Any tips for when you are bringing a child's friend along?

[nicolepdonnelly]

We are taking a 7 day WDW vacation and bringing my 13 yo dd's best friend along.
Has anyone else done this? Any tips? If you were bringing a child's friend along, would you ask them to pay their air fare, DDP, etc?

 

[DisneyDaughter5589]

When I was in 8th grade so 12 or 13 years olde my parents let me bring my BestFriend along with me. I was my idea to invite her and all she had to pay for was her park ticket and food. However we were not doing the DDP (this was like 7yrs ago). She also had to pay for her own suviners. Then again when she ran out of money my parents bought her food and a gift or two. She did not have to pay for her room, gas money, or anything like that. It ended up costing her like $300, which she had to make on her own by doing things for neighbors. Her parents did not help her out at all.
But we had a great time running all over disney!

 

[TKL SHOP]

My dd is 5, so I haven't had this problem yet! But if I were to take a friend, I would ask the parents to pay airfare and ddp at least. I am usually pretty generous, so I probally wouldn't let her pay for anything at the parks. Your dd would will have sooo much fun with a friend tagging along.

 

[bookgirl]

airfare, tickets, souvineers would be her responsibilty

I wouldn't make her pay for the room since you'd have to have one for your own dd anyway......I'd probably pay to feed her since she was your guest and if she was staying with you at home you'd feed her.

 

[nicolepdonnelly]

airfare, tickets, souvineers would be her responsibilty

I wouldn't make her pay for the room since you'd have to have one for your own dd anyway......I'd probably pay to feed her since she was your guest and if she was staying with you at home you'd feed her.

Yes, I was thinking that too, but 7 days on DDP - I wouldn't be taking her out to eat 2 times a day at home. We have the room so no contribution to that. I was thinking Park tickets, Plane, and DDP, spending $ too. But we would pay for the incidentals like bottled water, extra things like DisneyQuest and the Sunrise safari we are planning to do.
Any thoughts on formailties like copy of health ins. cards or the like?

 

[wdwmom0f3]

We have taken friends twice and they were just responsible for the ticket, food and anything else that they wanted. We paid for everything else. This may be mean but I gave my children 100.00 for spending money each and we wanted the friends to have the same amount. The last thing that I wanted to do was to get there and have a fight over who got more. This way, they had their choice and they all had the same amount.

Another tip, make sure that you have the child's medical information, in case of an emergency, and a note from the parent too. You never know.

We loved taking friends, especially if they have never been before. I love seeing the faces of people when they do these things for the first time. It's amazing.

 

[luvsJack]

My dd will be 11 on our next trip and she and her bff are already begging for us to take the bff!

What we have stated we will expect is for her mom to pay for her park tickets, ddp and souviners. We will provide the gas for the trip, food on the way and back (which is usually a quick stop or two at McD's), and the room. And if she runs out of money, we will take up the slack for her.

We will probably end up paying for the ddp for her; but then this friend's grandma just paid $400 for 3 tickets to see Taylor Swift for dd, friend and friend's mom. All I paid for was food and t-shirts!!

 

[Julylady]

Have you already asked the child? If yes, you are already too late. If you expect any support from the parent please do yourself a favor and talk to the parents first before mentioning it to your child or the friend. Else, if the parents cannot afford to support and the friend can't go, you have a big issue on your hand.

I have had several children come with us over the years (extended family) and I never asked for a dime from their parents. I knew they couldn't have afforded it. In a couple of cases, the parents sent along money for food. I just wanted the kids to have a great Disney experience and they did!!

 

[all4fun]

Any thoughts on formailties like copy of health ins. cards or the like?

I would recommend having the parents at least give you a note with their medical/health care information, list any allergies, and also have it notarized (costs about $5 usually but some places will do it for free).

If they really want to make sure you're covered they could fill out a limited power of attorney like this one That allows you to assume the parental role for a set time frame and gives you the legal ability to make medical decisions. Chances are you won't even need it of course. hth

 

[RN01]

This is just my opinion but I feel like if you are inviting a friend you should pay for everything. That is the reason why I hardly ever let my kids invite anyone because I can barely afford to pay for my own family let alone friends. Unless the parents offer or insist to pay part of it then you can work out something.

 

[taitai]

If they are your guest, they are your guest. You pay. I don't invite people to come to my home and then expect them to fork over for food, drinks, the cost of the cleaning lady, etc.

Presumably, the parents, if they can afford it, will offer to pay a portion of the trip. You can either take them up on it or not.

However, if the child is your guest, you pay.

 

[powellrj]

If they are your guest, they are your guest. You pay. I don't invite people to come to my home and then expect them to fork over for food, drinks, the cost of the cleaning lady, etc.

Presumably, the parents, if they can afford it, will offer to pay a portion of the trip. You can either take them up on it or not.

However, if the child is your guest, you pay.

Thats how I feel about it too. I always pay when I invite kids to go places with my kids. When they make their own plans, everyone pays their own way, but when I invite, I pay.

 

[Pluto_fan]

There is a great section on this topic in The Unofficial Guide --borrow a copy from the library if you don't have one. It's been in there for many years so it doesn't need to be a current version.

I think it is reasonable to have the guest and/or their family pay for part, but as another poster mentioned, if you've already invited the guest then it may be a little late to bring up the finances.

 

[ancestry]

If they are your guest, they are your guest. You pay.

I disagree. Given the cost of a Disney vacation, I don't think the traditional rules apply. I would talk to the child's parents first before I mentioned anything to the child. I would say something along the lines of "My DD would really like to have your daughter join us on our family vacation at Walt Disney World. Would you be interested in have your daughter come along with us? I would be willing to cover the cost of the accomodations but would ask that you pay for your daughter's park ticket, airfare, and dining plan."

Of course before I asked I would be of the assumption that I thought this family could afford to underwrite the cost of their child's trip. I would not propose this to a family if I knew that money was tight for them.

 

[taitai]

I disagree. Given the cost of a Disney vacation, I don't think the traditional rules apply. I would talk to the child's parents first before I mentioned anything to the child. I would say something along the lines of "My DD would really like to have your daughter join us on our family vacation at Walt Disney World. Would you be interested in have your daughter come along with us? I would be willing to cover the cost of the accomodations but would ask that you pay for your daughter's park ticket, airfare, and dining plan."

Of course before I asked I would be of the assumption that I thought this family could afford to underwrite the cost of their child's trip. I would not propose this to a family if I knew that money was tight for them.

I disagree with you.

A guest is a guest. Think of a wedding. A guest is a guest if it is a beer and chips in a pool hall reception or a deluxe sit down dinner at the Four Seasons. They are still guests. If it is too much for the host to afford, don't invite or go somewhere cheaper. The same with a wedding. If you can't afford to pay for everyone to drink Cristal and slurp caviar, then have a cheaper reception or invite fewer people. If you can't afford to pay for a guest to Disney, don't invite or go somewhere that you can afford. If they are your guest, you pay.

 

[ancestry]

I disagree with you.

That is what makes this world great. We can agree to disagree.

I hold true to my original position. I don't see the situation in the way that you do.

 

[bookgirl]

I disagree with you.

A guest is a guest. Think of a wedding. A guest is a guest if it is a beer and chips in a pool hall reception or a deluxe sit down dinner at the Four Seasons. They are still guests. If it is too much for the host to afford, don't invite or go somewhere cheaper. The same with a wedding. If you can't afford to pay for everyone to drink Cristal and slurp caviar, then have a cheaper reception or invite fewer people. If you can't afford to pay for a guest to Disney, don't invite or go somewhere that you can afford. If they are your guest, you pay.

That analogy only works if you also pay thier way to the wedding, all their food while they are staying there, their lodging and paying for any entertainment they do during non wedding events.

 

[seashoreCM]

I strongly advocate having the friend's family actually buy her airplane ticket.

This way if she changes her mind, it is her family who deals with cancelling the ticket.

Also it is the host family's obligation not to let an adversarial (such as "me versus them") atmosphere to develop.

Family hints: http://www.cockam.com/family.htm

 

[taitai]

That analogy only works if you also pay thier way to the wedding, all their food while they are staying there, their lodging and paying for any entertainment they do during non wedding events.

I am not sure. What if the original poster is planning on flying first class, staying in a suite at the Grand Floridian, doing only Table Service restaurants the whole time, Wishes Cruises, Pirate Cruises, etc. Should the guest be forced to pay their portion of those top tier tastes? Even if he or she only paid for lodging or airfare, the cost of that alone could rival an entire trip at a more modest price point.

If you invite someone and expect them to do what you have planned, then you need to pay.

I strongly advocate having the friend's family actually buy her airplane ticket.

If they pay for the ticket. Please make sure that you buy the original ticket and they reimburse you. There will be nothing worse than having two different records. If flights get delayed or cancelled you will not be a single traveling party as far as the airlines are concerned and could be separated, put on different flights, etc. A total nightmare.

 

[krcit]

I'm in the pay for everything camp. If I were to invite one of my kids friends, I would be prepared to pay for the whole thing. If the parents insisted on paying for airfare or a park ticket, I would probably accept but would not invite someone if I couldn't pay for them. I realize that everyone has different opinions on this and that's cool-just be clear with the parents about what is expected before you ask the little girl.