flyaway

My comment about having spent a lot of time in the parks was meant as a response to the statement that Disney knows something about keeping 3 and 12 year olds happy...I've spent a lot of time immersed in the Disney magic.

 

I didn't say I was unhappy with what they do...I said I don't understand it.

I think it is pretty easy to understand--they used to have firmer age groups, but they got too many complaints from parents who wanted their kids to be able to stay together.

Does Brilliance have the soda machines?

Thanks, guys-- I really appreciate the info.

We (DH, me, DD 3 1/2) are experienced Disney cruisers (plus a couple on Celebrity Century before DD), and we have just booked the cruise departing Christmas Eve with my husband's mother, brother, and nephew (9). It will be the first cruise for them. DH and I have been wanting to try RCI, but really because we are interested in the larger ships and all of the stuff the have to offer that is different from DCL. So Brilliance isn't exactly what we had in mind, but it worked best logistically. And we can tack on four nights at WDW first--we are DVC members, so it at least feels cheap to do so. :)

1. Can you guys reassure me that Brilliance will have lots to do and be great for kids?

2. Has anyone here sailed on this class of ships at Christmas? Are they still able to do some of the things I've seen listed elsewhere, like Christmas parades and a Santa visit? (Christmas will be a sea day, btw.)

My son loves to do bubbles on the balcony. We have also brought a small blow up pool for him on the balcony.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Do you fill it with water? How?

I don't suppose this would work-- I'd like to get the Amex 300 obc for suites, but it expires 6/30. This sale starts 7/1. No way to combine them by booking before 6/30 and then calling on 7/1 if our hypothetical cruise (looking for something next May on Breakaway or Dawn) is one of the ones that this discount is valid for?

We did the intensive, all in one weekend potty training, when DD was 27 months, and it worked for us! Same a mjkacmom described, except that there was no "test" for DD-- she peed all over the place that first morning. Especially on me, because she didn't like the splattering, so she would jump onto me and pee on my nice, absorbent clothes instead. And even sitting on the potty, the splattering sound of the pee scared her, and she'd jump right up. After the first few hours of this, I didn't know how it would ever work. But we broke the "rules" and got out some m&ms to bribe her to get her past her fear of the potty, and by the end of that first day, she was doing really well. We spent two days basically one on one in a room with her toys and a potty, with her pantsless. After that, she had the run of the house, but in a dress without underwear for a few days. By the end of the week, I'd say she was fully potty trained. She seriously never had accidents after that until a couple months later, when we moved. And even then it was just because she had so much fun in her new backyard that she needed more prompting from us to remind her to go inside to go potty sometimes.

If I were you, I'd give it a shot.

Has anyone out there sailed on Breakaway or Dawn with a child in this age range? How would you evaluate the kids' clubs, in terms of the activities offered, the staff, and the facilities?

I haven't been on the Fantasy, but we were on the Wonder and the Dream with our daughter when she was under 1 (and for a little bit of pixie dust, one of the nursery staff members we remembered well from the Wonder was the first person we saw at the nursery on the Dream six months later). We had fantastic experiences with the nursery on both occasions-- we used it a lot, actually, especially on our Alaska cruise when DD was 15 weeks. The nursery staff was very attentive and caring, and from what we could see at pick-up/drop-off, it seemed to be a pretty low-key and peaceful environment. Babies chilling, being held or in swings or seats, while the nursery staff colored with toddlers, with a Disney movie on in the background. They also have a big room in the back with cribs for sleeping.

Another thing to consider would be two connecting insides. We're doing this on our Liberty of the Seas cruise next year. Two connecting promenade staterooms were slightly cheaper than one balcony room, even with just a family of three.

Thank you!

So you guys think Playa Mia is better than Mr. Sanchos for this age? Does Playa Mia get too crowded?

Do they sometimes have toys in the 3-5 year old room and they were already taken?

Huge WDW and DCL fan here (with a 3.5-year-old). Could you do eight days? 4 days at the parks followed by 4 days on a cruise would be perfect. With kids as young as yours, 4 days at the park is great-- you could do one day per park or, if you park hop, do a day at MK, a day at Epcot, and then half-days at AK and MK and DHS and MK. :) (So much to do at MK for the little ones.) A four day cruise is nice, bc you get that day at sea and don't feel like you JUST got on the ship when it's time to get back off again.

How do you know if the cabin you booked has the sofa bed or just the bunk? We are in 8412 on Liberty with our preschooler.

(Cross-posted from RCI forum)

Hi guys,

We are currently booked for the 5-night Liberty of the Seas from NJ to Bermuda in May 2015. We have cruised about 6 times on Disney (Dream once and Magic/Wonder the rest of the times, including an upcoming trip in October) and twice on the Celebrity Century. We've actually been wanting to try RCI for awhile, because of all of the cool activities available onboard--ice skating, rock climbing, etc.

BUT--we can get a 7-night (with three days in Bermuda instead of two) on the Norwegian Dawn for slightly cheaper than we can do the 5-night on Liberty of the Seas. Or spend a bit more and get a suite on the Dawn. :)

What do you think? Would we be disappointed by the Dawn? How do you think the kids' programs compare for very small children (age 4)?

Thank you!

Hi guys,

We are currently booked for the 5-night Liberty of the Seas from NJ to Bermuda in May 2015. We have cruised about 6 times on Disney (Dream once and Magic/Wonder the rest of the times, including an upcoming trip in October) and twice on the Celebrity Century. We've actually been wanting to try RCI for awhile, because of all of the cool activities available onboard--ice skating, rock climbing, etc.

BUT--we can get a 7-night (with three days in Bermuda instead of two) on the Norwegian Dawn for slightly cheaper than we can do the 5-night on Liberty of the Seas. Our spend a bit more and get a suite on the Dawn. :)

What do you think? Would we be disappointed by the Dawn? How do you think the kids' programs compare for very small children (age 4)?

Thank you!

Thanks! I feel like Hampton Inn and Suites could be a good way to go if our family of three and my friend's family of four fly in at different times. The issue with all of us going to the hotel together is that the airport shuttle is a van (which, unlike a bus, requires car seats for small children), and the Hampton Inn only owns two car seats (I called). But it sounds like for port transfers most of the time (and particularly on Saturdays, which is good for us) they use a bus, so that would be great.

The hotel in the airport gets such mediocre to bad reviews that I'd like to stay elsewhere, but it might just not be worth the hassle to stay at another hotel, since we don't want to have to deal with one transportation headache Friday afternoon to get to our hotel and another Saturday morning, getting to port.

I also found that Top Shuttle has car seats (and they said three would be no problem). So we would probably be able to save a lot of $$$ over DCL transfers if we use them to the port, if Hampton Inn or similar doesn't work out. And definitely on the way back to the airport that will probably be a good option.

I wish it were like Vancouver, where they have an awesome hotel right upstairs from the port. It looks to me like all of the hotels near the port would still require a cab in the morning.

We will be a party of 7 -- 4 adults and three three-year olds. We would prefer not to travel with three bulky car seats and have to store them in our cabins. Does that mean we are limited to cruise line (Disney) transfers? Or have you guys heard of any car services that will provide car seats? Any other options?

Since we want to fly in the day before, will there be any issue if we stay in the hotel inside the Miami airport? Like, DCL won't give us a hard time about using their transfers because we won't be coming directly off a flight, right?

Thank you!!