We are looking for a personality that will fit well into our family and help us in our busy family life.

You will fit well into our family if you consider yourself responsible. You are brave and enjoy life's adventures, but always sensible.

You are responsible in the sense that you feel responsible for yourself and that you take your responsibilities seriously. Life as an au pair can bring some obstacles. As your host family, we are happy to support you if you need it. However, we believe that helping you to help yourself is a far greater service than solving problems for you. For example, we encourage you to join a sports club, travel or do anything that makes your time here enjoyable, but in the end it is always you who has to make the move. As far as your responsibilities go, our children are the most precious thing we have. This is a big responsibility for a young adult, but also a great opportunity to grow.

So you have to be at least a little bit brave to take on the challenge and embrace the adventures of (au pair) life with an open mind when they come. Be ready to become part of our family, learn a new language, explore places you've never been before, make friends and gain experiences for life. We were young adults once too ;-). Enjoy it, with a small "but": but with common sense. You are a role model for our children and we share a household. Smoking, drinking, drugs or overnight guests make us quite uncomfortable. If there is anything that makes you uncomfortable about your stay here, let's talk about it and we will find a solution. In short: we want to have a good time with this great personality that you are.

You know best what you are looking for and we hope that it fits with what we can offer you.

Your stay abroad with family support and pocket money:

There are different ways to go abroad, but the au pair route offers some advantages. You are not completely on your own in a foreign country because you have our support as a host family. You have accommodation in a part of town that is rather difficult for young people to afford and you earn your own pocket money instead of spending a lot of money on your stay abroad.

New language skills:
A German course is part of the au pair program and will help you get by during your stay here and hopefully afterwards. German is spoken as a native language by around 20% of Europeans and as a foreign language by around 10% more (Goethe Institute, 2021). Depending on your own future plans, it can be a door opener for you.

This is a good place to live:
We have just moved into our newly renovated house. Your room (approx. 14 m²) with a view of the garden is on the 1st floor and has access to one of the two balconies.

Leisure activities nearby:
We live in the Essen green belt, close to the center. This means you can enjoy nature and city life equally. The Grugapark (15 minutes' walk) offers a whole range of leisure options, such as a public swimming pool, sunbathing lawns, a spa and sports facilities. The Baldeneysee with a beach club and numerous water sports options is also nearby. The "Rü" is a leisure mile with cafes, bars and shops. The bus from the "Rü" to us also runs at night and takes about 10 minutes. These are just a few examples of leisure options nearby.

Other leisure activities:
Essen is in the center of the Ruhr area, which is part of one of the largest metropolitan areas in Europe. Sometimes you don't even notice when you leave and enter a new city because they have grown together. This means you can get to other cities that you can explore pretty quickly. Düsseldorf and Cologne are about 30-60 minutes away by car. The Dutch border is also about an hour away.

Easy mobility:
It is easy to travel even without a driver's license. With the "Deutschlandticket" you can use all public transport in Germany except the ICE. The bus and tram stop is not far from our accommodation. For short distances, there are public e-scooters, mopeds and bikes to rent.

This was a bit of a guessing game on our part as to what you might like. There are probably more, depending on your interests, and you are welcome to explore more options.