For Teachers & Schools

NEW - Walking Tour Activity Worksheets
Are you looking for an interactive experience for your students during their visit to Northwest Trek?  Learn how our new walking tour activity worksheets can help students learn while they explore the park.


Visit Northwest Trek for a fun field trip that teaches your students about local animals and fulfills Washington State EALRs. More than 20,000 students and parents visit the park each school year.








 For reservations for non-school groups, click HERE.

School Field Trip Admission Prices

Northwest Trek offers discounted admission for students and parent chaperones on school field trips.

September-February
March-April
May-June
$6.00 each for students and adult chaperones
$7.00 each for students and adult chaperones
$8.00 each for students and adult chaperones
Please keep in mind:
  • The park recommends one adult chaperone for every five students.  The minimum chaperone requirement for school reservations is one adult for every seven students.  Additional adults above the 1:5 ratio can be included in your school reservation and are charged our regular group rate admission of $16.25 each.  These additional adults must be included in your final head count and full payment in order to have reserved tram tour seating with your group.
  • Teachers with wristbands must be with students during tram tour.
  • One teacher per each visiting class receives free admission. The average class is about 25 to 30 students.
  • Prices are subject to change.
Reservations
You must be an accredited school and listed in the Washington Education Directory to receive our discounted rates. Non-school groups, including daycare centers, youth groups, and company picnics, must register through the group reservation form and pay general group admission rates.

Complete online school group reservation form at least 3 weeks before your visit. Register as early as possible because all reservations are made on a first-come, first-served basis. After receiving the form, we will reserve your date as “pending” until your payment arrives. Please note that reservations are not valid without confirmation.

Please keep in mind:  Additional adults that arrive and are not included in your reservation arrangements will be charged full price general admission and are not guaranteed seating in your reserved tram tour seating arrangements.  It is extremely important to share this information with your parents to avoid any confusion on the day of your visit.

Final head count and full payment or purchase order must be received two weeks prior to your arrival to ensure your tickets arrive in time through the mail. You may pay by a single check, MasterCard, Visa or Discover transaction or single purchase order. If full payment is not received by the due date your reservation is subject to cancellation. It is the group's responsibility to make a note of payment due date, and there are no refunds on educational group rates.
  • You’ll receive a confirmation letter, payment receipt and ticket wristbands in the mail.
  • Put on your wristband tickets before your arrival at Northwest Trek. Everyone in your group must be wearing his or her wristband ticket before arrival at the park to ensure that your check-in goes smoothly and you make your scheduled tram tour.
  • When you arrive, check in with our visitor services staff. Upon arrival, please direct your group to line up in single file. We’ll give you a group boarding pass.
  • Get to the tram station 15 minutes before your tram tour is scheduled to start. Your school group may be sharing tram tour seating with another school so prompt arrival is appreciated.
  • Have fun!
Activities

There are lots of activities to keep your students excited and engaged during their time at Northwest Trek.

Tram Tour

Venture into the wilds of Northwest Trek on your naturalist-guided tram tour. The length of your tram tour depends on the age of the students in your group or the time allowed for your visit.

Preschool through sixth grade:
This 30-minute tram tour lets your students see many animals in a short amount of time. It also gives your class the time to explore the rest of the park and participate in our Adventure Trek programs.

Seventh grade and older:
This 50-minute tram tour gives your naturalist guide time to explain how the animals live and adapt to wetland, meadow and forest habitats.                  

 
Walking Tour

Walk the winding trails and see grizzly bears, wolves, cougars and other animals in naturalistic exhibits. Your class will learn all about Northwest predators, forest animals and wetland animals. Learn about observational activity worksheets to help focus learning while exploring the park.

Nature Trails

Take a hike through our five miles of nature trails. Your students will be fascinated by the variety of native plants and animals they’ll see.

Cheney Discovery Center

This interactive center provides a variety of hands-on learning experiences. Students can dress up as their favorite animals, use puppets to act out animal behaviors, hear the buzzing of a real working honeybee hive (seasonal) or touch one of the many animal pelts.The Cheney Discovery Center opens at 11 a.m.

Adventure Trek

Students in preschool through high school can enjoy a naturalist-led program geared to their grade level. The 25-minute programs include multimedia presentations and hands-on activities and are aligned with the Washington State EALRS.

This special activity costs $30 per class, in addition to the price of admission.

 1st-2nd Grade: Habitat Is Where It’s At
3rd-4th Grade: Wild About Wetlands
5th-6th Grade: Fascinating Forests
7th-8th Grade: Endangered Species

Dates

Northwest Trek is open year-round and each season offers something new – from baby elk in the spring to the thick-coated bears of winter. Here’s the current schedule:

  • Northwest Trek is closed Monday through Thursday from October to Mid-March.  Daily operations will resume March 15, 2013.
  • Reservations are available on Fridays from November through March.
  • No school group reservations will be accepted on Special Event days or Holiday weekends.
  • Northwest Trek is limited to 500 reserved tram tour seats for school groups each day during the school year.
Know Before You Go

Following are a few tips to make your school field trip go off without a hitch:

  • Have those wristbands ready. Students should put on their wristbands before they arrive at the park. Otherwise you may miss your scheduled tour.  Teachers must put on their wristband to be admitted free and should only hand out wristbands to the people in their group who are included in their reservation.
  • Bring or buy lunch. The Forest Cafe serves snacks and lunches, including kids’ meals. You can also reserve the Picnic Pavilion, a covered, heated space where you can eat sack lunches. If the weather permits, there are also many picnic tables in the picnic meadow.
  • Parking is free. There’s plenty of space.
  • Visit our gift shop – with a chaperone. Our gift shop offers unique items from $1 - $10. Students can shop for a memento from their trip as long as they are accompanied by a chaperone.  Backpacks do need to be left outside of the gift shop.  Small groups of 10 students plus chaperones at a time in the gift shop is appreciated.
  • You cannot use coupons, complimentary passes or memberships (Northwest Trek or Point Defiance Zoo) with school group reservations. All students and chaperones are charged the same admission rate.
  • Check out the following videos to prepare for your trip:  For Teachers; For Students; For Chaperones.

If you have questions or need more information, please contact us at 360.832.7166 or reserve@nwtrek.org.