Need some help to negotiate a deal when traveling with a caregiver? If you’re not sure how to arrange for your family’s own Mary Poppins, read on for helpful advice.
During summer, adults everywhere are planning time with children. After months of working with never enough time to catch up, parents just want to relax. Many dream of watching young ones blossom. Grandparents anticipate a family visit from their brood. Other families choose to explore the world’s diversity with school-age children or share new adventures with their teens.
To many, bringing a babysitter on family journeys would be antithetical to the notion of “quality family time.” Increasingly however, many parents are finding extra hands the best excess baggage they can bring.
Experts Share Tips on Working With Vacation Caregivers
We interviewed nanny agency professionals, traveling caregivers and parents about their experiences vacationing with a helper. All agreed that most families with a live-in nanny take the girls traveling because that gives parents an evening out or time off for recreation.
Alice, a network news producer with two preschoolers, agrees. “Two weeks on Martha’s Vineyard would never have been a holiday if a babysitter hadn’t come along. We were able to get some sleep and feel like we’d had a vacation, too.”
This winter, Jennifer brought her San Francisco nanny to Vail because last season her toddler fell ill and couldn’t join the resort’s childcare program. “I learned my lesson. After everything we’d invested in that vacation, my husband and I had to take turns staying in the lodge all day.”
Of course, there are the good, the bad, and the ugly sides to this issue. Consider the mom of three toddler-to-teen kids who thought doing Disney World without childcare would be a horror story. But for Ellen, bringing a nanny turned out to be the real nightmare. “The kids had a great time but I was so concerned about whether or not my babysitter was having fun that I could never relax.”
Travel Tips for Vacations with Your Regular Caregiver
Families who have their own full-time nannies often choose to make them vacation caregivers. Employers should discuss their nanny’s work schedule, however, and review responsibilities before departure.
Agency professionals remind families they must respect their caregiver’s need for time off, too. If the nanny is your full time employee, offer additional time off at home in exchange for longer working hours abroad. If childcare exceeds 50-60 hours per week while traveling, experts suggest you pay 150% of the hourly rate for overtime.
How to Handle Expenses When Traveling with Your Caregiver
Travel expenses are another common sore point. If your caregiver comes from an agency, their contract will note that employers to pay for ‘all but personal expenses’ while traveling. Follow suit and give your travel nannies the benefit of the doubt when it comes to expenses, as generosity breeds loyalty.
Establish guidelines for spending money when your nanny is alone with the kids. With the high prices of food, museum admissions, taxis, and more in foreign cities, a generous daily allowance is appropriate for a nanny minding two or more children. Ensure accountability by asking your traveling caregiver to bring back receipts.
Traveling with a Caregiver Who’s Also a Relative
Meg invites her niece, a Seattle college student, on all family trips to serve as a mother’s helper. “When she comes to the San Juan Islands with us, I pay her $250 a week and she’s treated as part of the family.”
Sally Anne’s case may sound familiar to many working women. When this photojournalist, a single mother, was assigned to cover the recent Olympics, she bypassed her regular caregiver to invite a special one — her Mom. “Everyone worked hard and had fun. Of course, the logistics and expenses fell on my shoulders, but the responsibility for coping with a 4-year-old was all Mom’s”.
Since grandparents and other relatives often relish spending time with children, they are naturally great caregivers. Or are they? Sometimes parents make plans with their own parents, who live thousands of miles away, and forget that their children hardly know the new grownups “in charge”. Not only are they older (and probably slower) caregivers, but grandparents and in-laws may have a hard time accepting the already established protocols in your household.
Tips to Smooth the Way with Grandparents
To avoid family squabbles, establish with relatives what’s allowed when it comes to eating, personal appearance, TV watching, and other family habits. Make sure the kids know how to behave, too.
When planning a trip, treat every one as a respected member of the party. Include activities for all ages, as well as plenty of time apart. Discuss expenses — will you provide airfare? Who’s going to pay for meals and hotel expenses? How much childcare do you really expect?
Finding a Professional Travel Caregiver or Temporary Nanny
Families who don’t have regular childcare, and whose relatives don’t have the time, interest or energy to be caregivers, can check Care.com or one of the many online agencies who provide temporary nannies. Be sure to interview them on the phone and ask for references.
Traveling with a caregiver is not cheap but it may be a good investment. A live-in au pair may make around $25 per hour while working and attending school. Having another helping hand for that rate enables parents to do and see more on vacation. A professional, experienced nanny, however, may earn $600 to $900 per week. Negotiate a travel salary of $75 to $150 per day to cover their “work” time while you’re on vacation.
In tourist destinations such as Orlando, Florida, take advantage of the expert local services provided by Parents Night Out. If you’ve booked accommodations, reach out in advance to the concierge. Most of the top hotels refer local agencies, with licensed and bonded caregivers, to their guests on request. Your HR team may also be able to refer you to an agency that provides relief childcare for major corporations.
Tips on Fair Compensation when Traveling with a Temporary Caregiver
Fair compensation depends on where you’re traveling and what a nanny’s responsibilities are. If your selected caregiver values the opportunity to go to Europe, and can sightsee on days off, negotiate the rate. If she’s a temporary worker, negotiate a flat fee for 50-60 hours of work. If your temporary caregiver is going to be stuck in a Palm Beach condo for an entire week, and has basically nowhere to go on her free time, offer 125% of her normal week’s salary.
Be clear about what you’re offering a temporary vacation nanny. They will expect a separate hotel room but are usually happy to share an adjoining hotel room with children. Purchase travel insurance to cover personal injury while traveling with your family. Allow some extra spending money, and essentials such as an eSIM card and WiFI access, so your trip doesn’t cost your caregiver anything.
So, for whatever reason you and your family take to the road, an extra pair of helping hands may be a real blessing.
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