In the summer of 2026, social studies teachers Robert Watson and Michelle LeMieux will lead and chaperone an informational student trip to Rome, Florence, Paris, and London open to all grade levels. Students will experience the different historical and cultural aspects of these cities.
While the planning for this trip is still in progress, Watson and LeMieux offer as much information as possible to any students interested. Watson, the AP European History teacher, explains the estimated price and plan for the trip.
“It’ll cost somewhere between six and seven thousand, we’ll get a firmer price when we lock in dates and kids start signing up,” Watson said. “We’re looking at a 10-day trip leaving the week after school ends in June of 2026.”
Government and Economics teacher LeMieux offers a snapshot of what is included in the price. All travel, including planes, buses, and trains, and two meals per day will be included. Tours, lodging, travel insurance, and the tour guide will also all be covered. Hotels are all rated three stars or higher and centrally located in each city. Souvenirs and all lunches are expenses after payment.
LeMieux wants to reassure students that there will be ways to make the trip more accessible.
“Plan early and don’t be turned away by the price. We can fundraise and pay over time,” LeMieux said.
Enrollment in this trip is done by individual families. Watson explained in an informational meeting that at least six students need to sign up for the trip for it to be confirmed. They hope that enough people will sign up to make it happen.
“The deadline for signing up is actually a ways off,” Watson said. “But the more people we can sign up early the more certain we can be that the trip is going to happen and maybe add more exciting teacher leaders!”
One of the main goals for this trip is for students to experience exposure to culture and language linked to historical events. This helps to foster a sense of exploration, which Watson and LeMieux consider an important value in students. Participants will visit popular landmarks such as Versailles, the Louvre, the Vatican, the Colosseum, and possibly the Tower of London.
Junior Ruth Brewer visited Paris and Nice on a school trip with Redwood High School students in the summer of 2023. Most students on the trip were in upper-division French classes and were able to practice their French throughout the trip. Brewer feels that exploring new places is important because it can open your eyes to different ways of living. As an incoming sophomore traveling with all seniors, Brewer found herself surrounded by new people.
“You experience a new culture, you see a lot of different walks of life and sometimes in Marin I feel like we get stuck with the same life,” Brewer said. “So getting the new experience and seeing different cultures was very enlightening.”
The freedom students have on the trip will be balanced with rules to keep students safe and maintain a responsible environment.
“It is not a ‘school’ field trip, but regardless of age, students should be prepared to follow rules like curfew, sticking to the schedule (free time is scheduled too), and general supervision by teachers like Watson and myself,” LeMieux said. “All laws that apply to students in the US apply there while in the program.”
This trip is separated from San Marin High School; it is planned through the travel company WorldStrides. This trip is their second time chaperoning through this program. This company specializes in student travel and has planned trips Novato Unified School District students have been on in the past, such as the 2022 New York and Washington, D.C. trip with Sinaloa and the 2020 Quebec City and Montreal trip with San Marin. The goal is to have San Marin students make up most of the participants, but students from other schools in the Novato Unified School District are also welcome on the trip.
For more information, Robert Watson and Michelle LeMieux are available to contact through [email protected] and [email protected].
