Where leading
business schools go.
10 study trip destinations.
The best destination is the one that changes the quality of your questions. Compare real school examples, then choose what your group needs to understand.
Photo: UC San Diego Rady School of Management.
starts with being there.
Choose the learning.
Then choose the place.
A program director’s real question is rarely “Which city is most impressive?” It is “Where can this cohort encounter something it cannot fully understand from a classroom?”
These ten destinations offer different ways to examine innovation, industry, consumers and change. The school examples show how international learning takes shape. Our perspective explains how to turn that inspiration into a purposeful program.
Find your starting point.
Choose a destination below to see its school examples, learning focus and planning considerations. The themes are KNOHAO’s recommendations.
| Destination | A useful learning focus | Documented school example |
|---|---|---|
| 01China | AI, robotics, EVs and changing consumers | INSEAD / UC San Diego Rady |
| 02Munich | Robotics, manufacturing and industrial reinvention | Esade · CaixaBank EmprendeXXI |
| 03Singapore | Regional strategy, finance and coordination | CUHK Business School |
| 04New York & Boston | Innovation, capital and competitive advantage | London Business School |
| 05London & Cambridge | Technology, regulation and strategic judgment | CEIBS |
| 06Mexico | Nearshoring and supply-chain decisions | Wharton |
| 07Vietnam | Emerging markets and responsible growth | HKU Business School |
| 08Saudi Arabia | Economic diversification and transformation | London Business School |
| 09Iceland | Geothermal energy, circularity and experience | IE Business School |
| 10Netherlands / BENELUX | Logistics, food systems and European competitiveness | Strathmore University Business School |
China
What happens when new technology meets a different way of buying?
From the schools
INSEAD
MiM study trip · 2026
INSEAD’s student account describes a Shanghai and Beijing study trip that connected AI applications, humanoid robotics, entrepreneurship and local culture.
INSEAD’s China trip accountUC San Diego Rady
MBA immersion · March 2025
Rady’s MBA group visited Beijing and Shanghai, exploring cross-border business, AI-assisted drug discovery at XtalPi and financial technology.
Rady’s China immersion reportThe KNOHAO perspective
Put the factory, the platform and the consumer in the same conversation. We connect AI, robotics and EVs with livestream commerce and micro-consumption: small purchases shaped by identity, emotion and community. Quantum and deep tech belong in the discussion where the group can examine commercial readiness, not just a demonstration.
Explore our China study tripsMunich
How does an established industrial strength become a new advantage?
From the schools
Esade · CaixaBank EmprendeXXI
Entrepreneurship immersion · July 2023
CaixaBank DayOne reports that Esade’s Munich program brought award-winning startups into the local innovation ecosystem. Visits included BMW, Agile Robots and Reactive Robotics, connecting industrial scale with emerging technologies.
CaixaBank DayOne’s Munich reportThe KNOHAO perspective
A robot arm makes an arresting first impression. The more useful discussion is about the economics of deploying it: integration, skills, reliability and the customer problem it solves. Munich can bring automotive transformation, advanced manufacturing and the Mittelstand into one learning agenda.
Explore our Munich study trips
Singapore
How do companies, infrastructure and institutions work together?
From the schools
CUHK Business School
MBA study trip · March 2025
CUHK reports a Singapore visit by 40 MBA students, combining university sessions with visits to businesses and institutions including Google, Alibaba Cloud and the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
CUHK’s Singapore study trip reportThe KNOHAO perspective
Use Singapore to ask how a regional business is organized, then test what can travel to other markets. A coherent program connects technology, finance, supply chains and state-business coordination without treating Southeast Asia as one uniform market.
Explore our Singapore study tripsNew York & Boston
What turns a promising idea into an organization that can scale?
From the schools
London Business School
Global Experience destination listing · checked October 2026
LBS names Boston and New York among its experiential learning destinations. Its description emphasizes faculty-led themes and engagement with local businesses, alumni and other participants in the business community.
LBS’s experiential learning overviewThe KNOHAO perspective
Build a conversation between invention, investment and execution. The two-city format can explore entrepreneurship, AI and disruption through the decisions that turn a technical possibility into a viable business. Use the contrast between visits to test what competitive advantage actually rests on.
Explore our New York & Boston study tripsLondon & Cambridge
How do you make a good decision before the future is clear?
From the schools
CEIBS
Entrepreneurial Leadership Camp · September 2025 module listing
CEIBS’s published camp schedule includes a Cambridge module in September 2025 focused on cognitive agility in a global business context. This example concerns Cambridge; London is an additional option for a KNOHAO route.
CEIBS’s published camp scheduleThe KNOHAO perspective
Bring technology disruption into contact with leadership and regulation. A London and Cambridge program can ask how executives assess unfamiliar technologies, interpret uncertain rules and decide when to commit. The destination is a setting for judgment, not simply a backdrop for innovation talks.
Explore our London & Cambridge study tripsMexico
When does moving production closer create real value?
From the schools
Wharton
Global Modular Course · scheduled March 8–11, 2027
Wharton’s published 2026–27 schedule lists a supply-chain management course in Monterrey, led by Santiago Gallino. It is a future course listing, subject to change, rather than a report of a completed trip.
Wharton’s Global Modular Course scheduleThe KNOHAO perspective
Start with the operating decision: suppliers, skills, logistics, customers and exposure to cross-border change. For Chinese companies considering Mexico, the questions also include how to build local capabilities and work across different commercial and institutional contexts.
Explore our Mexico study tripsVietnam
What changes when a supply-chain strategy becomes a local operating reality?
From the schools
HKU Business School
MBA International Field Project · June 2025
HKU’s Vietnam office reports a June 17–23, 2025 field project focused on sustainable business and ESG investing. Students examined local organizations and concluded with consulting recommendations for partner companies.
HKU’s Vietnam field project reportThe KNOHAO perspective
Examine manufacturing shifts alongside the conditions that make them workable: people, supplier relationships and local institutions. The comparison with China is valuable when it reveals differences rather than assuming that one country is a substitute for another.
Explore our Vietnam study tripsSaudi Arabia
How do ambitious plans become industries, organizations and jobs?
From the schools
London Business School
MBA Global Experience listing · checked October 2026
LBS lists Riyadh among the destinations for its intensive, faculty-led Global Experience courses, which bring students into contact with local business communities. The page does not specify a travel date.
LBS’s MBA learning experience overviewThe KNOHAO perspective
Use Vision 2030 as a starting point for questions about execution, talent, investment and institutional change. Look for conversations that connect the national ambition with the practical decisions facing individual businesses. A useful program makes room for complexity as well as opportunity.
Explore our Saudi Arabia study tripsIceland
How can a natural resource support several different businesses?
From the schools
IE Business School
Master’s Global Immersion Week · reported June 2025
IE’s June 2025 account describes an Iceland immersion for its sustainability and business transformation students. The program connected geothermal energy, circular economy ideas and business innovation.
IE’s Iceland immersion reportThe KNOHAO perspective
Connect energy with wellness, tourism and the value of a physical experience. The interesting question is how several industries can grow around a resource while preserving the place that makes them possible. This is a particularly useful lens for destination strategy.
Explore our Iceland study trips
Netherlands / BENELUX
What makes a connected business system more productive?
From the schools
Strathmore University Business School
Agribusiness study trip · published dates May 17–24, 2026
Strathmore published a Netherlands agribusiness study trip for May 17–24, 2026. Its invitation emphasizes international benchmarking, partnerships and export growth. This is an event listing, not a post-trip account.
Strathmore’s Netherlands trip listingThe KNOHAO perspective
Follow connections between producers, technology, logistics and markets. A Netherlands-focused program can extend into questions about energy transition and European competitiveness. Add Belgium or Luxembourg when the cross-border comparison strengthens the learning agenda.
Explore our Netherlands / BENELUX study tripsA full schedule is easy.
A coherent journey takes thought.
Name the decision.
Agree on what participants should understand or do differently afterward. Use that objective to decide what earns time on the agenda.
Build in a contrast.
Pair different perspectives: an incumbent and a new entrant, a technology provider and its customer, or a business and the institution around it.
Make time to interpret.
Preparation and facilitated debriefs turn encounters into learning. Ask what can travel home, what depends on local conditions and what remains unresolved.
Born in Shanghai and based in Madrid, KNOHAO brings an East–West perspective and senior local partners to that process. Explore our method, programs for business schools, or our UC San Diego Rady China program.
Before you choose.
Which destination is best for an MBA study trip?
Start with your curriculum and cohort. China can support a comparison of technology and consumer behavior; Munich can frame industrial transformation; Singapore can help examine regional coordination. The right choice depends on the questions, participant experience and access available for your dates.
Are these the ten most popular destinations?
No. This guide does not measure trip volumes or rank schools. It brings together ten destinations with published school examples and different learning opportunities. A numbered entry helps navigation; it is not a position in a league table.
Did KNOHAO organize all the school trips mentioned?
No. The guide combines independent, sourced school examples with KNOHAO’s planning recommendations. The UC San Diego Rady China and Esade · CaixaBank Munich programs are examples of our own work. Other cited trips and courses are included as research, not as claims of a KNOHAO engagement.
How long should a business school study trip last?
KNOHAO programs typically run for one to two weeks, with shorter focused formats considered when appropriate. Choose duration after agreeing on the learning objectives and route. Fewer visits with time to discuss them can be more useful than a crowded agenda.
Can we include the same companies or speakers?
You can request them, and we will assess their relevance and availability. A company appearing in a past school report does not establish future access. Hosts, speakers, dates and the final agenda are confirmed during planning.
What should your group
see differently?
Tell us about your cohort, dates and learning objectives. We’ll help you compare destinations and shape a program with a reason behind every visit.
Help me choose a destination for my groupExplore all KNOHAO destinations