June is finally here and that means that the kids are leaving for camp soon! College kids and older teens are already there sweeping bunks and putting fresh coats of paint on buildings. They are about to face a tough summer but one filled with lots of joy, activity and pride. They typically go up a few weeks in advance to help the camp get into shape after the long winter and receive training in CPR, swim certifications, conflict resolution and how to help kids through homesickness. They also get to enjoy being together as many have been coming since they were young campers. Parents are busy at home following the packing list sent by the program their child is attending. Items are labeled and special items from home are lovingly packed. Soon the bags will be picked up and take their long journey to camp.
Tips on Trips and Camps advisors are busy scheduling camp visits. Collectively we will see about 75 camps. We stare at the maps, trying to figure out how many camps to see in one day, the best route and how we can squeeze in one more stop! It’s like a huge puzzle. It is one of the highlights of our job to see the camps in action and learn about what makes each camp special.
Every camp and director have their own personality which informs the culture of each camp. Once we understand this, we can suggest programs that are the right fit for a family. What are the kids like? How does the director interact with campers? How does the facility look? Are they well maintained? What does the dining room energy feel like? Is it palpable? Does the waterfront feel safe and organized? These are the questions that we need answered to get a feel for the overall experience at each camp.
These visits (plus the end of summer feedback from our families) are what helps us when working with a family. The summer prior to when you want your child to attend is a great time to visit! We can help you plan that visit, just ask. Matching the camp to the children in your family is a team effort, but the result will be finding a camp which aligns with your child’s personality, your family values and what you both hope to get out of the camp experience.
What’s New for Summer 2024?
Tips on Trips and Camps just completed our 3-day Annual Meeting in Baltimore. This is a time to review the past summer and hear about what’s new for next summer. It was a great content-packed, in-person meeting that included visits from teen summer programs.
Across the board, our sleep away camps and teen trips and experiences report that summer 2023 was wonderful. Attendance was higher than in previous years, and Covid accommodations took a back seat, though some camps incorporated protocols into everyday life at camp. Lots of hand washing stations are now common.
Here’s what’s new…
Many overnight camps now have a variety of session lengths to offer their families. A number of traditionally full-season camps now offer a shorter session for their first-year campers as an introduction to a summer overnight camp experience. Families with LGBTQ+ kids have wider choices of summer options than ever before with many camps happy to work to welcome kids of all types. And for those campers wanting to focus on sports there are numerous new options for short-session sports and dance camps.
Teen travel is back! Many destinations that were on pause over the last few years are open in 2024, including Bali, China, Japan, Peru and South Africa. Career exploration offers high school students hands-on experiences in emergency medicine, psychology, neuroscience, engineering, forensics, entrepreneurship, architecture, drone cinematography and more on college campuses around the US and abroad or as high school internships in a variety of countries.
The prospect of summer 2024 includes so many options! The Tips on Trips and Camps team is ready to help craft an amazing summer for your kids.
Summer Camps and Teen Trips, What’s New for 2023
The Tips Team gathered last week for 3 days to review last summer and learn about what’s new for 2023. Our team visited 66 camps and programs this summer! It was wonderful to see so many happy kids enjoying their summer experiences. They were unplugged, engaged and spending time learning new skills. Over 95% of our reviews from summer experiences were good or excellent!
For summer 2023, some of the teen programs will be returning to destinations they had suspended during Covid. Japan is back on the list, as well as Africa, Thailand, New Zealand and Fiji. For younger campers, there are a number of new sports-oriented camps where over two or three weeks a camper can choose to focus on one or two sports with skills, drills and game play. Many camps have been offering early enrollment discounts, which will end soon. Camps are experiencing higher re-enrollment rates than in previous years, so families should reach out now to plan for next summer.
We are ready and waiting to help!
THE TIPS TEAM IS ON THE ROAD!
Tips on Trips and Camps was created in 1971 by two woman who felt that summer camps and teen trips provide more than just “fun”. They are an opportunity for kids to grow in their independence, confidence and ability to problem solve, all skills that are vitally important to children as they develop and grow. Tips is made up of a dynamic team of advisors whose goal is to help families of school-age kids find summer programs that will help them reach those goals. Crucial to our summer advisors’ ability to match a camp or summer trip to a family’s needs is that we really know the programs we represent through relationships with directors and summer visits to programs in action.
After a 2-year hiatus we are thrilled to be out on the road again seeing happy campers as they spend their summer learning and growing. The Tips Team looks forward to sharing what we learn for summer 2023!
Summer is almost here!
We are finally catching a real hint of summer! The sun is strong and everything is green and blooming.
With summer camps opening in only a few weeks, parents are starting to think about packing the trunks and getting everything organized. I can’t wait to see how all the camps and programs blossom as well in 2022. Directors are already heading up to their camps to start bringing their camps back to life after the long winter. Buildings will get fresh coats of paint, arts and crafts supplies will be ordered and counselors will undergo heavy training while assisting with all the above!
With Covid at least in a manageable state, and two summers experience of working with the pandemic behind them, camps are ready to conquer the new playing field. Camp directors have been working tirelessly this year with record breaking enrollments, and interest has exceeded expectations. Families are truly ready to send their kids to camp and there is even a swell in slightly older first time campers who weren’t able to start two years ago due to the pandemic.
Personally, I am very excited to hit the road and visit many of these camps in various geographic regions. I will be touring about 20 New England, Catskill and Poconos camps and I can’t wait to meet many of the people I have spoken to countless times. Speaking with directors on the phone and watching videos and slideshows are one thing, but to see a camp actually in session with real children participating in their actual activities will be extremely rewarding and will bring the camps to life! Most importantly, I will gain true insight as to the individual cultures and personalities of the different camps so that I am even better equipped to make really thoughtful matches with the hundreds of families that I work with each year.
Summer 2022: The Next Normal for Overnight Camps and Teen Trips
Did you know that children who participate in summer programs increase their ability to problem solve? Did you know that summer camp promotes creativity, helps calm anxiety, and increases self-confidence and responsibility? We knew, and it is the reason the Tips on Trips and Camps advisors are so committed to helping families find the best summer overnight options to match their children’s interests and needs.
Though the days are filled with snow and cold weather, summer will be here before we know it. We have all settled in to the Next Normal with the understanding that Covid still plays a featured role in summer planning, but not the main focus. Here are some new trends:
- Zoom Fairs where directors present their program. Use this link to RSVP for the Tips on Trips and Camps Zoom Fairs: RSVP HERE
- 2-week career focused programs that offer students the chance to have hands on experiences in specific career areas.
- 2-week options at many traditional camps for first year campers.
- Many more US options for those families more comfortable staying closer to home.
- Some summer programs will continue to offer online experiences for students.
- Most overnight camps and summer trips for middle and high school students will require campers and all staff to be fully vaccinated.
Summer overnight camps, teen trips and summer travel programs are filling at a record-breaking pace. Now is the time to make plans so the best options are still available for your children. They will benefit in so many ways!
SEND YOUR KIDS TO CAMP WITH CONFIDENCE
You’ve done your research, evaluated all the options, and selected the program that is just right for your kids, but there is that small voice of doubt that says, “Is this the right choice? Will my kids be safe and do well?”
We at Tips on Trips and Camps know your choices for this summer are important for you and your family, so we’ve gathered together our best tips to help quiet that voice.
- Camps this summer will be adhering to the CDC guidelines along with ACA protocols. A handful of camps ran successfully in 2020 and offered other programs a blueprint for success. Rest assured, summer camps and summer trips want your child as safe as you do and will do everything within their power to make that happen.
- Go to the website of the camp or teen program you selected and search for their Covid protocols. If you are still unclear or concerned, call the camp with specific questions. They will be happy to discuss it with you. You want to be comfortable with what you learn so that you can send your kids off with confidence and reassure them if they are anxious.
- Follow the packing list supplied by the program. It will specify how many masks they require and how much hand sanitizer to send. Make sure the masks you send are ones your child likes and is comfortable wearing.
- Remind your child that the counselors or leaders are there to help them and if they have concerns, problems, or questions, to speak to one of them.
- Assure your child that while camp may be a bit different than in the past, you know it will be every bit as much fun.
Whether this is your child’s first summer away from home or they are summer program veterans, we hope you can confidently send them off this summer. It is time to unplug, make new friends and thrive!
The Excitement of Summer!
Summer is around the corner and we can feel the excitement everywhere! The weather is gorgeous, the school year is coming to an end, the sun shines a little longer each day, we are thinking BBQ’s, picnics, and enjoying the outdoors with our children and friends, and maybe even staying out a little longer. When I think of summer, I think of camp! To me, camp means trying something new, adventures, and unplugging from technology. It means making new friends, discovering your best self, gaining independence and leadership skills, new found confidence and self-esteem and being in nature. Mostly though, when I think of camp, I think of making memories and having FUN, so much FUN!!
Summer 2021 is waiting for our children and it’s going to be so wonderful!
I can already feel the memories being made!
Summer is on the Horizon!
Summer can’t come soon enough! It’s winter and we’re tired of being inside. Even sunny California is having its share of cold and rainy days, and the stay-at-home measures are tiring.
Brighter days, though, are ahead with summer on the horizon. Camps will be open! There may be differences compared to normal times, but camps will be operating as will most teen programs, too.
Summer programs are filling faster this year than in years before Covid. Tuitions from last summer have been rolled over for many students, giving most programs a head start in enrollment. With some camps limiting their enrollment for this summer and teen programs not offering the same number of trips as in normal times, now is the time to start looking.
The Tips Advisors are busy keeping up with all the changes for this year — and talking to families. Give us a call and let us know how we can help you plan for this summer. Our children and teens need to be outside, connecting with friends and having fun!!
Don’t be left out! Now is the right time to plan for Summer 2021!
Farewell 2020 – Hello 2021!
It is with open arms that I welcome 2021. I feel as if this last year has been a decade long and I embrace 2021 with outstretched arms. I am filled with excitement at the possibility of a normal summer for kids.
I have spoken to many parents over the last few weeks and they are surprised to learn that some camps ran last summer and that they were hugely successful. I can hear the excitement in their voice as we begin to discuss the kinds of programs that they want for next summer. They know the importance of being unplugged, being outside, and spending time with friends. Everyone needs a sense of normal now. Directors have spent hours and hours learning about best practices as related to Covid-19 and they are enthusiastic and well- prepared to welcome campers.
The door to normal is slowly opening and many families want to go through. They are ready to “step outside the box” that has been home. Hindsight is said to be 2020……. It is the past – I look forward to a bright future.
Happy camping in 2021!