How to plan a hockey tour

As you would expect, there is no ‘correct answer’ as the planning stage can vary slightly depending on location, group size and itinerary.However, to ensure thorough planning, the best prices and various date options, we would usually suggest starting your trip planning process at least 12 months in advance.  

Throughout the planning process of your sports tour, there can be a lot going on, so it’s important to remember the purpose of why you are organising the tour in the first place. This could be:  

• To provide players with coaching to improve their technique; 

• To experience a new culture; 

• To learn your sport from a different perspective; or 

• To bring my team closer together. 

Additionally, initial considerations need to be made in terms of your personal availability, academic availability (when is term time?), and cost variance on dates. If you are wanting to include a tournament, you’ll need to be clear on your team’s sporting ability so that we can accurately match you team (or teams if you’re bringing mixed ability) to others of equal skillset.  

See where an Edwin Doran Hockey tour can take you

Edwin Doran offers a wide range of destinations across the globe, and our friendly team can offer suggestions suited to your teams based on a wide variety of specifications. Holland is a very popular destination for our groups. Due to the sport being entirely club-based, instead of through schools, the quality of hockey is high, as the clubs act as huge social communities. The social setup, paired with the continuous success of both the Dutch men’s and women’s national hockey teams, means the country is surrounded by plenty of talent. 

“The Netherlands is one of the strongest hockey nations in the world, and I wanted our pupils to experience that culture. The combination of elite coaching, excellent facilities, and a safe, student-friendly environment made it the perfect destination.” Says Chloe. 

See a full hockey tour to Holland 

Across all sports at Edwin Doran, we ask the tour leader to rank their teams in terms of ability when competing in fixtures. It is important that tour leaders are honest about the ability of their teams, so healthy competition is experienced instead of unfair matches.  

Sporting ability varies between countries, so that must also be considered. Your hockey team may be best in the county, but compared to a team in Holland, they may not be at the same level. Speak to your Edwin Doran salesperson to find out more about quality of opposition to ensure healthy competition for your next tour. Chloe Menear considered competition levels when organising Bishops Stortford College’s hockey tour. 

When speaking to Chloe about her itinerary, we wanted to find out more about her priorities: 

• “Fixtures level – ensuring matches were competitive. 

• Coaching quality – access to Dutch coaches was a huge benefit. 

• Safety and logistics – smooth transfers, trusted accommodation, and clear supervision plans.” 

Edwin Doran Sports Tours prides itself on delivering excellent service and profound knowledge of our sports tour offerings, and their destinations. Chloe Menear from Bishops Stortford College found our support the most important thing when making sure the tour didn’t get stressful. 

“To avoid stress, I relied on regular updates from Edwin Doran, who handles the communication with clubs, secure fixtures and all the in-resort planning. Knowing someone else was managing those areas kept the hockey tour from becoming overwhelming. The support from Edwin Doran was excellent. I particularly valued: 

• Clear planning steps so I always knew what was coming next 

• A named contact I could call whenever something changed 

• Regular check-ins to keep everything on track. It felt like a partnership rather than me doing it alone.” 

Depending on level of experience with sports tours, tour leaders may come to us with an exact itinerary in mind, or a few general ideas. Edwin Doran can accommodate both options. Chloe came to Edwin Doran with a rough outline of what she wanted her Holland hockey tour to achieve. Edwin Doran then supported Chloe by offering suggested specific excursions, such as canal cruises, theme parks, and club visits. The team then worked with Chloe, refining the itinerary together, and balancing hockey intensity with fun and recovery time. 

One area of sports tour planning which is crucial for the execution of any sports tour, or any school trip, is approval from SLT and support from parents.  

The size of your sports tour will determine the amount of time needed to communicate to parents and ensure everyone is aware of the tour, and stages involved in the lead up. Organising dedicated meetings ahead of the sports tour, can allow for clear communication between yourself, parents and additional staff members if needed. It will also mean that everyone receives the same answer at the same time, reducing miscommunication. Having dedicated time to discuss the sports tour will reduce the added questions and emails outside this time if the meetings are effective. Chloe Menear told us that parents were particularly interested in: 

1. Cost – as a result she broke down what was included in the tour and offered a staged payment plan structure to support. 
2. Playing level – she assured parents that fixtures were matched according to ability.
3. Travel documents – Chloe reminded parents right from the start that passports needed to be in date, insurance needed to be confirmed, and EHIC/GHIC cards had to be ordered immediately. 

When preparing to get approval from SLT, it’s crucial to consider what benefits students can experience that they can’t receive in the classroom or at a destination closer to home. The senior leadership team want to know why they should let pupils on this tour, so clearly outline all the benefits associated with your trip. Chloe found approval from her senior leadership team to be straightforward, but that was because she prepared thoroughly beforehand. She made sure to showcase: 

• A clear educational rationale 

• A detailed risk assessment to highlight she had thought of the tour in detail, as well as prepared for a range of scenarios 

• A transparent budget 

• Evidence of student demand so the SLT can consider which students would be impacted by the sports tour. 

Chloe gave this useful tip for future tour leaders: “Present the trip as an extension of the school’s sporting and personal-development goals, not just a holiday.” 

As you can see, there are several elements to building and executing a successful hockey tour. One of the overarching areas of importance is starting your planning early to ensure availability of dates and destinations, as well as to reduce stress for yourself. The other clear theme to planning a successful sports tour is communication between parents, students and SLT. Adding in additional time for dedicated sports tour meetings for parents, and added planning time before speaking to SLT, can provide you with the best tools to create a successful and smooth hockey tour.