange trips of this nature > for under $1000 to maybe San Diego or L.A. or D.C. or > anywhere beyond AZ? If so, I'd be very interested in > speaking with them.
There's lots of considerations that go into the price of a trip.
Many companies give you a 'cheap' trip but you end up with a lot of out-of-pocket expenses like lunches, tips, airport bag handling fees, and even some admissions. Plus the cheaper companies never guarantee the cost upfront and can raise it significantly at the last minute.
Some of the companies that seem more expensive are all inclusive and so the students only need to bring money for their souvenirs. The all-inclusive companies tend to have more interesting added-value curriculum-based educational components, better service, and safety protocols, as opposed to being geared to barebones sightseeing.
If you let me know what your objectives are for your travel program, I'll be happy to direct you to an appropriate travel provider or tour operator.