My Experience in CL with Kids

[klove613]

I just saw the closed thread about kids being allowed in the Concierge Lounge during cocktail hour now. I was actually in the Concierge Lounge on the Explorer sailing referenced and brought my 11 year old in with me. Not to make light of this as I saw people getting upset in the other thread, just wanted to give some factual info as someone on the scene.

 

We are not D or D+, but booked a suite for the first time and understood from reading the threads here that children were not allowed in the CL during the cocktail hours of 5-8:30 pm. There was a letter in the stateroom that mentioned that children under 20 (I think) were not allowed in the CL without an adult present. I thought it odd there was no mention of them not being allowed in at all during cocktail hour.

 

The first night, I went in during cocktail hour to get ice show tickets from Francis (who is a doll, by the way) and my daughter and husband stayed outside as there was clearly a sign on the door that said children were not allowed during the hours of 5-8:30 pm. I mentioned to him that they were outside and Francis was like, "bring them in." We didn't stay long, just got the tickets and left.

 

The next night, I headed down by myself to get a drink before dinner and there were 2 families with young children in the lounge. I quickly called my husband and daughter and told them to come down because I figured what the heck. It wasn't crowded at all and we only had about 15 minutes before dinner. They didn't make it though.

 

The third night, I noticed that the sign banning children was actually taped over, so I figured there was some kind of policy change. From that point on, I brought my daughter in with me for about 15-20 minutes before or after dinner. She had a soft drink while my husband and I had cocktails. She was very quiet and well behaved, however there were some young children there that were climbing on the couches and not behaved at all. It didn't bother me, but I could see that it was bothering some and even heard one lady say it was "kiddie hour."

 

I also observed 1 adult going bare-foot and 1 adult in a bathing suit with cover-ups during cocktail hour which I was somewhat surprised about. No children doing that.

 

There was only one night that there was an issue getting seats and that was the last night. There was only one family with kids in the CL that night, so I don't think the kids caused the over-crowding.

 

Mostly people kept to themselves and mingled with their own groups, but I did see some people who seemed to be meeting and chatting for the first time. There was no off-color humor going on, but maybe the kids put a damper on that????

 

Please no flames, just wanted to give a factual account.

[bajathree]

I just saw the closed thread about kids being allowed in the Concierge Lounge during cocktail hour now. I was actually in the Concierge Lounge on the Explorer sailing referenced and brought my 11 year old in with me. Not to make light of this as I saw people getting upset in the other thread, just wanted to give some factual info as someone on the scene.

 

We are not D or D+, but booked a suite for the first time and understood from reading the threads here that children were not allowed in the CL during the cocktail hours of 5-8:30 pm. There was a letter in the stateroom that mentioned that children under 20 (I think) were not allowed in the CL without an adult present. I thought it odd there was no mention of them not being allowed in at all during cocktail hour.

 

The first night, I went in during cocktail hour to get ice show tickets from Francis (who is a doll, by the way) and my daughter and husband stayed outside as there was clearly a sign on the door that said children were not allowed during the hours of 5-8:30 pm. I mentioned to him that they were outside and Francis was like, "bring them in." We didn't stay long, just got the tickets and left.

 

The next night, I headed down by myself to get a drink before dinner and there were 2 families with young children in the lounge. I quickly called my husband and daughter and told them to come down because I figured what the heck. It wasn't crowded at all and we only had about 15 minutes before dinner. They didn't make it though.

 

The third night, I noticed that the sign banning children was actually taped over, so I figured there was some kind of policy change. From that point on, I brought my daughter in with me for about 15-20 minutes before or after dinner. She had a soft drink while my husband and I had cocktails. She was very quiet and well behaved, however there were some young children there that were climbing on the couches and not behaved at all. It didn't bother me, but I could see that it was bothering some and even heard one lady say it was "kiddie hour."

 

I also observed people going bare-foot and in bathing suits with cover-ups during cocktail hour which I was somewhat surprised about.

 

There was only one night that there was an issue getting seats and that was the last night. There was only one family with kids in the CL that night, so I don't the kids caused the over-crowding.

 

Mostly people kept to themselves and mingled with their own groups, but I did see some people who seemed to be meeting and chatting for the first time. There was no off-color humor going on, but maybe the kids put a damper on that????

 

Please no flames, just wanted to give a factual account.

 

So I guess it's not only Chuck E Cheese Happy Hour but now also Trailer Trash Happy Hour now.....nice:rolleyes:....good move Royal....pat yourselves on the back with this bonehead move. Told ya all you had to do was take away the rules and people would run wild with it.

[reallyitsmema]

Thanks for sharing your actual experience. Now, run and duck for cover.:eek:;):p

[Langley Cruisers]

Thank you for your factual account of what you witnessed. I sincerely hope this thread will not go the way of the other one and end up getting closed because it got so heated and nasty. Perhaps members could just respect that this is one person's account of what she saw. Just a suggestion, and no I'm not the board police. It's just a suggestion. :)

[klove613]

Thanks for sharing your actual experience. Now, run and duck for cover.:eek:;):p

 

LOL....the fact is I am more than willing to follow the policy stated by the cruise line. If they say no children, I am fine with it, but the policy clearly was changed. Not to mention there was no over-crowding whatsoever during the time I was in there. Most nights, it was dead in the CL when we were there between 5:30-6 pm or after 8:00 pm (like 5-7 people max in there).

[bajathree]

LOL....the fact is I am more than willing to follow the policy stated by the cruise line. If they say no children, I am fine with it, but the policy clearly was changed. Not to mention there was no over-crowding whatsoever during the time I was in there. Most nights, it was dead in the CL when we were there between 5:30-6 pm or after 8:00 pm (like 5-7 people max in there).

 

I do thank you for sharing this with us....and my comment in no way was negative towards you...you were 100% in your right to bring your well behaved child in....my comment was on the new policy itself.

[klove613]

I do thank you for sharing this with us....and my comment in no way was negative towards you...you were 100% in your right to bring your well behaved child in....my comment was on the new policy itself.

 

No worries. I understand that this is a hot-topic and it seemed that there were some actually not believing what the lady reported from her friend, so I did want to clarify as someone actually in the CL and observing what was going on.

 

To be fair to the kids on the couches standing up and such, they were very young...probably about 3-5 years old and their parents did quickly tell them to sit-down and behave when they would get out of line a little. There were no children running around or anything like that.

 

I did see in the other thread that people were saying that they didn't understand why people would want to bring their children into a lounge. I thought that was interesting considering all the kids I see in bars all around the ship, but it didn't feel like a bar to me at all. We do concierge level in hotels from time to time and kids are not banned at all and it kind of felt like that, but much more quiet. It was really dead in there most of the time. However, maybe this was not the norm and I had nothing to compare it to as this was my first experience in the CL on a cruise ship.

 

Now I did hear Francis say that there were going to have to do an overflow lounge for the sailing after ours because of all the D+ that would be on board, so there might be a lot of complaints from that sailing.

[bajathree]

No worries. I understand that this is a hot-topic and it seemed that there were some actually not believing what the lady reported from her friend, so I did want to clarify as someone actually in the CL and observing what was going on.

 

To be fair to the kids on the couches standing up and such, they were very young...probably about 3-5 years old and their parents did quickly tell them to sit-down and behave when they would get out of line a little. There were no children running around or anything like that.

 

I did see in the other thread that people were saying that they didn't understand why people would want to bring their children into a lounge. I thought that was interesting considering all the kids I see in bars all around the ship, but it didn't feel like a bar to me at all. We do concierge level in hotels from time to time and kids are not banned at all and it kind of felt like that, but much more quiet. It was really dead in there most of the time. However, maybe this was not the norm and I had nothing to compare it to as this was my first experience in the CL on a cruise ship.

 

Now I did hear Francis say that there were going to have to do an overflow lounge for the sailing after ours because of all the D+ that would be on board, so there might be a lot of complaints from that sailing.

 

 

While just how busy the CL is will vary from sailing to sailing...having the CL dead during cocktail hour is not the norm....there are many times where you open the door and it's wall to wall people without a seat to be found. You can certainly see this from Francis telling you already that they will have to add an overflow lounge to the following sailing.

So my question to you ....will this new policy change you personally in any way on your booking habits....how much more likely are you to now book a suite again just because you can bring your kids in the CL:confused:

[klove613]

While just how busy the CL is will vary from sailing to sailing...having the CL dead during cocktail hour is usually not the norm....there are many times where you open the door and it's wall to wall people without a seat to be found. You can certainly see this from Francis telling you already that they will have to add an overflow lounge to the following sailing.

So my question to you ....will this new policy change you personally in any way on your booking habits....how much more are you now likely to book a suite again just because you can bring your kids in the CL:confused:

 

I honestly don't think this change will be permanent, so it won't affect my booking habits at all. However, my husband doesn't want to ever book a regular cabin again because of all the space we had in the suite...that was honestly more important to him. For me it was a bonus to bring my daughter in since it was totally unexpected, but I would be perfectly fine either way.

[megr1125]

thanks for your report.......

 

personally i hate the new policy, but i appreciate your taking the time to share your experience in a nice, straightforward manner..:)

 

hope you enjoyed your cruise.....!

[Retired LEO]

Hopefully we'll get more actual experience with this new policy trickle in. I also think it was a rediculous move on their part.

[CRUSINGFAMILY]

I know this subject is controversial however I would like to offer our experience being Diamond Plus members with two sons who have grown up cruising and another reason why I think RCCL may have introduced "children" to the CL.

 

We have two sons who are now 24 and 19. We took a cruise at a time when one son was 18 and the other 22. The 22 year old was allowed in the CL but the 18 year was not. This made enjoying the CL very awkward for us. And the 18 year old is not a child exactly. But if RCCL was to let an 18 year in the CL where do they draw the line on what constitutes a "child" when their policy for travelling alone is 21. Based on their rules as written they consider everyone under 21 a child.

 

Another reason I can see for this change in policy is that the children's clubs are closed during the dinner hour, particularly for early seating guests. Without a place to take the children, the guest who earned the privilege of being in the CL either by loyalty or suite purchase no longer can use that privilege which I am sure in the past has generated some complaints to RCCL.

 

Please don't flame me. These are my views only from our experiences cruising with our boys since they were 9 months old and living with the policies RCCL had in place.

 

I do hope though that parents control their children in the lounge. It's an honour to have a special lounge, I think the privilege should be treated with due respect.

[Jules12Wed]

We've just got back off the Voyager of the Seas. We were travelling with 11 and 17 year olds. For the first 4 nights me and my husband went in alone and left the kids in the cabin. It was only on the 5th day that I was reading through a letter regarding the CL that said about children can only use the CL during the cocktail time with an adult. We only actually had one night after this when we had time to go into the CL. It was just a shame we didn't realise at the start of our holiday as then they would have been able to join us on the other nights too.

[bajathree]

I honestly don't think this change will be permanent, so it won't affect my booking habits at all. However, my husband doesn't want to ever book a regular cabin again because of all the space we had in the suite...that was honestly more important to him. For me it was a bonus to bring my daughter in since it was totally unexpected, but I would be perfectly fine either way.

 

Thanks again for your input....much appreciated:)

[Cruising89143]

I don't like the new policy. Just another move by the knuckleheads running the company. I guess the adults only solarium will be next. Wait, RCI already allows kids there too. As far as the dress code, it was a joke back in June. The concierges have given up and I don't blame them.:rolleyes:

[Janet524]

I could care less if children are permitted in the CL during cocktail hour - so long as they are supervised and well behaved. Frankly, I've encountered some adults in the CL who needed to be spanked and removed from the area.

[FUN33]

The Concierge lounge used to be the only place we could all have some quality adult only time for 3 ½ hours a day – in reality most of us actually only use the lounge for 60-90 minutes each day but we always knew it was our place only for a 3 ½ time period every evening.

 

For some reason RCI now feels compelled to grant children 100% access to the entire ship 24/7 because of the complaints of a handful of Suite passengers.

 

 

What I don't understand is why a Suite Passenger would want to come in the Concierge Lounge in the first place when they already have a beautiful, spacious cabin where they can totally control their own environment. What is the attraction of a crowded, loud Concierge Lounge where it is often very difficult to get 2 seats together let alone seating for a family of 4 or 5 or 6?

 

 

We all know the big issue is the alcohol. Of course the Suite guests are upset (and rightfully so) that they cannot have free drinks for their whole family after they have paid 3-8 times more per passenger for the same cruise as the other guests. RCI could solve 90% of this issue if they would provide alcohol (or an alcohol allowance) to their Suite guests to be served IN THE SUITE. It would relieve some of the congestion in the Concierge Lounge and it would eliminate many of the requests to bring children into the lounge.

 

 

Obviously, Suite passengers not traveling with children should continue to be offered the option of the alcohol in their suite OR in the Concierge Lounge. I'm just offering up a solution to the under 21 problem that has caused such a Dust Up this past week. I have seen MANY posts by regular Suite passengers, who never travel with children, who are as opposed to the new rule as are many of the non suite passengers.

 

 

We were in the Concierge Lounge two months ago when a passenger (obviously on his first cruise & with his family) from the Grand Suite came into the Lounge by himself, went to the bartender and requested a "Bucket Of Beers" to take back to the cabin. The bartender told him it was not permitted (and it is not under current RCI rules). That is just a REALLY DUMB RULE. The passenger was furious and I don't blame him. He had paid for the most expensive cabin on the ship, it was his first cruise, he didn't know the rules and he was stunned. So the next night he came into the Lounge and brought his two teenage children with him and the kids came every night for the rest of the week. The kids were obnoxious, loud, vulgar and basically ruined the atmosphere in the lounge for everyone.

 

My point is, all it would have taken was a $15 bucket of beer each night and the whole family would have spent the week in their beautiful, spacious Suite; they would have been happy and everyone else who came to the Concierge Lounge each night would have had a better experience.

 

When not cruising, my wife and I probably get invited to a “cocktail” type party 10-20 times a year. I can honestly say, in the last 25 years, we have NEVER received a single invitation to any “cocktail” type party that said “please bring your children”!!!!!!!!

 

 

RCI really needs to restore the old policy of 3 1/2 hours of adult ONLY time in the Concierge & Diamond Lounges.

[Wayah]

As a mother of a 9 and 11 yo I would be totally in favor of suite guests getting a bottle of wine in their cabin each night or going to the CL and taking alcohol back to their suite rather than bring my kids to the CL. Heck I would be fine if suite guests could just bring 2 bottles of wine onto the ship with them. A special lounge to drink in is really only of interest to those repeat cruisers that actually know other people in the lounge and want to hang out there.

[yogimax]

I could care less if children are permitted in the CL during cocktail hour - so long as they are supervised and well behaved. Frankly, I've encountered some adults in the CL who needed to be spanked and removed from the area.

 

I totally agree with you... in theory!

 

The problem is what to do with the children that are not supervised or well behaved. Unfortunately, if the parents do not enforce disciple, it is unlikely the concierge will.

 

If RCCL would allow and encourage their concierges to enforce policy and control the quality of the CL for everyone's benefit, there would be no problem in allowing well behaved children in the lounges. That, however, is not the case!

[Retired LEO]

The Concierge lounge used to be the only place we could all have some quality adult only time for 3 ½ hours a day – in reality most of us actually only use the lounge for 60-90 minutes each day but we always knew it was our place only for a 3 ½ time period every evening.

 

For some reason RCI now feels compelled to grant children 100% access to the entire ship 24/7 because of the complaints of a handful of Suite passengers.

 

 

What I don't understand is why a Suite Passenger would want to come in the Concierge Lounge in the first place when they already have a beautiful, spacious cabin where they can totally control their own environment. What is the attraction of a crowded, loud Concierge Lounge where it is often very difficult to get 2 seats together let alone seating for a family of 4 or 5 or 6?

 

 

We all know the big issue is the alcohol. Of course the Suite guests are upset (and rightfully so) that they cannot have free drinks for their whole family after they have paid 3-8 times more per passenger for the same cruise as the other guests. RCI could solve 90% of this issue if they would provide alcohol (or an alcohol allowance) to their Suite guests to be served IN THE SUITE. It would relieve some of the congestion in the Concierge Lounge and it would eliminate many of the requests to bring children into the lounge.

 

 

Obviously, Suite passengers not traveling with children should continue to be offered the option of the alcohol in their suite OR in the Concierge Lounge. I'm just offering up a solution to the under 21 problem that has caused such a Dust Up this past week. I have seen MANY posts by regular Suite passengers, who never travel with children, who are as opposed to the new rule as are many of the non suite passengers.

 

 

We were in the Concierge Lounge two months ago when a passenger (obviously on his first cruise & with his family) from the Grand Suite came into the Lounge by himself, went to the bartender and requested a "Bucket Of Beers" to take back to the cabin. The bartender told him it was not permitted (and it is not under current RCI rules). That is just a REALLY DUMB RULE. The passenger was furious and I don't blame him. He had paid for the most expensive cabin on the ship, it was his first cruise, he didn't know the rules and he was stunned. So the next night he came into the Lounge and brought his two teenage children with him and the kids came every night for the rest of the week. The kids were obnoxious, loud, vulgar and basically ruined the atmosphere in the lounge for everyone.

 

My point is, all it would have taken was a $15 bucket of beer each night and the whole family would have spent the week in their beautiful, spacious Suite; they would have been happy and everyone else who came to the Concierge Lounge each night would have had a better experience.

 

When not cruising, my wife and I probably get invited to a “cocktail” type party 10-20 times a year. I can honestly say, in the last 25 years, we have NEVER received a single invitation to any “cocktail” type party that said “please bring your children”!!!!!!!!

 

 

RCI really needs to restore the old policy of 3 1/2 hours of adult ONLY time in the Concierge & Diamond Lounges.

 

Get your letter off to them letting them know how rediculous this is. They're getting flooded right now and they're taking it all in.

[Scotty G]

The Concierge lounge used to be the only place we could all have some quality adult only time for 3 ½ hours a day – in reality most of us actually only use the lounge for 60-90 minutes each day but we always knew it was our place only for a 3 ½ time period every evening.

 

For some reason RCI now feels compelled to grant children 100% access to the entire ship 24/7 because of the complaints of a handful of Suite passengers.

 

 

What I don't understand is why a Suite Passenger would want to come in the Concierge Lounge in the first place when they already have a beautiful, spacious cabin where they can totally control their own environment. What is the attraction of a crowded, loud Concierge Lounge where it is often very difficult to get 2 seats together let alone seating for a family of 4 or 5 or 6?

 

 

We all know the big issue is the alcohol. Of course the Suite guests are upset (and rightfully so) that they cannot have free drinks for their whole family after they have paid 3-8 times more per passenger for the same cruise as the other guests. RCI could solve 90% of this issue if they would provide alcohol (or an alcohol allowance) to their Suite guests to be served IN THE SUITE. It would relieve some of the congestion in the Concierge Lounge and it would eliminate many of the requests to bring children into the lounge.

 

 

Obviously, Suite passengers not traveling with children should continue to be offered the option of the alcohol in their suite OR in the Concierge Lounge. I'm just offering up a solution to the under 21 problem that has caused such a Dust Up this past week. I have seen MANY posts by regular Suite passengers, who never travel with children, who are as opposed to the new rule as are many of the non suite passengers.

 

 

We were in the Concierge Lounge two months ago when a passenger (obviously on his first cruise & with his family) from the Grand Suite came into the Lounge by himself, went to the bartender and requested a "Bucket Of Beers" to take back to the cabin. The bartender told him it was not permitted (and it is not under current RCI rules). That is just a REALLY DUMB RULE. The passenger was furious and I don't blame him. He had paid for the most expensive cabin on the ship, it was his first cruise, he didn't know the rules and he was stunned. So the next night he came into the Lounge and brought his two teenage children with him and the kids came every night for the rest of the week. The kids were obnoxious, loud, vulgar and basically ruined the atmosphere in the lounge for everyone.

 

My point is, all it would have taken was a $15 bucket of beer each night and the whole family would have spent the week in their beautiful, spacious Suite; they would have been happy and everyone else who came to the Concierge Lounge each night would have had a better experience.

 

When not cruising, my wife and I probably get invited to a “cocktail” type party 10-20 times a year. I can honestly say, in the last 25 years, we have NEVER received a single invitation to any “cocktail” type party that said “please bring your children”!!!!!!!!

 

 

RCI really needs to restore the old policy of 3 1/2 hours of adult ONLY time in the Concierge & Diamond Lounges.

Points well taken. RCL should take care of the suite guests but not by disrespecting its frequent cruisers! The CL was one of the perks we looked forward to in our advancement to Diamond Plus. I enjoy reading there on quiet sea days and meeting with new and old cruise friends in the evening before dinner. It seems that the latter is being modified by RCL and may no longer be a pleasure given the presence of children who take away from the atmosphere.

[bajathree]

Suite guests already have gold cards to distinguish themselves....another easy solution to this would be to allow suite guests to order free wine, beer and champagne at any lounge during the same hours of 5-8:30 as the cocktail hour in the CL.....just show your gold card.

[Laoghaire]

The Concierge lounge used to be the only place we could all have some quality adult only time for 3 ½ hours a day – in reality most of us actually only use the lounge for 60-90 minutes each day but we always knew it was our place only for a 3 ½ time period every evening.

 

For some reason RCI now feels compelled to grant children 100% access to the entire ship 24/7 because of the complaints of a handful of Suite passengers.

 

 

What I don't understand is why a Suite Passenger would want to come in the Concierge Lounge in the first place when they already have a beautiful, spacious cabin where they can totally control their own environment. What is the attraction of a crowded, loud Concierge Lounge where it is often very difficult to get 2 seats together let alone seating for a family of 4 or 5 or 6?

 

 

We all know the big issue is the alcohol. Of course the Suite guests are upset (and rightfully so) that they cannot have free drinks for their whole family after they have paid 3-8 times more per passenger for the same cruise as the other guests. RCI could solve 90% of this issue if they would provide alcohol (or an alcohol allowance) to their Suite guests to be served IN THE SUITE. It would relieve some of the congestion in the Concierge Lounge and it would eliminate many of the requests to bring children into the lounge.

 

 

Obviously, Suite passengers not traveling with children should continue to be offered the option of the alcohol in their suite OR in the Concierge Lounge. I'm just offering up a solution to the under 21 problem that has caused such a Dust Up this past week. I have seen MANY posts by regular Suite passengers, who never travel with children, who are as opposed to the new rule as are many of the non suite passengers.

 

 

We were in the Concierge Lounge two months ago when a passenger (obviously on his first cruise & with his family) from the Grand Suite came into the Lounge by himself, went to the bartender and requested a "Bucket Of Beers" to take back to the cabin. The bartender told him it was not permitted (and it is not under current RCI rules). That is just a REALLY DUMB RULE. The passenger was furious and I don't blame him. He had paid for the most expensive cabin on the ship, it was his first cruise, he didn't know the rules and he was stunned. So the next night he came into the Lounge and brought his two teenage children with him and the kids came every night for the rest of the week. The kids were obnoxious, loud, vulgar and basically ruined the atmosphere in the lounge for everyone.

 

My point is, all it would have taken was a $15 bucket of beer each night and the whole family would have spent the week in their beautiful, spacious Suite; they would have been happy and everyone else who came to the Concierge Lounge each night would have had a better experience.

 

When not cruising, my wife and I probably get invited to a “cocktail” type party 10-20 times a year. I can honestly say, in the last 25 years, we have NEVER received a single invitation to any “cocktail” type party that said “please bring your children”!!!!!!!!

 

 

RCI really needs to restore the old policy of 3 1/2 hours of adult ONLY time in the Concierge & Diamond Lounges.

 

Agree wholeheartedly with this... Well behaved children still take up space an adult could use.

 

Helen

[NeuroQueen]

One of the reasons we book suites is the complimentary concierge lounge quiet cocktail hour before dinner or shows. I will see how it goes on our next cruise on the oasis before deciding whether the quiet, congenial atmosphere is affected by crowds. It will certainly affect how I book in the future!

[FUN33]

Suite guests already have gold cards to distinguish themselves....another easy solution to this would be to allow suite guests to order free wine, beer and champagne at any lounge during the same hours of 5-8:30 as the cocktail hour in the CL.....just show your gold card.

 

That would be an excellent solution. The Sea Pass could be coded so that the sale could be run through the register to keep the liquor inventory correct and just produce a N/C tab for the guest to sign.

 

Unfortunately, we all know some individuals would abuse the system and buy drinks for their non suite friends; but this is a remedy certainly worthy of exploration. Perhaps if the register put a 20 minute hold on each alcohol purchase it would limit possible abuse.