There is no single price for a school trip, because a school trip is not a single product. The cost per student is set by six things: where you go, how many nights you stay, how many travelers you bring, what time of year you travel, how you get there, and what you choose to include. Change any one of them and the number moves.
That is the honest answer, and it is worth understanding before you ask anyone for a figure. A group of 45 students going to Washington, D.C. for three days by motorcoach and a group of 18 going to Costa Rica for a week by air are not comparable trips, and a single “average price” would mislead you about both.
Below is what actually moves the number, so that when you receive a quote you can read it properly and adjust it.
What determines the cost of a school trip?
1. Destination
Distance and local costs do most of the work here. A regional Boston field trip that your group reaches by motorcoach sits at one end of the range. An international program like Costa Rica or Japan, where airfare and longer stays are unavoidable, sits at the other. Hotel and meal costs also vary considerably between cities.
2. Trip length
Each additional night adds accommodation, meals, and usually another day of activities. Our published domestic programs run from two days and one night up to seven days and six nights, and the difference between the shortest and longest version of the same destination is substantial. If budget is the constraint, shortening the trip by a night is usually the single most effective lever.
3. Group size
Larger groups spread fixed costs — the motorcoach, the tour manager, guide fees — across more travelers, which lowers the per-student price. Most vendors require a minimum of 10 travelers to qualify as a group, so that is the practical floor we plan around. Note that adult chaperones are usually accommodated in single rooms while students are in quads, so the adult-to-student ratio affects the total as well.
4. Time of year
Hotel and airfare pricing moves with demand. Peak school-travel windows in spring cost more than shoulder periods, and the same itinerary in a quieter month can price differently. If your dates are flexible, say so early — it is one of the few variables that costs nothing to adjust.
5. How you travel
Motorcoach, rail, or air changes the structure of the trip as well as the price. Air travel introduces baggage rules, earlier arrival requirements, and for international destinations, passports for every traveler. Some destinations are only sensible by air; others are genuinely better by coach because the group stays together.
6. What you include
This is where you have the most control. Attractions, guided tours, sit-down meals versus meal allowances, overnight hotel security, and evening activities are all choices. Your Travel Consultant can quote the same itinerary at different inclusion levels so you can see the trade-offs rather than guess at them.
What is included in a Landmark quote?
A Landmark trip is quoted as a package rather than a base price with extras bolted on. The quote mirrors the itinerary it is built from, so it shows exactly what your group is getting:
- The private group tour — no other group is merged with yours
- Your custom itinerary
- Transportation
- Hotels
- Attractions
- Meals
- A professional tour manager assigned exclusively to your group
- All tips and gratuities
Gratuities being included matters more than it sounds. On trips where they are not, families are asked for cash at multiple points during the week, which is both awkward and unpredictable. Ours are built into the trip cost, and anything beyond that is at a traveler's own discretion.
Is there a cost to get a quote?
No. You tell us about your group — destination, dates, and a passenger breakdown of students, teachers and chaperones — and a Travel Consultant builds a custom itinerary and quotes it. The entire planning process is free until you agree to proceed with a trip. If you have never organized a trip before, your Consultant can suggest what a sensible itinerary looks like rather than expecting you to arrive with one.
How families pay
Travelers pay through the Landmark portal, where each traveler has their own login and payments run through Stripe. Organizers can also choose to pay by school check. Because travelers register and pay individually, the organizing teacher is not left collecting money from families.
Bringing the number down
If a quote comes back above what your families can carry, these are the levers that move it most, roughly in order:
- Shorten the trip by a night. Usually the largest single reduction.
- Move the dates. Shoulder periods price differently for the same itinerary.
- Grow the group. Fixed costs spread further.
- Adjust inclusions. Meal allowances instead of sit-down meals, or fewer paid attractions.
- Change transportation. Where the destination allows it.
Tell your Travel Consultant the number you need to hit. It is far more efficient to build toward a budget than to quote a trip and negotiate backward from it.
Request a free, no-obligation quote and we will build an itinerary around your group, your dates, and your budget.
