Adice for traveling with 3 year old

[cruisinhogfan]

I have four children ranging from ages 3-9. They have all cruised with us starting after they turn 2. We have done both early and late dining (late allows us to enjoy more port time, get a nap in, and have plenty of time to get ready for dinner) (early allows for earlier bed time).

 

We have had them all fall asleep at dinner (both late and early seating).

 

My advice is let their mood dictate whether or not they go to dining room or eat with their new friends in CC. We have done both and everyone is happy. No one wants an unhappy child at the dining table. We have also done as other posters have suggested and had their meals delivered during our apps and whisked them off to CC between courses.

 

As for Camp Carnival, we have never had a bad experience. We have had a lost shoe (so don't take her favorites) but the staff is always nice, and the kids are always having a great time.

 

Make sure to look a their FunTimes and decide the activities she would enjoy most. That way you can plan fun family time.

 

We also ordered morning room service with milk, juice and fruit or toast since our kiddos like to eat right after getting up.

 

If she isn't used to the shower, practice that with her before you go.

 

Bathing suits, sun dresses and flip flops were are best friends on our cruises. Easy to pack, and change.

 

Have fun, relax and enjoy. Happy Cruising!

[Sun4Me2Please]

I have four children ranging from ages 3-9. They have all cruised with us starting after they turn 2. We have done both early and late dining (late allows us to enjoy more port time, get a nap in, and have plenty of time to get ready for dinner) (early allows for earlier bed time).

 

We have had them all fall asleep at dinner (both late and early seating).

 

My advice is let their mood dictate whether or not they go to dining room or eat with their new friends in CC. We have done both and everyone is happy. No one wants an unhappy child at the dining table. We have also done as other posters have suggested and had their meals delivered during our apps and whisked them off to CC between courses.

 

As for Camp Carnival, we have never had a bad experience. We have had a lost shoe (so don't take her favorites) but the staff is always nice, and the kids are always having a great time.

 

Make sure to look a their FunTimes and decide the activities she would enjoy most. That way you can plan fun family time.

 

We also ordered morning room service with milk, juice and fruit or toast since our kiddos like to eat right after getting up.

 

If she isn't used to the shower, practice that with her before you go.

 

Bathing suits, sun dresses and flip flops were are best friends on our cruises. Easy to pack, and change.

 

Have fun, relax and enjoy. Happy Cruising!

 

We must think alike :) I did a countdown calendar for her and there are things she has to do each day..... if she does them she gets a sticker and .50 towards spending money.... there are several days that she has to practice taking a shower (right now she is not a fan :( ....) I also have her practicing her good manners.... she is usually very well behaved, but like any three year old she has some behavior that we would like her to leave in MN ;) lol.... After raising (4) of our own you would think we could just turn the other cheek with the tantrums, but it is just the opposite for me :) thanks for all the advice !

[festivalfrau]

Great advice by everyone!

 

I had picked up a tip here before our first cruise about buying a drain plug for the shower. We let DD bathe in 2-3 inches of water on the first 2 cruises (she was 2). It is actually because of cruising that she has switched to showers at home!

 

We are trying YTD in February, but having the same server every night at the early sitting also gave some consistency. She made good friends with the assistant waiter who always had milk waiting for her and her favorite bun :) And on the one cruise where she fell asleep at the table before dessert, they always sent a box of cookies with us which she ate the next day as a port-treat.

 

Don't be afraid to order off the "adult" menu for the kids. We often order the grilled chicken. I also always try to sneak a peak at the menu earlier in the day so we can think about dinner ideas for her. A few nights we stopped at the buffet and got some raw veggies for her to snack on while she waited for her meal (but now she will eat salad).

 

The boxes of cereal make good snacks too later in the day.

 

If yours is a milk drinker, you can ask for it at the buffet any time of day.

 

We only used CC when there was a planned activity, like the shirts that they can color, or to meet Freddy. They got a cute book that day that she still takes for show & tell at school. I think only once she went after she ate in MDR, the rest of the time she wanted to stay with us because of the dancing waiters!

 

We try to keep to her schedule (bed time at 8) and that works for us. We take turns attending the shows or just sitting on the balcony with a glass of wine.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

Edited January 10, 2014 by festivalfrau

[cruise_gal21]

When we cruised with our 3yr old last August we really had a great time. Don't have your heart set on CC though, unlike most posters here our DD wouldn't have it. She is in a daycare everyday at home and just wanted to be with us. No biggie, DH and I just took turns doing activities, or naps lol, with her while the other had adult time at the casino, BINGO, or other venues.

 

Being flexible is the best advice I've read. DD took naps some days and stayed up late, while others she did not and was in bed by 8:30. Port days were filled with beaches or excursions DD was interested in doing, like our dolphin encounter. Sea days were filled with mini golf, water works, the arcade, Beary Cuddly, and some downtime with cartoons or toys in the cabin.

 

We had Anytime Dining and loved it. We only ate in the MDR 3 out of 5 nights though. DD did fabulous and had her meals served with our apps and played with small toys, books, or colored until we finished our meals and we all had dessert together. She loved the shows in the theater after dinner.

 

This upcoming cruise DD says she wants to do CC, she'll be 4 1/2yr old this go around. We'll see what happens. Regardless, it's a great vacation and we'll just continue to enjoy individual time with DD while the other enjoys some adult time, and of course have time as a family. Enjoy your cruise and happy sailing!

 

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[megann831]

we're doing our 1st cruise with kids in April, my daughter will have just turned 4 and my son will be 2 weeks from 2. I suspect my daughter will enjoy Camp Carnival and she'll get some use of it while we run around the ship with my son. My biggest fear is dinner. My son usually loves to eat and my daughter is very happy on the Ipad. I noticed several posts prided themselves in not allowing electronics at the dinner table. We're spending alot of money on this trip and haven't been on a nice family trip since having children, we're hoping to enjoy a nice dinner every night, with or without electronics and toys. I'm hoping by the cruise my son will be more into sitting down and watching a video. My plan is to order their appetizer and dinner right away. They'll eat that while we eat out appetizers. During out dinner they'll have desert. We never order desert right after dinner. If we want something we'll have it on the balcony while they sleep. I understand why parents don't want to encourage electronics at dinner, I normally don't ether. But I just want to enjoy my vacation, it's not the time to be teaching manners and risking short, interrupted meals. I was hoping CC would take my son so we could do dinner without them, but the more I thought about it I'm really not comfortable with them being out of CC at a buffet without us. Besides worrying about them wondering off, being taken somewhere, my son climbing up something and jumping off the boat, my daughter also has a peanut allergy so I'd rather be there to double check what she's eating.

We've also sprung for a suite. It gives us a little extra room and the kids can use the tub.

[cruise_gal21]

we're doing our 1st cruise with kids in April, my daughter will have just turned 4 and my son will be 2 weeks from 2. I suspect my daughter will enjoy Camp Carnival and she'll get some use of it while we run around the ship with my son. My biggest fear is dinner. My son usually loves to eat and my daughter is very happy on the Ipad. I noticed several posts prided themselves in not allowing electronics at the dinner table. We're spending alot of money on this trip and haven't been on a nice family trip since having children, we're hoping to enjoy a nice dinner every night, with or without electronics and toys. I'm hoping by the cruise my son will be more into sitting down and watching a video. My plan is to order their appetizer and dinner right away. They'll eat that while we eat out appetizers. During out dinner they'll have desert. We never order desert right after dinner. If we want something we'll have it on the balcony while they sleep. I understand why parents don't want to encourage electronics at dinner, I normally don't ether. But I just want to enjoy my vacation, it's not the time to be teaching manners and risking short, interrupted meals. I was hoping CC would take my son so we could do dinner without them, but the more I thought about it I'm really not comfortable with them being out of CC at a buffet without us. Besides worrying about them wondering off, being taken somewhere, my son climbing up something and jumping off the boat, my daughter also has a peanut allergy so I'd rather be there to double check what she's eating.

We've also sprung for a suite. It gives us a little extra room and the kids can use the tub.

 

I don't blame you one bit for wanting to use the Ipad for your son if that will keep him and you happy. I explicitly didn't do nice vacations until DD was over her terrible two stage she went through. Seriously, I feel like we didn't even go out to a nice restaurant to eat for that whole year lol. Children that young can be hard to control at times despite even the hardest efforts. So don't let what others say on the boards discourage you from doing what works best for your family. I can understand limiting the electronics at the dinner table with older children, but sometimes the younger ones need a little more encouragement to stay quiet and still so Mommies and Daddies can also enjoy their meals :D

[adcc]

Thanks everyone for some really great ideas! I am going on my first cruise with the kids ages 3 & 4 and appreciate the tips!

[Spiralshell]

Do not sweat the iPad at dinner! Whatever works is what we do. We had an iPad or iPhone with us at every dinner and used them maybe 2-3 times to entertain our son on an 8-day. I was glad for the distraction!

[halos]

We just took our 3 year old son and 6 year old daughter on their first cruise around Thanksgiving (7 day Magic)

 

We chose early dining as that is about the time we usually eat at home.

We requested being seated with another family with children (boy was DD's age)

We requested fruit we knew they would like as apps (in advance strawberries, grapes, bananas)

We didn't allow electronic devices at dinner

Every night was a ton of fun in the dining room and the kids were fantastically behaved beyond our expectations. DD loved trying new things, and DS loved the unlimited bread and all of his faves on the kids menu.

 

We only took the kids to cc twice (both on an evening after finishing dinner at 7:30 pm) They had fun and next time we will most likely use them more. Cruising with kids is definitely a different experience than just cruising as a couple.

 

We spend most of our time in the waterpark and pools (and at port doing fun excursions.) We didn't stress about routine and did what we wanted. DS crabby-he needs a rest, if not we ignored nap time. It's their vacation too was my opinion so I let naptime (younger child) and bedtime slide as long as they were well behaved.

 

We drove so it was nice to be able to overpack and have a toy or item from home if we were sunned out for the day and needed a break.

 

Nice advice!!

 

I became a grandmother last Feb, so I have to read up on all this stuff when I take my little GD on her first cruise (in a couple years) :)

 

We took our daughter on her first cruise when she was 5. We had planned excursions in all ports and found that we were beat when we got back. It was great because we all took naps in the late afternoon so our daughter could stay up later without getting cranky. We chose anytime dining, which worked well for us because of the naps and we could take our time getting ready for dinner. Most nights she was great through the whole dinner in the dining room. There were a couple nights she asked if she could go to straight to camp so we fed her on the Lido, took her to camp then went to MDR ourselves. She loved Camp Carnival and wanted to go all of the time. You are going to have a great time as long as you can plan to be flexible.

 

 

Nice age :)

Edited January 11, 2014 by halos