Which trip would you "let" your new high school graduate go on?

[Rafiki31]

The whole point of a senior trip is out the window if parents tag along. If one of my friends parent tried to tag along, that friend would have been uninvited on the senior trip. Bringing family makes it a family trip with teens tagging along. Let them go alone. Turning it into a vacation for your family ruins the idea and purpose of a senior trip. Disney seems lie the safest option.

 

[abdmom]

I understand what people are saying about having the new graduates in their own rooms. Certainly, that would be the optimal situation. However, if I take unrelated under-21's on a cruise, the cruiseline rules are that they must be booked in my cabin. It is different if the under-21's are my own kids. I can get around this, but it would be more expensive and a large part of the idea for the cruise is that it was a less expensive option than WDW, at least for the kids.

The condos are family accommodations. Those are non-negotiable.

It seems most people like the WDW option the best. Well, that was ds' original choice. In the end, he, and his friends to a certain extent, will be doing the choosing, but I wanted to get a feel for what other parents thought. Thanks!

 

[abdmom]

Ohhhkay. Is the drinking age there 19 or 18? Because it would suck for them to go to the US and not be able to drink if they can already in Canada. Same with cruises - the drinking age on the ships is 21 when leaving from a US port which always really sucks for the teens who aren't US citizens because they can drink back home but can't on the ship.

Look into Mexico... Cancun, maybe. That's where I would want to go for a high school graduation trip! I'm suggesting this because I think that the check-in age for hotels is younger there. Or why not a Caribbean cruise? Airfare may be expensive, but they've been running cruise fares pretty cheap ever since the Carnival disasters.

Also, for flights, look into StudentUniverse.com for reduced rates on airfare.

But the WDW trip also sounds pretty great, and I think that's where my vote is going. Because I'm assuming he'll take Magical Express to get to the hotel, and then they can use all Disney transport, so it's actually a great destination for young travelers. That's also the safest sounding trip with the least party atmosphere. They'll feel independent without being in a location that encourages drunken craziness.

The drinking age here is 19 and none of them will be 19 yet.

Cancun? No way.

I am not getting on a Carnival cruise either. I'm a frequent cruiser. Our family went on a Carnival cruise about 5 years ago. DS and his sister requested that I never book them on a Carnival cruise again. The RCCL Bermuda cruise would be the cheapest option since we wouldn't have to fly. Maybe I could look into NCL from NYC, but I've never cruised on them.

I think the WDW idea is the most appealing in terms of safety and freedom too. It's so expensive for a short trip though. The $1000 is just for airfare, tickets and the Disney dining plan.

 

[minkydog]

Would these boys ever consider a camping trip? Daughter and her friends organized a camping trip to the lake a couple weeks after graduation. We help them schlep their a équipement up there and turned them loose. Four girls &a tent. They had a blast! Mostly because no adults went with them. And it was quite inexpensive.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

How are you flying yourself, and your 3 kids to Hawaii, and renting a 3 BR condo for $1,000?

 

[Darcy03231]

I went with the BLT condo with no supervision. Having recent high school graduates myself I know they wouldn't have wanted to go on a senior trip with me tagging along.

 

[LittleMissMagic]

The drinking age here is 19 and none of them will be 19 yet.

Cancun? No way.

I am not getting on a Carnival cruise either. I'm a frequent cruiser. Our family went on a Carnival cruise about 5 years ago. DS and his sister requested that I never book them on a Carnival cruise again. The RCCL Bermuda cruise would be the cheapest option since we wouldn't have to fly. Maybe I could look into NCL from NYC, but I've never cruised on them.

I think the WDW idea is the most appealing in terms of safety and freedom too. It's so expensive for a short trip though. The $1000 is just for airfare, tickets and the Disney dining plan.

Yeah, I didn't think you'd go for Cancun.

Royal Caribbean is my favorite cruise line, too. I haven't cruised Norwegian, yet, but I have two upcoming cruises booked on the Epic for the Med this summer. So far, I'm really impressed with them. They've provided me with more information on cruising than I've ever gotten from any cruise line except maybe Disney (v. Princess, RCCL, Carnival). Their website is legit, too. My last cruise was on Princess and their website is in major need of some TLC. Have you done the Bermuda cruise before? I'm not sure if I'd want to do that one just because it's a lot of sea days and I like island hopping.

I'm with everyone else on maybe changing the resort from BLT to a less expensive option so they could have more days there. Are you a BLT owner? Because if he's graduating this May, then I would think that you've already missed the 11 month opening and it's going to be fairly tough to secure a reservation there at the last minute. OKW and SSR will be less points and have more availability.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

As long as they're paying for it & can make the arrangements, any of the above. My buddies & I all took off for Daytona when we graduated HS in a couple cars - 20 hours of driving each way back in the 55 MPH days. I was still 17

 

[lovin'fl]

We cruise Carnival....or have been for the past few years but are looking to 'jump ship' and try other lines after our August CCL cruise (really excited about the NCL Breakaway out of NY). We get a cabin for us and a cabin for our kids...Carnival lets you do this as long as the cabins are next door or across the hall or just a few doors down. My DS brought a friend on 2 past cruises (1st one he and his friend were in a cabin with DH...2nd one he and friend were in cabin alone). It's nice that they can do their own things (which tends to be sleeping late and then eating a lot...the best trip was when our cabin was right under the buffet area). Anyway, I'm not sure the rules for other cruiselines about what age you need to be to be in a cabin w/out family...I know that young married couples who show a marriage license are an exception. You could do like most folks do and book an adult in each cabin and then switch up when you get on the ship.

Just asked my DS his opinion. He'd want to go somewhere w/out parents and he'd prefer somewhere, like Nassau, where he could "drink and gamble"...nice. So, I guess he doesn't care as much about meeting girls (and I asked him this and he said "I can meet girls all my life, anywhere. But I can't drink or gamble until I'm 18 and in the Bahamas"). He likes the idea of a cruise to Bahamas not Bermuda even though parents would be on the cruise too. He only liked the Disney idea because of the 'no parents' part, but said that Disney would be the least exciting (and the mountains too).

 

[Planogirl]

How are you flying yourself, and your 3 kids to Hawaii, and renting a 3 BR condo for $1,000?

I'm wondering about that too. I want in on that deal myself!

 

[NHdisneylover]

I would "let" mine go on any of those--but I would not be financing it, which would make the mountain resort more appealing to my kids

Whether or not my kids would be comfortable sharing accommodations with you would depend on how well they know you; but it would be very possible they would not be--especially the tighter and less private cruise accommodation, even in one of the big suites.

How are you flying yourself, and your 3 kids to Hawaii, and renting a 3 BR condo for $1,000?

I assumed these were per person prices, not totals.

 

[abdmom]

How are you flying yourself, and your 3 kids to Hawaii, and renting a 3 BR condo for $1,000?

The cost to Hawaii is just the cost to my son's friends for their airfare. I am supplying the accommodation for any of the trips except the cruise.

I'm a BLT owner which is why the WDW plan is at BLT. My son has no experience with the bus system so I'd rather he stay there than other resorts. We usually stay offsite. When we're onsite, we have a car, which he won't have.

 

[Poohforyou]

I would "let" mine go on any of those--but I would not be financing it, which would make the mountain resort more appealing to my kids

Whether or not my kids would be comfortable sharing accommodations with you would depend on how well they know you; but it would be very possible they would not be--especially the tighter and less private cruise accommodation, even in one of the big suites.



I assumed these were per person prices, not totals.

I was thinking the same thing. I would probably let my dd go but I wouldn't be paying for it. By graduation most parents are tapped out and thinking about the big tuition bill that will need to be paid over the summer. I think taking a $1000 graduation trip is a little extreme. Why can't they just go to the beach or camping or something like that? I assume the purpose of the trip is to just hang out and enjoy being together before they all go their seperate ways.

 

[ebtbmom]

I didn't vote in the poll, yet, because I'm not really clear on which trips have parental supervision and which don't.

I'd just like to point out that teenagers cannot go on a cruise by themselves on most cruise lines. They must be in the same stateroom as an adult 21 or older (or right next door or directly across if they are the child of that adult), and must have parental waivers if they are not traveling with their parents. We did a graduation cruise for my younger sister and her friends this past summer, so we had to do a lot of room switching to get the girls in their own rooms together. Also, I don't know about Bermuda specifically, the most of the Caribbean has a drinking age of 18 or none at all.
Also, Europe is the same way with the drinking age. I don't know if you have a problem with them drinking.... they will probably want to drink, as it is their graduation trip, so better to do it someplace where it is legal. Just make sure they're well-educated on alcohol.

The Hawaii trip is the most appealing to me, but it really depends on your family dynamics. Personally, I wouldn't send them off someplace on their own. But I wouldn't helicopter either.

When we cruised to St Lucia we learned that the drinking age there is 12! I asked our tour guide why then even had a drinking age if it's as low as 12, and he said "Well, you don't want 8 year olds drinking".

 

[katrina1122]

After hs graduation I went with 6 girls and 2 guys ages 17 and 18 to OC, MD for a week in what can best be described as a hell hole of a hotel. We actually had to sign for towels and rent the vacuum if we wanted it. Our room door fell in, the walls shook when people used the stairs....
Best. Memories. Ever.

I was 17 until late Nov in college.

17 and 18 yr olds are perfectly capable of going to WDW alone in the 'swanky' lol BLT.

 

[goofytinkerbell]

1

 

[shortbun]

We are taking 3 of our sons friends-and our son-to the beach for two weeks in june. They are responsible for their own souvenirs. We pay the rest. We rented a 7 bedroom house with a pool, basketball court and a large golf cart. We will have two cars. They will be on their own with all the food they need at the house. Dinner will be cooked or bought every night. All the parents are on board. We are known to be parents who show an interest, present if you will. I would take more boys if I had space in the cars. I think any of your plans is fine. Just thinking though that lots of kids that age are working to make as much money as possible to take to college so two weeks doesn't always work.
Also, I voted for two weeks in Hawaii for $1000 because it's a great deal!!!

 

[NHdisneylover]

The cost to Hawaii is just the cost to my son's friends for their airfare. I am supplying the accommodation for any of the trips except the cruise.

I'm a BLT owner which is why the WDW plan is at BLT. My son has no experience with the bus system so I'd rather he stay there than other resorts. We usually stay offsite. When we're onsite, we have a car, which he won't have.

I am curious as to how that matters as to which resort? They could walk to MK, but otherwise would be using the buses or monorail to get everywhere else anyway. And honestly, if a group of teens cannot navigate the WDW bus system there is a big problem.

From your last statement, I assume they are also providing their own park tickets and food at WDW?

How about activities at the other locations? Who is paying for those? What kind of budget do they need for that on top of the prices you are saying here?

Does that cruise price include their tips? ANY shore excursions are money for on their own things in ports?

I really think you need a realistic idea of what the TOTAL cost for each kid will be before you have them choose and/or talk to parents.


I'll go back to what I said before. I would not finance it. If I had that much extra left after all the other Senior year stuff, and before college, I would put it towards one last nice family vacation--because I am selfish and would want that. We would likely gift our child one to two hundred towards a trip like this if they were going with friends, but that is really the most.

 

[abdmom]

I am curious as to how that matters as to which resort? A previous poster askeds, so I responded. They could walk to MK, but otherwise would be using the buses or monorail to get everywhere else anyway. And honestly, if a group of teens cannot navigate the WDW bus system there is a big problem. I am sure they could manage the bus system. I own at BLT, so that is where the offer is for.

From your last statement, I assume they are also providing their own park tickets and food at WDW? Yes

How about activities at the other locations? Who is paying for those? Activities at the other locations are included.What kind of budget do they need for that on top of the prices you are saying here?

Does that cruise price include their tips? YesANY shore excursions are money for on their own things in ports? Yes, that's included in spending money

I really think you need a realistic idea of what the TOTAL cost for each kid will be before you have them choose and/or talk to parents. I have travelled to these places multiple times I know what it costs.


I'll go back to what I said before. I would not finance it. If I had that much extra left after all the other Senior year stuff, and before college, I would put it towards one last nice family vacation--because I am selfish and would want that. We would likely gift our child one to two hundred towards a trip like this if they were going with friends, but that is really the most.

OK Thanks.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I went for the free one. Expecting kids/parents to pay for a vacation of that magnitude would be something outside of my realm of reality and out of our price range.

And heck, nothing is for "free". You still have travel costs, food, fun, etc...

You said the airfare is out of this world for WDW, right? Now IF the friends could pay for airfare plus their park tickets & food then I would offer Disney however that seems totally super expensive! However maybe all of you are rich and can afford it. If that is the case, then do Disney.