Itchy&Scratchy

dayum, $4K difference and you are hesitating?

 

I just booked the inside cabin for the 3 of us, because the $450/week difference between the balcony and the inside isn't worth it to me. I am the only one who uses the balcony on a cruise, and even then - only because Princess ships are boring and have nothing to do for a family with kids. I am planning to be super busy with all the fun activities on the Allure, and won't even have time to relax on the balcony.

 

$4K? Definitely save it. Heck, our family can do 2 7-night cruises for $4K.

Try MSC. Lower prices to begin with, free drinks, and kids do sail free.

on select sailings. :)

NCL has the Haven suite that has a balcony of 3000+ sq st and that is a bucket list room we would love to have.

hmmm. I am going to look that up. That's the size of our 5 bedroom, 2 car garage house, and you are saying that the balcony alone is the same square footage as a 2 story house. Not that it's not possible, but why would anyone NEED a balcony this large on a vacation?

 

And yes, suites on Princess would have large balconies. I just thought you weren't looking at suites because of the price. Like - I would like a large balcony, but I can't find a regular balcony room with a large balcony. Turns out, you want a gigantic balcony.

You are correct they do have balconies but none the size we like. Since we spend half our time on them we like something in the 100+ feet.

Not that I care whether you sail Princess or not, but just for the sake of argument, Regal and Royal Princess ships do have regular balcony cabins that have giant balconies. That's, if you don't want to pony up cash for the suites and mini-suites.

 

 

 

Princess has no baconys so there will not be a consideration.

what does that even mean?

go with Allure on March 31. I got a good deal with KSF.

yes, we did. On our very first RCCL cruise our TA had us in a guarantee room on the Independence of the Seas. It's been awhile, so I don't remember where it was (a lower deck, aft), and loud noise began at 4 am - we seem to have been behind some kind of a service hallway. Banging, rolling metal carts, dishes, other mechanical noises. It was pretty bad. I had my ear plugs with me, and they didn't help much.

Now I never book guarantee, but instead carefully inspect deck charts and pick a cabin nowhere near any white areas, pools, restaurants, sport decks, etc.

I get the random email but to get good discounts on specific cruises, but I just called and asked about the cruises that I wanted. I got a Vista Suite for the price of a Window suite on one and then on the next one I got a Window Suite for less than a balcony. Does your friends mom have a cruise planner? that's who she should ask.

they book directly through princess website.

Just play in the casino and you will automatically be a member. Your play will be tracked through your cruise card and they will send future offers to you based on your play.

our friend's mom spends DAYS and copious amounts of money in the casino on Princess ships, and not once over the last 3-4 years of doing so was she offered a casino rate.

We love Labadee - it's gorgeous, and the beach on the side opposite of the zip line is so beautiful and perfect for swimming.

I'd skip other destinations like Cozumel in favor of Labadee.

I get that, and we wont be trying to arrive late. But if we dont make it right at 6:00, and its 6:03 surely that is ok?

 

could you switch to MTD and make reservations for earlier times on all days, and a later time for this day?

Thanks! This is great!! Our favorite cruise so far (without kids) was Princess, so I am pleased to hear you liked their kids club! I am hoping for a celebrity opinion as well ;)

 

Regal and Royal Princess for you!

 

The food is fantastic, and so is the kid's club!

 

But there are no activities for families with kids, and my kid doesn't do kid's club, so despite great food, we are very bored on Princess ships. So, our next cruise is on RCCL's Allure - plenty to do WITH the kid! And we are lazy parents in our early 40s, but we like doing things with the kiddo, hence RCCL.

 

Plus, RCCL is running Kids Sail Free through the end of July for cruises from Aug '18 to May '19, so we hit the jackpot.

we always fly to and out of FLL and I would honestly recommend - no earlier than 11.

The first time we went on a cruise, we didn't know.... We thought since the ship docked at 7 am, we could be at the airport an hour later or so. Nope, we barely made it to our 10:25 flight - we were running through the airport (with a 3 yo kid!).

 

So, now we smartened up and don't get flights before 11.

And in 2016 there was a problem with the customs and we didn't even get to leave the ship until AFTER NOON. By the time we got to the airport and stood in 1 hour line to drop off luggage with Spirit (yes, to drop off luggage - we did the online check in), and then 1 hour in the security check line, it was almost time for our 5 pm flight. We had lunch and then boarded.

remember - one must have water shoes on Princess Cays, unless you want your feet poked and sliced by some very well hidden but super sharp rocks.

Ironically I've never cruised Carnival because of everything negative I've heard about them.

I was about to book MSC Seaside when I read some pretty bad reviews. And then I saw RCCL's Kids Sale Free and boom - we are on Allure of the Seas next year. Haven't had a single bad RCCL cruise (well, we only had 4).

We cruised with Royal until 2014, when we switched to Princess. I do believe that Princess(Regal and Royal in particular) food is a lot better than Royal Caribbean, but Princess is sooo far off on the entertainment and onboard activities.... There is nothing to do with a kid on Princess if your kid doesn't do kid's club. So, yes, we got great food in MDR, but we were bored the rest of the time. If it weren't for the free on demand programming on Regal/Royal Princess, we'd die of boredom.

 

We are looking forward to our Allure of the Seas cruise next year, because there will be a ton of activities we'll be able to do with our kiddo - ice skating, rock climbing, water activities, zip lines, kid's aqua park, etc., and the shows promise to be spectacular. I am sure we will not starve - actually, it looks like Allure offers a lot more free venues than Princess does, if one doesn't feel like going to a buffet. Especially, when it's overcrowded.

 

We never found RCCL ships to be dirty or dingy, but all of them were not all that old at the time of our sailing. Caribbean Princess was the only older ship when we sailed on it, and yes, it was quite dated. It's been refurbished since then.

our kid doesn't do kid's club, so our salvation is a tablet with games/cartoons and headphones. He's been called the best behaved child in MDR many times - lost to the world I call it.

It's a win-win - we get to eat in peace in MDR and our child is quiet and engaged and eating. We don't have to hurry, leave between courses or early, or go to the buffet instead of MDR.

What I would do too is wait til the next kids sail free and rebook under that as long as pax 1 and 2 are still the same.

KSF is running right now through July 31, but it's not available on all sailings.

Thank you for your great review. I am a tad perplexed though, that you did not like Labadee. Most people love it (including myself). Have been there 3 or 4 times and consider it such a relaxing beach day.

 

me too! We always go to the opposite side (not the zip line side) and it so picturesque there, and the beach is very nice.

I greatly prefer it to Princess Cays, Cozumel, Costa Maya and Jamaica ports.

 

 

I'm sure it's a fun place for kids because of the zipline and slides.

I don't remember any slides (we did travel with and without the kid), but the zipline has a min and max weight, and most kids cannot go on it. I remember it because my DH was able to get on the zip line (185#), but another guy from the ship and his teenage kiddo couldn't - the guy was over the limit at 275#, and the teenager was under the limit (I don't remember what it was).

plus, there is a looooooong time till next spring. Something might happen and you may end up taking your child with you.

my friend's kid contracted Lyme disease, but it never affected his cruising twice a year in any shape or form. He did get antibiotic therapy and appears to be more or less healthy at this time (it's been about 3 years).

You may also want to check out the Disabled Travel board.

 

Cruises are all about relaxation. If you can get her up to a nice secluded place on the ship, she won't have to spend ALL her time in bed.

Some people with accessible needs can walk and do not look very disabled, but still have the need for the cabin and have submitted the documentation to book it that RCCL requires to do so.

RCCL requires documentation now? When did that change? Back in 2014 we got an accessible room but didn't have to produce any documentation.

Evenflo Maestro can also be attached to a hand truck with bungee cords and the kid can actually sit in it like this:

 

 

It's very easy to travel with since it's so light. You can install it on the plane.

 

Here is my kiddo on the plane in his Britax Frontier at 5. We brought it with us because we had a rental car drive after the cruise. Since he is tall and heavy and mature enough to be in a booster, we usually brought a no back booster for him for cruise travel which didn't involve long rides (over 2 miles) in a taxi or a rental car since he was 4. At home he was harnessed till 6+.

Thanks for the help. We booked a Miami flight so transportation will be easier. Can we assume the hotel shuttle would have car seats for kids? Or, do I need to look at the ones mentioned above that offer that service? I am assuming the hotel has transportation (assume fee-based) for the POM transfer so they should have car seats available.

 

 

 

Like this?

https://www.amazon.com/BubbleBum-Backless-Inflatable-Travel-Booster/dp/B00AQYZCXK?th=1

 

 

That will work for my 4 year old but not my 1 year old. It seems odd to me that this isn't easier given the # of kids I see on the cruise unless most folks are bring car seats which is a PITA.

I traveled with a huge and heavy Britax Frontier for the kiddo. You don't haul it around. You get a $25 handtruck and use bungee cords to tie it the seat to the cart.

 

If you are bringing a stroller for the kiddo, it's easier to get a $40 Cosco Scenera NEXT for travel and bungee cord it to the stroller. Use the NEXT on the plane. On the plane you can choose to RF or FF your 1 yo (rear facing is highly preferable), but you absolutely need to rear face in a car till at least 2 years of age.

 

 

 

For the 4 yo, depending on his/her size, I'd use an Evenflo Maestro or if the kid is very tall and heavy enough for a booster, I'd use a no back booster. However, being tall and heavy didn't provide my 4 yo (43", 42#) a good seat belt fit in a no back booster.

 

Please check out Travel with Children board on www.babycenter.com for more advice.

 

Here is what NEXT looks like on a stroller:

 

 

 

or a hand truck

 

 

if you wheel it all the way to the gate anyway, and your 1 yo is not a lap baby, just use it on the plane. There is no way to assure the seat's safety if you check it as luggage, even if you gate check. NEVER EVER check the car seats as luggage. In the worst case scenario you should GATE check it.

What an absurd thing to say. My parents started taking me on cruises as a baby and 30 years later I have been on 26 cruises and have taken my 6 month old and now about to take my 2 year old and 1 year old. Cruises are a vacation no matter what. And yes half the cruise lines have babysitting.

 

 

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your 6 month old must have been a good sleeper. Mine wasn't, so we escaped on a cruise when he was 9 months without him, so I could JUST SLEEP. That's all I wanted.

DS started cruising with us at 3 yo, and it has been perfect. But he is a great sleeper now.