The Morgan School announced that next year they are offering trips to both Costa Rica and Italy. This is the first time since 2018 that Morgan Students have been able to travel abroad through the school. In the spring of 2018, Spanish students traveled to Spain through Barcelona and Madrid, and Intro to Communication students traveled to England and Scotland. All students who have completed Spanish IV are eligible to go to Costa Rica, while any student who is a rising sophomore, junior, or senior can go to Italy. 

Both Italy and Costa Rica held informational meetings including their plans and itineraries. Each trip is taking place during the spring break of April 2024. They will both be visiting 3 different cities within the countries. Students going to Costa Rica will arrive in Liberia and spend the next two days in Guanacaste where they will visit sustainable farms, take cooking classes, zip line through canopies, and go snorkeling.  Following Guanacaste, students will travel to the Arenal region and Los Chiles where they will visit some National parks and take a boat tour. Finally, the Spanish students will arrive in San Jose where they will then depart from. The trip in total is 7 days full of adventure and fun. The students going to Italy will be arriving in Milan and then making their way via ferry to Venice. In Venice students will have the opportunity to see a glassblowing demonstration, St. Mark’s Square, and the Grand Canal. After their two days in Venice, they will be moving onto Florence where they will see The Piazza Della Signoria, Ponte Vecchio, Basilica of Santa Croce, and Gates of Paradise. In their final days, students will travel to Rome and experience the fine culture of the Roman Forum, Colosseum, Vatican City, and much more. This culturally-rich excursion will take place over 8 days. Like the previous international trips, both itineraries were created under EF tours where they could customize their plan. 

Library Media Specialist, Shannon Robinson explains more about the Italy trip, “the trip itself is based on Humanities and learning about some of the art and structures and things connected to Humanities course that students can take in their senior year.” Students who will be in the Humanities course next year will be finishing the Renaissance unit, so they’ll be able to see first hand what they had just learned. Sophomores and Juniors who go on the trip will be introduced to those topics that they have the opportunity to enjoy in their senior year.  Mrs. Robinson also explains that this trip will provide a lot of opportunities for students in that they will be able to “travel, see the world, and learn about life outside of school.”  Italy was the chosen destination because it will fit into the spring break period and won’t overlap any of the activities being done in Costa Rica.

This is not the first time Morgan has taken a trip to Costa Rica. In 2016, 38 Morgan students explored the beautiful wildlife and culture. The itinerary is the same for next year’s trip as it was in 2016. Spanish teacher Laura Luther shares her prior experience on the Costa Rica trip, “we saw the most biodiverse place in the world…it’s absolutely insane to see it in person.” Mrs. Luther is excited for her students to learn about the culture and see sights such as active volcanoes, rainforests, and deserts. “Travel is necessary and the most important thing you can do,” Mrs. Luther says.

The enrollment for the Costa Rica trip is already full of roughly 30 students accepted on the list. Meanwhile, the enrollment for Italy is open until May 12 with 5 spots available.