Winter Term Travel is Planned! (By Carlon Haas, Director of International Programs)

Travel is Back!
We are happy to announce that we are resuming our global travel program for the January 2022 Winter Term! It’s been a long year, and as much as it was disappointing to cancel travel for all of 2021, it was necessary. However, we believe we are at a point now where traveling may resume. We have planned some amazing trips - some new, some old - and are offering the following international trips.

Spain Exchange 
Cost: $2,999
Number: 12 Students
Duration: 2 Weeks
 
This will be our sixth exchange with our sister school, Highlands El Encinar. In Madrid, students will have the opportunity to experience school life in Madrid by attending classes and making new friends. Students will have a chance to improve their Spanish (or learn Spanish) and make lifelong friends. In Madrid, students will be staying with an exchange student’s family. Students who participate in this exchange will have the opportunity to host a Spanish student from Highlands in the spring of 2022. Outside of school, students will go on excursions, including the Royal Palace, Prado Museum, Plaza Mayor, and more! Students will also have the opportunity to see southern Spain with a trip to *Andalucia and the city of Cordoba (*Subject to change.)
 
Holocaust Remembrance Tour to Germany and Poland
Cost: $4,860
Number: 14 Students
Duration: 12 days 

The purpose of this educational excursion is to expose students to a variety of interesting, educational, and historical experiences that will last a lifetime. Stepping outside of the traditional classroom, students will be exposed to European culture surrounding WWII, ranging from visiting memorials to concentration camps to museums. Throughout this trip, students will gain a better understanding of the world at large while gaining an appreciation of the gravity of this tremendously difficult time in our world’s history.
 
Costa Rica Cultural + Service Trip (New for 2022!) 
Cost: $3,225
Number: 16 Students
Duration: 9 days 
 
Heredia is a refreshingly pleasant and relaxed Costa Rican city filled with enjoyable parks, lively plazas, and surprising history. Heredia is a great location for the student looking for a truly unique Costa Rica experience. Students stay in Heredia but will be volunteering in the village of La Carpio. The service project is determined before departure. Depending on the needs of the community, students will participate in a variety of volunteer activities. Trip participants will have the opportunity to both do service and have an authentic cultural experience. 
 
Quito and the Galapagos (New for 2022!) 
Cost: $4,899 
Number: 16 Students
Duration: 9 days 
 
Ecuador is a democratic republic in South America that straddles the equator. It is a presidential republic and became independent in 1830. Quito is the capital city, which was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO for having the best-preserved and least altered historic center in Latin America. Ecuador is home to a great variety of species, and students will explore their habitats in the Galapagos. 
 
VIRTUAL TRAVEL FAIR  
During the Travel Fair, you will learn more about the trips and the general approach we take to travel while mitigating risk and providing a meaningful and impactful experience for all travelers.
 
Date: April 27, 2021
Time: 7 PM-8 PM
Place: Zoom (Join from the comfort of your home.)
Who is invited: Parents/guardians and students are invited, but student participation is not required. 


TRAVEL APPLICATION   
You may apply for any of the trips here. Trips are open to all students, including rising freshmen. I will be reaching out to applicants during the next two weeks to select participants. We want everyone to have the opportunity to travel, but please note there are sometimes more applicants than slots; so, we request first, second and third choices. 

THE FINE PRINT
Travel prospects for 2022 come with some caveats.  
 
Possible Travel Restrictions in 2022:
We will continuously monitor the situation in the countries we travel to and adhere to any restrictions they may place upon travelers to their destinations. Currently, American citizens may not travel to some countries whereas some require specific testing for COVID-19 before traveling. Some countries may require proof of vaccination for travel. At this point, we just don’t know. It might get tricky if a country requires vaccination before traveling because currently, vaccination is only for 16 and up. We just don’t know what it will look like, so we encourage everyone who wants to travel to apply. If any issue arises, we will let you know. 
 
Costs and Itineraries are Subject to Change:
The costs presented are an estimate as of right now. Costs could go up and may go up because we will add travel insurance to our trips that will allow our families to get back most if not all their money if a trip needs to be canceled. This is important for this year because in previous years insurance did not cover pandemics. We will be covered no matter what. 
 
So consider the costs an estimate at this time. If the costs become prohibitive later, you won’t be obligated to travel. However, I am comfortable with these current estimates and think that if costs go up, they will go up by hundreds of dollars and not thousands of dollars. 
 
Also, we feel that the itineraries are fairly well set at this time, but if conditions change, we may have to change them. This is the case for any year, but it is even more pronounced now. 
 
For those who applied for travel in 2021:
To those who applied for travel for the Germany/Poland trip and the Spain exchange and were accepted for those trips, you will not need to apply again. Just send me an email and let me know that you would still like to do the trip and I will add you. 
 
Not quite ready for international travel?
For those who would like to travel but are not quite ready to travel abroad, we are planning to add some domestic options to our Winter Term program, but we will present them at a later time. 
 
Those are the caveats. If you have questions about our approach to Winter Term 2022 travel or about the trips themselves, please do not hesitate to contact me. 
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