Group Journey to the UK – Suddenly We’re Education Abroad Coordinators!

We’ve had a new travel experience the past couple of weeks that has been about a year in the making. Jason took 19 students plus 2 additional faculty to the United Kingdom (Edinburgh and Oban in Scotland and London, England) on an education abroad trip for 9 days with Missouri State University. We’ve never planned and traveled with a group that big before (we took 11 students plus the two of us in October 2019), so it was a huge learning experience. Especially since we oversaw all booking aspects and shuffling people from point A to B. We have a new appreciation for tour operators. Is that in our future? Perhaps in some form (Jason says no <- Party pooper). We learned a ton, so you must put that to use, right?

We both spent MONTHS planning this trip. In fact, most of our research started nearly a year ago as Jason had to submit a budget to the University so students knew the price for the trip when they were signing up. Fun fact: the pandemic has made the travel industry absolutely BOOM this year, so our pricing ended up being a little off when it came time to do the bookings 6 months later. Some things cost nearly twice as much as we originally budgeted, even though we had added a little buffer because we knew the travel industry was coming back! So, we spent a lot of time amending our original ideas hoping to stretch a dollar (and pound) further.

Since this was such a large group, we had to deal with group reservation desks for everything: hotels, transportation, and restaurants, rather than booking everything on our own via online portals like we’re used to doing. Further complicating things, the six-hour time difference turned simple tasks into multi-day events, as it often only allowed for one email and response each day. Finding places to stay that would accommodate our group size, transportation between those locations, and restaurants to get food for a group were all huge challenges. And, since we were right on the cusp of the busy tourist season in the UK, that meant we needed to get it done early and quickly before everything booked up and prices went up even more.

In March, we thought we were in the clear: everything was booked except trains (you can only book those within a month of travel), and then we hit a snag. Cancellations. One of our London hotels flat-out canceled our reservation: they were closing. Tough cookies. Then, the small, local bus company we used and loved on the first trip canceled our reservation as the owner had retired. Do you know how difficult it is to find these things within a couple of months of travel during the busy season? Let me just say, we lost MANY nights of sleep over this, and thank goodness we’ve made great connections in all the years we’ve been going to Scotland!

In the end, we found a new hotel that wasn’t ideal for public transport connections, but it was within our budget and checked most of the other boxes we required. We also found a new local bus company, but had no true confirmation they would be there to pick us up even as we were getting on the flight to the UK (welcome to Argyll!). The moment that confirmation came through on Day 1 in Edinburgh, we both slept so, so hard. That was the last puzzle piece of this complicated journey. And then, the real fun started.

We’ll give you the quick version of leg one of the journey in Edinburgh, Scotland.

We set off for the UK from Springfield, MO on a Monday afternoon. We knew the whole trip was about to get interesting when our very first flight was delayed out of Springfield. Luckily, it was just a few minutes and we made it to the gate for our second flight out of Chicago to Edinburgh just in time. Whew. An uneventful flight on a rather small trans-Atlantic plane saw us in Edinburgh the following morning. We cabbed into the city for our first stay at the Hilton Carlton Hotel on the Royal Mile, our typical trust stop #1.

Let’s just say our stay in Edinburgh was rather eventful. We learned about the UK medical system, how 20-somethings spend their free time these days, and that giving them this freedom allowed them to have the kind of experience they wanted (and that we can’t hang at night – we’re old. Haha). Typically, the group trips we plan are far more structured, but we were worried that with such a big group, we wouldn’t be able to keep everyone happy with the tours/activities we chose. So, this time we experimented, we cut them loose for two days and let them choose! This turned out great for everyone.

However, they weren’t totally on their own, we’re not completely crazy. There were various constant group chats on WhatsApp that kept tabs on everyone, and we had check-in meetings at various points throughout the trip in the form of business visits, dinners, and location moves. Plus, we implemented the buddy system – no one was allowed to wander on their own.

Not only did the students spend time touring the obvious things like Edinburgh Castle, the Royal Mile shops, and nearby museums, they also found neat businesses to visit that we’d never heard of. A tour of The Chocolatarium was a particular favorite because everyone got to make their own chocolate bars after their tour. Loads of shopping was accomplished for souvenirs and needed attire, some chose to hike Calton Hill and Arthur’s Seat for views of the city, and we heard many tales of step counts as they simply wandered the city exploring. We asked the students for suggestions at the end of that leg of the trip and the biggest one was more time in Edinburgh. I would agree, there’s definitely enough to keep a person busy for longer!

We managed to escape for a few hours on the second day and took a stroll through Prince’s Street Garden and into Dean Village for a little calm in the middle of the city. Jason had toured an asphalt plant with one of his students earlier that day and I was enjoying the tales from that trip as we walked. They had rented a car and drove to the outskirts of the city while I caught up on work – it was funny to hear his tale of being a passenger used to the other side of the car and road. I can totally relate to the curb checking and fake breaking as you just ride along! Haha!

After two full days in Edinburgh, we walked down the hill to Waverley Station, loaded the group onto the train, and headed out of the city to Glasgow. Once there, we had about 30 minutes to change trains at Queens Street Station before we headed North on a second train to Taynuilt in the Scottish countryside. Everyone took those few minutes to stock up on water and snacks for the journey…aka nap time. Those who didn’t sleep the entire way to Taynuilt were treated to a feast for the eyes as we entered the Highlands and the mountains were suddenly looming above us. There is even an opportunity to snap a photo of Kilchurn Castle as you round the top of Loch Awe just before our stop. Much to our relief, we were met by two passenger vans at the correct station to begin the second leg of our journey.

Did someone leave a bag on the train that sent us panic-calling our local friend, Christine, who happened to be near the next station in Oban? Sure did. Don’t worry, we got it back. It’s always good to know the locals. Whew. Welcome to The Highlands!

The purpose of our journey into the Highlands was not only to admire the countryside and experience the highland culture, but to slow down the speed of the trip. I’m not sure everyone appreciated the speed of this leg (or the midges), but they definitely loved the scenery.

We’ll fill you in on this next leg of the trip next week.

Part 2 – Learning to Appreciate the Remarkable Calm of the Scottish Highlands

Part 3 – The Remarkable City of London, the End of the Journey