Travel opportunities for au pairs

America is a fascinating country full of interesting and varied landscapes. Exciting cities such as Las Vegas and San Francisco may be to your taste or you may prefer to visit National Parks like the Grand Canyon. Many host families also take vacations throughout the year and encourage their au pairs to join them.

A great benefit of the Au Pair in America program is the travel month - a perk that lets you travel throughout the U.S. for a month once you’ve completed the program and before you return to your home country. You can either travel with friends or join an organised tour. Trek America for example are the specialists in outdoor adventure and tours for North America. They also have a great Study and Travel program, which will take you to Niagara Falls, Boston, Washington DC and the country towns of New England.

Illinois-based au pair Mologadi Makwela writes...
"Since coming to America I’ve seen many places. My first time in New York was filled with emotion. It was safe to say the shining lights of Time Square, the magnificence of Madison Square Gardens, breath-taking views from the Empire State Building, as well as the majestic beauty of Lady Liberty were somewhat overshadowed by my nerves over what was to come. But still New York was overwhelmingly beautiful. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that all the hype and fuss I’d heard of, all the excitement and brilliance of celebrating the New Year at Time Square was exactly as I’d imagined.

Within my first week with my host family, we took a trip down to Michigan to meet more of their family and to watch a live American Football game. The game was unlike anything I’d ever imagined; the stadium, packed with blue and gold screaming fans. I was screaming, cheering and singing in tune, just like all the other fans.

A few days before Halloween, I went to Navy pier; a mixture of theme park, museums, awesome lake front views, entertainment and food. One of my cluster activities was going to the famous House of Blues, where stars from all walks of life have performed. My host family also took me to Florida. Just the fact that there was sun made this a paradise for me. We stayed in the most beautiful house and my days were spent lying by the poolside and eating breakfast outside with the family. It was an amazing Thanksgiving; unlike anything I'd ever imagined."

Lisa Hoefler, an au pair placed in New Jersey writes...
"I’ve travelled a lot throughout my year as an au pair, because my main aim was to visit as many places as possible. A month after I’d arrived I’d already been to Washington D.C. with another au pair, whom I met at orientation. We organized everything ourselves with a little help of my host mom. I really enjoyed this trip and think that everyone should visit the capital if they get the chance.

My host family love to travel so I have visited many places with them. We’ve been to Key West, Florida for the long weekend, where we were swam with dolphins and took boat trips every day. It really lived up to my expectations! I tried out so many new activities like snorkelling near coral reefs, kayaking and parasailing. In this town, you can really experience a Caribbean atmosphere. I will always look back on this vacation with my host family with pleasure.

In the summer, I’m taking my two weeks’ holiday. I will be going to Disney world in Florida and to California with family from home. In California, we will rent a car and drive from Los Angeles up to San Francisco along Route 1. I’m very excited about this trip already! As you can see, I’ve done a lot of travelling already and I can only recommend, Visit as many places as possible and you will always look back to that time as one of your best in your life!




Name: Au Pair in America
Address: 37 Queen's Gate, London SW7 5HR



Tel: 0845 344 7566