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Babies first cruise?!?


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Hello All,

 

We are experienced cruisers and have been on Celebrity quite a few times. Our daughter was born in March and we are considering taking her on her first cruise. We are currently thinking about either the Reflection or the Silhouette on Dec. 3rd or 4th.

 

My question is this. Has anyone done a Celebrity Cruise with a young baby? Is there stuff to do? I know she is too young for the youth centers, but I'm wondering if there are any other activities that she would enjoy.

 

Any tips or experiences would be greatly appreciated!

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Oh boy. You opened a can of worms. Get ready for the leave the baby home crowd (of which I'm one). There is absolutely nothing for a baby to do on a cruise. In fact I'd be worried about her getting norovirus which could really harm her. Simply too young. A 5 year old maybe but not a one year old. I suspect you'll get many a dirty look on the boat the moment someone smells her diaper or if she cries. Just be ready for it if you decide to take her.

 

 

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OK - clearly a first baby!

 

Not sure what activities you think could be offered for a 9 month old baby?

 

She will be 9 months old - 9 month old babies crawl around, play with & chew on appropriate sized bright colored toys, get spoon fed, play peek-a-boo, and drool a lot. They are generally happy and good natured (in fact my favorite baby age) but can get fussy with teething issues.

 

That is what they do. If the ship you are on has pool specifically for babies in diapers then she will enjoy that - she will not be allowed in any of the other pools.

 

Keep in mind cruising with her will be a totally different cruising experience for you.

Edited by CapeCodCruiser
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Congrats on your baby:).

We cruised with a 10 month old nephew on a big family trip. There wasn't much for him to do and it hindered what the parents could do. We did get a few dirty looks, not because he was crying but because he was there. That's their problem.

My daughter who grew up cruising is dying to go. She has a 3 year old and a one year old. I told her it would be more work than it is worth and to just spend the week at a beach. (We have already taken them to Disney and Vero with our DVC;))

She would have to lug all their stuff plus two littles onboard. Then find space in the cabin for diapers, feeding stuff, many clothes, toys, pack n play, stroller, and all the other essentials. Some babies are used to sleeping in separate, quiet area and not in the small confines of a cabin.

If you eat in the buffet, you have to hold them while you fill plates and maneuver through crowds and tables to find an empty one. I don't notice alot of high chairs so I don't know how easy they are to find. In the dining room you have to keep the little entertained for a long time. Room service in the tiny cabin would get old.

They are not allowed in the pool til they are three, same for the kids' club. So what do you do on sea days?

I think people will give you dirty looks, but there might be ones like me who will smile and miss their babies at home. ( I keep grands while the mom and dad work).

I think if you really want to go, that would be your best age. Once she is walking and getting around it is even more difficult. I do think it would be more work than a vacation though.

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With working at Disney can you get a great deal on a Disney cruise?

I think they have play areas for little ones but they have to be accompanied by the parent. They also probably have great babysitting service if you all want to be alone for a while.

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Frankly,do yourself a favour and don't cruise with a baby that age. It's a lot of money to spend considering you will probably be in your room a lot of the time.Not to mention the always possible outbreak of norovirus or other communicable diseases that occur in confined areas.

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As seasoned X cruisers you are obviously aware of the areas around the ship, where your daughter could play and areas that would be unsuitable for her. You will also be aware of the length of times meals take and how well your little one would cope....

 

The only suggestions I would offer is if you cruise as part of a larger group (with parents, another couple with a young child...) you can give each other 'time off', opportunities to dine without entertaining the little one, adult sunbathe....just an idea! If travelling with others isn't on the agenda ask about babysitting for at least one night.

 

Also go for as big a room as you can afford. Babies have twice the luggage of adults! If you do have a bigger room it makes in room dining so much easier too which may be an option you want to consider some evenings.

 

There may be people on board who are less than welcoming but there will be more others, me included, who will smile at your little one and play peek a boo at the dining table! The staff are usually great with babies!

 

Holidays, cruise or otherwise, are hard with young babies but they can be great fun too. As the last poster said it will not be like your previous cruises.

 

Hope you get lots of great advice!

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Congratulations on the new addition to your family!!! There are different cruise lines for a reason. Each one tries to tailor their product to a particular audience. Celebrity does not actively market its self as a family oriented cruise line. However, their sister line RCCL does. RCCL offers a wonderful product geared towards families with children. They offer venues, pools and activities that are geared towards families and young children.

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Hello All,

 

We are experienced cruisers and have been on Celebrity quite a few times. Our daughter was born in March and we are considering taking her on her first cruise. We are currently thinking about either the Reflection or the Silhouette on Dec. 3rd or 4th.

 

My question is this. Has anyone done a Celebrity Cruise with a young baby? Is there stuff to do? I know she is too young for the youth centers, but I'm wondering if there are any other activities that she would enjoy.

 

Any tips or experiences would be greatly appreciated!

 

 

a child that young would basically be 100% your responsibility the ENTIRE TIME. resulting in exactly ZERO 'vacation' for the parents. that means no shows, no being able to leisurely linger over coffee after dinner. being stuck in the cabin during nap time.

 

also there is nothing for them to do unless you provide it. you need to pack for every contingency you can think of and ten more you don't. all the diapers, the 4 outfits per day to combat spit ups and accidents, all the toys and toiletries and bits and bobs they need.

 

sounds like way too much effort.

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I have never sailed with Celebrity (we just booked our first cruise on the Summit for next year) but I really think you should consider a Disney cruise as was mentioned above. They have open houses (usually there is some time each day) in the kids club where you would be able to stay with your child to play in that area. There is also a splash area (Nemo's Reef) on the Dream and Fantasy for children that are still in diapers. The adult areas on Disney are fantastic and you would be able to book time in the nursery for only $9/hr to have your little one watched while you enjoy time alone.

 

And of course no dirty looks on Disney! The staff is amazing and constantly interacting with the children. Our server did magic tricks for our 4 year old son and even cut his steak for him! For babies they will even get you pureed foods if you would like not to mention they provide cribs, diaper genies, etc. in your room if requested. There are so many character meet and greets and the shows are all Disney themed so there is just so much that would keep a nine month old stimulated.

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Watching my 6 mo old grand....he is quite happy in his own environment...and at daycare 2x weekly

 

For our family a cruise would be too germy...dirty carpets, too many strangers. sneezers on board, not all the shots yet and no pediatrician on board . Loud at times abd possible bumpy seas...

 

nothing special for baby and lots of work for caretakers.. I,d. wait another year at least...

Edited by hcat
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If the ship you are on has pool specifically for babies in diapers then she will enjoy that - she will not be allowed in any of the other pools.

 

 

For the record, no Celebrity ships have this feature. You can find 'baby splash zone' pools on some of the larger (Freedom Class?) Royal Caribbean ships. And yes, Celebrity does enforce the 'no diaper in pool/hot tubs' rule.

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Personally, I would recommend Disney or even Royal Caribbean or Carnival but definitely not Celebrity, which is not geared towards families with very young children. Even the indoor pool area is adults only for the most part.

 

You might get a few more younger passengers on a 3 or 4 night cruise but on a 7 night cruise before the actual holiday season, you might even be the only passengers with a baby onboard. When they have few children onboard, there is really nothing geared towards them.

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Watching my 6 mo old grand....he is quite happy in his own environment...and at daycare 2x weekly

 

For our family a cruise would be too germy...dirty carpets, too many strangers. sneezers on board, not all the shots yet and no pediatrician on board . Loud at times abd pissible bumpy seas...

 

nothing special for baby and lots of work for caretakers.. I,d. wait another year at least...

 

PS. No idea about Disney which is what dd and sil are saving for...when baby is a bit older

Edited by hcat
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A mom and dad beat the pool problem with their young daughter.

 

They brought their own small blow up pool.

 

Put it on the deck and filled it with pool water.

 

The baby had a great time in that little pool. I even got one of the ice buckets from the bar and helped them put water in it. This was a late afternoon after the pool deck had emptied out about 5:30pm.

 

See through the problem not be part of it.

 

I would have bet that one afternoon on deck relaxing with their baby made their cruise.

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While some have suggested using the babysitting service so the adults can have a evening together, babysitting is not available for infants under 12 months. So unless you are traveling with family that could watch your child for a few hours you won't have any time to yourselves.

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A mom and dad beat the pool problem with their young daughter.

 

They brought their own small blow up pool.

 

Put it on the deck and filled it with pool water.

 

The baby had a great time in that little pool. I even got one of the ice buckets from the bar and helped them put water in it. This was a late afternoon after the pool deck had emptied out about 5:30pm.

 

See through the problem not be part of it.

 

I would have bet that one afternoon on deck relaxing with their baby made their cruise.

 

Wow... not a great idea to take the pool water for baby....where would they dump that water.?

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We didn't take our kids on a cruise until our youngest was 5. We did a 4 day Royal Caribbean cruise just to try out cruising with children. We weren't sure how they would enjoy it so we combined it with a land trip to Disney. As it turned out they loved the cruise and hated, yes I said," hated" Disney. It was the most miserable time we have ever had. Disney cost more than the cruise. Personally I would not go on a cruise with a 9 month old. It's too much work and we would never be able to enjoy ourselves, especially on Celebrity where it's geared for the middle aged passengers. If anything I would choose another line that was more family oriented. You would probably be able to meet other couples with children the same age and at least that way you would be able to have some adult conversation while enjoying your children together. Now if you are planning on booking a suite and staying put, Then that's a different story.

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The Oasis Class ships on RCI have a baby nursery so you can get some break time. Also, speak with the pediatrician to see if it's recommended to cruise with your baby. Not all are healthy enough to travel out of the country and cruise ships are not prepared for infant health emergencies. Finally, only you know your baby, and if she's colicky or cries a lot at night, you might want to reconsider as a screaming baby will disrupt your neighbors.

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I love it, all the baby haters. I say go for it, we are elite plus X cruisers and will be taking our 11 month old on their first cruise this November. It's your family vacation and make the most of it. Will it be different then your other cruises of course, will it be challenging at times for sure but make the most of it. We travelled with ours at three months on a 6 hour flight to Maui where we spent 21 days. The trip was different then our previous 8 holidays in Maui but it was amazing, getting to spend time with your family enjoying your child's many firsts added something even more memorable to our trip.

 

As for the numerous no baby's in pool comments, when a baby pees in the pool they have no idea what their doing. But let's not kid ourselves what excuse does do the adults have when they pee in the pool?

 

Enjoy your cruise as our family will enjoy ours.

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Edited by sawyer_boy
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Put me down in the "do not cruise with such a young baby" group.

 

 

 

As it was mentioned, your baby is precious to you - but not necessarily to others who paid money for relaxing to ocean sounds and not a crying infant.

 

 

 

Think of others.

 

 

We would never disrespect others relaxing cruisers, if our baby cries which she does sometimes as babies do, we will remove her from the venue until they are ready to go back.

 

We also pay money (including our babies portion) for our relaxing ocean sounds.

 

Enjoy your cruise and relax.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Edited by sawyer_boy
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