Prince George, B.C. – If you’ve got school-aged kids and were waiting to see when spring break is next year before deciding where to vacation, you can book your tickets now.

This after the Prince George School Board unanimously approved district calendars for the 2016-17 and 2017-18 school years last night.

As they have the past couple of years, the next two spring breaks will feature two consecutive weeks of vacation time (March 2017: March 13 – March 24, March 2018: March 19 – March 30).

The District Calendar Committee convened twice this school year and the public was invited to provide input before the calendar was finalized.

Prince George District Parent Advisory Council (DPAC) chairperson Sarah Holland says the two week spring break was discussed during its meeting this week and indicated it’s difficult to find unanimity on the issue.

“A number of parents prefer a two week spring break, but some find it very difficult to find care for their children during that period,” she says.

“DPAC’s position in the past has been that when the district does a two week spring break, then ideally it would be best to offer some sort of care options for children in particular need.”

School Board vice-chair Tim Bennett acknowledges while an “extensive consultation process” went into district calendar planning, the final calendar doesn’t always work for all parents.

“We do recognize that this is not ideal for everyone in all the district’s families but that’s why it’s important for us to release the calendar as early as possible to ensure that the community has a lot of notice as to when spring breaks are going to fall for the next couple of years.”