CruiseBuni

I faxed in the screenshot and it was fine. Could see the onboard credit on our cruise planner a few days later.

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Thanks all! We will be traveling light with just carry on bags. It will be my first time in Miami so would love to see a bit and try something unique to there.

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Hello! We will be taking a red eye to Ft. Lauderdale for a cruise leaving out of Miami. Any suggestions for where to grab a leisurely breakfast on a Saturday morning that would be easy to get to port of Miami from? Thanks!

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I did lug a stroller on my child's first cruise at 18 months old, but barely used it. I did find a toddler sized baby carrier came in handy though, especially navigated crowded areas with a lot of uneven pavement/stairs which seemed to be almost all our ports...lol! On second cruise at 3, I left the stroller home and did not miss it.

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@LangleyCruisers, I know right?! Because it wasn't just one or two eggs, it was like 30!

I haven't seen these before, but I think they look very stylish for a night out. May I ask where you got them?

@LangleyCruisers, a German friend of mine sent her a package with the eggs... And the rest, as they say, is history.

Just wanted to add, Kinder chocolate is readily available in the U.S. It's just the eggs that aren't. If you do a YouTube search on surprise eggs, you'll find it's a subject of great fascination though for kids. It's really a shame they aren't available!

Thanks! I'm aware of why they aren't available in the U.S. (and do think it's a bit ridiculous). I doubt the eggs would be able to make it back to the ship even if I wanted to save them. I'm sure they will be opened and consumed by the little lady post haste. I just didn't want to spend too much time hunting them down :)

My daughter LOVES Kinder Eggs which are not sold in the U.S., so I would like to be able to buy her a couple when we stop in Victoria on our way back from Alaska. Does anyone know a good place to get them? Hopefully along the way to the Empress Hotel as we plan to take tea there. Thank you!

My sister-in-law's parents gave my parents a gift box of Durian candies and cookies one Christmas. My husband saw it sitting out on the counter. He had never heard of Durian, but living in L.A. he is used to eating all kinds of different Asian foods, so he thought nothing of casually unwrapping a candy and popping it in his mouth. Lol...omg...the look on his face! Priceless!! I still laugh whenever I think of it :p

KatieBug28, I really wish you hadn't mentioned cute cruise clothes for daughters!! Lol!

There aren't any restaurants along Imperial Highway I don't think, but there is a very cute downtown area with restaurants along Main Street in El Segundo. You could walk or it would be about 5 minutes or so by cab. Manhattan Beach has tons of restaurants and shopping, so likely many options nearby.

Is Sourdough still in business? Their website isn't up and the domain name is for sale.

On the way to I would probably do something like the Embassy Suites LAX/South in El Segundo and have dinner on Main Street in downtown El Segundo. And on the way home The Belamar in Manhattan Beach - short cab, close to lots of restaurants and shopping. My old office had a view of the southeast runway at LAX and in my opinion, those are much easier to get to than Santa Monica from the airport.

Great photos! Thank you for posting. I'll be on the same cruise with you Aug 30 :)

It'll be cozy for a bath, but to play around with a pool of water, it would work ok (sort of like a water table he can climb on if you've seen those).

We took our 16 month old on a Princess cruise. (1) She slept in a pack and play provided by Princess. It was set up across from the bathroom in the closet and she was quite happy there. (2) we didn't feed baby food, but I vaguely recall it was available on request. At that point she was happily eating solids already and we really had fun letting her try new foods off the regular menu. (3) Yes, the dining room has high chairs available. (4) I don't recall diapers being available. I just took them out of the package and packed them in between things in my suitcase. I have also heard of others buying them at the port city to carry on if you are there early enough.

With my 16 month old we did not bring a car seat. At one port we hired a van for our group which she rode in w/o a car seat. At another port we walked around. I used a baby carrier because it was easier to get around with than with a stroller.

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We brought bottles for my daughter on our last cruise. I packed 3 of the ones she normally used and a bottle brush in a big ziplock bag. I used bath soap from the ship to wash them. She was drinking milk at that time, but if I was still using formula, I would probably have used bottled water if it was easily available or drinking water from the ship. The hardest part was keeping an eye on where my girl was setting down her bottle so we didn't lose it!

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I brought a blow up tub (easy to find at Target, Toys R Us, etc.) for my daughter who had only used the tub up until then, but turned out she enjoyed the novelty of the ship shower. In fact she wanted to take a shower anytime either my husband or I took a shower. Go figure.

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My experience has been that once the novelty wears off, the tablet is just another toy in the toy box. I don't put a time limit on the tablets. She can use them whenever she wants (but not at the table during meals ... That's just rude!). The pattern I've seen with my child is that when she gets a new game or app, she will use it quite a bit until she's finished exploring it, then it goes into rotation with all the other toys. I've seen her do the same with Legos, kinetic sand, chalkboard/whiteboard easel, etc. She definitely finds people more interesting and would rather stack blocks with me than poke around the ipad by herself.

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My daughter is almost 3. My in-laws gave her a LeapPad. She already had an iPad (inherited...my old one when I got a new mini). She likes them both and uses them both regularly. I would recommend either.

I've found the LeapPad to be fairly sturdy vs the iPad (which now has a cracked screen). I haven't spent that much on programs for the LeapPad -- she has 3 different cartridges and I bought $20 worth of programs from the LeapPad website. I also like that there are no ads on the LeapPad (free apps for the iPad are often supported with ads and it can get really obnoxious). I've spent more money on iPad apps for her but that is in part because there are some really great learning apps available and more content for the second language she is learning. I also like that I can use the iPad to access my stuff. Be aware that some apps on the iPad don't work without an Internet connection. What I like about both is that they take up a lot less room than bringing non-digital toys -- in my purse I can have the equivalent of a library of books, paints/crayons, flashcards, math workbooks and more. Don't get me wrong, I love old fashioned toys and my girl gets tons of time with blocks, Legos, Playdoh, etc. but for sheer portability I bless the tablet makers.

My personal experience has been that there are so many places to explore and new things to see and do on a ship that most of the time she did not need toys from home. But sitting through formal dining every night, it was helpful to have something to play with when the next course was a little slow to appear. Also she managed to take some videos of the wait staff singing Happy Birthday and That's Amore that she loved watching when we got home!

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When I took our then 16 month old on a cruise that left out of Houston, we booked a cruise transfer from the airport to the port through Princess. The transportation provided was a bus so no car seat needed.

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We took a stroller on a cruise to the Caribbean with our then 17 month old. We flew Southwest out of LAX and it was easy to check the stroller at the gate. However I did find it easier to take my daughter through the security screening in a baby carrier. In ports, I didn't take the stroller because the carrier is so much more convenient for beaches and places that just aren't accessible for wheels. We are booked on a cruise to Alaska this summer and I plan to take just the carrier and leave the stroller home. The carrier I have rolls up small enough to stuff into a large diaper bag.

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