How to Make the Best of a Family Vacation
Here's how to deal with loud hotel neighbors on Valentine's Day.
Feb. 13, 2010 -- In this edition: Questions about loudly amorous hotel neighbors, gate-checking bags and how to dress kids on a cruise. Here's some advice.
Q: The couple in the hotel room next to me were having quite the early Valentine's Day celebration, if you know what I mean. And it kept me up all night. In that hotel, you could call another room by dialing the room number, so I could've easily called them to ask them to keep it down. But I was hesitant. Would that have been appropriate?
A: Don't call your amorous neighbors. Call the front desk and ask them to handle it. And next time, bring earplugs.
Q: If you have a carry-on-sized suitcase and you don't feel like dealing with it on the plane, it's OK to gate-check it, right?
A: Absolutely. You'll be leaving more overhead space for everyone else so not only is it OK, the other passengers should be grateful. Plus, you didn't hear this from me, but it might let you avoid the checked-bag fee.
Q: On formal night on a cruise, do babies have to follow the dress code if your whole family wants to eat in the dining room?
A: What, you don't want to buy a tuxedo for your 6-month-old? Just kidding. I commend you for actually worrying about this because there are plenty of adult cruise passengers who think it's fine to go to dinner on formal night in cut-off jeans and a ratty T-shirt. As long as your baby's wearing something clean, you should be fine. Now, for slightly older kids -- say, 18 months and up -- I think you should at least make an effort to dress them up a bit. Little girls are fine in a party dress (and, yes, if you're on a Disney cruise, a princess dress counts). Boys should wear long pants and a shirt with a collar. They don't need ties.
Q: I'd like to invite my college-aged niece to go to London for two weeks with my family this summer, as a babysitter. (She babysits for us all the time.) We'd pay for her flights, lodging, etc., but she'd be responsible for watching our kids in the evenings so my husband and I can go out. We'd also expect her to help us during the day while we're sightseeing. Is this unreasonable?
A: I don't think it's unreasonable at all, as long as you are perfectly clear up front that she'll be babysitting, not hitting the nightclubs of London. In fact, you should discuss exactly how many hours you expect her to babysit. If she's thinking it'll be from 7-9 p.m. (so you can have dinner) but you're thinking more like 7 p.m- 1 a.m. (so you can hit those nightclubs yourself), you're going to have problems. Also make sure you discuss sleeping arrangements. Will she be in a room with the kids or her own hotel room?
But Give Nanny a Break, Too
The other thing I'd recommend is that you give your niece some chunks of time to explore London on her own. If you had a professional nanny, you wouldn't expect her to spend every waking moment with you and your kids, so you shouldn't expect that of your niece. And, finally, don't be offended if she says no. She might have a job or internship already lined up, or simply prefer to travel on her own instead of with your family.
Lesley Carlin has been writing about travel and etiquette professionally for more than 10 years. As one of the Etiquette Grrls, she is the co-author of "Things You Need to Be Told" and "More Things You Need to Be Told" (Berkley). Have a travel etiquette question of your own? E-mail Lesley at traveletiquette@tripadvisor.com.