Solarium now 18+

[moposh]

5 minutes ago, Tatka said:

 

On Voyager and Freedom they are also almost in front.

I was just on Vision so that's what I was thinking of.  Windjammer is at the front.

[Tatka]

13 minutes ago, moposh said:

I was just on Vision so that's what I was thinking of.  Windjammer is at the front.

 

Vision class is the only exception I think. The oldest and smallest.

 

Even Radiance class has Windjammer in the aft and Solarium towards bow.

Edited September 27, 2023 by Tatka

[crazyank]

4 hours ago, steveru621 said:

OK, OK it also says on Radiance class 16+ for the pool. but anyone is allowed in the Solarium on Radiance class.  Those are the facts.

Nope

[Gerbilicous]

23 hours ago, ShillyShally said:

Interesting, I always felt badly for the teens who wanted a quiet area as the solarium never seems to get rowdy (why we stay there) but I can also appreciate the age restriction and want to keep it quiet.  I expect it will be as usual, they won't monitor it unless someone is making it obvious or acting up. 

yah, my wife’s family sails with us sometimes and their youngest turns 16 in new year and we had sailing a few months later and was so looking forward to finally being able to going in with us. Is more mature than some people twice her age. Is bit gutted on this change. 
 

while I know the age restriction is the easiest way to do it, I feel it should be more a ‘quiet zone’ policy. I have seen adults in their making more noise and distractions than the kids in the other pool areas. And that just ruins the tranquil solarium experience for us. 

[ShillyShally]

57 minutes ago, Gerbilicous said:

while I know the age restriction is the easiest way to do it, I feel it should be more a ‘quiet zone’ policy. I have seen adults in their making more noise and distractions than the kids in the other pool areas. And that just ruins the tranquil solarium experience for us. 

I agree with this too!

[BND]

LOL. Everyone says their kid is more mature than others their age.  I understand as I had two responsible boys that are now very responsible men, but they were still teenagers.

[BND]

1 hour ago, Gerbilicous said:

 

while I know the age restriction is the easiest way to do it, I feel it should be more a ‘quiet zone’ policy. I have seen adults in their making more noise and distractions than the kids in the other pool areas. And that just ruins the tranquil solarium experience for us. 

I was informed on here several years ago that the Solarium is not a quiet spot and that people are in there to have a good time, you know, even if it infringes on others.  The reason it's adult is so adults have ONE space they can be in without worrying about kids being around.  Whether it's language or whatever.  Kids have their own space that adults can't go into.

[Ret MP]

This is a dilemma issue for me.  While I don't appreciate the company of young ones much anymore.  Which means that I welcome this change. I also think that if parents pay for a cruise, they should be able to have their children accompany them to venues that aren't considered adult, R-rated for example.  The word Solarium doesn't, at least for me, suggest a special place void of children or even noise.  

 

Again, I'm happy to see the change.  But, I can see the other side of this.

[Charles4515]

1 minute ago, Ret MP said:

The word Solarium doesn't, at least for me, suggest a special place void of children or even noise.  

 

That is what it always suggested to me. And they always had an age limit. None of the pool activities like bands or pool games. 

[Gerbilicous]

8 minutes ago, BND said:

I was informed on here several years ago that the Solarium is not a quiet spot and that people are in there to have a good time, you know, even if it infringes on others.  The reason it's adult is so adults have ONE space they can be in without worrying about kids being around.  Whether it's language or whatever.  Kids have their own space that adults can't go into.

Ya, guess we always got the wrong impression then of what it’s supposed to be. Considering the bands, djs, or whatever else always happens at one of the main pools; we never thought it was supposed to be the 18+ party zone. 

🤷‍♂️

[BND]

1 minute ago, Ret MP said:

This is a dilemma issue for me.  While I don't appreciate the company of young ones much anymore.  Which means that I welcome this change. I also think that if parents pay for a cruise, they should be able to have their children accompany them to venues that aren't considered adult, R-rated for example.  The word Solarium doesn't, at least for me, suggest a special place void of children or even noise.  

 

Again, I'm happy to see the change.  But, I can see the other side of this.

The only new part of this is the age.  Solarium has been adult only as long as we've been cruising on Royal, so not new.  Nothing wrong with having an adult only area.  You pay for the cruise too, but you can't just go inside the kids area.   It's kind of like around here, there are some adult only wineries and at least one winery that has an adult only building and patio with a great view and a separate spot a couple hundred yards away for families and those under 21.  Adult only area is always packed so we go early to get a table with an umbrella. I've seen families asked to leave.  

[BND]

1 minute ago, Gerbilicous said:

Ya, guess we always got the wrong impression then of what it’s supposed to be. Considering the bands, djs, or whatever else always happens at one of the main pools; we never thought it was supposed to be the 18+ party zone. 

🤷‍♂️

No one said party zone and it never has been.  It's supposed to be a place for adults to get away.  Sometimes it's very quiet.  Sometimes there are people in the hot tubs talking loudly.  

[2wheelin]

5 hours ago, Knitwit said:

So I'm also irritated at this. We are going on our first cruise in 20 years in November with my disabled mother & my 16 yr old. The 16 year old is being included on this trip mostly to be a part time caregiver & helper to my mom. (a bit of a sore point for my other kids being left at home because they were not old enough to help) This trip is primarily for my mother, even though we expected everyone to enjoy it. We did our homework on a bunch of cruise lines & the Solarium access for 16+ wasn't the only reason we chose Royal Caribbean, but it was on the list because it made things simple since all caregivers could go everywhere my mother might want to. If my daughter can't use the Solarium, my mother (81, so well over 18+) by default can't either when my daughter relieves me or my aunt. Or I just don't get respite, which seems like its the more likey scenario to play out.

 

If the rule had been 18 when we booked that would have been understandable, & we could have taken that in consideration with our plans. I wouldn't have let my kid think that she could use these facilities. It also just generally sucks to have to take away access that was already promised, in accordance with the rules, when my daughter already had time to be excited by it. I'm not particuarly interested in playing games with her using the facillites & hoping no one questions.

 

Of course, we are far beyond the time to cancel & get our money back, so we will make the best of it. I'm sure that Royal has covered all their fine print bases, but it feels very scummy & bait & switchy to make this change without notice in advance & so close to our sail date. Would it not make sense to make this change starting on an anounced future date, still within the cancel period for future cruises, so that those for whom this might be a deal breaker can have the option to change their plans? This gives me a really bad taste for Royal Carribean going in to this cruise.

Was the plan for your mother to spend all her time in the solarium? Daughter can be with her at other times. Aunt can apparently relieve you so you can get respite. Will you need to plan ahead a bit more? Maybe. 

Find it interesting that daughter was so excited about the prospect of being old enough for the solarium when she apparently has never cruised before. At least not with you. Sometimes we need to tell children the plans have been changed. They’re more resilient than we give them credit for.

And as others have said, if she is not creating a disturbance, no one will care if she is there.

I can’t imagine anyone so rigid that this could be a deal breaker and canceling a cruise. There are plenty of quiet spots on any ship I have been on.

Please look for the good (you still have your mom with you) and put the other on the back burner and have a good time. This can still be a great time for your daughter and her grandmother to be together. Give her plenty of time to go off on her own as well.

[Gerbilicous]

1 minute ago, 2wheelin said:

Was the plan for your mother to spend all her time in the solarium? Daughter can be with her at other times. Aunt can apparently relieve you so you can get respite. Will you need to plan ahead a bit more? Maybe. 

Find it interesting that daughter was so excited about the prospect of being old enough for the solarium when she apparently has never cruised before. At least not with you. Sometimes we need to tell children the plans have been changed. They’re more resilient than we give them credit for.

And as others have said, if she is not creating a disturbance, no one will care if she is there.

I can’t imagine anyone so rigid that this could be a deal breaker and canceling a cruise. There are plenty of quiet spots on any ship I have been on.

Please look for the good (you still have your mom with you) and put the other on the back burner and have a good time. This can still be a great time for your daughter and her grandmother to be together. Give her plenty of time to go off on her own as well.

she has cruised several times before, which is why was looking forward to being able to see and use solarium this time around but now can’t. Of course not worth cancelling over and will be just fine working around it. 
 

mostly never knew that 16/17 year olds were causing issue that that many people gave feedback they wanted to change it. 

 

my experience on 7 cruises has been kids are really only an issue on the older ships when you have to walk through the Solarium like on Freedom. Oasis or Quantum I can say I’ve ever really seen kids trying to be in it besides a family walking through to take a look. 

[TravelBluebird]

21 hours ago, PompeySailor said:

180degs floor to roof views 

 

 

 Sea views! Yep, that will be my spot!

[BND]

42 minutes ago, Gerbilicous said:

she has cruised several times before, which is why was looking forward to being able to see and use solarium this time around but now can’t. Of course not worth cancelling over and will be just fine working around it. 
 

mostly never knew that 16/17 year olds were causing issue that that many people gave feedback they wanted to change it. 

 

my experience on 7 cruises has been kids are really only an issue on the older ships when you have to walk through the Solarium like on Freedom. Oasis or Quantum I can say I’ve ever really seen kids trying to be in it besides a family walking through to take a look. 

There are limited loungers in most of the solariums, especially on the smaller, older ships.

[karl_nj]

 

Were 16 year olds in the solarium really an issue? Seems like a pretty random change to me.

 

Will they change the fitness center age limit from 16 to 18 to also be "consistent" with policies?

 

If they really want to be consistent, then perhaps "Kids Sail Free" should go up to age 17, instead of ending at age 12.

 

[gammite]

8 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

Royal Caribbean is a cruise line geared to families and so are their ships.  They will never have any adult only ships under the RC brand. You are cruising on the the wrong cruise line if you expect more than the adults only Solarium. 

 

Stranger things have happened.  *shrugs*

 

I would definitely appreciate if it happened.

[Ret MP]

3 hours ago, BND said:

The only new part of this is the age.  Solarium has been adult only as long as we've been cruising on Royal, so not new.  Nothing wrong with having an adult only area.  You pay for the cruise too, but you can't just go inside the kids area.   It's kind of like around here, there are some adult only wineries and at least one winery that has an adult only building and patio with a great view and a separate spot a couple hundred yards away for families and those under 21.  Adult only area is always packed so we go early to get a table with an umbrella. I've seen families asked to leave.  

As I said, I'm glad this has happened.  

 

Nope, if you don't have a child registered in the kid's zone, whatever it is called, you can't go in, it's called security, and I'm very happy they do.  Apples and oranges!

 

Yes, I'm all for the Adult only, 18 and above.  But, I'd be Okay with a strictly enforced <LOL like that would happen, policy/rule of well-behaved children, however they would word it.  As long as there is no running around, jumping around, yelling, screaming, crying, and/or well-supervised, I'd be good with it.  I love well-behaved children and enjoy being around them for a short while.

 

THE DEVIL'S ADVOCATE"  If I wanted complete absence of children, I'd cruise on Virgin, et al.  

 

 

[Ret MP]

3 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

That is what it always suggested to me. And they always had an age limit. None of the pool activities like bands or pool games. 

I'm kind of a black-and-white guy, not much gray in my life.  This is how I view Solarium, you're welcome to you definition:

 

[Charles4515]

12 minutes ago, Ret MP said:

I'm kind of a black-and-white guy, not much gray in my life.  This is how I view Solarium, you're welcome to you definition:

 

I noticed you tend to take language literally but the Solarium on Royal Caribbean has always been a no child space since my first RC cruise in 1995. A peaceful, quiet area for relaxing and no children. Where the hot tubs at the main pools would be filled with little ones and pretty unusable the hot tubs in the Solarium were usable. The dictionary definition of Solarium does not change what the Solarium has been historically defined as on RC and how it has been used on Royal Caribbean. So in Black and White the Solarium on Royal is how Royal had defined it not some dictionary. 

[HBE4]

3 hours ago, Gerbilicous said:

mostly never knew that 16/17 year olds were causing issue that that many people gave feedback they wanted to change it. 

 

I doubt it will be a huge difference as most 16/17 years old will probably pass for 18 anyways.

 

It's the 13 & 14 year olds that look 16 but act like a 9 year old that will be most affected.

[momof3cruisers]

14 hours ago, Knitwit said:

So I'm also irritated at this. We are going on our first cruise in 20 years in November with my disabled mother & my 16 yr old. The 16 year old is being included on this trip mostly to be a part time caregiver & helper to my mom. (a bit of a sore point for my other kids being left at home because they were not old enough to help) This trip is primarily for my mother, even though we expected everyone to enjoy it. We did our homework on a bunch of cruise lines & the Solarium access for 16+ wasn't the only reason we chose Royal Caribbean, but it was on the list because it made things simple since all caregivers could go everywhere my mother might want to. If my daughter can't use the Solarium, my mother (81, so well over 18+) by default can't either when my daughter relieves me or my aunt. Or I just don't get respite, which seems like its the more likey scenario to play out.

 

If the rule had been 18 when we booked that would have been understandable, & we could have taken that in consideration with our plans. I wouldn't have let my kid think that she could use these facilities. It also just generally sucks to have to take away access that was already promised, in accordance with the rules, when my daughter already had time to be excited by it. I'm not particuarly interested in playing games with her using the facillites & hoping no one questions.

 

Of course, we are far beyond the time to cancel & get our money back, so we will make the best of it. I'm sure that Royal has covered all their fine print bases, but it feels very scummy & bait & switchy to make this change without notice in advance & so close to our sail date. Would it not make sense to make this change starting on an anounced future date, still within the cancel period for future cruises, so that those for whom this might be a deal breaker can have the option to change their plans? This gives me a really bad taste for Royal Carribean going in to this cruise.

My daughter is 27. She looks maybe 16. She gets carded for alcohol and has been asked her age in places where you need to be 21. (Carnival’s adults only area for one.) But never in somewhere for 18 and above. 16 and 18 are too close to judge by appearance alone, and I doubt anyone would ask.

 

I understand though that you don’t want to encourage your daughter lie. It might be possible to contact Royal’s special needs department and register or list her as a caregiver to her grandma thereby granting her access to areas she takes her. 

[crazyank]

8 hours ago, karl_nj said:

Were 16 year olds in the solarium really an issue?

Yes

 

8 hours ago, karl_nj said:

Will they change the fitness center age limit from 16 to 18 to also be "consistent" with policies?

Hopefully

 

8 hours ago, karl_nj said:

If they really want to be consistent, then perhaps "Kids Sail Free" should go up to age 17, instead of ending at age 12.

comparing apples and oranges.

Edited September 28, 2023 by crazyank

[Scottdalfonso]

1 hour ago, crazyank said:

Yes

 

Hopefully

 

comparing apples and oranges.

Ha ha.... no they weren't. Maybe a few here and there, but that goes with the drunk adults, as well. I'd rather have a few well behaved 16 year olds than a few drunk adults. If they want to make 18  (or even 16) "adults" then they need to change the way they charge, as well. My 13 year old pays as an adult... then they should have access to adult areas.  I'm all for adults only areas, but make it consistent.