queenL

It's our first cruise leaving our kids behind. I'm tearing up already at the thought of leaving them behind. :) It's long overdue for us to have some Mom and Dad time alone. We talk so much on this board about bringing the kids on cruises but what about when we leave them behind? I want to make sure I've covered all the essentials. We've updated life insurance and our will. I plan to leave the pediatricians info and health insurance card. If (God forbid) my parents had to take them to the emergency room could they be treated without our consent? Do I need to leave some temporary guardianship form too? Are there any other things I'm forgetting?

Oh I had to smile when I read the topic of this thread. My 20 mos old picks up a bite, then drops a bite on the floor. If you don't catch her the second she is tired of eating then she will dump whatever is left on her plate. Table train a toddler? An exercise in futility for us. :)

Our last cruise this summer I was on my hands and knees cleaning up the mess she made in the dining room. The dining room staff was understanding. They told me that kids made messes all the time not to worry about it. I was bothered though- my kids my responsiblity. I wasn't going to leave that mess. I do carry the disposable placemats with me to help keep the table cloth clean. Had I known about the disposable floor covers I would have taken those too. Definitely a good idea. We ate more in the casual dining than ever before on our last cruise. Don't worry too much though, they are used to it. Clean up what you can and leave the rest.

I have 2 girls 1 and 6. We have been cruising with both of them since they were 5 mos. I have tons of advice that I have picked up along the way. It may be easier to help you if you pose particular questions that you have. We have never travelled in a suite - some insides, many ocean views. Personally I don't do balconies anymore when I'm with my kids. I don't feel comfortable with that. There are many people who do though. A bathtub is useful but not required IMO. We conditioned ours to showers early on.

Congrats on your new baby.

I encourage you to go to the family board also. These questions are often discussed and you will get more helpful tips than (rolling eyes) leave your baby at home. I have two beautiful girls 1 and 6 and both took their first cruises at 5 mos. My oldest has cruised 10 times and my youngest twice. We are no strangers to cruising with a baby. As others have said it is a different kind of vacation. You aren't going to be able to just do what you want. You don't know how your baby will react to travel and you have to adjust your schedule somewhat to theirs. However, if you are fine with that. You will make some great memories. We travel with grandparents too and they are priceless.

The Oasis is an awesome ship. The best I've sailed. They do have nursery facilities (if you are comfortable with staff watching your baby) and special pools that the non potty trained group can enjoy. They also allowed you to check out toys too.

I didn't sterilize but I did bring a bottle brush and a small size dishwash detergent so that I could wash out bottles in the cabin. DD was still drinking milk several times a day then. Neither of my girls were eating table food at 7.5 mos. We had just really begun baby foods and other things I blended.

Definitely bring medicines even if your infant is not sick. Many a time we have had to deal with a temperature and were glad we brought those things with us. Bring extra pacifiers, tons of diapers, car seat etc.

The key to travelling well with infants is to plan. Personally, I think babies are far easier to travel with. My 20 mos is much more of a challenge. Toddlers are in to absolutely everything. I wouldn't trade it though! Enjoy your trip. Oasis is AWESOME!

I talked to RCL they said it was not offered for our sailing for sure. I asked if there was a chance it might return and she said sometimes they do make adjustments and add more excursions but it wasn't likely at this point. I called Rio Secreto too. The tours start promptly on the hour. They want guests to arrive early, so they will not wait.

I will keep watching to see if RCL adds it but if they don't we will go on our own anyway. We really want to do this tour. One key factor is that Cozumel will be on central time when we go next month. I forgot about that. That gives us some extra time. When we arrive 7: 30EST it will be 6:30 am there. I think we can get to the ferry and catch the 7am to Playa. She says its a 15-20min cab ride to Rio from the pier. It will cost about $13. That would put us there in time to take the 9am tour or the 10am tour. Rio says that the tours are precisely 3 1/2 hrs. We could be done in time to catch the 1pm ferry back. Worst case the 3:00 ferry back. Now we just have to decide whether we will purchase our tickets in advance or pay at the entrance. I will definitely post a review when I return.

Thank you!

We have used QLS, SAS and South Fl Shuttles without any issues. S Fla has an advantage if you need booster or car seats.

You can book it yourself, but is your ship in port for the time required?

 

You have to take the ferry to the mainland and return to take this tour. On our Princess itinerary it is listed as an 8 hour tour beginning at 8:30 when you are picked up at the pier, returning at 5:30. The ship sails at 6:00.

On Rio's website it lists the tour length as 3 1/2 hrs. I'm figuring 2 hrs RT ferry time. Travel to Rio??? RCL's brochure said 7hrs leaving at 8am. I'm thinking that is a good estimate.

We are sailing on the Liberty in Dec too (Dec 12th). Which sailing are you on? We also want to go to Rio Secreto. The interesting thing is that when I first printed the RCL shore excursion brochure in July the tour was on the list. They called it the Amazing Secret River and Cavern. I went on yesterday to book and noticed it was absent from the choices. I am going to call RCL and see why they removed it. We are considering doing it on our own now. We have sailed to Playa on our own before but I am a little concerned only because there is little margin for error here. We dock at 7:30. We'd have to be on the 9:00 ferry. Doable. The tour starts at 10. They request that you be there 20 minutes early. That may be pushing it tight. I remember the ferry was about a 40 min ride. Even though they say it's not too far from the ferry. The next tour starts at 12 and that pushes it way too close to get back to the ship. If RCL has truly pulled this tour, I may call Rio and see would they wait if we got there at 10:15. If they will wait, I think we will take our chances.

I'm thinking of booking this independently post cruise. I'm curious what is the best way to get there if we don't have a rental car? How far is this from the cruise ship pier. What did you do with your luggage during the tour?

We are going to have a lot of time to kill post cruise. I've been to FLL many times before and am looking for something a little different. I love modern design and I've heard great things about the Design District in the FLL/MIA area. Are there any nice stores (not too expensive) where I could find modern home accessories? Along the lines of a Z Gallerie or an I.O Metro.

I much prefer the prepaid grats.

 

However, I do find it odd that for our last 2 cruises, we booked a full 9-10 months in advance, yet there are no traditional dining times available - only MTD, which forces the prepaid grats. I actually don't mind this, so I am not complaining, but I struggle to believe that all traditional dining times are booked 10 months out.

I wondered the same thing. Booked 2 cruises with RCL this year one booked 18 mos in advance had no main dining spaces available. The other cruise for next mos we were told the same thing. Is this the new way to ensure gratuity?

I agree with the others regarding the ports of call. After 21 cruises I've been to nearly every port in the Caribbean with the exception of some of the smaller, lesser known ones. I'd like more variety. If only I had a nickel for every ship that docks in Cozumel or Nassau.....

We booked S Florida Shuttles to take us to and from the cruise ship terminal. The have car seats and booster seats available at no additional charge.

I thought I would give some thoughts of the Breeze as well....I wasnt overly impressed by the ship. But was the best Carnival ship Ive been on. Also there was quite a few staff that was leaving after our sailing and some of them seemed like they didnt want to be there.....but that didnt ruin my cruise I was on vacation and not at work. Thrill Theater was better than expected. I heard a few complaints about the slides.....if you are a man I dont recommend the twister it will rub your back raw....we had a spa balcony room and loved the room. I cant think of anything else it is early so if you have any questions please let me know and check out all of the videos I tried to record what I would want to see.,.....

I was on the 4th of July sailing and I agree wholeheartedly with everything you've said. The slides were no where near the Epic plunge or Disney's aquaduck.

We have booked a South Pacific cruise on Rhapsody in February 2014, and we will be on the bottom deck, inside cabins, 2537 and 2539. I know the cabins will be small, they are basically the cheapest cabins on the ship.

 

But I would really love to know if I'm the only one who actually likes the idea of an inside cabin: no sunshine streaming in during the early hours, a bit quieter (hopefully), and no looking at the swell (I'm very prone to sea-sickness).

 

Love to hear what others think.

 

:)

 

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I've sailed in Insides, OV, promenades and balconies. I wouldn't say I prefer insides but I certainly will choose them at times to be cost effective. Might I say if I had the chance to cruise the South Pacific region (airfare is a killer from the east coast), I'd take any cabin just to get go. Go with a great attitude and you will be fine.

Sorry about your experience. I would be upset if they didn't listen too. DD didn't love her X experience either, although it was better than the experience you had. Don't think Disney is a sure thing though. DD wasn't much more impressed. I was, she wasn't. The kid's club she truly LOVES is Camp Carnival. She is mixed about the other lines.

The other poster has it correct. Those are the typical offerings on the cruises. The highlights for my daughter were the T-shirt coloring and the indoor jungle gym/ball pit. If I recall they had a sliding board there too, but I never saw anyone using it. They had a lot of TV/movie viewing (which I didn't like). I would also suggest you search for the Kid's club daily activity sheets. I may have even posted them way back when. Although I'm sure somebody has more recent copies. That way you can see all the activities. They don't change much from week to week.

We've decided to not take my 22mo old DS's car seat on our 9-21-13 cruise.

 

If the hotel shuttle is a mini bus, I know it won't be a problem, but if it's a "van" will we be denied a transfer to our hotel?

 

Anyone else in the same boat? :D (lol) Any suggestions? This is our only concern, as we have booked a shuttle service (with car seats) to the port.

I'll spare you any additional condemnation.....you've gotten plenty of that already. :) Instead I'll try and answer your question. I doubt that they would deny you but they could. I know I've read stories on these boards where cab drivers turned them away but not van's. You could probably search to see if any instances exist or just call the hotel and ask.

In our house DH loathes to travel with the car seat. I prefer to be safe than sorry. We battle sometimes over bringing the seat so I plan a little bit more to save it being an issue. I've ridden on several shuttle vans in the state of Florida. Some have had seatbelts, some have not. Most have not had tethers. At least for the car seats I've owned, a tether is necessary to secure it properly. So, my husband uses this as a rationale for leaving it behind. For our upcoming cruise, I will book our own transportation. That will either provide car seats or be the larger mini-bus type. In ports, I have planned activities that we don't have to drive/ride anywhere. On the one day that we will, I plan to leave her with her grandparents on the ship. I was thinking about the Hop on, Hop off in Key West though hmmm........

I'm sure now you know that several topics raise the ire of cruisers on this board...tipping, chair hogs, smoking, children anywhere on the ships but kids clubs, :D and of course car seats.

Lighten up people!

We did back to back cruises on the Summit when DD was 3. She wasn't thrilled with it. I don't think they keep them as busy as Camp Carnival or Adventure Ocean. We didn't have any problems though she just didn't take to it the way I thought she would. If you look at my signature, I wrote reviews of the kid's club. I will say this, we went on the Millennium about a year or so later and some of the staff remembered her from our cruise on the Summit. Given how many children they encounter, I was impressed with that. If you have any specific questions, I'll try to answer them.

We bring both. I use the stroller most when we are off the ship and the baby carrier when we are onboard. While walking around the ship, we prefer to take the stairs to avoid waiting for the elevator. The carrier has the advantage. It also helps in tight spaces and crowds.

I'd almost always opt for a cruise over a land vacation. I feel they are the best value when all things are considered. My 5yr old is about to embark on her 10th cruise. Needless to say she enjoys it as well. As others have said, you get adult time (if you utilize the kids club). Someone else cooks and cleans for you. There are plenty of activities that are included in the price. Cruises are great.

Ironically, I've been reluctant to sail the Mexican Riviera though...there is just a lot going on in Mexico these days. We are waiting until things settle down a bit. I think if it were me I'd cruise the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaii is beautiful and cruising there was a great value. Everything is so expensive. We saved a bundle by being able to eat and reside on the ship.

No, I'm sorry I don't. We didn't play bingo at all this cruise.

does anyone know if they have bingo on the summit

Yes, they had bingo both weeks we were on the Summit.

Here is the link to the summit daily activities

http://www1.snapfish.com/snapfish/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=2415175016/a=11887482_11887482/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink/COBRAND_NAME=snapfish/

Here is the link to the kids club activities. I have the 3-5 age group every day. However, there is 1 day that I got all the age groups. It will at least give you an idea of what there is for the other kids.

http://www1.snapfish.com/snapfish/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=2415693016/a=11887482_11887482/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink/COBRAND_NAME=snapfish/