My family moved to Europe for the summer — our Airbnb cost $4,000 less than sending my kid to day camp in the US

• I moved my family to Switzerland for the summer instead of sending my kid to day camp.
• Our two-month Airbnb rental in Zurich fits five people and costs less than his day camp would have.
• The decision wasn't purely economical; My son is also getting to experience a different culture.

Summer camp is expensive, and even if you're willing to pay for it, your kid might not get a spot.

When I started researching day camps for my 5-year-old son in New York last year, I found that many would set us back by almost $10,000 for just one child — and we weren't even considering overnight camps. 

That high price tag generally includes transportation to and from the camp, breakfast and lunch, daily activities, and swimming lessons. But a lot of day camps have drop-off at about 9 a.m. and pickup at 2:30 p.m. or 3 p.m., when my partner and I are still working. So, in some cases, the price of camp doesn't even cover full-time childcare during work hours. 

Instead of dealing with lottery systems and day-camp costs, which averaged $87 a day per child in 2022 a(nd $96 a day in 2023), my husband and I, both remote workers based in the US, decided to spend the summer in Zurich, with our son and in-laws. 

Renting our accommodations abroad cost significantly less than sending our child to summer camp, and it came with perks. 

Our long-term Airbnb rental in Zurich was cheaper than many US day camps

We found that renting an Airbnb with three bedrooms and an office in Zurich was more cost-effective than enrolling my child in summer camp from June through August. 

The rental, which spanned from July 9 to August 18, cost us about $6,000. The owner offered us a discount for the extended stay and was willing to arrange the rooms to accommodate our living situation. 

We could've booked a cheaper and smaller place, but we went with a larger home with laundry and two bathrooms since my in-laws came with us to help care for our son. Paying for the extra space to house my in-laws and a week-long soccer camp in Zurich was still cheaper than the day camps in the tristate area. 

We also used points to cover most of our flights and split food costs with my in-laws to keep expenses down.

There are benefits of living abroad as a family that aren't financial

Aside from the financial benefits, the experiences and lessons my son learned while living abroad are invaluable. He was exposed to different cultures, foods, and ways of life.

Staying in Zurich for an entire summer also gave my family the opportunity to explore places far outside the tourist track. We planned trips to places we would've never likely explored otherwise, like Feldkirch, Austria, and Vaduz, Liechtenstein. As an added bonus, we signed our little one up for a week of a local soccer camp in Zurich, which cost about $300.

Plus, my son is a train fanatic, so we put several rail trips on our itinerary. He'd been so eager to see Big Ben, so we also planned a weekend trip to London, which is just a 90-minute flight from Zurich.

My husband and father-in-law love cycling, so living here gave them the chance to catch the Tour de France at the French border. The memories created from these trips were priceless. 

Because my husband and I can do our jobs remotely, we were able to spend this summer abroad without compromising our professional commitments or paychecks.

My husband's company is based in Switzerland, and I work with editors on the East Coast, so our schedules allowed us to take turns watching our son. And when we were both working, my in-laws helped take care of him.

I'd consider making these extended family trips a tradition

This summer was a bit of an experiment. I'd always wanted to live abroad for a short period of time, and I could potentially see us extending our stay during summers down the road. 

If possible, it would be great to rent a different home base to explore another region in depth. I even saw an intriguing camp called Alpine French School, which incorporates both French lessons and activities. I'd love for my son to have the opportunity to learn a new language and make friends from around the world.

I'm also not closing him off from day camps in the US, especially as he gets older and forms stronger bonds with kids at school. Perhaps we can even switch between day camp and family vacations every year. 

Spending time together as a family and seeing new places is extremely important to my husband and me. With limited time to travel during the school year, summer offers the best opportunity to explore.

This story was originally published on July 20, 2023, and most recently updated on June 26, 2024.