Sr. Coll will be taking a group of Spanish students to Spain over April break 2025!
Dates: April 19th through 29th, 2025
ESTIMATED COST & PAYMENT DUE DATES:
About $3,500 - This includes air travel, room and board, and excursions. It is based on a minimum of 14 students. (It may be slightly less if we reach our maximum of 18 students). If we don't have 14 students or drop below that, we will have to cancel the trip due to excessive cost.
This is a great price! It is only 25% more than our trip 5 years ago, and the trip is 10 days instead of 7 (nearly 50% longer with many added activities!)
Price breakdown for 14 students: Program $1,715 Flight $1,630 + Bus to/from Logan $TBA
This does NOT include spending money.
FIRST INFORMATIONAL MEETING: TBA
FINAL INFORMATIONAL MEETING: Date & time TBA - at SPHS. At this meeting we will review practical issues such as packing, phone chargers, credit/debit cards, etc. as well as answering any questions you may have.
🚨IMPORTANT!
A deposit check for the flights of approximately $200 per student is due by November 30, 2024.
So that we can mail these, please hand-deliver the check before the above date, to Sr. Coll.
Checks must be written out to Global Academic Travel. This deposit is refundable up to January 9th, 2025. The $200 flight deposit will be forfeited for any individual who cancels after that date.
Next payment - $TBA to Centro MundoLengua via their portal. (This is 20% of the total due to Centro MundoLengua - 10% is non-refundable)
https://centromundolengua.com/product/south-portland-high-school-seville/ - Will be updated
Password: TBA
Deadline: TBA - approx. Monday, December 16, 2024
ONE HALF OF THE DEPOSIT TO CENTRO MUNDOLENGUA IS NON-REFUNDABLE!
Final program payment of $TBA to Centro MundoLengua to be paid via their portal:
https://centromundolengua.com/product/south-portland-high-school-seville/ - Will be updated
Password: TBA
Deadline: TBA - approx. Mid February, 2025
Final flight payment of approx. $TBA and the passport information list is due by TBA-approx. End of February, 2025.
a. Checks must be written out to Global Academic Travel. Again, so that we can overnight mail these, please hand-deliver your check to Sr. Coll.
The final payment for the flight will be forfeited for any individual who withdraws after February, 2025.
b. Please take a photocopy or a picture of the passport and email it to Sr. Coll. This is required for the flight manifest. We also recommend that students take a photo of their passports and make a photocopy to take with them.
🚨PRICES MAY BE SOMEWHAT HIGHER IF STUDENTS WITHDRAW (UNLESS OTHER STUDENTS TAKE THEIR PLACE.)
🇪🇸 THE CENTRO MUNDOLENGUA PROGRAM:
Centro MundoLengua arranges the program, excursions and homestay. Details on our itinerary will be in their portal:
Link will be here.
Password: TBA
General information on Centro MundoLengua's programming:
https://centromundolengua.com/product/spanish-language-immersion-trips-in-sevilla-spain/
Our itinerary:
Reviews of Centro MundoLengua:
https://www.goabroad.com/providers/centro-mundolengua
https://www.gooverseas.com/organization/centro-mundolengua-reviews
https://www.educationrating.com/enen/institution/5836/ratings-reviews-ranking-centro-mundolengua/
https://www.facebook.com/pg/centroml/reviews/
FUNDRAISING:
We ran several fundraiser for our February 2019 trip. They consumed quite a bit of time and yielded very little money, so we will be holding very limited fundraisers for the April, 2025. trip.
Students can earn and save money! Even part-time jobs are paying over $15 per hour now.
Here are some crowdfunding ideas and other ideas on how to afford to study abroad:
🏢 HOMESTAY:
Each student will be paired up with one or two other SP students in a homestay. All students will receive specific information about their homestay families, addresses, phone numbers, etc. The homes are generally a 5-10 minute walk to the center of Sevilla.
When finalized, I will paste a link here to details about the students' homestays. I also will email the info to each student individually.
TRANSPORTATION:
🚌 BUS:
NEWS! Bus to Logan: Leaving at TBD-Date/time. It is very important that you arrive on time so that we have plenty of time to get the group through security, etc. at Logan Airport.
✈️ FLIGHT DETAILS:
TBD
🚉 TRAIN:
This year, we decided to fly to and from Madrid-Sevilla.
EMERGENCY CONTACTS (will be updated):
If you need to contact someone from Centro MundoLengua, our contacts' phone numbers (from the US) are:
Office: 011 34 954 004 265
Guide:
Address: Cuesta del Rosario 8, casa 1, 4oA
Sr. Coll: collhe@spsdme.org
Hotel: - Basic Hotel Sevilla Catedral - Calle Álvarez Quintero, 38, 41004 Sevilla - 011 34 954 501 541
USEFUL TRAVEL INFORMATION:
Please DO pack a small thank you gift or two for your homestay host(s.)
Perhaps local sweets, magnets with Spring Point or Bug Light, coasters, Maine wine bottle stoppers (Etsy) or whatever says South Portland or Maine to you. Remember, it should be lightweight and not violate any TSA rules (nothing sharp or liquid!)
Passports
Many European countries ("the Schengen states") require that your passport be valid for at least three months beyond your planned date of departure from the Schengen area. That would be July 28, 2025. For more information see the Department of State's Schengen web page at http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/go/schengen-fact-sheet.html
Visas are not needed for a program of this duration (less than 90 days.)
CENTRO MUNDOLENGUA Here is how parents/students sign up for the program:
1) Go to https://www.centromundolengua.com/apply/
2) Choose the option "MS/HS Programs" and "I am travelling with a group of students from my school".
3) Choose the option "South Portland HS".
3) Click on "next" and fill in the different fields required.
4) At the end of the application form, students will be able to pay their $TBA non-refundable deposit to confirm participation in the program.
DO NOT CLICK THE OPTION - "I/My parents are paying my school/university. My school/university is then paying on my behalf."
PACKING & CARRY ON LUGGAGE
DO NOT OVERPACK! You must have only one carry on bag (hand luggage), plus a small bag (like a small backpack) that fits under the seat in front of you on the plane. This is not a suggestion, it is a requirement! With a group of our size a single person who needs to check in luggage and wait at baggage claim could delay us all!
Iberia Airlines are very serious about their luggage rules and you may have to pay 75€ ($80) if yours are too heavy. Here is a link to Iberia Airlines' very specific information on permissible carry on bags:
https://www.iberiaexpress.com/en/general-info/passenger-information/before-you-go/baggage/hand-baggage
Be sure to include wheels and handles when you measure your bag's dimensions. Watch out for weight, too, some airlines only allow carry on bags up to 7kg (15 lbs.).
General packing advice: Leave room in your luggage for anything you may want to purchase in Spain. Wear and pack only comfortable clothes, especially shoes! Absolutely no new shoes, not even sandals! Blisters can make you miserable. (We will be walking a lot!) Do not bring flip flops or slide-ons. Your footwear must be secured around your heel. You will not need a coat. Sweatshirts take up a lot of room, especially hoodies. If you want one, wear it and pack a lighter alternative like a lightweight fleece or jacket. Check the weather shortly before we leave so that you have a better idea of what to pack as far as pants v. shorts, etc. Remember your swimsuit for our surfing lesson in Cádiz! (Here's a link to a lightweight towel for $10. Turkish towel ) Pack earplugs, just in case!
Here is a good video on how to travel with only one carry on bag: How to Pack Light
Here's a good article on TSA rules for carry on bags: TSA Rules for Carry On Luggage Go to the TSA site directly if you have additional questions. (BTW, a gel is considered a liquid.)
WEATHER, TOILETRIES, PHONES
The great weather in Sevilla is one of the reasons you can pack light (lightly?) The temps in April are generally 55-75 degrees F, with the daytime temps usually 65-75. That's a little warmer than our average September. The humidity is low and there will probably only be a day of measurable rainfall.
Remember, there are laundry facilities, pharmacies, etc. in Spain. 😉 Except for prescription medicine, and anything you need on the plane (such as motion sickness bands, tissues, wipes... ) you can get what you need in Sevilla. Please make sure that all prescription medication is in the original container from the pharmacy, that the student's name is clearly legible and that it has not expired. Pack extras of emergency medications such as inhalers or epipens.
Remember an adaptor to charge your phone. Spain's plugs are not the same as the rest of Europe! If you forget, you can buy one there, but electronics tend to more expensive in Spain than at home. Regarding electronics, I have read that an adaptor works for most small electronics, but for something with a "block" charger, like a MacBook, a converter may be necessary.
Speaking of phones, contact your wireless carrier about getting an international cell phone plan for the 10 days. (For Verizon, it may be less expensive to pay for a month rather than 10 individual days.) Theoretically, you can put your phone in airplane mode and just use wifi, but if you forget to turn it back to that mode even once it will cost you mucho dinero!