Tips for cruising with kids

[megsterl]

This will be mine and my husbands first time cruising with the kids.  My son will be 8 and my daughter 12. We are traveling with my sons friends family so I’m sure they will be together most of the time. My daughter makes friends very easily and I suspect she will have a new bestie quickly. I am just hoping for some insight into the kids club. Both of my kids are used to going to summer camps and such so I think they’ll both like going to club.  Obviously I don’t think they’ll be there all the time though.  How did you work it when you wanted to see a show at night with your spouse?  Any suggestions, tips, hints would be greatly appreciated.  I’m looking forward to hopefully having some time with my husband on a vacation. It’s been a long time. 

[kitkat343]

Honestly, no one has any idea what the kids clubs will look like this summer.  They could be running at normal capacity, in which case you will get a schedule of activities and your children can choose when they'd like to go to the kids club.  During shows, you could give your children the opportunity to choose if they want the kids club, if they want to stay in their rooms with electronics, or if you are comfortable allowing them to go somewhere on the ship by themselves doing something else.

 

Or this summer the kids clubs could be running with extremely limited capacity, which would require you to sign up in advance for limited slots or stand on line prior to the kids club reopening trying to obtain a slot.  I am preparing to sail this summer, and am preparing for this possibility (hoping it doesn't happen but because my youngest is 3  it will be tough if it does).  That means for us packing lots of toys and activities to keep the kids entertained.  In your case, it might mean thinking about how much screen time to give your kids, or bringing lots of books or researching what activities your ship has your kids might like and seeing if they can do those while you are at the show.

 

At 8 and 12 and traveling with friend's family, you need to give some thought as to whether you personally are comfortable with letting the kids travel around the ship without you in a group.  That depends on how old your friends' kids are, and how responsible your children are and how comfortable you are with this risk.  For example, are you comfortable letting the kids go all over the ship as long as they all stay together, or would you only allow them to go to one specific location for a certain time (like have a snack on the lido deck) while you remain at the pool and they return immediately after finishing eating.  Some families get a whiteboard for the room so children can check in if they return to the room while the parents are out and you'll know where they were and they can write down where they are going.  Or you can see if everyone can communicate through the ship internet if you all have devices that can work with the ship's communication system.

 

When my extended family all sailed together, we tended to meet up in the lido deck at lunchtime or for snacks even when we didn't plan to, so you'll get a sense of your kids routine eventually and be fine if you are comfortable letting them go freely together.

Edited April 10, 2022 by kitkat343

[matj2000]

Best advice:

 

Put the kids in a separate cabin.

 

 

[Canadianmama3]

My kids loved the kids club and wanted to be there every night.  My one son would even complain when I came at 10pm to pick him up.   
 

Have an early dinner, drop the kids at the club and then enjoy the evening with your spouse.   

[suchablonde]

We cruised with our kids almost every year from age 3 to late teens (skipped a few years for Disneyworld). They LOVED Adventure Ocean. We didn't let them roam the ship until probably age 13 or so; hard to remember as they are 21 and 22 now! But we did let them go on 'excursions' around the ship in chaperoned AO groups. 

 

We always had meals with them - dinner for sure and usually breakfast and lunch, with a few exceptions. Then they would beg to go to the kid's club, so we had evenings for whatever! On formal nights, Adventure Ocean will take them to dinner at Johnny Rockets or something, and keep them later than usual (11or 12?). So we did that now and then; though it was fun getting them all dressed up for formal night, pics, etc. But then, that was when almost everyone dressed up all fancy 😄

 

They also have babysitting available in cabin which we did one night when they were little. We probably wanted to see the adult comedian.

 

Anyhow, most, but certainly not all, children find friends and have a great time at AO. You won't know until they try it. I always felt very confident they were safe and never had any issue whatsoever after many cruises.

 

Also, mattj2000 had the best advice!! 

 

Have fun!

[cruiseguy1016]

The most important advice I can give for the 12-year-old is to make sure she attends the meet and greet for her age group on the first night. That little get together is when she will first meet the group of kids she will spend the week hanging out with. That will also be when she learns of all the activities planned for the week.

 

We cruised with our kids a few times. We gave them quite a bit of freedom to do things they wanted to do but we also had some rules that they had to follow. We made sure they checked in with us from time to time to let us know what they were doing. Dinner together was always a requirement but on occasion there would be a dinner for the kids (pizza party?) that we let them attend if they asked.

[mjkacmom]

I think the 12 year old would be in the teen club, so they come and go at their leisure (no need for parents to sign them in/out).

[smokeybandit]

1 hour ago, Canadianmama3 said:

Have an early dinner, drop the kids at the club and then enjoy the evening with your spouse.   

That's our strategy