When parents are negotiating the rough waters of a divorce, conversations with lawyers obviously focus on the immediate, important and practical needs of the children…custody, living arrangements, education and child support. Often the idea of family vacation with the kids is dealt with as part of visitation rights…like who gets the kids for Christmas vs Thanksgiving.
Ever since the details were released about what is coming on Royal Caribbean's new ship Quantum of the Seas, there has been all sorts of buzz about this ships new features. All the advertising about Quantum of the Seas says "Prepare to be WOWED". The Quantum of the Seas will be sailing out of Bayonne, NJ (across the Hudson from NYC) starting in the fall of 2014.
This week Vacationkids staff attended a training seminar specifically about the details of this brand new ship. We found ourselves in a room full of travel agents. There was a room full of travel agents gasping and applauding at all the new features like sky diving on deck, the northstar observation pod or bumper cars and rollerskating in the new seaplex. Vacationkids staff found they were the only ones cheering when the single studio staterooms were announced. We don't care. Several of us were single parents at one time or another and we think this is one of the most AMAZING new features Quantum of the Seas has to offer.
There are so many life changes for families dealing with divorce. Trust me, my three kids and I understand this scenario first hand. There are so many complicated emotions and important practical decisions need to be addressed. Living arrangements, custody rules, visitation schedules and finances all have to be decided between parents and their lawyers. Often the last thing parents think about during the divorce is a family vacation.
For the safety and security of children everywhere, single parents traveling overseas with minor children have additional responsibilities when it comes to travel documentation. This rule applies to divorced parents, widowed parents, co-parents, grandparents and even married parents who will be traveling separately. Similar questions of legality can arise if passport names don't all match. This can happen in the situation where
a mother uses a different name from her husband and children. Another red flag might be if you are bringing another child along on vacation, say a child's friend or a relative that does not have the same last name. Once again legal documentation would need to be presented at border control.
