School trip to Ireland: the complete guide for teachers

Organising a school trip to Ireland is largely a matter of planning ahead: first the educational project, then the formalities, transport, accommodation, budget and supervision. Well planned, this trip offers pupils far more than simply travelling abroad: it is a genuine language immersion experience at the heart of a warm and welcoming culture. This complete guide takes you through every step, from itineraries and budgets to formalities and choosing a provider, with expert insight from the teaching team at The League English School. Our aim is to make this ideal destination the setting for a rewarding and memorable educational experience for your class.

Organising a school trip to Ireland in 8 steps

Before looking in detail at destinations and budgets, here is the roadmap most teachers follow to organise a school trip to Ireland without unwelcome surprises:

1. Define the educational project: pupils’ age and number, duration (4 to 6 days), objectives (English, history, geography, etc.), dates, budget per pupil and number of accompanying adults.
2. Build a day-by-day programme: for example, for a 5-day stay in Dublin, plan one main activity in the morning and another in the afternoon, leaving room for unforeseen circumstances.
3. Check identity documents early: a valid national identity card or passport, and parental permission to leave the country (AST) where required.
4. Arrange insurance and healthcare: European Health Insurance Card, repatriation insurance and pupils’ medical information.
5. Choose transport and accommodation: plane or coach-ferry, host family, hostel or hotel depending on your educational objectives.
6. Set a realistic budget: transport, accommodation, meals, visits, insurance and a contingency allowance.
7. Prepare supervision arrangements: an individual file for each pupil, a master file for teachers, and supervision ratios that meet the school’s requirements.
8. Plan the timetable ahead: 9 to 12 months beforehand for the project and budget, 6 to 9 months for transport and accommodation, 3 to 6 months for registrations and insurance, and 1 to 2 months for final checks.

Each of these stages is covered in more detail later in this guide.

Why Ireland is an ideal destination for an educational school trip

Organising a school trip to Ireland gives pupils far more than a stay abroad. It is a truly rewarding educational experience, where English finally leaves the classroom walls to become a real, living and useful means of communication.

Language immersion that supports English learning

Nothing replaces direct contact with a language. Ordering a coffee, asking for directions or chatting with a local: every interaction becomes a real-life exercise. This language immersion encourages pupils to draw on what they have learned in authentic situations, far removed from conventional classroom exercises.

The warm welcome offered by Irish people makes it much easier to start speaking. Used to hosting foreign school groups, they take the time to talk, encourage pupils’ efforts and value every attempt, however hesitant. Even the shyest pupils often gain confidence within the first few days.

A trip suited to lower secondary, upper secondary and primary school pupils

Objectives naturally vary according to age. At primary level, the focus will be on sensory and cultural discovery, with enjoyable activities linked to the curriculum. At lower secondary level, the aim will be to develop a first, supervised sense of independence through simple real-life situations, in line with Cycle 4 expectations for modern languages. At upper secondary level, the trip can support more ambitious projects: historical analysis, preparation for presentations or even work connected with the baccalaureate oral examination.

In every case, the island’s Celtic heritage provides an excellent educational starting point. Mythology, traditional music and festivals: Celtic traditions and culture readily engage pupils of every level, giving meaning to the learning of both language and civilisation.

Where to go in Ireland with pupils: our programme ideas

Ireland can be divided into four main areas, each presenting a different side of the island for building a coherent educational project: Dublin and the east, a historic yet modern capital; Belfast and the north, with its industrial heritage and spectacular geology; Galway and the wild west, a land of landscapes and traditions; and Cork and the south, with its authentic city life and wide-open spaces.

The choice depends first and foremost on the objectives set by the schools: a 4-day stay will favour one area and its essential historic sites, while a week-long programme will make it possible to combine two regions, for example Dublin and Belfast, alternating guided visits with supervised free time.

To help shape your itinerary, here is a checklist to follow:

• Educational objectives: language, history, geography or an interdisciplinary project?
• Duration: 4, 5 or 7 days, depending on the school calendar.
• Year group: curricula and expectations differ between lower and upper secondary school.
• Budget: available transport, accommodation and activities.
• Season: weather, visitor numbers and prices.

Dublin and eastern Ireland: what to visit with your pupils

If one word were to open your itinerary, it would be Dublin. The Irish capital brings together everything a teacher is looking for: a compact, safe city centre, an impressive wealth of heritage and a distinctly contemporary atmosphere in which pupils can practise their English from the moment they leave the airport. It is the ideal gateway for a first school trip, and often the starting point—or final stop—on a wider route towards the west or north of the island.

It is impossible to mention Dublin without talking about Trinity College, the country’s oldest university. The campus can be visited free of charge, but it is above all the Old Library that captivates school groups: the Long Room, with its 65-metre dark oak vault, houses the famous Book of Kells, an illuminated manuscript dating from the 9th century. For upper secondary pupils studying medieval history or the arts, encountering this treasure first-hand is worth every theoretical explanation.

A few minutes’ walk away, St Patrick’s Cathedral offers another way into Irish history: it is the burial place of Jonathan Swift, author of Gulliver’s Travels, making it an ideal reference if you are preparing the trip with your literature or English colleagues.

For scientific and cultural enrichment, the National Museum of Ireland completes the picture perfectly. Entry is free, making it an unmissable budget-friendly stop: the archaeological collections on Kildare Street, including Celtic gold and the Ardagh Chalice, provide valuable context before visiting other historic sites around the country.

In terms of practical activities, two formats work particularly well with groups:

• A language treasure hunt in the city centre: in small groups, pupils must speak to passers-by or shopkeepers in English to complete a mission booklet.
• A guided visit of the university campus: following a Trinity College student ambassador gives pupils the chance to speak English with a young Irish person in a reassuring setting.

Dublin therefore lends itself to two or three busy days before the trip continues towards other parts of the island.

Sample itinerary — 5 days / 4 nights in Dublin

• Day 1: departure from France, settling in, first exploration of the city centre.
• Day 2: visit to Trinity College and the Old Library, small-group language activity.
• Day 3: full-day excursion (Cliffs of Moher, Giant’s Causeway or Wicklow, depending on the chosen area).
• Day 4: National Museum of Ireland, language treasure hunt in the city centre, exchange with Irish pupils where possible.
• Day 5: final activity, supervised free time, return to France.

Plan one main activity in the morning and another in the afternoon, allowing sufficient time for travel and unforeseen circumstances.

Belfast and Northern Ireland: following the traces of history

Changing capital also means changing era. After Dublin, Belfast reveals an entirely different face of the island: that of a 19th-century industrial city reinvented as a dynamic cultural hub. Its former shipyards, painted walls and Titanic Quarter tell a rich story of industrial grandeur and contemporary memory.

The essential stop is Titanic Belfast, located on the very site where the liner was designed, built and launched, near the Harland & Wolff slipways. Far from being a simple reconstruction, the museum takes a documentary and immersive approach: pupils follow the story of the ship, deck by deck, from its construction to its sinking. The ticket also includes access to SS Nomadic, the last surviving White Star Line vessel still afloat, moored just a few metres away. It is an ideal starting point for interdisciplinary work combining industrial history, science and English.

An hour’s drive away, the Antrim coast holds another surprise—this time geological: the Giant’s Causeway. This UNESCO-listed site comprises around 40,000 hexagonal basalt columns, formed 50 to 60 million years ago as lava flows cooled. It is a real-life observation ground for earth and life science lessons, while the legend of the giant Finn McCool makes it instantly memorable for pupils.

Lastly, Belfast carries a more recent history: that of the Northern Ireland conflict and the peace process. A guided tour of the city’s walls offers an opportunity to explore ideas of memory, identity and reconciliation in citizenship or history lessons.

This is precisely the strength of a combined Dublin–Belfast trip: in just a few days, pupils discover two capitals, two political systems and two sides of the same island—a sound basis for a rich interdisciplinary project.

Galway, Connemara and the island’s wild west

After the bustle of Dublin or Belfast, Galway offers a welcome pause. This colourful, compact university city is easy to explore on foot with a group: the cobbled lanes of the Latin Quarter, street musicians, a festive atmosphere that is never overwhelming. Here, pupils encounter a more authentic Ireland, less touristy than the capital, where English is spoken as readily in cafés as along the bay’s quaysides. It is often the stop teachers describe as the highlight of the trip, precisely because it remains so human in scale.

Yet the region’s greatest educational interest lies beyond the city. Connemara, with its peat bogs, moorland and mountains plunging into the Atlantic, is an ideal field of study for geography or earth and life science lessons. Connemara National Park, open to the public near Letterfrack since 1980, has a visitor centre with a free exhibition on peat-bog formation and the landscape’s glacial history, recently complemented by an area devoted to the famous Connemara pony, a native breed recognisable by its grey coat.

For a genuinely supervised nature excursion, several educational objectives can naturally be combined:

• Observe peatland ecosystems and understand their role in carbon storage.
• Analyse the impact of glaciers on the landscape through a guided walk on the park’s waymarked trails.
• Compare Connemara’s landscapes with those of the Cliffs of Moher, around two hours away by road, whose 214-metre height and 320-million-year-old sedimentary strata never fail to fascinate school groups.
• Extend the visit through written or photographic work in English, combining scientific vocabulary with landscape description.

This stop in the wild west is the ideal complement to an itinerary centred on cities, revealing a rural, unspoilt Ireland far removed from urban clichés.

Cork, Killarney and southern Ireland

After Dublin, Belfast and Galway, head south to Cork, Ireland’s second-largest city. Far from the capital’s tourist bustle, Cork appeals with its authentic, relaxed atmosphere, colourful lanes, bridges over the River Lee and proudly asserted identity in contrast to Dublin. It is an ideal stop for bringing a trip to a gentle close without sacrificing its educational richness.

The essential stop on any school visit to Cork is the English Market, a covered market more than two centuries old where pupils can discover local food, including drisheen, artisan cheeses and smoked fish, as well as the city’s commercial history. Queen Elizabeth II herself stopped there, a detail that always amuses school groups and can prompt discussion of Irish-British relations.

An hour and a half away by road, Killarney opens onto wide-open spaces. Its national park, Ireland’s first to be designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, is home to lakes, ancient oak woods and a herd of red deer present since the last Ice Age. A supervised walk offers an excellent basis for interdisciplinary work combining English, earth and life science, and geography.

It is impossible to discuss southern Ireland without mentioning the Ring of Kerry, the 179-kilometre scenic route that follows dramatic coastlines and picturesque villages. While a full coach tour may be possible over several days, a focused stop at Ladies View or Torc Waterfall is often enough to leave a lasting impression.

To create a coherent itinerary, it is recommended to combine city and nature: two days in Cork for urban and cultural immersion, followed by an excursion to Killarney and the Ring of Kerry for the scenery. This formula is an ideal complement to a stay centred on Dublin or Galway, making it possible to cover several sides of the island on a single school trip.

How to get to Ireland: by plane or coach-ferry?

Your choice of transport depends on your school’s location, the duration of the trip and the available budget. There are two ways to reach the island of Ireland from France, which, like Ireland, is a member of the European Union: flying, which is quick and convenient, or travelling by coach and ferry, which takes longer but offers plenty to discover.

By plane: speed and simplicity for your group

A direct Paris–Dublin flight takes only around 1 hour 45 minutes, making it the simplest option for a short stay of 4 to 5 days. Airlines offer competitive school-group fares, especially outside school holidays. It is the ideal choice if your school is far from a port or if you want to maximise time in Ireland.

By coach and ferry: the adventure of the journey

For schools close to Normandy or Brittany, the coach journey to Cherbourg followed by the ferry—around 18 to 19 hours to Rosslare or Dublin—turns the journey itself into a genuine educational experience. Pupils sleep in shared cabins, enjoy the communal spaces and watch the Irish coast gradually come into view: a memorable moment before they have even set foot on Irish soil.

Here is a comparison table to help you decide:

In short, choose flying for a short, efficient trip, and the ferry if your educational project includes an environmental dimension or if you have at least six days to fully enjoy this characteristically Irish crossing.

Formalities and documents for a school trip to Ireland

Nothing is more stressful than a pupil being held at the border for lack of the right document. The good news is that the formalities for a school trip to Ireland remain straightforward, provided you start early and follow the correct administrative steps.

Identity card, passport and permission to leave the country

Each French pupil can travel with a valid national identity card alone, although a valid passport will of course also work. Pupils who are not European Union nationals must present a valid passport.

If the pupil is not travelling with someone who holds parental authority, you will also need permission to leave the country (AST), signed by a parent and accompanied by a copy of their identity document. The lead teacher must also carry the collective list of pupils validated by the prefecture: an essential document for crossing the border, which should be requested several weeks before departure. The Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs also recommends checking travel advice for Ireland and registering the group with Fil d’Ariane before departure.

Before the big day, check that every pupil has the following documents:

• Identity card or valid passport, depending on nationality, valid until the return date.
• Permission to leave the country (AST), signed by a parent if the pupil is not travelling with them.
• Parental authorisation to take part in the school trip.
• European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), for healthcare cover while away — the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs also recommends checking any required medical treatments or vaccinations at least eight weeks before departure, and gathering families’ emergency contact details.

ETA exemption for Northern Ireland

Since April 2025, every European traveller would normally need to present a valid passport together with an ETA (Electronic Travel Authorisation) to enter this UK territory.

Good news for teachers: French school groups of under-18s organised by a French school are exempt from this ETA. Pupils can therefore continue to travel with their identity card. This exemption remains subject to the teacher in charge presenting the collective list validated by the prefecture, whatever identity document is used.

What budget and price should you expect for a school trip to Ireland?

This is the question that always comes up in the staff room: how much will that Irish trip cost? The good news is that the island remains an affordable destination for a school trip, provided expenditure is planned carefully.

What is the average budget for a school trip to Ireland?

The price per pupil depends on three main factors: duration, mode of transport and type of accommodation. In general, allow between €300 and €650 per pupil, based on a group of around 50 participants including free places for accompanying adults—one free place for approximately every 10 to 15 paying pupils, depending on the provider.

Costs to include in your projected budget:

• Transport: plane, coach-ferry or a combination of both, depending on the departure region.
• Accommodation: host family, youth hostel or hotel, with full board or half board.
• Visits and activities: site entry fees, French-speaking guides and educational workshops.
• Insurance: assistance and repatriation cover, charged at around 1% of the total trip cost.
• Meals: packed lunches while travelling, dinners with host families or in restaurants.

To give you a practical idea, here is a comparison table for two classic options:

These ranges are indicative only: always request a tailored quote, as prices vary according to the dates, departure region and number of accompanying adults.

Financial assistance and funding for your trip

Local authorities—municipal, departmental and regional—often offer grants specifically for language trips, such as the “Odyssée jeunes” scheme in Seine-Saint-Denis. Also consider the Pass Culture, which can be used for certain visits. Local authorities—municipal, departmental and regional—often offer grants specifically for language trips, such as the “Odyssée jeunes” scheme in Seine-Saint-Denis. Also consider the Pass Culture, which can be used for certain visits outside the school’s budget.

Finally, remember that every pupil must travel with a valid national identity card—or a passport, depending on the circumstances—an essential document to factor in from the outset when preparing the financial and administrative file. Good funding preparation, combined with a robust educational project, makes it much easier for families to support this trip to Ireland.

When should you take a class to Ireland?

Choosing the dates has a major bearing on the success of your trip, even before the programme itself is considered. Weather, visitor numbers and prices vary greatly from month to month, and a school trip carefully scheduled around the calendar avoids many complications.

What is the best month to organise a school trip to Ireland?

Two periods stand out clearly: May–June and September–October. At these times, days are long, rainfall is less frequent than in midwinter, and tourist sites have not yet reached—or have already passed—the peak of summer crowds. Accommodation and transport prices also remain more reasonable than in July and August, when Ireland receives its highest number of international visitors.

Avoid July and August: prices rise, groups crowd the key sites, and pupils are not at school anyway. Winter brings another challenge: short days, unpredictable weather and reduced opening hours at some attractions. Spring or early autumn is therefore the ideal compromise, also corresponding to quieter periods in the school year that are well suited to an educational project developed over several weeks.

What are the Irish school holiday dates for 2026–2027?

To avoid finding your group faced with closed schools, keep the 2026–2027 Irish calendar in mind: term begins in late August; the October mid-term break runs from 26 to 30 October 2026; Christmas holidays run from 23 December 2026 to 5 January 2027; the February break is from 15 to 19 February 2027; and Easter holidays run from 22 March to 4 April 2027. By organising your school trip outside these periods, you ensure that pupils can meet young Irish people who are actually in school.

Choosing an agency or provider for a school trip abroad

Once the itinerary and budget are in place, one major question remains: who should organise the school trip? Several criteria deserve your attention before you sign off on a quote. First, check the provider’s quality label—UNOSEL or the Office National de Garantie’s Contrat Qualité—which indicates a serious framework and sound insurance. Then consider whether the programme can be adapted or is entirely tailor-made, how on-the-ground support is arranged through a local coordinator and supervision, and what type of accommodation is offered. Host-family accommodation often remains the most rewarding option for pupils’ language immersion.

Verdié Open Class, MIJE and VEFE: recognised specialists

Verdié Open Class, a brand of the Verdié Voyages group, an expert since 1985, offers itineraries in Ireland taking in Dublin, Cork, Galway or Belfast, with dedicated online access for monitoring the project. MIJE, a public-interest association approved by UNOSEL for more than 65 years, focuses on extensive educational support and comprehensive insurance including repatriation and public liability. VEFE, a longstanding player in the sector, completes this trio with an offer focused on turnkey school trips for schools.

CLC, Envol Espace and PG Trips: other reliable providers

CLC, which has offered language stays for more than 50 years, provides Ireland itineraries combining host-family accommodation with cultural visits, including a Dublin–Belfast programme to discover the two Irelands. Envol Espace, which holds the Contrat Qualité label, stands out for its entirely tailor-made approach and 41 years’ experience in school travel. PG Trips completes this list of reliable providers, alongside non-profit organisations such as la ligue de l’enseignement, which is often approached for educational stays at controlled prices.

Reviews and feedback on trips to Ireland

Before committing, take time to read reviews from other teachers on the providers’ own platforms rather than on generic websites. Feedback often mentions the quality of the host-family welcome, the local coordinator’s responsiveness in the event of an unexpected problem—health issues or delays—and whether the advertised programme is delivered. Here is a comparison table to help you find your way:

The role of accompanying adults and the French National Education framework

The supervision side of a school trip cannot be improvised. Every accompanying adult takes on a real legal and human responsibility: ensuring the group’s safety, dealing with unforeseen circumstances, enforcing rules and maintaining class cohesion thousands of kilometres from the lower or upper secondary school. It is a demanding role, but also one of the most memorable aspects of a teaching career.

The minimum supervision ratio generally recommended by the French National Education system is around one adult for every 15 pupils, although this may be increased depending on pupils’ age, the nature of the activities or the school’s requirements. Before departure, the project must be approved by the headteacher and governing body, with formal school-trip authorisation and insurance cover appropriate for travel abroad. Nothing should be left to chance: this rigorous framework reassures both families and the teaching team.

From a language-learning perspective, a French school group in immersion benefits from structured supervision designed to maximise learning. The team at The League English School, which made a substantial contribution to writing this article, supports this approach alongside the writers at Guide Irlande: as specialists in preparation for the CAPES and agrégation English teaching examinations, they incorporate academic expectations into the design of on-site activities. This expertise makes it possible to turn visits and exchanges with local people into teaching sequences that can be used in the classroom.

Organising such projects is also a concrete part of the day-to-day reality of a secondary-school teacher. This skill is all the more central because it is among the topics covered when preparing for the CAPES, the examination required to become a teacher. Through this approach, teachers have methodological avenues for helping pupils improve their spoken skills while meeting the objectives of official curricula. Support grounded in detailed knowledge of examination requirements and the realities of the field thus ensures the educational coherence of the trip.

Organising the educational project and motivation letter

A school trip to Ireland is not simply a tourist itinerary: above all, it is an educational project that must fit within your curriculum. Before getting started, set out your objectives—linguistic, cultural and subject-specific—and link them explicitly to the skills required by the English or history-geography curriculum. This document serves as a guiding thread throughout the preparation process: it justifies every visit choice to your headteacher, who will need to approve the project through the educational council.

The motivation letter, meanwhile, addresses two different audiences. For funders—local authorities, the school cooperative or foundations—highlight the concrete educational outcomes: expected progress in spoken English, cultural openness and pupil independence. For families, emphasise the safety provided by supervision, the language-immersion setting and the added value compared with a conventional lesson. A convincing letter sets out the budget, reassures readers about the organisation and shows that the stay extends classroom work rather than replacing it.

To make full use of the trip, plan your project in three stages:

• Before the stay: prepare pupils with targeted vocabulary, research on the places to be visited and specific communication goals.
• During the stay: set practical tasks, such as an English travel diary, interviews with local people and geographical observations.
• After the stay: organise a presentation of the work—an exhibition, oral presentation or blog article—that showcases learning to the class and school.

This guiding framework turns a simple trip into a genuinely assessable teaching sequence, making administrative approval much easier and more readily convincing both funders and families.

Preparation timetable, month by month

FAQ: frequently asked questions about school trips to Ireland

What identity documents are needed for each pupil?

Every pupil must travel with a valid national identity card, or passport, permission to leave the country signed by their parents, and must appear on the collective list validated by the prefecture. Remember to check these documents several months before departure: renewing an identity card can take time, especially during periods of high demand.

Should you book through an agency or organise the trip yourself?

Using a specialist agency makes the arrangements more secure—insurance, accommodation and transport—and relieves you of a substantial administrative burden. Organising the trip yourself offers greater freedom and may reduce costs, but means taking sole responsibility for the logistics. For a first school trip, the support of a provider is often more reassuring.

How long does it take to prepare the trip?

Allow between 6 and 12 months of preparation. This gives you time to build the educational project, obtain the school’s authorisations, gather each pupil’s identity documents, secure the budget and funding, and allow families time to organise their finances. Groups that plan late often face less favourable transport prices.

Which insurance should you choose for a school group?

Choose a policy covering cancellation, medical repatriation and the public liability of every participant, including accompanying adults. The European Health Insurance Card usefully complements this cover for routine healthcare. Check that the policy is suited to a school group, with a repatriation limit sufficient for a group journey to Ireland.

Can you prepare for the school trip without leaving France?

While nothing can replace the salty air of the Cliffs of Moher, you can certainly begin your pupils’ cultural immersion well before departure with a visit to the Centre Culturel Irlandais in Paris. Housed in the historic building of the Collège des Irlandais, this place, unique in Europe, is an invaluable educational resource for teachers.

The Centre Culturel Irlandais offers a rich educational programme, from consulting documentary packs on Celtic civilisation to organising turnkey activity sessions around Irish literature, film or music. It is the ideal preliminary stage for familiarising your class with the sounds of the language and the island’s historical issues. By taking pupils there, you turn theoretical preparation into a practical experience, helping them use specific vocabulary and sparking their curiosity before the big leap to Dublin or Galway.