<p>They have a good organization of youth hostels. You can make a reservation in advance. Euro-rails are excellenet, too. It may have changed now but generally I felt it’s safe to get lost in Europe. </p>
<p>Indeed, drinking age is lower than 18. My D was 17 last year when she went to Rome in a school trip. Last evening before heading back, their teacher allowed them to have a glass of wine with parental consent.</p>
<p>S1 got himself from Central London and back home when he was 17. Did his first solo trip at 15, flying from a math program in MA to meet us on vacation in CA. All those years of planes, trains and automobiles proved useful; both are pretty savvy travelers. We turned S2 loose in Montreal on a Saturday night while we were there this summer, and let the two of them wander London in their mid-teens. </p>
<p>Be prepared for bumps in the road – one of my savvy travelers forgot his Amtrak ticket this am en route to a business meeting. Hope he made his train, since this meant he was now going to have to stand in line at the ticket counter! :)</p>
<p>My family lived in Switzerland, and I can answer question 2. Yes, some places are safer than others. We felt that Switzerland was so safe that we allowed our 12-year-old daughter to go downtown to the movies with her friends from the church youth group by herself on Saturday nights. We learned German, the kids learned German and French, and we tried to speak the local language, but we could always find someone who spoke English if absolutely necessary. At the time I was researching family trips, Prague and Rome seemed more dangerous than other large cities; if you choose to allow this, someone should do current research. Also, any city where you don’t speak the language is more dangerous than places where you do. </p>
<p>At the same time, I would not allow my minor child to go to a foreign country without a parent or person in authority (such as a teacher on a school trip). I wouldn’t allow my 18-year-old to accompany two minors either, because it could put too much pressure on her in the event something went wrong (for example, if one needed medical care). While my D is sensible, not everyone else is. I may be overly cautious, but I would ask them to wait until they are all adults.</p>
<p>I would have loved for my kids to do this but none of them had the time or money…too busy working in the summer. I would worry like crazy but heck I am worried everyday about my son living in the United Emerites. I think I would feel better if it was the summer after freshman year of college…theres a little more maturity and independance.</p>
<p>My two sons, born and bred in the UK, started travelling independently (and/or with a couple of friends) around the world when they were 15 and 16 respectively. As far as I know there are no legal impediments to renting a room in Europe when you are under 18. A number of European cities now have hostels/hotels aimed at the 15-24 year-old crowd which are a cut above what I stayed in 40 years ago.</p>
<p>My sons still use the Rough Guides, as recommended by a previous poster, and the Lonely Planet guides. I think both of them are pretty good on safety issues. Personally, I dont think that safety in most of Europe is much more of a concern than in a large North American city.</p>
<p>Is gender an issue? Statistically, I think that young males are more likely to get into trouble.</p>
<p>If the young women are sensible and responsible, I would certainly be willing to start negotiations with them.</p>
<p>I always made sure that they had a list of contacts of relatives, friends (even if it was someone I went to school with 40 years ago). Mine never needed those contacts, but it made me feel better.</p>
<p>Also, I always thought that three was a great number for travelling.</p>
<p>Hmm,
Yes. Was it the greatest thing??? In our case: Overall, it was a wash. Even though travel, foreign cultures, etc are very important to our family.
I think it completely depends upon the maturity of the kids involved. And how well they get along is very important, btw. As is being very organized before-hand and able to handle the unplanned and the unexpected.</p>
<p>They will be allowed to drink, hit discos, etc. if they are over 18. And “fraternize (ygwim)” freely- the Euro boys come for that to these places, I promise you!
Medical care overseas for an older teen is a bit scary.
I recommend that you have at least one in the group carry a cell-phone with international service. And that each kid agree to a call with family every day or something like that.
This type of a trip can be a great experience, but it can add a few gray hairs!!
Hunt, please PM me if you would like to hear of any specifics of my D’s trip.</p>
<p>Yes, overall Europe is safe- better than say a 3-gal trip to the Mid-East right now. But, out late, lost or looking confused are always trouble magnets. Also, frends who recently traveled as a threesome had an issue with some less expensive hotels that only had single or double rooms available- just something to check. </p>
<p>One great thing about hostels is you do meet other intl kids and can socialize as a group with them, plus trade tips for your next city.</p>
<p>ps. not a bad idea to check tripadvisor.com the travel forum.</p>
<p>I would allow it, as long as they pick safe places.</p>
<p>They may be safer, for example, in Switzerland, than at your local mall.</p>
<p>They would have to promise though that they would not split up, and always stay together. And not roam the streets at 3am. Of course, they might break that promise.</p>
<p>Hunt, one place I would recommend you and the girls check out is the discussion forum on Lonely Planet - great source of tips, especially for budget-oriented youngsters (since that’s the primary demographic for Lonely Planet.)</p>
<p>[Thorn</a> Tree travel forum - Lonely Planet](<a href=“Thorn Tree is coming to an end - Lonely Planet”>Thorn Tree is coming to an end - Lonely Planet)</p>
<p>I might have said yes, and maybe still if all over 18, but unless they have done similar negotiation with less complicated trips before, I would wait. And you should all watch the movie “Taken”! That changed my mind about some of the carefree part of travel! My D travelled in Spain with a language group at 16/17, living with local families, that gave her some of the same experience (and negotiating cities with just small groups of other students) but with mentor/teacher to check in with daily.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I guess no one here watched Fellini’s film here:)</p>
<ul>
<li>they shouldn’t venture off alone</li>
<li>they shouldn’t drink excessively (lots of college age kids travel through europe and booze it up every night… not sure why they go to Europe to do this since they could do it at home, but it happens a lot)</li>
<li>you should make sure they read up on various street scams (offering “dropped” rings, offering flowers, making you a bracelet on your wrist which you now have to pay for, etc etc). I was actually physically grabbed by one of the bracelet types in Paris</li>
<li>foreign languages don’t help if they don’t speak that language where you are going (that said, you can survive with English fine)</li>
<li>get a phrase book / travel word book</li>
<li>Rick Steves has a good European budget travel book (focusing on the traveling aspects, not specific things to do in a country, though he has those as well) </li>
<li>don’t assume people trying to help you are looking out for your best interests (try to get advice from people who work in that sector, like the people at the desk at the hostel, the people behind the ticket counter at the train station, etc)</li>
<li>the trains leave on time… don’t be late</li>
<li>Look at your map out of the way. Don’t stand on the street corner huddled around a map. It makes you a target for thieves, and it makes it clear that you do not know where you are going, and are therefore more vulnerable.</li>
</ul>
<p>I backpacked Europe with one of my roommates after undergrad, so that’s where my advice is coming from.</p>
<p>Lots of good advice. My D and one of her girl friends went to London for a couple weeks after high school. Both were 18, so that was no issue. Both had traveled to Europe before with parents and with their school, so they knew about flights, customs, public trans, etc. My D had spent a month in London previously with a theatre program and lived in a college dorm during that trip, so she knew how the tube worked and could navigate in London. We booked them into an inexpensive (for London) hotel and they operated from there. Got them a cell phone that worked in Europe, all set up in advance. They had a great time. My D learned the hard way that having overweight luggage is very expensive! On the other extreme, my niece spent a year hitchhiking around Australia on her own when she finished high school. Had a great time as well.</p>
<p>I’m worried about “Taken,” but even more about “Hostel.”</p>
<p>Thanks for all the advice.</p>
<p>Are these city girls with a measure of street savvy? If it were my kid, I would want her to have a few years of independence and solo problem solving under her belt such as figuring out the myriad of details involved with living off campus. She would also know how to handle alcohol, since bad decisions can be made while under the influence. I think it would also be advisable for them all to be of legal age. </p>
<p>From my experience of planning complicated vacations: All that moving around and managing the logistical requirements can be exhausting. (When I was in my 20s, I did this Eastern Airlines seven airports/cities in 20 or 21 days because it was a deal for $300 or so.) Sometimes, less can actually be more and definitely more enjoyable. </p>
<p>Maybe they can plan a <em>reunion</em> trip a year or two down the road?</p>
<p>from post 14:
“A major problem was theft.
She had her phone & wallet stolen shortly after she arrived”</p>
<p>The word that jumped out at me here is “wallet” - you don’t want to use a wallet when traveling abroad. You need to keep your passport, cash, train pass, airline ticket (obsolete these days I guess, in the days of electronic ticketing - but you may at least need your reservation #), credit/debit cards in a money belt worn next to your body at all times. Keep only a day’s worth of cash in a pocket, or if you must, wallet. Everything else stays in the money belt.</p>
<p>Rick Steve’s Europe on a Budget book, or whatever it’s called, has a few VERY informative pages on avoiding theft, including various street scams.</p>
<p>I think she did have a close to the body belt & she didn’t lose her passport, but she also knew everything about traveling at 18- and so I couldn’t tell her anything.</p>
<p>My S and a girl friend (both 18) went to Europe after HS graduation for 2 weeks and had a fabulous time. S is a big planner and had pre-purchased tickets to shows, Chunnel, etc. They found an apartment in Paris, for instance, through an online service, and were on a pretty tight budget, so shopping and cooking were part of their plans. This was a few months ago, and the gypsies around the Eiffel tower were scary–but they did no real damage so your D and friends should be prepared not to be victims.</p>
<p>When my older S went to Europe for study abroad semester in Italy, we learned that the student travel agency at his university offers travel insurance that covers cost of medical plus other reimbursements–including paying for parent to fly to Europe if student is (!) in hospital. Study abroad required this, but good for peace of mind if you want. The company was STA Travel and they are available online–student just needs to be pre-frosh (which yours will be by then).</p>
<p>Disclaimer, my S is well traveled, has flown alone for years, but never to Europe before. He’s a city guy and they stayed mostly in cities. And it was a great de-stresser for him to plan the trip with friend while they both dealt with senior year uncertainties, college apps, and the great unknowns of the coming fall.</p>
<p>In my family, the only person who ever fell for a street scam was me!</p>
<p>Just ran across this old thread, which I should have updated before. My D and her two friends did take the trip, to London and Paris, and had few problems. They stayed in hostels in both places, and they were fine. Their biggest problem was messing up their train tickets, which cost them money, but nothing worse than that.</p>