May is the key month to book the study trip: why planning ahead makes all the difference

The same story repeats every year. The first classes to get organised — the ones that start in May — end up travelling with better hotels, lower prices and more manageable instalments. Those who wait until August or September meet a different reality: places in the best accommodation are already committed, the advance-sale prices have expired and the options for customising the programme have narrowed.

The difference is not luck. It is timing.

Why May and not later?

May is the point of balance in the study trip cycle. We are far enough from the trip — which in most cases takes place between October and December of the following year — to have real room to choose, but close enough to the start of the school year for classes to be organised already and parents open to looking at options.

"Planning a study trip is not just choosing the destination: it is managing availability, costs, quality, safety and peace of mind. In May you can still choose; you can still negotiate. You can get advance-sale rates, limited benefits and the best hotels. Anyone who waits until August or September does not choose: they take what is left, and usually pay more," explains Marcelo Rollandi, founder of Vivencias Travel.

The concrete advantages of booking in the advance-sale period

The idea of an "advance sale" is not just a marketing device. It has real implications for families:

- Frozen prices: booking in May means the agreed price does not rise even if the dollar or the exchange rate moves. For international destinations such as Camboriú or Cancún, that can mean a difference of hundreds of thousands of pesos. - Lower instalments: with 18 to 24 months' notice, the total is divided into more instalments. A package that could be financed at CLP 45,000 a month if booked in May can rise to CLP 70,000 or more if you wait until August. - A real choice of hotel: the hotels with the best location, the best service and the best reviews have limited availability for groups. Early bookings get priority. - 5% discount for payment in full: valid only during the advance-sale period, until 30 June 2026.

"Classes that start 18 to 24 months in advance get lower instalments, better promotions and greater price stability. The difference between planning early and waiting can be several hundred thousand pesos per student." — Marcelo Rollandi, founder of Vivencias Travel

What happens if we wait?

As the travel date approaches, the equation shifts in the operator's favour and against the family. By September or October of the year before the trip, the factors are:

- Places at the most sought-after hotels are full or very limited - Advance-sale prices are no longer available - The room to customise the programme (activities, excursions, days) narrows - The pressure on instalments is greater because the timeframe is shorter

None of these factors is dramatic on its own. But together they make booking late consistently more expensive, with fewer options, than booking in May.

The process: how an advance-sale booking works

Booking in the advance-sale period does not mean an immediate or final financial commitment. The typical process is:

1. Information meeting with the agency: a presentation of the destination, programme, prices and conditions. Free and with no commitment. 2. Booking with a 10% deposit (non-refundable): secures the price and the place. 3. Monthly instalments from month 1 to month 10, up to 45 days before departure. 4. Settlement of the remaining balance.

The booking is formalised with a contract, and that contract specifies exactly what is included, the cancellation policy and how unforeseen events are handled.

The first step: a meeting, no pressure

If your class is weighing up destinations for 2027, the ideal moment for that first meeting is now. Not to commit, but to compare options with real time to spare.

A good presentation meeting should leave the programme, the itemised prices, the contract terms and the team travelling with the group perfectly clear. If you come out of that meeting with more questions than answers, keep looking.

Vivencias Travel is a tour operator specialising in study trips, with its own presence in Chile, Argentina, Brazil and Mexico. It offers 24/7 support, trained coordinators and comprehensive programmes for school groups.