In-Room Babysitting...tell me more...

[mommy*RN]

So I'm thinking about getting an in-room babysitter for DS 20 months. DH is taking DS7 to Universal and I want to take DD4 to the Perfectly Princess Tea Party. Can someone direct me to where I can find more information on the services offered...or does anyone have personal experience with any of the in-room babysitting companies?

Any information would be wonderful.

Thank you!

 

[tabithakp]

i havent done it myself but my sister has. She raved about it. The cm that showed up knew the kids names and had all sorts of activities for them to do. They were about 4 and 6 at the time and both had a great time.

I believe you can arrange it thru the resort your staying at. Im not sure when your going but we are going mid january and plan on using it so if its after that i can give you a full report then, but im sure another diser will have all the info on it.

 

[mommy*RN]

We are actually going later this month...so I can maybe give you a review . I was just wondering which group to go with. It looks like Kids Nite Out is the one Disney recommends (?). I guess I can call Fairy Godmothers and decide from there. Another thing for the "To Do" list.

 

[ireland_nicole]

We have used Kids night out on previous trips and absolutely love them! They spoke to me before hand about any special needs, and also re: preferences as to the caregivers general age, demeanor, etc. We had one trip that was 2 weeks long right after we moved back to the states and we used them 2 or three times, and they sent the same sitter out so my kids would have the consistency. BTW, she was so great, my kids cried the next night when we told them she wasn't coming!

 

[Eyore4Ever149]

We used Fairy Godmothers and had a wonderful experience, they also keep a record of who came so if you want to request them on your next trip, they have the info saved, had this nice grandmotherly type woman who came to care for our just-turned-2 year old and she was fine with her.
She brought coloring books, and they watched tv and walked around the inside of the resort, we were at BWV, and she gets really tired in the sun so we asked if she could keep her out of sun, I think she might have liked to go out on the BW, but she honored our requests. We also left her money to order room service and she skipped it and said she had already eaten, so we gave her a bigger tip.
i recommend calling the day before and being in contact with company to confirm your ressie, just to b assured, they should call you and they will prefer a cell phone so they wont miss you with msgs left at the room.

 

[jodifla]

We used FG about 10 times. Most of the time with the same sitter -- we requested her. She was a top notch sitter, and so interesting we spent a lot of time talking to her! She always brought a suitcase of toys to play with, which DS loved.

FG is less corporate than Kids Night Out. FG is family run, without the Web site and T shirts and paperwork to sign. It's gotten smaller over the years as the owner has gotten older (Been around 20 plus years).

Kids Night Out gets very good reviews as well.

We've switched to the kids clubs now that DS is 7, but we wouldn't hesitate to use either service.

 

[mommy*RN]

Thank you so much! This is excellent information. I was wondering if anyone knew FG current rates. I see Kids Nite Out has a website and lists $16/hr for one child with a $10 travel fee and a minimum of 4hrs. Expensive, but if I'm paying for quality care I'm okay with it.

Also, how much do you usually tip?

Thanks all!

 

[Eyore4Ever149]

I don't know what FG current rates are, they are usually listed in UG, or just call and ask. I believe they told me how much i needed to provide for money for food and so we used that plus a little more for our tip- $20 I think???? I honestly don't remember.

 

[mommy*RN]

So I just called Fairy Godmother's for information and somehow booked them without being sure it's the route I want to go.

Their rates are $16/hr for up to three children with a $14 travel fee and a minimum of 4hrs. So not much different from Kids Nite Out.

I guess I'll have to talk to DH about this and see what he thinks.

 

[traveljen1027]

Have any of you used the in-room childcare service in the regular hotel rooms (i.e. not villas)? We are considering staying at POFQ, so it would be our regular hotel room (no living room) and I'm wondering if that would be odd to have the sitter basically in our bedroom...

Also, our son will be 1 1/2 years old and our daughter will be 6...should we keep them together or take the older child to the kids club? We're considering going to WDW instead of taking our DCL cruise, so I'd like a little adult time at some point during the week, lol.

 

[Heidijs]

Four hours minimum? Wow...the whole idea creeps me out a little. I don't think I could do it...maybe the kids club where they're with a group of kids playing at a daycare type center but someone coming to my room I don't know...I dunno...with my luck I'd get the freak of the litter...

 

[chrisw127]

We just used Kids Nite Out a couple of weeks ago. We hired two sitters because we wanted the extra coverage (we have three kids, including 2 year old twins and had no idea how it would go since no one else has put them to bed before). When they got there, we spent about 45 minutes getting to know them and making sure both the sitters and the kids were comfortable, ordered a pizza, and then left for dinner and MVMCP. One of the sitters went down to the lobby to get the pizza while the other stayed with the kids. When we got home, the kids were asleep. Our 7 year old said they were very nice and that the twins went to bed easily.

BTW, getting two sitters is obviously not necessary. I'm kind of a worry wart and it was worth it to me to have the extra coverage as I think most people don't have that much experience with twins. As it turns out, they didn't need it, but it made me feel better and since it was our anniversary, I wanted to enjoy it as much as possible.

Travel Jen: We haven't done that, but I did ask our sitters just out of curiosity. Our sitters both said it wasn't an issue for them, although it's obviously easier to have the kids sleeping in one room while they're in the other.

I would recommend KNO to anyone, even nervous moms like me.

 

[LWatson]

We did KNO back in November for a 4hr time period while at the Value Resorts. We had her come around 7pm and we got back about 11pm. She brought all sorts of things for the kids to play with, but since it was almost their bedtime I dont think they played with them long. She got my kids to bed easily according to her. She said she tucked them in and they were out quickly. We called the room once to make sure everything was fine and it was really quiet. It was deff worth it to get out and have some adult time. We were kind of worried about it at first since they didnt know her, but they really seemed to be okay when we left (like no crying...which they do when we leave them at daycare). We will likely do it again when we go back esp since they do Shades of Green also.

 

[jodifla]

Have any of you used the in-room childcare service in the regular hotel rooms (i.e. not villas)? We are considering staying at POFQ, so it would be our regular hotel room (no living room) and I'm wondering if that would be odd to have the sitter basically in our bedroom...

Also, our son will be 1 1/2 years old and our daughter will be 6...should we keep them together or take the older child to the kids club? We're considering going to WDW instead of taking our DCL cruise, so I'd like a little adult time at some point during the week, lol.

I think you could keep the kids together. No need to pay more! We've used a sitter a couple of times in a studio, which is similar to the hotel room. Sitters are used to it.

As I said, we've used FG many times and were very happy with the service. The owner can seem a bit gruff, but her sitters are great.

 

[KateMW]

Have any of you used the in-room childcare service in the regular hotel rooms (i.e. not villas)? We are considering staying at POFQ, so it would be our regular hotel room (no living room) and I'm wondering if that would be odd to have the sitter basically in our bedroom...

Also, our son will be 1 1/2 years old and our daughter will be 6...should we keep them together or take the older child to the kids club? We're considering going to WDW instead of taking our DCL cruise, so I'd like a little adult time at some point during the week, lol.

I would send DD to the kid's club and let the sitter watch only your son. A younger child is MUCH easier to entertain in a single room then him plus a 6 year old. We use in-room sitters when we go skiing and my daughter loves it. She's looking forward to going to the kid's club at WDW though. We're doing the Neverland Club since we're at the Poly.

 

[MoonFaerie]

Have any of you used the in-room childcare service in the regular hotel rooms (i.e. not villas)? We are considering staying at POFQ, so it would be our regular hotel room (no living room) and I'm wondering if that would be odd to have the sitter basically in our bedroom...

We did a couple of weeks ago. We were staying at Coronado Springs.

We used Kids Nite Out, and they were great. She was right on time, and the kids had a great time. The kids were coloring when she got there, so they all colored for a while. Then she took them to dinner at Pepper Market (I asked her if she preferred us to order pizza or something or if she wanted to take them to the restaurant, she said either was fine and we had a billion meal credits to use) and then the playground. By the time they got back to the room and got them settled down, it was 7, and she got them ready for bed and put on a movie. They were asleep within 20 mins, and she just had to sit there until we got back.

I would absolutely use them again. The reason we went with them instead of a Kids Club was because we were gonna be out late. Or at least late for the kids.

 

[mjkacmom]

I think you could keep the kids together. No need to pay more! We've used a sitter a couple of times in a studio, which is similar to the hotel room. Sitters are used to it.

As I said, we've used FG many times and were very happy with the service. The owner can seem a bit gruff, but her sitters are great.

I agree - it's also much more comfortable to have a sibling when first meeting and being cared for by a stranger. Have fun - I have yet to hear or read anything negative about these services!

 

[traveljen1027]

Thanks everyone! All of your feedback is so helpful...we are nervous about giving up the cruise and doing WDW instead (the childcare is a big concern as I would love at least one night of adult-time) but this is so helpful.

 

[Zeebs]

We are another fan, we used Fairy Godmothers (and as one of the pp said the women who answers the phone is a bit gruff) but our sitter was faultless.

She seemed quite upset when she discovered the baby would be alseep by the time we had gone.

We were staying at Windsor Hills and they didn't have any problem coming there.

We had a fabulous night out, our first in a very long long time as we have no family close to our home to babysit.

Have a great time.

Kirsten

 

[traveljen1027]

We are another fan, we used Fairy Godmothers (and as one of the pp said the women who answers the phone is a bit gruff) but our sitter was faultless.

She seemed quite upset when she discovered the baby would be alseep by the time we had gone.

We were staying at Windsor Hills and they didn't have any problem coming there.

We had a fabulous night out, our first in a very long long time as we have no family close to our home to babysit.

Have a great time.

Kirsten

Thanks Kirsten! Just noticed that you are going to DL Paris...I hope you enjoy!! I was there back in 1997 and loved it - it is fun to see how some things are the same while some things are very different than the parks here at home.