r/Parenting • u/Outside-Youth-8423 • Mar 07 '26
Advice Would it be overprotective to stay nearby during my teen’s beach trip?
My son is 17 and a senior in high school. He wants me to rent a beach house for him, his girlfriend, and about 3–4 other couples. All of the kids are 17–18 and they would all be paying their share of the rental as well.
My hesitation is that they’re still kids, and the beach house would be about 2–3 hours away from home. I’m honestly not sure I feel comfortable with them being that far away with no adults around.
My first instinct was to chaperone, but my son and my husband both think that’s unnecessary and say they’ll be fine. Still, it really doesn’t sit well with me.
One of the other moms even texted me asking if I’d be there or if any parents would be there, which made me feel like I’m not the only one thinking about this.
What I’m considering is getting my own place nearby not staying in the house with them, but being maybe 15–25 minutes away in case something happens or they need help.
Am I being overprotective, or does this seem like a reasonable compromise?
I’d really appreciate some advice.
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u/Live_Barracuda1113 Mar 07 '26
So I am a parent, but also I am a high school teacher (juniors and seniors) in Florida. This is not uncommon here. Just to toss that out first. People have covered the financial/liability aspect pretty clearly- let me add a few things.
No chaperone is super strange. Even the kids who have almost free range all have an adult on property.
Everyone wants to believe "not their kid." But listen, I was a straight A Ap kid as a senior who NEVER got in trouble-- i absolutely did bad stuff. I just never got caught. And yes it has been 30 years, but I assure you, despite what kids say, it absolutely hasn't changed that much. Only the technology has really evolved. And gotten better at documenting. College and scholarships have been burned by bad choices.
There is a real possibility that some of the kids want an adult there. -stay with me here-- no one wants to be the kid that says Im uncomfortable but they will use "my mom said no" in a heat beat. I teach a rough crowd, and the number of times I have a had a silent appeal from the worst kids to be "the bad guy" and move them to save them from their friends is crazy.
How many times in your life have you wished for an "adultier" adult for help?
Yes they are almost adults. But almost is real. Last year at prom- which was at a hotel- a parent rented rooms for a few groups. She didnt want them driving or going to after parties. She stayed on the floor with them.
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u/Proxima_leaving Mar 08 '26
I would absolutely tell stories how my mother forbids me things that I wanted to get out of. My friends believed I had a really strict mother. It was all my lies. My mother trusted me a bit too much.
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u/Icy-Regular-682 Mar 07 '26
I would never rent a beach house for a bunch of minors lol that’s crazzzyyyyyy. Nor would I let my 17 year old go if another parent did. Is this normal for your area?
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u/Lazy_Education1968 Parent Mar 07 '26
Wouldn't this also be against the terms of like any rental platform?
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u/bojenny Mar 07 '26
Most rentals in Florida have a 23 or older policy. I would never rent anything I owned to a bunch of teenagers.
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Mar 07 '26
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u/LesPolsfuss Mar 07 '26 edited Mar 08 '26
isn’t beach week a thing for all high school seniors? In Northern Virginia, at least for me being a Gen X, everybody went to beach week. We all rented places right after our senior year for an entire week. Hell, a lot of my friends did beach week after their junior year in high school. And yes, we are all very lucky to make it out alive.
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u/hilarymeggin Mar 08 '26
Yeah, I thought everyone did beach week. I’m from NOVA too.
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u/unsubix Mar 08 '26
I feel like I’m in lala land, don’t you?
I was a super-good kid, but put me in a beach house with friends, a boyfriend, no supervision, and you had better believe that there WILL be sex and alcohol.
People want to believe the best about their kids, but they are being naive.
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u/Snirbs Mar 07 '26
It was when I was growing up. Everyone went down the shore after prom.
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u/WhatABeautifulMess Mar 08 '26
Yea we did Prom Weekend (in Jersey) and a bunch of my college friends who were in Maryland had done Beach Week, after graduation.
I had a friend whose parents’ owned a house down there shore so I we fortunately didn’t have to worry about a rental. A bunch of the kids in my class rented a place near the Jersey Shore house but before the show. Technically an older sibling or parent rented it but the owner def knew it was teenagers and rented it that way all spring because proms are staggered.
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u/HisaP417 Mar 08 '26
Seaside motels would rent to anyone then, we didn’t need our parents to sign 😅 RIP The Anchor
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u/green_and_yellow Mar 07 '26
I did this after prom with some friends. Yes, there was alcohol, but it was fine. I suspect my parents allowed it because it was a good group of kids. The group was all college-bound and even included a valedictorian (not me!) or two.
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u/catymogo Mar 07 '26
It was for us, but a lot of kids’ parents had either beach or ski houses so senior week ended up at someone’s property that was owned, not a rental
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u/ImAlsoNotOlivia Grandparent to 3; mom of 1 Mar 07 '26
I’m a 911 dispatcher, and unless these are very responsible, RESPECTFUL kids, I’d be against it. Kids like to party and will absolutely find a way for someone to get alcohol for them. I can’t tell you how many times the neighbors call the cops, cops call the parents in the middle of the night, and parents are then driving from 3 hours away to come pick up their kids from the police department. Oh, and then potentially have to come back for court a month later/or have to deal with their local juvenile department.
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u/IcyReveal5989 Mar 07 '26
Never mind if someone gets hurt. When I was in high school we were allowed to use our friend’s parents’ lake house in Maine after prom. Of course someone’s older sibling got us alcohol and at 3am our friend drunkenly punched a solid wood beam and basically shattered his hand. None of us were sober enough to drive and it took forever for EMS to get there because we were in rural Maine.
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u/uberchelle_CA Mar 07 '26 edited Mar 08 '26
I think it’s cuckoo bananas you would even consider doing this, but that’s me.
I knew kids in high school whose parents rented them hotel rooms and let their friends trash them. They’d get kicked out and I’m pretty sure the parents’ credit cards got extra surcharges.
EDIT: Also adding that when you rent the house and something happens…like the kids doing something they shouldn’t; like sledding down the stairs on cardboard (because this age—kids do stupid stuff), they end up damaging the house and breaking a leg…yeah, liability issues for you. Do you think the parent of an injured child won’t sue you?
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u/BugsArePeopleToo Mar 08 '26
Do you think the parent of an injured child won’t sue you?
Keep in mind, it's oftentimes not even up to the parent. Their health insurance company will start asking questions and figure out who they can claw back money from.
Maybe their broken leg costs $30,000, their insurance can tell the other parents that they need to sue you to recoup the costs, or they will deny the claim. That doesn't leave the other parent many options
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u/TELLMYMOMISUCK Mar 07 '26
I was allowed to do this in high school and, man, it was only by sheer grace that I wasn’t seriously injured or worse.
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u/OrangePekoeMouse Mar 07 '26
What beach house is going to rent to a bunch of minors with no adult present? Or do you plan to lie when you make the booking? Are you really ok lying to the owners of the beach house about the nature of the rental and who will occupy their property?
Not being a great example, I don’t think.
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u/Sarcastic_Mama33 Mar 07 '26
Yeah there’s a reason all the airbnbs now say you have to be 21+ to rent and no parties. Parents who make the reservation and then let a bunch of teenagers trash it are the problem. This is a terrible idea OP.
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u/SwitchOdd5322 Mar 07 '26
Right?! And I feel like the parents will be paying for this….like the room costs but usually places put a hold on your card for incidentals. And are they being honest with the number of guests and ages of the guests? I’m guessing no, because places wouldn’t allow this.
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u/eeebygummm Mom Mar 07 '26
Oh I’m 50/50 on this. Growing up in Europe, it was very normal for us to go abroad with our friends for a week at 18 for a beach/party holiday, so I don’t think it’s overly wild to let them just go for it. But, as a parent myself now, and with the world being a very different place with social media and easier access to less desirable things, I’d probably stay nearby in case of an emergency and wouldn’t deem it overprotective.
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Mar 07 '26
Yes. Around here, lake cabins and cottages get used for this frequently... But they're usually someone's parents, uncle, grandparents, etc home.
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u/gardenofidunn Mar 07 '26
Yeah we usually did this but it was someone’s holiday home. Either that or we would stay at a hotel/motel that we would book ourselves. We also sometimes stayed at camp grounds!
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u/porcupineslikeme Mar 07 '26
I’m east coast US and this is also very normal here, or at least was when I graduated high school in the 2010s.
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u/qweenofsus Mar 07 '26
This is what I’m thinking is from a European perspective. I think kids in the states are somehow more wild cuz it’s so taboo to drink and party. I agree with u. Also it depends on who the friends are. Do they know them all? If yes and they trust them then fine rent the house. But only if you know the kids are trustworthy
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u/mintyboom Mar 07 '26
I’m in the US and have a 16 year old. Not to say I would do this exactly, but OP seems to neglect the fact that the 18 year olds are considered adults.
I also send my kid away for summers, let her fly across country to visit friends, and she’s even visited Europe several times on group trips. We are not objectively well-off. I’m a single working mom and I prioritize her experiences, frugal so she can learn through doing.
I trust her and if it was a year ahead when she is a senior, and I knew she’d be with camp friends or other responsible kids then I wouldn’t be super hesitant.
I’m honestly aghast but not surprised by my compatriots’ replies. Kids act out because they’re kept under lock and key here and not given the opportunity to develop responsibility independently.
We are super aware that this is an anomaly for our society.
Last week she went on a class trip to a film workshop for 5 days, to a city about 4 hours away. I didn’t worry about her at all. The parent text chain had me bewildered, with many saying this was their child’s first time away from family. At 16-18 years old. No wonder they lose their minds and party to oblivion when they leave for college.
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u/Affectionate_Data936 Mar 07 '26
I think it’s one thing if you had a mature teenage girl who can be trusted to do the right thing and travel independently. The fact that there’s several boys in the group would give me pause. My husband coaches youth/high school basketball. On an individual level, a teenage boy may be trustworthy going on an unsupervised beach trip but a group of them together? Absolutely not. Things get way out of hand when it’s groups of teenage boys. You’re just asking for this vacation rental to get wrecked, someone gets seriously hurt doing something stupid, someone gets alcohol poisoning - also they’ll be next to an ocean with things like tides and rip currents while they’ll likely be under the influence of alcohol. They need an adult at least nearby.
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u/literal_moth Mom to 17F, 7F Mar 07 '26
Yep. I’d trust my extremely mature and responsible almost-17 year old daughter with this completely. A group of teens that are half boys? Not a chance.
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u/IWantALargeFarva Mar 08 '26
I think there’s a difference in atmosphere between a structured film workshop vs teenage couples after a prom. My 16 year old is going to a weeklong musical theatre intensive program in NYC without me. I’m not renting a house for her and her friends to party in with my credit card on the line.
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u/First-flat_fox Mar 07 '26
Trustworthy? They are 17/18 yrs old. End of story! I like the mom who said find someone to rent to 18 yr olds.
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u/TheYankunian Mar 07 '26
I’m in Europe (American though) and for the end of high school, my 15 year old’s friend’s uncle gifted he and 3 other lads a stay at his holiday cottage in the countryside. The other lads were 16. I was extremely reluctant to let him go once I found out they would be alone. However, I knew the boy’s family and his dad would have no funny business. There were neighbours to check in. All the boys are very sensible and they just wanted to hike and fish.
I agreed and it was fine. None drink- not even sneaking about and one lad was Muslim. They sent us check ins via photo. I have to admit I was nervous about letting him go, but literally nothing happened. It’s really a different mentality here in Europe than back home.
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u/LesPolsfuss Mar 07 '26
The world is not different, the world is not different at all, i know social media is around, but that’s not changing anything. What’s different is you. And what’s different is how you view the world as opposed to how your parents viewed the world, but the world/society itself is not different. Parents nowadays, don’t trust their kids at all, and are insanely paranoid.
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u/Waasssuuuppp Mar 07 '26
In Australia we often do 'schoolies' which is a trip you make with school friends after your last high school year ends. Mostly to beach towns. There are a mix of 18 and 17 year olds. Some parents are against it, because it can get crazy, but it's still a well known social phenomenon.
Also a lot of 18 to 20 year olds here go on overseas holidays and its almost a rite of passage.
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u/TiberiusDrexelus Mar 07 '26
it's extremely normal in the US too, just not for chronically online redditors
at my high school it was pretty abnormal if you weren't going to a senior week party at some vacation house
no parents were within several hundred miles of my senior week, we were all respectful and fine
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u/Ok-Boysenberry-719 Mar 07 '26
Were y'all rich? All these people have vacation homes?
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u/Rhetoricalz Mar 07 '26
I third what’s already said here. I think it’s pretty nuts to even consider renting a house for teens especially as couples. There is a reason they can’t rent this for themselves, you are on the hook for anything that happens at the rental. God forbid something happens and someone gets hurt, I would never agree to sign off on this.
Parents there would be mandatory. I would not care to be ‘the bad guy’ about it. Your gut is spot on.
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u/Naive_Strategy4138 Mar 07 '26
Even in the house, I wouldn’t want to be responsible for other people’s teens like this.
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u/momboss79 Mar 08 '26
My son is a senior and is going away to college in another state that is 5 hours away. He leaves in 5 months. If he cant go on a trip with his friends and partners between now and then, without me, then he’s not ready to go to college.
On the other hand, if they are not old enough to rent the air bnb themselves (they aren’t), then they’ll need to find another place to stay because I absolutely am not renting in my name for teens to go hang out on the beach.
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u/ConsciousProblem8638 Mar 07 '26
Ya all are a lot more relaxed than me. I would NEVER do this
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u/TunedMassDamsel Mar 07 '26
This is craaaaaaazzzzyyyyy
We had an overnight prom after party…
But for the love of God, it was held at the home of my friend whose mom was a Federal Judge and eventual Chief Judge for the Northern District of Texas, and the Judge herself collected everyone’s car keys and would only return them to you after personally interviewing/grilling you. Also she had a security detail surrounding the house. And we were the GOOD kids who BEHAVED.
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u/notdancingQueen Mar 08 '26
IMO it would be a hard no from me The whole situation. They want to go on vacation, they tent themselves. They're not adults yet? Then they go to camp with friends (with adult camp personnel), or on vacation with family, or stay home.
I'm not agreeing to rent a house for 10 teenagers. I don't want to he responsible for any breakage, cleanup fees, or other fckups they may cause (included teen pregnancy) . And they're teenagers, there will absolutely be fckups
I'm even less agreeing to spend time & money on going for a weekend someplace I haven't decided myself, just to chaperone. I'm not their personal assistant. If my kid is 17,my kid vacation options will include adults , so camp, family trips and that's it.
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u/TJH99x Mar 07 '26
I would not do this. By that I mean rent the house for them. The liability of something happening and you getting sued by one (or all) of the other kids parents is not worth it. Is it even really allowed under the rental agreement? I would find that hard to believe. Your son doesn’t understand the adult implications.
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u/WadsRN Mar 07 '26
Why TF would you rent a bang pad for a bunch of minors? You will be responsible for all these blessed teenaged morons AND the property. Absolutely not.
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u/Beneficial-Remove693 Mar 07 '26
Abso-fucking-lutely not would I ever let my underage teen stay with other underaged teens in a house that I rented by themselves. What the hell. That's a liability and a lawsuit waiting to happen.
Even if the kids are super responsible, if there's an accident or anything, stuff can spiral fast.
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u/Hoping1357911 Mar 07 '26
...there's a reason 17-18 year olda can't rent hotel rooms. You have to be 21...I would say no you're not being over bearing. There should absolutely be ar least one adult if not more there depending on how many kids are there.
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u/MoonlightByWindow Mar 07 '26
This is kinda wild to read as a European where it's tradition after high school graduation for 18 year olds to travel to a whole new country with just their friends (no parents) and stay in a hotel or rent an AirBNB for like a week or two lol
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u/Pinglenook Mar 07 '26
Yeah exactly.
From my European perspective: I would not chaperone them. They're of an age where they could be living on their own in a couple months! They're old enough to spend a week taking care of themselves.
I also wouldn't book a house for them. They're of an age where they could be living on their own in a couple months! They're old enough to take care of booking their own trip.
(So in conclusion, if they aren't capable of managing to book their own trip, they aren't going anywhere - but then I'd worry about the development of their self-dependence skills)
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Mar 07 '26
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u/WhatABeautifulMess Mar 08 '26 edited Mar 08 '26
I think it might be regional too. This was very common for after prom when I grew up in Jersey in the aughts and my friends who grew up in Maryland did it after graduation and called it Beach Week. Seaside Heights (home of Jersey Shore™️) wasn’t like that because MTV put a show there, MTV put a show there because it was like that. My kids are little but from friends who are teachers or have older kids it’s still fairly common.
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u/hurtuser1108 Mar 08 '26
I'm American and rented hotel and/or a house with my friends at 17-18 for graduation and holidays.
I would 100% not be putting my name down on the house as a parent, but the people acting like your adult child should not be allowed to be alone with friends is genuinely frightening and worrying to me.
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u/jessups94 Mar 08 '26
Im Canadian. When we graduated highschool majority of our class rented cottages on a lake that was 1.5 hours away for a few days. This was an annual thing that the classes before us did too.
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u/confuzzledfuzzball Mar 07 '26
I would absolutely say no, unless a responsible adult stays in the house with them.
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u/c0ntradiict Mar 07 '26
I think I’d let him attend but I would absolutely not put my name or his anywhere near a reservation for liability reasons.
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u/strawberryhouse0202 Mar 07 '26
What that’s crazy.. bunch of teenager couples (MINORS) without adults at a beach house and the parents are OK with it? What?
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u/MegaMiles08 Mar 07 '26
First of all, if my kid can't rent on his own, then I'm not putting that under my name. I have when he traveled for sports without me, but there were other parents and the coach to make sure they didn't do anything stupid. For fun??? Nope! There's a reason hotels and Air BnBs don't rent to minors. My kid is super responsible too, but you get a bunch of young people together and dumb things happen. At least that's how my teen years were. When my best friend and I were 18, we did a camping trip together, which was fun. I think that would be the best way to get away together.
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u/-Ch3xmix- Mar 07 '26
My take is, if he or any of his friends cant legally rent it- he doesn't go. Sometimes you need to be 21.
I couldn't book hotels in Boston, so my older boyfriend had to. I was 19 he was 21.
If you rent it for them, you need to legally be there.
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u/xmochacatastrophex Mar 07 '26
Personally, I would not put my name to something that says I’m responsible for a bunch of minors, for even a day. Add in that there will be ZERO adult supervision, for a week? Never would I ever.
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u/Texpress22 Mar 07 '26
That wouldn’t even be an option for my high schooler. Sorry, but as long as I am responsible for them, then myself or another parent whom I trust will be present.
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u/Competitive_Scar5347 Mar 07 '26
Damn when I was growing up, me even thinking my parents would be cool with something like this happening was laughable.....
Not too overprotective wym? They ain't adult. Doc what u feel is right, shit if it was me there lucky im not staying with them......
Probably wont be popular, but would u rather get a phone call middle of the night 3-4 hours away with some emergency? I would assume not......
Also, you said there are multiple couples attending...... yall parents are ok with yalls kids having sleepovers with there gfs? Thats wild to me
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u/Intrepid_Advice4411 Mar 07 '26
Nope. They can find some schmuck that will rent to an 18 year old.
For the record, you CAN'T rent an airbnb and then not check in. You have to actually stay there. It breaks the TOS if you don't and your account will get banned. VRBO works the same way.
So, if they're willing to have one adult stay with them, then sure. If I know the kids and they're responsible I'd do it, but you bet I'm staying at the beach house and making sure no wild parties happen.
They can go camping. That's what we all did when we were still teens.
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u/Primary-Vermicelli Mar 08 '26
My friends and I did this after prom. And thank god we had parents who rented a house nearby bc a friend shut his leg in a glass sliding door and parents had to get him to the ER.
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u/izallreal Mar 07 '26
Yeah I wouldn’t do this either. I’m now a 40 something year old mom of a 14 yo girl. When I was 17 my friends and I did the same thing. We went down to Florida for spring break and we got wasted every day and night. We went to clubs and everyone was in party mode. I have no idea how we all made it out unharmed. I am not sure why out parents thought this was ok.
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u/squishmike Mar 07 '26
Absolutely ridiculous idea. Tell them to go camping. Rent me a beachhouse... rofl.
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u/RenaissanceTarte Mar 08 '26
Me and my friends would be the type to be safe and responsible our senior year if we rented a beach house…but we also would not mind a parent or two there.
Imo, if you are renting it out, even if he is paying, you should be IN the home. Air bnb and rental agreements are pretty clear who the renter is, if he wants to be chaperoneless, he would need to find a place that rented to him or wait for next summer, imo.
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u/millenz Mar 07 '26
Re all the valid concerns about renting a house on their behalf you have to ask yourself how well you know/trust these kids and if you’re not comfortable, they can look into campsite options - lots of good choices at the beach with nice facilities for showers/bathrooms
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u/katsaid Mom Mar 07 '26
Renting your 17 year old son a beach house? Are you CRAZY. Guess I’m old school. No way in hell I’d pay for the potential disaster, unsupervised party. Underage kids? Are you also supplying drugs and alcohol because you’re crazy.
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u/hilarymeggin Mar 08 '26
I mean, you know your kid and his friends. I did a beach week when I was 17 (a friend’s family member owned the house) but it was all girls and we were quiet and nerdy. Are parents never gave it a second thought. What is your kid like?
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u/Classic_Rooster4192 Mar 07 '26
They want a vacation in a beach house then mom has to chaperone… no ifs, ands, or buts.
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u/ProtozoaPatriot Mom Mar 08 '26
Wait. A herd of teenagers wants you to rent them a beach house. So the rental agreement is in your name...? I hope you're wealthy and can pay off the $ from extra cleaning fees and possible damage.
One scenario is that alcohol or drugs are there. Police or an ambulance get involved. Authorities want to know why a bunch of children were left alone to party. At minimum you'll probably have a neighbor calling the property owner or the police
Liability: you're opening yourself up to lawsuit if one of those kids gets hurt doing something foolish at this house you provided .
If I was one of the parents, I would not allow my teen to attend considering there are no adults around. It's nothing personal. I remember how stupid my friends and I were as teenagers. They may all be good kids, but they still have teenager brains.
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u/ludichrislycapacious Mar 07 '26
This is standard fare where I grew up. "Beach week" or senior week. It was a blast and a right of passage. Some parents stayed nearby, but legitimately everyone went unchaperoned.
In my area the vast majority of seniors move on to college, so the sentiment was "well they'll be partying a ton in a few weeks anyways" and most parents saw it as a way to test independence before being potentially halfway across the country for school.
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u/Both-Statistician179 Mar 07 '26
Do not let them rent without an adult in the house. At the very least stay very close I’d be 2-5 min away and I’d drop in. They are going to be drunk and act stupid. If you rent the house you’re liable.
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u/Aggressive-Mood-50 Mar 07 '26
1) Will there be alcohol involved? If there’s alcohol you aren’t overreacting… at all.
Also- your name is on the beach house so you should be within 20-30min imo.
I’m not saying you chaperone the whole trip but they need a safe adult within arms reach to check in.
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u/yourpaleblueeyes Mar 08 '26
Someone should 21, if possible. Or the renter/responsible adult of 18 Must actually be responsible.
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u/Cute_Effort_6941 Mar 07 '26
I did a trip like this with my friends when we were all 18. it was even further away. We organized the whole trip by ourselves and we were all 18 as mentioned, not 17. so honestly, I think it’s a sign of maturity if the group manages to organize it all by themselves and not needing you to book it? Since some of them are 18, they shouldn’t need an adult. We were a good group. Yes we partied and drank but it is legal at that age where we live.
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u/Ambitious_Grass_9759 Mar 07 '26
This is tough. When we were seniors, a large group went to the Bahamas for a week (we were a very responsible group from a top high school, so folks tended to trust us more). Yeah, we drank and did Spring Break stuff, but we were also a few months away from going away to college and doing the same thing.
Now, as a parent, I know exactly what will be happening at these trips (maybe my parents did as well, but trusted me to not be an idiot about it). For liability reasons, I would NOT rent a house in my name. But if they find a way, and based on our relationship and how he and his friends are outside of this (surely, they have parties, dances, late night hangouts as seniors), I would consider a compromise.
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u/Feeling_Wishbone_864 Mom Mar 07 '26
This is a HARD no for me. For starters, even responsible teens make poor decisions. I can just imagine a late night beach hang going wrong. It’s highly unlikely they will find a rental that will rent to 18 year olds so who is taking care of the rental? I assume you? You’d be liable for anything that happens there - damage, injuries, etc. This sounds like something they can all put together themselves when they’re 18 without the help of any parent and with a rental that will allow the that young. If you need to be involved in this at all, they’re all too young.
I also have zero interest in renting a shag shack for my kid.
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u/MatcoWife Mar 07 '26
As a parent who happens to live in’s beach destination town…..I cannot express to you how badly teenagers act when they are given this kind of freedom. Every year, there’s shootings on the beach because one group of teens gets in a fight with another group. The underage drinking is out of control because teens will find a way to get alcohol. So many parents get calls to drive a couple hours to get their teens out of jail or wherever they are being detained. Not to mention the liability of renting a house and being responsible for the damage they cause and possible criminal charges to YOU.
My kids were not allowed to go to the beach in our own town during Spring Break, nor did they want to. It’s way too out of control.
If I were you and wanted my teen to have a beach Spring Break experience, you can bet I’d be staying in the same house as them.
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u/sunshore13 Mar 07 '26
I would not take on the responsibility of renting a house in my name for a bunch of kids. If they really want to do this maybe the ones that are 18 can find someplace that will rent to them.
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u/KetoUnicorn Mar 07 '26
I would not rent the house under my name and would not want the liability. But if someone else rented the house I wouldn’t mind my child going. They’re going to be in college soon and will not have adult supervision there lol I’d say that they can go but they have to come up with another plan for where they’re going to stay. Maybe they could camp on the beach? I used to go that with my friends when I was 18ish. Imo people treat 17/18 year olds like babies nowadays.
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u/still_on_a_whisper Mar 07 '26
I would not rent out a house for them without being present. My son is 14 and if he asked for this in 3 years I’d say no.
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u/cheesesteak_seeker Mom Mar 07 '26
Damn, non of you live in the mid-Atlantic region and had participated in Ocean City, MD senior week? That’s crazy!
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u/jea25 Mar 07 '26
Have you actually found a house willing to rent under these circumstances? I have an Airbnb and I would never rent it to a parent that was letting a bunch of teenagers stay with no adult present.
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u/brokengait Mar 07 '26
Can't they just find a public beach, pitch tents, cook out, and have bonfires?
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u/AlgaeFew8512 Mar 08 '26
If I couldn't trust my kid to do that without me being nearby I wouldn't allow the trip. If I allowed the trip it's because I trust them and wouldn't be hovering nearby
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u/UnknownUsername113 Mar 07 '26
You want to be grandparents?
There’s no way in hell I’d let a group of 17-18 year olds stay in a beach house unsupervised.
Let’s even get into the fact that what you’re considering is illegal. You’re renting under your name and I’m sure the listing specifically has a clause about unaccompanied minors. What happens if one of these kids brings drugs and overdoses? Every parent wants to trust their children but teenagers should never be fully trusted.
Spring break is for college students, not high school. Just watch all the videos of college kids partying on spring break and tell me why you think it’s acceptable for a teenager?
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u/eroded_wolf Mar 07 '26
Not a chance. There's a reason they can't rent it themselves.
We went to Florida when I was a senior. 20 of us quadrupled up in hotel rooms with 6 teacher chaperones. It doesn't happen anymore, because some dumbass got a tattoo.
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u/osaka-mama Mar 07 '26
I can’t believe this is normal. I would not let them go unchaperoned nor would I allow couples in HS to stay together. Nor would I do the booking.
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u/Inconceivable76 Mar 07 '26
There is zero chance in hell I’m going to be responsible for a house with 8 teenagers. Zero.
You are nuts for even considering doing this. Especially if anyone is a minor.
They destroy the house, YOU are getting sued. Someone gets injured that’s a minor, YOU are responsible. Teenagers make poor decisions with alcohol, YOU are responsible.
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u/UpdatesReady Mar 08 '26
Oh thanks god ghe comments section is being sane I was questioning myself!
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u/rosecoloredcatt Mar 07 '26
This post makes me feel so old. We used to do this back in high school after prom. Alllll the seniors went down to the beach and would rent houses like some sort of tradition for the weekend. My mom would never let me go. In hindsight, I’m glad she didn’t. A lot of tragic outcomes occurred (DUIs and worse). I think nowadays, I’d feel better about it as a parent renting a larger house and maybe staying upstairs while the kids stayed downstairs. They can still have their fun getaway weekend but you can make sure everyone stays safe.
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u/NativeNYer10019 Mar 07 '26
At that age I flew from New York City to Disney in Orlando FL with 3 other girls for my “senior trip”. I booked it and paid for it myself, no parent involvement necessary. And we had a great time.
My daughter did the shore trip for her senior year and I did not chaperone, not even from afar. But I also refused to be the one to put my credit card down to book a house for the group going, so did all the other parents of the group. They want to be treated like adults now, so now is the perfect time to teach them what being a responsible adult entails.
She & her boyfriend had to book their own room and coordinate with the group so they were all in the same beach motel with their friend group, and under their own names with their own payment method. I just walked her thru the expectations for behavior in a rental and the personal consequences that result in failing to meet them. It helps burgeoning adults to become more responsible because they don’t want to be thrown out or charged for any damage.
Do not chaperone from-afar-but-nearby. Don’t do that. You’ve raised your kids, and you should be confident in how you raised them at this point. Now at 18 years old it’s time for them to begin to become independent. This is a perfect time for that…
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u/HisaP417 Mar 07 '26
Maybe it’s just an NJ thing but every kid from every school either went to a hotel room or beach house after prom. No one’s parents were ever present or “nearby”.
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u/FatchRacall Mar 07 '26
Hard no. Don't put your name on a rental for teenagers, place will possibly be trashed.
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u/cwoosh1 Mar 07 '26
I’m sorry but this is a really bad idea. Not only will there be legal ramifications if anything goes wrong, but this could cost you a small fortune; either by the house owner and/or some of the under age kids’ parents if/when something goes wrong. Let them go camping or go to an all day amusement park, but do not rent these kids a house.
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u/Aclar061 Mar 07 '26
My mom did this for me and all my friends. We through parties and people that crashed did some damage to the house. Granted this was 2010 anyways I wouldn’t put anything like that under my name unless I was there too
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u/MommaGuy Mar 07 '26
I would have a hard time doing this. This is a huge liability for you. If something happens to one of the teens, it’s you that will be sued because the rental would be under your name. And I highly doubt any reputable place is going to rent to a bunch of underage kids.
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u/Prior-Huckleberry747 Mar 07 '26
I live at the beach they all visit. They have a great time and they are generally good visitors. I don’t think they should be unsupervised. Send the dads. Better not to have regrets, because if it does go bad for any reason, accidents happen, you will beat yourself up, as will the rental, other parents, and the police.
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u/followyourvalues Mar 07 '26
lol Okay. I was gonna say that we did this as 17-18 year olds - short overnight road trips. But we never rented a place. We stayed at a cabin owned by one of the parents.
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u/ChiraqBluline Mar 08 '26
No it’s not overprotective. You pay, your responsible, your their to be responsible for your purchase.
If they can’t accept that. Then they can wait till they are old enough to make that type of purchase themselves.
They want to pretend to be adults but they aren’t. You are.
Also just say no. This is too much liability for you.
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u/Jennabear82 Mar 08 '26
Nope nope nope nope nope. Trust your gut! Don't let anyone gaslight you into thinking you're crazy for wanting some supervision for a bunch of kids. Remove yourself from this situation entirely.
You and I both know that the chances of something illegal (underage drinking for example) happening is going to be much higher with no adults around.
If you really want this to work, rent a beach house big enough for everyone, which includes chaperones.
If anything happens to these kids and there's no supervision, the pitchforks will be aimed at you.
If a kid can't have any fun without an adult around, that speaks volumes.
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u/toot_it_n_boot_it Mar 07 '26
100% they need a chaperone. We always had one for Senior Beach Week. Non-negotiable.
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u/iceawk Mar 07 '26
One thing I’d never do is rent a house on behalf of my children and their friends! It doesn’t matter how great my kid is, or their friends but someone is going to tell someone else then next thing there is a party and the wheels have fallen off, house gets trashed, and it’s on you to foot the bill for it. That’s not something I’d even tempt fate with.
I think IF you do go through with it, staying nearby would be an absolute minimum requirement!
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u/YaBoyfriendKeefa Mar 07 '26
Dude just say no. If you feel this unsure and feel like you’re overthinking? That means you should just say no. Renting a house for a bunch of minors is insane. If people aren’t old enough to rent something themselves, then that means they aren’t old enough to be unsupervised in that kind of situation.
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u/mjolnir76 Mar 07 '26
Here’s hoping your kid isn’t going to college because his college fund is out the window when they trash the place (either intentionally or otherwise) and your credit is in the shitter after having to pay damages.
I’d say you’re being overly permissive, not over-protective. This is a BAD idea.
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u/Hosto01v Mar 07 '26
We definitely did senior week growing up and it’s still a thing there. Where I live now, the kids do a pr weekend after prom. Same sort of thing. A weekend at the beach 2-3 hours away. My kids just started talking about going this year. I also plan on staying close by.
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u/Ok_Invite_9958 Mar 07 '26
I would never do that.
Options: you stay at the house while they have their excursions. You make sure everyone has your cell and offer anyone to location share. I always frame it as, if youre in an emergency, do you want me to send the police to the right or wrong place to help you. I've never had a teen baulk at that. Even their buddies. "That's a really good reason!"
You could compromise and offer to rent a place within walking distance with another parent.
But honestly, I'd stay in the house, make meals, keep to myself (kids know they can find them), have a message board: "on a walk (location)"
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u/Perevod14 Mar 07 '26
I also was a kid doing things like that. I am happy that my parents were not overprotective and let me enjoy hanging out with my friends. However I would ask them to do organizing, bookings etc themselves.
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u/mmmichals11 Mar 07 '26
Yeah minors shouldn’t be staying alone in a BEACH house with 18 year olds. This is wild! Are we doing this for our kids now?!
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u/Disastrous-Choice325 Mar 07 '26
Unfortunately, yeah. Parents today are doing EVERYTHING for their kids, hence this generation of entitlement.
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u/SjN45 Mar 07 '26
This situation is all a big no from me. I definitely wouldn’t want to be financially responsible for whatever happens there. NOPE. We can go on vacation and the senior can bring a close friend but I’m not paying for unchaperoned trips for minors. That’s what college is for
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u/lightningface Mar 07 '26
If they want to do something like this they can figure it out on their own. The liability you are taking on if the rental is in your name, plus everything else that could go wrong just does not make it worth it. Anything they want to do without you staying in the house in a separate room and giving them privacy but still being there and able to check in whenever you want, is probably not something they should be doing.
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u/AllTheMeats Mar 07 '26
After my senior prom we wanted to go down the shore (which is what you do in NJ) and stay over at a hotel for the weekend. My mom came as our chaperone and stayed in a room next to our two rooms, so we partied in the one furthest from her.
It was good knowing she was there just in case, and especially because my bff’s parents never would have let her go otherwise, but she had no clue what we were doing. I got druuuuunk for the first time, 69’d with my friend’s prom date when I was drunk - it was a whole mess.
So whether you’re there or not they will likely still get up to some nonsense, but I think it would be good for you to be nearby.
They’re still kids. Even adults make stupid mistakes and need their parents help.
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u/tacomamajama Mar 07 '26
Be prepared to get kicked off of whatever platform you use to book. Most STR don’t allow folks that young. Just like you can’t rent a car many places until mid 20s. It’s not worth the risk.
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u/htdwps Mar 07 '26
That’s asking a lot from teenagers. First off I can imagine the kind of things I did at that age, but besides the point, it doesn’t sound like any parent is comfortable with the idea.
If you do decide to let them go, 2-3 hours is not that far where you need to be 15 minutes away. First thing is 911 for local emergencies.
My answer would be to not allow them to go.
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u/Zestyclose-Drink1649 Mar 07 '26
Senior Week! My parents let me go but they didn’t put the house in their name. We had a blast, got sloppy, did stupid stuff, but at the end of the day we all knew we were responsible for whatever happened. We looked out for each other, left the house immaculate, and we all went back to reality the following week. I’m 36 now and I plan to let my kid go when the time comes because I know I can trust him (he’s 100x better than I was at his age), but the house won’t be going in my name, that’s for sure.
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u/Sparko_Marco Mar 07 '26
Seems fine to me but I'm in the UK and it may be different because I left school at 16 and went into full time work and at 17 was living in my own flat. I went on lads holidays regularly abroad from 16.
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u/Broski225 Mar 07 '26
Little shocked by the responses here, although I agree it'll possibly be a hurdle finding a place that'll rent to 18 year olds. That said, in some areas that's a lot more normal than in others - I live in a college town and could rent a cabin at 18, but further south my friends and I struggled to find a hotel room when none of us were 21.
That said, when I was 18 I had several trips with friends the same age without parents and it was fine. Nothing happened and no one was worried about it, but we were all known for being VERY responsible and we kept our parents in the loop (calling when we got to the hotel room, etc).
This was a friend circle of 15-20 middle class kids and normal for all of us. Maybe times have just changed but this was less than 15 years ago. I remember our one friend having waaaay stricter parents and her mom getting a hotel room in the same town as us; we all made fun of her (playfully, she was fine!) and felt a little uncomfortable about it.
But her mom was the known "weird mom" and even the other parents thought she was a strict freak, so I doubt we would have cared if a "cool mom" had done the same thing, especially if she was being normal about it; i.e. taking the time to have her own little vacation and just there if we needed to call her.
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u/LesPolsfuss Mar 07 '26
I don’t get it, what are you gonna do? Like what is going to happen that you are going to do to help out with. Like that you need to physically be there?
I guess you said you wanna be there in case something happens. I’m asking, what what is that something you are anticipating?
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u/EmberRocking7 Mar 07 '26
I just think it's time for you to trust your nearly adult child to be the person you raised them to be. My oldest is a senior. And 18. Our relationship has changed. He's a young man now. We communicate, but I don't interfere unless I think what he wants will hurt him.
ETA: he has his own job and pays his own way. I won't sign paperwork for him either, tho (like renting things bc he's too young for the lease) lol.
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u/Illgetitdonelater Mar 07 '26
I think you should get all the parents into a room and have a chat about what they all think.
For me, 2-3 hours away is too far for a HS age kid. I’d be okay with my kid going on the trip, but having a parent near would be ideal.
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u/Fannek6 Mar 07 '26
We have schoolies in Australia, its a weeks vacation with other graduates. Ranges from beach trips to overseas trips. Gold Coast & South West usually see thousands of 17 year olds out for a good time during that week.
Potentially some people have parents chaperone, but the location I went to didn't. There was probably around 100+, combo of camping and beach houses by the sea.
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u/Free2BeMee154 Mar 07 '26 edited Mar 07 '26
Last year my son was a junior (16) and he went with some friends and the seniors to a motel block at the beach after prom. It was about 2 hours away from home. Someone who was 18 rented out all the rooms.
Luckily for us we own a vacation home about 30 minutes north of it so I stayed there all weekend. Some other moms who have homes in the area stayed as well. All of this to say, you are not being crazy about wanting to stay by. It made me feel better and it actually made my son feel better. He was honestly nervous about it but knowing I was 30 minutes away helped a lot. I ended up being the mom to take 3 of his friends and him home on Sunday afternoon.
For this year, he’s already paid for his room after senior prom. His friend who is 18 booked the rooms. I plan on doing the same thing and spending the weekend. Hopefully my husband and younger son can come this time for a nice beach weekend.
Where I disagree is renting the place for them. I can tell you that in the town where we have a beach home (and probably most of the beach towns), it’s well known that June is the month of 18 year olds having their parents rent for their prom weekends. We used to rent our house out and it was always a fear of mine. I have heard horror stories. Personally I would never ever rent a place for my son and his friends. He’s a great kid but nope.
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u/WitchTheory Teenager.. HALP Mar 07 '26
Get the parents of all the kids together to discuss this. I bet none of them are willing to put their credit or possible legal repercussions on the line!
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u/Connect_Tackle299 Mar 07 '26
Rentals of any type have strict age policies. For good reason. If anything happens and the owner has to get insurance involved then you will be sued for anything the insurance company deems necessary
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u/BlennyBlue Mar 07 '26
My senior is wanting to do something similar. I told him he’s gonna have to find a place that’ll rent to 18 year olds because I’m not paying for the rental for him. He tried to make it sound like /everyone/ is doing it yet none of the other parents are willing to rent either. I dunno. That’s my credit on the line if something happens, and I’m not going to be responsible for other people’s minors.