In our four decades of serving educators and exploring the world with student performers, we’ve dreamed up over 7,000 itineraries! From New York to Nashville, Tokyo to Toronto and everywhere in between, we take performance groups to destinations big and small – and we pride ourselves on planning every detail in customized, uniquely awesome itineraries that make the most of each experience.
But don’t take our word for it! We caught up with three educators with deep experience in student travel, to get their thoughts on the elements that result in the perfect itinerary. You’ll hear from:
- Kimberly Meader, Choir Educator at Preble High School (Green Bay, WI)
- Brad Harris, Instrumental Music Director at Woodbridge High School (Irvine, CA)
- Dan Terrell, Co-Director of Bands at Lin-Mar High School (Marion, IA)
Here’s what they shared with us.
Relationship guides the process
Our itineraries are the fruit of real relationships. We get to know the directors we serve because we want to learn everything we can about their programs, their students and the travel dreams that brought them to us in the first place. Everything about the trip flows from that.
Dan: The good relationships we have with our BRT reps allow for trust and honesty. I trust them to design student-centered itineraries and put the best interests of the group first.
I also feel very comfortable going back and forth with them based on my desires as the group leader until we get the itinerary just right. I can be open and honest with them, and they in turn with me, so we can work together to design the best itinerary for each trip.
Brad: Our relationship is extremely important as it leads to open discussion and better planning. It also gives us the ability to revise and adjust.
Kimberly: Our relationship means that my BRT rep just “gets” me, and I benefit from that by receiving an itinerary that needs minimal tweaks. I also know that our working relationship allows me to ask questions and make revisions and suggestions without feeling any pressure or judgment from her.
This creates a trip that I can put my full weight behind because I was so actively involved in its creation. I happily speak about the development process when we launch our trips to parents so that they know the level of investment I have in this experience, the support and professionalism of BRT and the quality of tours they offer.
Big-picture goals inspire activities
Every group we work with is unique, with different goals and dreams for their students and programs. These goals are the “why” behind the trip and make each travel experience even more meaningful and memorable.
Kimberly: When I reached out to my travel consultant this year, I was feeling confused about the direction of travel I wanted the program to take. She helped me step back and see the bigger picture for trips over the next 15 years.
Preble’s music program hasn’t ever traveled internationally and one of my travel goals is to create the opportunity for that to happen before I retire. Sarah McVeigh (BRT Travel Consultant) and I brainstormed a series of trips we can take to lead up to making this a reality, in hopes of setting the program up for years and years of travel experiences and performance opportunities in the future.
Dan: Our goal in traveling with our music program is to offer unique and meaningful experiences and for our students to gain and improve certain life skills through their participation. We aim to teach students how to be responsible for themselves, how to manage their time, and how to be respectful and courteous to others.
All these skills are put to use on group trips, and students return with amazing memories and an enhanced proficiency with these skills. Unique performance opportunities are also memories that stick with them throughout their entire lives.
Balance is everything
When you’re traveling with students, only a Goldilocks itinerary will do: not too much, not too little, but the perfect balance of activities, performances, downtime and selfie spots.
Dan: When working with BRT reps to build an itinerary, I look for an appropriate balance of activities (sightseeing tours, performances, cultural experiences) and “free time.” Too many things packed into a day may lead to a certain level of stress. Too few may mean we’re missing out on some cool opportunities. Balancing these two elements is important. Comfortable accommodations and quality meals are also important.
Brad: I look for a balance of education and excitement, but most importantly no downtime. We like to run our students ragged, ha! This helps to keep them in their rooms and sleeping rather than staying up all night.
Kimberly: Balance is tricky – it’s almost like finding the perfect parking spot, or the right birthday card. When it is “right” – it just fits.
The first thing I look at is the travel in Day 1. I want that day to set the kids up to be constantly active and not have down time where they realize they are tired. I like them to be back into the hotel a little later at night and straight into bed where they are just so glad to have a cozy bed that they just can’t help but snuggle into it after a busy day.
After that, I feel great about trips with at least two performance opportunities. I also appreciate experiences that will challenge and broaden my students’ horizons. Sometimes those are paid admissions and sometimes those are opportunities for students to explore their own path in a tourist area or farmers’ market. A great trip has a nice mix of those opportunities.
Surprise hits and important details
The big attractions are always crowd-pleasers, but those lesser-known surprise opportunities often make the best memories. And while the big picture is undeniably vital, the perfect itinerary lives and breathes in the smallest details.
Kimberly: We were blessed on our Nashville trip to have an outstanding BRT tour director (Kelly). To be honest, I kind of dread having an outside person join our group because I’ve worked with other tour companies and had experiences where I was more prepared than the guide joining us. To say I was pleasantly surprised by Kelly would be a gross understatement. I realize now that I shouldn’t be surprised – why wouldn’t BRT have incredible tour guides as well?
Dan: I absolutely love the “Soundtrack Sessions” workshop at Disney. I’ve been involved in the workshop many times, but I always love to see the students light up as they go through the experience. I think this is a must-do for music ensembles when traveling to Disney.
I also think BRT always does a great job of finding accommodations that are quality, comfortable, and fit our group well. This is something I’ve been super-happy with over the years with all the tours I’ve done.
Thank you so much to Kimberly, Brad and Dan for sharing their thoughts and experiences with us. And we hope that you, dear reader, have found some inspiration in their words. To learn more about our trip planning process or to start dreaming up your own student performance experience, reach out to our team today!
