Itchy&Scratchy

Not sure what you are insinuating by tossing "someone" and "elsewhere on the ship" into this discussion.

insinuating? really? what a big strong word to use in response to me saying "someone elsewhere on the ship" is monitoring the kid.

you said:

one person monitors the monitors from another cabin.

My kids enjoyed the aqua duck slide and I think bigger entertainment like rock walls, zip lines, skating rinks would be a good fit. BUT if a ship has these are they really crowded, long lines, reservations needed, etc?

I'd consider Royal Caribbean's Independence of the Seas and her sister ships (whichever ones have the skating rink and rock climbing and water platform).

My friends went on the Allure and there were huge lines for everything, including the buffet. They loved Independence of the Seas for all the activities minus the lines.

How does your kid go to school? Kindergarten starts at 5...preschool earlier. Doesn't he/she have to learn to stay with a teacher?

 

And going to camp isn't exactly "staying with strangers;" its meeting and playing with kids of the same age. Something that is very socially healthy.

 

Of course as a parent you have a right to do as you see fit but personally at 6, IMHO it's time for some socialization and independence in a safe and secure environment.

he has been in preschool since 2 years and 9 months. He still has stranger anxiety at 6, and is extremely shy. He is doing much better at 6 with new situations and people than he did at 3, but it still takes a couple of weeks for him to warm up to new teachers and kids. Once he is comfortable, he makes friends and is very social.

Going to camp with a bunch of kids he doesn't know and teachers he's never met is the epitome of "staying with strangers".

we are on a late Nov Regal cruise, and the prices have been steadily climbing since July when I got it on a very nice sale. The cabins were sold out, then came back, sold out, came back, but the prices just kept going up.

No, but the OP may be in a suite, or have family in an adjoining cabin.

it doesn't make sense to buy a wifi package if the baby is in the same suite with you or you are visiting family in the adjoining room. Just leave the door open. Free!

We could hear our neighbor's kid crying on our last cruise. It was annoying as heck, because he cried for an hour straight every damn evening - after we went to bed.

Sure. Why not?

We travel with extended family in more than one cabin. Kids ge put down for a nap or the night and one person monitors the monitors from another cabin.

seriously? You leave a 13 month old baby in a cabin by themselves and "someone" monitors the baby via a baby monitor from elsewhere on the ship????

Even in our own house the dang monitor sometimes didn't work properly, and our kid's room is literally 5 feet away, and at times we were able to hear him "live" while the monitor was silent.

remember, she has to be 40#+ to use bubblebum. It may or may not provide a correct seat belt fit at 4, especially if she is not on a taller side.

https://csftl.org/bubblebum-review/

Besides the Family subforum on CC, check out Traveling with Children forum on babycenter.com. And, maybe, the Car Seat Board as well.

Remember that if you bring your own US seat without build in lock-offs and a foreign car doesn't have isofix/locking seatbelts, you will have to use a locking clip. May need to buy that in advance and practice installing a seat in a car. A great travel seat for kids that age (assuming that she is not close to 50# yet) is Evenflo Maestro.

P.S. She is not a toddler. She is a preschooler. :)

The poster was referring to the post quoted. The one about "enjoying the view of the tender boat". It was a pretty snide comment that was uncalled for.

it WAS OP's comment. :) lol He was the one who made a "pretty snide comment".

completely unrelated to Irma's damages, but I would be happy if my upcoming cruise replaced Cozumel and Falmouth, Jamaica with Aruba and Bonaire. Or 2 Bonaires. Luc (Lac) Bay!!!!

never mind about finding a video, Astro Flyer provided a link just above.

I feel claustrophobic just by looking at that video :o

The three of us are fine in the regular inside room, while the kid is small. Once he grows up and reaches my DH's height, we'll be cramped.

P.S. I've used ear plugs for about 9-10 years now because I am a light sleeper.

I just wanted to chime in with this: if you are petite, check out children's swim suit section at your local stores. You can find what you are looking for in your local walmart. A boys/girls size 12-14 may be a good fit for a petite person.

I have a son with red hair and snow white skin (although he doesn't really have freckles like a true redhead), and I get long sleeve rashguard shirts for him, plus BananaBoat SPF100.

do a search on the this board for R522 Regal and you will find a post (titled something about extra berths) in which somebody gave me a link to a youtube video of that cabin. That's a sideways cabin. I don't think I would have liked it, but I got upgraded to a balcony.

I like regular inside (non-sideways) cabins better because 1) there is a hallway before you get to the sleeping area and 2) the closet is not split in half, meaning we can put a large suitcase on the floor flat. We don't usually unpack the little stuff.

Wife's stubbornness and the persistence of the person asking made this situation more uncomfortable than it needed to be.

I don't believe your wife was stubborn. She was comfortable with the choice of the seats, and there were other seats around you that those other people could sit in. So, I wouldn't have moved either, especially since the request was forceful.

A 6 year old will be THRILLED to be in the club for the most part of the day...it's fun! It's "age appropriate'...lots of friends!

not my 6 year old. He is yet to stay at the kid's club. He adamantly refuses to stay with strangers, and I don't blame him.

So, it's really kid dependent.

To OP: since his skin is fair, load up on SPF50-100. We have a redhead, and he's never sunburned. Ever. Not on a cruise, not on the beach in ports, not in Florida in August.

Don't forget floaties/puddle jumpers/swim vest if the kid doesn't know how to swim. Better safe than very very sorry.

I am going to assume that the kid's parents gave you the go ahead to take him on a cruise without them. Make sure to have all the permissions to take him outside the country.

I personally wouldn't want my 6 yo to go on a cruise with anyone else but us.

In Grand Cayman, we enjoyed the 7 mile beach with our 3 yo. Now that he is 6, we'll try the stingray excursion.

Climbing Dunns Falls would be fun in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, if you are up for it.

Beach time in Cozumel.

My son is huge cruise enthusiast. He is only 15 years old but has been on quite a few cruises and DREAMS to someday work on a ship.

my 6 year old is the same... But I keep explaining to him that WORKING on a cruise is not the same as cruising for fun. :) He still doesn't get the concept of working, poor lad.

Except for the professionals: ships' officers and entertainment and hotel management directors, cruise ship jobs offer only hard work, long hours and low pay.

That's why you see all the foreigners filling the waiting and cleaning staff positions. To them $5/h is a lot of money, but it's not a lot for an American.

I'm unclear how one spends $20k on a 14 day Princess cruise. Perhaps the OP is including airfare and hotels in that cost? Kenneling the dog?? No idea. It's definitely not just the cost of the cruise.

I was recently unpleasantly surprised by the price of kenneling our dogs for our thanksgiving cruise. IT was a small fortune for a week (more than we are paying for the cruise per person). For two weeks it would, accordingly, cost us the same as our cruise.

I think a $32.00 bottle of wine is more than sufficient. .

P.S. I have an extremely sensitive nose.

What category is your cabin? If it begins with a "D" you'll have a loveseat couch that may convert into a small bed; if it begins with a "B" there is no couch but as you can see in this other post there's an upper bunk that recesses into the ceiling when not in use.

wow, what a weird place to have a bunk bed lowered out of.

It's DW category on Regal. The photos I found (not of that room, but of Deluxe Obstructed Balcony category) show a small love seat next to the balcony, so I assumed it was going to be the sofa-bed. Kind of uncomfortable, because when it's unfolded, it cuts off the balcony access.

To think of it, last time I called Princess or TA a couple of years ago about Regal, I was told that sofa beds were only available starting at mini-suite category, that's why I was confused.

Curious as have never been offered an upgrade or upsell...how are u notified? Email? phone call? Thanks!

for the first time I was offered a free upgrade yesterday - via email. I bought my cruise directly on Princess site. Got upgraded from an regular inside (for 3-4 people) to a deluxe obstructed balcony.

Yesterday that particular cruise was selling inside rooms for more $$ than balconies, believe it or not, so it was probably cheaper to upgrade us for free and sell our inside room for more money.

A balcony room does not come with a sofa bed (only mini's). No bathtub either. It is about the same size as an interior but with a balcony.

 

Congratulations on a nice upgrade.

thank you!

Our kid loves bunk beds, so he'll be happy to know that he still gets one. He was very excited about having a balcony, so when I hinted that there may not be a bunk bed, he said it was ok. So easy going. :)

:halo: Do not do the Happy Dance. Someone will be upset with you. Instead, gracefully offer your upgrade to your parents and let them deal with it.

I would offer it, but they have a cabin for 2, and there are three of us... :)

great news! Just got an email from Princess - we got a free upgrade to a deluxe obstructed balcony!!!!!

forgot to ask - it appears that it's a cabin for only 3 people, and that the 3rd person will get the sofa bed, and not a bunk bed. Correct?

I just got an email from Princess - we've got upgraded to a deluxe obstructed balcony! I am so excited.

Perhaps, I should be upset - it's not fair that my parents didn't get an upgrade offer. It's their first cruise, and I bought inside cabins close to each other on purpose...