Cruising with a 2 1/2 year old

[teacha50]

I am planning on taking my family on a Disney cruise and was hoping to cruise early in September.  My son's family are big Disney fans and travel to the parks a couple times a year.  I now have a grandson who will be 2 1/2 in September.  I realize the age group he falls into doesn't qualify him to be in any of the youth clubs and I know his parents won't want him in the nursery.  Will his age restrict him and his parents while onboard?  I don't want the parents to feel they are confined while on the ship.  I will be booking 3 verandah rooms so before I reserve and place a down payment, I want to be confident there will be fun for all.  I really don't want to wait another year but need to be assured everyone will have fun!

[1025cruise]

Is he potty trained? Otherwise he will be restricted to the one water area for diapered kids. No diapers of any kind are allowed in the pools.

 

While he won't be able to go to kids programs, there will be open hours he can go to with someone. 

[LulaMae]

Will his age restrict him and his parents while onboard? 

 

Just FYI, he will not be allowed into any of the "adults only" areas. I mention this because sometimes people think babies/toddlers are okay but no one under 18 is allowed in the adults only spaces.

[ArthurUSCG]

They will have fun onboard, but I don't think a 2.5yo will want to sit thru the entire dinner. The nursery on DCL ships is very nice and they have activities for the older kids.

[bcakes]

We took my son on his first Disney cruise when he was almost 2. We did not use the nursery at all. My husband and I each got some alone time by switching off who watched our son and the rest of the time we did stuff as a family. The nice thing about DCL is that they do have activities for younger kids. There was a wake up with Disney Junior daily and they have open house hours in the kids club where younger children can visit as long as an adult stays with them. He enjoyed playing with the toys in the kids club at that time.

 

You will be "confined" in the sense that you cannot all use the adult areas together because someone always needs to watch your grandson. But I certainly didn't feel confined. Between the extra help we got from our dining staff to make sure my son was happy during meal times and all the new things for him to see and do, my son was well entertained and I felt like I had a chance to relax at times.

[ArthurUSCG]

If the parents will use the nursery for a hour or 2 around dinner time, you can have the kids meals "expedited" and the server will bring the kids appetizer and entree right away, before even taking the rest of the tables order. Then the server will bring the kids desert, when you say it's ok. My kids loved getting the Mikey ice cream bars with mickey shaped sprinkles. This way you can take the kids to the kids club or to the nursery.  Our 2.5 yo loved the nursery staff and wanted to stay in the nursery.

[darwinsrule]

As long as you go in prepared there is no reason not to have a blast.  Our first trip in 2010 was multi-generational like yours.  Our youngest had just turned 2.  Grandpa was in the connecting room so the kids could run back and forth (and they did that up to a couple of years ago when his health reached the point where travel wasn't an option).  Balcony helps for nap time, so good job there.  Dinner depends upon the child.  We went in with an iPad loaded with games and videos for her to watch, basically things to keep her distracted.  Consider it like the plane trip and how you plan to keep them occupied. If the expectation is that they will sit silently and behave, well good luck since there are adults who can't manage that feat.  

 

Now what we did on those first few trips are dramatcialy different then what we did on our last one, and what we are planning for our next one.  We would never trade the memories or the great times we had if that helps. There are lots of things to do, just go in with expectations set appropriately (both for the children and parents).  

[teacha50]

Thanks for everyone's replys...After much discussion, we will be doing the family Disney cruise in 2020...but planning on family Disney World trip in the fall 2019.  However, I am having major cruise withdrawals, so daughter and I are now researching our options for a relaxing girls week away...