Travel can be educational. Taking a trip with lots of firsts is guaranteed to be. Information is going out now for the GHS Spain/France trip set for the summer of 2026.
“For some students, it’s their first time traveling away from home alone, going to another country,” said French teacher Melinda Randall, who is also the coordinator of the trip. “(It is the) first time on a plane for some people, first time to see the ocean, so it’s pretty amazing for some people in that respect.”
English Language Learner (ELL) teacher Molly Connor is the other trip leader and planner. Randall said she hopes that at least 20 students and six teacher chaperones will sign up for the experience. The trip itself costs $6,354, which includes sightseeing, cooking lessons and gourmet meals that will all be part of the 10-day experience.
The trip starts out by flying into Madrid, Spain, overnight, but by the following afternoon, the travelers from Gretna will be exploring the city’s capital. Students will be visiting Madrid, Toledo and San Sebastien in Spain and Biarritz and Paris in France.
Senior Caroline Mix visited Germany this past summer with a school group. She said she greatly enjoyed the experience.
“I really loved the food I guess and not just, like, oh it’s German food, but it was fresher than American food. Not just that, but it smelled amazing,” Mix said.
Students will take cooking lessons, which will happen while the students are in Toledo, Spain, for the day. A local chef will lead the class and students will have a hands-on experience. The next day, the students will travel along the Atlantic coast to then experience San Sebastián.
The last three days will include a TGV train ride to Paris, followed by an ascent to the top floor of the Eiffel Tower. While there, students will witness Paris’s breathtaking cityscape. The evening will be spent with a ride on the Seine River during sunset. The second day consists of many sightseeing locations, like the Arc de Triomphe and Napoleon’s final resting place. A tour guide will then take the students throughout the Opera Garnier. The evening’s event will be optional and will take place in a French theater.
On their final day in Paris, the students will travel to the beautiful gardens and grounds of Versailles. The gardens consist of 1,976 acres, 200,000 trees, 50 fountains, and 620 water jets. They will also see where the Treaty of Versailles was signed and visit Louis XIV’s estate. The last thing left on the itinerary is pedaling around Versailles, experiencing the palace’s grounds beyond the garden. The trip comes to an end on June 10 with a departure to the United States.
To see more information visit this site.
