Geography Trip to Barcelona and Costa Brava

A geography school trip to Barcelona and the Costa Brava offers your students the chance to conduct a river study and see volcanic scenery.

The Catalonia region of Spain is surrounded by several spectacular and unspoilt natural parks. Field study sites include the limestone landscapes of Montserrat, the volcanic scenery of Garrotxa Volcanic Park and the Tordera river valley, where your students can conduct a river study.

Our comprehensive study booklets and introduction packs will provide all the information you need to enable students to complete field studies and achieve a successful trip, whether at GCSE or A Level.

Thinking about making this a cross-curricular trip? Barcelona and the Costa Brava also offer exciting opportunities for Spanish, business studies, art, fashion and food technology.

Suggested Itinerary

Day 1

Morning

Flight to Barcelona/Girona

Afternoon

Arrive at resort

Evening

Evening meal at accommodation

Day 2

Morning

Spend the day discovering volcanic landscapes in La Garrotxa Volcanic National Park

Afternoon

Visit to Sant Joan les Fonts - study the basalt formed when lava flow solidifies

Evening

Return to hotel for evening meal

Day 3

Morning

Tordera river study in Montseny Natural Park - follow river course and practise field skills to appreciate the processes at work in each section of the river valley

Evening

Return to hotel for evening meal

Day 4

Morning

Visit to the Port of Barcelona

Afternoon

Visit to the Nou Camp Shopping and free time in Las Ramblas

Evening

Return to hotel for evening meal

Day 5

Morning

Transfer back to airport

Afternoon

Return to UK

4 nights' half-board accommodation
Airport taxes and passenger duty at current rates
ATOL protected return flights from the UK
Comprehensive geography educational pack
Detailed information pack
Free staff place ratio 1:10
Full use of coach for excursions as shown on itinerary
Itinerary planning service
Vamoos travel app - giving you access to all your trip documents on your phone or tablet
VAT at current rates to tour operators

Curriculum

A Level

Characteristics of an ecosystem
Biodiversity: flora and fauna adaptations
Impacts of climate change on biomes
Economical and social threats to ecosystems
Sustainable management of resources
The water cycle
Coastal landscape systems and features of littoral zones
Weathering, erosion and deposition
Coastal management strategies
Threats to the coastline and the impact of tourism
Fieldwork

GCSE

Characteristics of ecosystems
Biodiversity: flora and fauna adaptations
Impact of climate on ecosystems
Global threats to ecosystems
Water and carbon cycles
Drylands and deserts
Geomorphic processes, erosion and deposition
Distinctive coastal landforms
Impact of humans on coasts
Coastline protection schemes
Fieldwork

Key Stage 3

Weather and climate
Rocks, weathering and soils
Hydrology and coasts

Primary

Climate zones
Biomes and vegetation belts
The water cycle

Accommodation

HTOP Platja Park

The HTOP Platja Park is a great choice for your school trip to Barcelona and the Costa Brava. Located in Platja d'Aro, it is just 650m from Platja Gran beach and is also close to the Aqua Diver water park. There's a lovely pool with a sun terrace, and meals are served buffet-style in the hotel's restaurant. The guestrooms sleep 1-4 people and all benefit from a private bathroom and air-conditioning. Free WiFi is available throughout the property.

HTOP Molinos Park

The HTOP Molinos Park is located less than 500m from the beach and right next to Salou's commercial centre. There's a lovely sun terrace with Jacuzzis, as well as a large outdoor swimming pool. Meals are served buffet-style in the hotel's restaurant. Guestrooms sleep 1-4 people and all benefit from private bathroom, TV and air-conditioning. Free WiFi is available throughout the property.

H Top Olympic Hotel

The Htop Olympic Hotel is located in Calella and is a great base for a school trip to Barcelona and the Costa Brava. There are 3 swimming pools and a lovely sun terrace. Meals are served buffet-style in the hotel's restaurant. Guestrooms sleep 1-4 people and all benefit from en-suite bathroom facilities, air-conditioning and a TV. WiFi is available throughout the property.

Educational Activities

Beach management case study

There are many towns along the coastline to experience the varying management techniques, and there is a chance to compare,

Garrotxa Volcanic National Park

This wonderful national park is perfect for exploring Spain's volcanic landscape.

Lloret de Mar – Tourism gone wrong?

One of the main coastal towns along the Costa Brava, Lloret de Mar attracts tourists year round and is said

Montserrat

Perched high in the mountains above Barcelona, and accessible by cable car or train, Montserrat is one of the most

Port of Barcelona

With over a million passenger arrivals every year, Barcelona is one of the most important ports in the Mediterranean for

Tordera River Study

The Tordera river offers your students the opportunity to discover the different processes at work in the different sections of

Cultural Activities

Camp Nou Experience

Home to FC Barcelona, a visit to the Nou Camp stadium includes a tour of the stadium itself.

La Rambla

Also known as Las Ramblas, this long, wide avenue is the heart of Barcelona's shopping district and the hub of

Olympic Museum & Stadium

This stadium was the focus of the 1992 Olympic Games. It is now turned into an Olympic Museum and Gallery.

Park Guell

Intended as a housing development that never quite took off, Parc Guell is an urban park in a northern suburb of Barcelona.

Sagrada Familia

Antoni Gaudi's unique, awe-inspiring cathedral continues to grow almost organically, like a medieval cathedral.

Race for Time

Take on this fun challenge and get to know your destination better with this exciting activity trail.

Supporting you every step of the way

Creating your perfect trip

Your quote will be put together by an experienced Tour Adviser who’ll be an expert in the subject area and will know the destination really well too. They’ll work with you to create a trip to suit your group’s needs and meet your learning objectives.

Launching your trip to parents and students

The next step is to get your trip approved and then get students signed up to it. Our ‘Trip Launch Pack’ will help you with this step. This is full of resources (all free to download) designed to make your life easier at this crucial point in the trip planning process.

After you’ve booked

Once you’ve booked, your dedicated Itinerary Coordinator will start work on the finer details. They’ll make sure your itinerary makes the most of your time and they’ll take on most of the admin tasks for your trip (freeing you up to do what you do best – teach).

Support while you’re away

From lost property to properly lost, we’ll always be on the end of the phone while you’re out on the trip. You’ll get a final info pack before you go, as well as access to all your trip documents via the Vamoos app.

After your trip

We’ll ask you for feedback, so we can improve our service. Let’s start planning your next trip too, so parents have plenty of time to pay (and so it’s less stressful for you). And don’t forget to head to our resources hub to continue the learning back in the classroom.