33 Days to Go!

Hola,

The Spain tour is only 33 days away!  Here is some important information as we make the final preparations for our amazing tour. 

FINAL INFORMATION MEETING

All main group and shadow group members must attend the final information meeting on Wednesday, March 9, 2016 at 7:00PM in the High School Large Auditorium.  At the meeting, you will receive your final tour documents and important travel information.  All student travelers must attend with at least one parent/guardian. 

PREVIEW CONCERT

The Shaker Heights School Red Raider Marching Band will present a special Spain Tour Preview Concert on Monday, March 21, 2016 at 7:00PM in the High School North Gym.  The concert is mandatory for all performing band members.  At the conclusion of the concert, students will meet with their chaperones and receive any last minute tour departure information.

Luggage

You are allowed one checked piece of luggage—up to 50 LB and 62 linear inches L+W+H). You can also bring one carry-on piece the size of a school backpack. Flute, Clarinet, Alto Sax and Trumpet should be carried onto the aircraft and all other instruments will have to be checked as luggage.  Due to limited space on the motor coaches, it is essential that you pack efficiently.  Instruments required to be checked as luggage will be handled at no charge to students. The SHHS Band staff will facilitate the checking of instruments and the payment of any associated luggage fees. Lost or damaged luggage must be reported before you leave the airport. The airlines will not be responsible for unreported loss or damage. See your tour guide if you need help with lost or damaged luggage. [1] Band members must pack their individual band uniforms in their suitcase for the duration of the tour. 

MEALS

A daily European continental-buffet breakfast and five group dinners are included in the tour program.  Lunches and snacks will be at your own expense each day and you should budget 5-10 Euro per lunch and 10-20 Euro for dinner depending on your individual needs. At included dinners, table water will be included where provided by the restaurant. Bottled water, soft drinks, coffee, and tea will be at your own expense and you will need to settle the bill with the waiter before you leave the table. Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, lactose-free or other select special meals can be requested in advance and the guides will assist you in restaurants while touring. Please advise your guide politely of any special dietary needs and they will be happy to assist you. We will do our best to meet special dietary requirements and preferences.  It is your responsibility to communicate your dietary needs to restaurant staff throughout the tour.  You may find it helpful to send your student with a simple index card indicating any dietary restrictions (ie: food allergies, etc.) translated into Spainish.

AIR TRANSPORTATION

All passengers will receive their final flight assignment and air ticket itinerary at the final group meeting on Wednesday, March 9, 2016 at 7:00PM in the High School Large Auditorium.  Passengers will be flying on Iberia, Lufthansa, Delta, United, and American Airlines to and from Spain. Passengers were ticketed on group reservation numbers. Seats are generally assigned in alphabetical order within each reservation number. You will not be able to adjust seats or check-in online as you would with an individual ticket.

PROTECTING VALUABLE ITEMS

The band is providing zippered neck-pouch passport holders for each traveler. All neck pouches will be distributed at the Spain Tour Preview Concert on Monday, March 21, 2016 at 7:00PM in the North Gym.  Staff and chaperones will distribute and collect passports as necessary while traveling and will place them in the hotel safe when not needed. Your neck-pouch is also useful for storing credit cards and cash during daily sightseeing activities.

3-1-1 GUIDELINES

All liquids, gels or aerosols in your carry-on luggage must be in original containers of 3 ounces or less. All containers of liquids, gels and aerosols are to be placed in one quart-size clear plastic zip-top bag. One quart-size bag of liquids, gels and aerosols per traveler is allowed in your carryon luggage. This bag must be removed from your luggage and placed in the security bin for x-ray screening at the security check point. Visit www.tsa.gov for further details and the most current security policies.

TIME DIFFERENCE

Spain will be 5 hours ahead of Cleveland until March 27, 2016, due to the USA on daylight savings time and Europe transitioning to “Summer Time.” From March 23 – 26, 2016 Spain will be 5 hours ahead of Cleveland.  Starting on March 27, 2016 Spain will be 6 hours ahead of Cleveland. 

MEDICAL NEEDS

All students will carry their medication with them on the flights to and from Spain.  All medications should be packed into a clear Ziploc bag marked with student name and kept in carry-on luggage.  DO NOT pack medication in your checked luggage. Once we arrive in Spain all students will turn their medications over to the Shaker Heights administration.  Shaker administrators will be responsible for administering medication for the duration of the tour.  We suggest you obtain a duplicate of your prescriptions, inhalers and epi-pens. If you become ill while on tour, inform an adult immediately.  Special inoculations are not required to visit Spain. We encourage you to check with your physician as a precaution.  If you have questions or concerns about medications please contact Sara Chengelis, Shaker Heights Assistant Principal, at 216-295-4200 or chengelis_s@shaker.org.

WEATHER AND CLOTHING

The entire trip is casual so please dress for comfort. You can expect average daily temperatures to vary between 50-70° F over the course of the day. Use www.weather.com as a resource before departure.

COMMUNICATION

This tour is an opportunity to unplug and experience a different culture and a beautiful country.  For the duration of the tour, the lobby and common areas of our hotels have free WiFi access.  Skype and other messaging apps are a great way to communicate when in free WiFi areas.  Roaming voice and data charges can be very expensive and this deserves careful attention before departure.  If necessary, we recommend that you contact your cell phone service provider and upgrade your plan to an international calling plan while we are on tour.  Be sure your mobile phone has a data or application switch if you plan on using it abroad. Do not call home from your hotel rooms as it is very expensive. 

ELECTRICITY

The electricity in Spain runs at 220 volts, 50 cycles. You will need to bring an adapter and/or converter to use all electronic devices.  Please review your device information before departure. Converter and adapter kits can be bought at Target, Walmart, etc.

FOREIGN CURRENCY

The exchange rate(s) may fluctuate daily and may vary depending on financial institution.  This information is accurate as of February 18, 2016.

1 US Dollar = .90 Euro cents
1 Euro = 1.11 US Dollars

MONEY AND USE OF DEBIT/CREDIT CARDS

We recommend you bring a combination of cash (€ Euros) and some type of debit & credit card for the tour that can be used in local ATM/Bankomat machines. Check with your bank for any ATM or foreign transaction fees associated with your debit & credit card. MasterCard, Visa and American Express are accepted in most restaurants and shops, but not in all locations. Local currency can be withdrawn from ATM machines with cards on the Plus and Cirrus systems. You must have a 4-digit PIN for these cards to work. You generally receive the Interbank rate-of-exchange plus any foreign transaction fees (FTFs) associated with your individual card. YOU MUST CALL YOUR BANK TO ADVISE THAT YOU WILL BE USING YOUR DEBIT OR CREDIT CARD IN SPAIN OR THE CARD MAY BE DEACTIVATED FOR FRAUD PROTECTION.

TRAVEL GUARD GROUP PROTECTION PLAN

Each traveler has limited insurance coverage with Travel Guard’s, Group Protection Plan. There is NO trip cancellation coverage provided as part of this policy. This policy is not intended to protect your original monetary investment in the tour, but rather to aid in recovery of additional expenses that may result from travel issues while touring. For incidents not affecting the entire group, individual travelers must file claims at the time of the incident. From Europe, call toll-free (715) 345-0505. In the U.S.A. call (800) 326-1300. Your tour leaders have the insurance policy number with them.

Final Invoices for Spain Tour and Pre-Trip Meeting

Dear SHHS Spain Travelers,

We are in the final stage of making plans for the upcoming tour to Spain. The final tour document meeting has been scheduled for Wednesday, March 9 at 7:00 pm in the High School Large Auditorium. GrandTours and SHHS staff/administration will facilitate the meeting together. We will distribute and review your travel documents as well as answer any final questions about the tour program. Document packets will contain your air schedule and e-ticket receipt, a detailed tour itinerary in booklet format, luggage tags, and a leave-behind itinerary for families. Travel documents for both the student and shadow tours will be distributed and reviewed at the same time.

Regarding your tour account, any and all fundraiser amounts have been applied to final invoices and these have been sent to you by e-mail from GrandTours to the e-mail address used to register for the tour. Please pay the final invoice at this time. If you have questions about the FUNDRAISING portion, please contact SHHS.  If you have questions about the tour balance or your payment history, please contact GrandTours by e-mail at: accounts@grandtoursinc.com  We expect that all accounts will be paid-in-full in a timely manner and we will only distribute travel documents to those that have completed their tour payments. A paid-in-full account is required to receive travel documents and to travel with the SHHS Band to Spain. 

Letter Regarding the Spain Tour

In consultation with GrandTours, the District would like to share the following travel information:

• What is the official level of concern for overseas travel? You may have heard about general, worldwide ''travel alerts" that have been issued by the State Department; these are very different from "travel warnings", which have NOT been issued. A ''travel alert" is designed to heighten awareness of the traveling public, and a "travel warning" is a concrete warning to avoid traveling to specific destinations. At this point, the State Department has only issued a ''travel alert", simply communicating a need to "be aware" or “vigilant” as a traveler. Cancellation of travel plans under a ''travel alert" would not be covered by most travel insurance policies. If there were an official U.S. State Department "travel warning" to Spain, the trip would be cancelled. The company would work to pursue any possible refunds with all contracted air and land suppliers. In most cases, the air carriers would not fly to any destination under such a "travel warning." It is notable that there has not been a single ''travel warning" to Europe within the last 25 years.

• What is the position of our tour company and other businesses in the travel industry? At this point, GrandTours has initiated no changes to the tour program and will continue to monitor events in Spain and Europe on a daily basis. Having operated tours to Europe for twenty-five years, the company evaluates each situation as it presents itself. As of today, there are no changes to the tour itinerary. They are “confident the tour program is completely safe for student travel as structured.”

• What is the role of travel insurance in this type of situation? GrandTours encourages you to speak directly with a travel insurance agent to understand what is and is not covered by most common travel insurance policies. There are individual insurance policies still available for purchase. They recommend contacting the following reputable insurance provider: www.travelguard.com GrandTours also includes the Travel Guard (AIG) Group Protection Plan for all of its travelers. It does not contain pre-trip cancellation coverage, but is designed to protect travelers while out of the country and features excellent coverage for medical incidents, trip delays, trip interruptions, baggage loss/damage and possible individual evacuation.

If you are concerned about a pre-trip cancellation, it is not too late to purchase travel insurance. The only insurance that cannot be purchased is “cancel for any reason” insurance or coverage for “pre-existing medical conditions.” Those typically need to be purchased within 14 days of registering for the tour. For more information, feel free to visit: www.travelguard.com

We fully expect to have a safe and wonderful trip to Spain. We will continue to keep you informed of any new or changing information in collaboration with GrandTours as we approach the departure date.

Sincerely,

Shaker Heights Administrators & Band Directors

GrandTours Owner

Reminders for this week

Just a few reminders for the coming week.

All band members will be having their picture taken on Monday through Wednesday during 1st period. We will have band uniforms available to wear, but Raiderettes who are in band should bring their uniforms to school one of the three mornings so they can have their picture taken and then change before returning to class. Order forms are available for those interested in picture packages.

For those going on the Spain Tour, all passports, forms and dry cleaning receipts were due last week and need to be turned in immediately. Remember, raincoats do not need to be cleaned, and the all black uniforms worn by the tubas and percussion should be machined washed, not dry cleaned. More information regarding uniform exchanges for those with repair or fit issues will be coming out shortly.

Also, don't forget that Saturday, January 30, is the Chamber Music Festival. Final performance times will be available on Monday. More information, including the program and bios for our guest musicians, will be coming out later this week.

Final Spain Tour Invoices

Dear Spain Travelers,

GrandTours is in the process of preparing final invoices for the Spain tour. Part of this process is to apply fundraising credits for each student as a line item to each invoice. Because holiday fundraisers have just concluded, the reconciliation of fundraising profits and communication of these to GrandTours by SHHS will take time. Once a list of fundraising profits are received by GrandTours from SHHS, the amounts will be credited to your final tour invoice.

In order to avoid confusion, we ask that you DO NOT make your final payment to GrandTours until you receive a final invoice by e-mail. We expect this process to be completed sometime next week. Any questions about the amount of fundraising credit on the final invoice should be directed to SHHS and not GrandTours. The final payment for the tour is due to be postmarked by January 31, 2016. GrandTours understands that these payments may arrive after the due date.

Spain Tour Due Dates Approaching!

The Spain Tour is only 78 days away! 

 

Student Chaperone Group forms are due this Friday, January 8, 2016.  All student groups will have 8 members.  Please check with your child to see who they have chosen for their group. 

 

All Spain Tour Forms (Passports, Medication Form, Permission Slip, Release Form) are due to Mr. Crain next Friday, January 15, 2016.  Please note, only student performers in the band group need to turn in these forms.  Travelers on the family & friends (Shadow Tour) are not required to turn in the forms.

 

You can download and print the Spain Tour forms here (links to the forms can be found in the box on the right hand side).

 

Please contact Mr. Crain if you have any questions.

Winter Concerts 12/15 & 16

The SHHS Bands will present their Winter Concerts this week. Concert Ensemble (Clemens), Concert Winds (Kulikowski), and Symphonic Band (Crain) will perform on Tuesday, 12/15. Jazz Ensemble, Concert Band (Tyrrell), and Wind Ensemble (Hughes) will perform on Wednesday, 12/16. Both concerts begin at 7:30 PM in the High School Large Auditorium. Call time for all students is 6:45 PM in concert attire, and students are expected to stay for their entire concert. Join us for a great evening of music making!