The gap year guide for anxious parents – and how to prepare your teen travellers
For A-level students unsure about going straight to university, a gap year is a chance to gain life experience outside the classroom. The decision to travel might worry parents but travel companies suggest that a carefully curated gap year helps students develop career-enhancing skills that employers view favourably.
If you’re an anxious parent, a simple thing to do is to prepare. Get involved in planning your son or daughter’s trip right from the start. Read up on their destinations and absorb all the gap year literature they are given – it will allay both of your fears. Do your research, so you can be sure that volunteering projects will be carried out responsibly and sustainably. If your child books a structured trip, there will be advisers that they can quiz before heading off. Even if they are travelling independently, many gap companies have posted advice articles online. Make sure to get comprehensive travel insurance, with evacuation cover, if possible. Finally, before they leave, talk through any scenarios that are troubling you and discuss what level of communication would help to alleviate your anxiety.
In this guide:
For the parents:
For the gappers:
For the parents
Keeping in touch
How often should you expect to hear from your child while they are away? Some gap-year organisations have begun asking their young people to go off-grid. Raleigh International, for example, has introduced a “no phones programme” for 19 days at a time – then, when back at base camp, students have three or four days to contact loved ones. “The digital detox gives them the chance to spread their wings as they gain confidence and the independence to forge their own paths in safety,” said Lucy Constable Fernandez, Raleigh’s managing director.
When phoning home, encourage your child to make calls for free over a hostel’s Wi-Fi, using an app such as WhatsApp, Skype or FaceTime. If your child needs to use data while they are out and about, those on pay-monthly contracts can buy international data bundles that charge by the day. Check that spending caps apply and set a limit to make sure the bill doesn’t rack up.
For more regular, on-the-go data usage, the latest smartphones are compatible with international eSIMS, which offer cheaper data and can be digitally uploaded while in the UK, then topped up later. Apple, for example, offers a list of worldwide service providers with links to different apps to download for iPhones. Among these, FlexiRoam is one that offers country and continent-specific packages at various rates. Read more about eSims in our guide.
Remember to respect your child’s boundaries when keeping tabs on them. “Parents don’t follow your kids on ‘find my family’ or any other tracking device,” warns Milly Whitehead from The Leap, who is also a parent. “Trust me, it is addictive. I had to delete the app and leave them to it.” She added: “If they are heading off-grid for days, get them to text home to say, ‘off-grid until X date’.”
Arvind Malholtra, the managing director of GapGuru, advises: “Try to avoid any homesickness-triggering questions and avoid telling them what they’re missing out on at home. The first fortnight can be challenging so be encouraging.”
“I’d say most travellers’ parents would touch base a couple of times a week via WhatsApp,” says Becca Moulton, a senior travel advisor at Gap 360, “that’s if their kids hadn’t already beaten them to it with endless photos of their adventures.”
Beat the anxiety
Remember that gap years are a chance for your child to experience freedom and independence. Not being at your beck and call is a big part of that. Look forward to your children returning full of stories, having enjoyed new responsibilities. Future employers will appreciate this too.
If you are waiting on a reply from a gapper, remember that they are being kept very busy. Young people on structured trips will have jobs and group activities to attend to. They will probably have a dedicated advisor on hand, so their first port of call won’t necessarily be you and they should have everything they need to overcome obstacles. If they are travelling independently, they will probably be trying to cram as much sightseeing as they can into a day, while working hard to make connections that will make their lives easier.
You could always turn your worries into something constructive by collating an email of useful information for backpackers. Check the Foreign Office website (gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice) for safety warnings and entry requirements for the next country on their list. Include the emergency phone number in that country and perhaps a link to the British Embassy’s website – the first port of call should they lose their passport. Now sit back and relax! You have all bases covered.
For the gappers
How to choose a route
Deciding where to go is tough. Interrailing around Europe offers a wide variety of languages, cultures, landscapes and history to sample in a short space of time, while avoiding too much of a culture shock. However, if you love the idea of beaches, jungle, temples and a slower pace of life, South-east Asia might be for you.
Australia and New Zealand offer adventures and thrills, and appeal to anyone who wants to travel unhindered by language barriers, with easy access to jobs that can help fund a trip. Then there is South America, offering some of the world’s most varied bucket-list experiences, from dancing at Rio’s carnival to trekking to Machu Picchu and whale-watching in Argentina. Still can’t decide? Buy a round-the-world ticket that takes you to three different continents, and travel overland as much as you can between airports. Ticking off the sights is all well and good, but getting around on the ground? That’s when magic happens.
10 trips to take before your course begins
Structured trips
Volunteer in Costa Rica
Work in a tropical paradise to support fragile ecosystems and with indigenous communities on access to education and sanitation. This well-organised trip takes up three phases: the first two involve community and the environment, the last ends in an adventure trek through rain forests and up volcanoes that tourists don’t get to access.
Pros: Sustainable and responsible
Cons: Highly structured
Book it: From £2,585 for four weeks; raleighinternational.org
Ski and work in Japan
Ride deep powder on the mountains of Japan while earning money through a pre-arranged ski job starting in November 2024. JENZA puts students in touch with resorts that are currently hiring for positions. It also provides work and travel support for the duration of visas, five night’s accommodation in Tokyo, a bank account and Japanese etiquette training.
Pros: Earn money, improve skills
Cons: Wider travel costs extra
Book it: From £1,099, including a working holiday visa; JENZA
Marine conservation and safari in Kenya
This month-long adventure starts on the beach in Kenya, where students can learn about marine conservation in the Indian Ocean. This will see them conducting marine surveys, helping with coral regeneration and mangrove planting. It also involves community projects and a safari to see a range of wildlife in the Tsavo National Park.
Pros: Variety of experiences, plus some learning
Cons: Expensive for only a month
Book it: From £3,470 for four weeks; theleap.co.uk
Work New Zealand
Gappers get help securing a job before they arrive, or there is a hub where they can access pre-vetted jobs as they travel. The first week on the North Island is taken care of, with accommodation and activities booked. These include a three-day trip to the Bay of Islands, while job workshops and day trips also feature. Students can then rely on work and travel support, including the setting up of a bank account and tax arrangements.
Pros: Earn while travelling, semi-supported independent travel
Cons: Wider travel costs extra
Book it: From £1,159, including a working holiday visa; JENZA
Community development in Cambodia
With Gap Guru’s trips, young people choose a destination – in Cambodia it is the riverside town of Battambang – then one of four activities within the community. This could be leading sessions that help children learn social skills; working to raise awareness of climate change; helping schools with educational workshops; or raising awareness of health issues. A week of adventure in Cambodia is included. Gap Guru’s partnership with the FutureSense Foundation, a registered charity, ensures that the community’s development is properly supported.
Pros: Make friends, make a difference
Cons: Wider travel costs extra
Book it: From £2,595 for four weeks; gapguru.com.
Independent trips
Interrailing in Europe
Criss-crossing Europe by train has been a popular way for students to travel for decades. Interrail offers different types of passes; check its website for destination inspiration, then decide how many days of train travel you might need. Five days of global travel costs from £205, while seven days costs from £246. Seats on busy summer trains need to be reserved but catching off-peak services offers more flexibility.
Round-the-world flights
Trailfinders offers flight tickets that allow you to fly in an easterly direction around the globe, stopping on three or four continents. You can travel overland between airports if you like and different routes have different prices. An update on an old classic is The Worldwide Explorer, which flies London – Bangkok – Sydney – Christchurch, overland to Auckland – Honolulu - Los Angeles, overland to San Francisco – then back to London. From £2,267 in economy class.
South-East Asia loop
Travellers on this well-trodden trail tend to fly into Bangkok and out of Singapore. The route heads east from Bangkok, crossing into Cambodia before traversing the length of Vietnam. Pass into Laos, to the temples of Luang Prabang and beyond, into the lush north, then enter Thailand to visit Chiang Mai. Frenetic Bangkok is up next, and from there you can island hop down past the Malaysian border, on a quest to find the perfect beach. Eventually – via some tea plantations and the Petronas Towers – you will end up in Singapore. A flight over to Bali, for beaches, temples and rice terraces, is an add-on you won’t regret.
Australia & New Zealand
Exploring the east coast of Australia is popular with British teenagers, along a route that incorporates the enigmatic cities of Sydney and Melbourne, as well as the coast of tropical Queensland and boat trips to the Great Barrier Reef. Go west for Ningaloo Reef, with Perth the main city attraction. The red deserts of the interior, meanwhile, are home to Uluru and the outback. Hop across to New Zealand and the highlights include grouchy geysers at Rotorua, cruises across Milford Sound, adventure sports in Queenstown, hikes on the Franz Josef Glacier and glow-worms in Waitomo Caves.
South America
It takes time to cross South America, commonly done from Rio de Janeiro to Santiago, or vice-versa. Rio is Brazil’s showpiece, with its sand-dipped mountains and interlinking bays. The Emerald Coast, en route to Argentina, features jungly, island idylls, while Iguazu Falls is magnificent on both sides of the border. Dance the tango in Buenos Aires; hike in Patagonia; drink wine in Mendoza; then traverse the other-worldly Bolivian salt flats. Take a rainforest hike at Rurrenabaque or stay on the shores of Lake Titicaca and cross into Peru. Cusco is the base for Machu Picchu treks, the mysterious symbols of the Nazca Lines are unforgettable and Amazonian lodges beckon. Pass into Chile and gaze at stars in the Atacama desert before enjoying artistic Valparaiso and the capital, Santiago.
10 golden rules for staying safe
Consider leaving valuables at home or downgrading flashy phones: that way, you are less of a target for thieves. Don’t leave valuables on café tables, in your main backpack or on show.
Read up on local laws and customs, including how to behave respectfully and how to dress appropriately.
Don’t go out alone at night. Hostels are great places to meet people, so stick with a group.
Keep your drinks within sight and know your limits. “Most accidents occur when under the influence of alcohol and drugs,” says Milly Whitehead of The Leap. “If you are going to party hard then make sure you have an exit plan.” Pre-book a local taxi or log its number into your phone.
Check accommodation reviews and don’t risk booking somewhere with no or bad reviews.
Lock doors and windows at night and pack a small door wedge in case the lock is broken.
Take precautions with your health. Avoid tap water and ice. Ensure that food is thoroughly cooked and has not been out in the sun. Slather on mosquito repellent. The Fit for Travel NHS website has up-to-date info (fitfortravel.nhs.uk). Accidents from mopeds and quad bikes are more common than you think. “An exhaust burn from a moped can take weeks to heal and will require a change of dressing, plus you can’t get it wet,” warns Milly. Read our guide to what to do if you get ill abroad.
Research local scams. Lucy Lynch, global head of marketing at gap year company JENZA, says: “Whether it’s broken taxi meters or volunteer photographers who end up snatching your phone, no matter where you are, there are always scams to be wary of.” Read our latest advice on travel scams.
Try not to arrive in a new place late at night. If you do, pre-book accommodation and an airport transfer to avoid being overwhelmed. “While they might be a little cheaper, we’d suggest avoiding flights that land late at night,” says Lucy. “Especially for solo travellers.”
Trust your instincts and try not to put yourself in a vulnerable position. If something feels wrong, the best thing to do is retreat, do some research and reassess.
This story was first published in August 2023 and has been revised and updated.
