Californiacruizers

207 and it seems like an eternity:(

Yep, this pretty much sums up my daily obsession with crusing. We currently have 211 days until our 7 day Eastern Carribean cruise, and I spend my days POURING over message boards, planning my meals on Princess.com and reading reviews. I feel like time is passing by ever so slowly.

Nope you are not alone, enjoy your trip!!!

Great Ideas!!! I love the mesh bag. My son would cram everything into my diaper bag and I would be stuck carrying his things and the toddlers things. I didn't even think of the lanyard idea but that is a must have for our next cruise.

Yes, the arcades take money off of their stateroom cards(my son used his allotment in a matter of hours), after which he could no longer charge things to the room lol.

I agree, now is the time to snag all of your summer wear and accessories for a low price, as stores are now getting ready for fall and winter.

Another thing to keep in mind with a young cruiser, they are not allowed in the pools unless they are "fully potty" trained, and swim diapers are not allowed. I believe there are some cruise lines that have a specific splash area for younger tots that are not potty trained.

When cruising this past April with my 12 and 2 year old; I was charged the gratuity price for each of us. However upon my return I discovered I could've neogiated the daily change for each child.

Lastly, prior to leaving home don't forget to pack sand toys, and blow up floating rings which will really come in handy for beach days.

Yes, evey beach will have rentals. I actually bought this beach mat that rolls up and you can carry it like a tote bag. I found it at a local store and packed into my luggage. It really came in handy, as I did not have to rent anything. The sand would just shake right off and the mat would fold back up. This was really useful since I had a small child. As I recall the chair and umbrella rentals were about $10.00 US dollars each.

I cruised on Norwegian with my 12 and 2 year old. The childrens program required childer to be 3 even, though she was fully potty trained she was not allowed to participate. There was a playroom that she could play in as long as I was there with her. To answer your question I had to pay the full 3rd person price for her. We sail again next year and she will be 3. Princess only charged me $199.00 for her as the 3rd person prince on a 7 day Easter Carribean Cruise.

I'm planning to get my 12 year old son a Go-Pro Camera and the water proof case that goes with it. I agree with the other posters, snorkel gear, goggles a few pair in case they break(my son broke his only pair the firs day). Waterproof wallet, and perhaps a Ipad or tablet.

When we sailed on the Norwegian Sky, this past November I would say the crowded was for the most part 30 and up. It was a refined trip, not a party crowd which I appreciated since I have smaller kids.

I recently sailed Norwegian it was my first cruise, so I cannot compare it to anything. The service and food was exceptional. Dressing up for dinner was optional. I sailed with my 12 and 2 year old there were days when they were "boared" my youngest was too young for the kids club and my son who turned 12 on the cruise was the oldest in his age group, he tall for his age and was shy about being grouped with the "little Kids". There were a few rainy days, and Norwegian didn't seem to have a Plan B other than board games and bingo, which you had to pay to play.

As this was my first cruise I thought we would be swept off our feet in awsomeness, that was not the case. From the moment I stepped on Board I felt pressured to purchase things.

The only thing I really liked was the fact that the ship was not crowded or rowdy. My kids and I found plenty of quiet space on the deck to watch the sun set.

Sorry for your loss. I recently sailed alone with 2 young children on the Norwegian Sky. We celebrated my sons 12th birthday. My daughter at the time was only 2. The 2 year old had such a blast, she has been daily she talks about going to the " HAMAS"(Bahamas).

Norwegian had a very warm crowd. Many were middle age, so it wasn't really a "booze cruise". There were mabye 50 kids onboard. The staff really went out of their way to please the kids. In fact I ordered warm milk on via room service on the first night for the 2 year old and each nite the warm milk continued to arrive without me asking. Unfortunately, my 2 year old was too young to go to the kids club alone, I had to stay with her. However all the older kids seemed to have tons of fun in the kids club.

We are sailing Princess this year, I am really looking forward to being able to allow the little one to join the kids program unaccompanined.

My 12 year old hung out in the arcade...until he mexed out his video game spending limit. For some reason he grew fascinated with the ship cam on the TV. He would stay up for hours at nighght watching it lol.

My kids and I are booke on Princess for a 7 day in March of 2016. We said in April to Norwegian on a 4 day. I have to say it was a nice getaway, but it was well suited for a much older crowd. We were all bored. It rained a few days and they broke out board games... I was shocked that they didn't have a PLAN B other other that Board Games.

Anyhow I was torn between RCL and Carnival. I honestly didn't even consider Princess. My son was begging for a ship with a water slide. So as I began to ask around and read reviews online I decided against Carnival and was going book RCL. However RCL is very expensive for a limited amount of ports. For example the sailing we were considering only stopped in 2 ports but was almost triple what other ships were offering for more ports.

A friend recommended Princess and I was SOLD. I booked a 7 day to the Western Carribean for 3ppl for a little over 2k. Since booking everyone has assured me the food on Princess is exceptional. Also many say there aren't many kids on Princess.

My children and I flew into Fort Lauderdale and cruised out of Miami this past April. I saved money by flying into Fort Lauderdale, there was a free shuttle that picked us up from the airport and drive us to the hotel. We stayed at the Cambria Suites it was BRAND NEW. The hotel had only been open for about two months. It was very nice, we had a large room and my son who is quite tall appreciated the fact that the sectional sofa converted into a full size bed. We spent two days at the hotel, we walked to a nearby shooping center, there were several resturants within walking distance but it was HOT and Humid.

CSA transporation picked us up the morning of the cruise and drove us to the Port of Miami. The cost was $15.00 per person and tipping was optional. I thought we were riding on a van, however they picked us up in a fancy Mercedes Benz Limo Van. We made a few stops and pick up other passengers the Limo Van held 12 passengers. We were dropped off right at our ship. I also booked them for our return after the cruise, they were on time and was waiting outside of the ship, and loaded us up and dropped us off on time for our flight home.

Welcome, I have only sailed Norwegian it was an older crowd. I sailed 4 days with a 12 and 2 year old. Carnival seemed to be more kid/teenage friendly. Our ship would dock next to Carnival there were many more children and young people on Carnival than on our ship. A four day was good for us, I guess it depends on the destination and the timin. Good Luck, enjoy!!

Which excursion do you recommend for Honduras? My children and I are going in March 2016.

I would suggest a Norwegian Cruise. My kids and I sailed on the Norwegian Sky last April. The overall vibe was very relaxing, there were great activities and a host of entertainment options, however it was very quiet and calm. Unlike Carnival this was not a "Booze Cruise". If fact my children and I would have an entire deck to ourselves upon which we would watch the Sunset each day. There were children on aboard, but they were never running wild. The food was great, you had the option of anytime dining, and you did not have to dress up unless you wanted to.

We are from Los Angeles, we flew into Fort Lauderdale, FL and then hired a car service to take us to the Port in Miami. This was much cheaper than flying from LAX to Miami.

Personally, I do not think the cruises from Los Angeles to Mexico are worth the price, since you can drive to Mexico in a few hours not to mention most cruises to Mexico from Cali, only go to Ensenada which is not a Beach, rather picture the Port of Long Beach, CA very commercial.

We are going to cruise Princess in March 2016. I hear its the same as mentioned above.