In Our Lady of Mercy College we have a long tradition of European Cultural tours. These tours usually take place in Transition Year and or 5th year. Previous destinations have included Lake Garda & Venice, London, Paris, Berlin, Madrid, Barcelona, Krakow or volunteering in Lourdes with the Carmelite Order.
These school tours assist in our aim of providing a holistic education for our students. Tours are organised with the aim of exposing our students to experiences that will help them grow socially, academically, morally, physically, personally, culturally and equip them with skills for real life. School tours allow students’ learning to extend beyond the classroom and deepen and reinforce the curriculum and skills promoted in the classroom.
We also have language tours, giving students who study a foreign language to experience the culture of their chosen language and practice in real life their language skills. Students who study German had the opportunity to visit Munich Germany and Salzburg Austria in November 2024. Our French students visited Nice, Cannes, and Monaco in April 2025.
In April, our 2nd Year and TY French students had the wonderful opportunity to immerse themselves in the language and culture of the South of France, with visits to Nice, Cannes, and Monaco.
The tour began with a visit to a French language school, where students participated in two hours of engaging lessons—a perfect start that allowed them to practise their language skills in an authentic setting.
On day two, the morning was spent back at the language school, followed by a real-life language challenge: navigating a local fruit and vegetable market using their French. The afternoon featured a guided two-hour walking tour of Nice, giving students a deeper appreciation of the city’s rich history and charm.
Day three took us by train to Monaco, where we explored the principality aboard Le Petit Train and then enjoyed time discovering the city independently.
The final day included a visit to glamorous Cannes, a tour of a traditional perfume factory in Grasse, and a walk through the picturesque medieval town of Saint-Paul-de-Vence.
This unforgettable trip offered students a fully immersive experience in French language and culture—bringing the classroom to life in the most inspiring way.
In April 2023 48 TY and 5h year students accompanied by 5 teachers spent 4 days in the North of Italy. The tour was aimed at allowing the students to explore Italian Culture and heritage, through visit historical landmarks and touring 3 different towns/cities. Day one involved the students visiting Lake Garda town Sirmione where they took a boat tour around the lake before making their own pizza in an authentic pizzeria. The 2nd day the students travelled into Venice on a private water taxi before spending a full day exploring the city. In Venice they took a guided tour of the city and a murano glass factory. Day 3 was one filled with adrenaline as they visited Gardaland amusement park. The final day of the tour was spent in the lovely city of Verona where they took a tour of the Verona Arena before exploring the city.
In November 2024 19 of our students from 2nd-6th year who study German accompanied by 3 teachers headed off for 3 days to visit Munich and Salzburg. The tour involved a walking tour of Munich before the students explored the Christmas markets of Munich, putting their German skills into practice. The next day started with a German class in a local language school before they hopped on a bus to take them to the Saltmines in Salzburg and Salzburg city. On the final day the group paid a visit to the Europe’s largest slide world. The group enjoyed many indoor waterslides, wave pool and both indoor and outdoor thermal areas.
