Outback Kids - Outdoor SChool Trips

Get in on the fun and let your students experience the joy of the great outdoors!

If you've grown tired of the same class field trip year after year, this year let your students experience the joy of the great outdoors. Our wilderness adventure base near Squamish is the ideal setting for an end-of-year celebration or September class bonding trip. Your students will enjoy their morning working together in teams on SURVIVOR! challenges seen on the popular tv series. Then after our tasty BBQ LUNCH, it’s time for a kid-friendly FLOAT on the “Cheakamus Splash” scenic float trip adventure. If you don't have approval for rafting with your students no problem, we can also offer biking, hiking, a GPS or wilderness survival event or even rock climbing as your 2nd activity. We are happy to customize a program perfect for your school, just call us to discuss.

"All of us on the Yellow Team at Scott Creek Middle School would like to thank you and your staff for what can only be described as, “The best field trip…EVER!!!” What a great way to start the year, by building connections between students, parents and teachers. The Survivor Challenge was a fun, collaborative set of tasks that our middle school students thoroughly enjoyed. Lunch was also great. Rafting was something that very few of our students had experienced before this trip. Quite simply, it was Awesome! It was great to see students put aside their nerves and try something new- it proved to themselves that they can do what they set their minds on doing. What a life lesson. The staff at Canadian Outback Adventures were friendly, informative, fun, helpful and always considered safety first. The students and I are looking forward to adventuring together again. Thanks again for a great day and great experience." John Buglioni, Scott Creek Middle School.

Aside from the students having such a great time, one of the best parts of the day was seeing the smiles on the faces of teachers and parents. Watching their kids work together in teams and be so intensely engaged in the Survivor challenges was a real highlight for them. The scenic float trip capped off the day, bringing laughter and excitement to everyone.

Just a short school bus ride from the Lower Mainland (a few minutes away from Alice Lake and the North Van Outdoor School), our 15 acre property comes well-equipped to make your school event a success for all group sizes. Plenty of large covered areas, Survivor dome, group campfire area, games & activities, kitchen, change rooms & washrooms make this venue perfect for your class or combination of multiple classes. We also have lots of space for tents (for groups who choose to camp).

Scroll down to see more details, photos and videos about our Outback Kids School Adventure!

Based in Vancouver since 1992, Canadian Outback Adventures & Events is Canada’s leading team building event and group activity provider. We help schools, corporations, families & tourists enjoy memorable experiences and Live Stories Worth Telling!

"Thank you and your team very much for a terrific time in Squamish. We had a fantastic time, thanks in large part to the Canadian Outback staff. The Survivor activities were excellent - very age-appropriate but fun and challenging. Lunch and snacks were great too. The highlight was definitely the rafting - the perfect degree of difficulty for beginners at this age. I think that these kinds of experiences are great for kids. I'm sure many were inspired to try rafting again. This will be something all the students remember as a highlight of the year and likely their entire educational experience. We'd love to do this again." John Colbourne, Glenayre Elementary

Special School Rates … 75% off our corporate rates!
(per person, min 25 youth, 12% tax not included in below rates)

Option 1 - Standard Outback Kids in Squamish

Survivor!

We've designed an authentic challenge-based team building event based on the popular CBS television series. These engaging challenges, adapted for enjoyment by kids and adults alike, combine with ceremonies and music to provide your students with a fun and memorable activity. Anyone can participate as no special skills, athletic ability or experience are required.

We have a variety of ways to split groups into teams. When multiple classes from one school are participating, we'll often first split the group into "Class Tribes", then again into smaller tribes for each class. When just one class is with us we'll split the group into 4 or more tribes. Tribes can be named after First Nations groups or the students can make up their own names. Each tribe's goal is to complete the various challenges as effectively as possible. Challenges such as Blind Leading the Blind, Triage, Squamish Scramble, and Buried Treasure test strategy, communication, and other "team" components. Physical skill is not a focus.

With the results in, the torches lit, and the music getting louder and louder, the Host is ready for the awards presentation. One by one the torches are extinguished as tribes are eliminated from contention. One final torch remains lit ...

"Thank you to everyone at Canadian Outback for the Survivor day ... we loved it. I really liked how you didn’t have to be particularly strong or athletic and how it really made you think together as a team. It was just a great time!"

Scenic Float Trip on the Cheakamus River

Your Cheakamus River scenic journey lasts between 1-2 hours (dependant on river conditions) and features a relaxing float down the Cheakamus river with the added excitement of some small splashes mixed in to keep your students excited. This is NOT a typical whitewater rafting trip on a raging river! It's an age appropriate experience for school children aged 5 & up.

Along the way you'll learn about the intriguing First Nations history, soak in some amazing views, perfect the art of splashing others, and get the chance to cool off with a quick dip in the pure, glacier-fed, jade-tinted water. We raft this river more often than all other outfitters combined, ensuring your experience with us will be the very best possible. It’s an excellent opportunity to show your students an awesome time, and enjoy the incredible beauty British Columbia has to offer.

Each raft carries one certified guide, and 8-10 guests. In addition to the guide, we require having one adult leader per raft.

"We had the BEST time ever on your Cheakamus Splash rafting adventure. The weather was perfect, and the guides were awesome. Nobody wanted the adventure to end!”

Read what others who've been out rafting with us have to say about their experience.

Every year Canadian Outback donates our services to the BC Professional Firefighters Burn Camp, held each summer in Squamish. Our Cheakamus Splash rafting adventure is always a highlight for the kids. Check out the video highlights below! If it's a nice hot sunny day for your Outback Kids School Adventure, maybe we'll bring out the squirt guns too!

Our Adventure Base is the ideal location for your school's field trip

Located just outside Squamish on Squamish Valley Road, mere minutes from Alice Lake Provincial Park and the North Vancouver Outdoor School, our adventure base has been a popular spot for groups for many years. This large property has been developed over the years to host many of our corporate clients for their annual summer staff picnics. Companies like PricewaterhouseCoopers, Polygon Homes, The Keg and Joey's Restaurants enjoy the atmosphere it provides, the broad range of activities available, and the level of service our team strives toward for every group that visits.

Our large tented meal area can comfortably seat up to 200 guests at a time. Two large change rooms are ideal for getting ready for rafting, and proper washrooms are available onsite. The large central campfire area features lots of seating, and for those who aren't ready to relax just yet, we have a volleyball court, bocce, frisbee and other games ready to go. There is also plenty of on-site parking, perfect for school buses or other vehicles.

Some groups who come up choose to camp for one or more nights, either at our base or at one of the many campgrounds in the area. Alice Lake Provincial Park is a very popular spot for school groups. They have large group sites available. Click here for a listing of all Squamish area campgrounds. We offer a free bus shuttle service to our adventure base from all local campgrounds for groups participating in our Outback Kids program. This makes getting to and from our adventure base hassle-free!

“We had an awesome time at our event! We will definitely be hiring your team again! I loved how organized it was and how professional your team was. I have worked with events in the past and never have I come across a company such as yours that is organized and empowering - well done! Thank you again and you will hear from me in the future!”

Great food, and let us do the clean-up!

Immediately following your morning activity we'll cook up a tasty BBQ meal for your students, teachers and parents. BBQ chicken, veggie burgers, complete with all the fixings, accompanied by chips and salsa, salad and lemonade will keep everyone energized and ready to go for the afternoon. We'll cook it all up for you, and clean up afterwards so you can relax and enjoy the time relaxing with your colleagues and parents.

Safety is always our first priority

Since 1992, Canadian Outback Adventures & Events has been a leader in risk management in the adventure tourism sector. Through our involvement with the BC River Outfitters Association, stringent risk management policies are maintained and evaluated across all divisions of our company. We are active members of Tourism Vancouver, Tourism Victoria, Tourism Whistler and Tourism Squamish. All require us to maintain industry standards for safety. Also, our talented staff pride themselves on providing memorable and safe experiences for all our guests.

Our Survivor! event, known to our corporate clients as "Corporate Castaways", consists of a series of adventurous tasks. These are all extremely low or no risk, and are each led by one of our trained event hosts. The greatest risk found during this event would be walking along a balance beam 8"-12" above the ground. Injuries during this event are unheard of.

The Cheakamus Splash scenic float trip we have chosen is an ideal soft-adventure for kids as young as 5 years of age. It features spectacular scenery, opportunities for First Nations story telling by our talented guides, and a number of small splashes to keep everyone entertained along the way. Every year thousands of kids and their families from around the world raft down the Cheakamus River. We typically have 8-10 guests per raft, fully outfitted in required safety gear (pfd and helmet). Each raft is guided by a certified rafting guide. There has never been a major incident during a commercial rafting trip on the Cheakamus River.

As a rafting outfitter in the Province of British Columbia, we adhere to the strict guidelines as set forth by the BCROA. To find out more about how the BCROA maintains their high degree of operation practices and the high quality of their members, please read the Best Management Practices Report. This report details the methods and practices designed by the BCROA to keep the environment, river guides and clients safe.

Although the adventure base is located in a wilderness setting, it is just minutes away from Squamish amenities and emergency services. The wilderness setting will ensure that your group stays together, discouraging anyone from "wandering off" or encouraging other risk management related issues.

A parent or guardian of each participant must sign our waiver of liability prior to the event. Please click here for a preview. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this document or our risk management policies, feel free to contact us.

Option 1 Example Itinerary

Most groups will choose to arrive at our Adventure Base in the morning around 9:30 AM. Upon arrival we'll do a quick orientation with everyone of our Adventure Base, pointing out safety guidelines, location of the washrooms, etc. At 10:00 AM or so we'll get the Survivor event started.

By 12:00 PM or so the final torches will be extinguished ... lunch time!! Before and after lunch the students will be able to play some of the casual games available on-site, right up until it's time to start the rafting portion of the day.

At around 1:00 PM we'll start the Cheakamus Splash adventure with a quick clothing talk at the adventure base. Then we'll load up our raft bus (or buses, depending on your group size) and make the brief 10 minute drive to the put-in point on the river. Prior to getting into the rafts everyone must listen carefully to the BCROA-mandated safety talk. We'll be on the river for anywhere from 1-2 hours, depending on the flow of the river that day. Afterwards we'll get back on the bus and head back to the adventure base, pack up, and wave goodbye as you head back to your school. Departure time from Squamish will be approximately 4:30 PM.

The above itinerary is only a sample. We may need to modify it somewhat in order to accommodate larger groups, other groups, weather conditions, other unforeseen factors, or just to work better for your needs!

How to book your Outback Kids School Field Trip

Booking your field trip with us is easy. Simply contact one of our friendly and professional representatives at 604.924.4500 x 2 or info@canadianoutback.com. We'll answer any questions you may have, help you select a date, and book you in for the group size you indicate to us.

A deposit of $250 will hold your date, with final payment due 30 days in advance (due dates are more flexible for September groups in order to accommodate parent notification, etc.). Within 7 days of the event you may add or decrease numbers, however, due to staffing requirements unfortunately cancellations within 7 days and no-shows on the day of the event will not receive a refund.

Upon receipt of your deposit, we'll send you a package containing pre-departure details, information on what clothes to wear and items to bring & waivers for parents to sign.

If you have questions at any time prior to your event date, we're available to answer them Monday-Friday from 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Just call our office in North Vancouver or email us.

Want to come up and have a look this summer? Contact us to arrange for a free rafting trip for you and a guest this summer. We want you to see our Adventure Base, meet our staff, and see for yourself why Outback Kids is a must-do for your class field trip next year!

We look forward to working with you and showing your students a great time ... a fantastic way to start or end their time at your school!

“I had a very pleasant experience coordinating this activity with you. I like when I can trust a vendor to run with the details with confidence the event will go off without a hitch. I will definitely be in contact with Canadian Outback next time I need to organize a team activity for a client. Thanks again for everyone’s hard work on pulling this activity together for us.”