I don't understand the low ratings. My son's 8th grade class went on DC trip on April 24-28. I didn't go with the group but I was in the area to hover over like a helicopter dad that I am. I thought the trip was well planned out. They visited Jamestown on their second day and stayed there to visit the area. Once done, they drove back to DC and on the 3rd day, they visited the local museums were i was able to see my son and his classmates. My son had such a good time that when I met up with him he could not stop talking about what his friends were doing at the bus or in their room. He would talk about the food and the different places they saw. When we got home, he continued to talk about the trip and would talk what time it was in DC. I know that he had a great time because it was his best time with his 8th grade class and knowing that he will not be around them next year when they start high school. Thank you World Strides read more

I traveled to England & France in June 2024 through WorldStrides with several teachers, parents, & high school students. As far as pros go, saw some BEAUTIFUL sites & hit just about all the big touristy spots that everyone wants to see, which was a big plus. Our guide, Michael, was super friendly & knowledgeable. He was a bit long-winded at times but very nice & I appreciated him guiding the trip. I absolutely loved the local cockney guide in London as well, he knew a ton & was very entertaining. As far as cons go, there's a few. First, the food was probably THE WORST PART. As a paying customer, choices would be nice. One pre-chosen meal each night that isn't what I would consider appetizing was terrible. I would've MUCH preferred having some type of food choices. There were several in the group that either paid for different dinner options (when accessible) because the pre-chosen meal wasn't their kind of pick or they simply just didn't eat. I watched plate after plate of untouched food being taken away each night at dinner. Literally, every single night. There was a group of students that didn't eat dinner any night we were there because the preplanned food choices weren't appealing--everyone has their own preferences. Personally, I had the dinner once out of the week & a half. That was it. I realize preplanning with a group can be difficult but I don't think offering options is unreasonable. Second, the days were intense for some members of our group & downtime was almost non-existent. We flew out of the U.S. late-afternoon on a Wednesday, arrived in England very early Thursday morning & hit the ground running; not getting to the hotel until late Thursday night. It didn't start the trip off on the best note. There were also multiple days where some in our group were just dragging. A little autonomy or options would be nice with regards to scheduling too. Maybe someone (teachers possibly) stay back at the hotel with the group of those that don't want to start going each day at 7AM and they can hang back and choose to miss the morning stuff but meet up with the rest of the group in the afternoon; or those that don't want to be on the go until 11 or 12 at night could go back to the hotel earlier with someone (again, possibly teachers) while those that want to see the remaining sites/spots for the day can. Adding some autonomy to the trip would have made it a significantly better experience. For the most part, we stuck to the schedule with a few adjustments (some stuff was seen a day earlier than planned, one spot was added per teacher request I believe, & another area was taken off completely because of time constraints). Third, the actual travel booking wasn't managed the best. Out of our group of 48 people, we all left Ohio around the same time but 36 flew out from Toronto via Air Canada & 12 flew out from Charlotte, North Carolina via American Airlines. Seating was all over the place (student's seats being in between strangers that weren't a part of our group, that kind of thing), which isn't the biggest deal but it clearly wasn't managed/scheduled as well as it should have been. The biggest travel complaint though was that coming back from France, the 12 American Airlines members of our group had a flight that was 4-5 hours earlier than the group of 36 Air Canada people (the group that also had a 3 hour layover scheduled in Toronto) but WorldStrides arranged for everyone to go to the airport together around 6AM. So, being one of the "lucky" 36, I got to the airport about 5 hours before I needed to. Then, the flight was delayed an hour. Then, the flight from Toronto back to Ohio was delayed by many hours because of a mechanical issue. The group of 12 that flew back via American Airlines with a layover in Charlotte, NC got back to Ohio around 5:30PM the day we were scheduled to get back whereas the group of 36 that flew via Air Canada got back around 12:30AM the following day. Flight delays happen & that's no fault of WorldStrides. That being said, our group realistically should've all been booked together. Knowing that we weren't, transportation accommodations should've been made for the 12 to be taken to the airport at a time that made sense for their flight & the 36 taken at a later time that made sense for their flight. My last bit of what I'd want others to know is to think of this as a school trip, not a vacation. Definitely keep that mindset because unlike a vacation, you don't have much say so regarding anything. It's a neat school trip. After going on the trip & knowing how everything played out, if I were able to rewind time I would make the trip on my own rather than through WorldStrides. I've already booked through WorldStrides for a trip next year to Greece before I went on this one & now I know what to expect. I won't be booking the trip scheduled for the following year. read more

I had a scheduled 10:30am interview with Jessica McEvoy and she responded that she called me, but I "didn't pick up". I checked if my "block unknown calls" was on, but it was off. I also double checked if I got any missed calls, or if I wrote the wrong number in our previous email, but that clearly didn't happen. I wrote her my number again and that I was still interested; however, no response whatsoever. I waited over 30 minutes even though our call was supposed to be from 10:30-11:00am today (July 8, 2024). It was very unprofessional because I wrote back twice and she still ignored my email. I responded to her email very shortly after she said I supposedly "didn't pick up her phone call." If she moved on to someone else or she already found someone for the position, that was the least she could've emailed to me. I would not recommend her as a recruiter at all! read more

My son had a trip through Worldstrides to DC. While it's nice to have a full itinerary to keep children busy, this was overkill, but even worse, completely inefficient. It's like a child planned the itinerary or someone who has never traveled before and didn't know basic traffic patterns in the city. You wouldn't expect a professional to be such a poor planner. One example: one morning we took a bus and drove 1.5 hours to the zoo, only to have 30 minutes at the zoo! Imagine wrangling 2 dozen 8th graders and getting anything done in a zoo in 30 minutes! Then then bus drove into into the city to Ford Theatre, then all the way out to the Air & Space museum. The food was also really disgusting. While I wouldn't expect fine dining on a school trip, some of the meals weren't even edible--like eating at a diner worse than Denny's. To top it off, they don't even have the decency to plan ahead and check you in so you can at least get some decent seats. On the flight home, literally the entire group ended up with a middle seat for the 6 hour flight back to San Diego. I could plan a better itinerary in my sleep. Avoid this company, use another, or plan it yourself. read more

Traveled from Washington State with 45 newly-promoted 9th graders on an East Coase History Tour of Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC. It was during the heat dome event, so incredibly hot and humid, but that was the biggest "bummer" of the trip. Everything was well organized and went far smoother than I could have imagined. The kids had a great time and the chaperones enjoyed having everything managed and planned so well we only needed to do head counts occasionally and bed checks in the morning and night. I especially appreciated the company providing security personnel in the hotel at night to eliminate midnight excursions by the kiddos. It allowed the adults to get some sleep. The schedule was incredibly packed, and we were all exhausted by the end, but I would absolutely do it again and recommend to anyone considering. read more

Our group consisted not of high school or middle school students but college grad and undergrad students plus faculty members as well as community members in a performing arts tour in Europe. Promotional material and contractual material promised lodgings within the city but the actual hotels were well outside by an hour train ride or 40 minute tour bus ride despite our complaints about this to the management well before the trip departure. This made the group entirely dependent on WS for planning. It also was entirely crooked. The old bait and switch. Not what I paid for. Information about the actual lodging for the second leg of the trip was not made available until after we got there. There was nothing special about any of the lodging and in more than one instance hotel management was openly hostile. Breakfasts were, at best, unremarkable while an entirely different offering was being provided in the dining area next door. Breakfast buffet routinely was taken down well before the posted hour. Gym and pool amenities were locked to our group even though we paid for their use. Various abilities and disabilities were present among the travellers but very little consideration was given to those requirements even though WS was alerted well before the events. People fell ill. Covid was a risk but WS had no plan or interest in those needs. The performing venues and several attractions were without the most basic accessible features - elevators, banisters, etc. Without warning, one would arrive at an attraction after walking some distance from the disembarkment across cobbles only to be expected to climb many flights of stone steps. It may be true that not all of Europe is accessible but warning can be given about what is and is not and accomodations or alternative excursions arranged. There is no excuse. Mature members including professionals of many disciplines were among the group with experience in project management and planning. The deficits of this enterprise was alarmingly evident to all. We all made our own flight arrangements so there was quite a bit less for them to arrange. Still they could not accomplish the most basic communication. The web page is impossible. I called to get an update on lodging information one week before the start and was told the information would be posted in within 48 hours. It never appeared. I cannot recommend WorldStrides. They are a fly-by-night operation with only the most opportunistic intent. There is not a chance in the world that I would send my children, even young adults, on one of their tours. DOT take notice! Those of you who have shared their stories here - file a complaint with the Department at https://secure.dot.gov/. Contact the Attorney General in your state. Call Secretary Pete! read more

our hotel was in brooklyn, ny when we had to be in manhattan every single day, making 2 hours of commute every day, which was unhelpful with the jam packed schedule. our tour guide was incompetent and didn't know her way around new york city, she took many wrong by turns and also would extend walk times by a lot because she got lost. this was especially unhelpful in the pouring rain. read more

It was an ok trip. Expensive for what it was. My daughter was stuck on a bus with none of her friends.

I left my job teaching this last winter break to take care of my elderly mother. Before that I had spent a year and a half promoting a trip to Alaska. I put my heart and soul into that trip. I did all the advertising, all the parent meetings, to all the emails, I even created a club where we researched and shared the history of Alaska's statehood and other interesting facts about Alaska. Just on Monday, my principal spoke to world strides without contacting me and told them that because I had left my position at the school, he did not want me to go on the trip anymore. I had already signed up nine people and had a balance of only $400. Today I got an saying that my new balance is $4615. I did a year and a half work for the company by signing up 9 people and now I get nothing. I spoke to the director Tom Love and he did not even offer me a discount! I cannot believe that I did so much for this company and got absolutely nothing in return. read more

these guys are idiots. they lied to me about our refund and strung me along until i called back after 3 weeks just to find out that nothing was sent!!!!! choose someone else for your class trips. these people are incompetent!!! read more

Had I seen the reviews here I would have thought twice about tagging along to the spring break trip. The most fun was in NYC with the Hamilton dance workshop and the food in NYC is way better than in DC. Now the dilema is will I do it again with my other two younger kids? I don't know. I would love for them to have the experience as well, but the itinerary is so hard to keep up with. Kids were exhausted, not interested in learning anymore and short tempered. The tour guides in NYC were great; the one in DC was too demanding and liked to yelled at the kids. read more

My daughter had a good time on her trip but was disappointed with the food options. She said there was very little nutritional value and very limited options. Would be nice if that's something the complete could work on improving. read more

My son and his 8th-grade class just got back from a week in D.C. WorldStrides really took care of everything and the guide stepped in whenever service was slow at the restaurants. Communication throughout the process from payments to packing was clear and timed well. Thanks for taking great care of everyone. read more

They find a way to suck the fun out of the trips by over-scheduling the itinerary and leaving no time for kids to throw their bags in hotel upon arrival or refill water bottles in 90degree heat. Brutal. read more

My daughter went on her 8th grade class trip and the chaperones lost her 5 minutes after getting off the plane in DC. Its nothing like getting a call from your child who is miles away that she can't find anyone she came with and she is hysterical. Worst fear coming to light. read more

Thankful for our two leaders who partnered well with the World Strides rep to ensure we had a great and fun experience. Yes, like many we had a red eye and immediately went onto the tours. The schedules were packed but the leaders worked well with the tour guide, Linda, to adjust the schedule and skip a museum to enjoy the other one longer or to rest and have the kids play at parks like the ones at Washington monument and in front of the White House. This didn't happen all the time but the two times it did, we enjoyed it. Plus, our teacher gave us more time than the 2 hours at Mt. Vernon. We had 6 hours there and we still didn't get to see the entire grounds. Going into the tour with the expectations of the schedules, the time at the museums and yes the food, allowed us to know what we would get out of the trip. The museum tours are about an hour + for each one. It was a good way to get a glimpse of many museums and of DC. Our organizing teacher prepared the trip way in advance to allow us to get into places, like going up the Washington museum. We enjoyed the trip very much! So much, us parents got a tip collection for the tour guide and for the bus driver. Thank you World Stride for a wonderful and successful trip!! read more

As a parent sending her 8th grader on her first school trip (to NYC), I cannot say enough about our experience with WorldStrides. Everything was so organized, very comprehensive website, great customer service over the phone, and very helpful follow up and communication overall. Based on what my daughter shared, the tour guide was just THE BEST - everyone loved him and he really knew the city. There were no safety concerns which I appreciated, and I really felt the students were in great hands (including of course the school chaperones). Overall, a very well organized trip of a lifetime! Hope we will have another opportunity to take a trip with WorldStrides. Very impressed overall. read more

Based on child's feedback on recent trip to Washington D.C., he felt safe, well-supervised, and got a ton of interesting educational content. Travel, transportation, and hotel stay well coordinated. Would recommend. read more

I agree with previous reviews, stating there was "too much crammed into one day"! It was a great experience for my daughter to visit D.C. but it was overshadowed by the intense schedule. Returning @ 11p.m only to be up at 7 a.m. over and over. For college students maybe that's doable, but for 13/14 y/o kids w/out their parents for the first time, my heart broke for her. I'm not sure I would of signed her up if I had known the itinerary ahead of time. It's like they didn't want to take the time, to plan a new schedule for younger kids, so let's just give them the one we give adults. Very disappointed and could of been avoided. read more

I think this organization needs to pause and regroup. What a complete disaster from the onset of this trip. From forgetting to print out airline tickets for over 100+ travelers (only to discover that upon arrival at the airport) to barely supplying food or drinks for our students and then "the music festival," what festival? read more

There were several greats which included seeing an enormous amount of DC and NYC in a short time. However, the bus ride from DC to NYC was less than optimal with the bus driver refusing to both turn on AC or let kids open windows. My daughter reports several kids with bowel issues so the stink from bathroom was horrible plus the stink of 35 middle schoolers in 80 degree weather. My daughter also reported that the Italian restaurant in NYC made racial comments regarding their middle school group which had a high percentage of Asian Americans-- this is absolutely unacceptable and the restaurant should be taken off world strides vendor list. Overall she had a memorable time but I think some oversight needs to be had with their vendors. read more

My son and I went a few weeks ago, unfortunately, we had horrible weather, rain in DC and very cold in NY. Day started early each day, and at times, we did some waiting around. In NY, our first day, we went to times square, and had free time to shop until bus was able to come, shopping in exact same area. Food at preplanned restaurants wasn't great. Alot of walking, if you are not able to walk, this isn't trip for you. Tour guides were knowledgeable. Highlights included Broadway show, 9/11 memorial, observation deck at Rockefeller center. Overall, it was okay, but a lot of waiting around, and we were paired with another school which had its challenges. read more

My child just completed the DC trip, and while they said that they had a good time, it was hectic. The planned days are much too long, too packed full. Getting up at 530-6 in the morning and getting back to the hotel at 930-10pm is ridiculous. The kids were run ragged. Also, they need to provide healthier eating options. Things like pizza and fast food just don't cut it. read more

Lots of good stops but unorganized Very nice bus Tour guide was mediocre 4 days was not enough time so everything felt rushed and couldn't really enjoy some of the larger sites read more

Like I said before, I won't write a review unless I am strongly compelled... So I chaperoned an 8th grade trip to DC. First I would like to point out that this company charges a rate that is comparable to the nicest 5-7 day cruise you could imagine plus a $6 service/convenience fee or whatever you'd like to call it per payment. Until I payed in full. That being said you would think we would travel in style and things would be organized and in check since we started planning, ya know, August of last year! Here's how it actually went. This won't be all negative I promise... THE BUS: old model charter, so dirty I felt like I needed a shower just from sitting on the thing. Seats/floors filthy and smelled like a sewer if the bathroom was opened. Foot rests and cup holders broken and/or full of trash and wads of gum. Claimed to have WiFi and plugs for phone charging. No WiFi and oh there WERE outlets but they were single outlets every other row. This is for 50 people on a 15 hour drive from Florida... oh boy THE HOTEL: This was actually nice accommodation decent size, however, it was about an hour away from where we would be exploring. Who wants to ride on this terrible bus for another 2 hours every day after a 15 hour trip? It was actually more with our driver (I will tell you about that in a minute) but this was just wasted time that could have been used for exploring. THE FOOD: Again keep in mind we had all been sending in forms and planning this trip since the beginning of the school year... we had a few vegan students and Gluten free students that were promised choices where we dined...never happened...The places we went that didn't already have a menu for us this company allotted $10 dollars for a meal!! $10... value menu here we come!! We Each paid this company over $2000 to come on this trip and we get McD's type food. I'm NOT lovin' it! Some of the restaurants we went to were decent especially if you didn't have any dietary restrictions, but they weren't great. THE DRIVER: I'm pretty sure WorldStrides will say "oh the transportation company is separate" or something of that nature trying to displace blame, but if THEY choose and arrange the transportation then THEY are held accountable for the experience point. Blank! I've already shared about the bus, but the driver.... I have know idea how this man got his CDL. He got lost almost every day going to our destinations which cut into the activity time... He hopped probably EVERY curb in the town and even wrecked the bus while we were on it turning into union station on a cement barrier that had a drop on the other side. Not to mention it felt as though he had his feet on both the gas and the break... Kids were contacting parents back home saying they were scared on the bus with this driver. THE EXPERIENCE: I nor my daughter had ever been to DC. It was quite amazing to see what we did get to see. Honestly though, it would have been better to do this trip as a family trip or with a company that didn't make us feel like they pocketed the bulk of the money to give us bare minimum. Sheri (not sure if I spelled that right) was an awesome guide. Full of facts and could answer questions the kids had. Able to keep the group in order, together and on time. Debbie...while she is sweet...shouldn't be a tour guide. The front 3 people could hear her, it was a game of telephone after that so keeping the group together and organized was not a strong suit. I am so grateful to have experienced Washington DC for the first time. I thank the school and teachers for working so hard to try to make it happen. As a mom of 3, I do wish I didn't need a day or two to recover from the stress of this trip that I paid so much money to participate. WorldStrides needs to step it up utilizing the money they make in areas other than marketing to get a better review from their consumers. It is a great concept, if done with less greed. read more

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The schedule was too much. The kids woke up at 3:30am for a cross country flight from SF to DC and when they landed they were taken sightseeing. Then they had to wake up at 6:30am the next morning (feeling like 3:30am to them) for a full day of tours. They were too exhausted to enjoy or remember much of the trip. Most kids returned home sick. *ONLY 3 chaperones for 100 kids. World Strides should add a few chaperones considering how expensive the fee is. read more

Overall my child's high school theater trip to NYC was pleasant. The only thing that is stopping me from giving this tour 5 stars was their daytime guide. She constantly got lost in the City. The kids were late one hour to an event and had much of their free time cut short because of her inability to maneuver around the city. The guide wasn't from NYC and had trained only one time prior to her getting her own group of kids. Please make sure your guides have gone on at least three trainings before allowing them to be responsible for a group of children. read more

To say this trip was unorganized and chaotic would be an understatement. First day we got in was fine, but our guide (Howard) wanted to spend more time talking outside where no one could clearly hear him rather than tell us what he needed to on the bus. The schedule for these tours are not efficient, you spend more time driving back and forth between places that are 30+ minutes away from each other instead of doing everything that is in the same area all at once. We spent more time in the Pentagon mall and our bus than anywhere else in DC. We could have seen The White House, all the monuments, and memorials Monday evening. Instead we went back to the monument / memorial area 3-4 times after going somewhere else far away like Mt Vernon, we didn't even get to go to the Washington Monument, because Howard didn't want to walk that far. We did not have enough time at any war memorials to look for family names, we were too busy trying to hurry through to get back to the bus. Our second day we had a 4 hour delay because our bus driver didn't turn off the batteries to the bus the night before and didn't go out ahead of leave time to do any inspections or start the bus. He also didn't communicate to our Hotel coordinator that it was not starting. No one (Worldstrides employees) wanted to call for a new bus that would "take a hour to get here", so instead no one opened a help ticket, no one called to check status when they were told they would be called back in 10-15 minutes. Therefore we wasted 4 HOURS of our precious time waiting for batteries to be switched out since tow trucks and jumping the batteries isn't a thing on the east coast apparently. Instead of trying to make up for lost time Howard decided that he should spend most of his time having us sit on steps to push his political views and talk about himself rather than showing us anything we actually spent money to come see. Also he could not walk well, so he would not go into any places with us and we had to take breaks when he did walk because he couldn't get around. He just sat at the exit to places and only gave us around an hour to look in Museums which should take hours to go through. Howard also sternly was telling us not to waste our time in any gift shops because he had "the best" one to take us to, well the only reason it was the best to Mr. Howard was because he got a cut from the store for bringing us there. It was in fact the smallest one with not much in it to choose from. The breakfasts that the Courtyard served to us was not good, there was a pile of coffee grounds in the coffee. No fruit, no nutrition, just carbs and they were soggy and cold. NYC was better but our guide Derrick was late, so we had to walk around and waste over a hour waiting. For the entirety of our trip we were constantly told it would be "15 minutes" to wait for whatever it was but it would turn into a hour+. Derrick was nice enough to bring a flag for us to follow him easier, but would stop in the bright 80+ degree sun to talk for over 20 minutes and refused to ever stop in the shade to help with the heat. The Marriott Brooklynn Bridge was absolutely disgusting, there were used contact lenses in my bed frame, it was very clear that the ONLY thing done before we got into our room at 11PM was the bed was made, the sheets were not changed, room wasn't vacuumed, nothing was cleaned or wiped down. As you can imagine that is the last thing you want to see when you only have a few hours of sleep, walked over 8 miles in the heat and have to be up to leave again in 5 hours. Overall my family paid over $11,000 to Worldstrides for this trip, I would never recommend this company to anyone. I would take all my money back in a heartbeat and use it towards something that is worth that much money. Guides should learn to listen to the people who are on the tour paying their wages, and who ever is in charge of making the itineraries should be fired for how much time, fuel and money they make you waste on this "adventure". If you enjoy wasting your money, sitting on a shitty charter bus for hours on end and listening to a old man drone on about his political views and how he used to be somebody back in the day, then this tour is for you! If not, just go as a family by yourself, a lot of the places have tours you can join for cheaper. read more

The group was booked on American Airlines for the return trip. American Airlines performed terribly causing the group to miss their connecting flight. They were stuck in Chicago overnight without luggage. I received no communication from World Strides at all regarding this. No phone call, no text message or email providing information as to what was happening with my 14 year old daughter. read more

My son was going on his Sr trip and was excited until we found out he would be sleeping in the same small bed as another young man he just met or sleep on the floor. There were 6th and 7th grade kids mixed in with his group as well. These age groups have very different levels of maturity. He had to rush thru the places he wanted to see because the younger kids just didn't want to be there. I paid to much money for this to be his experience. Save your money and take your child yourself- everyone will be happier- this was my son's comment when I picked him up from the airport. read more

Our trip to Sacramento went very smoothly. They kept it moving so the 4th graders (who don't ever stop moving) didn't get bored. The educational stops were interesting. Two issues - the guy at the panning for gold stop was a little grumpy and bossy. My biggest issue, however, was that the tour guide decided to "reward" all the students by telling them because we had an extra 20 minutes we would stop in old Sacramento to visit all the candy and ice cream shops. I'm sure the kids loved it, but it seems to me she should have consulted the parents first. As it was, we went home on a plane with a bunch of kids with sugar highs. Not a great way to end the otherwise lovely day. read more

Iur flight left at 5:00am, we landed and kept going until 11:00pm. The guide would have been better for an adult group instead of 7th and 8th grade students. Every stop was rush rush rush because there were so many tour groups trying to seen the same thing a the same time. Be prepared for mall fast food with limited options for lunch and dinner. read more

I purchased the Full Refund Insurance and sent my cancellation request to WorldStrides on 3/25/20. My daughter's East Coast trip (includes NYC) is scheduled on 6/10/20 but it's only a matter of time before the trip is canceled/postponed. I received confirmation on 4/14/20 that I will receive a full refund, less the $249 Full Refund Insurance, however, not until 8/5/20 (8 weeks after original departure date). I now have to wait 4 months to receive my refund. I was even on the EZ pay plan which means WorldStrides received my payments on time every month. WorldStrides is NOT following the cancellation/refund terms from the WorldStrides site: "All refunds are issued using the original form of payment on the account in approximately two to three weeks." Unacceptable. read more

Well organized. Tour guides were knowledgeable and personable. Was not too expensive, but pretty pricey. Locations visited were great. Busses were nice. Good educational experience. read more

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If I could give them zero or negative stars, I would. Like many other recent reviewers, I am disgusted by this company's behavior during these times. This is a worldwide pandemic, and this company still refuses to give full refunds to students (students, some of whom have saved all year for this!! young middle schoolers only 13-14 years old and their families!!). You can try to call (expect to wait for a VERY long time), but you will probably just end up frustrated. After a long wait time and many transfers, they eventually agreed to return some of the funds we had paid but are keeping ~$300 'for paperwork.' They are also not processing refunds until 8 weeks after your trip would have started, so even if you are proactive and cancel way before your trip, don't expect to see a penny returned to you until weeks later. The trip did not happen for safety reasons, which was already a disappointment to families using this company, and they are still scamming students out of hard-earned funds. This company is despicable. The worst part is, they monopolize the industry and schools will likely continue to use them since they are the only option around. read more

Absoluty positivity never use this company. We are in the middle of a global pandemic. My son was schedule for his 8th grade DC trip in the last part of April 2020. In a country where the government, Auto manufacturers, cellular phone carriers, sports franchises, mortgage companies, landlords, to name few. Are making huge offers to Americas to decrease the sacrifices to American families. Worldstrides should be ashame of themselves for not offering a full refund to all families in this time of need. It shouldnt matter if you purchased the insurance or not. This is an unprecedented medical emergency that is affecting the entire world. They should do the right thing and refund all unused portions of any trip in the United States. To do less is an embarrassment, and disgraceful. They are saying that they arent responsible for a review because they havent the trip. They are postponing it. How do you postpone a 8the grade trip? Our son will be in the 9th grade next year. How can he be graded on a class that is over. Again, absolutely thoughtless. read more

My child just returned from an 8th grade Washington DC trip. On the positive side, the itinerary was good and quite full and worthwhile overall. The hotel was good quality and the general flow of the trip was decent. It was important to us that our child toured the capitol with peers as we have been there as a family but an 8th-grade trip should be special, it should be the capstone of grade school. On the negative side, the days were very full. At the hotel, the kids were not allowed out of the room with chaperones in the hall who were truly not nice or kind toward the kids. The tour of the capitol showed almost nothing and my child said they saw a couple of rooms and really didn't see much of the chambers where the lawmakers work. It would also have been nice had the group been offered an audience/meeting with an elected official or even a higher-ranking military official who could talk about their roles and answer questions. My child said the food offered was not good when it was included. Lastly, 4 kids from our group were sent home for exiting their hotel room which I do understand was a violation of the "rules". However, they were literally across the hall in another room watching SouthPark or some other silly kid show. I don't think it warranted the expense, public shame, and upset that it caused our travel group/community. I personally would never use World Strides for any travel planning as I think they are definitely working hard to turn a hefty profit as our trip was more than $2,000 for 3 nights/4 days in DC. read more

Just now got a refund. Sad it took 4 full months and a week. When I paid extra for the insurance($115). No sympathy to what is going on around the world and the wages and possessions people are losing due to covid. Lesson learned I hope others don't deal with this company in the future and read the reviews that we the people are putting out there from our experiences. Even the customer service is rude, when all we want is our money back we fronted. read more

Good access to museums and sites, but terrible customer service. My daughter has a severe food allergy that is not one of the common ones. All I wanted was contact information for the places they were going to stop for food so I could help her navigate ingredient lists by calling ahead. They told me to "google" them, but the names they provided weren't complete and I could only figure out 1/4 of the places. So its a pricey trip with meals included, but my daughter couldn't eat at 9/10 of the restaurants they went to. A couple days in she just wanted to come home so she could find food safe for her to eat. So if you have common food allergies you might be ok, but don't expect any help from Worldstrides. Also, be leary of their so called discounts. You have to hound them to get them to apply them to your account. read more

My daughter worked hard to earn the money for this trip. She was looking forward to visiting our nation's capitol; seeing the monuments and museums. She was disappointed on receiving the itinerary (shortly before the trip) and discovering that 4 precious hours were being spent at a shopping mall!! After travel, the 4-day trip is not enough to afford time at a shopping mall. For each Smithsonian there was only 1/2 hour allotted...you might as well skip the exhibits - that's just enough time to get interested! I know it's a short trip but the kids would have gotten a much better value for their time spending a day (or even half a day) at some exhibits and just missing the others. Another chunk of time was spent at a baseball game. My daughter has no interest in watching sports. Ball games and shopping malls are fun for a lot of the kids but they can do that anywhere; it would have been nice if there had been an option for kids to visit something nearby instead. $1000 is a lot for a kid to earn and Peri earned every penny. She was also disappointed that some of that money went toward vouchers to be spent for the fast food offered. Again, some kids are used to eating that, but some aren't and it isn't healthy. Peri and some of her friends ended up spending extra money to buy food that didn't make them sick! read more