Cruising the Caribbean with our 19-month-old - Just Returned!

[EmmaK]

We just got off the Radiance of the Seas -- Western Caribbean -- this past Saturday. We brought our 19-month-old with us. It was our first cruise ever and I'll definitely do it again (when I can afford it LOL!).

 

Everyone was so helpful on this board with my first-timer cruise questions I thought I would post a little bit about what worked & didn't work for us!

 

The flight

It was our first flight with DS and he did well. We had our DVD player with Baby Einstein & Elmo, and a few "special" snacks which he doesn't get too often, like cookies and chips. We didn't pay for his seat, but the airline was good enough to leave the middle seat between DH & I empty. We pre-booked an aisle & window, hoping this would happen!

 

The stateroom

DS loved the stateroom. I think he thought someone built it just for him, since it was so small. We were at the aft of the ship with a balcony. It was nice to go out on the balcony at night after DS went to sleep. He slept in a pack & play which I thought might be too small for him. He's 28 lbs and 33 inches and fit just fine.also, he loved the shower, so we never ended up using our blow up duckie tub.

 

Dinners

We ate dinner in the dining room every night (early seating) with no fussiness from our DS. We had a large table of 12 and I was so impressed with how everyone interacted with us and our son. No sugestions at all that he shouldn't be there! Every night I brought a couple of books and small toys which would help keep him entertained. Our waiter brought him some fruit at the beginning of every meal as it took a little time before his entree arrived.

 

Going ashore

We didn't book any shore excursions, as we wanted to be on our own schedule with DS. We decided that the beach would work best for all of us. Here's what we did...

 

Key West - Walked a lot! Went to the Southern Most Point in the US, walked around the main downtown area, and visited the aquarium (over-priced in my opinion). We did try some great Key Lime Pie at Blond Giraffe.

 

Cozumel, Mexico - Paradise Beach was pretty good. We got there early and it filled up quick. I loved the nachos! The beach was ok....but not a lot of sandy areas for DS to play. I think I might choose somewhere else next time.

 

Grand Cayman - Seven Mile Beach, Royal Palms. The beach was beautiful! Thank goodness we got there early (we had lined up early to get the tnder tickets)! The umbrellas were all taken before 11am. There were 5 ships in port that day.

 

Montego Bay, Jamaica - Doctor's Cave Beach. This was our favourite beach and day. Much emptier than the others in Cozumel and Grand Cayman, as we were the only ship in port that day. We weren't bothered by anyone at all.

 

We didn't take a car seat with us (no flames please), and I did feel a little uncomfortable without it. FYI--Only about half of the taxis we had actually had working seat belts.

 

On the ship

We tried the Fisher Price playgroup, but there was only 3 or 4 toys and one other little boy. DS just loved wandering around the decks, interacting with the crew, and listening to the live music. I did wish he could have swam in the children's pool on our last day (at sea), but he's not fully toilet trained yet...oh, well...I knew that ahead of time.

 

What we missed out on...

We didn't feel comfortable leaving DS with a babysitter as he's a poor sleeper, and decided to stay in our room with DS at night... so we missed the nightly entertainment. It was ok for us, as we were tired after the long days in the sun; but I wish we had at least tried the babysitting one night, or put DS in the stroller asleep and taken him out with us.

 

The trip home

Here's where I can tell you "what not to do". We tried to save a few hundred bucks by booking a later flight out of Ft. Lauderdale. We didn't leave until 7pm. I didn't realize we would be dropped at the airport at 10am. Our flight was delayed, which resulted us spending 11 hours in the airport. DS didn't nap the whole time. He slept on the plane, after throwing a huge fit. Try to book an early flight out, or have some solid plans of what you plan on doing!

 

 

If you have any questions, just let me know. This was an awesome experience and I can't wait to try it again!:D

[KerCar]

Welcome home! Great review! Thanks for sharing:)

[crusinmama06]

Oh wow! We could have told you not to book a 7pm flight ;)

 

I've done that with a 4pm flight and I thought I was going to lose my mind trying to entertain the kids that long...lol. What you could have done is to have gotten a daypass at a hotel and spent the day lounging at their pool.

 

And you didn't like Paradise Beach? That's a shame. We have never been there but many have recomended it to us as a great family friendly beach. I'll have to check into another beach in Cozumel.

 

Welcome back! Have fun planning the next one. :)

[2112]

Thanks for the great review. I do have a question. How did your son sit in the airplane seat without a car seat? Did the seatbelt work? Didn't he want to stand up all the time?

[EmmaK]

And you didn't like Paradise Beach? That's a shame. :)

 

I think it would have been a bit better if our DS was a little older and could use some of the watersports stuff. It was a nice beach & good food, we just enjoyed the other two beaches we visited even better.

[EmmaK]

Thanks for the great review. I do have a question. How did your son sit in the airplane seat without a car seat? Did the seatbelt work? Didn't he want to stand up all the time?

 

He figured out how to work the seat belt pretty quickly, so it didn't work. He was on our laps the whole time--but we had a rule that the DVD player went away if he stood up. On the way home he slept in our arms. It wasn't ideal. Next time we fly he'll be older (over 2) and we'll be booking a ticket for him and bringing our carseat.