Cruising With An Infant (8 Month Old)

[brenton]

My wife and I have pretty much taken a cruise at least yearly since we met 6 years ago.  We had our first baby girl in January of this year and were excited to bring her on our booked November cruise.  However, we had a ‘little’ surprise (we are now expecting her little sister) so we had to move our cruise up to the end of September to accommodate Carnival’s cruising requirements for weeks pregnant.  I know prior to our cruise I tried to do some research on what cruising with an infant would be like.  I did not find too much information, so figured I’d put my experience out there just in case anyone is looking for more information on their own.  Without further ado, our experience with our 8 month old on a cruise ship:

 

Cabin Accommodations:

We had an interior room.  We had called ahead requesting a crib, but it was not there when we arrived.  We called room service, and they brought it fairly promptly.  It was a metal style and actually fit between the wall and bed when we pushed our bed over.  We still had about 8-10” on the other side between the bed and wall.  Overall, it worked great for us.  We also brought a foldable shower stool that my wife sat on and held our little girl for showers which worked fine.  I think we also brought 3 outfits a day for her, but she didn’t use nearly that much.  We also packed 10 diapers a day which she also didn’t use.

 

Moving About:

We have one of those fairly cheap little Walmart type strollers that fold up like an umbrella.  It worked great and I wouldn’t recommend taking your bigger stroller; you’ll be too cramped.  We were easily able to fold it and put it away under a table when needed.  Also, our boat (the Breeze) had multiple family restrooms with changing tables, which was nice. 

 

Dining:

We did a mix of Lido buffet and main dining at night.  We have a little seat that straps to a chair, but Carnival also had highchairs.  I would say our little girl is pretty well behaved but could sometimes get loud “talking” or playing during dinner and though no one said anything, it was occasionally uncomfortable.  We do the anytime dining but tried to stick with early times to avoid the crowds.  We more so enjoyed the Lido buffet where its much more loud and busier in general.  I think she enjoyed having more to watch there too. 

 

We brought formula and baby food for her (she’s still experimenting with new/smashed solids).  Our doctor has always recommended only introducing a new food once a week just to make sure there isn’t an allergy.  We regret not having introduced more to her prior to the cruise.  There were always bananas and occasionally strawberries that we were able to give her; however, the buffet also always had watermelon, cantaloupe and pineapple.  I wish we had introduced those to her prior so we would have felt comfortable giving those to her as well.  We were also able to purchase distilled water onboard from the room service (I think $3.75 a gallon).

 

We bought some throw away mats that stick to the table that we used mainly in the lido buffet to cover the table where she ate.  I think it helped with the mess as well as preventing her from putting her mouth on the bare table.

 

Entertainment:

The shows went about as expected.  She usually fell asleep or occasionally got fussy and we had to take her out, but nothing unexpected.  We had been on this cruise before and knew all the shows so didn’t feel any regrets missing portions. 

 

Kids must be potty trained to go in the pool.  We figured we’d try our luck at the splash pad and found a spot off to the side, but the lifeguard there was quick to ask if she was potty trained.  When we said ‘no’, he let us sit with her in our lap at the edge of the splash pad so she could at least dip her feet in the water, but after about 15 minutes or so, another lifeguard came and made us leave.  Completely understandable but just noting if anyone is curious if they enforce those rules; they do, ha.  We did do an excursion to a little resort place that had a kiddy pool she was allowed in, so I’d recommend that if interested.

 

I understand the day care takes care of infants under 2 for certain time periods.  I believe on our cruise they were 8am-12pm, 5pm-6pm and 10pm-1am.  These cost additional fees.  We did not try it so I can’t speak to how they work. 

 

Other note: When we had to change our cruise, I know the policy but figured I’d call Carnival to see if they could work with us on keeping our promo (quite a bit of OBC) and/or not losing our deposit.  They weren’t able to accommodate which is understandable but a bummer.

 

That’s all I can think of for now.  If anyone has any questions, please feel free to post/ask.  The only other thing I’ll note is that it was nice seeing our baby girl put a smile on a lot of the workers faces.  Many, especially servers on the lido, would remember her name and seek out to visit and “talk” to her every time we were there.  Many would tell us about their kids back home.  

 

In conclusion, it you’re up in the air, even though this trip ended up being sooner than expected, I’d still recommend cruising with your infant as long as your expectations are realistic.  You may not get to do all the gambling and shows that you want, but you’ll still get to enjoy all the other fun, food, and of course family time.  I can’t wait to do it again next year!

[lazydayz]

We went on a big family cruise many years ago with a 10 month grandbaby.  She was the star of every meal time.  So many staffers wanted to say hi and just enjoyed being around a baby.  

 

It was a lot of work but well worth it to have her join the family cruise. 

[Drazil65]

We also brought a foldable shower stool that my wife sat on and held our little girl for showers which worked fine. 

 

When DS was a baby/toddler on a cruise, we would bring a small, blowup baby bathtub and set it in on the floor of the shower (can put a towel underneath for some padding if needed).  He would play in it just like at home while I did my hair or makeup in the bathroom.  Worked very well and easy to travel with.  Also, when he was still in nap stage was when we started getting balcony cabins.  We took turns for nap time in the cabin and once he was alseep that parent could go out on the balcony (adjusted the curtain inside so we could of course see him) and enjoy some outdoor time on the balcony.  A good book and a glass of wine did wonders for nap time!  It worked out great and each parent never felt like they were missing out on enjoying some cruise time (and he got his much needed nap).  

 

Thank you for your review and experiences as cruising with our son has been some of our best vacation memories (he is a senior in college now 😬).  It sounds like you will have many great memories with your children and congrats on baby #2...

 

 

Edited Tuesday at 11:15 PM by Drazil65

[john91498]

Nice write up. It reminds me of when my kids were toddlers and very sweet. Now, they're evil teenagers...lol...

[jdcml]

It has been a long time since we traveled with small children and they were never quite that young, but close.
One thing that you didn't mention in your post specifically although it is apparent is that you were flexible.  You weren't locked on one dinning option or time.  You were flexible with the shows and how long you stayed. 

That was probably the most important part of how we traveled with young kids.  We were headed to dinner once with two of them in the MDR and the older one completely melted down and was just d-o-n-e.  One parent took the melt down back to the room and the other went to the MDR, explained the issue to the server that had already met the kids, and they made an exception to allow it to be "to-go".  Its all about flexiblity!

Something else for families with young kids to consider... they likely won't remember any of these trips or experiences directly.  What they will get from it though is the overall connection, interactions and bonding that takes place during trips like this.  These types of things shape their development in ways we really can't know until a lot later.  Maybe it was all these types of trips that got us to having 20 somethings that still like to travel with us... fortunately now in their own rooms 🤣

[kdr69]

I commend anyone travelling with toddlers that young.  Thanks for the review.

[ninjacat123]

We cruised with our DDs from 4 & 6 years old to now 22 & 24 and flexibility is definitely important!  I totally agree with @jdcml that they probably won't remember the trip(s) till they are at least 5 or 6 (my 22 year old says she doesn't remember Disney World at all and she was 5) but I remember our times together and can look back at pics.  Speaking of which, if you don't make a picture book, like Shutterfly, I highly recommend it!  My girls still like looking through all of them😻

Thanks for your review!!