NCL Cruise with just-6-month-old

[Huxley'sCruisers]

Hi there,

 

We just booked a cruise on NCL for myself, my husband, our baby daughter who will turn 6 months on April 5, and my husband's mother. We are taking the Dawn from NYC to Bermuda on April 11. We live in NYC, so at least that part is easy for us!

 

Last April (when I was pregnant) my husband and I traveled on the Pearl to the Western Caribbean and had a fantastic time. However, we know that cruising with a young baby is going to be a whole different ballgame.

 

I've poked around recent posts a bit, but have a few questions of my own. First, are we totally crazy to be doing this?! (just kidding... too late now!)

 

In all seriousness... what should I expect from the cruise with such a little one. Our daughter is overall a good baby - cheerful, happy, a good sleeper most of the time, not a screamer. She's not mobile yet (and probably won't be at cruise time, but who knows?), and she's still exclusively breast-fed (though she takes bottles of my milk).

 

We aren't starting her on solid foods until 6 months, but because our cruise basically coincides with that time, I'm thinking about waiting to start the solids until we get back, in case they don't agree with her... any parents who have BTDT have advice? Also, right now her diapers are pretty odorless, but I know adding solids to the mix can change that - and I'm not sure how diaper disposal on the boat really works. Any advice on that would be great!

 

I know there are no babysitting options for such a young one, and my husband's mom will be helping us out with that a bit, but for the times when we all want to eat/be out together, will the crew be accommodating to the baby's presence at dinner or shows (of course if she gets fussy we'd leave immediately). Are there any places that a baby IS NOT allowed on a cruise (other than the pool)?

 

Is there any baby play area that we can use? Should I bring any big toys (bouncy seat, play mat) or will there be enough entertainment in other things?

 

We're planning to bring a lightweight umbrella stroller and a carrier (Ergo or Moby Wrap), but do we need a carseat for her as well? I'm not sure how getting around Bermuda works - if it is done by bus I don't know that we can take a carseat. Of course, we want to be as safe as possible.

 

We've booked two balcony rooms aft on deck 9, and will have a pack n play from the ship. I've seen some people recommend bringing your own, which we can easily do - is that necessary? Maybe it would be good to have a sleeping place for her in both rooms, so she can nap/sleep in one place while we're awake/watching tv in the other?

 

Any excursion recommendations (with the cruise or on our own) for us with a baby? I'm not expecting her to get anything out of it, but we want to explore and don't want others to feel like the baby is disturbing their vacation. My husband and I would love to go snorkeling but I'm not sure that's something we can take the baby on, even if she and my mother-in-law just stay on the boat?

 

Is it possible to bathe the baby on board, or should I just do sponge-baths for the week? (I don't think the balcony rooms have bathtubs). What about laundry?

 

Any other essentials I'm not thinking of that we should remember to bring?

 

Thank you so much!!!

 

-Alexa (and little cruiser, Sylvie)

[cb at sea]

Babies are quite welcome on the ship, and in the shows and dining room...don't let anyone tell you differently! Sticking to breastfeeding is definitely going to be the easiest route for you....no formula to mess with...it's just so much easier! Good for you!

 

For baths, many folks will bring a small, blowup pool or a small plastic basin....you can pack that easily in your suitcase, with stuff packed inside it! The sinks are too small to easily bath anything but an infant! You can also use that at the pool for baby to "splash", if you're so inclined.

 

Some excursions will let you "ride along" without participating.....or, you could leave Grandma and baby on the ship, if they don't mind that!

 

Bring all the diapers, wipes, etc...that you will need for the trip....the ship doesn't carry much, if any, baby needs and you don't want to spend time in port searching for those thing!

 

You're right..this will be a different cruise than the last one....not better---not worse---just different! Enjoy!

[Kerry's Girls]

I brought a bath tub and bouncie chair on our first cruise - just taped a luggage tag on each and checked them at the curb. The bouncie chair is kind of nice to take out on deck in addition to using in the room, but the stroller works as a place to sit as well if you don't want to bring extra stuff.

 

Have a great time!

 

Best,

Mia

[Huxley'sCruisers]

Thanks for the advice! I guess I'll wait and see if our little one still likes her bouncy chair, but at home it is a lifesaver so it will probably be useful.

 

Does anyone know about laundry onboard? I'm planning to bring lots of clothes for her, but I'm sure I'll need to do some laundry... or should I plan to just hand-wash anything that gets soiled?

[bean24]

Hi we will be taking our 9 month old a few weeks after you. There are no laundry rooms for guest, so it has to be washed in the sink or they have a laundry special all you can fit for $25, I don't think we will be doing that, I like to control what deteregent & stuff I use on my son, but it is an option.

As far as excursions go we are a big group and will be travelling on our own. Bermuda has a very extensive bus & ferry system which we will be using, no car seats for that. You can buy an unlimited use pass, I think it is about $28 for the 3 days. We have kids from 11 to my son, and know for sure we will be going to the zoo. The other full day we will be going to a beach & on Fri we will hang out by the pier. Enjoy:D

[Kerry's Girls]

or they have a laundry special all you can fit for $25,

 

You can't count on the laundry special being offered on every cruise. I was counting on it on our 12 day cruise as it had been offered on every cruise on the same itinerary for the month befiore ours, but on ours it wasn't. The per piece charge was too much for me, so I ended up handwashing - though it's difficult to get things dry.

 

Best,

Mia

[lolakat]

I sailed the Pearl with my DD at 6 mo and the Dawn to Bermuda when she was 8 mo. I'll try to answer your questions as best as I can.

 

1. Are you totally crazy? Nah, you'll have a good time so long as you go with the right expectations. It will be fun to spend a whole relaxing week with your little one while someone else does most of the other dirty work (ie, cooking and cleaning etc)

 

2. What should you expect? In my experience the cruise with my daughter had a lot less activites than previous cruises. We spent a lot more time sitting around and just being together on the deck or in the empty lounges. I also spent a lot more time in my cabin both b/c of nap time and early bed time but also b/c it was sometimes just easier to escape there if she got fussy or over stimulated. We didn't make it to the casino where we usually spend a lot of time. Our shore excursions were limited to more simple walks around the port.

I found meal time a bit stressfull b/c I was alwyas afraid DD was going to get fussy and we'd have to carry her out. At 6 mo this did happen a lot and DH would carry her around for a few minutes and she would simmer down. Often she would fall asleep in her stroller during dinner. We did go to the main dining room or a resturant every night. The buffett was just too over whelming with the baby.

 

3. Solid foods? Our daughter had just turned 6mo on our cruise so we just waited until we got back to start with solids. At 8mo we packed our own food and didn't introduce anything new on the boat.

 

4. Diaper disposal? We put our diapers in the little trash cans and left it out on the balcony. The stewart disposed of them twice daily. We had plastic bags for the poo poo diapers.

 

5. Baby play area? They advertise an area called the "under 2 zoo" which has play mats and some toys. DD was not too impressed and I was a little concerned about germs etc at that age. We just brought some of her favorite small toys from home. We also brought an inflatable pool. We used it once out on the balcony but DD wasn't that into it and it was kind of a lot of work to fill and empty. We played on the pool deck, in the room or in empty lounges. THe staffed loved DD and many called her by name all over the ship.

 

6. Carseat? Assuming you are driving to the port in NYC you likely will not need to bring the carseat aboard. We used the ferries to get around Bermuda. I can see where a bouncy seat might be nice but our DD was way too big for hers by 6 mo. Do you use a Bumbo? That is light and easy to carry. Anything that lets you sit her up and play might be nice to have.

 

7. Pack-N-Play? We've uesed the ship's pack n play 3 times and never had any problem. I have read on here that some people have been issued PNP that were not in good condition. If this happens to you I would suggest trying to trade it in. That being said, if you are very picky and you are driving to the port it might be just as easy to bring you own.

 

8. Bathing? We had a tub in our suite. I've read otherpeople but the blow up pool in the base of the shower and bathe the baby in there. As I recall 6 mo don't get that dirty b/c they are not mobile and not eatting solids. You might be ok with sponge baths. Have you ever tried to hold DD while you are in the shower. My DD used to really like that and I used that trick on other trips when she was little.

 

9. Excursions? We just took the ferry to Hamilton and walked around. We also walked over to the beach right near the pier (stingray beach ?) I wouldn't recommend that beach b/c it seemed dirty to me but it was OK to just dangle DD's toes in the ocean and take a short walk.

 

10. Laundry? As others have pointed out there is not a passenger laundry. We just packed enough clothes for the week.

 

10. Hope that helps a little. Have a great time and let me know if there are any other specific questions.

[kitty9]

The only places that the baby cannot go is the casino and the late night disco.

 

I'm not sure about the boat thing and a 6 month old. A lot of times those snorkeling boats are very bouncy and you don't want a seasick baby there. Plus, you have to be very, very careful of the sun. Not many pediatricians recommend using sunblock on infants and the sun will be magnified on the snorkel boat.

[jerin]

As you've probably already learned, it's all about flexibility. If you go with that in mind, you'll all have a great time.

 

I'd probably lean toward finding things to do on your own in ports, rather than any excursions ... again because of the flexibility issue. On excursions, you're tied to their schedule, which may or may not mesh with what baby decides HER schedule is that day. Even with toddlers/preschoolers, we've either booked private excursions or just gotten out and wandered a bit, because kids can sometimes be unpredictable. Now that the kids are getting older (5 to 12 next cruise), we can start branching out and DOING more in ports, but really we all just enjoyed wandering a bit, soaking in a bit of the culture, and then when someone got cranky, we were free to get back on the ship and get them a nap.

[NJfoodie]

We were on this itinerary a couple years ago and loved it! The Dawn is a great ship! The best thing about the Bermuda trip is that you're docked for 3 days right next to the bus/ferry stop that will get you around the rest of the island - it'll go to most of the major beaches, to hamilton and st. george. I don't think either will be able to accommodate a car seat though. I doubt they are legally required, but it's up to you how comfortable you are with riding a bus or ferry with your baby in your lap or in your carrier. The ferry rides were pretty smooth sailing but the bus tended to be a little rocky of a ride.

 

Onboard, NCL has the "Under 2 zoo" - it's supposed to be a play area segregated for the little ones where you can play with your child. I've heard mixed reports on where it will be located - either one of the lounges that is closed during the day or part of the kids club area.

 

Having traveled, though not on a cruise, w/ our little guy when he was 3-6 months old, we've learned that we tend to pack some of everything. I picked up small travel bottles to fill with the staples - dish detergent, laundry detergent, oxyclean, and any supplies we needed. We used occasional bottles and I still pumped though our baby was nursing. We would just do a quick wash or soak things in the sink if only he blew out his diaper and hang dry in the shower. I wasn't worried about getting things clean - they would get laundered when I got home, but it was just to prep it for the laundry and not smell. I kept grocery bags handy (like the kind you get in the produce aisle) for his diapers so that I could toss them into a separate bag and tie off the bag after a couple diapers before tossing the bag into the trash. The main thing was our room trash was emptied only 1x per day so it would start getting stinky if we didn't seal off the diapers periodically.

 

I agree on holding off solids until you get home. The main concern is that after you introduce a new food, you'll want to give it a couple days to make sure your baby doesn't have an allergic reaction or any other problems with it. If god forbid there was a reaction, I wouldn't want to be trying to figure out how to treat it on a ship.

 

Enjoy your trip!

[happyfaerie]

Im researching to take our 18month old on a cruise in may out of nyc. the dawn is a nice ship.

 

Something i didnt think of....babies in diapers are not allowed in the pool. so sad! i was told that ppl bring small blow up pools for their balconies which i plan on doing so the baby can have fun especially since there are no activities for the under 2 set. I was told my cabin has a bathtub but if not, use the same blow up pool in your shower for baths. Also maybe get some of those Mustella Body wash wet cloths for quick freshening up without a full bath. we love them!

 

Bring everything u could possibly need bec i was told they have NOTHING on board!

 

 

My advice is to make early dinner reservations and maybe even attempt one of the shows if its not past your LO's bedtime. our son sleeps by 8 so we are outta luck there. my mom is coming a long so we plan on having some time to go to shows while she babysits.

[katyjeka]

We've been on 3 NCL cruises(Spirit, Dawn and Jewel). The Dawn remains our favorite. We LOVED everything about the trip. We left from NY, on an 11 day with an 8 month old and she did really well. The umbrella stroller made our trip so easy, and we used a carrier for our excursions. This will sound funny, but I took a cheap tablecloth to the beaches with us and threw it away when we left. It gave our little one a big area to play, because the sand tends to get hot!! My only complaint with NCL is that they eliminated the self service laundry. When traveling with kids, it makes packing so much easier. Keep in mind not all laundry is returned the next day. This past Dec. on the Jewel it we got our laundry back after 3 days. We love anytime dining and the crew loves to see babies!!! We leave this Dec. on our next cruise with our 3 dd's and a 4th that is due in a month. Some say we are crazy, but we've always had a great time, and cherish the memories. Have a fantastic cruise, you will love the Dawn, its a beautiful ship!!! (Love your dd's name) Janice

[cantw8togo]

Don't forget to take along a pediatric first aid kit. We always travel with at least Tylenol, Benadryl, and a thermometer. It can be difficult to find pediatric medications while on vacation and they likely won't have any on board. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist about recommendations of what to take. Also ask them for recommendations in case you are anticipating teething to begin while you are away. I also took along my go-to baby book in case something new cropped up, such as what to do for a nursing strike or mastitis. It is always difficult when your little one gets sick and it is even worse when it happens on vacation. Been there, done that. It's easier to deal with if you are prepared.

 

Have a great trip with your little one.

 

N.

[bean24]

Going along with first aid stuff, they now make pedialyte in a powder, my pedi highly recommended it in case of noro. My son is just getting over a case of noro & I don't know what we would have done without the pedialyte, so I will be bringing it along. Better safe than sorry.

[Huxley'sCruisers]

Thanks for the tips, everyone!!! Keep them coming if you have anything to add... my husband is getting super excited about the trip, but I'm of course worried that it won't be much of a vacation for me at least (though i'm sure we'll all have a great time).

[TupeloHoney]

We took a cruise when our son was 3 months old.

 

Most of your questions have been answered - but a few other things.

 

Bring your own sheets for the pack-n-play. In my experience they just use one of their flat sheets, and that would worry me. When my son was 3 months he just slept in his stroller as it reclined all the way down and he was used to a basinett.

 

Bring your baby monitor. If you have a room right next to your mil maybe you can hang out over there while the baby is napping or when she is napping. Or out on the balcony. Otherwise bring a little clip on reading light so you can at least read in the room. Maybe your daughter isn't such a delicate sleeper - it has to be quiet and dark for our son to sleep!

[youngestof9]

I don't have much to add because I haven't cruised with an infant, but I have traveled with one so here goes.

 

Definitely hold off on solids since you're right at the time you'd switch. It's not worth testing on vacation!

 

My only other suggestion in the pediatric first aid kit is glycerine suppositories. The last thing you need is a constipated baby (even if she never ever has been before, just a major change in schedule can change that) and they are not so easy to find except for in drug stores (I know Duane Reade carries them and they are pediatric size, so they are tiny). Better to have this inexpensive item that can help than be stuck. I'm guessing they're not a big item they would carry in a port LOL!

 

And bring all of your own OTC meds like advil, etc. Because if you know she can handle one brand over another, you may not be able to find that along the way.

 

ENJOY!!!

[jacyvillarreal]

We're leaivng with our 10 month old to the Western Carribean in 4 days and one suggestion I got was to pack all the things that won't come off the ship with you when you leave (ie diapers, wipes, disposable changing pads,etc) in a box and then unpack it and have the room steward throw it out after you get settled so you don't have so many suitcases! I have fit everything my little man will need into a decent sized box and taped a luggage tag on it! :p