Why does everyone hate cruising with Kids? What would make it better?

[tinkerme1]

On the Monarch, this past cruise, I took the time to actually READ the sign posted in front of the Hot Tub. As long as there is an adult in the Hot Tub with the minor child (under 16), the kids can stay. What was sad, however, was that my granddaughter and husband were in the hot tub with 10 other small children, none of which had their "adult chaperone" in the tub with them! My husband is a very kind, easy-going fellow, and enjoyed the time with his granddaughter, but he didn't enjoy having to chaperone all the other kids! What the sign should say, is each child must have their own parent/guardian accompany the child into the hot tub or they can't go in!

This should be strictly adhered to so that liability doesn't fall to RCCL or the cruise provider.

 

As for kids on cruises, each kid is different. We've seen good ones, we've seen terrible ones. What makes the difference is simple - the parents. Be a good parent, no problems. Be a bad parent - the possibilities are endless.

[Nanatravel]

I love to cruise with children. In fact, I enjoyed watching my own grandchildren when we pulled up to the pier. Watching their expressions and hearing their questions was fabulous. When children are splashing in the pool with their family, there are smiles everywhere. When the kids are dressed in face paint, handmade hats and swords and are marching with their peers with the Kids Club, what could make for a better picture. However, what I don't care for is totally unruley out of control kids who don't give a darn about others, including their peers. Those who are riding the elevators to no-where, those who are steeling door decorations just to be mean and those who are loud and obnoxious because they can get away with it. Parents-be-aware, your little darlings need rules and guidelines which must be enforced. Everyone including your on board neighbors will have a good time. Please parents of infants and toddlers, no diapers in the hot tubs or pools for the safety and good health of everyone. These pools with extra chemicals are not good for your little anyway.

Bon Voyage

[jku2]

i agree with many complaints from above.

Children should not be alone. they should be with their parents.

 

The first three rows of the show are designated no children without parents.

What do you find .... all children without parents. Where are the parents??

A cruise ship is not a place to let your child go off by themselves. It is not a free roaming place.

 

If you stay together and do things as a family then usually I have no problem with kids.

 

Kids should not be

1. in the pool by themselves

2. on elevators by themselves

3. at meals by themselves

4. at shows without parents

5. at adult only areas

[dougp26364]

Seems to be a point in many threads to bash us who will take our kids.

 

I assume you wouldn't mind them if they were all little angels like my DD who's 4.

 

Check us out 2/5/05 on the Enchantment of the Sea!

 

So what's the gripe?

 

What should we as parents traveling with kids keep in mind

 

I don't hate cruising with kids. Personally, I think it's a great experience for children to get out and see the world. It brodens their horizons and opinions as they grow up to realize that there are other places than their home town.

 

What I do hate is parents that take their children with them and then turn them lose on the rest of us to be their baby siitters and guardians. Children, no matter how well raised or behaved are still going to be children when not in the presence of their parents. When a parent isn't looking they'll do things that they just don't think about before doing it.

 

Case in point. For the most part, we didn't have that much trouble with out step-son that was "out of the ordinary" for a young man growing up. Still he did some things that were just plain stupid. One afternoon when he was about 13 or 13, he and his friends got to rough housing on the block and it escelated into a "friendly" dirt clod fight. He, of all things, found a ladder and choose to get up on someone elses roog for a better view and to bomb his friends from above.

 

In his little 13-14 year old mind this seemed like a good idea at the time. As adults, I think we can all see just how stupid a move this was. Needless to say I ended up sitting down with one of my neighbors to make arrangements for to pay for the damage done to their car and for him to work it off with odd jobs around the neighborhood. Once all the excitement of the game was over, he was embarresed and ashamed of his actions. That particular brand of stupidity hasn't ever shown up again (he's now 24) but like all of us he does have his moments.

 

On our last Alaskan cruise, we had a group of adults that were sailing with their children. These adults had good paying jobs and I'm sure that most believed their kids were little well behaved angles. They left their kids to their own devices. Kids being kids, this meant running through the ships playing tag around the adults, pushing all the lights on the elevators, jumping in the stairwells and running up and down the hallways at all hours of the night.

 

One this particular cruise they had the midnight chocolate buffet. Of course the kids showed up without the parents, who I'm sure were either in the bar or asleep. When the doors opened they ran like kids will do when there is a ton of all things chocolate laid out before them. Nothing like a kiddie stampede at a buffet right?

 

As it was, we were seated at a large table with a group of them. We were the only adults and of course, the conversation was between the kids who did a remarkable job ignoring the fact we were seated with them. If their parents could have heard the things they were saying about them, they'd have died right on the spot. One little girl in particular was talking about how they couldn't take time away from their precious jobs to even make her an appointment to go to the dentist for fix a tooth she was having some sort of problem with. She said some of the nastiest things about a couple who had probably spent well over $1,000 for her pampered little back side to sit at that table stuffing all the chocolate down her little ingrateful throat that she could and all she could focus on was what they hadn't done for her lately. Being a child, she probably never thought that perhaps the work schedule and dentist schedule's didn't conicide, that the dentist might be booked up for a couple of month or that her problem might not be as major as she preceived it to be since she was managing that big plate of chocolate pretty darn well.

 

Like I said, kids will be kids and I don't think I've ever met a child that didn't get upset if they didn't get their way. Still, it was not fun having to listen to a table full of kids slam their parents as an uncaring bunch of clods that didn't have a clue. If only one of the parents had taken the time to chaparone the kids at the buffet, things could have been a little different for everyone else around them and maybe, just maybe the kids might have eventually realized that the parents really DO care about them.

 

Of course, children aren't immune to stupid acts. I live in Wichita, KS. At the moment the town is covered in ice. I work as a nurse at one of the local hospitals. I can name you probably close to a hundred stupid acts that have landed people in the hospital.

[Chorts]

joyceyw wrote:

 

Although it may not seem so, they WANT limits to be set.

 

Limits? You bet.

 

Here's a scenario for you. You get a new job. Your boss doesn't tell you what time to start.....doesn't tell you what time breaks or lunch is or how long. He also doesn't tell you what your job duties are. Wouldn't you be just a tad frustrated if he never said a word and let you just figure it out for yourself? And when you thought you had it figured out you found that you weren't doing it correctly? Or you had to keep pushing until you finally found out what the limits were?

 

Well, take that down to a child's level. No guidelines and or rewards/consequences = frustration.

 

JMHO

[Maria65]

I love cruising with my children. It's a true pleasure to enjoy fine meals in the dining room as they try new and wonderful foods they don't get at home. We also enjoy skating, mini-golfing and water activities together. It is such a comparitive bargain for my family to enjoy these already included in the price activities. And yes, my kids have enjoyed the kids clubs where they get to socialize and do their thing while I read a book in peace and quiet. It's the best combination of separate and together I can imagine.

 

What might make it better? The 12-14 age group is a problem area that could be addressed. Kids this age have the run of the ship, they are free to come and go from the kids club as they wish. On our recent cruise, many of the activities planned for this group didn't take place or were underutilized. The kids were pretty much left with just hanging out. For some kids in that age group, I imagine that could lead to games on the elevator or other mayhem (though I didn't observe any such behavior). I'm not exactly sure what they can do to make kids want to stay in the club area and take part in activities, but it's an issue. For 13-14 yr olds looking to really test the waters and look for trouble, I'm sure they wouldn't have to look hard to find it.

 

As for little ones, I've seen charming babies on cruises and I've seen miserable babies with stressed-out parents on cruises. It's not a chance I would have taken, the quarters are too close for comfort in my opinion.

[NitaBcruising]

Ditto most of the above.

 

I don't mind cruising with well behaved children at all! :) They are usually supervised. That is mainly the difference. But, I have also seen poorly behaving kids, with their parents. These kids had to be told TWICE, in front of their parents, to be quiet for others to hear the life boat drill. I would have been mortified once, let alone twice! :rolleyes:

 

I like the idea of practicing table manners, etc. with youngsters before a cruise! :) (this may be needed for those who don't go out to a nice restaurant often!)

[Arizona Cruz Chic]

It's not that kids on a cruise that bothers most people, IMHO. It's that many of the parents that take their kids on cruises don't spend any time with them and are under the impression that the ship is just one big daycare center at their beconing call, and let the kids roam around freely, without supervision a lot of the time.

And you can't blame the kids, they're just being themselves and what they have been taught at home.

Please note I said "many of the parents", not all the parents.

 

There is nothing cuter than a family with children walking together to a formal night dinner all decked out.

Stretch

Very well said, Stretch!

I couldn't agree more.......to add my 2 cents....the ship is not a babysitter and the parents with the attitude of "it's my vacation too" OR "my kid doesn't act that way" is seen to often. If you see an oxnious kid, you most likely find the parent the same. :D

 

What would make it better? A choice of an adults only cruise once or twice a year. I sent a letter to RCI reagrds to that and so far I haven't heard anything back, well at least no news is good news!

 

 

***

[SeaBreezy]

Sounds to me like the people that gripe about kids on a cruise should really be griping at the irresponsible parents that brought them on the cruise.

 

If the blame lies solely with children, then I guess they should also be banned from all public areas except home and school, because they may cause a disruption, eh?

[denb]

Dogger - By the mere fact that you asked the question shows that you care about other people. The problem is with people that DON'T care about anyone but themselves. Unfortunately, they're not the type that read cruise forum threads related to children. Bring your children and have a wonderful time! :)

 

i.e. the problem is parents that don't parent

[cherith]

kids on a cruise. . .

ok. Even if they are GREAT kids? It's kind of like someone getting a phonecall on their cell phone in a restaurant and speaking 'q-u-i-e-t-l-y'. Still annoying.

Or someone's car alarm going off in the middle of the night BUT they turn it off right away.

Or someone with a really bad cough at the table, but being polite enough to spit into their kleenex. The best of an annoying situation.

I just have never had a kid who was at ONE time not annoying. It's like waiting for a bomb to go off if they ARE good. Good behaviour is just temporary. It just puts me on edge wondering how long the peace and quiet will last.

[Folgy]

Seems to be a point in many threads to bash us who will take our kids.

 

I assume you wouldn't mind them if they were all little angels like my DD who's 4.

 

Check us out 2/5/05 on the Enchantment of the Sea!

 

So what's the gripe?

 

What should we as parents traveling with kids keep in mind

 

dogger:

 

What a great question :D

 

 

1. We (not all) appreciate screaming babies /kids during evening dining

2. Kids taking over the solarium /pool/hotubs allocated to adults

3. Having to get all the ellevator buttons pushed and see every floor when you are going to late seating in your Tux and having your dress shoes stommped on by an unruly kid.

4. getting wacked on your ankles by a person pushing a stroller , in the Windjammer.

5.Trying to negotiate the stair way while kids are running havok on them.

6. Your door being knocked on ,only to find it's kids playing the hallway.

7. Sitting in the theater ,when kids are talking and acting up while you are trying to watch the show

8.High chairs and strollers in the dining room making it impossible for staff or patrons to get around.

9.Going out on your balcony to smell the sea air and enjoy and have baby poo poo stinky diaper smell from the twin babies in a hamper on the balcony screaming and crying beside you.

10.Trying to embark /disembark with baby/kids ..holding everyone up as they have royal fit .

11.Dining and having a really nice discussion with your tablemates about your daily excursion on shore only to be run into by 2 kids fighting around the table beside you (knocking my icecream up my nose)

12.Trying to shop in the onboard stores while kids are running in front of you

knocking stuff out of your hands.

 

My list is much more lengthy: (I'll take an animal anyday over babies /kids)

 

My wish is that parents would just leave them at home when they cruise>

 

However >>I live in the real world ,so the truth of the matter is

 

PARENTS HAVE TO BE MORE RESPONSIBLE , for their children.Yes , It is a parenting issue.Not so much as we make a blanket statement .babies /kids are not welcome.

 

Dogger:

I am sure you are a wonderful parent as I feel many others are here on these boards. I also believe many here have very sweet and endearing children.

It is unfortunate that many parents bring their children/babies/toddlers on the cruise ship and what ever the little darlings want >they get!.To the fustration of others.

 

End Of Rant

 

You can all set my pants on fire :p now.

[*katie*]

Any ideas on how to talk or calm her on a flight, it'll be her 1st.

I would highly recommend getting earplugs if you haven't already. They sell sizes for children at places like WalMart. If you can't find them locally, you can usually find them at the airport, but they're a lot more expensive and they might not have the sizes for kids. Good luck!

[stbmom]

To me, it's not bashing those that take their kids, it's bashing those that take their kids and act as if they don't have any when they get on the ship. The biggest thing for me is not respecting the adults only area and times. I have seen young teenagers have to be put out of adult only games and saw a couple kids in the Adults Only Solarium.

I believe everyone has a right to cruise, but everyone should really obey to rules so that each cruiser can enjoy the experience they have paid for.

The ships may need to do a better job of separating people by going with the Disney idea of adults only floors and such. Like no kids on one floor of cabins and maybe one floor of the dining room adults only. Then, respecting and enforcing the rules of the other areas.

For me, I don't dislike kids, I dislike not being able to enjoy the things I have paid for because parents don't set limits. The cruise lines are at fault as well, because the tolertate bad behavior from children and adults - they need to start enforcing their rules and putting families as well as adults off the ship when they do the most horrendous tasks (hitting people, harrassing, etc.). If they do stupid things like vomit in the pool - their sign and sail cards should be charged for the costs of the clean up and the time that the pool has to be shut down.

With that said, I think cruising is a great way for kids to see other countries, learn about different cultures, and experience different things. I do think there is a balance that can be met with a little effort from the cruise industry.

[Catnip]

When the question is aksed: "why do you bring your children on a cruise with you?" The answer is almost always "to spend quality time with my kids as a family"..........but then why is it that once they get on the ship, some parents turn their kids loose to run wild all over the ship with no parental supervision. The kids are sent to the kids programs, while the parents are in the bars, casinos or just sunning themselves up at the pool.

If this is a "family vacation" and you want to spend time with your kids, that's a good thing......just remember to spend time with them, supervise them and not let them run wild all over the ship.

[SUSIEK]

The kids are fine.... I can't handle the parents that don't require the kids to behave in public. I have seriously thought that SOME, not all, parents think it is ok to let the kids run wild on the ship without supervision.

[ineedacruise]

[quote name='Murphy']If the hot tub says adults only, keep the children out even if "it is the only water that is warm enough."

.[/QUOTE]

I do not believe I have ever been on a ship that has a sign that says Adults Only at the main pool section hot tubs. The signs have all said, adult supervision which is totally different. My kids love the hot tubs but they know better. You dont splash, you sit still and enjoy!! They also are older in age... 10 and 13.

[bpear1600]

[quote name='Folgy']dogger:


3. Having to get all the ellevator buttons pushed and see every floor when you are going to late seating in your Tux and having your dress shoes stommped on by an unruly kid.
.[/QUOTE]

I got so tired of this on our last Mariner cruise I personally escorted a young teen who got onto a full elevator and punched all the floors and then tried to run away, to the customer service desk, or whatever they call it, and turned him over to a supervisor. What teed me off almost as much as the stupid kid was some "adults" who thought this was funny. I guess in some people's eyes there's never anything wrong with anything, blah, blah, blah.

[RedSoxWon]

[quote name='dogger']Any ideas on how to talk or calm her on a flight, it'll be her 1st.
[/QUOTE]
My son is four and has been flying at least once or twice a year since he was one. We always stuff a carry-on with distractions. We go out and buy inexpensive toys, games, books, etc., and then pull them out one by one as surprises when he gets bored. DW and I take turns sitting next to him so one of us has a chance to relax (it's hard work keeping your toddler occupied, but we accept it as part of our responsibility toward fellow passengers). I always spend a lot of time simply talking to him, pointing things out, making up silly stories, etc. Usually, a flight attendant or passenger will comment on how quiet he is.

Also, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. We believe that preparing our child for new and strange things makes it a lot easier. Talk to your child about the trip and about flying in airplanes, what to expect. Try to get him/her excited about it, rather than springing it on them the day you leave.

[Onessa]

Our vacations always include our DD. Wouldn't think about going on one without her. It is a "family" vacation and, yes, we spend alot of good, quality time together.

Part of the problem I have noticed with kids on cruises is that it is magnified when there are more kids - we've traveled at times when there have been lots of kids and other times when there have been relatively few. Since it is more likely that a child will be travelling as a third or fourth pax in a cabin - at times that there are more kids on board, it's not just kids - it's more PEOPLE. The cruise lines make big bucks on the 3rd/4th person supplement and don't really try to limit the number of people. So having more kids generally means more pax, which means less room for everyone, less attention by the staff, and more frustrations to all the pax.

[chgocruiser]

Sounds like your a concerned parent, and want to share the vacation with family, bravo!

Like someone else here said, it is not a kid issue, it is a parenting issue. The fact that you show concern about others around you, you should be fine.

If you have a portable DVD player that would be good on the flight, sometimes there is no in flight movie or not something kid friendly. A "Finding Nemo" might be a good cruise primer.

And for those that really don't like kids, there are adult only vacations too.

[VTSnorkeler]

[quote name='Folgy']1. We (not all) appreciate screaming babies /kids during evening dining
2. Kids taking over the solarium /pool/hotubs allocated to adults
3. Having to get all the ellevator buttons pushed and see every floor when you are going to late seating in your Tux and having your dress shoes stommped on by an unruly kid.
4. getting wacked on your ankles by a person pushing a stroller , in the Windjammer.
5.Trying to negotiate the stair way while kids are running havok on them.
6. Your door being knocked on ,only to find it's kids playing the hallway.
7. Sitting in the theater ,when kids are talking and acting up while you are trying to watch the show
8.High chairs and strollers in the dining room making it impossible for staff or patrons to get around.
9.Going out on your balcony to smell the sea air and enjoy and have baby poo poo stinky diaper smell from the twin babies in a hamper on the balcony screaming and crying beside you.
10.Trying to embark /disembark with baby/kids ..holding everyone up as they have royal fit .
11.Dining and having a really nice discussion with your tablemates about your daily excursion on shore only to be run into by 2 kids fighting around the table beside you (knocking my icecream up my nose)
12.Trying to shop in the onboard stores while kids are running in front of you
knocking stuff out of your hands.

My list is much more lengthy: (I'll take an animal anyday over babies /kids)

My wish is that parents would just leave them at home when they cruise>


End Of Rant

You can all set my pants on fire :p now.[/QUOTE]


OK - I'll bite...

I read posts like this one, and wonder why I don't get it. These are kids we're talking about... So what they're in the pool? They are making noise at dinner? This is what kids do. If a kid comes up to me at the Windjammer and tells me to go F#%% myself, then I can potentialy see some issues - but is this really going to happen?

I think if people like the OP above perhaps were a bit more flexible and gave some of these kids a chance they'd realize they aren't so bad. Can't anyone else remember what it was like to be a kid and want to hang out in the pool? Or run around with some friends they may have just met???

Sure, a cruise is a vacation, blah, blah. My advice is to loosen up and not sweat the small stuff. Hey, maybe play a game of shuffleboard or basketball with some of these kids, they're probably a lot more mature than you give them credit for.

Our son is too young to travel with us this year, but I for one am really looking forward to cruising with him in the near future.

[chgocruiser]

I did forget to mention, that parents need to remember that on a cruise you are sailing with maybe 2000+ strangers. Not to be an alarmest, I know we want to believe that everyone is good, and this in general is true. But to let a child wander around unsupervised because, well we are at sea, so the child can't go missing, doesn't mean that it is completely safe. Allways keep an eye on your little ones. I've been on serveral cruises and have seen more than one lost child on each. :eek:

[VTSnorkeler]

[quote name='RedSoxWon']My son is four and has been flying at least once or twice a year since he was one. We always stuff a carry-on with distractions. We go out and buy inexpensive toys, games, books, etc., and then pull them out one by one as surprises when he gets bored. DW and I take turns sitting next to him so one of us has a chance to relax (it's hard work keeping your toddler occupied, but we accept it as part of our responsibility toward fellow passengers). I always spend a lot of time simply talking to him, pointing things out, making up silly stories, etc. Usually, a flight attendant or passenger will comment on how quiet he is.

Also, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. We believe that preparing our child for new and strange things makes it a lot easier. Talk to your child about the trip and about flying in airplanes, what to expect. Try to get him/her excited about it, rather than springing it on them the day you leave.[/QUOTE]

That's some good advice!! Although the first time I read your post, I misread and thought you stuffed your son into a carry-on :D

We fly 3-4 times per year and the Flight Attendants are usually awesome.(waving, gooing, etc) He really loves peeking at them from over his seat. He's going to be a real ladies man - :p One time, a flight attendant asked if she could hold him, which we thought was a little weird. I said sure, but DW kept a close eye - and also gave me a sharp elbow to the ribs :)

[Madshadow]

I agree with what everyone said about how bad some kids can act. SOme of the things the teens/kids were doing were so outrageous, i could not even imagine myself wanting to do that. My parents have enough trust in me to allow me to walk around by myself, and do whatever i want. At first, they made me go with my sister (who is 11) because they wanted to see how she would act. I would have to say, all of the kids in my family were very nice.
When we met someone in the elevator, me and my sister started conversations with many adults. We talked about where we came from, and basic discussion. We always said excuse me, and sorry if we pressed the wrong elevator button. But enough about me, =P the teens on my cruise were horrible. At the pool area, the kids were acting horribly. They were cursing as loud as they could, pushing each other, splashing their parents. Their parents must have been drunk, because they told the kids to stop, and the kids cursed back at their parents, and the parents just sat their. My sister had to report them to a bar worker.
In response to what was just said, (about hot tubs) i have to say i never went into the hot tubs, nor did i want to. I saw a group of 10-12 kids in the hot tub, probably aroun 7-8 years old jumping around, cannon balling into the hot tub, sliding on the rails. Spitting in the water, and sucking on the rails. I dont know where the parents were, but they were being very irresponsible , leaving their kids in the pool area, unattended.
One more story about what occured (sorry, i know that this might be getting boring). Well, a teenager broke his leg in belize (the first port after miami). Therfore, he was in a wheel chair most of the time. WHat my family saw him do made us believe he was faking it all. We saw his sister pushing him as fast as she could, and climbing on the back, riding it. We saw him pushing her, running on a "broken" leg. My family was really anoyed by this, because he has been causing trouble the whole time. But we did not let it ruin our vacation.
To start a new conversation, i would like to change the perspective on things. I dont think kids are the only ones guilty of being rude. Some adults were very rude, and treated kids like nothing. There were a few times that adults would cut in fron t of me while i was waiting in line for the midnight buffet (in which my dad was present lol). It seemed like those adults steryotyped children, in believing all children were bad. This might just be my opinion, so i would like to see what others think about this.

(Just for some background information, i am 13, my brother is 14, and my sisters are 11, and 9)