Looking for guidance- aging up from kids club?

[BENHANDEL]

Hello! I am a newbie to Carnival and I'm glad I found this forum. Hoping to get some guidance from experienced Carnival parents.

 

My DD will be about 6 weeks from her 12th birthday when we cruise Horizon at Christmas. According to policy, it looks like we will be able to request that she move up to the tween room if there is room. Her 14 year old sister will already be there and they get along very well. My youngest DD is sweet and obedient, but also an old soul who has always preferred hanging out with kids slightly older than herself. We cruised Disney last year and she only went to the kids club once. She was well within their age group at that time and it was too young for her-she preferred hanging with us.

 

I am fairly confident that my girls would stick together and one of the benefits of being on a cruise is that kids can have more freedom and independence. BUT I have read a couple of reviews about the lack of supervision at Circle C and potential exposure to behaviors that are well above what an almost-12-year- old should be exposed to. (We also have a 16 year old DS who would step in if he saw anything out of order.)

 

Based on my too long of a description of my daughter, is there anything I should be concerned about before requesting that she be moved up to Circle C?

 

TIA for any guidance.

[Caps_Shield]

Carnival moved my daughter up a few years ago when she was so close to the boarder. We just explained the situation to them and they took care of it. No stress really.

[Nevada Jen]

My 12 year old found the crowd at Circle C to be way too young for him. There is a lack of supervision in the activities. THe counselors are more like facilitators. And they most definately don't stay in the "room" as a matter of course like they do in the kids clubs. What she gets exposed to will depend largely on the crowd of kids who happen to be on the ship that week. I guess think of it this way, people "send" or "take" their kids to the kids club. Kids decide if they want to go do a circle c activity. Our experience was that an activity might draw the group there but then the group goes off on their own. By the way, zero complaints about that or Circle C. I was completely comfortable with it and the kids there.

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

Your 16 yr old will be in Club O2, and not allowed in the Circle C room, or activities, so would not be there to step in.

 

Circle C is 12-14. Think of it this way:

Camp Ocean: pre-school (in one room) and elementary school (in the other room, split between 6-8, and 9-11)

Circle C: middle school

Club O2: high school

 

So, would you prefer she hang out with middle school kids with her older sister, or with elementary kids (4th and 5th graders)? No right answer here.

 

You could have her try Camp Ocean the first day and see if she likes it, and if not, you can then ask if she could join her sister.

 

Additionally, as an 11 year old in Camp Ocean, you will have the option of letting her sign herself in and out of Camp Ocean. This is required for the group scavenger hunt that the older camp ocean kids will do.

[SadieN]

Talk with the counselors.

 

 

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[BENHANDEL]

Your 16 yr old will be in Club O2' date=' and not allowed in the Circle C room, or activities, so would not be there to step in.

 

Circle C is 12-14. Think of it this way:

Camp Ocean: pre-school (in one room) and elementary school (in the other room, split between 6-8, and 9-11)

Circle C: middle school

Club O2: high school

 

So, would you prefer she hang out with middle school kids with her older sister, or with elementary kids (4th and 5th graders)? No right answer here.

 

You could have her try Camp Ocean the first day and see if she likes it, and if not, you can then ask if she could join her sister.

 

Additionally, as an 11 year old in Camp Ocean, you will have the option of letting her sign herself in and out of Camp Ocean. This is required for the group scavenger hunt that the older camp ocean kids will do.[/quote']

 

I know that my son would be in the high school group. Another post I saw said that middle school girls were sneaking into the high school group. I was just joking that my son would put a stop to that, LOL.

 

Thanks for that perspective. My daughter will be in 6th grade and it will be the second year of middle school for her in our school district. Probably a reason that she's more comfortable with slightly older kids.

 

We will also be on another cruise in March where the Middle School room will be the only option for her because of age. So I guess this is the last year she could try out the kids come.

[BENHANDEL]

Carnival moved my daughter up a few years ago when she was so close to the boarder. We just explained the situation to them and they took care of it. No stress really.

 

Can you share more about why that was the right decision for your daughter? Thanks!

[rolloman]

It may not be a problem, especially since you have the 14 year old already in. But keep in mind If the ship is crowded with attending kids they may decline your request. I have seen it go both ways. As was already stated, the 16 year old will not have access to monitor and their club is located somewhere else on the ship. I would not worry, the 11 year old will have a good time and make friends regardless of the camp she attends. My 10 year old daughter just completed her 48th cruise so we have a lot of experience with the kids clubs.

[A&Jfamily]

Since you are cruising at Christmas, there is a very good chance that the ship will be filled with kids and there may not be room. So I would prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

 

The good thing is that the 9-11 age group can have sign in/out privileges - or you can simply not send her to camp at all. But send the 14 yo the first night to meet the friends. As others have noted, Circle C and Club O2 are more meet up places and by the end of the first night, they have their friend groups. Many never return to the kids club and just hang out on the ship. The 11 year old can simply join in with the group the 14 yo attaches to if the counselors do not allow her to move up.

[BENHANDEL]

Since you are cruising at Christmas, there is a very good chance that the ship will be filled with kids and there may not be room. So I would prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

 

The good thing is that the 9-11 age group can have sign in/out privileges - or you can simply not send her to camp at all. But send the 14 yo the first night to meet the friends. As others have noted, Circle C and Club O2 are more meet up places and by the end of the first night, they have their friend groups. Many never return to the kids club and just hang out on the ship. The 11 year old can simply join in with the group the 14 yo attaches to if the counselors do not allow her to move up.

 

That is a great tip. Thank you!