jamiebreslow

We're looking Heimdall. We just really don't have anyone that regularly takes care of the boys when we go out, and no close, or somewhat close family to invite. I really thought it would be cheaper to go this route, but based on these replies I'm rethinking things. One, we may try finding a nanny in London that could also come to Paris with us. We'd save the money on a London Hotel, and as we're taking the train to Paris, the cost of one roundtrip ticket may not be so bad. We'll deal with Rome separately. Now I just need to find her...
If that doesn't work, we may try again to bring a hired companion along for the whole ride. We could easily have them spend several nights with the kids as an audition.

Thanks again. And thanks for all the links, I'm still looking through them.

socaltraveler

I'll go .

Thanks for coming back and explaining more thoroughly. It does seem like a lot of moving about for 10 days. Have you thought about maybe 2 cities? Perhaps since you are taking young ones, you might think about using hotel sitters for the evenings, and taking turns with the kids during nap times. I also think it would be hard to hire a stranger in London, and then be responsible for transporting said stranger onto 2 more destinations, plus arranging her transport back to London.

It does sound like a wonderful way to celebrate your birthdays. I just can't see how you balance all this couple time on a 10 day, 3 city trip, unless you take someone your children know very well.

Heimdall

Whatever agency you contact in London will be just as concerned with vetting you as you will be in vetting the nanny. After all, you are proposing to hire someone and then almost immediately remove her from the country. The process may take longer than 10 days, so you had better start looking before you get to London, and be prepared to provide references. ;-)

jamiebreslow

Sighhh..lol. It's looking more and more like we'll have to bring someone from the states. I didn't even take into account that bringing 'her' to Paris isn't as easy as just buying a train ticket. It's worth a little more investigation though. SoCal...one thing I know about my kids is that they can take almost anything given to them. They've never had a problem with the multitude of babysitters we have used, and that's because of the fact that they'd rather stay in the room and play games on the iPad then do the boring stuff mom and dad wan't to do. Full disclosure: This whole trip was a gift from my father for me and my wife's 40th. Greatest gift ever...10 days anywhere in the world and a Nanny too. Crazy, right? That's why I posted this, since we've never had a nanny or anyone who regularly watched the kids if we had to be elsewhere. Anyhow, wish me luck and thanks one last time for all your help.

Judy

Since the trip is a gift, can you consider adding a few days on your own? Ten days is really a short time for 3 cities with small children, even with a nanny.

stevewith

jamie?

I think your kids are really not that fragile. If they act up in the Louvre, you can either take them to the cafe for a time out or come back the next day or go back to Paris when they are older. The parks of Paris are works of art in themselves, and you might enjoy them as much as your kids.

If you normally don't use a nanny to get through your days, you don't need one in Paris. It is a modern international city. You might want a baby sitter for some evenings so you can do some fine dining. but otherwise, I would quietly take the nanny-gift-money and spend it on something else.

opaldog

I don't know if anyone has suggested this, but how about cutting the trip down to 7 days and leaving the kids at home with the grandparents?

Momddtravel2

I agree - skip the nanny - stay at nicer hotels - use babysitting -

justineparis

I think momddtravel2 has the best idea.. never mind the nanny, you do realize most of us manage to vacation just fine without them,, but spend the extra money on slightly nicer hotels ( which are more likely to have babysitting services on hand) .

A few nice dinners out and you will be fine, most of us just find ways to keep kids happy, and as you say, your kids are fairly adaptable and easy going so you will be fine.

I can't stress this enough, but seriously , now that my kids are older , I think every younger parent should know this to be true.

"With children the days are long but the years are short"

Your kids may not even want to vacation with you in ten short years.. enjoy this time together, I promise it will fly by,, no matter how long and tiring a day with tots is now.. one day you will look back and think it was a blink of an eye.. really.

PS Nice gift, next time tell him to keep the money and take the kids off your hands for a week instead, lol ( just kidding)

janisj

I can't imagine needing a nanny or au pair at the ready every day - especially w/ kids the ages of yours. Most days there would be absolutely no need for her so you would be wasting a LOT of $$/€€ paying her 'just in case'.

Kids love all those cities - lots of parks, hands-on, kid-centric museums, boat trips, street performers, etc. Fuhgitaboutit . . .

One or two nights get a baby sitter if you want to go out on your own.

surfmom

jamie, I am a proponent of traveling WITH kids... so I just say use the babysitting for the odd night out.

If you read trip reports - you will see there are a variety of posters who travel with kids - honestly, it is enjoyable to do it at a slower pace. Are there things you miss? Absolutely! But I believe we have the rest of our lives to come back and do it again and do those other things.

You will be amazed - when you need them - where you will find parks. All of a sudden, they will be all over! For example - behind Notre Dame... walking from Ile St. Louis to the Marais is a fun one.... across from the Eiffel Tower... plus the Jardin du Luxembourg, Tuileries. They will be at an age where Jardin d'Acclimitation will be really fun!

Have them do an analysis of the carousels for the best one - next to St. Paul metro, at Hotel de Ville, at Tuileries, at Eiffel Tower ... those are the ones that come to mind.

My experience is that people are extremely accommodating when they see smaller kids. For example, the waiter at our favorite restaurant went next door to get ketchup for our daughter (age 5) once... he was rewarded with big blue eyes smiling at him all night (hers). We were in line at Musee d'Orsay and a guard pulled us from the back of the line and sent us around the shorter group entrance.

It can be extremely rewarding traveling with kids - honestly, I have found that I enjoy our trip much more because we slow down - take lots of ice cream breaks - and I don't have the exhausted feeling each night at bedtime. (and the tired dogs that go with it)

Rent an apartment! You will appreciate the space, the ability to put them to bed, the washer/dryer, the kitchen facilities. There are times my kids only want baguettes, fruit, and yogurt for dinner... easy to do with your own kitchen.
(Although I guess this is contrary with a "nicer" hotel... but some apartments are fabulous and could probably arrange babysitting through their management team).

When the kids were younger, we got in the habit of putting them to bed, and then I would go wander at sunset and take photos, and bring back dinner for the adults. It took some help to explain to restaurants that I wanted to take away, but I was able to do it most nights.

There are many amazing books about traveling with kids in Paris and London - more than you could ever have time for.

good luck.

cathies

Well, you nearly lost me at 'wifey' but anyway.....

You may find that by the time the kids are ready to head back to the hotel for some time out that you are too. If this is your first trip to Europe be prepared to be very tired some days and to have aching feet and tired legs.

Gretchen

"sigh"? Really. Have you been to Europe before? Where have the boys been so well travelled by age 4 and 5? They love their Ipads rather than doing things with mom and dad?
Why drag them to Europe to be baby sat--hire someone to keep them for a week and have a great birthday.

yipper

how about a more child friendly vacation. A safari would be great. you ride in an open jeep looking at animals in the morning. then you go back to the hotel/camp in the afternoon, due to sun and heat. there is a pool there and then in the evening you go out to see more animals. in deed it does entail getting shots, which is not appealing. How about one of the cities for 4 days and then rent a cottage in the country side. whatever you do you will have a great time.

Goldens

We had a horrible experience years ago with a babysitter provided by a famous hotel in San Francisco.
We were at an event in the hotel ballroom when in came our crying 2 year old being led by our 4 year old.

Up in the room, passed out on the bed drunk, was the grandmotherly babysitter. She had also been smoking. "One of our best" said the hotel. She was arrested for child endangerment.

Never again. I don't care how fancy or reputable a hotel is, I would not leave my children with a stranger (particularly in a foreign country). No special evening out is worth it.

I also would not hire anyone without a recommendation from someone you know.
Someone told me once to think of your child as $10 million dollars. You'd be pretty cautious about who you left that $10 million with, why not the same care with children.

The years do go fast and then there is plenty of couple time when the kids are older.

"Wifey", really?

jaja

I agree. Wifey is as bad as hubby. Having trouble caring about his "problem" after that.

centraleurope

Hi Jaime... Happy birthday.

You do seem to have one very close family member. Any chance your dad can come along?

For years, we went to Europe each year and brought my mother in law ( you can't make this stuff up). Our kids grew very close to her (she lived across country). We never used her as a babysitter... But she was one more adult set of hands.

And make them leave their iPads at home. They do not make great babysitters.

justineparis

centraleurope, amen to last statement.

mocha_dolce

If you rent a place suitable for a family (a flat or family suite), you can have time for family and time to relax as a couple too. You could easily spend 10 days in any one of these places. In my experience, trips with children are more fun for all (but sometimes a little more drama). You may adjust your plans slightly to be more kid-friendly, but slowing down just a bit makes a trip more enjoyable for everyone anyway.

I wouldn't consider adding a nanny to the group as it could just mean you have a stranger to pay for and entertain. She could get sick, take off, get high, or bring home someone she meets. Ditto the hotel babysitter as the previous post attests. Besides, you'd still be doing the most challenging part (the overseas flights) yourself. And if the boys don't feel well or don't get along, it is unlikely that it will be the nanny that intervenes. These are precious years. Have a great trip wherever you go.

NorCal_Jo

Hi Jamiebreslow - I am quite experienced with nannies as I hired a few in the US, went thru process of getting my American nanny a visa to come with us when we moved to the UK 4 years ago. She went back to the US last year and we now have 1 British and 1 Aussie nanny (my husband and I work/travel a lot). So I have a pretty good sense of going rate and issues you might face if this is really important to you to investigate.

First, I'm sure if you google holiday or temporary nannies you may come up with some agencies near you in the US. At least this way you can get a sense of cost if you decided to go for a "professional" nanny. In addition to paying all travel costs, I'm guessing you could expect to pay between USD 18-25 per hour plus whatever fee the agency adds on. You also have payroll tax issues to face. This is why other posters are suggesting a familynfriend or someone you might bring more unofficially

there are also hordes and hordes of nanny agencies in the UK that do exactly what you want which is place what they call a holiday nanny. Google uk holiday nanny. Good agencies are rated so you can check them out. However you also have payroll tax issues and as an American, you may not be able to use a British agency unless they can advise on the nanny to be hired through them paying the tax which might be possible if you contact one (such as Eden nannies, Tinies.com, etc.) going rate is about £100 + per day or more plus travel costs and agency fees.

So it will not be cheap with any professional nanny situation but probably possible if you really want to do it but keep in mind tax issues etc. I think a non official family or friend solution would be by far easiest if you really want to take the kids and have help along or you should go the babysitter route.

With all that said, we are traveling right now with our 3 and 5 year olds in Switzerland and have taken them to Paris and Rome which they loved (we live in London area and lots for kids there as well). So, you can have a great time With the kids. However I also understand if you want an adults trip. I've never taken our nannies on holiday just because our holidays are usually family focused and in our experience, the hassle of bringing our nanny and getting an extra hotel room etc has not been worth a few date nights. BUT when we have gone on a special adult trip, we left the kids with my mom! Good luck which ever way you go but I do suggest you really consider is this an adults trip or a family trip and don't get caught in pergatory in between!