Dance Studio Social Activities and Travel

[pygmalion]

Are any of you franchise students on board with this? If so, how does it work and how do you feel about it? I checked a dance studio web site today, and they're sponsoring a week-long cruise. My old studio sponsored a trip to Vegas every year, where the students paid fairly large sums, and the teachers went along as company and dance partners ( and of course, the teachers didn't pay.)


So what's up with this? Ballroom students paying for cruises or trips to Vegas? What the heck is up? What does that have to do with dancing? Does anyone besides me have experience with this?

btw, a couple nearby USABDA chapters sponsor hotel weekends and cruises to nowehere. That's okay by me.

[dancin_feet]

We have quite a few studio activities as far as social nights out go. Probably at least 6 a year. The expense is not huge, probably only a couple of dollars over what you would pay going to the restaurant / club anyway, and you have a group of friends who share your interests and dance instructors as company which to me is worth the extra cost. You usually don't get to socialise with the instructors outside of the studio, so it's a perfect opportunity to get to know them better.

Other than the National Dance Comp every year, there are no "travelling" type of social functions. Yes you pay extra for the instructors to travel as well, and I guess with anything it is a question of what worth you put on dancing for one weekend and paying out in travel, accommodation, fees, etc the equivalent of 3-4 months worth of lessons. At the moment to me it is not worth it, but I'm hoping to be in a better financial position next year to be able to travel.

For me the social aspect is a part of why I dance, so I welcome these opportunities to see other dancing people who may not take the same classes as me in a social atmosphere. Most of the time it extends to us going out by ourselves as well anyway, so it's a great way of making friends with like minded people.

[mamboqueen]

My old studio sponsored a trip to Vegas every year

When you say "sponsored", do you really mean "hosted?" Just curious because I first thought that the studio paid for it when you say "sponsored."

I'd love to go on a dance cruise. There is a studio near me that runs one every year, but since you pay the cruise company, I'm not sure that they are charging you anything extra for them going themselves. And they make a point to get a cruise ship that has a LARGE dance floor (most don't).

I have to agree with dancin feet, if it cost a little more to have good dancers and/or instructors attend, I'd rather do it than not.

[pygmalion]

I can see why my wording misled you, mamboqueen. You're right. Sponsoring something sometimes means taking financial responsibility for it. I was using a different definition, which just means to take responsibility for something or someone.

Here's what the studio did. It asked students to pay a premium price for a Las Vegas trip so that their teachers could go and socialize with them for a long weekend. Lots of dancing was involved, but so was hanging out, drinking, gambling and lots of other fun stuff. The teachers went along and worked through the weekend, keeping the students entertained, wined, dined and danced. And they got paid for going to Las Vegas. A good time was had by all.

[mamboqueen]

Sounds like a fun trip. Was it *ridiculously* pricey? That would probably be a way for me to get my husband to go on a dance-related trip without him having to dance!

[LauraB]

My studio hosts trips to Argentina, where they take tango lessons, go to milongas and shows, and also do the "tourist" thing. Much dancing is involved, but there are also dinners, shopping, and excursions to working ranches, etc... The teachers who go are working, keeping the students entertained and happy.

[pygmalion]

Exactly. The teachers are working, and being paid to go. That's why the students pay a premium. They're paying the teachers' salaries. Which is okay. I've never had a problem with the trips or heard anybody complain about them. They're a lot of fun.

The trips are priced based on how many teachers and students attend. I believe the last Las Vegas trip I was invited on was $1600 per person or so, for a five-day weekend with everything paid except tips. Not bad, when you consider that five teachers were going along to serve as dance partners and travelling buddies.

[mamboqueen]

*eek* that is kinda pricey for Vegas, considering what you could get for not having dancers/teachers going along with you. Maybe you could work out a deal where you call a Vegas studio and pay them to come meet you at the hotel!!

[pygmalion]

Five dance teachers for five days? With less than a dozen students to pay the salaries? and outings and stage shows and booze and airfare and a nice hotel included? Yes, it's pricey. But the teachers were being paid to basically escort the students for five days. And they worked for a franchise, which probably was taking a cut. That doesn't come cheap.

Incidentally, the cruise I mentioned costs about what a cruise normally costs. It's in October, the low season, but the prices range from about $700 to slightly less than $1000 ppdo for a week on a Royal Caribbean ship. Not bad.

[Hank]

I have gone on several dance trips organized by dance studios. I have always found them to be a wonderful vacation, far better than going by myself. The cost has ranged anywhere from 10-50% more than what I would have paid to go alone, but it was always well worth it to have a group of dancing friends along. Further, dance trips are a great opportunity to become closer to people whom I barely knew before the trip because, although we might have danced together many times, we really never talked. Finally, dance trips are a great source of shared experiences, funny stories, and common memories, which we still enjoy years after the trips were over. You just haven't lived until you've played Truth or Dare at 3:00am under the stars on the deck of a cruise ship after dancing for 6 hours.

[mamboqueen]

Well, if it were somewhere other than Las Vegas (say a Carribean island), I'd probably think $1600 was a good deal, but normally the hotels/casinos out there pretty much throw money at you to get you out there. I always joke that Vegas would be my husband's kind of place because the hotel prices are low and there's a zillion $10 buffet dinner joints on the strip!

Speaking of Las Vegas, and totally off the topic, does anyone watch the World Series of Poker??? I'm completely hooked!

I love cruises. I've been on three RC cruises (one in Ocotber, which is always "iffY' since it's hurricane season) and they were great. Again, the dance floors weren't very big. I kept hoping there would be dance hosts on board, but unfortunately, there weren't.

[Chris Stratton]

I think I'd be fairly afraid to go on a cruise without knowing someone I knew I'd enjoy dancing with was also going - at a social if the turnout doens't hold your interest you can go home early; on a cruise you are stuck with the same crowd for a few days.

[pygmalion]

Yes, Chris. If I was going to do a dance cruise, I'd probably stick with one of the USABDA cruises -- shorter and a lot cheaper, just in case things don't go well.