Can I let grandparents take my toddler abroad without me?
Allowing relatives to take a toddler on international travel without parents present is a massive ask that creates deep personal discomfort at this age. This makes it difficult to approve trips abroad, leading to inevitable conflict when grandparents request to take young children out of the country.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Saying no to international travel requests and suggesting domestic trips instead.Did this help you?
- 2Leaving the toddler at home with grandparents or other family members for the duration of the tripDid this help you?
- 3Shortening the trip duration or scaling down the itineraryDid this help you?
- 4Planning a separate, shorter drivable vacation that the toddler can enjoy moreDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I wouldn’t personally be cool with any international travel at this age without me, regardless of country.”source ↗
“Taking a 3-year-old out of the country without either parent present is a massive ask, regardless of where they are going.”source ↗
“My husband and I planned a 15 day trip(mostly I) for next summer to 2 European cities. After seeing the final cost it would be to take our family of three my husband is starting to balk. He suggested that we leave our 2 1/2 year-old at home because we we could save a lot of money and it’s generally going to be hard to take a toddler abroad.”source ↗
“I also have never spent a long time apart from our son(not more than like 30 hours) but rearranged a potential itinerary for 11 days without having to cut anything. But I still just feel SO BAD at the idea of leaving him behind. I planned this trip for us as a family and I’d miss him so much.”source ↗
“But I’m still so anxious and guilty about leaving him behind.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 45Why is traveling with a baby and toddler so miserable?
- 6Is it okay to pull a child out of school for a long vacation?
- 5Can a 17 year old fly internationally without parent consent?
- 3Kid-friendly international travel recommendations from real parents
- 2What to do if a relative can't travel to your wedding
- 18How to plan your first international trip without missing anything