Homestead Field Trips - Waco, Texas | School Group Field Tours at Brazos de Dios Farm

Public School • Private School • Home School

Tour our working homestead at Brazos de Dios

Schedule a memorable spring field trip

for your school class or home school support group

An average of 5,000 public, private and home school children visit Brazos de Dios annually on spring field trips. Here, many see and experience for the first time, the simplicity of an alternative culture based on rural living, agricultural skills and quality craftsmanship set within a community context of service and care. Tour activities include a horse-drawn hayride, a sheep dog demonstration, a guided tour to see some of the farm animals and a visit to our petting pen. Tour our homestead gardens and orchard and see an audio-visual presentation of our community life throughout the seasons of the year. Watch our craft apprentices demonstrate various homesteading crafts such as spinning, blacksmithing, pottery, and woodworking using natural materials and basic hand tools. Cap the day off with a cup of all natural homemade vanilla ice cream.

Tour Information & Guidelines

To make your tour reservation, email us at info@homesteadfieldtrips.com
or call us at (254) 722-7923.

• Reservations

Reservations are required. We operate on a first call – first served basis. We conduct school group tours on weekdays from April 9th through May 18th. If the date you would like to come falls outside of this range, just call us and we can probably work that out. Tours start at 9:30 AM and usually last about 4 to 4 ½ hours including a lunch break.

In the fall, we will be conducting tours during the month of October. Please email or call us if you are interested. We are also open for summer tours.

• Cost

The cost for the tour is $10.00 per person. This includes a cup of our all-natural vanilla ice cream.

We ask that you bring at least one adult for every 10 children to help supervise activities. (We are extending to adults this same educational discount ($10.00) that we give for students.)

• Early Registration Discounts

Sign up for spring tours by Nov. 15th or fall tours by May 15th to receive $3.00 off of the regular tour fee. A 25% deposit is required to receive the discount.

• Make-Your-Own Crafts

• Hand-Dipped Candle = $2.00 • Homemade Soap Ball = $2.00
• Leather Key Fob = $3.00 • Clay Pinch Pot = $5.00 • Brass Spoon = $5.00

(ask about discounts for multiple crafts)

Please let us know at least 2 weeks ahead of time if your group would like any of these optional activities.

• Lunch

Schedule our on-site restaurant to cater a lunch for your school or bring your own sack lunch with you. We have a large picnic area and plenty of shelter in case it rains. Restroom facilities are available.

• Group Size

We can handle most any size group. If your group is under 40 people, we will need to combine your group with another that's already scheduled.

• Supervision

We ask that you bring at least 1 adult for every 10 children to help supervise activities. Parents and older siblings are welcome. Your school, church or other organization is responsible to ensure that the children in your group follow the instructions of the tour guides. It will probably be necessary to divide the group for some parts of the tour and we appreciate your assistance and cooperation in this. We must insist that children be well behaved and come prepared to listen and learn.

• Weather

During springtime, the weather is often unpredictable. Please be sure that the children dress in anticipation of inclement weather. We suggest layered clothing. We have plenty of shelter, so we can handle a light rain. In the event that strong thunderstorms are predicted for the day of your tour, we may find it necessary to cancel.

• Refunds

If you have paid in advance for your tour and then find need to cancel, we will give a 90% refund provided that we can find another group to fill your spot. In the event that we are forced to cancel due to bad weather and we cannot find a time to reschedule, we will give a full refund.

• Schedule Changes

Though we make every effort to prepare for each tour group individually, the seasonal needs of planting, maintaining our land and harvesting that demand our attention may occasionally conflict with our scheduled demonstration(s). If this occurs, we may need to substitute a different demonstration. Although we will make every effort not to change the schedule, we hope you will understand if this should happen during your visit.

• Location

Brazos de Dios is located in central Texas, just off IH-35 north of Waco. For a map and directions to our location, click here. If you have any further questions please call us at (254) 722-7923 or email to info@homesteadfieldtrips.com. .

Click here for a map and directions

Ploughshare Institute for Sustainable Culture