EF Tours doesn’t sell teachers a personal discount. It does something different: when you lead a student group, your own spot is free once six paying travelers enroll, and you earn a free chaperone spot for every six more. If you’re planning a class trip, that’s a real saving. If you’re a teacher booking a vacation for yourself, it doesn’t apply.
EF Tours runs educational group travel for schools, with teachers acting as group leaders. Its pricing page describes a package that covers all transportation including flights, hotels with private bathrooms, regional-style meals, a full-time Tour Director, activities and guided tours, and a 24/7 support team on tour.
How To Get The EF Tours Group Leader Benefits
- Pick an EF educational tour and start planning it with your students and their families. EF pairs you with a Tour Consultant when you get started.
- Enroll paying travelers. When six paying travelers sign up, EF covers your spot so you don’t pay for yours.
- Keep enrolling. For every six additional travelers after that, you earn a free chaperone spot. EF’s own example: 30 paying travelers means you and four chaperones travel free.
The Free Training Tour
First-time group leaders can also earn a no-cost, teacher-only training tour. EF’s requirement is enrolling at least 10 paying travelers on your first educational tour, and its terms and conditions cover the rest. The training tour lasts four days and gives you a preview of a student trip, including tours, activities and meals, with workshops led by teachers who’ve run EF trips before.
EF lists nine training destinations: Barcelona, Berlin, Dominican Republic, Lisbon, Madrid, Munich, Panama, Paris and Tokyo. If you can’t travel, EF offers a virtual training tour instead. Before any of that, its Road to Ready program starts with online learning modules you complete at your own pace, seven lessons in all, beginning with your role as a group leader.
Global Rewards Points
Leading tours earns Global Rewards Points, and EF says you earn them faster the more tours you lead. Other teachers at your school who lead EF tours add bonus points, and referring a colleague who leads their own tour earns extra. You can redeem points toward student scholarships, and EF says it matches your total, so the points are worth twice as much for that purpose. They can also cover on-tour extras like optional excursions, or go toward professional development such as a Global Educator Convention.
What It Doesn’t Cover
The free spots are for group leaders and chaperones. Every student and parent still pays the tour price, and EF’s pricing page says families can choose to pay over time interest-free or all at once. EF also describes a risk-free enrollment refund if a family cancels within the eligible timeframe, and a no-fee fundraising page for every traveler. Travel protection is optional for families, but EF notes that most educators who lead its tours require their whole group to enroll in a plan, and the cost is added to each traveler’s price automatically.
Q&A
Does EF Tours have a teacher discount?
Not a personal one. The benefit is for teachers who lead a student group: a free leader spot at six paying travelers and a free chaperone spot for every six after that.
How many students do I need to travel free?
Six paying travelers cover your spot. Thirty paying travelers cover you plus four chaperones, per EF’s own example.
What’s the training tour?
A four-day, no-cost, teacher-only trip for first-time group leaders. You earn it by enrolling at least 10 paying travelers on your first educational tour.
Can I use Global Rewards Points for student scholarships?
Yes. EF says you can put points toward scholarships for your students and that it matches your total.
Does EF offer graduate credit?
EF lists professional development opportunities for educators after a tour, including graduate-level credit.
Are flights included in the price?
EF’s pricing page lists all transportation, including flights, as part of what’s included on tour.
Who do I contact with questions about rewards?
EF’s Global Rewards team is at 800-782-2076.
More Information:
EF’s group leader pricing page and its Global Rewards page list the terms above. For a trip aimed at educators over 50 instead of student groups, Road Scholar has scholarships for people who work in education.
