Just booked on the Brilliance: are kids ever allowed in the solarium?

[HLester3]

I just booked us for a Mediteranean Venice cruise this morning. Partly on seeing the Solarium on the Travel Channel Alaska cruise on the Radiance. On the TV they showed a small child swimming in the pool, and my 4 year old was very excited to swim in the pool with the elephants. I was reviewing the deck plans and I read that the Solarium is adult only. Is it different on the Alask cruises since it is so cold? My son will be so disappointed if he can't see the elephants.

 

Thanks!!

[Funmaker]

HLester3, I wouldn't worry too much about the Solarium. It is "adult only", but it's not really enforced. The main reason the Solarium has this rule in place is basically to allow adults a quiet place to relax without children running around and doing cannon balls. Your 4-year-old will have plenty of opportunities to get well acquainted with the elephants.

[lul113]

If there is bad weather, they allow kids in the solarium for specifc hours only.

 

As already posted, the rule is not too strictly enforced, but I would pick a time when there are not too many people about.

[HLester3]

Thank you for both of your responses. I did a search for solarium and kids and was afraid I was going to get flamed for even suggesting it after reading previous postings.

[bplazo]

It was inforced on the last two cruises we have been on.

[breenw]

HLester3: You don't deserve to get "flamed" for your question - it's great that you are asking opinions ahead of time. But as a passenger who travels now without small children (ours are grown), I get frustrated when I go to an "adults only" area and there are kids. There are times when it has been very frustrating to go to what you think is going to be a quiet, relaxing place for adults on a ship, and there are families there who have kids running, yelling, and jumping around. It becomes very annoying. I don't agree with the other poster who basically said it's okay for families to take their kids there because it's not "enforced". I have seen this rule enforced on ships before - it depends on the ship, the passengers, who's working that area that day, etc.

 

My suggestion would be to take your son there at an "off" time when no one is there and let him enjoy the area for a while. Other than that, I would respect the rules of the solarium as an adults only area. The rules are there for a reason - to ensure that all passengers (families included) have designated areas to enjoy themselves and offer something that satisfies everyone.

 

Telling someone it's okay to go to an adults only area with your child because the rules are not always enforced is like saying it's okay to hog chairs all day by the pool, or smoke in the non-smoking areas of the ship, etc.

 

Just my opinion but I think the rules are there for a reason and passengers should be courteous and observe all the rules on the ships.

[raerae]

The "adults only" rule has been enforced on all of my cruises. I don't think it is ok to take your son there at any time. That is JMHO. I am certain that your son will enjoy all of the other "unrestricted" areas that he won't even miss this area on the ship. I have seen people bring young ones to the solarium only to be removed by the deck patrol. That is one area where the adults seem to be hellbent on keeping it adult only.

Enjoy your cruise.

Cindy ;)

[Hflors]

I was enforced on my last cruise along with chair saving. YOu should have seen the pile of "lost" items by the towel exchange station. The deck patrol was working overtime collecting items left behind by their owners.

 

Several children with parents were asked to leave the solarium while we were there. Some weren't too happy, but there wasn't much they could do.

 

I'm surprised your son would be interested in that area. I went back to see the children's area and it looked to me like the kids there were having a ball. Lots more things for them to do in the kids area.

 

Hope you have a good cruise.

[nanfromatlanta]

The Solarium rules were enforced on all of our cruises. As a matter of fact, on our last cruise, two young girls came in and got into the hot tub. An adult lady told them that that area was for adults only, and they promptly left. There are so many other areas on the ship for families. This is the only place which is adults only. Please do not try to bend the rules.

[Alexis]

It was enforced when we sailed the Brilliance. The youngest I saw was a boy about 16 years of age with his grandfather. I do not know if that age was allowed or not.

We were usually in there at least every other day for the snack place and never saw any younger kids near the water. They were in there with their parents just getting the pizza and burgers at the snack bar. That is allowed.

[SunnieD]

I agree in both directions. It is very attractive to both adults and children. Take him for a walk across the bridge and he can see the elephants up close. In the Med, the weather can change quickly so they may open it one day anyway depending on the weather. On serenade, you could not get a spot in the hot tubs anywhere due to the kids (teens). This was a much worse problem than the little ones. If the kids pool with slide is open, he will enjoy that much more. He will probably think the solarium is boring. I walked through there a lot but never swam in it.

[Nliedel]

I have always seen it enforced and I am very happy it is, as are the other people who seek out the peace and quiet of the adults only areas.

[JENANDGENE]

It has been enforced, BUT I was always under the impression that if the outside pool was not open due to cold weather or such that those rules no longer applied because it now becomes the only place to swim on the boat.... I am not sure if there are certain hours or what, but if they can't swim in the other pool I think it would only be fair to let them in the Solarium...

 

~Jen

[dfgf]

It's enforced when I'm there, because I always ask someone to remove the kids. They always do so immediately, and no one has ever made a fuss about it when asked to leave.

 

We have a 3-year-old and a 1-year-old, so it's not that we're anti-children. (We wouldn't sale on RC if we didn't like kids!) However, if something says 'Adults Only' I expect it to be adults only. I would never take my children in there - not because they're not well-behaved, but because that's what the sign says. Simple, really.

[bmweezer]

It is for adults-only and that is the way it is. This question is asked all of the time, which is just ridiculous. There are plenty of spaces available for children. The Solarium isn't one of them. If you want complete children spaces, go to Disneyland.

[Travelgrrl]

Those who are maintaining that the Solarium is always solely for adults are wrong. On cold weather cruises such as Alaska or transatlantic sailings, there are specific times each day when children are welcome in the Solarium. I seem to remember it was like 9:00 - 10:00 AM and 3:00 - 4:00 PM on our transatlantic. Other times you need to be over 16.

 

This provides a happy medium between kids who want a chance to swim at least once or twice in their cruise, and adults who want the majority of the time to have the Solarium as a respite from the dulcet tones of the week ones. They just absent themselves during those hours!

 

There is a permanent type wooden sign at the entrances that indicates the hours that children are allowed in during those cruises that allow this due to weather constraints.

[negc]

Travelgrrl is absolutely correct. There are specific hours posted on a sign beside the pool that indicates when children are allowed in the solarium pool in periods of inclement weather. I was especially impressed to note, on a transatlantic cruise, that when the time period for children to be in the solarium pool ended, the families with children, without prompting from anyone, packed up their belongings and left the area. However, I have also been in the solarium when some children, even when told by their parents that it was time to leave, refused to do so. A pool staff member had to speak to them. But those kids were behavior problems whereever they were on the ship, and probably were so at home as well. We also had one experience when a parent (a lawyer no less, as she informed anyone within earshot) seemed blind to the "when the weather is inclement" part of the notice, insisted that her son could use the pool during the stated hours, regardless of weather conditions. You can just imagine what a joy her son was.

Overall, the system works well. Most of us are fair-minded and would not deny the kids a chance to use the solarium when the outside pool cannot be used and as long as they are respectful of the rules and don't engage in obnoxious behavior. :)

[Travelgrrl]

Negc,

You always say such nice things about my comments! Twice in one week!

 

And I'm happy to think I was one of those families on your transatlantic that vamoosed when the golden hour was over!

 

And I meant "wee ones", not "week ones" - Doh!

[letsgosomewhere]

On the Grandeur sailing from San Juan, we had a lot of families not speaking English. Several children speaking Spanish were unattended in the Solarium and actually "jumped" into the hot tub with me and several other adults. I, too, spoke up and shook my head "no" and pointed to the door. And they left. The other adults were so grateful, but no one would have mentioned a thing if I hadn't spoke up. I get as frustrated with the grownups as with the children, sometimes. The staff were picking up towels, but unwilling to correct the children, and I heard that from other passengers as well that trip.

[gambler]

I believe there is a kids swimming area with a slide, that should get his attention.

[crusinmama06]

Travelgrrl - thank you for bringing that up because I was wondering about the ships who are obviously in cold areas (like Alaska and some of the Med areas). There wouldn't be any "kid area" for them to just go running off to (like some suggested in other posts) unless the kid enjoyed swimming in 10 degree weather. :eek:

[negc]

Negc,

You always say such nice things about my comments! Twice in one week!

 

And I'm happy to think I was one of those families on your transatlantic that vamoosed when the golden hour was over!

 

And I meant "wee ones", not "week ones" - Doh!

 

Hey Ellen, I call them as I see them.:) I was very impressed with the way people with kids observed the rules on the Brilliance transatlantic. It would have been very unfair if the kids didn't get at least some time in the pool during the cooler days on the crossing.

[lovetocruiserccl]

HLester3: You don't deserve to get "flamed" for your question - it's great that you are asking opinions ahead of time. But as a passenger who travels now without small children (ours are grown), I get frustrated when I go to an "adults only" area and there are kids. There are times when it has been very frustrating to go to what you think is going to be a quiet, relaxing place for adults on a ship, and there are families there who have kids running, yelling, and jumping around. It becomes very annoying. I don't agree with the other poster who basically said it's okay for families to take their kids there because it's not "enforced". I have seen this rule enforced on ships before - it depends on the ship, the passengers, who's working that area that day, etc.

 

My suggestion would be to take your son there at an "off" time when no one is there and let him enjoy the area for a while. Other than that, I would respect the rules of the solarium as an adults only area. The rules are there for a reason - to ensure that all passengers (families included) have designated areas to enjoy themselves and offer something that satisfies everyone.

 

Telling someone it's okay to go to an adults only area with your child because the rules are not always enforced is like saying it's okay to hog chairs all day by the pool, or smoke in the non-smoking areas of the ship, etc.

 

Just my opinion but I think the rules are there for a reason and passengers should be courteous and observe all the rules on the ships.

 

 

 

I agree. The only problem is adults only means adults only at all times. The children have their place and we have ours. Some of the childrens activities do not allow adults. Please give us individuals without children the opportunity to enjoy our vacation without children interrupting our peace. We should have one quiet area besides our cabin. Thats just my opinion.

[caviargal]

I have always seen it enforced and I am very happy it is, as are the other people who seek out the peace and quiet of the adults only areas.

 

In totally agree. Not flaming the OP, but if there is a child in the Solarium when I am there, I will call the Pursers Desk or Security immediately and ask them to deal with the situation. On the few cruises where it was not enforced, it surely detracted from my enjoyment of the solarium and the cruise. It is intended for adults only and IMO that needs to be respected.

 

There are so many great places on these ships for kids that elephants really should not matter.

[It'sRC4ME]

Not only is the adults only rule enforced by deck patrol, but it's the only place that I have ever seen passengers police themselves and tell folks who come in with children to leave.

 

Perhaps adults would share the solarium on Jewel if the kids would share the waterslide...