January 2022 Update
It’s hard to believe that we are enjoying Winter Break! As the trip nears, I'd like to provide a few updates for the trip. Please take a few moments to look at the following updates and reminders. Please read carefully as there is a lot of information here!
Final Trip Cost
The final trip cost has been set! When we introduced the trip, we estimated that the total cost would be $1600 plus optional travel insurance. Now that the roster is set and the travel company has secured hotels, buses, and tickets, we are pleased to announce the total base cost is only increasing by $50 (this is excellent, especially given current inflation trends). To account for this, the final payment will be $200.
Charms
CharmsOffice.com is where we house all of our travel information (enrollment, payments, fundraiser profits, etc.), attendance for performances, and band letter points. If you haven’t done so already, please log in to Charms and verify that all information (contact and financial) is correct. For information on accessing Charms, please refer to this page.
As a reminder, individual travel financial information will not be shared over email. Please access Charms using the information above for information specific to your account.
Current Payments
As of January 3rd, at least $1511.50 ($1450 for those without trip insurance) should be applied toward your trip balance. When looking in Charms, each traveler’s total remaining amount due for the trip should be at $200 or lower (see image below). The December and on-time January payments will be added to Charms by January 7th.
Each payment is the listed amount on the due date. Payments made after the due date will be charged a $20 processing fee. There are no exceptions to this, including absences.
Accrued payments and fundraising profits automatically cover the payments until that balance is under the total amount that should be turned in. You do not need to specify when you want to use the available funds.
Trip Performance Rehearsals
Trip performance rehearsals will begin in February — please add these to your calendar! We will have five Sunday afternoon rehearsals from 1:00pm to 4:00pm beginning on February 6th with the final one on March 13th. As noted in the trip commitment form, these rehearsals are mandatory and students may not be permitted to travel if they are not present at each rehearsal. There will be a student and parent travel meeting following the final rehearsal.
Since we set the dates, the district has added a long weekend over what would be our third rehearsal. We have decided to cancel the February 20th rehearsal. To replace the learning that we’ll miss, a recorded performance of the parade tune (memorized) will need to be submitted by February 27th. Specifics on this assignment wi be shared during the first few rehearses. Please contact us with questions!
Fundraisers
We will hold one final fundraiser beginning on January 10th. For this final fundraiser round, we will be selling Uncle Mike’s Kringle. More info to come soon!
Overpayment
As you plan your fundraising and payments, please also be aware that we cannot return more than $100 of payment beyond the cost of the trip due to overpayment. This becomes a liability as it can look like the school is being used for a pass-through. Please remember that fundraising profits cannot be returned for any reason. Please plan ahead!
Itinerary
The itinerary that we have available on our website is tentative. It is very close to what we will be following, but there may be updates including shifting around what we do from day-to-day.
If you plan on being in the Disney parks on the same days that we’ll be there, please hold off on purchasing tickets until we have a more final schedule. We anticipate receiving our final performance times from Disney within the next few weeks. Once we receive those, we can finalize the entire itinerary.