Late seating with a 10 month old

[cruisinsb]

My son will be 10 months when we go on our cruise in December (crown princess). We are going with several families and everyone has signed up for late seating,which is 8:30. We will give my son dinner at his usual dinner time, 5:30 ish. However his bedtime is usually around 7:00, if he naps late we can hold him off til 8. What should we do about our dinner? Can he sleep in a stroller in the dining room? SHould I try napping him much later? Should my husband and I go to an earlier dinner with our son? Does Princess have in cabin babysitting? Any suggestions would be very helpful!

[cb at sea]

I don't know about Princesses babysitting....

But, yes---your child can sleep in a small stroller if need be.

Call Princess and find out about the babysitting...that may be your best option, unless you don't want to dine with your friends!

Princess has "anytime" dining now....perhaps everyone would agree to that, and you could go to dinner a bit earlier, as a group?

[cruisinsb]

Thanks, but I don't think we can convince everyone to do anytime, because most of our family friends want to stay on the beach as late as possible and wind down when they get back on the ship. I may try it and see if my son will sleep in the stroller the first night and maybe play with his nap schedule, we'll see, thanks for your response!

[jean s]

On our cruise last February on Crown there was a couple with a young child at the late seating. He would last till about 9PM and then fall asleep as one of his parents pushed him back and forth in the stroller. It seemed to work out fine.

[ckekjhaze]

definitely let him sleep in the stroller - and you will be able to enjoy some adult conversation!

 

have fun:)

[Julienatul]

Hopefully he will fall asleep. My 11 month-old will no longer sleep in his stroller. He fights to stay awake and then is very fussy. He would never make late seating. You might consider early seating if the others will join you or make a plan for one of you to take turns each evening staying in the cabin with the baby. Plan ahead and if he makes it great if not be prepared to adjust your plans. Thats the key to cruising with an infant, be flexible!!

 

Good luck.

[cruisinsb]

Thank you for all of the responses, we are going to try the stoller and hope it works, I was just going to bring our umbrella, but now I think it is worth it to bring our bigger stroller, a peg perego aria, which also reclines. We will keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best!

[notentirelynormal]

Princess does not have in room babysitting. Also, please remember that space is limited in the dining room and having a stroller of any size, let alone a big one, might get in the way of other passengers. More importantly it might get in the way of the servers trying to serve dinner without dropping food on your child. Honestly, I'd eat earlier. Part of the price you pay when you have kids is to adjust - so if your friends won't change then you might have to be alone. My DD found it impossible to bring my 3 YO GS to dinner when we ate late. They ended up eating in the buffet most nights or their cabin. The 6 MO did great but the older one just couldn't adjust to the time. We now eat at the early seating.

[brenderlou]

Thank you for all of the responses, we are going to try the stoller and hope it works, I was just going to bring our umbrella, but now I think it is worth it to bring our bigger stroller, a peg perego aria, which also reclines. We will keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best!

 

If you can, try and find a smaller reclinable stroller. Ours is a Chicco Capri that is kinda of like an umbrella but sturdier and it reclines far enough back for sleeping. It's also takes little room when collapsed.

The bigger stroller you are thinking of bringing may be too bulky to bring in the dining room and keep open. I'm not familiar with the Peg Perego strollers so it's just a thought in case they are a bulkier stroller.

We still take this for our 5 yr old if we are going to be out late and she gets tired. We've had this stroller forever and our daughter still loves it!!!!

[Julienatul]

The aria will be perfect. We have been using it 4 + years with our DD and now son. It fits perfectly through the hallway, at the dinner table, through the cabin doors, elevators etc. It also will fit in the cabin closet folded. We have never had a problem with it fitting anywhere. It is smaller/lightweight like an umbrella stroller but has all the featuers of a full size, snack tray, full recline, large basket. I also recommend the Rayshade canopy extender to put over the top. That sometimes will help block out all noise and let DS go to sleep but the older he gets, the less it seems to work.

[Kerry's Girls]

Princess does not have in room babysitting. Also, please remember that space is limited in the dining room and having a stroller of any size, let alone a big one, might get in the way of other passengers. More importantly it might get in the way of the servers trying to serve dinner without dropping food on your child. .

 

In my experience, Princess dining rooms are very stroller friendly and strollers are welcome. We've done six Princess cruises and eat every meal in the dining room (I'm not a buffet fan) and have always had the stroller with us. You can either pull the stroller right up to the table (like a wheelchair) or park it to the side out of the way. The way the dining rooms are set up, it's not one big room, but lots of small sections that have outer walls that a stroller can be placed against and not be in the way. Bring one of the large beach towels from your room to hang over the stroller to block out the light and sound.

 

I will say though, that eating alone at early seating with my toddlers is always one of my favorite parts of the cruise. When we cruised with a large group of extended family who had late seating, I told them ahead of time that I'd be doing the early seating with my twins. We would meet them after our meal/before theirs in one of the lounges each night, which was a great way for us all to spend time together.

 

Best,

Mia

[cruisinsb]

I understand that space may be limited in the dining room, but I am sure the maitre d could accommodate us with a table near a corner where the stroller would be out of the way. It is not like it is a double stroller or anything like that, it is just a little bigger than an umbrella. We will try it the first night, and if it doesn't work, we will work it out. I am sur eI will be able to tell if we are in anyone's way, and if so, we will make the necessary changes, I am a considerate cruiser!

[cruisinsb]

Thanks!

[cruisinsb]

The aria will be perfect. We have been using it 4 + years with our DD and now son. It fits perfectly through the hallway, at the dinner table, through the cabin doors, elevators etc. It also will fit in the cabin closet folded. We have never had a problem with it fitting anywhere. It is smaller/lightweight like an umbrella stroller but has all the featuers of a full size, snack tray, full recline, large basket. I also recommend the Rayshade canopy extender to put over the top. That sometimes will help block out all noise and let DS go to sleep but the older he gets, the less it seems to work.

 

Thank you so much! We already have the canopy and planned on bringing it for the sun, but it is a good idea to use it to block out noise too!

[rolloman]

Been there done that, have the T-Shirt. My little one is now 19 months old and has 5 cruises under her belt. When she was around 10 months old on a Princess cruise we had late seating and went with family having the idea to help out. Problem is family kinda were not so helpful at dinner time lol...so it boiled down to me jumping on the grenade and staying with the little one in the cabin while others ate. There is no way at 10 months old she was going to sleep in the stroller while we ate with all the noise of a dining room.

Taking the big stroller has some benefits but the downside is where do you put it in your cabin? We had a mini suite and it was always in the way. I am sure you will have a great time and its enjoyable with peace of mind having the baby with you, but trust me when I say it will not be a honeymoon cruise. It will no different than what you do at home.

In order to have some free time for yourself (until he turns 2) your only options are Disney, Oasis of the Seas, or in cabin baby sitting w/celebrity and Royal Caribbean .

[notentirelynormal]

I understand that space may be limited in the dining room, but I am sure the maitre d could accommodate us with a table near a corner where the stroller would be out of the way. It is not like it is a double stroller or anything like that, it is just a little bigger than an umbrella. We will try it the first night, and if it doesn't work, we will work it out. I am sur eI will be able to tell if we are in anyone's way, and if so, we will make the necessary changes, I am a considerate cruiser!

 

I didn't mean to imply that you weren't. I was merely trying to give you another avenue to think about.