What toddler age did you find easiest to cruise with?

[wampuscat7]

Hi, all,

 

I've read threads several (maybe dozens :D) of pages deep, but I was wondering if some of you frequent cruisers would give me some input. My husband and I are debating.

 

We are first-time parents to a 10-month-old. She's generally a very easy-going kid and makes it through restaurant dinners, shopping, and day trips without issues.

 

I'd love to cruise this spring when DD is about a year old, but hubby would prefer to wait until DD is a bit older (either this fall when she's 16 months or next spring when she's 2) because she could enjoy more foods and more experiences, plus she may be down to 1 nap a day instead of 2. I say she's less mobile now, and I see no problem with travelling. Plus, travelling will change her schedule for the week, so she may end up napping more or less (or on the go) no matter what age she is.

 

What say you all?

 

(For the record, we're very interested in spending time as a family. We would likely choose a ship with a Royal Tots nursery, so we had the option of leaving her for a few hours if needed. We also have family interested in travelling with us who would be happy to watch the kiddo for a few hours if we asked.)

[Kerry's Girls]

There are good and challenging points about cruising at all the toddler stages. Even when mine were on two naps a day, we'd often do one nap in the stroller while we were out and about in port, and they would sleep in the stroller after dinner while I was out in the lounges. At a year old, they can have a ball trying lots of different things at meals. The kids enjoy it no matter what the age - for me it was a matter of how much fun I had spending so much stress-free time with my kids where someone else was doing all the shopping, cooking and cleaning.

 

In my experience, they don't nap less when on a cruise. If anything, they nap more or the same. At that age we did an early nap and a nap right before dinner (which helped dinners go wonderfully).

 

Best,

Mia

[srlafleur]

While I've never specifically cruised with a toddler, I'm a mother of 4 adults and grandmother of 2 (now 7 and 12). I've traveled with them all, at varying stages of their lives.

One of the best things about babies is how portable they are. Home is wherever mom and dad are, really, especially if they've been traveling from a very young age.

Only you can determine what age is best for your child, and for your own patience/tolerance for putting what you want to do on the back burner to accommodate the child's needs.

Schedules will be thrown out the window (to some extent, anyway), so if your child doesn't tolerate change well, you might want to wait. If, however, you've done some traveling (even day trips and weekends, and it sounds like you have), and it was all good, now is probably fine.

Trying to potty-train whilst traveling...probably not a great idea...:rolleyes: Just saying. So younger, in that case, is good. And bear in mind those "terrible twos"! I found even the sweetest, most even-tempered child could suddenly go all "Linda Blair/Exorcist" on you, usually at the most inopportune times.

 

My granddaughter (12) was the ultimate portable traveler. She was a champ at eating in restaurants from day one, liked to be sociable with all adults, sat at the table better than many older kids.

My grandson (7), same parents, not so much. He's good now, but he was unpredictable as a baby/toddler and had much less tolerance for sitting still and "behaving".

 

So...good luck and happy cruising. Whatever you decide, any travel experiences you give your child are beneficial. Don't listen to the naysayers who will tell you, "But, the kid won't remember...". Crap, I say. They might not remember, but they will be learning and, anyway, YOU will remember and your memories are important, too.

[georgi611]

We are cruising with our almost 3 year old in May. We took her on her first cruise when she was 18 months. We are in the NO and not listening very well stage, so I'm slightly scared, but am hoping because there will be so much for her to do and look at, she will be too busy having fun to be disagreeable. (lol)

[slim501]

We are taking my 3 year old on his 5th cruise in April. His first cruise, he was 18 months and my niece was 14 months. I have to say that 18 months was the worst age for cruising with him. He was a typical 18 month old - into everything, checking everything out, etc. It was exhausting for us. My sister had a much better time with my niece at that time.

 

The cruises have gotten progressively easier. He loves going to the kids club now. We were loyal RC cruisers, but switched to Carnival when he turned 2 so he could go to Camp Ocean. He loves it there. At 3, we are all looking forward to a relaxing 2 weeks on board. We will be heading back to RC once he is 100% potty trained.

[cb at sea]

I say go for it, while she's behaving!!! The older they get, the more "clingy" they tend to get! There are PLENTY of mashable foods onboard...so you don't have to bring THAT much extra food!

As far as napping...most kids will sleep in a reclining stroller, so you don't have to closet yourself in the cabin...just take her along and let her snooze!

Edited February 24, 2015 by cb at sea

[kitkat343]

It really depends upon your kid. If your child thrives on routine, and has a hard time adjusting their sleep schedule, a cruise will be harder on them. A child who has some flexibility about what time they take their nap, and loves to explore new things will probably really enjoy shore excursions and exploring the boat. The good news is that between the Royal Tot nursery and supportive family members you will be able to get some down time, and will be able to rest. I would be willing to try under those circumstances if the cruise had destinations I was interested in visiting. I'd be less likely to risk it if I was just trying to vacation to relax, because that really might not go as well with a young toddler.

Edited February 25, 2015 by kitkat343

[Freckle53]

Our son had just turned 2 when we first cruised with him. He's a good sleeper at home. He wanted nothing to do with the crib on the ship, but ended up napping in the bed with me and sleeping with both of us at night. He had never slept in our bed at home. He loved everything to look at and we spent hours walking every inch of the ship with him in the stroller. His favorite were the glass elevators and climbing up and down stairs himself. He did not like dinners in the MDR and we gave up on the second night of taking him there. He was normally fine in restaurants at home. No biggie since there is the buffets to eat at. We sailed Carnival so he was eligible for their Camp Carnival, but would not stay there.

 

We are cruising again next year and he will be 3.5. I'm hoping it'll be a little easier and he will want to spend some time in their kid's area.

[sunset785]

Just over 2 yrs old was good! We hadn't hit the terrible twos yet and he was excited about everything. He was a bit behind on talking and boy did his words explode on that cruise. We are taking him again in a few weeks and he is just over 3. Around 1.5 years old is hard because they don't understand as much at that age and that is when my DS was starting to throw tantrums. He got over that for a while and hit the terrible twos at 2.5 :) So I would either go this spring or next but NOT in the fall.

[A&Jfamily]

Well I can tell you that two was easier than 13 - who made me so mad one night because he didn't come back to the cabin in time to shower and dress for dinner as required. Had to hunt him down and grounded him to the cabin for the night. I don't think he cared for room service and missing WCMC for dessert as he never did it again.

 

Personally, I waited til my baby was old enough for camp. He ate breakfast with us, went to morning camp (parent time!) and had lunch with us. Sometimes he wanted the pool after lunch but sometimes wanted camp. I always got him by 330 so he could get a nap before dinner. We got more parent time because he was chomping to go to camp again from 7-10 pm. This sold us on cruising as a family vacation. And it was worth waiting IMHO as he was potty trained by the time we traveled. Until then we stuck with land based trips like beach or a kid friendly city like philly or San Antonio with zoos children's museums etc. You could just get there and buy what you needed with no worries of running out. And you had a full hotel big room with all its services, giant pools, plenty of storage and could easier plan your day around the toddler/baby.

[Tagong]

This is an easy one for me answer. The best toddler age to cruise we experienced was at 20-months.

 

For some background we have been lucky enough to cruise as a family three times. Once when DD was 8-months, 20-months and most recently 2.5 yrs. Our second cruise was easily the most enjoyable and relaxing because at that age she was no longer what we considered fragile. She was mobile but not too mobile in that a shovel and bucket were all she needed for a fun day at the beach. Our recent cruise she just wanted to run and walk everywhere which we permitted so long as it didn't interfere with the beach/pool enjoyment of others.

 

All ages were fun but each certainly presented its own challenges and rewards.

[wampuscat7]

Thank you all so much for you advice and experiences!

 

I know that cruising will be far different than it was BC (before child), but it's my absolute favorite way to travel. The idea of not having to worry about driving anywhere, wondering where to eat, cooking, cleaning, etc. is hugely appealing to DH and I. (Within reason, of course we would do some cleaning up after kiddo.)