Not only do some of the most memorable moments in a Girl Scout’s life happen while taking trips, but travel also
offers a wealth of opportunities for girls to develop leadership skills. This appendix helps you prepare girls for
local, regional, or international travel of any scope and duration.
Girls love trips. And Girl Scouts is a great place for them to learn how to plan and take exciting trips, because
travel is built on a progression of activities—that is, one activity leads to the next. Girl Scout Daisies, for example,
can begin with a discovery walk. As girls grow in their travel skills and experience and can better manage the
planning process, they progress to longer trips. Your Journey adult guide has a lot of other ideas about trips that
bring the Journey to life. Here are some examples of the progression of events and trips in Girl Scouting’s Ladder
of Leadership: (*Please reference the Travel Progression Checklist to determine the readiness of the girls.) .
Please note that all adults who accompany girls on a Girl Scout travel trip in a leadership role must be both
registered members and approved volunteers.
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Short trips to points of interest in the neighborhood (Daisies and older): A walk to the nearby garden
or a short ride by car or public transportation to the firehouse or courthouse is a great first step for
Daisies. Sample short trip: tour a local Giant Eagle to learn about making healthy eating choices or to
work on the Senior Sow What? Journey; visit the public library to hear a local children’s author or work
on the Junior Agent of Change Power of One Journey award; a visit to the local pet shop to work on the
Junior Habitats badge or Daisy It’s Your Story, Tell It! Journey; or attending a local school board meeting
to work on the Ambassador Your Voice, Your World Journey.
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Day trip (Daisies and older): An all-day visit to a point of historical or natural interest (bringing their
own lunch) or a day-long trip to a nearby city (stopping at a restaurant for a meal)—younger girls or
girls with less travel experience can select locations and do much of the trip-planning, while never
being too far from home. Sample day trip: Juniors from Mercer County travels to Fallingwater to work
on the Get Moving Journey; a Senior troop from Bedford County travels to Gettysburg to learn about
the role of women in the Civil War; a Brownie troop from Erie County travels to Niagara Falls to visit
the aquarium; a Cadette troop from Allegheny County travels to Cambria to visit a windmill farm as
part of their Breathe Journey; or Daisy troop from Greensburg travels to Pittsburgh to visit the National
Aviary as part of the 5 Flowers, 4 Stories and 3 Cheers for Animals Journey.
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Overnight trips (Daisies and older): One (or possibly two) nights away to a state or national park, historic
city, or nearby city for sightseeing, staying in a hotel, motel, or campground. These short trips are just
long enough to whet their appetites, but not long enough to generate homesickness. Planning a trip to a
large museum—and many offer unique opportunities for girls to actually spend the night on museum
grounds—makes for an exciting experience for girls. Sample overnight trip: a Brownie troop from
Crawford County travels to Camp Skymeadow to participate in a 2-night horse CORE camp; a Junior
troop from Clearfield County travels to Pittsburgh to attend an overnight at the Children’s Museum.
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