Parents want do a transatlanticcruise then have my kids meet them in london
 

Theyd be 18 and 13 at the time of travel! Is it possible for them to fly over to london go thorugh customs and then take a cab somewhere to meet my parents?

Yes, of course it's possible. The 18 year old is actually an adult already. I think it is up to the kids on how comfortable they are, but everything should be fine. However, I am wondering why your parents couldn't meet them at the airport, rather than making them take a taxi someplace?

Thats a good idea! Do you know if theres anything special i would have to do for them to be able to do this?

You probably don't mean Customs (that is goods). You mean Passport Control/Immigration (that is people)

But yes, the 18 yo is a total adult so that would never be an issue. You <i>might</i> want to send along a notarized letter giving the 18 yo authority take the 13 yo out of the country. But even that might not be necessary.

Even IF the grandparents won't meet the kids at LHR, a cab is usually a terrible idea. Depending on where they are headed, a pre-booked car service will save a lot of $$/££.

It's been my experience with this board that the participants are very experienced and helpful, if only you ask a detailed question. When and where will your parents be arriving? How will they get to London, and are you planning to have your children arrive on the same day or a day later? If your parents will already be in London, where are they staying? Which airline will your children be flying on? It makes a difference at LHR.

On the air travel board you will see several recommendations for Just Airports to pick parties up at LHR. I have used them 3 times, each with poor results. I now use Express Airports and have had good experience with them in several trips.

I agree with the recommendation of the notarized letter. It would be best for the 18 yo to have it just in case they are asked. FYI, this is not an uncommon thing for minors to travel alone internationally. Kids do it all the time to go to camps and programs. Many kids also have one parent who may live overseas and will visit them regularly. Again, just make sure your kids are comfortable with the situation and everything should be fine. They should have a fabulous time with their grandparents!!

"<i>On the air travel board you will see several recommendations for Just Airports</i>"

here on the Europe board you will see <i>hundreds</i> of recommendations for Just Airports

justairports.com is one of the good pre-booked car services I meant. But we really need the answers to Jeff801's questions to give you the best advice.

Well, it's certainly legal. Although you will have to give the 18 year old a notarized letter allowing him/her to take their sibling out of the country and also appointing him/her a guardian for medical reasons.

If it makes sense or not depends on how confident a traveler the 18 year old is. If s/he has flown a lot, especially abroad, it should be fine. If not, you will need to discuss with them so they understand the process for immigration and customs - how to deal with foreign currency and make sure they have a cell phone to contact your parents.

But - it would be better for the parents to meet them at the airport. Is there some reason that's not possible if they are close enough that the kids could take a cab to them?

(We let my teen daughters travel around London and Paris by themselves during the day while we were elsewhere - some days - and they were absolutely fine. And the younger, then 19, spent about 5 weeks last summer in europe with 2 friends. But they were city kids, not naive, and had traveled ex-US since they were 11 and 14.)

My only concern would be the relationship between the kids - making sure that the 13 year old doesn't turn this into an opportunity to score off an older sibling.

"<i>If it makes sense or not depends on how confident a traveler the 18 year old is.</i>"

This sort of thread definitely demonstrates the difference between our European Fodorites and <i>some</i> Americans. It wouldn't even be a question for probably 99% of those east of the Atlantic, and a BIG question for many west of the Atlantic.

But that might be because Europeans can easily travel to other countries w/o a second thought, but it is a bigger/longer deal for many Americans.

I suppose you realize this would be easier if they all flew to London together, your parents accompanied them to the airport for their flight home, and THEN the g-parents went on their cruise....

I agree with nytraveler's comment about the relationship between the siblings. Does the 18 y.o. want to make this trip and be responsible for his/her younger sibling?

I know I would have done this in a heartbeat when I was 18 and my sister was 12, but this is a tricky age. Is the 18 y.o. college-bound soon after this trip? Is he/she working and might need/want the money for college? Would he/she rather take a pre-college trip with friends?

Are your folks coming into Southampton on their cruise? If so, they could take the train to Waterloo in downtown London and meet somewhere there at a hotel? Or if coming into Southampton,then take the bus from there to Heathrow and meet them there.

Let's get this right

"Kids" - fly into UK
Parents - take cruise to UK
Grandparents - already in UK

So where do the grandparents live?

As I understand it, kids are being met by grandparents.

Parents (of 18 and 13 yr old) aren't travelling.

Just check with the airline on what 18 yr old needs to have to allow sibling to travel with him/her. End of issue.

Best place to meet, imo, would be hotel in London.

When our kids were 14 and 16, they went around London (Covent Garden to Knightsbridge) together but without us, including going out to an early dinner, but they were used to going around Boston on public transportation.

Still, I am not sure I would have wanted them to arrive in the UK by themselves unless responsible adults were already there on the ground. Accidents are unlikely, but they do happen. What do they do if or the other winds up in a casualty ward and the adults are still in transit? And if the adults are already in the UK, one or more of them can hardly be too feeble to meet the yuong people at LHR.

When we take on our grandchildren here in the US if their parents are away, we have a notarized letter allowing us to seek and approve medical treatment for them, along with their medical insurance information. What does an 18 year old need to manage that in a foreign country with a completely different medical system?

It would be their grandparents arriving by cruise! And yes the 18 year old says he is very comfortable with this. We have been traveling abroad since he was 4 so he has lots of experience! As of now the plan is for them to arrive at LHR and have the grandparents waiting at the baggage claim, however we will map out how to get to the hotel should something go wrong!
Thanks to all!

"<i>As of now the plan is for them to arrive at LHR and have the grandparents waiting at the baggage claim,</i>


They can't wait at baggage claim. That is inside the secure area (they will walk through Customs as they exit the baggage hall)

The grandparents CAN wait outside baggage claim w/the hordes of other meet-greeters. But they won't be able to see each other until after the kids exit.

If your children have been traveling abroad for years, this shouldn't be a problem. I traveled alone internationally starting at age 12, including a time all passengers had to overnight at a hotel due to plane problems, and I had my first hotel stay alone.
A car service is a great way for them to get to the hotel. They should have a phone number to call the service and/or grandparents should they be unable to locate the driver, but that is unlikely. It seems unnecessary to me to meet an 18 year old at the arrivals area.

For kids that have traveled abroad before this is a no brainer.

The reason one would hesitate to say that automatically is that most american 18 year olds have never left the country and are clueless about international travel. there are even a bunch that haven't been on a plane before - since a lot of families with kids tend to travel by car since it's so much cheaper.

Sounds like it should work out fine, Lifeisanadventure. Just don't forget the notarized authorization signed by BOTH parents allowing the older child to take the younger child out of the country. (Without that, they likely won't be allowed to board the plane in the U.S.) Also, you should provide a signed, notarized medical authorization for the older child (to be used during transit) and one for the grandparents to be used while they are taking care of the grandkids.

The first time I traveled to Europe was when I was 14 years old and I traveled alone and was met at the airport by my Grandmother. The second time I was 15 and I was accompanied by my 13 year old brother. We got ourselves to the train station from the airort in Brussels and via train to Antwerp, where my grandparents lived. During that same trip, we also took the boat/train alone from Ostend to London to visit an aunt.

It is certainly possible. Agree that you should get a notarized letter giving your older child permission. But, first, also agree tha you really, really need to be certain that older child wants to mind younger one and even more important - that younger one will behave and listen to older sibling.