From enrolling children in summer daycare classes or skills camps to sending kids to grandparents in the countryside, each option comes with concerns about cost, safety, and children’s ability to adapt.

Only about a week remains before the school year ends. While children eagerly count down the days until summer break, many urban parents are beginning to panic over finding childcare arrangements.

Summer daycare in high demand

After putting down her phone, Vu Phuong Hoa from Hoang Mai, Hanoi, sighed and told her colleague: “I’ve checked nearly 10 places already, but still haven’t found one I’m fully satisfied with.”

Her two children, one in the first grade and the other in third grade, are about to begin a nearly three-month summer vacation. Grandparents are elderly and in poor health, making it impossible for them to help care for the children.

Seeing numerous advertisements online for structured summer daycare programs, Hoa hoped to enroll her children so she can work with peace of mind. One nearby center advertised its own playground, air-conditioned nap rooms, daily-changing menus, English classes with foreign teachers, and real-time photo updates for parents.

“I visited the place and really liked it because it was clean and the teachers seemed caring,” she said.

However, the tuition of VND6.5–7 million per month for each child made her hesitate. Sending both children for the two summer months would cost the family nearly 30 million VND.

“Regular school tuition is only around VND2–3 million a month. Summer classes cost almost as much as one person’s salary, so it’s really stressful,” she explained.

After days of consideration, Hoa decided she might instead leave her children with a babysitter in the same apartment building, where they can eat, read books, and have limited screen time.

“The cost is much cheaper, about 2 million VND per child per month. Now it’s not just about finding a good place, but also whether the family can actually afford it,” she said.

With relatively comfortable finances, Nguyen Manh Hung (Ha Dong, Hanoi) considered sending his 11-year-old son to an overnight summer camp in the suburbs instead of enrolling him in an in-city daycare class.

After researching, he found many appealing programs offering survival skills, vegetable gardening, tent camping, forest trekking, and summer retreats aimed at helping children become more independent.

“I want my son to spend less time on his phone and interact more with the real world instead of staying in air conditioning all day,” he said.

However, his wife opposed the idea. She had read many complaints on social media about children at summer camps having to sleep in cramped shared rooms, use dirty bathrooms, and deal with mosquitoes and insects.

“My child has lived in the city his whole life and has never experienced those kinds of uncomfortable conditions, so I’m very worried,” she said.

Unable to agree on a summer plan, the couple argued several times. Hung believed children need challenges and experiences to mature, while his wife feared their son might struggle to adapt or even develop health issues.

After much discussion, they decided not to send him away for a long-term camp immediately. Instead, they enrolled him in a weekend trial program first so he could gradually get used to the new environment.

“If he adapts well, then we’ll consider the longer program later,” Hung said.

The countryside

Pham Thu Trang (Dong Da, Hanoi) initially planned to send their two children back to the countryside for the summer with their paternal grandparents in Tuyen Quang, just like previous years. The countryside offers a spacious yard, fruit gardens, and plenty of neighborhood friends, which the two children adore. However, located near the grandparents' house are a river and a large pond.

Trang expressed her fear, stating that entering the summer season, every time she opens her phone she encounters news about child drowning. Her two children are only 7 and 9 years old and do not know how to swim yet. She worries that the children will get caught up in playing, run after their peers, and face incidents when adults momentarily lose focus.

After discussions, the couple invited the paternal grandparents to come up to the city to assist with babysitting for about two weeks. During that timeframe, they registered the children for an intensive swimming course near their home. She remarked that the kids must learn basic skills first before she can feel reassured enough to send them to the countryside.

Thuy Nga