Families are facing potential losses of thousands of dollars after a wave of school trips to Europe were cancelled due to safety concerns surrounding travel through the Middle East. At least 15 schools in New Zealand have been affected, leaving students and parents grappling with financial uncertainty and dashed expectations.
Upper Hutt College was preparing to send approximately 50 students on a three-week European tour next week, with each student having paid around $13,000. The trip’s cancellation has left many students disheartened, particularly those who had been saving for years. Cindy Giddens, a student at Upper Hutt College, expressed her disappointment, noting she had already purchased customized hoodies commemorating the trip. “It just has places we were going to go, a little plane, and then you could customise them,” she said. “I put ‘Mr 305’.”
Connor Monk, another student, had planned to celebrate his 18th birthday on a cruise through the Greek Islands as part of the tour. For some students, the trip represented their first opportunity to travel internationally. “I was just most excited about getting to travel somewhere. I mean I’ve never travelled before, I’ve never been on a plane before,” Giddens said.
The decision to cancel the Upper Hutt College trip was made by the school’s board last week, prompted by safety concerns related to flights transiting through Dubai with Emirates. Principal Judith Taylor explained that a “do not travel” warning for the region made continuing with the planned itinerary untenable. “The only way for the trip to go ahead was to go with Emirates and to go through Dubai. But there’s a ‘do not travel’ warning on that, so it was a really hard decision for the [school] board,” she said.
Defining Moments, the travel company working with the affected school groups, stated it is addressing each case individually, acknowledging that a single solution is not possible. The company is holding meetings with families to outline available options.
Rerouting the flights proved unfeasible for Upper Hutt College. According to Principal Taylor, attempts to divide students into smaller groups on different airlines failed because it would have resulted in students arriving in various Italian cities and being responsible for their own transportation to Rome.
Families are bracing for only partial refunds. Consumer NZ chief executive Jon Duffy explained that reimbursement rights depend on the reason for the cancellation. “If it’s the airline cancelling the flight, in some instances you can recover costs like accommodation,” he said. “But if it’s due to something like an act of war, that’s outside the airline’s control and those extra costs typically won’t be refundable.”
Victoria Courtney, president of the Travel Agents’ Association NZ, highlighted the difficulty insurers face in covering such events. “The risk is enormous, and if it was covered, it would significantly increase premiums for everyone,” she said.
The financial impact is particularly acute for families who have been saving for the trips for years. Giddens noted that her mother had taken on a second job to help cover the costs. Many families now face uncertainty regarding the recovery of their funds.
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