Our son (15) wants to travel….

“Our son (15) has been invited and wants to travel overseas with a family we hardly know but whom he knows from school. Their son and our son are best friends. My wife is not too keen on the idea because we hardly know this man and his wife but we have heard the dad is quite a party person. We are quite conservative and would prefer our son to not be exposed to drinking and the likes. What should we do?”

I believe no one should turn down an opportunity to travel. So, get to know the family and then do all you can to let your son go. While the boy may encounter things he’s not accustomed to in his own family, the experience of travel will offset any dissonance he experiences and he can (if you are lucky!) talk it all through when he gets home.