Sooner-Cruisers

Jan 17th for us as well! - Are you on the roll call?

I always forget about the roll call, I'll check it out.

The first time we took our lo, she was barely two. Someone mentioned we could probably not have to pay since she was so close to the cutoff. Before we went, that seemed reasonable, but once there all the crew and staff were so great to her. We felt like they deserved it, but at two she was served food and drinks. Definitely different than an infant.

We'll be on the January 17 sailing, what about you all?

They don't care about your child's safety. We travel with a lightweight car seat, it was only $39 at Walmart, cosco Scenera. I've also heard good things about Safety 1st Guide 65. We've done 2 cruises with a car seat, if a cab doesn't have seat belts out, we just catch the next one, no biggie. Have a great trip!

I'm sure the parents were doing the best they could, It doesn't sound from your description that it was nonstop. Babies are babies, most of us have been there and extend compassion.

I think you guys should've requested a different table if you were disturbed.

I am trying to round up items needed for our cruise. We will be taking our toddler.mhe has been on a cruise before, but was only 8 months at the time. We overpacked on that trip. ;) He currently uses a potty chair, but I know that will not be practical to bring. What about bringing a potty seat (just the seat part) that is made to fit on the big toilet? Has anyone brought one, and did it fit on the Carnival toilets?

What else would you recommend as a "definitely pack" for a 2-3 year old? We are bringing his essentials (clothes, undies, wet wipes, shoes, etc) a few sand/beach toys, his leap pad (for the long drive), an umbrella stroller, a toddler backpack with a tether, (aka child leash for ports lol) some snack pouches, and we are allowing him to bring one small stuffed animal and a book for bedtime. Do you recommend anything else?

I asked this for our April cruise on the family board and got a large range of answers. I ended up buying a really cheap small plastic potty chair and carried it on board in my beach bag. I was worried, but no one even noticed. It worked just fine. I think it was $5 on Amazon.

The puddle jumper is amazing & we travel with a lightweight car seat.

Breast milk or formula will still be your baby's number one source of nourishment. You could always hold off or start with something you know they'll have like bananas.

We started our lo on solids at 6 months, she probably had a tbsp once a day, nothing that would really require a plan or change.

Have a great cruise! :)

On our first cruise with lo, she had just turned 2. We had them bring the pad from the pack and play and made a pallet on the ground with her pillow and blanket from home. That was in an inside room with no couch on carnival. It worked good, but it's definitely easier with the couch.

Hi all. I've had some really difficult things happen in my life recently and I won't be able to finish this review.

 

If you'd like to see photos of the final sea day, they are located here.

I'm really sorry, sending you all the best. It was kind of you to update us.

Playa Mia is great for kids in Cozumel, the ship likely has an excursion or you can book cheaper on your own.

Mja1209,

All the activities take place in Camp Ocean, the link below has good info about how meals work. The meals are in the Lido, in a roped off section just for them.

https://help.carnival.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1074

Too funny, we are going again in January on the Magic and driving from OKC. We usually stop in Dallas for the night, then the next day stop at a playground at Sonic for a play break around the halfway mark.

We pack the iPad with games that don't require wifi, crayons, coloring book, dolls, manga doodle, sticker books, etc. It's not easy to keep them entertained that long!

We brought baby Advil and a baby allergy medicine and powdered pedialyte. We didn't need any of it, but better safe than sorry.

We brought her blanket, pillow, lovey and a bedtime story. She liked climbing around and playing in the empty lounges during the day and we had grandparents there to help entertain.

It went really well, she had just turned two. We went again when she was three and it was even better. Good luck, hope you have a great trip!

We bought a Cosco Scenera for cruise travel, it was $39 at Walmart. It's super lightweight and easy to cart around.

Enjoying your review!

I'm so sorry for your loss.

The nice thing about interiors is they tend to be cooler since they don't have the heat from the sun. I don't mind not having a window as much as the size of the rooms. They tend to be quite a bit smaller. They do provide a nice savings. Good luck. :)

We just booked for next September and I have the same concerns! I am so excited but since I am the vacation planner in the family, everyone else just goes along for the ride so I really don't want them to be disappointed. We have such a mixed group so I hope everyone can be happy. I am sure my kids and I will have a great time. Hopefully my step dad who prefers some quiet and my brother in law who found himself bored on his last cruise and is also bringing a near three year old along will find food and activities to keep them satisfied.

 

 

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I'm in the same position. My husband and I took our toddler in April and it was great. This January the grandparents on both sides are joining us.

The serenity deck (adults only) is great for quiet, there is also a library that seemed quiet too.

We were never bored, our 3 yr old loved camp ocean and the little kid water slides. There was a great mix of varied entertainment throughout the day we thought. There is also basketball, mini golf and a high ropes course.

Good luck!

Also I have both the interior room on the deck one which is the lowest part of the deck midship though so I was wondering if that's a good deck according to the deck layout it looks to be good but it is the lowest deck I wonder if I will hear the water at the boat really hard since it's the lowest that on the ship. Has anyone booked a room on the carnival magic on the lowest deck before?

 

 

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We had a deluxe ocean view on deck 1 on the Magic in April, it's great! Pretty quiet, plus you're just on the lowest guest deck, the crew are on the floor below that.

Puddle jumpers are awesome! It's bulky to pack but we always do. They are good up to 50 lbs.

We bought a super lightweight one special for the cruise, it was only $40 from Walmart (cosco Scenera). We carried it on, no issue at all. We dropped it in our room, it fit perfectly in the bottom of the closet. We've been on 2 cruises with our child and took the car seat both times. It's not hard to find seat belts. We waited in the taxi line, one didn't have seatbelts, but the next one did. That was the only time we encountered that.

Make sure you practice installing the seat so you can be fast.

There are strong feelings on both sides of the car seat issue. Frankly, bringing the car seat is nonnegotiable for us. We did buy a cheap lightweight Cosco Scenera from Walmart for about $40. It's great for cruising and easy to install. Practice at home so you're a pro. We've never had problems finding a van/taxi with seatbelts.

The only other things we brought were her pillow, blanket, doll, bedtime story and dollar store items to entertain her at dinner.

*If you're only going on large buses or motor coaches, you can skip bringing the car seat.

Have a great trip!

I choose the ov on deck 1, no cons at all.

So we are taking our toddler with us on our very first cruise. DH is a bit scared to leave her with the camp. I personally think she would have fun. Can we stay with her for a bit to ease his mind?

Camp Ocean is one of the first places we go after boarding, we went in looked around together, talked to the manager, got a schedule and played for a few minutes.

I wrote a full review of Camp Ocean from our magic trip, I'll link it.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2199649

I think most important is to apply liberally and reapply often. We usually use Coppertone water babies. Last cruise we relied on spray sunscreen (diff brand) it didn't work as good, this time I think we'll do a base of lotion and touch ups with the spray.

We went on the Magic in April, it was a great ship. There was always lots to do, mini golf, ropes course, basketball court, teen room, arcade, water slides, pools and more. I think your family would enjoy it. Good luck in your decision. :)