Why booking a package school trip with Blue Stamp Travel gives you total peace of mind
Flight cancellations late at night? Lost passports? Air Traffic Control strikes? These issues strike fear into the hearts of teachers planning trips. But with a specialist team in your corner managing school trips, there is no need to panic. We are experts in supporting school groups in these situations – it’s what we do!
On the other hand, with so many tools available to organise a trip yourself, what’s the benefit of working with a tour operator? Don’t they just add cost, complexity and confusion?
In this blog post, we weigh up the pros and cons of the DIY approach against working with a professional tour operator.
Finance – competence vs. “convenience”
Many online tools give the impression that arranging a school trip yourself can save you money. But the cheaper deals they advertise often conceal hidden extras such as group booking fees and luggage costs. In addition to this, DIY booking means you have to work with many different suppliers and providers, from the airline and hotel to coach companies, restaurants and activity providers. If your airline suddenly changes the flights, will you be able to get a refund from every other provider involved in your trip?
At Blue Stamp Travel, the safety of your students and security of your school’s finances come first. All our school trips are designed as protected packages, giving you:
- Full financial security from the moment you book
- Clear, reliable refund protection
- Peace of mind for teachers, parents, and students
Why purchasing a ‘package’ matters
As we explained above, booking every element of your trip individually may shave a few pounds off here and there, but each additional element creates another potential point of failure. For busy teachers, the last thing you want is an email from your coach company telling you their driver will not be able to meet you at the airport.
When you book a package trip with an ABTA member like Blue Stamp Travel, your group benefits from enhanced legal protection. This means we must:
- Deliver the trip you booked, or put it right if something changes
- Provide a suitable alternative itinerary or a full refund if we cannot deliver the educational experience promised
- Ensure deposits are safe and secure, even when trips are booked a year or more in advance
What makes a school trip a “package”?
To qualify for full protection, your trip must include at least two elements arranged together. At Blue Stamp Travel, this is typically:
- Transport and accommodation
- Accommodation and guided excursions
- Meals and activities/excursions
The more you entrust to us, the more comprehensive your protection becomes.
How this works in real life
If flight cancellations or major delays disrupt the your trip, we are obliged to offer an alternative trip or refund the entire cost of your package, not just the cancelled component. By contrast, DIY bookings made separately with multiple suppliers, often mean that if one element fails, the others are not refundable. That can leave a school significantly out of pocket.
DIY vs. booking with Blue Stamp Travel
While planning a school trip independently may seem straightforward at first, it can quickly become a demanding, time-consuming task. Working with a dedicated provider like Blue Stamp Travel makes a world of difference:
- Teachers already have a busy workload. At Blue Stamp one of our core values is reducing workload for teacher and schools travelling on school trips. See our Guide to Babel for just one of our key tools that we use to assist with this objective!)
- A dedicated, named travel consultant backed by a full team that supports you every step of the way, from planning to travel to safe return.
- One trusted provider, one point of contact, one invoice.
- Itineraries, transport, and accommodation vetted for suitability and safety
We’ll always bring your group home
Blue Stamp Travel has a strong network of partners and a dedicated support team ready to act when plans change. When disruptions strike, we’re equipped to make fast, practical decisions to keep your group on track. Whether it is travel interruptions or a sudden change of plans beyond your control, we are here to help.
