My parents in North West Wales go days on end without speaking English.

Ha ha no need! I’ll store these little tidbits away - never know when I might need them. Bidding on our next post in a year or so...

What an exciting trip! Good luck!!

I did some googling and I see that there are provisions in Tunisia for short term ex-pats to bring a car and drive it on foreign plates. I’m sure you’ve done all this research and more - I’m just answering my own question.

Oh that’s great about the container. I’m still unsure how you will be able to drive the car with US plates, though, and to be perfectly honest it’s the last thing I’d want security wise.

Where in North Africa you are going will make a difference in what you should take. Don’t assume there are playgrounds or libraries. Ask detailed questions of people there to see what you truly can’t buy and what you can buy for a price, and then decide what you can and cannot live without for 6 months. And to add to my previous post about the car, don’t rely on those shipping estimates. Even if by some miracle your car arrives in 6 weeks, it can take several more weeks to clear customs and then an additional few weeks to get registered and plated. I’d seriously consider paying for extra bags and left luggage in France.

Please double check about putting things in your car to ship. We’ve shipped cars all over the world, and we’re never allowed to leave anything in them, even car seats and tool boxes. Also, when things are left in cars they tend to go walkabout. So check with your shipper. Edited for typos.

If you’re staying three weeks, you may well need to arrange a second health certificate in the UK for returning to the US. You’ll also need the rabies vaccination certificate (original) when returning to the US. That’s the thing they won’t compromise on, so travel with that. The APHIS site linked above will also have details regarding returning from the UK to the US. Bringing him in cabin as a support animal reduces the headache of the crate requirements and check-in procedures, and may cost less, but all the import/export requirements remain the same. Good luck.

Here’s Delta’s pet policy page. https://www.delta.com/content/www/en_US/traveling-with-us/special-travel-needs/pets/domestic-international-pet-travel.html

Here’s the USDA page on taking a pet to the UK. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/pet-travel/by-country/eu/eu-echinococcus/pet-travel-echinococcus-treatments-uk

Contact the airline right away and make sure the dog is booked on the flight. Most flights limit the number of pets and some aircraft won’t acceot pets at all for safety reasons. Read the very specific instructions about crate requirements. These change frequently so don’t take the word of someone who flew last year. For example this time I needed to replace all the plastic screws with metal ones per United’s new policy. Many airlines no longer accept pets as excess baggage so you need extra time to drop off and pick up in the cargo area. The health certificate has to be issued within a certain number of days of the flight. If you’re flying internationally, check the import regulations very carefully as they may be far more stringent. Good luck. Our pup is always totally fine and he’s flown some longer flights.

We bought a three bedroom house, but it has a bonus bedroom (no closet) and we put extra beds in some of the guest rooms - a queen and a bunk for a bunch of teenagers or a family. There are also some built in sleeping lofts, and there's a sofa bed in the family room. We can sleep 17 in beds. We're thinking of making a little guest house and adding rv hook ups for big family gatherings (we have plenty of land). Also important to us was having areas to separate and hang out - porch, sun room, kitchen island, family room, living room. It sounds bigger than it is but it means people aren't on top of each other, but it's not overwhelming when it's just the two of us.

My husband transited Doha yesterday and said they had "quiet rooms" there. Also family waiting rooms and areas. All good ideas.

If it's all one ticket and airline (or codeshare), the luggage will be booked through to the final destination, and it shouldn't matter if the domestic leg or second leg ostensibly has a smaller baggage allowance. Do watch carry on limits, though.

For September and December I'd say book as soon as possible. Both are prime travel months, and prices are unlikely to go down significantly. Possibly I can see waiting until late summer or early fall to get a December ticket at a better price, but it's all a bit of a crapshoot, honestly.