Safety—Everywhere, All the Time

Travel Tips, Travel Story

Safety—Everywhere, All the Time

September 20, 2024

Global presence

With offices in 115 countries, EF shows up for our travellers by already being there. We don’t just work in these countries—we call them home.

In fact, EF team members live in nearly every one of our tour destinations. That means we have the local knowledge to prioritize our groups safety, and anywhere you go, you’ll have friendly faces nearby to offer a helping hand and reliable educational travel support whenever you need it.

When the chips are down, we have boots on the ground—our global travel support network ensures you are always dealing with our team directly in any emergency.

“One year, when I was in Rio de Janeiro, I so needed EF’s help. I had a very, very sick little girl and I stayed behind with her while the tour continued on. EF called me every two hours, day and night, asking “What else can we do?”
The Canadian embassy came and met with me three different times. The head of the hospital came and said, “I’ve had movie stars, politicians in here. I have never seen an embassy so attentive.”
I always tell parents that if anything happens, EF has boots on the ground and they will get the job done. When I’ve needed EF, they’ve been there in spades.”
Donna D., Teacher from Saskatchewan

The What Ifs?

With 60 years of experience under our belt, 40 of which in Canada, we know what to expect when you’re travelling—and we have the expertly crafted plans, EF travel policies, and travel emergency procedures to prove it.

Sounds like a lot to deal with, right?

Well, that’s why we’ve taken it off your plate. Your time is valuable, and your group should be free to focus on having fun, learning interesting things, and making lifelong memories—but in case you were wondering, here are a few scenarios we get asked about often:

What if my flight gets delayed, or cancelled?

As a global company with over half a century in this industry, we have developed unparalleled relationships with major airline carriers in Canada and around the world—these are key when it comes to problem-solving for our customers.

For a delayed flight, we will rearrange the itinerary as optimally as possible to ensure the group doesn’t miss any activities. In the case of cancellations, our On Tour Support Team will guide you in dealing with the airline, who will rebook you on the next available flight and get you to your destination as soon as possible. If your group is split during this process, we will ensure that no student flies unaccompanied by a chaperone. In any case, the EF travel support team will be with you every step of the way.

What if a student loses their passport?

We’ve met the challenge of recovering a traveller’s passport many times, no matter where it’s happened in the world. Our On Tour Support Team will find the closest Canadian consulate capable of issuing the student an emergency passport, then we’ll coordinate with your Tour Director to find the best way to get them there.

A chaperone is assigned to accompany the student, and our team coordinates with your Tour Director on how best to transport them so they may rejoin the tour once they have their new passport. The support team will be overseeing this process every step of the way, and if you need it, we will find overnight accommodation for the student and chaperone.

What if someone gets separated from the group?

If this happens, your Tour Director and our On Tour Support Team spring into action, taking all steps necessary to find them (alerting local authorities, sending out chaperones to search the area, calling the student’s phone—whatever it takes).

We structure our tours to minimize the chance of this scenario playing out, but in the event they are separated, the student will be wearing their EF emergency bracelet, which has the number for our emergency support line engraved on it. Safety on all EF tours is our top priority; They can call in from anywhere, at any time, and we will get them back to your group safely.

What if a student becomes unwell?

If a student gets too sick to travel while on tour, notify the Tour Director immediately—they will alert our On Tour Support Team. A chaperone is then assigned to accompany the student, and our team coordinates with your Tour Director on how best to care for and then transport the student & chaperone so they may rejoin the tour once they have recovered. In an emergency, call the local equivalent of 911 immediately, then your Tour Director and our support team will cover the rest.

We also offer virtual emergency mental health support for students on all of our programs. In addition to answering questions and providing mental health and wellness tools, virtual care teams can connect students to specific healthcare services.