Discover New York City up close with our knowledgeable teacher/guide as you explore one of the most iconic cities in America during a truly special time of the year.

Journey through neighborhoods such as Little Italy, Chinatown, and Brooklyn Heights, where generations of immigrants helped shape the city's unique character and energy. Along the way, you'll experience famous landmarks, diverse communities, and everyday aspects of city life while exploring the traditions, experiences, and ideas that have helped make New York a symbol of the American experience.

Traveling on foot and by public transportation, you'll embrace New York the way millions of residents and visitors do every day.

And to truly celebrate the season you’ll attend the Radio City Christmas Spectacular — a world-famous live show that has entertained New Yorkers of all backgrounds for nearly 100 years with its dancing Rockettes and holiday magic.

Your journey begins with a flexible, self-paced online module that will be available starting this month. Designed to fit easily around your schedule, you can complete these activities and shared assignments at your own speed in about 12 total hours.

By completing the online portion before your trip, you'll have more free time to explore the places you’ve come to see!

6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. — Live “Know Before You Go” Zoom class

1 p.m. to 8 p.m. — In-person New York City touring experience

Students will be able to store their luggage at the meeting point and retrieve it at the conclusion of the day’s class. A fee applies.

9 a.m. to 5 p.m. — In-person New York City touring experience

9 a.m. to 3 p.m. — In-person New York City touring experience

The highlights of the city explorations include the following: the Christmas Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall, SUMMIT One Vanderbilt, 9/11 Memorial, the Oculus, Chinatown, Little Italy, Central Park and Times Square.

Please keep in mind that plans are subject to change in light of factors such as the weather, time constraints, road closures and events taking place in the city during the time of your visit.

To better plan your time in New York City, here are the start points of your in-person learning experience:

• Saturday — 1 p.m. Zaza Diner

• Saturday — 9 a.m. Grand Central Station

• Sunday — 9 a.m. Grand Central Station

Accommodations are not included with this course.  Based on feedback from au pairs, you may wish to consider HI New York City Hostel (891 Amsterdam Avenue).

Many students also find it helpful to use the Hostelworld website when searching for a place to stay. We mention this website — and the the property noted above — simply as a resource that you may wish to consider and do not recommend or endorse any particular property.

All class sessions — whether online or in-person — are mandatory. The Zoom class takes place live with your camera on and require each student to take an active role in group discussions.

• Before you sign up for any course, double check class times (both online Zoom and in-person) as well as the time zone according to which the class will be taught.  Make certain that the class times do not conflict with your work commitment to your host family.  If the times conflict, this is not the course for you.

• To make sure the course you’ve chosen is not already full, first sign up for the course and receive the enrollment confirmation we’ll email you.  Once that’s done, you may then book your travel arrangements.

• Please also note that as the start of the course draws near, we will send each student a link to a WhatsApp group that will allow us to communicate with students and students to communicate with one another about their plans in regard to travel arrangements.

Once you successfully complete this course, you’ll earn 72 hours of credit.

If you have additional questions regarding credit hours, please contact your au pair organization.

Students will have 3 weeks to complete their post-assignment and submit it to their teacher.

Once you submit your post-assignment, you will receive your certificate of completion directly from Towson University within 10 days, assuming you have satisfactorily completed all course work. Feel free to turn your assignment in as soon as you complete it, as this will allow us to get your certificate to you sooner.

If you cancel…
― 22 or more days before the start of the first class, you will receive a full refund.
― 21 to 11 days before the start of the first class, you will receive a full refund less a $50 cancellation fee.
― 10 to 6 days before the start of the first class, you will not receive a refund. You will instead receive a credit that can be applied toward the tuition price of any Learning Across America course. The credit will be in the amount of the tuition you paid, less a $75 cancellation fee. The credit is good for one year from the date of issue and is transferable.
― 5 or fewer days before the class begins, no refund or credit is available.

As an alternative, should you need to cancel we offer the ability to transfer your enrollment in the same course to another au pair without penalty, provided we receive notice at least 3 days before the start of the course.

Students who must cancel their course need to send an email to Learning Across America. The cancellation request must be sent directly by the student. Please make sure that the subject line of your email is Attention: Cancellation of Course.

If you decide to transfer to another Learning Across America course…
― 22 or more days before the start of your original course, you may transfer without penalty.
― 21 to 11 days before the start of your original course, a $25 transfer fee will apply.
― 10 to 6 days before the start of your original course, a $50 transfer fee will apply.
― 5 or fewer days before the class begins, there is no transfer permitted.