Skyrocketing summer camp fees irk parents in Dubai

Dubai - Parents say that learning on YouTube is more affordable, compared to the costs of summer camps in Dubai.

Parents are outraged over the lack of affordable Dubai-based summer camps for their children, as many are priced nearly Dh1,000 per week for each child.
There are several one to nine-week long summer camps in Dubai, covering dance, STEM subjects, art and sports. Parents can choose the number of weeks they want to enroll their children for; however, mums and dads have complained that the price per week is too costly, especially for those ones with more than one child.
One parent, Rashida Nour, will be paying Dh1,600 per week for a social skills summer camp that she has enrolled her son in for three weeks. "They are definitely too expensive. I think they shouldn't cost more than Dh800 per week," she said.
"A lot of parents are working in Dubai during the summer and it's very important to keep the kids busy and to enhance their learning. With the schools being so expensive already, we need safe and entertaining places for our kids to stay away from the heat and to learn and develop. It's really important to make those places affordable for parents in order to max the time they spend with other kids learning social skills. Most parents are hardworking, and hence affordability of such places is really critical to encourage parents to stay in Dubai during the summer and not feel guilty about leaving their kids at home."
Tasnim Kapadia, a parent in Dubai, said learning from YouTube is more affordable for her child compared to putting her in a summer camp. "I believe summer is an excellent time for children to gain multiple skills; therefore, summer camps should be economical. This allows children to join more than one summer camp. Surprisingly, it would be cheaper for my child to learn a film course online or through YouTube than joining a summer camp. My child has joined an art camp before and those skills were helpful at school, but I believe if the camp was reasonably priced then more children would enroll and receive the benefits," Kapadia said.
Another parent, Rina Rachwani, said summer camps are important because they help limit the amount of time children spend on their gadgets.
However, she also believes that enrollments in summer camps can only be made possible for most parents and children if only prices are made more affordable.
"Summer is an off-peak season in Dubai. Due to lack of internal communities in areas like Jumeirah, Umm Suqeim and Barsha, it is imperative that affordable summer camps are made available to keep the kids indulged and avoid their gadgets. Cheaper camps will attract more kids and develop keen interest for consistent participation," she said.
sarwat@khaleejtimes.com

• Dubai