Cruising with little ones

[Riss]

We recently went on a cruise with a 2.5 year old and he loved it! We had shown him YouTube videos up until that point, which he loved watching and always wanted to watch them whenever he came over to our house (we babysit him). While he was too young to go to the kid's clubs, something my family wouldn't do anyway, he is potty trained so he could go in the pools and he adored it, the Mickey pool being his favorite. I think it was mostly because he could comfortably stand there on his own without someone having to carry him like we do at home. The same goes for his ocean experience at Castaway Cay. He also loved the splash area as well with the slide and various floor fountains.

He also loved looking out of the windows. We had an Oceanview stateroom and he loved going up into the windows, my family had connecting staterooms, to look out. Even when we were in port he enjoyed going in there and looking out at all of the people leaving or coming on from the gangway.

Even though he didn't really eat much at dinner, he did fill up on french fries and ice cream on deck 11, fell asleep before the fireworks, and fell asleep during 2 theater performances, Believe and the magician, because he didn't really nap, he did see The Golden Mickey's and Beauty and the Beast and was just so enamored by them. There were points he was afraid at, but he enjoyed all of the singing and dancing.

Also, we kept our stroller in the closet in one of the rooms. It fit perfectly on one of the sides and we only pulled it out a couple of times, like when we were docked in Nassau. We actually rarely used it otherwise.

 

[mmouse37]

We just got back from the Magic with a 9 month old, and two 3 year olds. The 3 year olds LOVED the characters and one of them loved the kids club and wouldn't come out. The other was not thrilled with it. The 9 month old loved the nursery. They took such good care of him. Both 3 year olds loved the Disney Junior dance party, the character breakfast, the random character interactions, the toddler area and the pools (both are fully potty trained). The 3 year old were entranced with the stage production shows. They squealed with delight at all the characters and the music. They both went as one year olds and although they didn't remember that visit to the Fantasy but they absolutely LOVED this cruise. They keep asking to go back on the Mickey Boat. The 9 month old sleep in the pack n play Disney provided. The 3 year olds (in different cabins) slept on the sofa bed with bed rails.

MJ

 

[Joseph Andrew Hunt]

Is there a limit on how many consecutive hours you can book the nursery?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Is there a limit on how many consecutive hours you can book the nursery?

Here's the max hours bookable pre-cruise:

NURSERY INFO
Cost: $9.00 an hour for 1, $8.00 for additional child.
Max hours:
3 or 4 night cruise – 10 hours
7 night cruise – 18 hours
14 night cruise – 35 hours


Don't know about "consecutive" hours max.

 

[MamaJJ2018]

We are looking at a spring 2020 cruise with my toddler, who will be just over 3 by that time. She is a CLIMBER and I am wondering if any other parents of very active young children can attest to how safe they felt in a room with a veranda? We would love to get a room with a veranda but I am scared to death of her sneaking past us somehow... Right now she is 1.5 so it is hard to grasp what will and won't be an issue...

 

[DietCokeMommy]

We are looking at a spring 2020 cruise with my toddler, who will be just over 3 by that time. She is a CLIMBER and I am wondering if any other parents of very active young children can attest to how safe they felt in a room with a veranda? We would love to get a room with a veranda but I am scared to death of her sneaking past us somehow... Right now she is 1.5 so it is hard to grasp what will and won't be an issue...

The verandah doors are very safe. They’re heavy and the lock is high up. But of course kids should never be out there without adult supervision. It’s also likely that your child will be completely different by 3.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

We are looking at a spring 2020 cruise with my toddler, who will be just over 3 by that time. She is a CLIMBER and I am wondering if any other parents of very active young children can attest to how safe they felt in a room with a veranda? We would love to get a room with a veranda but I am scared to death of her sneaking past us somehow... Right now she is 1.5 so it is hard to grasp what will and won't be an issue...

The verandah doors are very safe. They’re heavy and the lock is high up. But of course kids should never be out there without adult supervision. It’s also likely that your child will be completely different by 3.

Yes. The lock on the verandah door is about head high for an adult, and is quite stiff, in my experience.

This picture shows where it's located:


Also, two pictures showing how to operate the lock, and the lock itself:


It's difficult for a small child to actually operate it, but I suppose it could be done.

 

[Dug720]

The verandah doors are very safe. They’re heavy and the lock is high up. But of course kids should never be out there without adult supervision. It’s also likely that your child will be completely different by 3.

And of course, the instructions should be followed and the verandah door kept shut except when going on of off the verandah.