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When Lynn Singer and her husband of Armonk, N.Y. travel with their three school-age kids, there’s one essential aspect to a successful trip: They bring their nanny on vacation with them.
“Having an extra pair of hands just makes everything run more smoothly,” explains Singer. “There’s one more person to help put on sunscreen and bathing suits in the morning, play on the beach or take someone to the bathroom, and if my 3-year-old son wants to nap or skip dinner out, he can do that, too.”
Singer and her husband aren’t alone. About 34% of nannies reported that they travel as part of their job, according to the International Nanny Association’s 2022 Salary and Benefits Survey. Bringing a nanny on your family vacation can make the trip more relaxing for everyone. Here’s what to know about the benefits for you, the pay for your nanny and other important considerations.
The benefits of bringing your nanny on vacation with you
A family vacation can run more smoothly and peacefully for families who bring along their regular, full-time nanny (or hire a vacation nanny for the occasion). A nanny adds an extra set of eyes at busy places like Disney, allows parents to enjoy an occasional night out and even offers the chance to sleep in some mornings.
To ensure a successful trip, travel writer and editor Lissa Poirot does recommend traveling with a nanny with whom you’re very familiar and comfortable. She says, “Your nanny needs to be someone that you can live with for the duration of the trip, often in tight quarters, as well as someone your kids will listen to.”
How to handle pay when you travel with your nanny
Remember that just because it’s your vacation, it’s still work for your nanny — work that’s likely made more difficult by the unfamiliar food, surroundings and the break from routine.
“Negotiate a lump sum for the total number of hours worked before departure, which you can then spread out in any way that works once you arrive,” says Jessika Auerbach, author of “And Nanny Makes Three.” “Also, make sure to talk about whether or not watching an on-demand movie in the hotel room while the kids are sleeping constitutes ‘work’ — parents never think that it does, but nannies always do.”
If you expect your nanny to share a room with your children, make sure they agree to it before you leave. And of course, you should compensate your nanny for any extra hours of work, including overtime, and allow them some time off to rest and recharge.
Read more: 5 payroll tips for when a nanny travels with your family
Why it’s important to have a travel or vacation nanny contract
For both parents and nannies, it’s important to have open lines of communication, says Poirot, who has both traveled as a nanny and as a parent with her nanny. “I have had some awkward conversations, both with parents who were staying out partying all night and expecting me to work 24 hours a day, as well as with my own nanny, who started drinking so much wine at dinner that it was interfering with her ability to do her job the next day,” she says. “In both cases, I had to take them aside and re-establish some ground rules.”
Ahead of your travels and once you have discussed all the expectations, create a travel or vacation nanny contract that specifies the nanny’s hours, salary and duties.
A few considerations when you travel with a nanny
While having a nanny travel with you may sound wonderful, it’s important to remember:
- You’re responsible for the expense of nanny’s airfare, food and lodging.
- This is a work trip for your nanny, so you still owe them their regular vacation time, which means you’ll need to figure out child care those additional weeks.
- Don’t forget that it’s also your children’s vacation, and if they’re used to being around the nanny most of the time, they may prefer their parent(s) when they have you at their disposal. Singer, whose kids are getting older and want more parent time, says, “We may actually not bring her when we travel this summer and just see what it’s like to vacation as a family. But then again, we may bring her just to make sure we get some peace, too!”
Try other vacation child care options
Don’t have a full-time nanny who can travel with you? Get creative.
Parent Sharyn Clark Castagno of New York says she loved the idea of bringing a sitter to help with her rambunctious 6-year-old son Luca but couldn’t afford the sitter’s $20 hourly rate over the whole week. “I asked my sitter if she would consider coming along and helping out if we paid her travel expenses, lodging, and food and gave her time off in exchange for babysitting Luca,” she says. “My sitter, who is an underemployed actor, loved the idea, and it worked so well that I’m hoping to travel with her every time we go away.”
If it doesn’t make sense to bring your nanny with you on vacation, learn about: 8 vacation child care options.
