Are You Traveling With a Family on Vacation?

Did your employer ask you to tag along on a family vacation to help with child care? At first you may be thinking: free vacation — fabulous! But there are a lot of details to think about and negotiate before agreeing to accompany a family on vacation as a travel nanny.

And, as the nanny, it’s your job to be diligent about asking questions and gathering information, shares Daryl Camarillo, founder and president of Stanford Park Nannies.

Read on for the six essential topics that need to be discussed before you hit the open road.

Interested in this type of work? Learn How to Get a Travel Nanny Job.

1. Payment
   Because you’ll be in a different environment, around the clock with a family, matters of compensation are not as straightforward as when you’re providing regular child care for a day or an evening. Discuss possible payment scenarios with your employer. Rates may be determined on an hourly basis, and/or dependent upon the type of activity.

   You might want to suggest agreeing to a lump sum payment that will include a set number of hours you’ll be expected to provide child care during the vacation. This option provides you and the family with some flexibility — a welcome quality for both parties for this kind of nannying set-up!

2. Hours
   You shouldn’t be expected to watch the children every moment of the day while you’re traveling with a family on vacation. But the toughest thing is figuring out when you’re working and when you’re not, says Brandy Schultz, former travel nanny and Founder of Adventure Nannies. The general rule of thumb is that you’re off the clock if you have the freedom to come and go as you please.

   What will your free time look like? Will you be expected to be on call during certain times of the day (not just at night)? Will you be given a few hours a day of free time, or one to two days to yourself during the week? With clear communication from the beginning, you’ll eliminate the need for uncomfortable conversations once the trip is underway.

   This will also impact your payment. You should be paid for any time you’re caring for the kids or even simply on call. And you’re entitled to overtime if you work more than 40 hours over the course of seven days.

   Read more about nannies and overtime rules.

3. Accommodations
   Your employer should cover your airfare, ground transportation, meals and accommodations for the trip. That said, you’ll definitely want to be extra clear about that last topic. Ask about sleeping habits and hours, as well as whether or not you’ll be expected to be on call during the night. Will the parents want to sleep in some (or all) of the days? If so, are you responsible for getting up with and feeding the children?

   Just as importantly: where will you be sleeping? You might assume you’ll have a room to yourself, only to find out the parents plan to have you bunk with the kids. These are important details to know!

4. Expenses
   How will meals, activities and other expenses be paid for? Is your employer going to give you a daily stipend or access to a credit card? Can you charge things to the room? What personal expenses are you responsible for covering? The family may pay for non-alcoholic drinks only, and expect you to pick up the tab for any alcoholic drinks you purchase, shares Schultz.

5. Activities
   Every family has their own idea of what vacation means, ranging from ultimate relaxation to out-there adventuring and everything in between. Find out what kinds of activities your employer sees as desirable and age-appropriate for their children. You can even help out by doing a little research on the area and coming up with a few ideas. This conversation will also help you to prepare and pack appropriately.

   RELATED: [“101 Fun Things to Do With Kids This Summer“]

6. Contract
   The most important thing to remember? Get it all in writing. Hopefully you have a contract for your regular caregiving job. (If not, learn why you need a nanny contract). Create a separate one for this vacation.

   A travel nanny contract should cover mutually agreed-upon terms concerning your responsibilities, schedule, compensation, expenses and any other guidelines discussed. Tweak this sample nanny contract to suit your needs.

Camarillo advises taking a team approach to ironing out all of the details. The more you talk openly and create a space for healthy and comfortable dialogue beforehand, the better prepared both parties will be when the unexpected arises while you’re away.

Alexandra Kadlec is a freelance writer. When not writing, doing crossword puzzles, or playing competitive games of Scrabble, she is known to get effusive about modern art, Jane Austen and karaoke.