Flying as an unaccompanied minor at age 7

[CrispyClo]

I’m posting on behalf of my sister as she is looking for some external views on the matter.

My niece is 7, birthday was in August. She started a new school in September, which closes for Christmas a week earlier than most state schools. There don’t seem to be a lot of options for childcare during that week as not many schools here close that early so there aren’t any holiday camps.
My sister has booked my niece onto a week long camp abroad for the week. The camp is well reviewed and offers a pick up service for children flying as an unaccompanied minor. My sister initially felt this was a good idea, and booked it.
Now she is having some concerns and is unsure it’s the right choice, mainly as she appreciates 7 is quite young and while the flight isn’t particularly long, they don’t actually have someone sat with them, just cabin crew checking in. She has admitted herself she was fine with it until other people seemed to think it was a reckless parenting choice. I think it will be fine, my sister and I flew as unaccompanied minors often as our dad lived abroad, we were a bit older (maybe 10 the first time) but managed it fine.

AIBU to think my niece will be fine? She’s looking forward to the camp and doesn’t seem phased by the thought of it.

I wouldn't expect 1:1 care but the OP is saying that's what Swiss Air offer in the airport. And cabin crew on an hour's long flight are working flat out, and would have no time to support the child if she became distressed.

Exactly what I mean about grown ADULTS not coping with basic travel stuff lol

I did this at age 8 ish and was fine, but three or four people at the camp were homesick enough to have to be collected. And this was back in the 80s so different times

I know it's not really relevant to this particular thread and all but I bet it'd be cheaper for the child to be accompanied by an adult she knows on easyJet who then returns than the whole unaccompanied child lark on Swissair.

Should be added to parenting courses then shouldn’t it as it seems the only way to never feel anxious on a bad flight is to have solo flown from Reception age. 🙄

Edit: that’s in response to @RubySquid

Wow. I’m actually shocked that anyone thinks that sending a 7 year old to an overseas camp for a week is a good idea. I genuinely feel a little bit sad if this is true.

Err where did I actually say that!?

Indeed.

I didn't even go abroad at all until well into secondary school.

I have now travelled extensively, including spending time backpacking through Australia and NZ, surfing in Hawaii, living it up in Singapore. I've driven a camper van all over Europe, interrailed round Italy, skiied in France and Finland....

Being appropriately cared for and safeguarded as a 7 year old hasn't really held me back.

Leaving the camp aspect aside I do think some are over exagerating the problems associated with the flight.

Young children have been travelling on Unaccompanied Minor (UM) schemes for decades..

If there were major problems with UMs needing support in flight and causing problems with service the airlines wouldn't run the schemes

Some carriers allow really young UMs (for example Air France it's min age 4 on domestic flights, 5 on international).

I get that not all youngsters would be happy travelling solo and lots of parents here don't like the idea, fair enough, but it's a facility that some airlines do offer, it does work, and lots of young children manage really well.

This camp looks pants. Finns and swedes do it better

I don’t think it’s that weird, kids go to boarding school from the age of 6, I know a lot of people in the US in particular that flew alone as early as 5 because of custody arrangements, and summer camp from a young age is also common, for much longer than a week! It really depends on the child to me - ds1 would have been fine, ds2 has adhd and I wouldn’t have been happy as he has always needed triple the supervision.

in terms of being scared of turbulence etc I flew a lot as a child and I was never bothered by things like that until I got older and picked up on adult nervousness! So I wouldn’t assume a bumpy flight will be scary to a 7 year old. It’s like being on a train or a bus.

I think you are crazy asking on Mumsnet which is.. well exactly how this turned out lol

Yes PGL does week long camps for 8yrs old. My son did it last year he had a good time. He was just 8yrs old.
And yes with a mature 7yrs old I would be ok with it. But I am not British, i started going to residential camps when I was 5 so far from odd in my books. But it is not the done thing here in England, hence... Well this! I hope your niece has a fab time.

Depends on the child.

I'd have no issue with the UM service on Swissair. Or the camp.

My kids didn't fly UM until older. One would have loved this, one would have hated it.

Nope, nope, nope.
who’s there to protect her ??
worse case scenario…you have a predatory man sitting next to her….doesn't bare thinking about.

This was my thought too. I always look at worst case scenario...and worst case scenario to me would be the child sat next to some predatory weirdo. Surely no airline can watch the child the entire time in the way a parent would?

Mine went off on camps at this age, and quite far away too for a few days. But in groups. With people they knew. No way would I do this.
What does her dad think?

So basically she has two parents and neither of them had the foresight to be present for her in a school holiday? Do they not communicate with each other to discuss their daughter’s needs?

The airline would not be sitting the next to some random man.

I couldn’t agree more. I wonder why some people have children.

I have no clue about these things ..do airlines have policies which state that they won't sit unaccompanied children next to men? Do they vet the passengers who will be sitting next to the child? What about a dad with kids... would they sit the child next to them?

If there's more than one UM they generally sit them together.

Eventhough I’m completely against it , yeah of course they wouldn’t put her sitting alongside some random man ..
It’s the sending her off on her own at 7 to a different country to strangers..

Europeans are also not sending their 7 yo dc to other countries unaccompanied for a week at a time.

We're British, not a native tribe with no contact with the outside world.

The poster you were replying was talking about pgl camps in general. She didn't say anything about out of country