Many University of Wisconsin students plan to take alternative breaks aiming for an educational experience instead of taking a more traditional, sometimes wild, vacation.

Students willing to make contributions for others are joining the Alternative Breaks Program, a student-run committee of the Wisconsin Union Directorate (WUD). This program provides students not only a chance to travel throughout the United States, but also an opportunity to volunteer for community service, according to Alternative Breaks Associate Director Teresa Dzieglewicz.

“[The trip] is not just to save the world in one week — the purpose of this trip is having a good time and also understanding the situation of community and issues,” Dzieglewicz said.

Dzieglewicz participated in the program three times herself.

“When [students] come back, they have educational plan projects to tell people about their experience and what they learned,” she said.

The Alternative Breaks Program offers five to ten trips every seasonal break for which ten participants per excursion travel across the country for less than $200. The program focuses on various projects, such as living in shelters, helping homeless and battered women, teaching youths at international centers and working at national parks.

The goal of this program is for students to learn “multiculturalism” in a hands-on context, Dzieglewicz said, where students directly face the lives of ethnically and culturally unique populations in areas such as street shelters, youth centers and international centers.

For more travel-oriented students, the Wisconsin Union Travel Center also offers two packages of spring-break trips every year.

“This year, we are trying Amsterdam as a new trip to Europe, promoting to a different crowd,” travel center employee Andrea Wawrzyniak said. “The trip package comes with an opportunity to learn.”

Going cross-country or backpacking in places such as Big Bend and Canyon Lands National Parks are popular among students, too, according to Elizabeth Hutchinson, Fontana sales associate.

“People are definitely going for alternative destinations [rather] than just a big party for spring break,” Hutchinson said. “We sold a lot of big backpacks for people who are going to Europe.”

Another alternative for outdoor-adventure seekers includes skiing, snowboarding and scuba diving — activities that have always been popular, Hutchinson said, adding students on average spend up to $400 to go scuba diving and skiing, “but people who are dedicated to sports are willing to pay.”

On the other hand, for students looking for exotic destinations, Cancun, Acapulco or the Bahamas are currently popular, according to Deanna Schuppel, branch manager of STA Travel Center at the Union.

“Jamaica is the big turn-out this spring break,” Schuppel said. “A lot more students definitely go to Europe or Central America, too, because they are not any more expensive than the Caribbean or Mexico, where [students] usually go.”