Explore Florence, Italy with World Class Programs

This is still my favorite trip I’ve ever been on in my life. I was worried going there that the staff would run the trip like a school field trip and not let us really explore or enjoy the trip. World Class Programs run by Derek was so well put together. The staff did an excellent job at balancing planned activities and free exploring. I always felt safe and without any worries I got to see all the sites I wanted to see while still getting to explore with other students freely and enjoy the different cities. The food was great the whole trip and the housing space was better than expected. Overall really well planned out wish I could do again with Derek as the guide.

My 16 year old took their first trip abroad with World Class Programs and it was an incredible experience. Staff was so fun, kind, and thoughtful with the students and truly loved sharing their passion for Italy with the kids. They were great at keeping parents in the loop with weekly emails that detailed everything they had been up to during the week and lots of photos. It was wonderful to see how much my child gained in terms of confidence, as well as passion for a new culture. We can't wait to take another trip with World Class Programs!

This trip will always be something that I will look back on throughout my life. I made so many friends and fun memories on this trip and I’ve never had an experience quite like this. Everyone is open minded and friendly and the teachers and staff are amazing people. When it comes to education and learning, they really do make it so easy to learn and ask questions. All the staff especially Derek love and care so much about each person and their personal interest, and they will go out of their way to make sure you have the best experience possible. One time we ordered food and they forgot parts of my order, I told Derek (one of the teachers) what happened and I insisted it was ok, but even so he went at 11pm that night and walked across all Florence Italy just to get the rest of my order that the restaurant had forgotten. That’s just how much they will go out of the way to make sure your needs are met on the trip. I took a major in art history and loved every second of it, we visit so many astonishing museums and churches and the teachers are amazing at keeping you focused and engaged so you can really admire and appreciate the historical value in what you are looking at. Normally when I get to travel I never know what I should do or where to go so I never feel like I get a full experience. But this program has really checked off all the boxes for me, and has given me the full experience that I was looking for in an overseas trip. Another personal favorite was the dinners, they never let you go hungry and ALWAYS have the best recommendations on what to try. During the trip we had lots of free time to explore with friends, but I’ve always felt as safe as possible. The staff always answers the phone when you need them, and always makes sure we are with one or more people when going out. This trip was one of, if not THE best experience I’ve ever had so far in my life. I feel like I’ve grown a second family on this trip and I’m so sad that it’s over. I wish I go could back and relive it, and I have and will recommend it to anyone who wants to study abroad in high school, you won’t regret it:)

Best decision I've made for my seventeen year old son! Having never traveled overseas alone, he braved the experience, knowing no one involved, and came home with eyes wide open and a whole new perspective on the world. Derek and the team at World Class Programs were organized and communicative at all times. Seeing pictures posted through the program as well as the weekly diary, let me see what he was experiencing every day. Next up is the Japan experience and we are beyond excited for his next adventure. We will surely recommend World Class Programs to friends and family.

Best. Three. Weeks. Ever. I absolutely loved this trip and it was worth every penny. The staff was amazing and cooperative and did not make us feel like they just had power over us they were super understanding of any problem we had. My sister went on this trip 2 years ago and has not shut up about it since so I was worried mine would not be as good as her’s, boy was I in for it. I took art history and photography and both of my teachers were great and made the subject fun and not like a regular high school class. The living situation was great and I have no complaints there, and our rooms had lots of space. The food situation was very good and we were not cheaper out when It came to eating and the staff made sure I never went hungry. Each day we had a literary that was very planned out. It was nice to not have to worry about planning and to just be told where to be at what time, it was worth the money. I will recommend this trip to anyone, it was a great experience and perfect for my age (17). The staff was amazing and I even felt like they were all our age and not just adults that didn’t want to have any fun. We had freedom and free time to also do activities we wanted to do. The program almost seems too good to be true but trust me it is exactly as good as I am telling you and a beautiful experience for teenagers. I actually enjoyed the program so much I am also going to be doing the Japan program this summer. We were well taken care of and I made friends that I know I will have for a lifetime. Before this trip I hadn’t been away from my family for even a week, not even camp. For the first 3 days I was nervous about the trip and how I was going to do but by day four I was so comfortable and was getting close with the girls in my room and I never wanted to leave. I have traveled a lot and been to many countries and different vacations but the is trip is by far my favorite trip I have ever been on. This trip has been amazing for me to grown as a person and meet new people from different states and to be submerged into a brand new culture.

I’ve never believed those reviews saying that the thing was amazing and life changing and all that, but I really do mean the things I have to say about this trip.
I genuinely think that I have grown more as a person in 3 weeks in the program than I have in the past past few months, I felt that I had a second family, while I was away from mine. If you have the means to go on a trip with W.C.P, don’t deprive yourself of the experience.
I will continue to go on program trips as long as I can , and I recommend that you do the same !

This trip was one of the most memorable trips I have ever been on! I made so many amazing friends and memories I’ll never forget and the staff is amazing ! I would recommend this trip to many other people I did this trip at 16 going into my junior year, I would recommend doing this trip at a similar age as many people here were 16-17. Derek plans this trip out amazingly and shows that he really cares about the students and staff. Don’t worry about not going with people you know as I found so many new and amazing friends I would have never found anywhere else.

Traveling abroad with World Class Programs was indeed an experience of a lifetime. I got to experience aspects of a country I would have struggled to find or reach if I had not been with the program. The program not only gave me opportunities to learn about topics in another country in a more academic setting with fun classes that kept me engaged but also through more experiential activities like class trips and program-wide day trips to cities outside of where we were mainly staying. I personally was able to have very big cultural revelations about myself due to the nature of the program and the way that they helped immerse us in the culture of Japan. The amount of opportunities that we had to explore some of the culture ourselves with our programmed free time was also incredibly valuable as it enabled me and others on my trip to really feel connected with Japan and the city we were staying in.
Overall I think that anyone with the opportunity to go on a trip with WCP should take it as it provides a great opportunity to immerse yourself in another country’s culture and environment which will aid both your personal and professional life by providing you new ways of thinking about things. The experiences you’ll have in both program activities as well as just being a member of the program and interacting with your peers are some that you won’t ever forget because of just how impactful they are. You really will have so much fun that you might be making plans to get back to Japan as soon as you hop on the plane ride back home!