Would it be wrong to travel without the children after passport mistake?

[Halohalolumpia]

Alright, so we’ve made a silly mistake and found out our eldest’s passport is expired, and we fly tomorrow. We didn’t get travel insurance so that’s a couple of grand down the drain. The two options are to leave the kids ( 2 years 9 and 5 years 8 months) with my parents whom they stay with every week anyway. Or we just all don’t go. It’s such a waste and I am torn. My hubs is ok going on our own but I feel sooooo guilty! The kids were so looking forward to it. Has anyone been in this situation and is it bad parenting going on our own :/ We’ve been away on our own before for a wedding for a couple of days but not 6 days. thanks xx

I'd speak to the holiday company immediately and see if you can save any of what you've paid by moving the holiday booking a month later. Even if it costs money, at least you'll get your family holiday. Harsh that the 'reward' for your mistake is a holiday without the kids!

I think YABVU to consider going on holiday without travel insurance. The kid stuff is minor compared to that.

If it was the youngest one with out a passport you might have got away with going with the eldest, as the youngest probably wouldn't have minded either way but not the other way round

How did you get one the next day? I thought it takes up to 5 days x

I think as you made the mistake the DC should not pay the price while you jet off on holiday without them.

I absolutely would not go without them in this scenario. Did I understand correctly that your DC live with their grandparents ordinarily? In which case this holiday will be even more special and important to them.

Go somewhere in UK instead. My DC loved the Isle of Wight at that age. Getting the ferry seemed almost like going abroad!!

@Halohalolumpia

Did you speak to the passport office for advice, OP?

www.gov.uk/passport-advice-line

I don’t think I’d personally go without my kids but no travel insurance is a massive issue. It’s a small price to pay if anyone god forbid became sick and needed treatment on holiday. Then you’d be paying thousands

No, you didn’t understand correctly, @Stoicandhappy. Not from what the OP has written here, anyway.

This

You cannot go without DC , That’s awful.

@Halohalolumpia

Where were you planning to go to and with whom did you book, OP?

Insurance wouldn't have paid out for out of date passports

My goodness, I could never leave the kids at home from a holiday they were looking forward to due to my mistake. Try and get an emergency passport or don’t go.

But I also forgot having read that the holiday is only for 6 days! So definitely not enough time to have one parent stay with the elder child and sort out the passport.

Unless you could extend the holiday by a few days? Even if only by three or four days they’d be able to experience the trip and feel less hard done by.

Have you told them what’s happened, @Halohalolumpia? The five year old might give you a lead on the best way to proceed.

This. I can't believe people are still stupid enough to travel without insurance.

Please everyone, if you have a holiday booked in the next 6 months go and check your passport dates (kids last 5 years not 10) and if it’s a red passport check the start date too, it runs out at 10 years (or 5 years) not the date if extra time was added. Daily are these posts so easily avoided if we check dates

One parent goes and the other stays with the 9 year old.

Although before anyone goes anywhere buy insurance, I can't believe you were going to travel without it!

Poor kids, and poor granny and grandad getting lumbered with your kids for a week at short notice!

I say one of you go + youngest child, other stay at home and do a load of day trips with eldest.

It would be really hard on the children to have a whole week without their parents when they were expecting 7 days with you both. I'd see if the travel company can be persuaded to move the booking.

Gosh that would be a really horrible thing to do, your mistake and your kids end up suffering. Hats off to your parents for being so hands on I guess but fuck no way would I take someone’s kids for a week so they could go off on holiday without them last minute. It would be different if they were not planned to go but surely your eldest at least will have some understanding of what’s going on and feel absolutely shite that she didn’t get her holiday with mummy and daddy after all and was just dumped with grandparents. Please don’t do that.

Every time I read a passport thread I check our passports! Several times this year already!!

OP you can't leave your kids, that's really cruel. And why on earth didn't you get insurance? (although I'm not sure it could cover you for this)

Your kids will never forget it if you leave them behind. It’s just not worth it in my opinion.

Personally couldn’t do that to my children.

Can you pay to change the dates of your holiday? It’s a minimum of a week for a child’s passport so an urgent renewal isn’t an option. Insurance wouldn’t have covered you for an out of date passport.