Taking 10 month old on Fascination

[applequeen]

We just booked a last minute cruise on the Fascination in 2 weeks (Jan 27!). We're taking our 10 month old with us. Any advice for cruising with a baby that age?

 

Are there play areas for babies? I know he can't go into the pools.

[firefly333]

Iv heard you can go to camp carnival during lunch and play with your baby. Thats going to be a hard age as he is probably crawling. We had a 7 month old on our roll call and he was a doll and slept a lot in his stroller and we passed him around and by the end of the cruise he was loving it.

[Tapi]

We just booked a last minute cruise on the Fascination in 2 weeks (Jan 27!). We're taking our 10 month old with us. Any advice for cruising with a baby that age?

 

Are there play areas for babies? I know he can't go into the pools.

 

Camp Carnival will have a 2 hour play session early in the morning ONLY on sea days. You can NOT drop your baby off. You must stay with him during the session. In addition, they'll have baby sitting evey night (for a fee) from 10pm until 2-3am if you really need a break from your little one.

 

We sailed with a 12 month old on the Fascination. I've posted advice on the family board if you want to read detailed information, but in a nutshell, arrive after 1pm on embarkation day (cabin won't be ready before then), request a crib from Carnival before you sail, bring the smallest, collapsible umbrella stroller, bring some emergency snacks, sign up for Any time Dining, familiarize yourself with where convenience stores are at your ports of call (for last minute supplies. If you are going to Key West, there are some within walking distance), and don't take organized shore excursions even if they are "baby approved"

 

Feel free to click on the link below my signature for a review of our cruise

[applequeen]

Thanks... I'll check out your thread.

 

I'm mainly concerned with him having a little space where he can crawl around other than our cabin.

 

We've already arranged for a crib and have asked about the babysitting services. I doubt we'll use them much but it's good to know that if we want a night "out" after he's asleep that we can utilize the babysitting....10-3 is really late for me these days but we'll see!

 

I'm already planning to take our umbrella stroller and I think we'll be fine on supplies. I remember there are a few convenience type stores not far from the port in Nassau. We're not stopping in Key West. I'm planning to take bottled water and powdered formula along with some single serve premixed formula. I'll also pack baby food but he's also eating finger foods.

 

I signed up for 6:00 dining since that's when our son usually eats dinner but I do see the benefit of anytime dining. I was afraid we'd end up getting seated with non baby people but I guess there is a risk of that either way :) I understand... I was a nonbaby person (in the biggest possible way) before my little "angel" was born.

 

My husband and I have been on a longer Bahamas cruise a couple years ago so there really isn't much we want to do in the way of excursions but we may take the baby to the aquarium at Atlantis.

 

We know this cruise will be a change from our last one but we're excited for a family vacation. We're just going to make the best of it and enjoy our break from the cold!

[firefly333]

The lady on our roll call said she was surprised how much of the cruise food her 7 month old baby ate. He was finishing off a carton of yogurt at the time for instance.

[applequeen]

He loves yogurt! He's only been on finger foods for a couple weeks but he seems to love them.

 

We'd planned to wait until he was atleast a year old and firmly off formula and baby food but when we saw the last minute deal (and we've had week after week of snow and bitter cold lately) we couldn't pass it up. I think it'll be a good first cruise for him and will give us a chance to see how he does.

 

We've had a very busy year with the birth of our son, work, my husband finishing school, etc. We need a break and some quality family time... we're not big partiers at this point in our lives so I don't think we'll miss out on too much by having him with us.

[applequeen]

Tapi .... great review! I understand exactly what you meant by the cruise being different but not worse because you had your son with you. That's what we're expecting.

 

Your comments about the smoke worry me a bit but there's not really much that one can do other than just move out of the way.

 

Can you tell me how your son did in the dining room? What did you dress him in for dinner? I'm thinking probably pants and a polo shirt or something... I want him to be comfortable. What did you do with him on "elegant night"?

 

We've only cruised Norwegian in the past so Carnival in general is a new experience for us.

[Toddcan]

I hope this is not hijacking this thread..

 

Do infants pay the same as other ages? I can see yes (messier & higher maintenance), and no (won't eat a lot).

 

Just wondering.

[ccartman2]

I hope this is not hijacking this thread..

 

Do infants pay the same as other ages? I can see yes (messier & higher maintenance), and no (won't eat a lot).

 

Just wondering.

 

Yes they do. My thoughts are you are paying for the seat on the life boat you hopefully won't use. It's not too bad though, for the 3rd and 4th rate, it's pretty reasonably price.

 

As for the OP, check the family board. There is some good stuff there.

[buglver066]

When my daughter was 13 months we took her on her first cruise...she did better than any of us! She slept when she wanted to (we have tons of pics of her asleep on the beach!), ate whatever she wanted, and explored the ship like a pro. We were lucky with the fact that she was just really starting to walk (she actually got going on the ship--imagine that!) and not crawling but you should be ok. The only advice I really have to give is over pack on his stuff because it's better to have to many diapers than to be spending your time searching out diapers or trying to ration them in order to make sure you have enough. Besides that have a great time and enjoy seeing the sights though your sons eyes! :rolleyes:

[buglver066]

Oh! And for the record- you will NOT need car seats. We drug ours along because we were told we would need it----and never used it once. :o

[applequeen]

Thanks everyone! I have been browsing the family cruising board and have found tons of good information (like there is no need to bring bottled water to mix formula...the tap water is fine).

 

We won't bother with a car seat... I doubt we'll do an excursion where we need one and I guess we could just hold him if it came down to it (is that legal in the Bahamas?) From what I remember we were loaded on the vans like cattle last time anyway :) .

[Tapi]

Tapi .... great review! I understand exactly what you meant by the cruise being different but not worse because you had your son with you. That's what we're expecting.

 

Your comments about the smoke worry me a bit but there's not really much that one can do other than just move out of the way.

 

Can you tell me how your son did in the dining room? What did you dress him in for dinner? I'm thinking probably pants and a polo shirt or something... I want him to be comfortable. What did you do with him on "elegant night"?

 

We've only cruised Norwegian in the past so Carnival in general is a new experience for us.

 

Hello!

 

Thanks. Here are the answers to your questions and concerns:

 

- Smoke: Yes, there was a lot, but I don't know if it was truly worse than what we've experienced before. I think that we were more aware of it because of the fact that we were traveling with an infant. In the past (pre baby), we would notice smoke but would keep walking and forget about it. This time, we were coming up with ways to go from one part of the ship to another without passing any smoking areas.

 

- Dining room: We selected Any time Dining and we were very grateful! Even though our baby normally eats at the same time at home, he wasn't ready to go to the dining room at the same time every night during the cruise.

 

Our son was able to eat from the kid's menu (grilled cheese, chicken tenders, etc). Make sure that you place your kid's order as soon as you sit down, Our waiter was phenomenal and would bring his food out right away. In the most part, our son did very well in the main dining room, but be ready to eat fast or maybe skip dessert. Our little guy was ready to go as soon as he was done eating! Also, get ready to skip the main dining room a night or two and head to the buffet (either for your sanity or your kid's sanity! ) BTW, the dinner menu at the buffet will include the same selections as in the MDR.

 

Dress code: We brought some overalls with polo shirts. Some were more colorful for the casual nights, some had more toned down colors. For elegant night, we just dressed him up in a black corduroy overall with a white long sleeve polo shirt and dressy shoes. He was comfortable and didn't look under dressed.

 

Hope this is helpful!

[Essiesmom]

For places to crawl or let off steam, I would tray any of the lounges during the day, plus the library. If he is pulling up and sidling along, there will be lots of chairs to hold onto. EM

[ninjamom2ross]

We took our then 10 month old on a 7 day Western Caribbean cruise last year. We opted to take our larger stroller, so it could recline and give her a place to sleep. We bought a big box of diapers the morning we left to go to the port and just checked it to our cabin. We brought a tiny inflatable pool and filled it with a bar bucket and let her splash around in it. As far as crawling around, there were plenty of empty spaces to stretch her legs during the day-the library, some lounges, etc. She ate mostly table foods, fruit, yogurt, eggs, Cheerios, etc. She was usually pretty good in the MDR-we ate there every night of the cruise. Girls are easier to dress than boys, she just wore dresses every day. Make sure to pack a kit with ibuprofen, orajel, Pedialyte, baby Benadryl, stuff like that (I'm a freak)

[ninjamom2ross]

Also, we just took her to the shows with us at night-she usually just slept. The one night we tried the babysitting, she cried so much, they had to call us out of the show we were at-they give you cordless phones to keep in touch with the babysitters.

[applequeen]

Thanks Ninjamom! We're hoping to take him to some shows with us and if he gets fussy we'll just leave. We may try the babysitting since he'll (hopefully) be asleep during the time. He's in daycare so he normally naps in that sort of environment. My biggest concern with using the babysitting is that we'll be up late but he'll be up early. :) I'm not sure it's worth staying up late when he'll be up and ready to go at his normal time.

 

As for the inflatable pool.... did you use it on your balcony or take it down to the pool area?

 

Tapi...Thanks again for your advice...especially for the dining room. He does really good when we eat out these days so I think he'll do fine as long as we take a toy or something to entertain him. I bought him a little suit type outfit for elegant night and I can't wait to see him in it....even if it's just long enough to snap a picture of him. :) A friend of mine just got off another Carnival cruise on the same class of ship (don't know which) and told me that the same food was served at the buffet... to be honest we'll probably end up there a couple nights.... depending on how everything goes.

 

I totally get what you said about noticing the smoke more now that you're a parent... I think we notice everything more... we turn into "those crazy parent people" :) Seriously though... as someone who was not really a kid person I try to be considerate that not everyone is in love with my child and finds him as amusing as I do....if he's acting up I try to remove him from the situation. I don't want my child to affect anyone else's good time on the cruise but I also want to find the balance of enjoying myself as well.

 

Thanks again for all the help.... my parents and in-laws both offered to watch our son so we could go without him.... it was tempting but I'm glad he's going with us.

[luckycruzer]

Baby can crawl in out of the way places, for his/her safety...peeps will have walked everywhere as well. Be sure to take lots of "hand-san" wipes, or gel for the hands each time. Hope Baby has as much fun as I do...sans crawling, of course ;)

[applequeen]

Haha Luckycruzer.... I've already thought about the crawling where everyone has walked... to be honest it sort of creeps me out so I'm going to put it in the back of my mind :) In general I'm not a germaphobe but there will be plenty of sanitizer and hand wipes... it's really all we can do.

[toddlercruising]

so, we're taking a 23 month old (missing camp carnival by a month sucks) on a cruise. Are they sticklers on the age? I know the web site says NO Exceptions on age....

 

Are toddlers not allowed in the pools either? I have a feeling the only thing I will be doing on the cruise is eating since that may be all she is allowed to do.

 

Thanks for any info. I cruise in 6 days on Facisnation.

[serene56]

I hope this is not hijacking this thread..

 

Do infants pay the same as other ages? I can see yes (messier & higher maintenance), and no (won't eat a lot).

 

Just wondering.

 

 

they pay the same cruise fare as a 3rd person rate. Carnival does not discount because of a child. They look at each person as 1 passenger-doesnt make a difference if they are 1 or 100.

 

You are not charged for tips for under 2.

[Tapi]

so, we're taking a 23 month old (missing camp carnival by a month sucks) on a cruise. Are they sticklers on the age? I know the web site says NO Exceptions on age....

 

Are toddlers not allowed in the pools either? I have a feeling the only thing I will be doing on the cruise is eating since that may be all she is allowed to do.

 

Thanks for any info. I cruise in 6 days on Facisnation.

 

- Sorry, but they are VERY strict about the age limits and they will know that your toddler hasn't turned 2 yet (needless to say, they have access to that information.

 

- If your toddler isn't potty trained, then she won't be allowed in the pools (for health issues). However you can take your little one to the spray area in the Waterworks area.

 

- The experience will definitely be different than cruising without a baby, so don't get discouraged if you have to miss some shows or if you need to have dinner at the buffet instead of the MDR. Its just part of cruising with a little one.

[BARBARA J.W.]

so, we're taking a 23 month old (missing camp carnival by a month sucks) on a cruise. Are they sticklers on the age? I know the web site says NO Exceptions on age....

 

Are toddlers not allowed in the pools either? I have a feeling the only thing I will be doing on the cruise is eating since that may be all she is allowed to do.

 

Thanks for any info. I cruise in 6 days on Facisnation.

 

I just did a BTBTB on the Fascination.....

 

This is what I seen........

Camp Carnival meets in the Buffet area @6p.m.

They eat,then go to the Camp rooms......

 

Parents dropped their Children off........

Most Children was Pre-School age........

Which I think is a goood age for Camp....

Afew Parents with young 2's,,,,dropped their

little ones............

Those little ones would cry.............

Parents soon were paged..........

I hope that you have a great time...

A Cruise is a Great Vacation........

Happy Cruising...........

[toddlercruising]

I figured a "little swimmer" diaper would be ok, but I guess not. Good thing I like spending time with my daughter ;)

 

Thanks for the info!!

[Tapi]

I figured a "little swimmer" diaper would be ok, but I guess not. Good thing I like spending time with my daughter ;)

 

Thanks for the info!!

 

Before someone clarified this issue, I thought that "Little Swimmers" would be OK as well, but then someone explained to me (in a pretty graphic way) that these diapers (or any type of diapers), don't have the capability of holding things in when submerged in water, specially if your little one decides to have a bowel movement. As you can imagine, human waste mixed with water (which is not chemically treated) can be a health hazard...