Thanks for thinking about organising a trip, do you know a great place a little further away? Like walks and socials, any member can organise a trip away either for a weekend or a little longer. There's a little more to think about when planning a weeknd as people will need somewhere to stay and places to eat. You may also want to consider pairing up with someone else to organise a trip away. For example, one person may want to plan and lead walks while another organises the accommodation or meals. This spreads the work and also allows people to play to their strengths! Weekends away normally run from a Friday night to Sunday, or Monday afternoon for a long four-day weekend.
Below are some notes to help you with planning and running a weekend trip. This is not a prescriptive or exclusive guide it includes ideas that worked well in the past.
Planning
Location and walks
You may wish to organise a trip away to an area that you are familiar with, or perhaps somewhere new. Some people are confident in leading walks in areas that they haven’t been to before especially when its an area popular with walkers like the Peak District or Lake District. Check with the Weekends Coordinator that the dates are free and that your destination is not already covered in the same period.
If possible, consider the option of a shorter walk versus a long walk to allow for varying ability levels. For example, if public transport is available some members can return to the accommodation earlier. Alternatively, you may wish to recruit a second walk leader who
can lead the shorter/longer walk. It is good to have a shorter walk on the last day of a trip to give people more time to travel home. As a bonus, this could be in the direction of home
Where to stay?
Deciding where to stay often falls into one of two categories;
- You book accommodation shared accommodation for everyone
- Attendees book it independently
Both types have their advantages and disadvantages. Staying in shared accommodation such as hostels, bunk houses, cottages, or campsites gives the group a central base to hang out when not walking and makes self-catering possible which helps to keep costs down for everyone. Its a good idea to have a small kitty to buy common items e.g. tea, coffee, milk, cereal and bread. Some campsites do not like groups, check if they are okay with a group and what size.
Look at the availability dates of shared accommodation. Check if you can reserve it for a short time before you have to pay a deposit or if it is refundable and when the balance needs to be paid. This gives the group a chance to publicise the weekend, generate interest and collect deposits from participants.
If you're asking people to book B&Bs and hotels independently, make sure accommodation is available on the weekend you want. If there aren't many local B&Bs at a reasonable price, no one will be able to book and join you on the weekend. Numbers can be far more flexible with this approach with the only limit being what you're happy with and where you can find for people to eat.
Where to eat
When you're staying in shared accommodation, its nice to have one evening where no-one has to cook or do the washing up. Often, when there is a large group of more than 10, you will have to pre-book pubs and restaurants so they can manage the group. They may ask to pre-order food or for a deposit so be prepared to ask attendees and chase up with a couple of people.
Publicising
Start the wow factors of your weekend, and describe it in a sentence or two, this is your chance to sell the weekend to everyone and make them want to go! Let people know what to expect, give a high-level outline of the weekend;
- Where are you staying
- Describe the shared accommodation - how many per room, what will it cost
- Booking own accommodation - is there a main base location? a list of suggestions is always welcome,
- Maximum number of attendees
- Will you be meeting on Friday? Where, will food be available, and is it a set time or flexible?
- A casual meal on the first-night people can eat when they turn up if traveling straight from work
- What time are last food orders - people will need to plan how and when they get there
- Describe the walks on offer including start time, length, duration, and a description of the terrain including good bits!
- Set expectations of any steep hills, bogs, rocky/uneven ground, weather
- Is any extra equipment recommended,
- not everyone who walks with us regularly in the Chilterns is familiar with what its like where you're going
- Rough plans to eat out or self-catering
- Give a budget range for eating out (e.g. main course £12-£17)
- Include if you have to pre-order or pay a deposit
Send it through to the Weekends Coordinator who will get it listed on the website and sent out to the whole group.
Taking bookings
- Best done via email, RSVPs on Facebook or Meetup are sometimes forgotten about
- We can set up an email address e.g.
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to forward emails to you. This will reduce the amount of spam you receive and keeps your email address private until you reply - Ask people for deposits if required whether for accommodation or meals
- If your weekend fills up, keep a reserve list, with any reserves allocated in booking order
- If you are booking shared accommodation how It should be made clear when the trip is advertised what the cost will be and whether the money will be refundable if someone cannot make the trip for some reason
- It can be easier to charge the full amount for a trip up front even though you may have paid a deposit and balance separately
- Make sure you keep track of who has paid what
- Usually, refunds are only given if a replacement can be found
- If there is additional money each attendee can be given a refund. It is much better to collect too much money rather than too little!
- The organiser should not profit from the trip, and therefore they should still pay for accommodation, food etc as other trip members
Running the Weekend
Before
Make sure the accommodation is paid for upfront if required. Make sure everyone has made lift arrangements, paying special attention to new members (make sure they are not traveling alone, unless they prefer to). Send out full details to everyone attending at least a week in advance with
- Reminders of what to bring for the weekend
- An at a glance schedule of the key times, places, and directions
- what to bring and any special plans. This makes it easier to get everyone to where they need to be when they need to be there
- It doesn't have to be set in stone, plans can change especially if the weather
- Gives you a chance to point out some hidden gems for people to explore on their own you may know about, like that amazing cream tea or hidden sandwich shop
- A reminder to carry details of contact numbers for next of kin and any pre-existing medical conditions they may have, in case of emergency
During
- If you're up in the mountains, check the Mountain weather information service, and adjust plans for walks accordingly
- Ensure new members are made welcome and introduce them to the rest of the group
- Attendance on a weekend does not mean that members have to take part in everything you may have planned!
- Remember to take a copy of the food order to the pub or restaurant as someone always forgets what they ordered
And finally
Thank you for all your hard work! Please submit the details of your proposed weekend on the form, and the weekend coordinator will be in touch.