PARANOID about Adventure Ocean?!

[escentialssoycandles]

Ok we are 11 days to sailing and this is our first cruise with the kids (ages 3.5, 6 and 10). I have read great reviews about AO, but I am extremely paranoid.

 

From what I understand my kids will all be broken up into their own groups?

I guess I am most paranoid about the level of supervision, the counselors etc. especially for my 3.5 year old. I am thinking she will wander off (she is really quick and sneaky.) Is there any way to keep them together? I know my oldest daughter would happily stay with her little sister, she loves being "mother hen".

 

We plan on taking the kids with us to all of our excursions and have them most of the time on board, but I think they would really enjoy themselves with some kids geared activities on sailing days.

 

Can someone help set my mind at ease, especially if they have used AO for a smaller child. Thanks so much!

[Sue L]

Are you going now? What happened with the surgery? You never gave an update on the other thread?

 

I know you are new here so I will just explain that it is considered good board etiquette if you start a thread to give periodic updates and/or answer the questions of those that we kind enough to respond to your post. If you know this already I apologize.

 

I haven't used AO but it gets rave reviews for the staff, activities , etc. You might want to explain to the staff that she is a wanderer. You might want to go on the family board to get answers from those who have personal experience.

 

 

Sue

[ChristieNJ]

Candles -

I had this SAME fear, since we just got off Explorer, and it was my 8 year old daughter's very first cruise. I was VERY leary about leaving her with total strangers on a ship.

I must say though, that they were GREAT with the kids. They did not let parents in the AO area, and once when my DD was dressed up as a pirate and I wanted to take a picture of her, they told me it would have to be OUTSIDE the doors, because no cameras were allowed in the kid's area. They seemed to have everything under great control, so go let your kids have some fun. And it may be not a bad thing if they're in separate groups, because the activities are age-appropriate. My DD was in two parades onboard, had her face painted multiple times, went to her own "kid's dance" in the dance club, etc. They did great little crafts and all went well, so relax a little and let the adults AND kids have a great time! :)

[escentialssoycandles]

Hi there, I have not had a chance to get back to my previous post to give an update, but I will. I will update here as well. My surgery is on 12/4, so the cruise I cancelled was for 12/7. I am having various procedures done this week (endoscopy tomorrow) and next week (gall bladder sonogram) and then a colonoscopy on 11/29, my surgery is scheduled for 12/4 for a 22mm Kidney Cyst which I just found out I had on Halloween after a CT scan due to swelling up severely, to the point I looked like I was 7 months pregnant. This was the 5th time in 9 months and this time it was a couple of days long. It is laproscopic, but I am not sure on the healing time and did not want to take a chance with cruising and all 3 days later. I am only 31 and somewhat of a medical mystery LOL, so finally we are doing all possible testing to figure out what is going on with me! Thanks for your concern, I do appreciate it.

[SomeBeach]

You must be related to my daughter-in-law!! LOL :D

My grandson was 5 on his first cruise. My d-i-l took him to NCL's version of the kids club and then sat outside the door, where he couldn't see her, for an hour! Then my son took his turn. :p

Last year we were on AO. The staff is wonderful and the kids are supervised at all times. They will not put older kids with younger ones but you can drop by and check on your child at any time. Only those on a list can take the children out of the playrooms so they are safe in that reguard.

I would suggest you follow my d-i-l's example if you are really concerned for your youngest child. Maybe limit the time the first few days until she gets use to the program. Keep in mind you are only a few minutes away if your child needs you. With all that is offered, she probably won't.

[ChristieNJ]

You must be related to my daughter-in-law!! LOL :D

 

My grandson was 5 on his first cruise. My d-i-l took him to NCL's version of the kids club and then sat outside the door, where he couldn't see her, for an hour! Then my son took his turn. :p .

 

Wow, and I thought *I* was bad!! LOL :D

[Glama]

Your kids will be absolutely fine, and well supervised! Better supervised than they even are at school, really. They will have a blast and make lifelong memories! :)

 

The only time we ever had a problem with the kids club was on our Disney cruise. I watched while they ignored my daughter who stood in the middle of the room, all by herself (shyness) for 15 minutes. I was trying not to butt in, but finally said "If you can't keep an eye on her, and make this fun for her, I'd be happy to keep her with me". There were just TOO many children on that Disney cruise, the staff seemed overwhelmed. This was 4 years ago, so I'm hoping things have changed.

 

Now, on our cruises (not Disney) my kids can't wait to get to the kids club, even though they are seperated.

[Onessa]

We've been cruising with our DD since she was too young for the kids' programs. RCCI has always had pretty high standards for their AO staff (a minimum of a bachelors degree in a child-related course of study and demonstrated hands-on experience working with kids). The facilities they use are designed specifically for the program (not just some room with a bag of toys tossed in). The programs are age appropriate, and kids are grouped by age to make certain that the activies remain age-appropriate.

 

One incident stands out. Our DD is EXTREMELY quiet (not really shy, but quiet and will do anything to avoid bringing attention to herself). During one of her earlier cruises (she was about 5 or 6), we went to the kid's talent show. While she had assured the counselors that she did not want to participate, she had been showing some of her friends some of the songs she knew on the piano after the group had done a dress rehersal (she and some of the other kids came up as dress rehersal audience members). During the show, she expressed some regret to me that she hadn't volunteered to participate (participants got RCCI medals). Her counselor, Dizzy, noticed her talking to me and saw that she was distressed. He discretely came over and asked her if she wanted to play for the show, and she said yes (that surprised me!). He talked to the counselor who was the MC and he announced that before the grand finale, they had one more act and introduced my daughter (she played "jolly old St. Nicholas" -- it was June :D ) and then took her bows. She was SO excited and happy -- and it was all due to Dizzy's observation.

 

I've noticed on all the cruises, we've had counselors who really seemed to care about the kids. They've worked hard to include everyone and to balance the loud/noisey/active stuff with crafts, videos, music and other stuff to keep everyone engaged.

 

AO is something that RCCI execs understand is a huge part of their success -- so the resources have not been cut back and the quality remains high.

 

Go forth, vacation and ENJOY!

[cruznsugs]

I have a few questions...we will be bringing my 4 year old in January for the explorer 12 night cruise. Wonder what happens if for some reason my daughter needs me. If i'm not in my room how will i know? I mean say she has an accident and needs a changed of clothes or she falls and hurts herself. How will I know. Do they have pagers or will they leave a message at our room? I just want to be able to relax and know that if there's a problem they can get a hold of me. Also is there something for them to drink during the sessions , do they have a snack time or even a water cooler.

[ritarussell]

For the youngest age group (I believe its 3-5) you are given a pager so that they can get a hold of you. That was one of my concerns and this was really comforting to me. They will page you if you are needed or if your child wants to leave, etc.

[nmcrzer]

essentialsoycandles - We were on the Enchantment last month, and the AO program is great! Depending on how many kids are on the cruise, they may or may not combine the age groups. There weren't many on our cruise, so sometimes the age groups were combined. Your daughter's older group will sometimes be near the younger group if they are both participating in an activity at AO. After 10 p.m., there are "slumber party" activities, and for our sailing, all the kids were together.

 

When you drop off your child, you sign him/her in at the AO front desk. There is a rope/net on the side of the front desk, so no one can go in or out unnecessarily. That is how they keep the kids in when they are participating in an activity at the AO room. When they are in an organized activity elsewhere, they are very good about keeping the kids together (one leader up front, one in the middle, one behind). They are constantly counting the kids to double check they have everyone. I wouldn't worry about your youngest, even if she is quick and sneaky. She will be so entertained anyway, she won't want to sneak off!

 

You'll love your cruise! Have a great time.

[cruizinmimi]

I'll tell my grandmother stories about AO. Our grandson has been cruising since he was 22 mos. old. Rcl Adventure Ocean program is the best. In the 3-5 age group, they will give out pagers and if for some reason you need to be contacted, you will be paged. Also in the 3-5 age group, there is a little gate up where the kids just can't sprint out when other parents come in to retrieve their kiddos. Very secure, very safe.

 

I know the same goes for the 6-8 group also except there is no pagers given out. Now my grandson is 9 and will be going on his 10th cruise. I really can't answer firsthand about the 9-11 group. But we have no fears or worries.

 

Go and enjoy your cruise and your children will have a blast.

[stock2mail]

We went on our first cruise last month. My DD's (11,7,3) all loved AO. Every night during dinner, DD3 would ask if it was time to go to her class yet. They did some very cool things with the kids and they can't wait for their next cruise. The counselors are awesome. I wouldn't worry for one second about having my child go to AO. Hanging out on a cruise ship is very relaxing for mom and dad, but very boring for kids.

[NancyB84]

My kids were split up on our cruise.... they loved Adventure Ocean and were planning our next cruise before we got off the ship (we went without them the next time). I wouldn't worry about your kids in the program... unless you give them permission to sign themselves in and out... they won't be going anywhere. The counselors are great. At least in our experience, they are.

[SeaBreezy]

My son went for the first time at 3 years old. We went to the AO information session in the Vortex on the first night. At this session, we met the counselors, they introduced themselves and the director discussed the program. The rest of the time was Q & A and meet and greet. I was able to "get a vibe" on the counselors and see how they interacted with parents/kids. It was good to see how many 3-5 year olds may attend.

Needless to say, I had "good vibes" and sent my son the next day. He called it "ship school" and loved it!! He couldn't wait to go each day. He didn't go at port, but at sea and on sea days.

 

AO gave me a ship phone. This was not a pager, but a phone that could be used on the ship only. It could call staterooms, too. So, I could call AO had I wanted to do so.

 

 

I have also used in-room babysitting. When my son was 2, we were invited to the Captain's Table for dinner. Children aren't allowed. The concierge arranged a sitter. I met her in advance and really liked her. I later found out the Captain knew this person because they are from the same region and he "vouched" for her, saying she was a good sitter. That was comforting.

 

 

 

SeaBreezy

[KateO]

When we checked our 6 year old into the AO program they had the kids wear a bracelet which had some sort of transmitter on it. If the kids leave the room with the bracelet on, an alarm sounded ...

 

By the way, we had a hard time convincing her to go to the kids club but once we got her there we were hard pressed to get her back out :rolleyes:

[MGoodyear]

AO is the best kids activity I have ever seen, not only is their security for the children tighter than Fort Knox (only a slight exageration), the people running the AO are wonderful (especially with the younger age groups) they keep those kids so interested in what they are doing, the kids never want to leave.

 

The 1st cruise we took our son on (he was 8) my wife wanted to check on him every hour (he has some medical conditions) but after about the 2nd time up to check on him, he kindly told his mom to stop bothering him, since he had to stop what he was doing every time she showed up.

[escentialssoycandles]

Thank you to everyone for posting your experiences, I really do feel 100% better now! I know they do really fun things and my older kids (6 and 10) I do not worry about as much as my little one. She is a fiesty one though! I asked my older two if they wanted to spend some time in the AO and they were like "Is there dancing and crafts and games - yeah we want to go!) She piped up, "I want to go too, I want to play with some friends and do fun stuff". So I guess she is ready! I will re-post my experiences when we return. We are getting ever more so excited!

[JRA382]

We took my kids in March of 07 on their first cruise. My daughter was just 3 months shy of 4 years, while my son was 8 and 1/2 years. Both loved AO. We had a beeper because my daughter was 3 (which was nice). Both kids would begged to go as soon as they finished their dinner. My son would have stayed all day if he could have. The staff was great. During the day hours the kids were in seperate groups 3-5, 6-8 (maybe a few older) but in the same room. At first I wasn't sure about it but they both did their on activities. During the night they seem to combine the group, but the youngers ones were involved in their on activites. Overall, my impression was very positive, and I was very comfortable leaving the kids there. The wasn't a huge number of kids either, (we went during springbreak so I was nervous that the groups may be too large). My daughter's group probably had anywhere from 3-6 kids in it. My son's was more, but since he was older I was Ok with that.

[crusinmama06]

Sorry I missed this yesterday. There is a family board that can answer a variety of questions about cruising with the kids. So if you need any more tips, feel free to stop in there.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=49

 

I can assure you, your child will be fine. My 3 year old is going on her 5th cruise, my 7 year old her 6th. My kids are in different age groups on the cruises.

 

I know you think the kids can just wander freely out of the club but honestly it's not going to happen. There is a gate they have to get through. On the last RCCL ship we were on, the 3-5 year olds wore electronic security bracelets while they were in AO. Those monitors had to be logged out of the computer system and cut off of them before they could walk past the sensors at the door in AO. If not, an alarm would sound.

 

On FOS, they have cell phones. On other ships, they have pagers for the parents of that age group.

 

Your kids will be having so much fun that you won't be able to get them out to join you for anything. Everyone says the same things before their first cruise with the kids. They all say "I am so afraid of leaving my kids at AO."...when they come back they complain "My kids didn't want to LEAVE AO and cried everytime I tried to pick them up" :eek:

 

So just know they will be safe and happy there. You can click on the link in my signature and see the different activities for AO. Just make sure you click on RCCL.