Frequently Asked Questions



Schools visiting New Zealand


Do you have a question you would like to ask?  
Please contact us.
Why should I choose New Zealand for my school trip?  Though you might initially consider places closer to home, New Zealand is an ideal destination for a number of reasons. 

It has the most amazing and diverse range of environments: from sub-tropical rain forests to alpine beech forest, from lowland lakes to spectacular mountain ranges, from long sandy surf beaches to glaciers and volcanoes, and all within the same country. Whatever your requirements for a geography or science trip, New Zealand can provide you with the location. 

New Zealand is also a highly developed First World country with a First World economy and a First World infrastructure. It’s also a very safe country with no dangerous animals and has been consistently rated as one of easiest countries in the entire World to do business in and with (New Zealand Facts). 
Is New Zealand an expensive place to bring students to?  Though because of distances, New Zealand may at first glance appear to be an expensive destination for a school coming from Europe, the States or Asia, once you are here, costs are very competitive. Using very up-market hostel accommodation your trip will cost less than you think. To find out more about what we can offer and what the costs will be, either Contact us or request an indicative quote. 
Who will look after the group while we are in New Zealand?   You will be met at the airport and accompanied throughout your tour by one of Learning Journeys teacher-facilitators, His or her job is to ensure you and your students have an unforgettable learning experience and heaps of fun while quietly managing the tour logistics so your itinerary runs smoothly and to schedule. See what other school groups have to say about their experience. 
How can I reassure parents their children will be safe?  Learning Journeys is Qualmark accredited meaning our safety processes have been closely checked. In addition, New Zealand has a first world infrastructure and the one of the safest natural environments i the world with no dangerous animals, including insects and snakes. Find out more about our health and safety. 
What if halfway through the planning and booking process we are unable to proceed for any reason?  You're under no obligation to Learning Journeys until you've made your first deposit, which we don't ask for until you're absolutely clear on what you want to do, have all the necessary approvals from your end and enough students have committed themselves financially.
I have always organised and run my own school trips, what are the advantages of using Learning Journeys to do it for me? There are three main advantages:

1)Saving you time(and so stress);teachers are very busy people and give their time to their students generously. Organising a field trip, especially a new one from scratch, is a very time consuming task. You need to check out the venue, consider risk management, complete RAMS forms, create work-sheets and organise transport. If the trip is a multi-day one, then you will also have to take into account meals and accommodation plus ensure that staffing ratios are correct. This is on top of your usual teaching, marking and admin load.We do all that for you, the only things we don’t do is collect the money from your students and mark the assessments.

2)Provide you with exciting new venues.You may have been running the same trip to the same place year after year and really feel like a change, or curriculum changes mean that it is desirable to study an area you are unfamiliar with. Learning Journeys has a number of tried and tested field trips that are so easy for you to use. Also, if you have a trip in mind, but don’t see it on our website, thenContactusand we will tailor one especially for you.

3)All our trips are professionally organisedand facilitated by experienced trained subject teachers, so you can relax and enjoy the trip with your students.
Does it cost more for Learning Journeys to organise and run my school's Science and Geography trips? Yes it does cost a little more per student, but not much and you need to factor in the time you have saved by using Learning Journeys. There will also be some savings: Depending on the size of your group, Learning Journeys will provide one or more teachers who will either be facilitators or simply there to supervise and make sure that staff/student ratios are maintained in the interest of safety. You will save the cost of relief for staff who would otherwise have come from your school,