Parents splurge on overseas summer camps

Gone are the days when children went to Lonavala for vacation. While parents are complaining about paying a packet in school fees, a rising number  are willing to spend big bucks on sending their children to innovative outbound summer camps.

Eighteen-year-old Karan Desai will spend his summer riding his bike across the Pacific coast and meeting entrepreneurs from Silicon Valley. 

Part of an expedition called the Great American Bicycle Ride (GABR),  Desai, a student of Dr  Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan Vidyalaya in Borivli, is excited to start his month-long adventure.

This expedition that costs nearly $5,000, will cover a distance of nearly 1,600km from Seattle to San Francisco in the United States.

“I cannot wait to start the trip. I love biking and I am already spending sleepless nights imagining myself riding across America,” says Desai.

Parents today are willing to send their children on unconventional outbound summer programmes, ranging from biking across the globe to a rafting and kayaking programme in Rishikesh. “Often children end up getting bored on their summer vacations. I wanted something different and exciting for my child. I do not mind spending if the summer camp promises to be remarkable and something that adds to my child’s confidence and personality,” said Trupti Vora, a mother.

Following the lead of private companies, even schools are offering programmes. Mainadevi Bajaj International School, Malad, is planning to give students an opportunity to sail on the Arabian Sea.

“We want the children to be adept at a lot of non-conventional skills which are valued on the international level, like sailing and canoing. We are planning to organise sailing lessons along with one of the sailing clubs at the Gateway of India,” said the head of the school.