Last week I was lucky enough to travel to Sportcamp in Greece with my colleague Asha accompanying Harris Academy Purley for their football tour. This was my first time going on tour with a group, and I was very much looking forward to seeing the itinerary come to life rather than just seeing it on a page, and I was not disappointed!
Not only was this my first sports tour, but my first time ever travelling abroad! So everything was new to me, I was nervous about flying before I went, but I was surprised by how much I liked it. I will definitely be returning to Greece on my own personal holiday in the near future!
Sportcamp is a destination we love here at Rayburn, so it was really useful for us to go and experience this with the group. The facilities were amazing, whether you are playing football, basketball or volleyball, it was ideal. With the pitches always readily available, there was no stopping the group having their own friendly matches in their free time to prepare for their fixtures.
Emma
Operations Administrator
Whilst it was only a short tour, the group managed to play 2 fixtures per team against great local Greek opposition, and even had a basketball and volleyball training session led by professional coaches. It was great to see the teams bond after their fixture, exchanging pennants and having group photos. Between the fixtures and training sessions, the group visited Heraion Lake just outside of Loutraki, which for me was the highlight of the tour. We visited the lighthouse and the views were just incredible! It is safe to say there were a few hungry students (and me!) after walking around enjoying the views, so we headed off for a lovely meal by the beach at a nearby restaurant.
On the final day we had an early start, with a lovely 7:30am breakfast before heading to Athens, where we then went to visit the Panathenaic Stadium, followed by the Acropolis, and topped off with some free time in Plaka. After filling up with ice cream and buying souvenirs, the coach transfer to the airport consisted of awards being given out to the students, with one including a prize for the best chat up line used on tour – I’m sure he will always remember that! It was then time to fly back to London with great memories and great stories to share from my first sports tour and trip abroad!