Why Farms Struggle to Get School Field Trips — And How to Fix It Fast

Introduction: Why Field Trips Are One of the Easiest Agritourism Income Streams

If you’re a small farm owner looking to grow your agritourism business fast, school field trips are one of the easiest, most reliable ways to fill your calendar. Teachers are constantly searching for safe, educational, hands-on experiences, and farms naturally offer everything they need — learning, nature, fresh air, animals, and memorable moments.

And here’s the best part: once a school comes and loves your service, they come back every single year. Parents return on weekends. Teachers tell other schools. Your October calendar fills up. You become the farm everyone talks about.

But many farmers struggle to get their first 10, 20, or even 50 school field trips. Not because their farm isn’t good — but because they don’t understand the real problems behind booking field trips, especially the hidden challenges inside the school system.

Let’s break down the biggest problems farmers face when trying to attract school field trips — and how to fix them quickly.

Problem #1: Schools Are Hard to Reach (And Your Emails Get Ignored)

One of the biggest frustrations farmers have is simply getting a response from schools. You craft a nice email, hit send… and then weeks go by with complete silence. No reply. No interest. Nothing.

But this isn’t because schools don’t want to visit your farm.

It’s because:

• Principals are overwhelmed with administrative duties.

• Teachers receive hundreds of emails every week.

• Your message gets buried in a busy inbox.

• Most schools plan field trips months in advance — not last minute.

  
  

Even a farmer in Facebook discussion group said they didn’t expect much from their first email outreach, yet a simple message still brought in “two big field trips” because they tried.

Here’s the truth: schools are busy, and a single email often isn’t enough. Successful farms reach out consistently and through multiple channels:

• Email

• Phone calls

• Flyers delivered to school offices

• Social media posts targeting parents

• A dedicated Field Trip page on their website

  
  

The farms that do this well — and follow up — are the ones that get booked solid for six weeks straight.

Problem #2: Public School Restrictions Slow Everything Down For School Field Trips

Public schools want to visit farms. But they also have layers of rules, approvals, and safety requirements that farmers often don’t understand.

This is why many farmers struggle even when schools are interested.

Public schools often require:

• Activity descriptions

• Safety guidelines

• Insurance documentation

• Teacher-to-student ratios

• Supervisor approvals

• Bus scheduling

• Budget confirmation

  
  

A simple decision can take weeks.

That’s why many successful agritourism farms start with:

• Special education classes

• Daycares

• Private schools

• Church groups

• Homeschool groups

  
  

These groups have fewer restrictions and can approve a field trip much more quickly. Once your farm builds a strong reputation with them, public schools will follow.

And here’s the secret: When a public school sees that private schools and special education programs trust you, it becomes much easier for them to approve your farm too.

Understanding the approval process — and preparing the documents they need — is one of the fastest ways to remove roadblocks and get more bookings.

Problem #3: Farmers Don’t Contact the Right People

One of the biggest mistakes new agritourism farms make is emailing the wrong person. Many farms send one email to the principal and then wonder why nobody replies.

But principals receive hundreds of emails every week — everything from parent complaints to safety forms to ministry memos. Your field trip idea gets buried.

The real decision-makers?

K–5 teachers, special education teachers, daycare operators, and school activity coordinators.

These are the people who plan and book school field trips. They know their students, their curriculum, and their yearly schedule.

Here’s the good news: A farmer in a Facebook forum shared that simply using the school website to find teacher directory emails helped them secure field trips fast. One farmer even emailed the principals in September — with zero expectations — and still got two big field trips in October.

This shows the power of targeted agritourism marketing. You just need to reach the right person.

And if you want to take it one step further, deliver flyers to the school office. Teachers love physical brochures they can hold, read, and share in the break room. A simple flyer can turn into weeks of fully booked farm tours.

Problem #4: Creating Field Trips That Sell Themselves

Many farms struggle not because teachers don’t want to visit — but because the field trip program is too basic, too unstructured, or not exciting enough.

Schools love structured, educational, hands-on experiences. When you offer clear field trip stations with a mix of adventure, learning, and creativity, you automatically stand out.

For example, farmers have shared successful station ideas such as:

• Giant slides

• Animal encounters

• Gem mining

• Corn box

• Mini corn maze or pollinator scavenger hunts

• Soil or creek exploration

• Flower pounding workshops

• Seed sorting tables

• Hayride experiences

• Pumpkin picking or playground stops

• Jumping pillow zones

  
  

And here’s the key:

Stations make your farm scalable and organized.

Each group rotates smoothly, teachers feel relaxed, students stay engaged, and the day flows beautifully.

You don’t need expensive equipment — you just need clear, repeatable activity stations that match your farm’s theme.

The more unique and memorable your stations, the easier it becomes to secure school bookings year after year. Some farms are even booked solid for six straight weeks because teachers talk, parents share on social media, and “one good field trip” becomes your best marketing engine.

Problem #5: Staffing Limitations on Weekdays

Many small farms want to offer full-service experiences — hot food, pony rides, big activities — but the reality is simple: weekday staffing is limited.

And that’s okay.

Most successful farms learned to design weekday field trips that run smoothly with minimal staff. They simplify the program, limit the number of stations, and focus on what they can deliver consistently.

You can run with minimal staff if you:

• Don’t offer full hot meals on weekdays.

• Run only simple, hands-off stations.

• Allow students to bring their own lunches.

• Skip high-maintenance attractions like face painting or pony rides.

• Focus your staff on safety, flow, and happy teachers.

  
  

This keeps costs low, reduces stress, and still delivers a fantastic educational experience.

Remember:

Schools don’t expect a theme park.

They want a safe, organized, enjoyable learning environment.

If you design your field trips with simplicity and smooth operations in mind, you can offer incredible value without overworking your team. And teachers appreciate the clarity — they know exactly what to expect, and they return every year.

Problem #6: Poor Customer Service & Weak Organization

If there’s one thing that makes or breaks your school field trip business, it’s this: organization. Teachers aren’t just looking for a fun farm visit — they’re looking for a place that runs smoothly, feels safe, and makes their day easier, not harder. When a farm delivers that, schools return every single year and tell other schools to book too.

Schools Need Structured Rotations and Clear Timetables For School Field Trips

A school field trip is like a mini military operation. Teachers arrive with 40–120 students, each with different needs and attention spans. If the farm doesn’t provide a clear rotation schedule — for example:

• Station 1: Animals

• Station 2: Slides

• Station 3: Gem Mining

• Station 4: Hayride

• Station 5: Corn Box

  
  

— everything falls apart.

Teachers love structure. They love knowing exactly where to go, how long they’ll spend at each station, and who is leading each activity. When you can hand a teacher a printed schedule or text them a simple rotation plan the day before, it immediately reduces their stress.

And a stress-free teacher is a loyal customer.

How Disorganization Creates Chaos and Bad Experiences

When a farm isn’t organized, chaos happens fast:

• Stations get overcrowded.

• Children wander off.

• Teachers panic.

• Parents complain.

• Staff scramble to catch up.

  
  

A 20-minute delay at one station can snowball into a full hour of frustration. When teachers feel things are out of control, they often silently decide: “We’ll try a different farm next year.”

You lose repeat business. You lose referrals. You lose October bookings — the month every agritourism farm depends on.

And worst of all? You might not even know what went wrong.

Customer Service Is the Real Reason Some Farms Are Fully Booked Every October

Many farmers think the “fun activities” are what make schools book.

But the truth is this: Schools book the farms that make their job easy.

Teachers talk. Principals talk. Parent groups talk.

When one school says, “Wow, that farm was so organized, everything ran smoothly, and the staff were so kind,” you suddenly become the farm that everyone wants to book.

By the time October comes around, you’re not trying to find schools —schools are trying to find slots in your calendar.

The Bottom Line

You can have the best slides, the coolest animals, and the prettiest pumpkin patch…but if your customer service and organization are poor, schools won’t come back.

Get your rotations right. Train your staff to smile, help, and guide. Keep everything structured and clear.

Do this well, and your farm can easily become one of those magical places that stay fully booked every single day in October — year after year.

Problem #7: No System for Payment & Invoicing

One of the biggest hidden bottlenecks in school field trip bookings is payment and invoicing. Many small farms underestimate how much confusion this causes for teachers, schools, and administrators. When payment isn’t straightforward, schools hesitate — and hesitation kills bookings.

Most schools still prefer paying by check, often on the day of arrival, which can create uncertainty for farmers who are used to upfront deposits. Some schools require invoices weeks before visiting. Others need purchase orders (POs), or they need the farm to be listed as a vendor before financial departments release payment.

For new agritourism farms, these details become overwhelming.

Common challenges include:

• Teachers asking for official quotes and invoices that farmers do not have templates for.

• Payments coming late because the school district office processes checks only on certain days.

• Confusion when parents attend — do they pay the school, or pay the farm directly?

• Farms losing bookings because they did not send an invoice early enough.

• No clear process for handling cancellations or rescheduling due to weather.

  
  

When the farm doesn’t provide a simple, smooth invoicing system, teachers feel uncertain — and uncertainty pushes them to choose more established farms.

What schools want:

• A clear, simple invoice emailed immediately after booking.

• Transparent pricing (e.g., students $12, parents $12 cash or $15 card).

• Clear instructions on who pays, when to pay, and how to pay.

• A point of contact they can call or email for last-minute adjustments.

  
  

If you can make the teacher’s life easy, your field trips will sell themselves.

How successful farms solve this:

• They send an invoice as soon as a date is confirmed.

• They allow teachers to pay on arrival with check or card.

• They communicate the price clearly in advance.

• They include trip details, student headcount, and activity stations on the invoice.

• They follow up a week before to confirm numbers and payment method.

  
  

Problem #8: Weak Marketing & Promotion

Many farms offer fantastic experiences… but almost no one knows about them.

This is one of the biggest reasons farms struggle to get school field trips. If teachers, principals, and parents can’t see what you offer, they simply move on to the next farm they already know.

Today, agritourism marketing is built on just a few simple things:

1. Social media presence

Over and over again in the discussion, farmers said, “Social media is your best friend.”

A single Facebook post showcasing:

• your stations

• kids having fun

• your giant slide

• gem mining

• your corn box or mini maze

• or your flower-pounding activity

  
  

…can bring in dozens of enquiries.

Teachers scroll Facebook too — and they save posts for next year.

2. A dedicated Field Trip page on your website

Teachers want to see:

• What is included

• The schedule

• The price

• Safety information

• Photos of stations

• Your contact form

• 
  

If you don’t have a clear field trip page, you’re losing bookings without knowing it.

3. Email outreach

Email teachers and you may get a booking.

Email works. Flyers work. Consistency works.

When you combine these simple tools, your farm becomes visible, and visibility is what fills your calendar.

Problem #9: Missing Weekend Upsell Opportunities

This is one of the most powerful strategies in the entire agritourism business — yet many farmers completely overlook it.

Parents do return on weekends after discovering the farm during a weekday school field trip.

This is pure gold.

A school field trip does two things:

1. It brings you revenue on a weekday.

2. It acts as a massive marketing engine for your weekend business.

   
   

But many farms never capitalize on this.

Here’s how to turn parents into weekend visitors:

• Offer a return-discount card: “Show this card for $3 off your weekend visit.”

• Send home a beautiful flyer with every student.

• Give parents the option to pay the same field trip rate if they return within 7 days.

• Promote your events: pumpkin weekends, fruit picking, farm fairs, glamping, etc.

• Encourage teachers to tag your farm when they post photos online.

  
  

When you do this, every school that visits spreads your name to hundreds of parents — which increases your visibility, boosts your weekend attendance, and strengthens your overall agritourism income.

A school field trip isn’t just a weekday booking. It’s a marketing engine for your entire farm.

Conclusion

School field trips are one of the most powerful agritourism income streams any small farm can tap into. Yes, the early stages can feel slow — emails get ignored, approvals take time, and you’re unsure who to contact.

But once you understand how schools operate, design simple stations, and deliver great customer service, everything changes.

The real secret?

Make life easy for teachers. Run your field trips like clockwork. Give students a memorable experience. And let social media amplify your success.

Do this well, and your farm becomes the place every school wants to visit — year after year. You’ll not only boost weekday revenue, but you’ll also turn happy parents into weekend customers who come back for more.

In the world of agritourism, school field trips are one of the fastest and most reliable ways to grow your farm business, build your reputation, and fill your season with excited, paying visitors.

Start small, stay organized, and deliver an experience teachers can trust — and you’ll watch your bookings grow faster than you ever imagined.