Orange Sky Travel helps field trip planners with Sherbie, your 24/7 virtual field trip assistant!
Planning a school field trip can be exciting yet overwhelming. From choosing a destination to handling payments and logistics, educators often feel like travel agents on top of their teaching responsibilities. At Orange Sky Travel, we’ve spent a decade easing that burden—and now we’ve gone further. Meet Sherbie, the industry’s first 24/7 virtual field trip assistant.
More than a tool, Sherbie offers the combined expertise of our 20-person team at your fingertips for free. Trained with 10 years of our student travel expertise, Sherbie delivers proven tips, checklists, and ideas grounded in what works in real classrooms and on real trips to save time, inspire creativity, and launch successful trips.
1.) Field Trip Idea Generator
Sherbie helps you quickly find trip inspiration tailored to your grade level, curriculum goals, budget, and travel distance. Whether you’re looking for a one-day science adventure or a multi-day history immersion, Sherbie delivers ideas that fit your needs.
Prompt: “Give me three ideas for an overnight STEM trip within 5 hours of Charlotte for 7th graders studying engineering.”
2.) Custom Itinerary Builder
Once you have a destination in mind, Sherbie can lay out a day-by-day sample schedule with realistic travel times, activity pacing, and meal breaks. It’s like having a first draft ready before you’ve even picked up the phone.
Prompt: “Build a one-day itinerary for 5th graders visiting Savannah with a focus on colonial history.”
3.) Kickoff & Promotion Tools
The way you launch your trip can make all the difference in participation. Sherbie gives you a complete Kickoff Checklist, ready-to-use parent email drafts, social media post ideas, and even promotional video suggestions to create excitement from day one.
Prompt: “Help me kick off our New York City trip launch meeting and propose an emaiI that I can send to travelers to get them excited.”
4.) Participation & Fundraising Strategies
Getting students (and parents) on board early is key. Sherbie shares proven ways to boost sign-ups, from early-bird pricing incentives to creative peer challenges. You’ll also get information on Traveler Donation Links and trusted fundraising resources so families have multiple ways to make the trip affordable.
Prompt: “Give me three ways to encourage more 8th graders to sign up for our Washington, DC trip.”
5.) Field Trip Grant Finder
Funding opportunities change constantly. Instead of wading through outdated lists, Sherbie searches the internet for the most current grants and scholarships, customized to your trip’s subject, season, and location.
Prompt: “Find travel grants for a spring performing arts trip to Atlanta.”
6.) Educational Resource Search
A trip is more than a day away from school—it’s a powerful learning experience. Sherbie can find scavenger hunts, lesson plans, quizzes, and activity sheets tailored to your destination and grade level, helping you connect the trip to your classroom curriculum.
Prompt: “Search for a civil rights-themed scavenger hunt for our Birmingham, AL trip.”
7.) Pricing Guidance
Budget surprises are no one’s friend. Sherbie estimates the typical per-student cost ranges for single-and multi-day trips, breaking down the factors that impact price—from seasonality to activity selection—so you’re prepared before requesting a formal quote.
Prompt: “What’s the average per-student cost for a 3-day trip to Boston in the spring?”
8.) Multi-Year Travel Program Support
For trips including multiple grades, Sherbie can help design a Field Trip Roadmap—a multi-year rotation that balances subject areas, destination types, and educational goals. Sherbie can guide you through discovery questions, recommend a “past, present, and future” trip mix, and suggest the best timing for each trip to maximize participation and keep costs predictable.
Prompt: “Help me build a 3-year Field Trip Roadmap for grades 3–8 that includes history, STEM, and performing arts trips, with at least one overnight experience by 5th grade.”
9.) Your 24/7 Mobile-Friendly Planning Partner
Life in education doesn’t always fit into 9–5. Sherbie is free and available anytime—on your phone, tablet, or computer—after school, on weekends, or during those late-night moments when inspiration (or panic) strikes.
Prompt: “I realize I need three icebreaker ideas for tomorrow’s trip parent meeting—Please help.”
10.) Always Connected to the Orange Sky Team
Sherbie enhances—but never replaces—our human touch. If you need a custom quote, contract details, or on-the-ground problem-solving, Sherbie can connect you directly to our experienced Orange Sky travel planners.
Prompt: “Can you connect me to the team to finalize our Nashville trip contract and get a formal quote?”
Why Educators Love Sherbie
- Always Available — Ask questions anytime, day or night, for free.
- Educator-Focused — Every answer is built on our experience in student travel.
- Roadmap-Ready — Supports your “Travel is Education” vision for the long term.
- Personal + Virtual — A helpful tool that works alongside our real team.
With Sherbie, you can spend less time with logistics and more time focusing on the magic of interactive learning experiences. Start planning your next field trip with Sherbie today at orangeskytravel.com/assistant
CONTACT
Orange Sky Travel
611 NE Main Street
Simpsonville, SC 29681
864.365.6202
