School overnight trips are where everything goes down. I remember my eighth grade class trip to Washington DC better than I remember what I ate for lunch yesterday. It's a unique chance to really get to know your classmates (especially the ones you're not friends with) outside the confines of school itself. Something about sleeping over with people you don't usually sleep over with is exhilarating. What kind of pajamas do they wear? Do they have a weird retainer they have to wear on at night? Do they have night terrors? It's a bonding experience, to say the least.
I would have hated to miss out on these trips, lest I be left out of a grade-wide inside joke about that hilarious thing Brendan did at the Lincoln Memorial. Good times. This Reddit post stoked conversation around these trips and shamed the mom who tried to keep her kid from going.