Want to come home from holiday with more than a few trinkets and a sunburn? What about mastering an old curiosity or passion, and returning with some wonderful and exciting new skill sets?
Educational travel is the ultimate way to immerse yourself in a destination and make your holiday deeper and more meaningful with memories and new skills that will last a lifetime.
From working alongside farmers and fisherman in Brazil to learning a simple tea ceremony in Kyoto; learning how to make your own pots in Peru to picking up a step or two at traditional Danish dance classes … with educational travel, you’ll return from your holiday enriched and enlightened and ready to share your experiences and newfound knowledge with friends and family.
There’s almost no limit to what you can learn on holiday. Think of the hobby or skill you’d like to learn, then find a destination that offers the educational tour to suit your desires and budget. We’ve found a few tours to whet your appetite.
The largest outdoor art studio in the world
Starting on home soil, renowned Australian painter Amanda Hyatt offers a 13-day painting workshop through the Flinders Ranges, Clare Valley and Hahndorf in August 2019. The tour includes accommodation at Wilpena Pound, Burra and Hahndorf, 18 meals, welcome and farewell drinks, and the services of a workshop manager and your internationally renowned teacher. You’ll be sightseeing, joining in on intensive painting classes that include craft demonstrations, instruction and critique sessions. This is a definite bucket list type tour for anyone with a passion for the outdoors and painting, with the opportunity to learn first-hand from one of the country’s best.
Learn French in France
It’s no secret that wherever you travel in the world, the locals love it when you try to speak their language. You may be hopeless, but the effort is often appreciated. A few lessons prior to heading off will usually cover you for some of the basics, but any Francophiles looking to learn a little more French than oui and non will love this immersive French language crash course at Institut de Français on the French Riviera.
For eight-and-a-half hours a day, five days a week for two to four weeks, you can dive right into a French immersion language and rapidly acquire fluency in French. At this school, small groups are encouraged to learn French by any means necessary, but mostly, by having fun. The Institut also provides accommodation in nearby Villefranche, just a short walk from the school.
Through social interactions, sports, food and fun, learning French at the Institut de Français would be a rich and memorable experience.
A sailing sojourn
Whether you’re an experienced sailor or this is your first time on a boat; or if sailing has been a dream of yours, there’s no longer an excuse not to experience this.
The Trinity Sailing experience has been described as ‘life changing’ and offers a number of hands-on sailing holidays around the UK, including Brittany and the West Country, Devon and Cornwall, the isles of Scilly (off the Cornish coast) and the West Coast of Scotland. No experience is needed, and all ages are welcome to join on one of their three historic sailing vessels: Leader, Provident and Golden Vanity. It’ll be the adventure of a lifetime.
Writers’ retreat
Want to run away to a writers’ retreat in scenic England where your imagination can run wild? Look no further. The Arvon writing course focuses on a variety of different genres including comedy, poetry, short stories, fiction, non-fiction, playwriting, song writing and more! While they do run shorter day courses, most stays take place at retreats across England, in West Yorkshire at Lumb Bank, at the Hurst in Bughurst in Hampshire and at Totleigh Barton, a 16th century manor in Devon.
Or a sweet retreat
Here’s one that’ll make you breathe a little quicker … Chocolate making classes in Brussels. This is for those of you who want to dabble in some delicious skill building but not have to commit to a full tour. The class runs for two and a half hours, no previous experience is required and everything is made from scratch. Each student will make 30 chocolates, which includes mendiants (crispy chocolate base with dry fruits) and pralines, as well as chocolate ganache (the filling). Sweet.
Have you ever been on a learning holiday? Where did you go? Would you recommend such a journey to our members?
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