Helpful Hints and Etiquette

What To Bring

First and foremost, bring shoes and clothing appropriate for the weather (see Comfort).

Second, bring a wrist watch. You’ll need it over and over again to make sure you’re on time for your various pick-ups and departures.

Remember, if you’re late for the bus, everyone else is late too.

Third, if you’re going to Canada, you’ll need your birth certificate or a passport. Your teacher knows all about this, but don’t wait until the last minute to start looking for it.

What NOT To Bring

First, there is definitely no need to bring expensive jewelry or expensive personal belongings. It’s very, very easy to misplace these things when you’re in a strange environment, and/or not following your usual routine, and in any case, there just won’t be any occasions where you’ll need this stuff.

Second, for much the same reason, we recommend that you don’t bring lots of cash (see SPENDING MONEY below).

Third, don’t bring an expensive camera, unless you’re a serious amateur photographer and you’re prepared to think about the security of your camera equipment at all times during the trip. Many students receive a single-use camera as part of their trip. If you think one might not be enough, bring another, but you shouldn’t need to bring your (or your parents’) expensive camera that could get lost or damaged.

Spending Money

Just about all you’re going to need spending money for will be a few inexpensive lunches, an occasional soft drink and souvenirs. If you have $100 you’ll have more than enough to stay alive. (If you have more than $100, count your blessings.) We would like to remind you, in either case, that you should think about budgeting your money so you have some left on your last day.

Usually, we will take you to lunch some place with a wide selection of inexpensive souvenirs on the last afternoon of your trip, so don’t buy something you’re not crazy about on the first day because you think you won’t get another chance.

Please also remember that your bus will probably stop for lunch at a roadside McDonald’s or Burger King on the way home, so plan to keep $5 to $10 in reserve for that. Don’t spend your last dollar on souvenirs before you leave.

Street Vendors

You’re likely to see lots of street vendors in high tourist traffic areas throughout the world. Mostly, they’ll be selling “Rolex” watches, “Oakley” sunglasses, and various other name-brand products and T-shirts.

We probably don’t have to tell you that a $20 Rolex would be counterfeit, or stolen. So, here’s a rule of thumb: Buy it if it looks good on you, but don’t think of it as an investment. If it’s still ticking on your first day back at school, you got a very good deal.

Bus Etiquette

You will be sharing the bus with as many as 40 or 50 of your classmates, as well as teachers and chaperones from your school (and a bus driver). The following rules of bus etiquette have been compiled to make the trip more enjoyable for everyone on the bus.

1. Please clean up after yourself. Many bus drivers will place a trash bag near the handrail at the front of the bus and/or on the lavatory door at the rear. Please place any wrappers in these trash bags as you finish with them. This is a matter of common courtesy to your classmates, and some bus drivers, having taken the trouble to make trash bags available, get understandably grouchy when they have to pick up litter that’s been left in the seats or thrown on the floor.
2. Do not bring soft drinks in cans onto the bus. Any bus driver will tell you that soft drink cans tend to tip over and spill, making the floors sticky and uncomfortable for all passengers. This residue sticks to your shoes when you walk in it, then gets deposited on the seats when you and your classmates sit on your feet. Eventually, it ends up on your clothes. If a driver sees you boarding the bus with a soft drink can, without a screw-top, he or she will ask you to leave it behind.
3. Do not throw refuse, such as wrappers or paper cups, into the toilets. These items will plug the toilets, and then they’re unusable until the driver can get the bus to a specialized bus service area. Sometimes this is not possible until the bus
4. Don’t leave wallets or pocketbooks on the bus, even when you know the bus will be locked. We do encourage you to leave your backpacks and other large items on the bus, especially when visiting places where security screening is in effect, but small items are easy to lose when 40 or 50 students are continuously coming and going.
5. Don’t bring “Boom Boxes”. This is also a matter of courtesy to your fellow passengers and the bus driver. Your teachers and/or the bus driver will enforce this rule.

Hotel Etiquette

One thing you’ll appreciate about your trip is that we use only moderately expensive to deluxe hotels. However, many of these kinds of hotels now have 100% satisfaction guarantees under which any hotel guest who is dissatisfied in any way with any aspect of his or her stay is offered a full refund.

One very common reason for refund requests is noise made by members of tour groups; thus, as a condition of granting space to student groups, tour operators must agree in advance to reimburse the hotels for any refunds made as a result of noisy or otherwise inappropriate behavior by students.

Therefore, the following rules of hotel etiquette will be strictly enforced:

• No running;
• No shouting;
• No slamming doors; and
• No pajamas or bare feet in the public areas
(that is, hallways, lobby or restaurants).

The rule of thumb is as follows: don’t make any noise outside the hotel’s guest rooms that can be heard inside the guest rooms, and don’t make any noise inside your room that can be heard outside (in the hallways or adjacent rooms).

We really do want you to have fun on your trip, but we think that you can have plenty of fun without disturbing other hotel guests. However, if we are required to make a refund as a result of your disruptive behavior, your parents will be called, and you will be responsible for reimbursing us.

Finally, destructive behavior, or use of drugs or alcohol are absolutely prohibited. If you damage someone’s property, or use drugs or alcohol, we will call your parents immediately, and send you home at your parents’ expense. Don’t even think about it!

Room And Roommate Etiquette

You will be sharing a room with two or three of your classmates. Most hotels will give you four fresh towels. Don’t check in, take a shower and use three of them. If your three roommates have to share the last fresh towel, they’ll be furious.

Speaking of showers, plan your shower schedule before you go to bed at night so you and your roommates aren’t all expecting to take one at the same time (such as just before breakfast). Sometimes it helps if some of the roommates take their showers before they go to bed at night.

Keep your stuff together. Put all of your belongings in your suitcase and close (and lock) it before you leave the hotel every morning. Your roommates will appreciate it.