The families taking children out of school to travel the world

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It’s easy to feel pangs of jealously while talking to Lauren Hill, 42, who is on the Pacific Ocean. She and her husband, Tom, and their two daughters, aged 12 and 10, have been travelling on a boat for the past four years. Then, she switches on the video, which shows a tranquil turquoise sea and several other boats bobbing in the background.

The Hills are among a growing breed of parents opting to home school their children. An analysis published by the BBC in June found that the number of pupils moving to home education had risen by 22 per cent in the past year.

Among the homeschoolers, a distinct cohort of people are choosing to educate their children on the road – or on the seas.

A way of life sometimes known as “worldschooling”, travelling long-term with school-age offspring, requires careful research about your destination – particularly if you’re planning to stay on land for more than a few weeks.

Among the factors to take into account is how long you can stay without a visa, whether you can work remotely with or without a visa, the risk factors for disease, the costs of travel and of living in your chosen country, and how family-friendly it is.

The digital nomad lifestyle might seem at odds with being a parent, but visa-free stays and digital nomad visas can allow for travel with children.

Among the places that welcome digital nomads, and that are suited to family travel, are Japan, Bali, Portugal, Spain and Thailand.

Of course, travelling long-term with children – especially on a boat – can be a challenge. Hill is candid about the reality of the situation.

“This looks idyllic, but our toilet has broken down, so we’re dealing with that,” she says.

Hill, a business strategy consultant, left Claygate in Surrey in September 2020 (she was due to leave in May 2020) after Covid-related travel restrictions eased. Since then, she and her family have travelled across much of the world on their 46ft boat, including on the Panama Canal and to Guatemala, where they lived for 10 months. They now have plans to sail to Fiji and Australia.

“It’s hard work,” Hill adds.

She has had to scale back her remote working hours to allow time for maintenance of the boat.

As for technology to enable remote work, the family have internet access at sea through Starlink. They use the satellite service with a package that costs $50 a month. However, they’ve only had it during their last year on the boat and during their stay in Guatemala.

Being at sea doesn’t necessarily pair well with work.

Photographer: Lauren Hill Provider: susiebearne@hotmail.com
Hill says working and parenting at sea comes with challenges (Photo: Lauren Hill)

“Sailing is pretty demanding and I have had situations where I planned a workday, but then we needed to move anchorage because the wind changed [direction],” says Hill.

Other problems they have encountered so far include the boat’s battery alternator breaking, which meant the family were living in the dark until they sourced a new alternator.

“We [also] have the same battles as other families about homework and arguments,” adds Hill.

“I’m not complaining, it’s worth it, but it’s not all sunshine and margaritas.”

As well as being homeschoolers, the Hills are among a significant number of people who are interested in travelling by boat. The Royal Yachting Association (RYA) says that, each year, around 270,000 people across the world take a RYA training qualification.

Hill says they spent the five years prior to their voyage preparing for their journey at sea, learning to sail and taking training such as the RYA Yachtmaster Coastal course. They spent £140,000 on the boat, and a further £100,000 upgrading it.

“Our boat took so long to repair and get ready that, unless we did a minimum of three years of travelling, it’s not worth the effort and stress,” says Hill.

The couple’s days are spent home schooling the children through educational programmes and helping them learn Spanish. Generally, from late afternoon, they choose an activity such as paddle boarding, hiking, visiting a local museum, or seeing friends.

Sailing through the Galapagos Islands has been a highlight.

Hill says: “I felt like I was in a Richard Attenborough documentary. There were sea lions jumping around the boats. We were face to face with penguins and swimming with sea turtles.”

It was an experience with strict requirements. The Galapagos stipulated that the hull must be spotless. Medicines were checked, and the boat was inspected by 12 people, including a biohazards specialist who removed fruit. There were also processes for waste disposal. Visiting the islands cost the family about $2,000.

While some may think this way of life could be quite isolating, Hill says they have made friends along the way. They have been travelling with two families since last October. They cluster together in what they call “buddy boating”.

The kids meet up and go off on a dingy to see friends, and they go swimming, hiking and snorkelling together.

As for schooling, Hill says they are following a combination of UK and US curricula.

Another sea-faring family are Larissa Clark, 43, her husband Duncan Copeland, 48, and their son and daughter, aged seven and five. They sailed in British Columbia, Canada, this summer. This month, they are heading to California, then across the Pacific Ocean with plans to visit Asia or Australia.

It is a trip they have been preparing for over the past decade after deciding they would take the journey in 2024, before their children start secondary school.

The 50ft sailboat cost £135,000, and they spent about £70,000 preparing it. They have an annual budget of about £35,000, including insurance, operation costs, fuel, maintenance, repairs and inland travel. Duncan left his full-time job while Clark is still overseeing her adventure travel company, Another World Adventures.

Speaking from an anchorage in the Gulf Islands in British Columbia, Clark reels off their experiences, which include cruising around British Columbia and spending time on their boat in Norway. Copeland grew up in a sailing family and lived on a boat from when he was nine until his early teenage years. Clark had crossed the Atlantic by boat before their big trip.

“Travel is an important part of my life,” says Clark, when asked why they’ve taken to the water with their children.

“Duncan and I have spent our careers working in environmental conservation, in one form of another. We want to have an amazing family adventure that also has a positive impact.

“We hope to use our voyaging to support ocean science and conservation. We have created a citizen science directory for boaters so others can contribute to the research projects needing, well, hands on deck.”

However, Eve Stanway, 55, who spent parts of her childhood travelling around the world with her parents, has qualms about long term travel with children.

Stanway is a divorce and break-up coach and psychotherapist who lives in London. She says: “What is gained while sailing – new experiences, such as growing up believing the Galapagos Giant Tortoises were 5ft high because I saw them when I was three – [doesn’t outweigh what is lost by] the lack of schooling, sports, music, friends, regular home life and the safety and security children need in childhood.”

For those tempted by worldschooling by boat, it’s worth ingraining yourself in the sailing community before you make any long-term plans.

“Go and try sailing in a variety of different contexts and in different locations to make sure that both you and your family enjoy it, rather than just the idea of it,” says Richard Falk, director of training and qualifications at the RYA.

“Experience the cold and the wet, not just the warm and sunny,” he adds.

He also says boatgoers should work on developing their own skills and experience.

“At least one of you should hold an RYA Yachtmaster Ocean Certificate of Competence if you are looking to cross an ocean.

“But everyone on board will need to play a role, whether that is actively navigating and sailing the boat, or simply being aware of what they need to do to remain safe.

“Generally, the more competent and confident people are when afloat, the more they enjoy the experience.“

It’s also worth speaking to people who’ve done something similar.

“Not just those who have sailed back and forth from Hamble to Cowes for the last 20 years, but those who have actually stretched their legs at sea,” says Falk.

“They will have a wealth of experience, and most will be very willing to share that with you. Take each piece of advice and test it yourself to see what works for you and what does not.”

Clark says she’s encountered mixed reactions to their sailing adventures.

“When we did our first big trip on the Atlantic, people said we would be bored, and asked why would we put ourselves in danger.

“There’s always naysayers. But increasingly, people’s response is that’s amazing.”

So far, Clark wouldn’t have it any other way.

“The experience outweighs the risks, if you’re prepared,” she says. “It has been extraordinary.”

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