Help I need ideas please

[Disneyhenry]

Hello everyone
We have our March cruise paid in full, it’s pay off date is Nov 30th. It’s my Sisters family along with mine and my adult son and mom.
We have 3 Deluxe Family suites right in a row. Plan on staying at Sports for 6 nights after
My sis and I each have 2 foster kids, ages 14, 11, soon to be 10 and a 5 year old.
Bio parents were doing great and the kids were to return home in the next 4-5 weeks.
Well parents relapsed last weekend and poor kids haven’t seen their parents, btw the 4 kids are siblings and my sis and I live a block apart.
Anyway Caseworker and the lawyer told us to plan on having them in March and April

We live in WA state and plan on buying airline tickets Cyber Monday.
Options are
~ to use airline funds to add the kids on but we need one more room and will probably switch room types, buy airfare in February
~ change from the Fantasy to the Dream and take a shorter cruise, just to save money

we will have to change rooms at WDW after the trip to accommodate everyone

I just see huge dollar signs lol

BTW I took my 2 to Disneyland in Sep, the other 2 that are with my sis has never done Disney, these kids have never been on vacation before
And this is my sisters 1st Cruise
We plan on calling DCL on Friday to see what options we have

 

[mmouse37]

Have you looked into a travel insurance that would cover that kind of scenario.....that is the only thing I can think of. Booking airfare for the foster kids and another room is necessary if they are going to be with you then but I just don't know if you would be covered if they were back with their bio parents by the cruise date and didn't vacation with you.

Good luck.

MJ

 

[Weedy]

You should (if you haven’t already) book the extra rooms on the cruise now. Some cruises sell out and sometimes space is limited in certain areas because of lifeboat capacity

 

[brianvdb]

Hello everyone
We have our March cruise paid in full, it’s pay off date is Nov 30th. It’s my Sisters family along with mine and my adult son and mom.
We have 3 Deluxe Family suites right in a row. Plan on staying at Sports for 6 nights after
My sis and I each have 2 foster kids, ages 14, 11, soon to be 10 and a 5 year old.
Bio parents were doing great and the kids were to return home in the next 4-5 weeks.
Well parents relapsed last weekend and poor kids haven’t seen their parents, btw the 4 kids are siblings and my sis and I live a block apart.
Anyway Caseworker and the lawyer told us to plan on having them in March and April

We live in WA state and plan on buying airline tickets Cyber Monday.
Options are
~ to use airline funds to add the kids on but we need one more room and will probably switch room types, buy airfare in February
~ change from the Fantasy to the Dream and take a shorter cruise, just to save money

we will have to change rooms at WDW after the trip to accommodate everyone

I just see huge dollar signs lol

BTW I took my 2 to Disneyland in Sep, the other 2 that are with my sis has never done Disney, these kids have never been on vacation before
And this is my sisters 1st Cruise
We plan on calling DCL on Friday to see what options we have

Have you priced out the option of moving one or more deluxe family staterooms to inside staterooms? Or maybe going with ocean view staterooms?

 

[gotomu212]

Not a logistics answer, but have you double checked that you can take the foster kids out of the country on a cruise? Every state is different I know but here even taking them across state lines requires court and case worker approval and I am really surprised you could leave the country with temporary foster kids.

Second, have you looked into trip insurance that would cover you if kids are no longer with you in March? Again every state is different but if these are kids that are in temporary placement, I would think anything could happen 4 months from now.

 

[Disneyhenry]

Not a logistics answer, but have you double checked that you can take the foster kids out of the country on a cruise? Every state is different I know but here even taking them across state lines requires court and case worker approval and I am really surprised you could leave the country with temporary foster kids.

Second, have you looked into trip insurance that would cover you if kids are no longer with you in March? Again every state is different but if these are kids that are in temporary placement, I would think anything could happen 4 months from now.

Yes, the reason the caseworker told us this info is because she knows we are planning our family vacation/cruise is March and that we are going out of the country.
I think your right insurance is a must
Thx

 

[Bonnie1222]

Personally, I would not wait until Friday, it may just be late by then. I would call them now, at least get all your options. And be sure to explain the entire situation to DCL so they can do everything in their power to help you.

Also, do you have the documentation you need to take the foster kids on a cruise - do you have the birth certificates /passports?

 

[SG131]

I'm a foster parent too so I understand how hard it is to plan. So how many people do you have in each room already? The total number of people will affect your options. I would pull up the DCL website and take a look at what rooms are still open for your cruise. Are there options to add another room? There may only be a few rooms open so that would dramatically impact your choices.

 

[Macprincess]

Just a thought, but with a group that large have you considered staying off site in a house or a couple of condos for the WDW portion of the trip. You would have to have rental car/vans and pay for parking at the parks, but with full kitchens available (laundry helps too) you could save a ton by eating some simple meals in the house/condo. It's not the same as onsite with the DP but it is a cost saving measure if you need to cut cost. In addition, it might be cost effective to drive to and from the port vs Disney bus or private transportation. It's a very easy drive to the port from Disney. If possible you could rent cars/van from a company that has a location near the port so your only renting during the WDW portion of the trip. Perhaps run the numbers and see if it's worth it or not.

*We bring a crock pot for easy meals. Flying with it is a pain but for $25 or so you could pick one up at Walmart in Orlando. I would consider ordering groceries/crock pot ahead of time and just pick them up with the service that brings it out to the car.

 

[FigmentSpark]

Just a thought, but with a group that large have you considered staying off site in a house or a couple of condos for the WDW portion of the trip. You would have to have rental car/vans and pay for parking at the parks, but with full kitchens available (laundry helps too) you could save a ton by eating some simple meals in the house/condo. It's not the same as onsite with the DP but it is a cost saving measure if you need to cut cost. In addition, it might be cost effective to drive to and from the port vs Disney bus or private transportation. It's a very easy drive to the port from Disney. If possible you could rent cars/van from a company that has a location near the port so your only renting during the WDW portion of the trip. Perhaps run the numbers and see if it's worth it or not.

*We bring a crock pot for easy meals. Flying with it is a pain but for $25 or so you could pick one up at Walmart in Orlando. I would consider ordering groceries/crock pot ahead of time and just pick them up with the service that brings it out to the car.

Depending on the rental, some may have a crock pot, as well.

 

[klug_bug2010]

Not related to your planning dilemma but...
THANK YOU! For being a foster parent, for caring for these kids, for reorganizing your trip to include the foster kiddos on the longer cruise, for including the kids on your trip in general. They are going to make such great memories, and it sounds like they need someone like you to help them along in this tough time.

 

[Adventurelawyer]

The caseworker mentioned it to you, but you need to make sure you get an order through social services, from a judge, that allows you to take those kids on a cruise ship. DCL will require documentation showing you are permitted to take any child you are not the biological parent of on board. This could take you some time. Start early.

I second reshopping with an interior room and cruise insurance.

 

[TreeFalls]

The caseworker mentioned it to you, but you need to make sure you get an order through social services, from a judge, that allows you to take those kids on a cruise ship. DCL will require documentation showing you are permitted to take any child you are not the biological parent of on board. This could take you some time. Start early.

I second reshopping with an interior room and cruise insurance.

Yes, this. You will need a lot of documentation, start early!