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At the start of a new year we look ahead to major events: the US presidential election, the Paris Olympics, our final exams, and we often have a new found motivation or feel the pressure from social media to achieve (and post about it). But what if you focused not on what medal you want to win or grade you’re after, but instead on the process of growth you experience that allows you to get there?
Student Horizons, a leading provider of educational travel experiences for schools is delighted to announce an exclusive six-year partnership with the Australian Boarding Schools Association (ABSA). This collaboration marks a significant milestone in the shared history between Student Horizons and ABSA, dating back to their inaugural journey together in 2015.
November 12, 2023

Turning Pages into Life Lessons

Community
The post-covid era has changed the world faster than anything else in centuries. Education has been facing such a challenging time that would leave Plato’s hair standing on end. The gap between the skills kids learn at school and the skills they actually need in this evolving world, is massive. Experiential learning is a dynamic pathway to equip your child with invaluable skills for the ever-evolving future.
Overseas school trips offer students unique opportunities for cultural immersion, learning, and personal growth. While digital devices can enhance these experiences, there are compelling reasons to consider implementing a digital detox during these excursions. Let's delve into the well-being benefits of a digital detox for students on their overseas school trips.
November 5, 2023

Why is Canberra a Rite of Passage?

Destination
Student Horizons Canberra school trips offer an exceptional opportunity for students to explore Australia's rich history, culture, and educational institutions. With close to 180,000 students traveling to Canberra every year, this capital city has become a rite of passage for Australian students.
October 29, 2023

Unforgettable Fiji

Destination
Overseas school trips are a rite of passage for students in Australia and New Zealand, offering them unique opportunities for learning and personal growth. While such excursions are often designed to be fun and educational, taking students on an overseas school trip to a destination like Fiji can be especially transformative. In this blog post, we'll explore the numerous benefits of sending school students on an adventure to the beautiful islands of Fiji.
Student Horizons Partners with the Youth Coaches Rugby Forum in January 2024. In its third year running, the ‘Youth Coaches Rugby Forum’ is set to make waves in Australian rugby development, and Student Horizons is proud to announce its partnership with this transformative event. Scheduled for January 2024 at Nudgee College, this forum is gaining international recognition as a vital platform for coach development in Australian rugby.
September 29, 2023

New Caledonia French Language Trips

Destination
Embarking on a French language trip to New Caledonia is a transformative experience that goes far beyond just mastering a foreign language. For school students from Australia and New Zealand, this adventure opens doors to a world of opportunities and enriching experiences.
September 8, 2022

Lifelong Learning

Community
A year and half after finishing his senior executive MBA, Jamie Wansey, owner of Student Horizons, was finally able to celebrate his achievement in person in Melbourne...
Thank you to our amazing clients, hardworking and passionate Student Horizons teams and dedicated partners and suppliers around the globe. We would not have reached this significant milestone without you all...
Jamie Wansey, Managing Director of Student Horizons is delighted to have been re-elected to the position of Vice Chair of SETO (Student Educational Travel Organisation). The Student Educational Travel Organisation (SETO), has been established to lead the educational travel sector in areas of governance, advocacy, and education with a vision to accelerate the adoption of education outside of the classroom, ensuring every student can access and benefit from experiential learning opportunities...
This week the first cohort of the Student Horizons Experiential Careers Program completed their 3 month program experience in October 2021. They received their digital micro-credential and their certificate of completion, having completed...
In September 2022 Brisbane Grammar School took their Year 6 cohort on an experience they will never forget. 110 students and 12 teachers travelled with two of our Student Horizons team who led the logistics of the trip making it run as seamlessly as possible on the ground.
Jamie Wansey (CEO of Student Horizons) joined representatives from Tourism and Events Queensland (TEQ) and the Outback Queensland Tourism Association last week on a trip through the North, Central and the Southern regions of the Outback. Jamie presented at three regional workshops in Richmond, Barcaldine and Charleville....
March 29, 2021

Exploring Our Backyard

Community
With International travel on hold right now there are of course incredible life transformational opportunities for school students to embark on right here in our back yard in Australia. This is not at all surprising when we reflect on the tens of thousands of young people that descend on Australia every year to explore, study, learn, perform, compete and have fun in our vast, diverse land, across a wide range of educational, cultural, sporting and music horizons.
March 25, 2021

A Singapore – Australia Bubble

Destination
As the roll out of Covid vaccine programmes start to accelerate around the world, Governments are now starting to seriously look at selectively opening international borders and identifying which countries can be welcomed first. One thing is certain around international borders opening up – it will be a staged process. Talk of a trans-Tasman bubble has been banded about for many months and whilst Australia has been very willing, the conservative approach from the NZ Government has hampered progress in recent months. However, if you read the...
March 22, 2021

RWC 2023 – Dreaming can start now

Destination
Preparations for the 2023 Rugby World Cup are advancing at pace with the draw now out and the first batch of match tickets now available to the general public. At Student Horizons, we have a long history of taking school rugby groups to the Rugby World Cup from NZ and Australia and in 2023 France is shaping up to provide another truly amazing experience for life. Pre-Covid France was one of our most popular long haul touring destinations with the opportunity to combine the rich history of France with some amazing sporting opportunities. The proximity to the UK also makes it easier to combine a trip to France with the chance to visit England, Scotland and Ireland.
March 11, 2021

Queensland’s Education Experience Programs

Community Destination
One of the few upsides of Covid, has been the renaissance of domestic tourism and the growing interest from Australian schools to explore the wonders of our own backyard. The lack of international tourists continues to hurt local operators but we are hopeful that the speed of the vaccine rollout globally will accelerate the recovery of our local tourism operators.
January 28, 2021

Flying in a Post-COVID World

Community
Over the last 9 months, since COVID-19 transformed the world we live in, there has been widespread discussion within the airline industry around the future of air travel and what airline travel would look like in a post-COVID era. For the airline industry 2020 was a horrific year with mass redundancies, huge financial losses and a huge reduction in flight capacity. In this part of the world the struggles of Qantas and Air New Zealand are well documented but as begin 2021, we are starting to see the first glimmer of recovery in the airline industry as airlines start to reopen closed routes and also redefine the guidelines that will become the norm for air travel in 2021 and beyond.
October 20, 2020

B the Change

Uncategorised
B the Change: Student Horizons are proud to announce our journey towards B Corp Certification! Here at Student Horizons, having a positive impact on the world has always been central to what we do. Our vision is to enrich the lives of young people and to provide experiences to students that are equally as life-changing as they are life-shaping. This latest step is another commitment to having an even greater positive influence in our communities – both locally and in our host destinations.
October 12, 2020

Passchendaele Commemoration

Community
103 years ago, a battle raged for 103 days on the Western Front. The Third Battle of Ypres, also known as the Battle of Passchendaele, was a campaign of the First World War, fought by the Allies against the German Empire. On this day 103 years ago, New Zealand forces would suffer 2700 casualties – NZ’s blackest day...
September 2, 2020

Consumer Protection

Uncategorised
The last 6 months have been horrific for everyone involved in travel and we have witnessed first-hand the financial impact on parents, our travel partners and also on the team at Student Horizons. Every part of the travel supply chain has suffered in some way and going forward, any form of new travel booking will be viewed through the lens of “how can I better protect my money in the event of another Covid crisis?”...
September 1, 2020

The Power of Travel

Community
On my desk in my garage (our makeshift Student Horizons ‘Head Office’) sits this photograph. It puts a smile on my face. The Covid-19 crisis and the associated catastrophic impact on Student Horizons (and the rest of the travel and tourism industry) and on our people has shaken my resolve at times over the last 6 months. It has shaken my steadfastness on the odd occasion to keep going. 
August 25, 2020

Covid Safe Travel

Uncategorised
Consumer confidence around travel is slowly starting to recover for the domestic sector and it’s encouraging to see domestic operators starting to see some revenue flow through their businesses. Here at Student Horizons, our attention is now turning to what travel looks like in a post Covid environment and how we will ensure that when groups start to travel again, parents, students and schools will be reassured that experiences run by Student Horizons will be amongst the safest anywhere in the world...
Thank you for your support in working together to support the future of travel.
May 19, 2020

Student Horizons Refunds Update

Community
Thank you to all our clients for their patience. We do appreciate there is some frustration and anger at the speed of the recovery of funds and if we could speed the refund process up please be assured, we absolutely would. The dedicated funds recovery team at Student Horizons continue to work incredibly hard on recovering funds from suppliers across the globe for our April and July groups that have made the difficult decision to cancel.
I am very grateful to those schools and families who continue to believe in what we do and have opted to postpone rather than cancel their 2020 school trips. Postponement keeps the dreams alive for groups of students who were looking forward to travelling in 2020. Postponement, rather than cancellation, also provides Student Horizons with a future and is critical to Student Horizons' survival.
The COVID-19 global situation has created an unprecedented set of circumstances for everyone and as the owner of Student Horizons, I understand there is uncertainty and concern over our present and future. I must note that prior to the impact of COVID-19, Student Horizons was a strong viable business with year on year growth in New Zealand and Australia over the last 5 years.
April 1, 2020

Thank you from Student Horizons

Community Team Student Horizons
The first quarter of 2020 has certainly not been what we envisioned it to be. At the start of the year, our tour development specialists were working closely with schools and teachers to plan amazing and inspirational student tours for the bright young minds of tomorrow. Students were excited, ready to create Experiences for Life with their teachers and friends at destinations all over the world. In only a matter of a few months, the Covid-19 pandemic has had a dramatic impact on schools, communities, and countries around the world.
March 27, 2020

A message from Managing Director Jamie Wansey

Community Team Student Horizons
The COVID-19 global situation has created an unprecedented set of circumstances for the global travel industry and like all travel businesses, we are not immune to the economic impact.
March 8, 2020

Closing the Gap: Advancing Women in STEM

Community Education Student Teacher Support
It’s that International Women’s Day time again, and it’s fantastic to see a day celebrating and uplifting females being recognised with greater fanfare all over the world. However, an occasion such as this is not just to celebrate and recognise the achievements of women. It also highlights the journey towards gender equality, and how far there is still to go.
February 25, 2020

Planning a School Trip: Our Step-By-Step Guide

Teacher Support
We can probably all agree that to experience learning while out in the world has a big impact. This on-the-spot learning is one of the best ways to ensure that concepts, skills and knowledge are retained. Planning a school trip is one of the most effective ways to introduce experiential learning to your students.
January 17, 2020

Our Top Destinations for Educational Student Tours

Destination Education Music Sport
Hello to 2020! Already this year is shaping up to be the biggest for Student Horizons since our founding in 2012. Something we’re pretty excited about! We’re also very excited to once again be sending hundreds of students on life changing experiences all over the world.
December 19, 2019

Wishing You a Safe and Happy Holiday Season!

Community Team Student Horizons
Well, it’s that time of year again, when we exchange our jeans for shorts, our comfort food for a good barbecue, and ‘Santa Baby’ gets stuck in our heads from now until Christmas. It’s been another fantastic year for Student Horizons, and while everyone’s looking forward to a bit of a break, we couldn’t be happier with what we’ve achieved this year.
Our version of the 12 Days of Christmas continues, these are the final six best places to go for Christmas! What is your favourite place to go for Christmas? And what personal, family, or cultural traditions will you be upholding this year?
For those who celebrate, Christmas is one of the most special times of the year. It means time off school or work for many of us, and more time to spend with family and friends. If you’re jetsetting off to experience another nation’s Christmas traditions this year, we have a few suggestions for you!
It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Christmas is just around the corner, and a glorious summer is so close you can smell it. Best of all, exams are over and school’s done and dusted for another year! Once you’ve all finished victory dancing, however, you might find yourself asking ‘now what?’ After working hard all year, students might experience a bit of Freedom Paralysis* (*a technical term I just made up).
November 14, 2019

Where an educational tour can take you…

Destination Sport
As a sports-mad kid, going on an international tour with your team is something you dream about. But it rarely becomes a reality. Thanks to Student Horizons, I was fortunate enough to live that dream. In 2015, I went on a USA Rugby Tour with our New Plymouth Boys’ High School rugby team. It was an experience I will never forget.
November 7, 2019

The Best Destinations for STEM Educational Tours

Destination Education
Students around the world are showing more interest in how STEM can be used to improve the world around them. Touring to one of the top STEM destinations is a fantastic opportunity to see how the professionals work. Our tours will show students some of the many ways in which STEM education can be applied in real-world contexts. You will be able to experience the most exciting and cutting-edge technology and see how it can benefit society. If you want a career that helps change the world, our STEM educational tours can set you on the path.
October 30, 2019

Why You Need to Visit Ireland on Your Next School Tour

Destination Education Sport
Ireland is a beautiful country with famously friendly people, but it is so much more too. For anyone heading off on sports, history or literary school tours, Ireland truly has it all. With entertainment and intrigue for everyone, from the horror buff to the sports fan, we think it’s not to be missed!
Why should you visit Fiji, you ask? Well, I’m glad you asked. Practically on Australia’s doorstep, Fiji is a tropical paradise with so much to offer, from glorious beaches and stunning wildlife, to its rich and fascinating culture.
October 20, 2019

Top Destinations for Performing Arts Student Tours

Destination Education
When it comes to world-class performance opportunities, we believe that the US and UK provide the perfect backdrop for performing arts student tours. Young performers will jump at the chance to work with world-renowned choreographers, acting coaches, and other industry professionals. A tour to the US or UK is sure to inspire and motivate your students to reach their fullest potential.
Everybody has a different method of learning that works for them. Some people learn by studying, reading, or listening. Some learn best when they explain the topic to someone else, and others learn by doing.
Music is one of those wonderful mediums that is so adaptable and infinitely open to creative re-imagining that it is almost impossible to make all music and musicians fit into neat categories. It is therefore important to curate a tour specific to each music ensemble and their particular needs, to ensure your entire ensemble will be engaged, inspired and motivated by their experience.
September 25, 2019

Whatever Your Order, the USA will Deliver

Destination Education Music Sport
The USA is one of the largest countries in the Western hemisphere; so large that one side necessarily differs vastly to the other, in everything from culture and food to climate. There is so much variety to be found within the 50 states that you can be sure to find something that appeals to almost every taste and excite every interest.
September 11, 2019

Everybody’s Favourite Season

Destination Sport
We are finally out of winter and heading into spring here in New Zealand and Australia, while on the other side of the world the days are getting shorter and colder. But whatever your hemisphere, there’s one season approaching that everyone can enjoy – rugby season!
May 27, 2019

Canberra Educational Tours

Uncategorised
This year it is expected that over 170,000 school students will visit Canberra on an educational based tour. There’s no denying the capital’s unrivalled power to educate and excite the nation’s youth on all things politics and civics!
May 20, 2019

The rise of STEM Tours

Education
We live in a world of change, and today’s world is changing at unprecedented rates. Technology is transforming how we live, work, communicate and pursue ideas, and these technologies are developing faster than ever before.
April 11, 2019

Student Horizons is the proud sponsor of QISSRL and QISSN

Community Sport Team Student Horizons
Student Horizons is the proud sponsor of the largest sporting carnival in Australia - the 2019 Queensland Independent Secondary Schools Rugby League Carnival (QISSRL) and the Queensland Independent Secondary Schools Netball Carnival (QISSN).
Through our years of working and touring with secondary schools, it became clear that many young people were unable to access educational travel opportunities due to financial hardship. Student Horizons strongly feels that learning through experience and from the world we live in is an essential step in personal development, which is why it is so important to us that educational tours are achievable for all students.
December 12, 2018

Tips and Tricks for Long-Haul Flights

Destination Education Music Sport
Maybe you’ve been on a plane before, maybe your eight- or ten- or eighteen-hour flight will be your first! Whatever your flight experience, long hauls always take a bit of preparation to be as comfortable as possible. Our advice below will have you as set up as any seasoned traveller for your many hours in the air.
After two full years fundraising for their tour, the boys from Te Aute College were finally able to set off on their Rugby & Cultural Tour to Europe.The team played matches in the UK, France, Belgium and Italy.
November 23, 2018

Packing tips for your overseas school tour

Destination Education Music Sport
Packing for your first trip overseas can seem like an overwhelming task, with so many things to think about! That’s why we have compiled a list of tips and recommendations to help make packing for your school tour a breeze.
November 12, 2018

The Top Four Benefits of Educational Travel

Education Music Sport
There’s no question that travel is an incredibly beneficial thing for young people to do. It will impact them in countless ways, from their achievements in school, their social awareness, their relationships with others, to their maturity and perspective. We have seen and experienced the positive effects travel can have, and we’d like to share our top four benefits of educational travel.
For many teachers, it can be a challenge to get enough students signing up to allow your tour to go ahead. Many schools have a tour group minimum to ensure the tour is a viable venture, and of course, the more students sign up, the more affordable the tour becomes for each family! Boosting the numbers of your tour is definitely in your interests, so we’d like to share a few of our tips on how to maximise your group numbers.
The ASPIRE International Youth Music Festival will take place at The Star Gold Coast from 17-20 July 2019. Spaces are filling fast, so please get in touch with the ASPIRE team today to make an enquiry.
September 25, 2018

Top travel safety and security tips

Safety
It is understandable that parents and staff may have some concerns about their children or students travelling internationally. Several members of our Student Horizons team are parents, and so we can absolutely empathise with the anxiety that comes with sending your child off to another country without you. As for teachers, we know just how daunting it can be to take responsibility for so many peoples’ precious children! It is our mission to make sure every person travelling on one of our tours is as safe and prepared as possible.
September 8, 2018

Become an even better you through travel

Community Education
Even though you’re probably already pretty great, we think that travel can help you discover greatness you never knew you had. Here are three reasons why.
Student Horizons celebrated its 6th birthday on June 12th, and to mark the occasion, both the Australian and New Zealand SH teams went out to give a little back to their communities. SH Australia spent a day with Brisbane Youth Service, and SH New Zealand helped out the Auckland City Mission. Both offices had a great time lending a hand to these amazing, hardworking organisations, and we even felt inspired enough to discuss the possibility of doing some annual volunteering.
June 21, 2018

A new face for Student Horizons

Team Student Horizons
When Jamie and Brooke started Student Horizons six years ago, they could never have predicted how far this company would come. From their very first year in business, they have been delivering unforgettable experiences for hundreds of students, teachers and supporters from Australia and New Zealand.
In April 2018, Rangi Ruru Girls’ School from Christchurch, New Zealand departed with students from their 1st, 2nd and 3rd XI for their once in a lifetime European Hockey Development Tour with Student Horizons.
From football-mad Manchester to the sun soaked coast of Spain, the Auckland Diocesan girls were in football heaven on their 2018 football tour to Europe. The group visited some of the world’s premiere football destinations, including Manchester, London and Barcelona
In April, Rangitoto College of Auckland departed on their USA Rugby Tour with their Student Horizons Representative, Ben. Before they’d even left home, the group hit an unexpected hurdle, with bad weather causing flight delays and cancellations out of Auckland.
The 38 students and seven staff from St Peters Lutheran College joined Jared from Student Horizons on their tour of a lifetime in Fukuoka. Fukuoka is one of Japan’s ten most populated cities. Interestingly, Fukuoka is closer to Seoul, South Korea, than to Tokyo because of its proximity to the Asian mainland.
In early October, a group of ten students from three New Zealand secondary schools embarked on a journey to Europe to attend the centenary commemorations of the Battle of Passchendaele in Ypres, Belgium. The students travelled through France, Belgium and the Netherlands to learn more about battles where pivotal Allied victories were won, and to pay homage at the final resting places of Commonwealth soldiers.
November 3, 2017

Best walking tour of Auckland

Destination
Begin the tour at Auckland Domain, Auckland’s oldest park. The park sits on Volcano Pukekawa’s explosion crater and its tuff ring. You can also find Auckland War Memorial Museum here, located in an iconic neo-classicist style building. The neighbouring Winter Gardens showcase beautiful tropical plants throughout the year. To get to the Auckland Museum, catch either the Inner Link or Outer Link City Bus and get off at 470 Parnell Road, find more info here.
Last week Student Horizons donated over 70 sets of bedding to the St Vincent de Paul Society; a charity which supports people in need all over Australia. We decided to get in touch with Vinnies as, similar to the Foundation of Student Horizons, they are passionate about giving back to the community and do so through many different programs and events.
The team at Student Horizons have put together a list of their best travel tips which we believe will lead to you having the best possible experience whilst away.
September 22, 2017

Best walking tour of top ten Brisbane spots

Destination
The walking tour begins at Brisbane City Hall, which is where the Museum of Brisbane is located. Admission is free and the museum provides interesting facts about the people of Brisbane. As well as this, if you wish to see Brisbane from up high, you can book a free guided tour of the Clock Tower.
Last week the team at Student Horizons decided that we would like to know what our followers think is the top touring destination, and the USA was picked! Here’s a little bit of what we get up to on our tours to the USA.
August 9, 2017

Raising aspirations of young entrepreneurs

Fundraising Music
It has always been in Student Horizons Managing Director Jamie Wansey’s nature to encourage education and development for young adults around the world; whether through educational tours, the Foundation of Student Horizons or various events such as the ASPIRE International Youth Music Festival.