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Original poster

Children and Hotel WWYD

67 replies

TimothyClaypoleLover · 29/06/2013 14:45

Family weekend coming up with 2 nights stay in a hotel. We have 2 children aged 3 and 1. Majority of the family of the view that it would be perfectly reasonable to leave DC in the hotel room on their own at night whilst we are downstairs eating/drinking. Other family members with children of similar age plan to do this.

I am not happy with this and feel that it is not the same as them being at home in their bedrooms whilst we are downstairs. The hotel is a public place and I would not be able to hear them cry should they wake. Not to mention if they got out of bed and managed to get out the room or injure themselves in the room.

I am being made to feel like a neurotic mother and on my saying that I would just stay in the room with them being told I am not getting in the party spirit. There has been the suggestion of checking on them every half hour or so but that doesn't sit right with me.

Can anyone advise or has anyone had similar experience. I don't feel I am being unreasonable in my concerns but everyone else in the family does.

OP posts:

SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius · 29/06/2013 15:30

Timothy - is there any chance that all of you with children could agree to,put the. Children together in one room/adjoining rooms with a connecting door, so that you could all take turns to sit with them? That way they would all be cared for by family, and none of you would miss too much of the party? Then children could be carried back to their rooms at the end of the evening.

Even if it were only you and one other family, it would share the minding workload a bit more.

Rosa · 29/06/2013 15:34

Baby can fall asleep in the buggy and the 3 yr old can have a late night ??? If its a family weekend then everybody can have fun with the family and help you out.... Sits back and waits for complete flaiming about letting kids stay up late.
I am guessing its a family friendly hotel .
No way would I leave my kids in strange place alone either .

Original poster

TimothyClaypoleLover · 29/06/2013 15:37

nextphase - that is what I was thinking as 3 year old would be ok to stay up until 8 or 9pm. 1 year old would probably fall asleep in buggy if pushed around a bit.

STDG - definitely worth a try although I know for a fact one set of parents are perfectly happy to leave their 2 children alone.

OP posts:

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CaptainSweatPants · 29/06/2013 15:42

in that case I'd have dinner at 6pm with all the kids present

then you or dh can stay in the room and the other can have a few drinks downstairs or take it in turns

Original poster

TimothyClaypoleLover · 29/06/2013 15:46

CaptainSweatPants - I know for a fact that dinner will be at the most inconvenient time for kids. Might have to start badgering the family now for an early dinner!

OP posts:

Ashoething · 29/06/2013 15:51

3 and 1-no way. Far too young.

LtEveDallas · 29/06/2013 16:01

I'd keep them up until they got niggly, then make my excuses and go back to the room with them. You may find the 3 year old falls asleep too - DD always did.

At a push I'd use a hotel babysitting service, but I wouldn't leave them alone.

weirdthing · 29/06/2013 16:02

No way would I leave my kids. Other people in the hotel have keys to your room - anything could happen to them. And all for what? Some boozing? No way!

Original poster

TimothyClaypoleLover · 29/06/2013 17:32

weirdthing - I definitely won't be boozing, just can't handle it anymore since kids came along!

OP posts:

Alibabaandthe40nappies · 29/06/2013 17:58

I would contact the hotel and look into a babysitter. We have done this a couple of times and it is brilliant because you can relax - and if there is any kind of problem then you are in the same building rather than in a restaurant 10 miles away/at the theatre or cinema or whatever.

scaevola · 29/06/2013 18:03

Well, I've done it. But it depends on the size/layout of the hotel (huge difference between ground floor room you can reach in seconds, and one several floors away), whether you can listen in (need a monitor and do a trial to see if you can really hear, I never trusted a listening service) and whether there are hazards in the room. And of course whether your DCs stay asleep.

If you're not totally happy with all those, don't do it.

Pancakeflipper · 29/06/2013 18:09

No.
We recently had a big family meal and we were staying at the hotel. My sister ( who has no children) was wonderful in realising we would be in your situation OP. So she brought the meal forward to 6pm so my children could join. Just before 10pm my DP took them to bed and stayed with them. I partied! It was a good compromise for us all.

babyhmummy01 · 29/06/2013 18:27

Definite no no as someone else has said Madeline McCann!!!

Ask if the hotel has babysitting/listening service or keep the kids with you.

What other parents do is up to them but you have to decide for ur kids

BingoWingoBongoBop · 29/06/2013 18:27

I tried to do it... Staying in tiny hotel with parents in law. Our monitor stretched to the restaurant but after sitting there for 10 minutes I realised I couldn't do it, couldn't leave DS alone, what if (unlikely I know) there was a fire, or some other disaster... I ended up spending a very nice evening in the room while DH brought me up each course of dinner! You should only do what you're comfortable with, you wouldn't forgive yourself otherwise (even though realistically nothing bad will probably happen... But how can one ever say that?!)

kilmuir · 29/06/2013 18:31

You know you don't want to. Would you really enjoy yourself? Hotel may have a babysitting service.
I would not even consider it

heidihole · 29/06/2013 18:37

There is no way on earth I'd agree to this without a baby monitor.

Could you put Skype on your iPhone and leave it in the hotel room and then "call" on Skype your DHs phone which would be with you? That would leave an open line between the phones (or even just regular phone call if you have free mins and put phone on speaker) then you'd hear if either baby cried

CaptainSweatPants · 29/06/2013 18:40

Stay home with kids
Send Dh on his own
Order takeaway & wine for when they're asleep

Relax in the knowledge you avoided a stressful night in a hotel

Beamur · 29/06/2013 18:41

I wouldn't.
I'd go with the option of keeping the 3 yr old up later than usual, get the baby to nap in a buggy and eat early.

Primrose123 · 29/06/2013 18:45

No, I wouldn't leave them either.

Snazzywaitingforsummer · 29/06/2013 18:46

No. It's pretty clear why it's not a good idea. This is the pain of extended family holidays - there are usually people driving what everyone else does and if you don't like their ideas you have to be very assertive and resist a lot of pressure. But you are right to resist. Tell them if they don't call you a neurotic parent, you won't call them neglectful ones - deal?

hesterton · 29/06/2013 18:48

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Abra1d · 29/06/2013 18:53

I've done this, with a baby monitor, in small, family-run hotels. My children were fairly good at night, though, even if they weren't asleep immediately they wouldn't run riot. We used to run up and downstairs to check on them as well, every 15 minutes.

Love your son's comment, Hesterton!

AmbrosiaCreamedMice · 29/06/2013 18:54

Crazy. A 3yo could probably reach the door handle as well. And the bath taps. Or the window.

OP, just stay at home will you, my nerves can't handle it.

Shattereddreams · 29/06/2013 18:56

This happened on a large family holiday of ours. My DSis left her two 4 and 1 to rampage the restaurant as they were overtired, everyone got pissed and were far too noisy for my 1 yr old to go to sleep in her buggy.

We had dinner early after the first night. And vowed NEVER to holiday with family again

teacher123 · 29/06/2013 18:57

When DS was 4mo we went to a wedding and I took my parents to help with DS. We had the end of a corridor with just our two rooms in it, and my parents had room service with the door open whilst DS slept next door. I went back at 10pm to find my mum sitting in the dark in DS's room reading on the iPad. She felt that she couldn't leave him on his own even though they were next door and could see the door to his bedroom. Do whatever feels right to you and ignore everyone else.

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