On October 29, the Upper School office announced the trip choices for 11th and 12th grade Discovery Week. Discovery Week is a required week-long learning experience for students in ninth through twelfth grade to explore cultures, communities, and places, either locally, domestically, or internationally.

This year, the domestic trip choices for juniors consist of Hawaii, New Orleans, New York, and Yellowstone, all of which are five days long and set for late March 2026. Seniors’ international trips include Australia, South Korea, and Spain, which are each nine-day experiences, also in late March of next year.

Mady K. ’27 was “pleasantly surprised” that Hawaii was a trip Westridge had chosen. “I feel like [Hawaii] is an accessible place… [The trip choices] are usually niche,” she said.

Most juniors feel happy with the offered destinations, making it a difficult decision. “It comes down to the activities we’re doing at the places,” said Julia K. ’27.

Attached to the email was a brief overview of the trip activities, content focuses, and recommended experiences. These experiences included being “prepared to walk a few miles” for New Orleans or “comfortable swimming ability” for Hawaii. “I am ready to snorkel,” said Keenan W. ’27.

The information page also included the teachers and staff members who would be leading each trip. However, the cost of both junior and senior trips has yet to be officially disclosed, an element of Discovery Week that has been consistently controversial.

The worry about not being placed on their desired trip persists for many students. “I feel like it’s going to be a blood bath trying to get the trip you want, if it’s a popular one,” said Julia K. 

Students also feel as though they have less control over the trip they get, especially in comparison to prior years. In ninth grade, Serafino S. ’27 recalls waking up early to be one of the first to fill out the registration form, guaranteeing a spot on the trip she most wanted. As of last year, though, the process changed to ranking your choices, and timeliness no longer affects your chances. “I get why [the administration is] doing it like this, I think it would be better to put people wherever they wanted and adjust the trips to fit [the number of people],” said Serafino.

The 2025-26 domestic trips have caused some current seniors to resent their own experiences from last year’s Discovery Week. Lucia F.-R. ’26 acknowledged that she had one of the more positive experiences among her peers on her Discovery Week trip to New York, but looking back, she is disappointed by how much better her class’s trips could have been. “The junior trips this year [are] such good options, we were kind of like, ‘Oh man, why didn’t they do that for us,’ you know?” she said.

However, among seniors, there is plenty of hope and excitement this time around for Australia, South Korea, and Spain. 

“I’m pretty excited…I would want to go on any of them,” said Joanna L. ’26.

Last year, controversy regarding the cost, location, and trip activities arose post-announcement among parents and students alike. “I think it’s a good idea to give [the trip list] early so parents aren’t mad,” said Caroline M. ’26.

Micaela R. ’26 said, “The trips are better and now. Because of the class of 2026’s [reaction to Discovery Week], they’re more prepared for parent outrage.”

Overall, most are excited by the opportunity and the trips they have to choose from. This sentiment seems to outweigh apprehension from prior Discovery Week experiences. “They are all good options… I wouldn’t be mad with any,” said Mady K. ’27.