10 Considerations When Taking a Nanny on Vacation

Many families bring their nannies along on their vacations to continue providing childcare during the vacation time. Other families hire a nanny specifically to accompany them and assist with childcare while they are traveling away from home. If bringing a nanny on your vacation is a new experience for you, there are several considerations to keep in mind.

1. Luggage – Another person means additional luggage to accommodate for the trip. It will be important to communicate with the nanny regarding the amount of space and the number of bags that you are able to accommodate in your vehicle and on flights.
2. Travel – Seating and/or transportation tickets will be another issue to be considered, when bringing nanny along on vacation. Airplane tickets, in particular, need to be purchased with an individuals name attached; a big issue when purchasing tickets ahead of time for a ‘vacation only’ nanny.
3. Dining – You will need to budget for another adult participating in meals during the vacation. Your nanny should not be expected to pay for her own meals while traveling with you.
4. Accommodations – Will you be providing private accommodations for your nanny during the trip or will she need to share a room with children? This is an important point to clarify ahead of time. It would be well within the nanny’s rights to request a private room from the rest of the family.
5. Excursions – Visits to tourist attractions or other excursions, which the nanny is expected to accompany the children to, may require entrance fees and other cost considerations needing to be budgeted for.
6. Identification – Just as with anyone who is traveling, it will be important that your nanny carries proper identification with her for the time on vacation. If you are traveling out of country, she will need a passport, which, of course, requires quite some time to process.
7. Personal Spending – The family should not feel obligated to provide personal spending money for their nanny during vacation travel. It must be kept in mind that, although the family is on vacation, she is not. She is performing a service for which she is being paid.
8. Duties – It will be important to discuss what the expectations and duties will be for the nanny during the vacation time. Vacation travel is a very unique situation and a nanny will need to be flexible, but constant communication regarding the plans for each day will help keep her prepared.
9. Personal Time – A nanny should still expect to have time off from caring for the children during the vacation. It will be important to establish how this will be accomplished prior to leaving on vacation.
10. Benefits for Parents – Having a nanny traveling with the family while on vacation can be a great benefit for parents. This allows parents to have ‘adult time’ without having to leave the children behind. It also provides that extra set of eyes and hands that can be so helpful with energetic little children.

A little extra planning is required when bringing nanny on vacation with the family, but the convenience of having her there to help with the kids can definitely be worth it.