Fieldtrip in Spanish | Say It Like A Native

A common translation is “excursión escolar,” while “viaje de estudios” fits longer, multi-day school trips.

You’ve got a permission slip to translate, a teacher email to write, or a caption that needs to sound right. Then you hit the phrase “field trip” and pause. Spanish has more than one clean option, and the best pick depends on what the trip is and how formal the setting is.

This page walks you through the wording people actually use in schools, what sounds natural in Latin America vs Spain, and how to avoid little mistakes that make your Spanish feel translated. You’ll leave with ready-to-copy phrases for notes, forms, and messages.

What Spanish Speakers Usually Call A School Field Trip

If you want the safest, most widely understood option, start with excursión. The Real Academia Española defines excursión as an outing to a city, museum, or place for study or recreation, which lines up well with the school meaning. (RAE definition of “excursión”)

In school settings, people often add a clarifier:

• excursión escolar (school field trip)
• excursión de la escuela (a school-organized outing)
• salida escolar (a school outing; common in Spain and also heard elsewhere)

Salida is useful when the school frames it as “going out” for an activity. The RAE lists salida as the action and result of leaving or going out, which fits the “outing” feel of school notices. (RAE definition of “salida”)

Field Trip In Spanish For School Forms And Notes

Forms and school notes usually want short, plain wording. These options read naturally in a school document:

• Excursión escolar — the most direct match for “field trip.”
• Salida escolar — sounds like school admin language in many places.
• Visita educativa — polite and formal, often used for museums or institutions.
• Visita guiada — when there’s a guided tour.

If you’re translating a permission slip, you can also mirror common school phrasing by naming the destination or activity. It can read smoother than forcing a single “field trip” label.

Quick Rule For Picking The Right Term

Ask one question: is it a short outing, or a bigger trip?

• Short outing (same day): excursión, excursión escolar, salida escolar, visita.
• Longer trip (overnight, travel logistics): viaje de estudios or viaje escolar.

Viaje de estudios feels like “study trip” and often implies planning, travel time, and a more structured academic angle. Excursión feels lighter and shorter.

Words That Seem Right But Can Sound Off

Campo means “countryside” or “field,” so “viaje al campo” is a trip to the countryside, not a generic school field trip. Use it only when the destination is literally rural or outdoors.

Gira is more like a tour, often for a band, sports team, or a group doing multiple stops. It can work for some school travel, but it’s not the default for a class museum day.

Paseo can be a stroll or casual outing. It can sound too relaxed for official school paperwork, but it works in family speech.

Regional Picks That Keep You Out Of Trouble

Spanish is shared, but school vocabulary has local flavor. The safest move is choosing a term that your reader recognizes fast.

Common In Spain

Salida escolar is very common in school emails and notices. Excursión is also common, and people often say excursión del cole in casual talk.

Common Across Latin America

Excursión and excursión escolar land well in many countries. You’ll also hear paseo escolar in some places, and salida in others.

When You’re Writing For A Mixed Audience

If you don’t know where the reader is from, stick to excursión escolar or excursión. It’s widely understood, and it matches dictionary usage for an outing tied to study or recreation. (RAE entry for “excursión”)

How To Phrase It In Real Sentences

The word choice is only half of it. The sentence frame matters too. Schools tend to use a few repeating patterns, and you can borrow them.

Simple School Notice Style

• Habrá una excursión al museo el viernes. (There will be a field trip to the museum on Friday.)
• La clase hará una salida al zoológico. (The class will take a trip to the zoo.)
• Visita educativa al acuario. (Educational visit to the aquarium.)

Permission Slip Style

• Autorizo a mi hijo/a a participar en la excursión escolar.
• Firmo el permiso para la salida escolar.
• Confirmo la asistencia a la visita al museo.

That “autorizo” line is formal and common in paperwork. In a parent group chat, people usually go simpler: ¿Tu hijo va a la excursión?

Teacher Email Style

Teachers often write like this:

• Les enviamos la información de la excursión escolar.
• Adjuntamos la autorización para la salida.
• La visita guiada incluye transporte y entrada.

If you’re learning Spanish for school communication, it helps to treat these as set phrases. They show up again and again.

Table Of Best Translations By Context

Use this table like a cheat sheet. Pick the row that matches your situation, then copy the wording into your sentence.

Spanish Option	Best Fit	Notes You’ll Be Glad You Knew
excursión escolar	General “field trip” in school context	Safe default across regions; works for museums, parks, local sites
excursión	Short outing when “school” is clear from context	Natural in speech; add “escolar” in formal writing
salida escolar	School notice, admin language, school emails	Very common in Spain; also understood elsewhere as “outing”
salida	Short outing, clubs, class activities	Reads clean in schedules: “Salida al museo”
visita educativa	Formal school communication	Good for institutions: museums, science centers, city hall
visita guiada	Trip with a guide or tour staff	Pairs well with “incluye guía” or “con guía”
viaje de estudios	Multi-day trip, travel, overnight stay	Sounds like “study trip”; use for longer school travel
paseo escolar	Casual tone, family talk, some regional use	Can sound too relaxed for forms; fine for friendly messages

Pronunciation And Small Details That Make It Sound Natural

Even when the words are right, little details can make the phrase feel “translated.” Fix these and your Spanish instantly sounds calmer and more native.

Stress And Accent Marks

excursión has an accent on the last syllable: ex-cur-SIÓN. That accent mark isn’t optional. Without it, the word looks wrong, and spellcheck will flag it.

visita is clean and easy, and it’s great when you name the destination: visita al museo, visita al acuario.

Articles Matter

English often drops “the” in headings. Spanish likes articles more.

• Excursión al museo sounds more natural than Excursión a museo.
• Salida al zoológico reads smoother than Salida a zoológico.

Prepositions That Don’t Translate One-To-One

“Field trip to the museum” usually becomes excursión al museo or salida al museo. That al is a + el, and it’s a common contraction you’ll see in school notices.

Using The Right Spanish Vocabulary Level

If you’re writing for learners or students, it helps to keep the vocabulary consistent. A permission slip packed with rare words can feel stiff. A teacher note that sounds like a text message can feel off in the other direction.

The Instituto Cervantes explains how “vocabulario” is used in language teaching and how it overlaps with “léxico.” That’s a handy reminder that you’re not chasing fancy words; you’re choosing the words your reader expects. (Instituto Cervantes: “Vocabulario” term)

If you want classroom-ready Spanish practice around school topics, the Instituto Cervantes also publishes learning materials you can use to build confidence with school-style wording. (Instituto Cervantes learning materials)

Table Of Ready-To-Copy Phrases For Notes, Emails, And Texts

These lines cover the most common school messages. Swap the destination and date, then send it.

What You Want To Say	Spanish You Can Copy	Pronunciation Hint
There’s a field trip on Friday.	Hay una excursión el viernes.	eye oo-na eks-koo-SYON el VYER-nes
The class is going to the museum.	La clase va al museo.	la KLA-se va al moo-SE-o
Please return the permission slip.	Por favor, devuelvan la autorización firmada.	por fa-VOR de-VWEL-van la ow-to-ree-sa-SYON feer-MA-da
What time do we meet?	¿A qué hora nos reunimos?	a keh O-ra nos reh-oo-NEE-mos
My child will attend.	Mi hijo/a asistirá.	mee EE-ho/ah a-sees-tee-RA
My child won’t attend.	Mi hijo/a no asistirá.	mee EE-ho/ah no a-sees-tee-RA
Is lunch included?	¿Está incluido el almuerzo?	es-TA in-kloo-EE-do el al-MWER-so
Will they need a packed lunch?	¿Tienen que llevar comida de casa?	TYE-nen keh yeh-VAR ko-MEE-da de KA-sa
Please wear comfortable shoes.	Por favor, lleven calzado cómodo.	por fa-VOR YEH-ven kal-SA-do KO-mo-do

Mini Checklist To Translate “Field Trip” Cleanly Every Time

Use this quick checklist when you’re writing fast and don’t want second guesses.

1. Decide the trip size. Same-day outing? Pick excursión or salida. Overnight travel? Pick viaje de estudios.
2. Match the tone. Paperwork likes excursión escolar, salida escolar, visita educativa.
3. Name the destination. “Al museo / al zoológico / al acuario” makes the sentence feel natural.
4. Watch accents. Keep excursión spelled with the accent mark.

If you stick to that, your Spanish will read like it belongs in a real school message, not like a direct English conversion.