5 Easy Tips to Get Students to Sign Up for Trips

You’re finally planning trips again.  You’re excited to leave the 4 walls of your classroom behind and have an epic learning adventure with your students.  You know exactly where you’re going, what you’ll be doing, and why it’s so AWESOME! You confidently post the sign-up sheet, convinced that you’ll be turning students away by the end of the day.

And then… crickets.  Three days later, you are still waiting for that first lucky student to put pen to paper. What’s going on?!?

Don’t stress – here are 5 easy tips to get students to sign up for trips!

Expert Teacher

As a teacher, you have unique skills and talents. Teachers affect change and influence lives in a way that most people cannot. You’re able to juggle students, parents, administration, and the community while handling mountains of paperwork and instruction.

You recognize teachable moments when they pop up (thus the reason for your trip!) and neatly incorporate them into your instruction. That said, selling student trips to parents and students is probably not in your wheelhouse.

Expert Salesperson?

Being an expert teacher does not necessarily qualify you as an expert in student travel promotion. Regardless of the inherent awesomeness of your trip, it can be a challenge to convince students and parents to sign up.

You have to generate a little buzz, create a great marketing campaign, address parent concerns and manage the financial aspects of the experience.

5 Tips to Get Students to Sign Up for Trips

1. Go Social

Anyone who works (or knows) teenagers knows that they exist in a world ruled by social media.  Create a fun Instagram post or find a great photo of the destination and ask for caption ideas.

Record a TikTok about the trip (complete with your own dance!).  Helpful hint – get students who have traveled in the past to do this!  They’ll bring street cred and energy to your trip.

2. Plan a Parent Meeting

Build excitement while putting parents’ minds at ease by planning a parent meeting.  Talk about the destination and why it’s great for student groups.  Share your planned itinerary and inclusions.

Discuss your safety plan and any health and safety protocols required by the district, transportation company, or destination.  Talk about travel protection and why it’s important.

Finally, outline payment dates and payment options clearly so everyone knows how to manage expectations.

3. Apply Your Apps

Use your classroom apps like Remind and Google Classroom to post about the upcoming trip. Schedule reminders and sign-up deadlines so everyone knows what’s coming.

If you want to really drum up some enthusiasm, create a Kahoot with fun facts about your destination!

4. Fundraise

Give students time to come up with the cash for their trip.  Plan fundraisers to offset trip costs.

If you work with a trip-planning partner like Kaleidoscope Adventures, there’s a crowdfunding option.  Grandparents, aunts, uncles, friends, and anyone else can contribute directly to a specific student’s trip!

Read More About KA Crowdfunding

5. Open it up

If you’re having a hard time filling your trip, consider looking beyond your group for other students who want to go.

If the history club is going to D.C., fill the first spots with club members and then open it up to the general population.  Or perhaps the band is going to NYC – maybe a few orchestra members will hop on the trip.

5 Tips to Get Students to Sign Up for Trips

While you may not be a marketing expert, these 5 easy tips will make you look like one.  You’ve invested time and energy into making this an incredible learning opportunity for students – make sure they take advantage of it!

Teacher Tips for Promoting Trips

Let a Student Trip Planner Be Your Expert GPS

Updated June 2023