Advice: Cruising with an 8 month & 2 year old

[Bhern05]

Hmmm...

Seems you are right, we will need to come up with something else.

 

I took our son when he was 6 months and brought the ducky inflatable tub. I put it out on the lido deck in between my chairs and filled it with a bucket of water. Not only did no one tell me it was prohibited, every single crew member was delighted when they saw him. The photographer who goes around even took pictures of him. I really don't think it'll be an issue if you keep it close to you and don't be block pathways/people.

[grandmarnnurse]

Taking a 9 month old on a cruise this summer. What did others do about eating dinner in the MDR? She goes to sleep at 7, so either thinking of going right at 5:45 or waiting until she falls asleep, transferring her to stroller, and going around 8? Thoughts?

When we traveled with our 10 month old granddaughter and her mom (dad was deployed at the time), we had early dinner, but her schedule was all screwed up on that cruise, so sometimes she fell asleep in the stroller while we ate, and a couple times we had her up in the high chair munching on bread, and whatever we could feed her. She was fine. Then after dinner, we raced back to cabin, bathed her in the blow up baby bathtub we brought and placed in shower, put her PJs on, and back in stroller with her blanket and bottle. She often fell asleep while we were in theater, and out and about for the evening.

[muffin83]

I have been cruising with my daughter since she was 8 months old. We never had grandparents or family to leave her with as someone said above and to be honest we wanted to travel with her. It has been great she is now 6 and has been on 8 cruise with another scheduled for September. I agree with what people have said above. Bring everything diapers, wipes, bottles, sippy cups if your toddler needs 1, dish detergent to wash cups in the room, toys for the room, medicines (cold/ allergy) or whatever they may need. Bring a blow up tub if your little 1 doesn't fit in the sink if you aren't in a stateroom with a tub. There are times when you can go to the kids club and stay and play with your child. Usually in the morning. Have a good time and go with the flow.

 

 

 

Here she is with our room steward. We had a great time

[myfuzzy]

Its sounds like you literally have to pack the whole nursery -- pack n play (is that what they call it), strollers, some kind of booster seat, food, formulas, snacks, diapers, wipes, bottles, blankets and take all the kiddie meds from the medicine chest, just don't forget how dirty those carpets can be, so I wouldn't place my child on those, so you might be holding them for a good part of the time..So you might have to pack extra cloths too. Oh yeah, what about car seats?

Edited May 30, 2018 by myfuzzy

[serene56]

Its sounds like you literally have to pack the whole nursery -- pack n play (is that what they call it), strollers, some kind of booster seat, food, formulas, snacks, diapers, wipes, bottles, blankets and take all the kiddie meds from the medicine chest, just don't forget how dirty those carpets can be, so I wouldn't place my child on those, so you might be holding them for a good part of the time..So you might have to pack extra cloths too. Oh yeah, what about car seats?

 

 

ships supply a pack and play - bring your own sheets as theirs are kinds harsh they have high chairs but its not the kid with the tray.

[MistyRo76]

We took our daughter on her first cruise when she was 14 months old. Luckily by then she was eating all table foods. So we only packed a handful of snack for her mostly to have on the airplanes or while off the ship in port. We never had an issue finding food for her on the ship. As far as diapers went, I only packed enough for the first two days in my suitcase. Then when we got to Miami, I bought a large box of regular diapers and a package of swim diapers at a CVS near our hotel. We used packing tape to tape the two packages together and then stuck a Carnival bag tag on them and had them delivered right to our cabin with the rest of our luggage. We saved a TON of luggage space and didn't have to haul around a full box either.

 

Not sure if you've already booked a cabin, but if you haven't I highly suggest a balcony if your budget can swing it. We would hang out on the balcony while the little one was sleeping. It was great! But if you do that, bring your baby monitor as it's hard to see into the cabin from outside esp. in the dark. And you can't hear them if they wake up while you're outside.

 

A sturdy umbrella stroller is a must! We got the Summer Infant 3D lite and are still using it for our now almost 4 year old! It folds up easily and is lightweight enough to carry if needed. And it takes up very little room in your cabin. It also reclines (great for napping) and has a cupholder and storage underneath. We used the stroller all over the ship. Took her to dinner in it and the waiter would put it out of the way while she sat in her high chair and ate dinner. After dinner, they would take away the high chair and she would crawl in her stroller and nap while we finished our meal. We did not change our normal cruise routine. We kept the 8PM dinner time (even though that was her normal bedtime at home). She adjusted within a day or so and just went with the flow.

[JenniX]

Awesome, thank you!

I took our son when he was 6 months and brought the ducky inflatable tub. I put it out on the lido deck in between my chairs and filled it with a bucket of water. Not only did no one tell me it was prohibited, every single crew member was delighted when they saw him. The photographer who goes around even took pictures of him. I really don't think it'll be an issue if you keep it close to you and don't be block pathways/people.

[suzbcruiser]

Our son started cruising at 2 years old. One thing I packed was the Horizon organic milk cartons. This way I wasn’t worried about them having to be refrigerated. The little “refrigerators” in the cabins aren’t always that cold and I wouldn’t trust storing regular milk in them.

 

 

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[grandmarnnurse]

Our son started cruising at 2 years old. One thing I packed was the Horizon organic milk cartons. This way I wasn’t worried about them having to be refrigerated. The little “refrigerators” in the cabins aren’t always that cold and I wouldn’t trust storing regular milk in them.

 

 

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That’s actually a great idea! Way back when we sailed with our granddaughter (10 months old) in 2007, we brought dry formula, even though she could have milk at that time, but thought it to difficult to obtain at all hours. Not sure that type of milk was available back then, but this is a great idea for young families going forward.

[welove2cruise2014]

To the OP: How was it?? Any challenges/tips/pointers you'd be willing to share?!

 

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[LCTXcruiser]

Hi. We will be cruising on the Carnival Valor for a 4 day cruise to Cozumel in June. Any and all advice for packing and tips onboard with a baby and toddler would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

DON'T DO IT!!!! Just kidding LOL! I would recommend ordering the bottled water if the little one is still on bottles (so you have the ability to mix formula). It's 4.00 a 12 pack. Also, bring a few toys that they're used to having. I think overall you'll find it's no different than any other trip. If there's something you missed (other than baby food) you'll be able to get it on the ship - for a premium price of course. Take advantage of the circle c for the toddler. I promise they will have a ton of fun! Enjoy your cruise!

[riclop]

Goodluck

[wmwmarmstrong]

I’m not sure but I think I remember reading that kiddie pools are not allowed. You might want to check on that before you go to the trouble to lug one along.

 

 

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Yes, they are not allowed, but not knowing that this past April, we brought one.

My grandbabies were 8 months, 3 and 6. We found an out of the way corner and a bartender surprisingly brought us a bucket to fill the pool with.

 

Not a soul had something negative to say. In fact, most were watching them play and were saying how adorable they were.

 

I would give it a try and at least you can use it for a bathtub if you don't have a suite.