The Tips on Trips and Camps team just spent three days meeting with summer camp and teen program directors learning about the successes of summer 2021 and planning for summer 2022. It was wonderful to be together in person as a team and have so many directors come to present.

This is what we learned…

• Following the successes of summer 2021, overnight camps for kids and teens will stay true to the values and activities that have been the mainstay of their summer programming. They successfully made adjustment for Covid protocols but reported that camp was still wonderful and more important than ever for children’s development.
• Depending on the status of Covid and vaccination recommendations, most teen programs and many camps will require that campers and staff be vaccinated.
• Teen travel programs will aim high with many destinations listed on their websites. We feel, and programs agree, it makes sense that families should discuss a second trip choice in case the first-choice trips are not available due to travel restrictions.
• There is increased interest from teens for career focused programs and the options to dive deep with hands on experiences in medical, business, law, neuroscience, entrepreneurship, public health, engineering and more will be offered on pre-college campus programs. Some of these are available to middle schoolers as well as high school students.
• Parents are enrolling their students now, and camps, pre-college enrichment, language immersion, community service and teen travel experiences are filling earlier than ever before. Many offer generous cancellation guidelines and some offer early enrollment incentives, be sure to ask about them.

    To make the most of summer 2022, start your research now!