Cove Cafe is supposed to be adults only...

[wdwmama19]

Although they both kind of reflect the same underlying selfish attitude, IMO, the chair hogging is a much greater issue than kids in the adult areas. First, because I believe it much more prevelant, and secondly, because of the design blunder having the elevator dump you out in the Quiet cove area on the Dream/Fantasy.

When we were on the Fantasy last month, I was up earlier than the rest of my family and went up to pool deck to get a coffee from the beverage station. It was about 7:15am. There were maybe only a dozen other people around. However, I noticed at least 90% of the chairs around the pool already had towels and/or other stuff on them. It's so ridiculous. I also later noticed (on all 3 sea days at least), that the same family had the same exact handful of chairs each day - first row right alongside the Donald pool. Not a coincidence, as no way that's possible unless one of them are going up there at the crack of dawn and throwing some stuff down on the chairs...then going back to their room, having breakfast, etc. And it's clear many, many families do this. Purely disgusting behavior, if you asked me. And I've seen it at WDW resorts, local hotels/resorts, other cruise lines, etc. Unfortunately, until the hospitality industrty comes up with an effective solution for it (a very difficult task, I acknowledge), it will continue to be a huge problem.

Wow, that's insane. That is when their stuff definitely needs to be moved. I can't believe people will actually do that. Society has taken such a downward shift in this last decade.

 

[Matrix21]

Wow, that's insane. That is when their stuff definitely needs to be moved. I can't believe people will actually do that. Society has taken such a downward shift in this last decade.

In that case, i would have thrown their towels away and took their places.

they are probably the same people that parks in a handicap zone even if they are not.

 

[over50visits]

... because of the design blunder having the elevator dump you out in the Quiet cove area on the Dream/Fantasy....

I agree with this completely. Both the forward and aft elevators are in crazy locations. Forward, they guarantee a steady stream of people (including children) streaming through the "quite cove" adult retreat.

Aft, they dump people and families, many in swimsuits, walking right through the middle of a dining area.

Those were not well thought out, IMHO.

 

[Airship Ariadne]

I agree that kids should stay out of the adult areas. However, you chose to go on a Disney cruise. You knew there would be tons of kids on the cruise. I think many of you are getting bent out of shape that CMs & parents can't keep kids out of the adult areas 100% of the time. I don't blame CMs for not using gestapo tactics to try to invoke a zero tolerance policy with the adult areas.

But Disney PROMOTES the fact that there are adult only sections on the ships in all the material. Why can't they keep kids out of the adult areas 100% of the time? That is what is supposed to happen. It doesn't take "gestapo" tactics, they just need to stop turning a blind eye to breaking the rules. It is that simple, any child entering should be escorted out...if the parent has a problem then they can leave as well.

 

[wdwmama19]

In that case, i would have thrown their towels away and took their places.

they are probably the same people that parks in a handicap zone even if they are not.

Yeah, I would have too. That's just not fair and downright ridiculously rude. Hah, they probably do.

 

[taswira]

But Disney PROMOTES the fact that there are adult only sections on the ships in all the material. Why can't they keep kids out of the adult areas 100% of the time? That is what is supposed to happen. It doesn't take "gestapo" tactics, they just need to stop turning a blind eye to breaking the rules. It is that simple, any child entering should be escorted out...if the parent has a problem then they can leave as well.

This.

 

[mcd2745]

They should just do what happened at Beach and Yacht club this summer. Stuff left for more than a certain period unattended was put in a big lost and found bin.

I only found this out because a woman was at the club level desk the same time was trying to get help yelling about how her daughter's blanket was missing when they returned from beaches and cream and the CM just politely informed her it says pool chairs can not be saved and unattended articles are collected to prevent that and she could ask at the pool or come back later once the lost and found was brought in for the day.

They should do at least that...but unfortunately that type of enforcement will always be inconsistent and incomplete, at best. There's no way CMs can track the amount of time each supposedly "occupied" chair is really going unused. That's just a near impossible task and way too much to ask of any one employee.

Honestly, I don't know what other type of system they can go to, outside of something radical and not really feasible like limiting everyone to a set amount of time (let's say 2 or 3 hours), and having some type of electronic device attached to each chair with, say, a green light meaning occupied and a red light meaning available (or vice versa). You swipe your card, light turns to red, and that's your chair for 2 hours. After two hours, it turns back to green (and that chair will not accept another card from the same family the rest of the day). Then, if a CM sees someone (or their stuff) in a chair past their alotted time, they can remove the stuff or ask them to move.

 

[soniam]

Wow! This thread got big fast. I guess there's a lot of pent up frustration with some things on DCL, because this thread isn't just about the adult area anymore. People complain about the parks all the time in DIS, but I think DCL doesn't get hit as much. Maybe we all need to complain more frequently and with less anger. I'm guilty too.

 

[LD92599]

on our very recent cruise on the Dream, the CM politely reminded the person that decided to park their kid in a stroller near the Quiet Cove hot tub that they couldnt be there and theperson quietly left. Good job CM!

 

[KBinCO]

my previous posts earlier in this post were before we cruised. Now that we've cruised, I will add a couple things.

We stayed in the forward of the Fantasy, right by the elevators. So, the first couple days, DH would go up to deck 11 to get to cabanas. On the second day, we went up together and after looking for signs, I realized we were walking through the adults only area. The signs weren't terribly large and I had to double check. Then I started to freak out. I was all "WE CAN'T BE HERE! THIS IS ADULTS ONLY!" and he said CMs told him it was okay to bring thre kids through and I was all "but the posts! on the message board! People HATE us!!"

I was definitely louder and more annoying than our kids!

After that, we would walk to midship to go up those stairs, but it really was a rookie mistake for us- we just weren't familiar with the ship and although I knew there were adult areas, I just didn't know where on day one and didn't realize that if we took the elevator up, there was no way around them.

 

[geekboy]

I don't think anyone here would "hate" you for walking through with your children. It is really about "noise" and those under 18 lingering. If children are with an adult and proceeding through the space, I don't think there is an issue. Children, on their own and not running, screaming, bumping into things, jumping as they make their way through, would also not be an issue for me personally.

 

[fnrsgrl]

In general, throughout this thread, the consensus has been that walking through quickly on your way to another part of the ship is okay. It's when children, with or without their parents, are lingering or using the facilities involved that other guests become frustrated, especially if a CM is right there and doesn't do anything.

 

[DaisyD]

We also were forward and walked through the adult area many times a day. If it wasn't allowed they wouldn't let the general public dump out of an elevator. I didn't feel bad about it at all and no one even looked at us. Most of the time is was nothing books and sunscreen guarding the precious chairs for the adult hogs. Lol

 

[cgolf]

We have been on 9 cruises and can't say that we have noticed an issue with this on any of our cruises. Kids walking through the areas sure, but at the same time we don't look for these issues. We are on a cruise to enjoy ourselves, if we let kids lingering in the adult areas, chair hoggers, chair savers, slight maintenance issues with the ship, .... bother us I would hate our cruise.

We cruise to relax and not stress over things, I have enough stress at work so I don't want it on vacation. I just put my faith in DCL that they will enforce their policies enough that none of the above will be too much of an issue to bug me. Also I am sure their are enough other passengers that it will bother that will complain to take care of it too.

Remember it is a vacation and supposed to be fun and relaxing

cgolf

 

[Jedana]

That's a perfect suggestion. Make it seem even more exclusive and adults only that way. Another way would be if they had magic bands on the cruise and they were coded with your age (in the chip), so only adults bands would allow access through doors into places like Cove Cafe

Does each person in the cruise party get their own door key card? (Have not cruised with DCL, so I don't know if they do this)

If so, then perhaps a gate (small, decorative) that requires one to scan one's key card to enter. If it's an adult card, you enter; if it's a kids card, you don't. (That would eliminate the teens/kids entering without parents).

The CMs could also be required to scan the key card to make the drink. If the parent breaks the rule by bringing in kids, then that card gets "locked" from the adult area.

Same with the adult pool, scan to get in and get locked out if you bring your kids in to play.

 

[Mickeyhugger]

I've yet to read anyone one here saying that it 'ruined their cruise,' as others many on here are stating. Posters sometimes come here to vent, but it doesn't mean they didn't enjoy their cruise.

 

[for my family]

I've yet to read anyone one here saying that it 'ruined their cruise,' as others many on here are stating. Posters sometimes come here to vent, but it doesn't mean they didn't enjoy their cruise.

The OP wrote "...Nothing sucks the specialness out of your 20 year old's first trip to Cove Café..."

So apparently, some of the specialness of the crusie was sucked away for the OP and her adult child.

 

[gilbertcruisers]

The OP wrote "...Nothing sucks the specialness out of your 20 year old's first trip to Cove Café..."

So apparently, some of the specialness of the cruise was sucked away for the OP and her adult child.

It should give the OP pause that a cruise, for a 20 year old, could be made more or less "special" by the purchase of a beverage, in a cafe, on a boat.


Unless we are talking, of course, about a special needs 20 year old.

 

[bumbershoot]

I can't believe people will actually do that. Society has taken such a downward shift in this last decade.

When I was planning our cruise honeymoon between 2001 and 2003 (way-too-long of an engagement) people talked about the lounge savers then too, and it wasn't new over a decade ago.

 

[Disney_Princess83]

I've yet to read anyone one here saying that it 'ruined their cruise,' as others many on here are stating. Posters sometimes come here to vent, but it doesn't mean they didn't enjoy their cruise.

It wouldn't ruin our cruise, far from it. It wouldn't even ruin my day. Actually, it wouldn't ruin my time at all. If the kids are just talking through the area from the elevators, I understand. But if they are staying in the area and using the pool, hot tub or cafe, I'm going to alert a CM. Just as a CM would be alerted if I entered the kids clubs (outside of the open hours of course)