Babysitting for teenagers?

[bartola]

Our sons 12 and 14 are not allowed at the nigthclubs in Citywalk. We are staying at HRH. What age is appropiate to let them stay by themselves in the room? Should we call the hotel's babysitting service for them while husband and I check out the clubs?

 

[LittleBoyBrew]

It is impossible to give a definitive answer since I do not know you or your children. But here are a few things to consider in making your decision.

Can you depend on your children to stay in the room with the door locked? Are they mature enough to not create a disturbance? If hotel employee knocks at the door, are they mature enough to call the front desk and ask for identification?

How late do you plan to be out? If you are planning to dance and drink until 3 am then it might be best to hire a sitter, even if you have a cell phone, as you may be distracted and not answer it. Imagine you were the subject of a newspaper story involving inebriated parents out dancing while someone broke into there hotel room.

The worst case scenario would be in case of fire. The odds of that are probably lower than winning the lottery, although it might be worthwhile to agree on a meeting spot outside the hotel just in case your children would need to abandon the room in an emergency.

 

[mjohnson96]

Each hotel also have kids camps that are 4 - 14 and they were $15 hour + $15 for food. You can call them up to see what type of activities and the schedule of hours.

 

[bartola]

Great advice, thank you both!

 

[ckay87]

The worst case scenario would be in case of fire. The odds of that are probably lower than winning the lottery, although it might be worthwhile to agree on a meeting spot outside the hotel just in case your children would need to abandon the room in an emergency.

We left our boys alone in the room while we went to the beach in OCMD last year (they were 13 and 16). There was no fire, but there was a fire alarm where they evacuated the whole building and called in the fire dept. etc. I was crazy worried only because I knew that they would be scared and possibly not know what to do or where to go. You just have to prep them for scenerios like that.

I worry mostly about them acting up or causing a disturbance. To minimize the chances of this we rented them an (approved) in-room movie during a run to the casino on our Niagara Falls trip. So there are options, you just have to think about your kids, their self-confidence, responsibility, and trouble-making potential.

Keep in mind, too, that you can pretty easily run back and forth to check on them, if you feel the need. I bet they'd be fine. Have fun.