leaving kids alone in hotel room

[mistysue]

How old should kids be to be left with younger siblings at a hotel?

I'm not thinking of doing it yet, but I noticed that the kids clubs/babysitters only watch up to age 12. So when I have a 13 year old, my younger ones will be 5 and 7. Assuming they get along at that age, would that be safe, or even legal, to leave my 13 year old with my 5 and 7 year olds in the room if DH and I went out for dinner together? Does anybody know if Florida has specific laws or guidelines for something like that?

 

[dansamy]

11 is when my oldest took babysitter training.

 

[laughinplace199]

My kids were 14, 12, & 6 over the summer. We spent a few days at Vero and DH & I would leave the kids in the room to have drinks or take a walk on the beach. The older two have cell phones so they could call us if there was an emergency.

 

[joanchris]

I think it really depends on the particular kids in question, and how far away you would be.

 

[Granny square]

Depends on the kids. There is a world of difference between who can be left and who can't

 

[Minniesgal]

We left ours 18, 14 and 10 in the room at BLT while we went to V&A this summer. They even went to the contempo cafe themselves for dinner. First time we have ever done it and it felt weird but DD is an adult now. At home we let her babysit from the age of 15 but it took us longer to do it in Hotels.

 

[kohlby]

Though I wouldn't do it now at a hotel, my 10 year old is responsible enough to babysit now. He hasn't done it yet though. The reason is that my 4 year old won't listen to him sometimes. I don't think my 4 year old is any harder than the average 4 year old boy, but he could easily make babysitting difficult for my eldest - since he's seen as big brother, not an authority figure. For a hotel, we would likely wait until the eldest is at least 12 and the youngest is responsible enough to do what he should - so the oldest is there more to help in case of an emergency.

Another option is to hire a sitter to come to your room.

 

[robinb]

I think it depends on the kids and your own anxiety level. Some kids are perfectly capable of being left alone and some are not. Some parents are perfectly OK with leaving their otherwise responsible kids alone and some are not.

I would say that my DD was 10 or 11 the first time I left her alone in our hotel room. BUT she didn't have any siblings to watch and we ate dinner at our resort (Boardwalk). We left her with one of our cell phones and called and checked in on her a couple times and everything went fine.

Since you have younger children, I would suggest that you either put them in a kids club and leave the oldest one back in the room to hang out and watch TV or that you plan dinner at a place near or at your resort in case you need to get back to your room quickly.

 

[luvmy3]

I think age wise that is fine, but in reality I think it depends on the individual kids. There is no way I could have left my dd in charge of her younger brothers when she was 13 (the boys would have been 10 and 7) because they didn't get along so well.

 

[chris31997]

Most kids are babysitting by the age of 13.

I would try it out before you go to see how the kids interact with each other without you there.

Set rules in the hotel
Let them eat dinner in the room and watch a movie
Cell phone to contact you

 

[MSSANDRA]

We were fine with leaving our then 13 year old in the room at the WL while we went to dinner at AP. Our room was just above the lobby. We would not have left him and left the WL property or in charge of younger siblings at that age.

 

[DawnM]

Don't know about the law, but we were fine with leaving them after the age of 12, but still didn't leave them in charge of their siblings at that age.

Now my kids are all pretty self sufficient, including my 9 year old (who is often more responsible than my older two! ) I do leave them now, but didn't leave my 9 year old with his siblings until about a year ago.

Dawn

 

[WantToGoNow]

My ds12 stayed in the room by himself several times during our trip (the playoffs were on) while we went to the pool, foodcourt, and even Downtown Disney.

 

[mumto3girls]

Last trip we left my 13 year old DD in the room in charge of her almost 7 and almost 10 year old sisters. She is very mature for her age, BUT they are siblings and do fight. For things like that though, she tends to rise to the occasion, because she likes the responsibility. We were staying at AKL Jambo House and went to Sanaa for dinner. She had her cell phone and we had ours. We got them dinner from Mara to eat in the room and then they were going to watch a movie. All was well. We did tell them they weren't to leave the room, answer the door, etc.

 

[chanda7]

Florida doesn't set an age by law but recommends 18, http://www.latchkey-kids.com/latchkey-kids-age-limits.htm.

 

[amylevan]

Florida doesn't set an age by law but recommends 18, http://www.latchkey-kids.com/latchkey-kids-age-limits.htm.

I've often found that age to be odd, considering some kids are in college at 17. It's almost like they recommend 18 so that no one could blame them if something happened if a teenager was left alone. ("But you recommended that they be that age....")

In answer to OP's question, I think several things come into play. Are the kids responsible? Are they comfortable being left alone in a strange place? How far away are you? How long will you be gone? Do you have cell phones?

 

[mrssam]

Hotel rooms aren't very exciting places so I wouldn't leave them for very long or at all for fear boredom=trouble, especially with siblings that might bicker, but every kid is different.

 

[Egdisney]

Florida doesn't set an age by law but recommends 18, http://www.latchkey-kids.com/latchkey-kids-age-limits.htm.

That is just ridiculous!

 

[robinb]

Florida doesn't set an age by law but recommends 18, http://www.latchkey-kids.com/latchkey-kids-age-limits.htm.

I've often found that age to be odd, considering some kids are in college at 17. It's almost like they recommend 18 so that no one could blame them if something happened if a teenager was left alone. ("But you recommended that they be that age....")

Here is the statute that was linked in the Latchkey Kids site:

http://www.myflfamilies.com/service-programs/abuse-hotline/frequently-asked-questions

30. How old does a child have to be to be left home alone? Chapter 39 of the Florida Statutes (F.S.) mandates that the Hotline be contacted when any person who knows, or has reasonable cause to suspect, that a child of any age is being left home alone without adult supervision or arrangements appropriate for the child's age or mental or physical condition, so that the child is unable to care for the child's own needs or another's basic needs or is unable to exercise good judgment in responding to any kind of physical or emotional crisis.

I underlined the important part. It's not illegal for a child to stay alone if they can take care of themselves (and another child if babysitting) and exercise good judgement in responding to a crisis.

 

[blessedby3]

I think it totally depends on the kids. We have three left at home (ages 18, 14 and 6). There is no way I would leave the three of them together in a hotel room. Someone would be knocked out by the time we got back

My 18 yr old and 6 yr old would be perfectly fine, but throw the 14 yr old in the mix and you have major problems. The 14 yr old cant get along with the 18 yr old mainly, but it would just be a nightmare.