Modern foreign language school trips and tours
There is no better way to reinforce your classroom-based learning than by being surrounded by native speakers, exposed to their culture, and immersed in the daily rhythms of life. That’s why our foreign language school trips and tours are guaranteed to embed learning when they return to the classroom too. When pupils visit the destination of their target language a whole new learning experience opens up for them.
There are lots of fantastic benefits of booking a school trip for foreign languages with NST, which include:
- Encouraging your pupils to speak in a different language
- Exposing your pupils to different cultures
- You’ll receive free language learning resources for your pupils
- You’ll receive a free inspection visit to your chosen destination
Modern foreign language enrichment experiences
Challenge, inspire and engage your pupils in the practical application of the target language. Our foreign language school trips have been designed to develop conversational and comprehension skills through a range of exciting target language-focused excursions and activities with an emphasis on enrichment experiences.
Throughout your enrichment experience, your pupils will have daily interactions with native speakers to help build their confidence when communicating in their target language in a variety of social situations. No matter what your group’s age or ability, your experience can be pitched at exactly the right level to enrich their learning and enable your pupils to engage with the target foreign language.
Foreign language enrichment experiences are available for:
- French language groups staying at NST’s Château d’Ebblinghem in Northern France
- Spanish language groups staying in Cantabria
We offer a range of classroom posters to inspire your foreign language students all year round.
Learn more about our language school trip destinations
Spanish Language School Trips
Spanish Language School Trips
Bring Spanish language learning to life, destinations include; Barcelona, Northern & Southern Catalonia, Cantabria, Madrid and Andalucia.
German Language School Trips
German Language School Trips
From big city experiences to traditional towns, destinations include; Berlin, Rhine & Moselle, the Black Forest, Munich and many more.
Italian Language School Trips
Italian Language School Trips
A range of experiences to help your pupils fully understand Italian culture and add real value to their classroom-based learning. Destinations include Rome and Florence.
Mandarin Language School Trips
Mandarin Language School Trips
With an array of cultural and educational visits, a school trip to China is one that your pupils will remember for many years to come.
French Language School Trips
French Language School Trips
A vast array of destinations to enhance French language learning including Paris, Opal Coast, Normandy, Loire Valley, Brittany and many more.
Our most popular language school trip destinations...
Our most popular language school trip destinations...
Opal Coast, Northern France
An ideal destination for groups seeking to enhance French language skills through a range of educational and cultural visits. Our French Language Enrichment Experience can be included in your school trip too, enhancing classroom-based learning by giving pupils the opportunity to practise conversational French, listening skills and increase confidence in their ability.
Barcelona
Experience all things Catalonian on a Spanish language trip to the comopolitan city of Barcelona! The city is typified by the architecture of Gaudí, especially the iconic Sagrada Familia, his unfinished masterpiece. From the passion of Nou Camp Stadium to the bustle of the Ramblas, Barcelona is a modern, vibrant city that shouts its Catalan heritage from every corner and will fire the imaginations of your pupils.
Rhine & Moselle
A study tour to this diverse region offers a wide range of educational visits that give an insight into German life and a welcoming environment to practise language skills. NST offers an excellent choice of accommodation serving the needs of school groups and our tailor-made itineraries will add real value to your German language school trip.
Take a look at one of our language experiences...
Planning your first school trip?
If you're planning your first school trip, our essential guide will take you through each step of the process.
- Choosing your destination
- Gaining approval from your Local Authority and/or your Head
- Promoting your tour in school
- Confirming your booking
- Tailor-make your tour
- Completing your risk assessments (including a sample risk assessment)
- Quick reference timeline
- Pre-tour checklist
Additional support, resources & information:
Tour planning service
Tour planning service
With NST, you’ll get your own dedicated, knowledgeable Tour Co-ordinator who’ll work with you from start to finish. You’ll benefit from their unrivalled destination knowledge, and their experience gained from working with many other groups too. They’ll tailor-make your itinerary from scratch and take care of everything for you:
- Pulling together an itinerary that runs smoothly
- Planning the right balance of visits every day with realistic timings
- Pre-arranging and pre-booking your visits, entrance tickets, passes and meals
You’ll receive your final itinerary a full 4-weeks before you travel too.
FREE school trip promotion pack
FREE school trip promotion pack
We’ll support you and provide everything you need to advertise your school trip around school and to parents. Our free school trip promotion pack consists of:
- Parents’ letter & permission slip template for you to complete
- A3 posters to promote your trip around school
- PowerPoint presentation templates which you can tailor to your own needs
- Parents’ leaflets covering how NST manage safety, financial protection and details of our travel insurance
- Online parents’ video which showcases the benefits of taking a school trip
For selected destinations, we’ll provide a trip launch web page using video footage and imagery. This web page is provided by a weblink and can be shared with pupils and parents in many ways.
Risk assessment support including preview visits
Risk assessment support including preview visits
Risk assessment plays a vitally important part in the planning and organisation on any school tour.
Our risk assessment guide aims to help you understand more about your obligations and how you can more effectively manage group safety on your next educational visit and provide you with risk assessments for your trip.
Planning first school trip
Planning first school trip
Organising your first school trip can appear to be a daunting process. If you're planning your first school trip, our guide will help to take you through each step of the planning process, answering frequently asked questions and providing tips and support along the way. Our helpful guide covers the following:
- Choosing your destination
- Gaining approval from your Local Authority and/or your Head
- Promoting your tour in school
- Confirming your booking
- Tailor-make your tour
- Completing your risk assessments (including a sample risk assessment)
- Quick reference timeline
- Pre-tour checklist
Get live updates on your group's tour location
Get live updates on your group's tour location
Locate My Trip uses GPS technology and is the easy, convenient way for your school to follow your location whilst on tour. Specifically designed to provide reassurance to both parents and teachers, NST will know where your group are 24/7. If your schedule needs to change, we’ll put plans in place to keep your tour on track.
With Locate My Trip your group can also share photos and videos with the school and parents, via a secure link, to keep them updated on your experience whilst you’re away.
Watch our short Locate My Trip video here.
Your online school trip organiser - My Tour Manager
Your online school trip organiser - My Tour Manager
Save time and stay on track with your school trip admin with our online orgnaniser - designed to help busy teachers like you.
With My Tour Manager, you'll be able to download FREE resources and access trip paperwork online and in one place. Your personalised checklist details what you need to do and by when, plus you'll receive fortnightly reminders too.
What's more, you can take all your trip documents on the go whilst on your tour with our app, My Tour Manager-On-the-Go.
Find out more and watch out short My Tour Manager video here
Free classroom resources
Free classroom resources
We've created a range of free resources and educational posters to brighten up your classroom!
Take a look at our downloadable posters here
FREE language learning resources
FREE language learning resources
Free learning resources Our free Go Explore educational resources provide a great way for your pupils to build their confidence to explore another culture, language and location. They support the Key Stage 3 curriculum, Scottish S1-S3 curriculum, plus Key Stage 4 and standard and intermediate grade qualifications.
FREE Go Explore journal
A great tool for pupils to record their experience outside the classroom, your Go Explore journal contains space to add information, pre-visit notes, a daily record of what they have seen and learnt, as well as space for relevant vocabulary. The journal is useful for assisting in controlled assessment preparation and is a valuable memento of time spent abroad.
Workbooks & Town Trails
These workbooks cover common situations that pupils will find themselves in whilst on tour. The series of questions help to build on basic language skills and are ideal for Key Stage 3 pupils. Our town trails provide a great half day activity too.
Paris & Barcelona educational resources
Our Paris & Barcelona resources have been specifically developed for language groups visiting the cities to enhance their learning experience. Created with the help of our teacher consultant, our resources include useful vocabulary, questions, tasks and activities directly related to the visits on your tour. Suitable for Key Stage 3 up to GCSE level.
Speak to one of our school travel experts
Our team of school travel experts have unrivalled destination knowledge and experience so they can help to bring your tour ideas to life and might even suggest options you hadn’t already thought of too! So get in touch today and we'll help to create a bespoke, budget-friendly tour itinerary to meet your specific learning requirements.
Why choose NST...
Here's why thousands of teachers choose NST each year...
- Unrivalled knowledge
Your dedicated language Tour Co-ordinator will use their unrivalled local knowledge and expertise to create a tailor-made, curriculum-linked itinerary to meet your group’s exact needs.
- Making it easier for you
With our online school trip organiser, travel app, free classroom posters and trip launch resources to support your in-school promotion.
- Free group leader inspection visits
We offer a free inspection visit to your chosen destination to support your risk assessment planning.
- Value for money
We’re committed to bringing you the best possible value trips to help make every penny count.
- More than 50 years’ experience
With over 50 years’ experience, with NST you can rest assured that your group is in safe hands.
- Risk assessment guidance
Our risk assessment guidance will help you to manage group safety on your next educational trip.
- Peace of mind
Your group’s location can be followed with our trip tracking device - Locate My Trip - plus you’ll have 24/7 support from us whilst you’re away.
- Offsetting carbon emissions
For every trip taken, we'll plant a Maya nut tree in Peru to support reforestation, local communities & biodiversity. Plus, we'll offset an additional tonne of CO2 to guarantee carbon emission reductions.
Looking for protection on your next school trip?
Booking with a school travel company is the best way for you to protect parents’ money and give yourself peace of mind.
Don’t forget – if your school arranges transport, accommodation and other services directly, you’ll be liable under the Package Travel Regulations – meaning you’ll have all the responsibilities of a travel company, both legal and financial.
Financial protection from the moment you book
NST are fully bonded:
- ABTA
- ATOL
- IATA
Managing safety on school trips
For your protection, NST's independently audited Safety Management System covers:
- 24-hour emergency cover
- Audited accommodation & transport
- Excursions & school visit assessment
- Group leader preview visits to assist with risk assessment planning
We're LOtC Council’s Quality Badge assured
The Department for Education advises schools to always look for the LOtC Quality Badge when choosing a school travel provider.
