Looking advice for taking teenager

[doemichael]

We are 99% sure we are taking teenage stepson with us in cruise next year. I know there is a games room but would like to limit what he spends in there, can we do this ?

 

We will get him soft drinks package so apart from games room and Ben and Jerrys is there anything else he would need to charge his seapass with ? He is NOT allowed to use internet onboard as far to expensive. I learn from my time using it on Voyager lol

 

Can I set up his seapass as cash and not link it to our credit card?

 

thanks

[Schooner Bar Girl]

Yes you can. Do you not have a good relationship with your stepson??? I have brought my kids on cruises with me and I have always told them what they were allowed to spend each day and explained to them to keep their receipts so they could keep track. I have taught them the value of money from an early age and they have always kept within the limits that I've set for them. It's a simple matter of rules and respect. They are now 16 and 19 and very responsible young men.:)

[Cre]

I was thinking I would do the same thing with my daughter. We have a great relationship. I'd just feel better if I put cash on her card because she's not so good at keeping up with things. I'm glad someone asked this question.

[doemichael]

Yes you can. Do you not have a good relationship with your stepson???

 

Yes I do have good relationship but when he goes on holiday his holiday spends is split in to the number of days, just do not want to tempt things by giving him full use of on board account.

 

Thanks for your reply, :rolleyes:

[newbiecruiser09]

We are taking our kids (DS12 and DD6) in March. Have told them they have a limit for the cruise and once it's gone, it's gone. Am hoping to put cash down for their account so in case they "go crazy" it will be limited.

[doemichael]

I'm glad to see I am not the only one thinking about this. When my 19 and 21 year old went with us last year they checked before charging anything to the account as we just linked all 4 cards together.

[hoop4321]

there really isn't much to buy on board....johnny rockets can add up, but other than that, our son wasn't interested in buying anything. We give him $5 a day, if he wants to add to it, he supplements it with his own money. He spent $10.00 on video games and $10.00 at johnny rockets. Was uninterested in any of the trinkets/t shirts what-not, and came back with money in his pocket. He was addicted to the "mock-tails", but would wait until he was with us to request one, and they went on our cards...never ordered any while out and about. Hit the soft serve pretty hard though...probably why we are hearing about RCCL cutbacks....lol:)

[Schooner Bar Girl]

Yes I do have good relationship but when he goes on holiday his holiday spends is split in to the number of days, just do not want to tempt things by giving him full use of on board account.

 

Thanks for your reply, :rolleyes:

 

You are most welcome! I believe in teaching responsibility and respect.......if these values are instilled in young ones than a parent shouldn't have to worry about said "temptations" or the respect and responsibility is not there.:rolleyes:

[hoop4321]

You are most welcome! I believe in teaching responsibility and respect.......if these values are instilled in young ones than a parent shouldn't have to worry about said "temptations" or the respect and responsibility is not there.:rolleyes:

 

i agree to a point.....everyone has made a poor choice, and teens make their fair share. To alleviate temptations does not mean that you don't have a good relationship with a child. I applaud the parent for thinking ahead.

[MrsPete]

I tell my kids what they're allowed to spend, and they listen. It's not been a problem, but then over-spending is not a problem area for me and my kids.

 

I would have one concern: I've heard that if kids are allowed to use the internet, sometimes they neglect to log out. That means other people could come along and use your account. I can imagine my kids doing that accidentally.

[Future_focusMOM]

We are 99% sure we are taking teenage stepson with us in cruise next year. I know there is a games room but would like to limit what he spends in there, can we do this ?

 

We will get him soft drinks package so apart from games room and Ben and Jerrys is there anything else he would need to charge his seapass with ? He is NOT allowed to use internet onboard as far to expensive. I learn from my time using it on Voyager lol

 

Can I set up his seapass as cash and not link it to our credit card?

 

thanks

 

While on Navigator, we put a $50 spending limit on the SeaPass card for our teen. All she spent it on was Ben & Jerry's, the Arcade and Johnny Rockets restaurant. Amazingly enough, she didn't spend it all so the balance went as a credit on our final statement.

 

Where are you from in Northern Ireland? My husband's Father is from Bangor.

[Kaboochi]

You don't need a soda package. Kids can get lemonade all day long. There is the kids club for his age where he will meet friends. Have him keep all of the elecctronics at home and enjoy a trip with the family.

[Keri's Cruisin']

Cruised on Mariner of the Seas last year with my 2 sons ages 17 and 11. Went to purser's desk at check in and put $50 cash each in their accounts. Bought them both Soda Cards. They used their money at Johnny Rockets and in the Arcade. When the money was gone it was gone. I trust my kids too but come on, they can get carried away so I recommend putting a set cash amount on the Seapass card and when it's gone, it's gone.

[Ambrosia64]

Some parents allow their teens to drink soda :cool:

 

You don't need a soda package. Kids can get lemonade all day long. There is the kids club for his age where he will meet friends. Have him keep all of the elecctronics at home and enjoy a trip with the family.

[uksimonusa]

our first few cruises, we told our daughter what she could spend, and she never went over, checked every day on the tv, if she wanted to buy anything big, t-shirt, gift shop gift for friend etc, she always came to ask first, now we don't even mention the amount and she still sticks to it.

 

Internet, in the kids club, is not actually that bad, at 25c per min it's less than half the adults price

[treber02]

While on our cruise last year I spotted my 19 year old son sitting at a blackjack table. I had put his account on my credit card.

I turned around and went to Guest Relations. They checked my card and he had done four $50 withdrawals at the casino.

I went back into the Casino and told my son it was time to meet for dinner. I didn't want to embarrass him in front of the other players. He cashed out $86 in chips at this time.

In private I questioned him and asked him why he kept making withdrawals. He said he kept thinking he would win it back.

My son is a great kid and I never told him not to do this. I just never considered that he would. I told him no more casino and he complied.

To show him that I still trusted him I left him on my card for the rest of the cruise and he was fine. No other unwanted charges, actually I think there were no other charges at all.

He paid us back as soon as we got home. I wasn't mad because everyone can make a mistake and he learned a good lesson. I was lucky that I saw him when I did.

He has commented since that he just caught up in the excitement of it all and was glad that I pulled him away.

[akcruz]

I agree with most of what has been posted here, but have to say the #1 thing to do is talk to your kids before boarding and make sure they are aware of the rules. Will they follow them 100% of the time, probably not, but you do have recourse if they don't. We have done this with each cruise and only on the first did my son not follow the rules as he was supposed to. As soon as he disobeyed there were consequences. He hasn't done it again!

 

As far as soda cards, we buy them for our kids. I would rather spend the money and have them be able to get something to drink wherever they are without having to charge it. I will post a contract we have used with our kids (and continue to update as we find new things). One of the items in it is do not let your drink out of your sight. If they are involved in an activity and don't keep an eye on it, it is much easier to go back to a bar and get a new soda then have to run to find a free drink elsewhere each time. The soda card allows them to do this.

 

One last comment, you can check the activity on their seapass on most ships on the TV. We sit down each night with our kids and review. If they charged something they shouldn't again there are consequences. They know this and watch what they spend.

 

Here is the contract we've used

 

First of all we want all of us to have fun. This should be a relaxing, enjoyable vacation. We hope that noting our expectations and rules before we depart will avoid any misunderstandings on-board. Note that violation of these rules will result in you being required to stay with us or in your cabin and therefore you will not be able to participate in any of the teen activities. These rules are not in place to say that we do not trust you, but to ensure we can all enjoy our trip.

• You are not to enter any cabins other than ours. It does not matter if it is the cabin of a new friend or someone we know (unless one of us expressly approves this).

• No one else is to enter our cabins.

 

• If you are in your cabin alone – hang the do not disturb sign on the door. This should prevent any RCCL employee from entering. Please ensure you remove it when you leave the room.

• You are not to drink any beverage unless it is handed to you by a family member or an RCCL staff member. You are not to drink from anything you have let out of your sight. Some people have been known to slip drugs into other people’s drinks. This is a lifelong rule that should be followed in any social situation.

 

• We expect to know where you are on the ship. We will use notes in our cabin to let each other know where we can be found.

• You are not to loiter or play in the stairwells, hallways, or elevators. Activities such as “knock and run” or calling other cabins to hang up will not be tolerated.

 

• We will decide on a curfew each night. The ship’s curfew is 1 AM since you are under 18. We have the right to require you to be in the cabin earlier if we feel the need.

• Your Sea Pass is tied to my credit card. It is to be used only by you. You may not buy other people drinks, snacks, arcade games, or souvenirs. You have a budget of $xx. If you exceed this budget without our approval, you will need to reimburse us.

• If you loose your Seapass you are to immediately notify one of us.

 

• We expect to eat dinner together most nights. There is flexibility if there is an alternate activity you would prefer to attend as long as we have discussed it in advance (at least that morning).

• If there are kids you would prefer to hang out with instead of the teen club, I need to meet them.

• If you order room service, you must tip the delivery person. We will provide a small amount of money for this.

 

• If we arrange a check-in time and you miss it then you are “grounded” for the next 24 hours. This means that you must stay with us or in your cabin.

 

• No visits to the outside areas of the upper deck at night alone.

 

• Put anything of value into the cabin safe. Cell phones are only to be taken out of the safe when we ask you to. Texts and calls are expensive and not in your budget.

• Do not leave the ship without one of us.

[MrsPete]

I agree with most of what has been posted here, but have to say the #1 thing to do is talk to your kids before boarding and make sure they are aware of the rules. Will they follow them 100% of the time, probably not, but you do have recourse if they don't. We have done this with each cruise and only on the first did my son not follow the rules as he was supposed to. As soon as he disobeyed there were consequences. He hasn't done it again!

 

As far as soda cards, we buy them for our kids. I would rather spend the money and have them be able to get something to drink wherever they are without having to charge it. I will post a contract we have used with our kids (and continue to update as we find new things). One of the items in it is do not let your drink out of your sight. If they are involved in an activity and don't keep an eye on it, it is much easier to go back to a bar and get a new soda then have to run to find a free drink elsewhere each time. The soda card allows them to do this.

 

One last comment, you can check the activity on their seapass on most ships on the TV. We sit down each night with our kids and review. If they charged something they shouldn't again there are consequences. They know this and watch what they spend.

 

Here is the contract we've used

 

First of all we want all of us to have fun. This should be a relaxing, enjoyable vacation. We hope that noting our expectations and rules before we depart will avoid any misunderstandings on-board. Note that violation of these rules will result in you being required to stay with us or in your cabin and therefore you will not be able to participate in any of the teen activities. These rules are not in place to say that we do not trust you, but to ensure we can all enjoy our trip.

 

• You are not to enter any cabins other than ours. It does not matter if it is the cabin of a new friend or someone we know (unless one of us expressly approves this).

 

• No one else is to enter our cabins.

 

 

• If you are in your cabin alone – hang the do not disturb sign on the door. This should prevent any RCCL employee from entering. Please ensure you remove it when you leave the room.

 

• You are not to drink any beverage unless it is handed to you by a family member or an RCCL staff member. You are not to drink from anything you have let out of your sight. Some people have been known to slip drugs into other people’s drinks. This is a lifelong rule that should be followed in any social situation.

 

 

• We expect to know where you are on the ship. We will use notes in our cabin to let each other know where we can be found.

 

• You are not to loiter or play in the stairwells, hallways, or elevators. Activities such as “knock and run” or calling other cabins to hang up will not be tolerated.

 

 

• We will decide on a curfew each night. The ship’s curfew is 1 AM since you are under 18. We have the right to require you to be in the cabin earlier if we feel the need.

 

• Your SeaPass is tied to my credit card. It is to be used only by you. You may not buy other people drinks, snacks, arcade games, or souvenirs. You have a budget of $xx. If you exceed this budget without our approval, you will need to reimburse us.

 

• If you loose your Seapass you are to immediately notify one of us.

 

 

• We expect to eat dinner together most nights. There is flexibility if there is an alternate activity you would prefer to attend as long as we have discussed it in advance (at least that morning).

 

• If there are kids you would prefer to hang out with instead of the teen club, I need to meet them.

 

• If you order room service, you must tip the delivery person. We will provide a small amount of money for this.

 

 

• If we arrange a check-in time and you miss it then you are “grounded” for the next 24 hours. This means that you must stay with us or in your cabin.

 

 

• No visits to the outside areas of the upper deck at night alone.

 

 

• Put anything of value into the cabin safe. Cell phones are only to be taken out of the safe when we ask you to. Texts and calls are expensive and not in your budget.

 

• Do not leave the ship without one of us.

These are very, very similar to our family's rules. The "stay out of cabins" is #1 on our personal safety list, and I like the way you worded the "watch what you drink" rule. I hadn't thought of the "hang the do not disturb sign", but it's a good idea. Our kids aren't allowed to stay out anywhere near the ship's curfew; they don't have to be in bed, but they can't be out and about -- especially in dark, isolated areas of the ship.

 

Two other things that we insist upon:

Because other people are next door, all music be kept at a low level.

Do not accept alcohol from anyone; if you're hanging around with kids who begin drinking, leave.

[sueb]

Love the above rules..thanks for posting. Been cruising with Kids and their friends (Now 16 and 18) since they were little and have used similar rules each time. I print them out and go over them with everyone before we go. So far so good although my daughter mentioned the casino the other day....need to revamp the rules for her...Yikes!

[newbiecruiser09]

THanks so much for posting the contract you use. We are taking our kids for the first time this March and it is great not it have to "reinvent the wheel". I appreciate it!

[marci22]

I never give my kids charging privileges. I buy the soda card and they really don't need other spending money.

 

You can add cash at the arcade by inserting cash into the machine and then running their seapass through it. That way you can add more each day if you want to.

[Candleonwater]

This will be the first cruise for DD as a teenager. Reading those rules... scares the crap out of me! I've been lucky that, for the most part, her spending habits on the ship are Air Hockey, Specialty Coffees and Bingo. This will be a fun, educational trip for me!

[derrick22]

While on our cruise last year I spotted my 19 year old son sitting at a blackjack table. I had put his account on my credit card. turned around and went to Guest Relations. They checked my card and he had done four $50 withdrawals at the casino. I went back into the Casino and told my son it was time to meet for dinner. I didn't want to embarrass him in front of the other players. He cashed out $86 in chips at this time. In private I questioned him and asked him why he kept making withdrawals. He said he kept thinking he would win it back.

My son is a great kid and I never told him not to do this. I just never considered that he would. I told him no more casino and he complied.

To show him that I still trusted him I left him on my card for the rest of the cruise and he was fine. No other unwanted charges, actually I think there were no other charges at all. He paid us back as soon as we got home. I wasn't mad because everyone can make a mistake and he learned a good lesson. I was lucky that I saw him when I did. He has commented since that he just caught up in the excitement of it all and was glad that I pulled him away.

 

Thanks for that story. My DS 19 is going in March with us. In the past he has always been good with spending money on board but he has never been old enough for the casino. I will have a talk with him.

 

Denise

[seashiner]

We have taken our 4 children on 2 cruises... first one they were between 10-12 and the second 14-16. We do not give them spending priviledges.. We trust them but its just too tempting. We do give them the soda cards which is wonderful.. they were able to get Shirley Temples whenever they wanted. They could add money to the card for arcades and there was no reason to spend other money.. they had as much food as they could possibly want. We let them have a midnight curfew in which we tucked them in every night. The only other rules were the buddy system, since we had 4 that was not an issue and NOONE was to enter our cabin and they were NOT to enter anyone elses cabin under any circumstances.

 

The kids had a blast and had no complaints with the restricted sea pass or rules.

[StlGal]

We always buy our kids a soda card and give them a preset spending limit and whatever they have left after the cruise is over they get to keep. It's amazing how frugal they can be with their spending when they know they get to keep the remainder. :p Of course if they go over, then they have to pay us back. This has only happened once.