Jamborree Council Costs

[penst8]

Having never been to a Jamboree I was wondering what the Council fee covers. I want to sign my son up and possibly go myself but the council fees may make the trip too expensive for me to attend. If I go to the Jamboree the family may need to forgo a traditional family vacation. My son will work to earn his way but that really isn't possible for me.

 

National fee is $850. Our council fee could be up to $1,000. It hasn't been announced. With National providing almost everything I'm wondering what the money that I'm paying to Council will cover. Beckley is a 6 hour drive so I know there's bus transportation but that can't possibly be $1,000.00

[eaglescout1996]

If you council is only charging $1000 to attend as a participant, then the "extra" $150 you are paying would pay for transportation, insurance, (most likely) Jambo Troop t-shirts, council strips and numbers, patrol patches, and whatever other small items they would provide.

 

 

[penst8]

The total cost is going to be $1,850. I could stomach $150 for transportation but not $1,000.

[IM_Kathy]

compared to my sons council your price is excellent. But he'll be traveling from Iowa and they have added visits to a Major League Baseball game, NFL Hall of Fame, Rock n Roll hall of fame, the St. Louis Arch, and a couple of other stops too... and the cost includes everything except suiveniers. But these are all places he's never been, and is excited that he'll get to see the NFL Hall of Fame before his dad ever will LOL

[qwazse]

Now might be a good time to call/E-mail your council (which I think may be mine, too) get in touch with their Jamboree chairperson, and let them know you are anxious to help budget this for your son and tell them what price would be a "deal breaker" for you.

 

My kids have voiced no interest in Jambo, so I've never weighed in with anyone who might be planning the trip.

 

Note that in general, the adults only go to Jambo as scoutmasters or assistants in their council contingent or as Jamboree staff. The practical upshot is that you won't cross paths with your son too much. So the choice for you may boil down to volunteer service or family vaction.

 

Not telling you what you should decide, just sayin that you should spell it out with your spouse so the both of you can sort out what's really important.

[fred8033]

Our council 2010 jamboree price was $2,200.

 

For the price, Jamboree is big gamble. Will your son mix well with the adults, the scouts and the troop structure? Will he have new and rich experiences? Do you personally know the adult leaders of the jamboree troop? (Im pretty sure the leaders are already selected and there is not extra space for parents to go with the jamboree troops. Its not for parents to tag along. You just wont know which council jamboree troop your son will be in until he is assigned.) .. Will the troop adults be so focused on making the perfect Jamboree troop to make them look good that they forget to let the scouts have a good time?

 

For my son, he spent a lot of money to get a really bad experience. Before Jamboree, he had 150 nights of troop camping under his belt with many years of leadership and a several high adventures.

 

At his Jamboree troop, he was treated like a little kid. And not just him. Many in his troop were threatened to be sent him including the ASPL, two PLs and other scouts. I later talked with the ASPL and PLs and they confirmed much of what my son told me.

 

Our council 2010 jamboree contingent included tours of Washington D.C. Like a previous poster, my son had already seen most of the tour stuff. The difference was the lack of freedom. On his school trip, the students were given great freedom to explore and locations were coordinated to meet back up. But with scouts they stood in long lines by troop. (One time my son was punished was while the troop waiting yet again to get lined up. They were next to a bathroom. So he used it. The troop left without him. When he came out and caught up with them, he was reprimanded, lost privileges and had to stay with the adults.)

 

The warning I would give is think about your sons home troop. My sons home troop is traditional scouting but easy going. I've never seen a scout threatened with punishment. I've never seen his scoutmaster yell. The troop doesnt work that way. But, the jamboree troop very much did.

 

I always say no two troops are the same and they reflect the collective personality of the adult leaders. Perhaps, Jamborees are easy for scouts that come from strict / procedural / militaristic troops. Its just a big gamble with $1800.

(This message has been edited by fred8033)

[nldscout]

When I went a an ASM in 2001 we had no problems like your descibed. When we toured DC, we turned them lose with instructions to stay in groups of no less than 3, and to have FUN. All the leaders from the 5 troops in our council spread out all over the mall area and just were there to observe. We met up at a certain time without any problems.

 

As to what you get for the council fees

 

Transportaion

Food during pre Jambo touring

Training weekends

Equipment, like cooking gear, tents, tarpss

Cost of gateways

patches

troop flags

and much more.

 

[Beavah]

Yah, penst8, there's good advice all around here.

 

When a council puts together a jamboree contingent, they're constructin' one or more new "troops" out of random people. Random adults, random scouts. So the experience can be a bit hit or miss dependin' on the kids and adults. Yeh can have some troops who send kids who are really too young/immature/rapid-advanced who are just a drag on the contingent, and yeh can have some district curmudgeons as adult leaders who can be poor leaders for the kids.

 

Typically councils also milk jambo for revenue in one way or another. Most often, they actually buy new gear to outfit the jambo "troop" - new matching tents, cook gear, etc. That adds up. That gear in the end goes to the council camp or to a Scoutreach unit or somesuch. Then they also build in a pretty healthy contingency amount just to protect themselves against kids who drop, etc. And, too, there's a tendency to pay for logistics support and touring rather than do it the more typical lower-cost troop way. That's because yeh have to make allowances for not knowin' the boys and havin' a bit group.

 

Jambo can be a great experience, but da costs are pretty high for what really is a big ol' car-camping party. I've always told folks that given a choice between goin' to Jambo and goin' to 2-3 troop high adventure treks, there's no question. Take the high adventure treks.

 

Beavah

 

[eaglescout1996]

$1850? I'm sorry to hear that, as my council is about the same distance as yours from Beckley in the opposite direction. I spoke to our Jambo Contingent leader this past weekend who said they didn't have a "fixed" price yet, but it would probably be around $1200 or less per participant. That pice is quite a bit less than last time, but I think that is because some of the touring will be cut out and the council will not have to purchase equipment since it will be provided by National.

 

But I think on a whole, contingent prices should be considerably lower due to all the equipment being provided by National.

[Papadaddy]

Some Councils also go hog-wild buying custom hats, neckers, T-shirts, jackets, tote bags, backpacks, water bottles, etc etc etc. It may also include expenses for organizational meetings, "work up" camping trips, etc. In my opinion a lot of that is unnecessary and just drives up the price which excludes more kids. Ask your Council for an itemized list of what the fee includes.

[fred8033]

nldscout wrote: "When I went a an ASM in 2001 we had no problems like your descibed. When we toured DC, we turned them lose with instructions to stay in groups of no less than 3, and to have FUN. All the leaders from the 5 troops in our council spread out all over the mall area and just were there to observe. We met up at a certain time without any problems."

 

That's how my son's school group did it and he had a great time.

 

My son's Jamboree troop was not like that at all. Little freedom. But they also had some relatively young kids in the troop as the council seems to have lowered the age limit to fill the spots.

 

I've also got to know several of the troop leaders since the event. They would not mix well with my son's home troop. Especially as I've seen them play the "do this or else" card way too often. And yes, their uniforms resemble russian generals.

 

Perhaps it as the "safest Jamboree ever" focus. Perhaps it was something just a bad luck draw for adult/scout mix. It was just not a great experience.

 

 

Papadaddy wrote: . "In my opinion a lot of that is unnecessary and just drives up the price which excludes more kids."

 

Throughly agree. Saw it happen. A lot of wasted dollars on stuff that wasn't important or critical.

 

 

[noname]

I too live within 6 hours and our council is taking deposits but wont set a price! I've seen 1850 from Massachutes and 3000- from California but not a peep from western pa. For me to put into perspective I saw a presentation for a 3 week trip to Scotland 2050 from Newark or 3 weeks at Philmont(due to a cancellation) for 1500. I am all for everyone helping but when councils directly benefit form the kids? Our council charged $2000 for the last one and we live 5 hours from DC, they bought brand new tents for summer camp! My son understands the value of money and may go to scotland or philmont instead!

[Eagle92]

Question, did any council's mention that some of the jambo fee is a tax write off? I remember hearing from a parent that part of the jambo fee, specfically the gear that would be used at jambo then turned over to the camp, was able to be written off as a donation? I think they said it was told to them by the director of support services, and this was back int he day.,

[sbemis1]

I believe a lot of councils (ours being one for sure) pads the fee a lot for a better return. Breaking even = failing, here.

[qwazse]

Your expenses as an essential leader may be considered a charitable contribution. This includes fees, travel required to get to the event, and uniforms that are expressely purposed for the organization.

 

Your kid's expensenses are not.

 

A contribution you make to your chartered organization so that other kids can go to the event may be. Depends on the nature of your chartered organization and how they account for stuff.