Kid's safety across the hall

[desperatehousewife]

Hi everyone:D

 

Our family, of 5, is planning a cruise after a few years away from it. ( Did some land AI's )

 

Our children's ages are : DS(16) DD (14) and DD (8)

 

The last time we cruised we all 5 were in one balcony cabin and it was STRESSFUL! Not enough room for all the shoes, clothes, girly products and space to get 3 girls ready!! One bathroom? Nuff' said. (Please refrain from suggesting I leave more crap at home it ain't happenin. ;) I believe you should bloom where you're planted and I was planted in a sea of girliness)

 

While we have ALWAYS found Carnival rooms to be more than adequate by stateroom standards:D, we feel we just need more space. We thought about getting a suite or the new rooms that have 2 bathrooms, but it will be much cheaper to just get 2 rooms.

 

How safe does a parent feel when older kids are across the hall? Am I worrying over nothing? I probably am...but hoping my fellow cruisers can offer some needed feedback from experience!!:confused:

 

Thanks in advance!!!!

[KenMo]

I'd probably be okay with the two older ones across the hall and the 8 year old in my cabin.

 

My ideal situation would be connecting cabins.

 

But since you say "across the hall", I'm guessing you want a balcony and an inside.

 

I don't know which ship you're looking at, but the Spirit class have a balcony connecting to an inside. They are all the way forward, but I don't recall which decks off the top of my head.

Edited January 10, 2013 by KenMo

[emelvee]

I know a lot of people get cabins across from each other. It's just 3 in our family, so it has never been an issue. What about connecting cabins?

[Rowan555]

Our kids are 11 and 13 and have been in their own cabin for the past 5 cruises - we love it! We did one with them across the hall when they were 9 and 11, and we had no problems at all. They behaved, they knew how to reach us by phone if they needed anything at night (they never did), and it worked out fine.

[desperatehousewife]

Thanks so much everyone!! Really appreciate it!

 

Mona, the idea about the connecting balcony to an inside is a GREAT one too....I had no idea about that. Once I had gathered all my thoughts and dates, I was going to call my PVP and sort it out. I will be SURE to mention that.

 

:D:D:D

[thomarvin]

Are you set on a balcony for yourself? We are doing 2 connectingocean views. Only 4 of us are going this year and I dont want to put all of us in 1 cabin. It was actually cheaper for me to get 2 connecting OV rather than 1 balcony. However, i have put my 2 oldest in an inside across from us and we have had no problem. You know your girls best. Set rules. no one is allowed in their cabin. EVER.. If they need to get something from their cabin either the door stays open or their friend stays in the hall. Maybe they have to let you know when they get in for the night etc. but as long as they know and agree to the rules it is fine. My boys are now 18 and 20 but they have had their own cabin (our youngest stays with us) for the past few cruises.

Edited January 10, 2013 by thomarvin

[Breezy72]

My kids are 9 & 14 and get their own cabin. Mama wants quality time with Daddy! ;) :D Across the hall is perfect for the age of your kids... just as long as they know the rules and understand there are people next door to them, and those people will complain to security if they are not being mindful. With my kiddos, I am happy to give them the perk/responsibility of their own cabin, but they have to abide by Mama's rules.... and my rules are much more strict than the ships!

 

I say go for it!:) Just let them know they will lose their privileges if they do anything to lose your trust.

[Breezy72]

Oh, in addition, since your kids are underage, you will have to "assign" yourself or other adult in that room for booking reasons. FYI.

[KenMo]

Thanks so much everyone!! Really appreciate it!

 

Mona, the idea about the connecting balcony to an inside is a GREAT one too....I had no idea about that. Once I had gathered all my thoughts and dates, I was going to call my PVP and sort it out. I will be SURE to mention that.

 

:D:D:D

 

Yeah...it was a great idea, but doesn't look like it will work.

 

I just checked it out and those cabins on the Spirit class only hold 2 and 2. You're 5. Bummer.

[Athankfulheart]

We do separate cabins, but I have big kids mixed with little kids. In all honesty, if the cabins aren't connected then a cabin across the hall is closer than the cabin next door :) and that is my preference.

[stargate fan]

Hi everyone:D

 

Our family, of 5, is planning a cruise after a few years away from it. ( Did some land AI's )

 

Our children's ages are : DS(16) DD (14) and DD (8)

 

The last time we cruised we all 5 were in one balcony cabin and it was STRESSFUL! Not enough room for all the shoes, clothes, girly products and space to get 3 girls ready!! One bathroom? Nuff' said. (Please refrain from suggesting I leave more crap at home it ain't happenin. ;) I believe you should bloom where you're planted and I was planted in a sea of girliness)

 

While we have ALWAYS found Carnival rooms to be more than adequate by stateroom standards:D, we feel we just need more space. We thought about getting a suite or the new rooms that have 2 bathrooms, but it will be much cheaper to just get 2 rooms.

 

How safe does a parent feel when older kids are across the hall? Am I worrying over nothing? I probably am...but hoping my fellow cruisers can offer some needed feedback from experience!!:confused:

 

Thanks in advance!!!!

 

Our sons have been booked in their own cabin many times. We got balconies for ourselves and insides across the hall for them.

 

They were given the riot act, but we trusted them, and still do. Setting ground rules is important-no one in their cabin and they cannot go in anyone else's. Sticky notes are great for leaving info. Also prearrange check-in times.

 

Oh, in addition, since your kids are underage, you will have to "assign" yourself or other adult in that room for booking reasons. FYI.

 

Not true.

 

As long as the kids are across the hall, they are able to be booked by themselves. We have done this many times ourselves.

[desperatehousewife]

Thanks for the quick responses everyone! This makes me feel a whole lot better to hear positive feedback. I would LOVE some alone time with my hubs and 5 in a cabin just didn't allow for that!:p

 

I think we are settled then....now to just call the PVP!

[bbohbbneedacruise]

Oh, in addition, since your kids are underage, you will have to "assign" yourself or other adult in that room for booking reasons. FYI.

 

This is not true.

https://www.goccl.com/irman/bookccl/sections/minor.html

Guests Under the Age of 21 Traveling with Parents / Grandparents

 

Guests under the age of 13

Minors must be booked in the same stateroom as the Parents/Grandparents.

Do not suggest to the caller that they can switch staterooms once on board.

If the Parents/Grandparents insist on being booked with the minors in separate staterooms, the booking must be documented with the following: "parents #_____”. Note: If booked in separate staterooms, the minors must either be directly across the hall or the stateroom next door.

Minors may only be booked in a balcony stateroom with the Parents/Grandparents"; this also applies to connecting staterooms.

 

Guests 13 - 17 years of age

Minors can be booked in separate staterooms, by up to 3 staterooms in between the minor stateroom and the Parents/Grandparents stateroom.

Minors age 13 may only be booked in a balcony stateroom with the Parents/Grandparents; this also applies to connecting staterooms.

 

Guests 18 years of age and older

Minors are not required to be booked within close proximity nor on the same deck as the Parents/Grandparents.

We should make every effort to assign staterooms nearby.

[Cruisin 4 Ever]

I too have left my kids (actually I only have one, but when she brings friends) in a cabin across the hall. The only thing I wouldn't do is get the kids a balcony room. I don't think there's anything wrong with it, I just get worried that my daughter will sleepwalk(even though she has never done so in her life ???LOL) and fall off the balcony, so I would keep the kids in an oceanview or inside. The kids will love having their own room, and ordering room service, watching movies late at night etc. Just make sure they know to have a couple of dollars for tipping for room service if they are using it and that they know not to be screaming and those kinds of things. Have fun!!

[cb at sea]

The hallways are so narrow, you'll probably be closer to them on the ship than you are at home. Give them rules. NO ONE is allowed in the cabin except for you! (Of course, the attendant will have access when the kids are not there.)

 

I would do it in a minute!

[Bashlin]

When my girls were 9 and 14 they stayed alone.. They had a blast, just depends on how they are raised..

 

Sent from my Galaxy 3S

[Warm Breezes]

My kids were 12 and 15 the first time we got 2 rooms. They were fine. I won't go back to all of us in one room...we out grew that :D.

[Star24K]

My nephews stayed across the hall from my SIL when they were 13 & 15. Their cabin looked like a bomb had gone off in it, their stuff was everywhere. We encouraged them to order all the room service they wanted and they had a blast. We’re going again in a couple of months and the excitement is building. The main thing is having a key to their cabin to check on them when you want.

[gnocchi_mommy]

We have always done this! It works GREAT, we have strict rules, they understand the expectations- and we have never had a problem. I think at your kids ages it will be fine. I love having my own cabin :-)

 

Editing in- a huge perk too is the 2nd bathroom!! So glad we don't all have to share a potty...lol

 

If your kids have cell phones, I suggest turning your settings (your carrier can walk you through) for "cellular at sea", it is .55 cents to send a text ad .05 cents to receive, we use this sparingly but it gives us great piece of mind as well when they are in their room and we are not in ours or vice versa. We also have a buddy system rule, and established check in times. Luckily or unluckily, however you look at it- mine are a lit toe antisocial so they tend to just stick together and we don't have to deal with the whole gang of teens thing some people complain about. Mine always get the inside, we get the outside, and we get one of their keys at night before bed so that we can get in to wake them or else they will sleep through the phone and door knocking!

Edited January 11, 2013 by gnocchi_mommy

[misguidedangel]

I will share a story that may make you change your mind about letting the teens stay in a cabin all by themselves.

 

My brother, SIL, niece, and two of her friends cruised on the Magic the week before Xmas. They got adjoining balcony cabins with the door inbetween. The three 16 year old girls were in one room and my brother/SIL in the other. The girls were given a curfew and they made sure it was observed, but what my brother/SIL and niece didn't know was that the first three nights of the cruise my nieces two friends would be in the cabin on time and in bed, but the kicker is they waited until my niece fell asleep (and when she sleeps the dead can't wake her up). They would then get up, get dressed and go back out. They were extremely difficult to wake up in the morning, especially when they got to Belize and had to be up at 530am to get off the ship at 7am for their excursion.

 

The girls thought they were getting away with it, they thought they could do it every night......well, on the fourth night of the cruise my brother and SIL stayed up a little later than usual and surprise surprise, guess who they saw out after their curfew.....yep, my nieces two friends.....They were in a wee bit of trouble and after that my brother/SIL were like hawks watching those two girls......

 

I have no idea how many other families have similar stories, but what are the odds that the kids take the chance of getting caught and go out after the time their parents set as curfew to see if they can get away with breaking the rules...

[gnocchi_mommy]

We are up WAAAAY later than the kids, SOMEONE has to shut down the dance club :-D I do recommend checking on them before you settle in for the night.

[Rowan555]

Nope, doesn't make me change my mind at all. Besides, all the parents had to do was go check on the kids at midnight, 2 am, etc. I will never go back to having all 4 of us share a room.

 

I will share a story that may make you change your mind about letting the teens stay in a cabin all by themselves.

 

My brother, SIL, niece, and two of her friends cruised on the Magic the week before Xmas. They got adjoining balcony cabins with the door inbetween. The three 16 year old girls were in one room and my brother/SIL in the other. The girls were given a curfew and they made sure it was observed, but what my brother/SIL and niece didn't know was that the first three nights of the cruise my nieces two friends would be in the cabin on time and in bed, but the kicker is they waited until my niece fell asleep (and when she sleeps the dead can't wake her up). They would then get up, get dressed and go back out. They were extremely difficult to wake up in the morning, especially when they got to Belize and had to be up at 530am to get off the ship at 7am for their excursion.

 

The girls thought they were getting away with it, they thought they could do it every night......well, on the fourth night of the cruise my brother and SIL stayed up a little later than usual and surprise surprise, guess who they saw out after their curfew.....yep, my nieces two friends.....They were in a wee bit of trouble and after that my brother/SIL were like hawks watching those two girls......

 

I have no idea how many other families have similar stories, but what are the odds that the kids take the chance of getting caught and go out after the time their parents set as curfew to see if they can get away with breaking the rules...

[Athankfulheart]

Everyone knows their own children the best. We have strict rules at anytime but especially when we travel. Our kids aren't good liars either and have a true sense of guilt, so if they did break a rule, we would know by simply questioning them.

 

We have 8 children who range in age from 21 down to 6. Not only can they not pull the wool over our eyes, they can't get away with anything with each other :D For as much as they stick together, they definately still like to rat each other out.

 

 

As far as the state of the cabin, I don't pick up after my kids at home and I don't expect a cabin attendant to pick up after them either. They don't leave for the day if their room isnt picked up. It might mean a delay in my plans, but they are my kids - so its my inconvenience.

 

Long story short, I wouldnt make the blanket statement that children should be in their own cabin or that they shouldn't even though I have plenty of experience with children to go by.

[BritishCruiser101]

Hi all, we are planning a cruise on the Carnival Breeze with the wife, 2 kids and I. The kid's ages are DD: 14, DS: 11. My son wants to take a friend for sure, who is 12, and my daughter might want to take a friend, who is 14 as well. The problem is, seeing as we are family (the wife, DD, DS and I), we tend not to worry about getting seperate cabins (boys in one, girls in another) but the issue is, we most certainly DO NOT like the idea of having at least another person who we aren't related to in the same cabin as us. Should I get the wife and I a cabin, my son and his friend a cabin, and my daughter and her friend a cabin? I mean, it's 3 cabins in total, but would that be the way to go? DS and DD's friend's parents would be paying their kid's part of the price though ;) but would we even be able to do that? I mean, the kids have known each other and us for about as long as they can remember, and they're not immature kids for sure (the kind to run along the corridors making lots of noise at 3 AM) so can that make a difference on whether they are allowed their own cabin? :confused:

 

Sorry for waffling on a bit :D

[CatlinSTJ]

I really think it is different when it's your own kids, plus your kids are less likely to try pulling a fast one because the possible consequences will last much longer than a few days on the cruise.

 

We have always had separate staterooms with our girls. First cruise with kids 11 and 17 in connecting cabins. I was not putting my 11 year old any further away, they had to stay together unless the youngest was with us, and we had preassigned check in times. Second cruise the 19, 16, and 13 year old were next door, but not in connecting cabins. (Our 5 year old was with us.) We started each morning together, went over plans for the day, gave them their first check in time, etc. They knew the rules and the penalty for not following them. Next cruise, the middle two will be 17 and 14 and are booked in an inside cabin directly across the hall, 6 year old with us. (Oldest is now 20 and moved out.) It does make me nervous, but we will go over the rules and we will be checking on them frequently. Besides, they both really want to cruise with us again ;-)

 

 

Next cruise: Carnival Breeze June 2014