For anyone who has stayed at BC with kids!

We love BC, DS ( 10 at time of trip) loves the slide. I have always exited the SAB area to walk him over the the slide stairs entrance( across the pathway.) This past April trip before DH came down for the second half of the trip,I had DD (now 11 months) with me also. Every time he wanted to go on the slide I followed him over with baby in tow.......my question, how old did you allow your children to cross over to the slide area alone? We are going again in November, I don't want to make DD get in and out of the pool to walk him over ( weather may be too cold to drag her in and out dozens of times.) I tend to be very cautious with safety as DS was almost taken from us. I don't know if it is age appropriate for him to go alone yet, and me wait at the bottom near the whirlpool area with DD? Or I should still trail him? I tend to keep both children in sight at all times, but I don't want to limit him or be overbearing. Thank you.
Great question, I have the same question. Our upcoming trip, DD will be 10.5 and baby will be 2.5!! We have never been to BC so I am not sure what to expect, especially with 2 kids in such a big age difference and different abilities.
 
Thank you, yes I worry about anyone he may encounter. Unfortunately we have stayed at BWI, DS hated the pool because of the clown :(. We are only at BC for a few nights then move to Poly for 7, that pool is much more manageable for me alone with the kids! I appreciate your input :) Now I am torn on what to do. DS is shy, I don't know what he would actually do in a bad situation. We can tell him what to do and ' coach' him to yell stranger, which we have. At the end of the day though, I have no idea how he would actually react :( that's what scares me

My daughter is the exact same way. Not homeschooled but very shy and we rehearse over and over for her to yell, call for help, etc, but she has a difficult time opening her mouth. She also only swims on vacation (no pool) so she isn't the best swimmer. We are also doing a POLY BC split, only going to try BC for maybe 3 nights. Normally DH would go down the slide after DD, and I would wait at the bottom for her. Now that I have a toddler I aim to try to wait in the area where the slide exits and may have DH wait with the toddler since she is much stronger than me already. Not sure how it will all play out but I do worry about the BC pool a bit, but really want to try it. Also I WISH the Boardwalk would renovate that pool. That is the reason (the clown) I won't even look there. It's just not appealing and my kids would also be freaked by it.
 
My daughter is the exact same way. Not homeschooled but very shy and we rehearse over and over for her to yell, call for help, etc, but she has a difficult time opening her mouth. She also only swims on vacation (no pool) so she isn't the best swimmer. We are also doing a POLY BC split, only going to try BC for maybe 3 nights. Normally DH would go down the slide after DD, and I would wait at the bottom for her. Now that I have a toddler I aim to try to wait in the area where the slide exits and may have DH wait with the toddler since she is much stronger than me already. Not sure how it will all play out but I do worry about the BC pool a bit, but really want to try it. Also I WISH the Boardwalk would renovate that pool. That is the reason (the clown) I won't even look there. It's just not appealing and my kids would also be freaked by it.


If you plan on having the toddler in the pool, waiting by where the slide dumps in is not a good idea. That is not a toddler friendly area at all. I think it may work better to have dad wait by the dump out area, and let your daughter walk to the slide on her own. Maybe walk her over a couple times, and then let her do it.
 
Great question, I have the same question. Our upcoming trip, DD will be 10.5 and baby will be 2.5!! We have never been to BC so I am not sure what to expect, especially with 2 kids in such a big age difference and different abilities.

My daughter is the exact same way. Not homeschooled but very shy and we rehearse over and over for her to yell, call for help, etc, but she has a difficult time opening her mouth. She also only swims on vacation (no pool) so she isn't the best swimmer. We are also doing a POLY BC split, only going to try BC for maybe 3 nights. Normally DH would go down the slide after DD, and I would wait at the bottom for her. Now that I have a toddler I aim to try to wait in the area where the slide exits and may have DH wait with the toddler since she is much stronger than me already. Not sure how it will all play out but I do worry about the BC pool a bit, but really want to try it. Also I WISH the Boardwalk would renovate that pool. That is the reason (the clown) I won't even look there. It's just not appealing and my kids would also be freaked by it.

One small one walking, plus older child wanting to do all the super fun stuff at SAB = lots of work for mom! Lol. It is definitely easier if DH is going with you. I think my personal plan is going to be, stay in the pool at the bottom of the slide ( but on the other side of the rope, near the stairs by the lifeguard.) I' ll play with baby there until he is done going down slides...however many times that is. Then I will follow him around SAB with baby. He can swim, but I don't trust lifeguards to look after that many kids at once.....it makes ME feel better swimming wise to be near him at that point. As far as following DS across the path to the pool slide entrance each time, I think I am still struggling odds with what to do. I think 10 age wise is old enough, but I also know that some children just aren't as vocal as others. So, I do worry.
We love SAB, and the Poly kids splash pool.....your kids are going to have an amazing time, hope your trip goes well!
 
Not sure if it has changed but during my stay at the Beach Club a few years ago they wouldn't let the parents wait in the pool at the bottom of the slide.

Also, it is worth keeping in mind that the lifeguards shouldn't be the only one watching your children in the pool. My sis was just getting out of her chair, ready to jump in to help a child in distress when the lifeguard finally noticed and jumped in.

I agree ! I will still go around SAB with DS while he is in the water!
 
There are always firsts though. I do remember hearing that people try all the time there and don’t succeed atleast I’m the parks. Maybe give him a whistle or something he can put around his neck to blow in case there was ever a situation? Maybe a whistle isn’t the best choice since the lifeguards probably have that. Just trying to think of what would make you feel more comfortable.

This is a great idea, something that makes noise....but yes....there is always a first time for everything. I just want everyone to be safe.
 
If you plan on having the toddler in the pool, waiting by where the slide dumps in is not a good idea. That is not a toddler friendly area at all. I think it may work better to have dad wait by the dump out area, and let your daughter walk to the slide on her own. Maybe walk her over a couple times, and then let her do it.

Ok thank you for that info!
 


This was several years ago, but I let DD go to the slide at SAB when she was 9. I stayed in the pool with DS7 and DS2 while DD did the slide. After going down the slide a few times, she decided that she'd rather play/swim with DS7. So the older two swam together and I played with the baby in the shallow area. It was definitely hard to keep eyes on all three of them and thankfully, DH was there the next time we went to the pool.
 
I stayed there in August and my youngest was/is 12. She was on her own! But my kids didn’t like the BC slide so they didn’t go down it much. They liked the Poly one better since it didn’t hurt their back when the slide base switched to another (don’t know how to describe it).

If you are looking at the slide from the pool, to the right it is maybe 2.5-3 feet.

My son loved volleyball so hopefully yours will too. He never left that area, ok rarely left, lol!

It was my kids first time there because I wouldn’t take them until I knew they could all swim and our last trip dh did not want to do a split.
 

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