Political History & Civil Rights School Trip to New York

Suggested Itinerary

Day 1

Morning

Flight from UK to New York

Afternoon

Transfer to accommodation on arrival

Evening

Optional evening meal at local restaurant

Day 2

Morning

Take a Civil Rights Tour of Harlem

Afternoon

Visit the American Museum of Natural History or the Tenement Museum

Evening

Visit the Empire State Building for evening views across the city Optional evening meal at local restaurant

Day 3

Morning

Travel down to Battery Park and take the ferry for views across the city and the Statue of Liberty Visit the Immigration Museum on Ellis Island

Afternoon

Take a walking tour of the Financial District, guided or self-guided, and learn the Wall Street story

Evening

Optional evening meal at a Times Square restaurant Chance to enjoy a Broadway show

Day 4

Morning

Visit the United Nations for a tour of the building and to learn about the organisation

Afternoon

Transfer to the airport

Evening

Overnight flight back to the UK

Day 5

Morning

Arrive back in the UK

3 nights' bed and breakfast accommodation
Airport transfers in resort
All flights including tax
Comprehensive travel and medical insurance
Detailed information pack
Free staff place ratio 1:10
Itinerary planning service
VAT

Accommodation

Hostelling International NY

HI New York is Manhattan’s premier hostel, and is located in a landmark building on the Upper West Side. The building was built in 1883 to help widows of both the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 and re-opened as HI New York in 1990.The hostel offers clean, modern, mixed and separate male/female dormitory-style accommodation (4 - 12 bedded rooms) with shared bathrooms in the hallways. Linen, towels and a housekeeping service are provided.Private rooms with and without baths are also available (subject to availability). The hostel is situated just one block from Broadway Avenue and a main subway line, and only minutes from Central Park.

Freehand New York

Situated on Lexington Avenue, the Freehand New York hotel has plenty of green spaces nearby, with Stuvesant Square Park and Madison Square Park on the doorstep. For the Epicureans, there are many local restaurants to tempt the taste buds, while in terms of sites, there is the famous Flatiron building and the National Museum of Mathematics. Rooms available to book: solo, suite, king, triple (three king-size bunk beds), queen, 'Three's Company' (queen bed with an overhead twin bunk attached) and quad (four twin-size bunk beds).

Holiday Inn Express Manhattan Midtown West

Based at 538 West 48th Street in Hell's Kitchen, Holiday Inn Express Manhattan Midtown West is on the doorstep of so much to do and see. Vistors can venture to many attractions nearby, including Central Park, Times Square, Broadway and Lincoln Center, as well as the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum. 'Standard' rooms allow the option of king, double beds or deluxe king beds, plus extra floor space, city views and sofa beds. Free Wi-Fi in all guest rooms.

Tour highlights

Visit Ellis Island

With around 40% of Americans able to trace their history back to at least one ancestor who passed through the immigration centre at Ellis Island, where better to learn about America’s history of immigration? The federal government took over the regulation of immigration to New York and opened the centre at Ellis Island on 1 st January 1892. Over the following 6 decades, 12 million immigrants would pass through the centre to a new life in the New World. If you were in relatively good health and your papers were in good order, you could expect to spend around 3-5 hours at the centre being processed. And, although the island was known as the ‘Island of Tears’, only 2% of immigrants were turned away, usually because it was thought they had a contagious disease or there was reason to believe that the person was likely to become a burden on the state or an illegal contract labourer.

Did you know?

First and second class passengers who arrived into New York by ship did not have to go through processing at the immigration centre on Ellis Island (unless they were already sick or undergoing legal issues), instead being subject to a short, cursory inspection on board, as it was considered that those who were able to afford those tickets were unlikely to become a financial burden for the state.

Financial District Walking Tour, New York

Take a Walking Tour of the Financial District

This walking tour focuses on the birth of New York City and its establishment as a globally important finance centre. The Financial District is where the city of New York was born in 1624 and also overlaps the New Amsterdam settlement, making this the oldest part of the city. It’s now the beating heart of the American economy – as well as Wall Street, the world’s largest stock exchange (by total market capitalisation) and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the area was also home to the World Trade Center and now its successor, the One World Trade Center.

Did you know?

The One World Trade Center is not only the tallest building in New York – it’s the tallest in the Western Hemisphere! It’s 1,776 feet high – a nod to the year in which the United States Declaration of Independence was signed.

Take a civil rights-themed tour of Harlem

Visit the sites in Harlem associated with the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, guided by a local! African-Americans began to move into Harlem during the Great Migration of the 20 th century. Later, in the 1920s and 1930s, the area was the centre of the Harlem Renaissance, the first major outpouring of artistic works from the African-American community. With its status as an important centre for African-American culture in New York now well established, Harlem became a focal point for the civil rights movement in the city. This tour will help your students understand both the importance and the timeline of this.

Did you know?

Harlem was named after the Dutch city of Haarlem and once formed part of New Amsterdam.

Educational Activities

Civil Rights and Social Justice Tour of Harlem

Learn more about the northern Civil Rights movement and the continued struggle for social justice on a guided tour of

Ellis Island

Between 1892 and 1954, twelve million immigrants first set foot on American soil at the reception centre at Ellis Island.

Harlem Civil Rights Tour

The Harlem Civil Rights Tour visits sites in Harlem associated with the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960’s. Learn the

Tenement Museum

The Tenement Museum demonstrates the experiences of a variety of immigrants and migrants who lived in the Lower East Side

Cultural Activities

American Museum of Natural History

Bring your group to the American Museum of Natural History!Nothing rivals the range of offerings at this New York City

Empire State Building

Reaching more than a quarter of a mile into the Manhattan sky, the Empire State Building was the world's tallest

Statue of Liberty

No trip to New York would be complete without a visit to the Statue of Liberty; the city’s iconic symbol.

Financial District Walking Tour

This four hour guided walking tour, weavestogether history, events, architecture and the people of Downtown - the birthplace of New

Supporting you every step of the way

Creating your perfect trip

Your quote will be put together by an experienced Tour Adviser who’ll be an expert in the subject area and will know the destination really well too. They’ll work with you to create a trip to suit your group’s needs and meet your learning objectives.

Launching your trip to parents and students

The next step is to get your trip approved and then get students signed up to it. Our ‘Trip Launch Pack’ will help you with this step. This is full of resources (all free to download) designed to make your life easier at this crucial point in the trip planning process.

After you’ve booked

Once you’ve booked, your dedicated Itinerary Coordinator will start work on the finer details. They’ll make sure your itinerary makes the most of your time and they’ll take on most of the admin tasks for your trip (freeing you up to do what you do best – teach).

Support while you’re away

From lost property to properly lost, we’ll always be on the end of the phone while you’re out on the trip. You’ll get a final info pack before you go, as well as access to all your trip documents via the Vamoos app.

After your trip

We’ll ask you for feedback, so we can improve our service. Let’s start planning your next trip too, so parents have plenty of time to pay (and so it’s less stressful for you). And don’t forget to head to our resources hub to continue the learning back in the classroom.