Will you cruise with two young children ?

[babyfiorina1]

DH is suggesting a family cruise this coming December. The thought of it is really tempting to be honest
DD will be 4 by then and DS will be 14 months and I imagine that we will still be BF ing at that time.
I know traveling with kids can be exhausting at times. We did International flight to Southeast Asia twice with DD when she was 3 months and then when she was 2 years, well, wasn't the smoothest trip, but we did okay. We survived. Both DH and I are never on a cruise before though. And now with two small kiddos!! Are we crazy ?

We are looking into family-friendly cruise of course. Could be 8 days to Eastern Carribean. Anybody else cruise with kids before ? any suggestions on what we need to know, bring, your favorite family cruise, etc, or any thoughts and logistics stuff we need to know will be appreciated.

[123LuckyMom]

I've never been on a cruise, but I'll be watching this thread, because DH keeps talking about wanting to try it. I did find out that kids in diapers cannot go in cruise ship pools, and I thought that might be a deal breaker for us. I figured I'd wait until both kids were potty trained.

[♥ms.pacman♥]

I did find out that kids in diapers cannot go in cruise ship pools, and I thought that might be a deal breaker for us. I figured I'd wait until both kids were potty trained.

yep, found that was pretty common on various cruise lines so we ruled those out for a while....total dealbreaker for us.

i have been on a cruise before (Norwegian Cruise Lines) with DH only, and while i really liked it, i am not sure I'd like it all that much with a toddler (but that is me, i'm not the type of person to enjoy vacationing with young kids). I was talking to DH and I'd think i'd like to do one until kids are school age (e.g. 6 or 7, at least). I think the benefit of doing cruise with older kids is that they can do the Kids' Clubs so you can get couples time. Plus, it would be easier to do excursions with them (we are the type to do excursions nearly every day, vs. staying on the ship most of the time).

[egoldber]

We did a Disney cruise last summer and it was wonderful. But personally, I would wait until your younger child is 3 so they can use the kid clubs and the pools.

Dinsey (and most cruise lines) have an infant/toddler room as well, but generally it is not free and you have to make a reservation. For kids 3+, the clubs are drop off.

[Tenasparkl]

We booked a short Disney cruise for next May when the kids will be 6.5 and 3. We're going with some friends that will also have 3 year olds so hopefully they'll all go to the kids clubs together happily (finger crossed!)

[YouAreTheFocus]

My Mom is quite intent on getting us to go on a cruise with her, so I was looking into this recently. Our DS would be 5-6 and our yet to be born DD would be maybe 1. I found this site very helpful:

http://www.cruisecritic.com/articles.cfm?ID=628

I was surprised/pleased at the extent to which several lines cater to babies (they will prepare/serve them pureed fruits & veg at meals), but am still not sold on going w/ a baby. For me I guess it depends how much my Mom is willing to help

[babyfiorina1]

Thank you all for the comments. Seems like we better wait until DS is 3

[ged]

Thank you all for the comments. Seems like we better wait until DS is 3

We went on one with a 6 year old and a barely 1 y.o. The older child enjoyed the kids club. The little one just hung with me -- and it was still great. We loved it. Many cruise lines (RCCL, eg) will even have nurseries, so you can leave your little one for a few hours and have a nice dinner.

[Tondi G]

If you decide to go, just be aware that there are no swim diapers allowed in the pools on the ship.... BUT that doesn't mean your little one won't get a chance to enjoy the beach and possibly hotel pools if you decided to do a day pass at a resort while in port. The drop off kids programs typically start at age 3 but some ships have nursery or offer baby sitting in the room in the evening for a fee (usually it is an off shift room attendant or kids program person .... we saw our room attendant baby sitting almost every night ... she would walk the hall with the little one in the stroller). There is a lot to do on a cruise ship. If you decided to book on a ship like the Oasis or Allure of the Seas (royal Caribbean ships) they have a central park, a carousel onboard, mini golf,(they even have a zipline on the ship) etc. you will not be at a loss for stuff to do with your toddler. They also offer sessions of Mommy and Me playgroup kinda things during the day. This is from the RCCL website

At our colorful Royal Babies & Tots Nursery, littlest guests (ages 6-36 months) are cared for by trained professionals while enjoying specially designed programs. Daytime and evening drop-off is offered; hourly fee of $6 in the daytime and $8 during the evening applies.

Join your child in the fun of Royal Babies® or Royal Tots® interactive playgroup sessions. Each session, held on one of our onboard lounges, offers activities that make playtime learning time as well.

found this info too ... apparently Oasis and Allure have a water play area for diapered kiddos. . Children in diapers or who are not toilet trained may use the Baby Splash Zone specially designated for them on the Freedom of the Seas®, Liberty of the Seas®, Independence of the Seas®, Oasis of the Seas®, and Allure of the Seas®.

We cruised with Royal Caribbean when DS's were 4 and 8 yrs old and then at 6 and almost 10. We had a blast! Everyone from our cabin attendant to the waiters in the dining room to the adventure ocean staff were all amazing with our kids. I highly recommend Royal Caribbean cruise line.

I also second the recommendation to go over to Cruise Critic. They have boards specific to cruise lines and also a family cruising board. The folks over there have SO MUCH INFO to share and are SO helpful!