laiki

2 hours ago, mickey16 said:

This is my first post after lurking for a bit, but I actually have experience in this arena so I thought I'd jump in. And what interesting replies I've read on this thread!

 

At the end of the day, you really have to decide what kind of vacation are you going on, is it a family vacation, or is it a couples vacation. If it's a couple's thing, then you know what to do. If it's a family vacation, then you really have to think about your child and what they can and can't handle. Ignore the people saying you shouldn't take your child or a stroller. It's a family cruise line, period. I'm not saying to be disrespectful and ignore your child if they're screaming in MDR, but if someone wants to ensure they don't have children around, there are vacation tours that cater to that group of people.

 

My daughter is 2.5 now and we've taken her on my trips since she was very young. I wanted her to learn how to travel and behave in public. I just dragged her all over London last week and she was fine. At the same time though, she's 2, and as some might believe, they are not little adults. You have to know when to hold em and when to fold em. If she gets tired, hungry, has a meltdown, we act accordingly, we don't try to force her into adult schedules or situations. That's what you have to keep in mind when going on a family vacation.

 

We went on 2 cruises last year, Oasis and Enchantment. She would have been 20 months, and 2 yrs old for each of those. I was with her by myself for the 7 day Oasis, and her dad was with us on the 3 day Enchantment. Oasis was an Owners Suite, and Enchantment, Jr Suite. Did not use any child care on either of them. I packed little toys, coloring books, the tablet with pre-downloaded movies, and took lots of snacks that she likes. We went to MDR each evening and she glazed over as soon as we turned on Boss Baby, no sound necessary for her. It went smoothly, no tears. We scheduled early shows, and if she got antsy during, I would leave. I took a stroller, a smaller one, and I'm proud to say I didn't run anyone over. 🙂 For my trip last week out of the country I got a Pockit stroller which folds up super tiny, and I'm taking that on my next cruise for the instances where the elevators are too busy, we can just fold it and walk the stairs.

 

It's important to note that if a child is in diapers there's a ridiculously tiny area in which they can go in at the pool area. They cannot have access to the whole kids area or the main pool, and they're super strict about it. It was such a bummer that we only went once on each cruise because my daughter got upset that she couldn't do it all. The Oasis was great for her because there's a lot to do, the carousel, play areas, places to run around. Enchantment was kind of boring for all of us. Definitely more of a weekend party cruise, or couples cruise.

 

There are some downsides, like missing the evening entertainment, or the port shopping sessions during her nap time each day, but I still had a blast. It's more fun for me to have her and tone down my vacation than to not have her with me and worry about her the whole time, or miss her badly. We were about to head out on Oasis this Sunday, but that's now rescheduled to Harmony in June, which we're really excited about. This year we're definitely going to check out the child care for a few hours here and there to do a few adult things, so it's nice to have the option.

I just got the pockit plus for a trip to Maine this summer and I love how small it folds down!  Thanks for all of the information.  I think we will switch to a boat that has more services for his age.  I was a little disappointed about the pool situation since we already are doing swim classes but I understand that they can't really drain and fill the pool at sea like swim schools can if there is an accident.  Traveling has always been a big part of my life, I can't imagine not experiencing it with my son, he's already flown 3 separate roundtrip flights and been to 3 states.  It's been an adjustment but my hope is that he will grow up loving it and learning how to act in many different situations.

11 minutes ago, GalwayGirl03 said:

He became really into tv shows around 2.5 but he also has 2 older siblings which he emulates!  We don't use headphones b/c he won't keep them on..we either have it muted or on very low.  What type of room are you staying in?  We have always done Family ocean views, JS or Grand Suites..but the cruise next week is an interior....god help me with 5 of us in an interior but the price was too good to pass up and we only bough  the cruise 60 days out so none of our go to rooms were left!!  

We have a balcony booked and I think we will either do a balcony or a Junior Suite when we switch it.  I like ocean view just fine but didn't consider how he would do with sleeping at that age.  Right now he sleeps 11.5 hours with a white noise machine and we have been fine covering his pack and play to block light and keeping TV sound on low but not sure how that will change when he's older.  I did an interior once and I slept all the time, I couldn't seem to adjust!

14 minutes ago, GalwayGirl03 said:

I understand your reservations for sailing Adventure without a nursery.  We are sailing her in December and we didn't realize she didn't have a nursery until after we booked but luckily our youngest will be 3.5 by then...just need to get him potty trained!!!

 

Some of the other comments have been awful.  I have traveled with all three of my kids on all my cruises except one.  The first one was when my youngest was 17 months.  We only used the nursery for one afternoon just to get some solo adult time but that was it.  You just have to change your perspective for the cruise.  Our older kids love AO so they love going there but we always had our toddler with us.  We couldn't do night shows on the cruise b/c we were always up early and down early.  You know your kid and how they will handle the cruise.  

 

My toddler has been on three cruises, 17 months, 2, 2.5 and he will be on one next week right before he is 3 and it has been great! The MDR staff is wonderful and attentive...but we also bring out IPAD that has his favorite shows downloaded. We also always do the early dinner too.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions I would be happy to help.

Thank you!  My little guy is only 6 months right now and therefore is happily entertained by a few toys on planes, in restaurants etc. if we adjust times and durations.  When did you find that your toddler became interested in shows/apps on the ipad?  Did you just give something with no sound or were there headphones that worked for young ages?  I would want to minimize the disruption to tables around us via sound as much as possible.

13 minutes ago, rimmit said:

And i stated in the other post, we have spent thousands of dollars in nursery time.  We loved it, and they loved our kids.  Every baby/toddler is different though but thankfully our two children enjoyed their time in the nursery.

 

You are allowed to book a set number of hours on embarkation day.  This varies ship to ship and based on how many babies/toddlers on board.  Typically between 10-20 hours on the initial day and sometimes extended to day #2.  After that they open up booking to whatever you want after everyone has had a chance to book.

 

It is $6/hour before 6pm and $8/ hour after 6pm.  

 

You can leave for an excursion.  And they will open up early if need be to accommodate an excursion. 

 

Every ship hip has different hours for nursery time.  The smaller ships are a little limited often only having open play in the afternoon and being open in the AM.  This is annoying if you want to put your little one in the nursery during nap time in the afternoon.

 

We used the nursery mostly at night and sometimes during naptime.  

 

The nursery tends to get the most full on formal nights and sea days especially toward the ends of the cruise.  Many times we have met parents who said they weren’t comfortable with the nursery at the beginning of the cruise l,  but after taking care of an infant for 5 straight days on a cruise ship toward the end they start using it at the end and we see them happily sitting in the hot tub child free.   So the nursery tends to book up at the end more than the beginning.  For this reason we typically use our initial allotment of hours for formal nights and then reserving later sea days as the beginning of a cruise most parents are less apt to put their child in the nursery.  This is a pretty consistent phenomenon we have found.

 

We obviously used it again until our daughter aged out last year.  We had one final go around as after she turned 3 she didn’t quite fly in AO as she had a couple accidents.  The staff loved her and wanted to give her one more try as they truly loved having her around but we just felt more comfortable having her in the nursery.  She was potty trained but I think the excitement and different environment threw her off.

 

Keep in mind not all nurseries are created equal.  Some are huge and have tons of space,  some are the size of maybe 3 inside cabins and that is being generous.  Capacity varies by ship but can be 4-16 babies at a time.

Thank you!  Are there any ships that you remember that you would generally recommend as better nurseries?  Or that had better splash pads etc?

 

My thought is to let him spend some time in there on an early sea day to make sure he does okay before leaving him for an excursion.  If he doesn't do well we can cancel the excursion and gear more towards him.  Any other suggestions for leaving him in the nursery during an excursion?

For those of you who have utilized the Royal Caribbean nursery as a parent/grandparent traveling with a baby under 3: how was the experience for you?  How much time was available to book for childcare?  Were you able to leave the ship for an excursion and leave toddler in the nursery?  Would you use it again, why or why not?

 

Please note that I am only looking for experiences from parents/grandparents etc. who have used this service.  I am not looking for opinions about what kind of mother I am for wanting to use it or how you never used it but think kids should stay at home etc. 

29 minutes ago, spookwife said:

Strollers: umbrellas are GREAT.  take up little space and  can easily maneuver on board.   its the giant behemoths that have room for a 200 pound Great Dane  with stuff hanging everywhere that we have problems with.

 

since the ship being considered has no  nursery. it will be basically  be a zero  adult alone time vacation.   for some that's okay, for others, its a nightmare.  and I am firmly in the camp  of ' 'parents  need alone adult time in order to be better parents '

 

 also factor in the fact that you need to schlep along EVERYTHINg you  need for a week at home.. and then double it.   there is very little on board to replenish your stock and what there is is stupidly expensive.  

 

does the ship have a splash zone  for the  non potty trained set?   

 

if you are dead set  on bringing Junior, book a ship that HAS a nursery. even one night  with just you and the spousal unit can do wonders.  

 I think you're right and we should switch to a cruise with a nursery.  Lesson learned, I had no idea that there were no options on a few ships (since they eliminated in-room babysitting).

My husband and I currently have a cruise booked for a Southern Caribbean itinerary for next February on Adventure of the Seas.  Our plan was to bring our then 17 month old son.  But, I'm noticing that there is no nursery on the Adventure of the Seas and it seems like no babysitting option.  Can anybody share any recent experiences?  We LOVE the itinerary but trying to decide if we should stick with this itinerary if there is really no services for our toddler, switch to a more family friendly ship, or see if we can leave him with a relative.  Any experiences?

Does anyone know what time you can normally board? I know in Miami, you can always board several hours before the posted time. Does anyone know if this is true for Vancouver?

You have a number of options but if the weather is good you may enjoy a trip to the Capilano Suspension Bridge followed by a ride up Grouse Mountain where you may even care to have dinner over looking the city.

 

www.capbridge.com/

http://www.grousemountain.com/Summer/summer-activities/

 

Thank you for the suggestions, these both look really scenic and fun. What would you suggest if the weather is foggy or rainy?

We are arriving in to Vancouver very late on a Monday in late May. We are staying at the airport Fairmont for convenience and then transferring to our downtown hotel at noon the next day (Tuesday). We will probably be all settled in to our hotel by 2pm.

 

On Wednesday we are doing the HOHO and Thursday we are doing a day full of biking and exploration of Stanley Park.

 

What would be your suggestion to do on Tuesday after we settle into our hotel? We are fine being out after dark and we have a decent budget (we aren't millionaires but it is our honeymoon so we do have a bit of flexibility).

 

Thanks in advance!

I am also planning on biking the seawall. On the Stanley park website there is an email address to request a brochure. I filled it out and in just over a week got a nice brochure and map of Stanley park.

I will be traveling to Lynn Canyon Park in May. I'm a little interested in visiting Lynn Canyon Park. However, we are staying at the Opus hotel and are not renting a car.

 

Any ideas on the best way to reach Lynn Canyon along with associated fees?

 

Is it worth it?

 

Thanks in advance!