Some probably silly kids questions

[amcb]

Hi all.

 

We will be sailing with DS(4.5) and DD(2.75) on the NCL Sun in March and I had a few questions.

 

In the dining rooms, do they bring the kids drinks in plastic or glass cups, straw or no straw, lid or no lid? Our kids love to eat out (especially at nicer places) and are relatively well behaved, but I want to be ready to assist if the cups are made of glass.

 

Evening shows - are the musical ones appropriate for little ones? I figured we'd avoid the comedy shows, but thought they might enjoy the musical ones.

 

Lounges/bars - If they also serve food, are children allowed to eat there?

 

I think that's it for the moment, but would appreciate any other practical thoughts.

 

:-) amcb

[russianmom]

In the dining rooms it's glass, the buffet has plastic as does the kids buffet

Musicals are great for kids, my 4yo loves them

Not sure which bars/lounges are on the Sun... but my guess is they probably do not serve anything for a meal... I have heard about ?popcorn maybe?

[Kerry's Girls]

I always brought sippy or straw cups along for my kids as the dining room only has large glass water goblets that are awkward.

 

Best,

Mia

[cb at sea]

Most lounges don't have "food"...they may have pretzels, popcorn, etc....bar food. Kid's may accompany parents to most bars.

The kids will love the production shows...the music, lights, costumes...take them!

[IttaBit]

Pack a sippy cup or two and bring them with you at mealtime. We did this when we took our then 3 yr old daughter and it saved us from many mishaps.

[newbiecruiser09]

When mine were younger I would save up some of the plastic cups with lids you get at restaurants at home and bring a few whenever we traveled(along with some straws). They also work great if the kids want a drink by their beds. When the trip was over, the cups went in the trash.

[Mom2B&Z]

with our two boys aged 5.5 and 3.

You could probably grab a plastic glass from the buffet on the way to the dining rooms, otherwise we had them bring the boys milk in tall glasses with straws which was fine with them. Beware, we had a hard time finding teaspoons in the main dining room, it was really quite funny to watch our 3yo eat soup with a full sized soup spoon! Try the strawberry soup if you see it :)

We went to two of the evening shows, one was a variety of musicals and the other was the crew talent show on the last night. Both boys enjoyed both shows, we'll probably bring them to more shows on the next cruise. The kids club went to the variety show on the last night, so that's an option too.

We had drinks a few times in the Observation Lounge, and the kids were definitely welcome. The band one night asked DS1 if he wanted to play the drums after they finished one of their sets! He loved it...

If you think of anything else, just ask :) We loved the Sun!

 

Hi all.

 

We will be sailing with DS(4.5) and DD(2.75) on the NCL Sun in March and I had a few questions.

 

In the dining rooms, do they bring the kids drinks in plastic or glass cups, straw or no straw, lid or no lid? Our kids love to eat out (especially at nicer places) and are relatively well behaved, but I want to be ready to assist if the cups are made of glass.

 

Evening shows - are the musical ones appropriate for little ones? I figured we'd avoid the comedy shows, but thought they might enjoy the musical ones.

 

Lounges/bars - If they also serve food, are children allowed to eat there?

 

I think that's it for the moment, but would appreciate any other practical thoughts.

 

:-) amcb

[rjm11]

when we were on the NCL Pearl last summer I swear they had plastic cups for the kids... they were those clear plastic ones with lids and straws.... am I making this up? I'll double check with my hubby to see what he recalls, but I was pretty sure they brought the drinks for the kids in half-size plastic cups.

 

Except that my daughter caught on to ordering hot chocolate... which was always a hot mess!

[amcb]

Wonderful suggestions about the cups and the shows! I was hoping to avoid bringing more than one set of sippy cups, but it might make sense to bring a few along.

 

B&Zsmom - What can you tell me about the pool? I've seen some comments that the pool was cold. Is that going to be a concern? Also, does the ship provide pool towels or should I bring my own? Same question for excursions - will the ship allow you to take some with you or should I plan on bringing some from home?

 

We're looking forward to introducing our little ones to the wonderful world of cruising!!

[Marie51]

Wonderful suggestions about the cups and the shows! I was hoping to avoid bringing more than one set of sippy cups, but it might make sense to bring a few along.

 

B&Zsmom - What can you tell me about the pool? I've seen some comments that the pool was cold. Is that going to be a concern? Also, does the ship provide pool towels or should I bring my own? Same question for excursions - will the ship allow you to take some with you or should I plan on bringing some from home?

 

We're looking forward to introducing our little ones to the wonderful world of cruising!!

 

Yes, ships provide pool towels and you can take them off the ship too if you are going to the beach. Just bring them back or you'll be charged. And I would say that the pool water is usually on the chilly side.

Another comment about the shows......my grandson was bothered by the loud music....singing...not sure exactly what it was but we had to take him out of the theater.

[Mom2B&Z]

was warmer than the main Oasis pools. The pool is just below the hot tub, so you can sit in the hot tub and watch the kids play in the kids pool...my idea of heaven lol! It was also nice to let the kids warm up on really windy days, as the kids pool is on the top deck and uncovered. There is a little waterslide, maybe a 3 foot drop at most. DS2 didn't like the main pool because of the salt water :( I did find it cold though. It was often sloshing about, even though it was open I wouldn't have brought my kids in the pool. They were very happy with the kids pool/slide/hot tub. The kids club was great too, DS1 often went to play while DS2 napped in the afternoon.

There are beach towels provided in your cabin, we did tend to use them while at the pool. I had also brought camping towels (Adventure towels, we got them at www.mec.ca) which were very handy when we couldn't find our room stewards and the towels were wet. People did bring the towels on excursions off the ship, but remember you're charged $25 a towel if you lose them. Another reason for the camping towels...they look like old rags so no one would take them!

As for the noise level at the shows, we always sat at the back on the balcony, so we could make a quick escape if needed. Both of my boys are quite sensitive to loud noises but they were fine on the balcony. Be there when the doors open (time is listed in the Freestyle Daily), there were always lots of people waiting for the balcony seats.

Have fun!

 

Wonderful suggestions about the cups and the shows! I was hoping to avoid bringing more than one set of sippy cups, but it might make sense to bring a few along.

 

B&Zsmom - What can you tell me about the pool? I've seen some comments that the pool was cold. Is that going to be a concern? Also, does the ship provide pool towels or should I bring my own? Same question for excursions - will the ship allow you to take some with you or should I plan on bringing some from home?

 

We're looking forward to introducing our little ones to the wonderful world of cruising!!

[amcb]

Thanks for all the info. A cold pool is a total bummer. I like the water warm. But I'm thrilled to hear the kids pool is warmer. Is the kids pool big enough for them to actually swim around, or is it more of a wading pool?

 

We're really starting to get excited!

 

:-) amcb

[gdynkin]

Hi, back to the cups question in the MDR...What if I bring my own juice boxes for the kids? what do you think they would say about it?

 

tx

[Lessum]

Not sure about the juice box thing - may want to call and see what their policy is.

 

When we crusied in January with our 15mo old and our 4.5 yo. I brought 2 sippy cups for the little one and 1 for the older. I always brought a cup for each to the Main Dining Room. However at the buffet, I usually let the older one drink out of the plastic cups there. At Breakfast, they had milk cartons so both could use a straw in those.

 

We also brought a small bottle of dish soap and a sponge to wash the cups in our bathroom.

[Mom2B&Z]

There was maybe a foot of water in it. Our 5 yo could barely do his front float in it :) It was fine though for cooling off, splashing around etc. The hot tub is deeper, there were a few kids swimming in there too!

 

Thanks for all the info. A cold pool is a total bummer. I like the water warm. But I'm thrilled to hear the kids pool is warmer. Is the kids pool big enough for them to actually swim around, or is it more of a wading pool?

 

We're really starting to get excited!

 

:-) amcb

[14ersco]

Hi, back to the cups question in the MDR...What if I bring my own juice boxes for the kids? what do you think they would say about it?

 

tx

 

You should have no problems with juice boxes. Since our kid doesn't get soda at home we provide a special cruise treat and carry on-board one six pack of soda. Then each night in the MDR we have brought a can of soda for our kid to drink.