Observations on cruising with an older baby/pre-toddler

[Katiebug430]

We just returned from a wonderful 5 day New England/Canada cruise on Carnival Glory with our 10 month old baby girl. I just wanted to make some observations and suggestions for those who are anticipating cruising with an older baby. Note that some of this may be Carnival-specific.

 

Sleeping Accommodations/Cabin

We brought our own pack & play from home (since we were driving to the port it was very workable). We also brought her Sleep Sheep and a sleep sack. Basically we wanted to make her sleeping accommodations as close to normal as possible - she naps in a pack & play at daycare with her sleep sheep. One drawback to bringing your own P&P is that on the last night of the cruise you'll either need to figure out other sleeping arrangements for baby or you'll have to roll it off the ship yourself in the morning rather than putting it out at night with the rest of your large bags.

 

I brought DD into bed at least 2-3 nights to let her nurse overnight or at 5 AM when she likes to wake up :D and that was fine. She's an older baby who occasionally co-sleeps at home so we just moved the duvet down to waist level, and she went back into her pack & play afterwards. However I would not personally risk having a younger baby in that bed with the fluffy pillows and heavy duvet cover - we would have stripped down the bed for safety had she actually slept with us for any length of time.

 

We are blessed with a good sleeper and we just kept it quiet in the cabin and draped a beach towel over the P&P for 15-20 minutes until we knew she was out like a light. After that we were able to turn on the TV, have conversations, etc.

 

Our cabin steward (who we never actually saw) brought an infant life jacket to our room during the safety briefing. At the safety briefing the Carnival staffers put a muster station bracelet on all children under 11, including babies. I asked if they could put it on her ankle and that was no problem.

 

We had a standard ocean view cabin. It was surprisingly child proofed - no reachable outlets and very little "stuff" to get into. We just had to pick up the cabin wastebasket because DD was all about overturning it. The steward had the minibar locked from the start, so obviously she couldn't get into it. The pack & play fit between the window and the bed with several inches to spare. It was nice to not have it taking up the whole middle of the cabin.

 

Clothing and Diapers

DD is cloth diapered at home (is in disposables at daycare only) so I admit we didn't know how many diapers to bring. Daycare has to change her at least every 2 hours even if the diaper is dry and unsoiled, so we guesstimated based on daycare's usage rate for daytime and one overnight diaper. We brought 2 jumbo packs (62 diapers) and two big packs of wipes and it was total overkill for a 5 day cruise. Since your kid varies, your mileage may vary as well but for this trip we would have been safe bringing one 31-pack of diapers plus a few in the diaper bag, and one 80-pack of travel wipes. We also brought the diaper disposal bags and made sure we always put wet or dirty diapers into a bag and tied it, for the sake of our cabin steward.

 

I packed 2 outfits per day and one pair of jammies per day and we did end up basically using them all. Her daytime outfit inevitably got rumpled or dirty and I wanted to change her into a fresh outfit in the afternoon before dinner. I packed in gallon size zipper storage bags - one outfit including socks in each bag. That way all I had to do was grab an outfit each morning from the drawer. We brought one pair of shoes, two sun hats, two jackets, two light blankets, a swim suit and several swim diapers (for possible splashing in her duckie tub on deck).

 

For toiletries we kept it simple with a sampler pack of baby toiletries that I had gotten at my shower, plus her toothbrush and baby toothpaste and a hair brush. She is asthmatic so we brought her inhalers just in case, along with her children's Zyrtec, a medicine syringe, baby ibuprofen and the appropriate dosing syringe, children's Benadryl (in case of an allergic reaction), the dosing tables for OTC meds from her pediatrician, and a baby thermometer. We also brought some travel packs of tissues and Boogie wipes for her face along with hand sanitizer for ourselves.

 

Feeding

DD is breastfed so we did not have to worry about bottles and formula. I nursed her discreetly on the promenade deck several times and not only did no Carnival employee even bat an eye, but it didn't seem like any of our fellow cruisers noticed or cared either. This was refreshing since I know that public opinion on nursing older babies can be quite negative. Most of the time I nursed her in our cabin because she is easily distracted.

 

Disposable bibs are your friend when traveling. We bought the Pampers Bibsters and they were convenient. We brought a small travel container of dish soap (Babyganics Foaming Dish Soap - great stuff!) and a sponge that I cut in half and put in a small Ziploc bag. We brought 3 baby spoons, 2 bowls with lids, and 2 sippy cups and I just washed them each evening in our cabin.

 

Baby food - it really depends on your child. DD has been eating soft finger foods for a while now but seems to view plates as being something fun to throw. At home we just put finger foods on her tray. The first day or so of the cruise we tried to spoon-feed her baby food or diced fruit and other finger foods but she wanted nothing to do with it so we finally resorted to just putting her finger foods on the high chair tray. I know it made a mess but she stayed quiet and ate happily this way. We brought wet wipes and made sure to clean off the high chair and tray before we left the lido or the MDR.

 

We brought a lot of her usual pouched baby food and pre-portioned oatmeal but ended up carting most of it home. There were plenty of foods available at the buffet and in the MDR for her to eat, and in the MDR our waiters were very accommodating and made suggestions of what they could have made for her! Unless your little one has just started solids or really needs a pureed texture you will be able to meet many of their food needs with what is available in the buffet or MDR.

 

 

Gear

We brought the inflatable duck tub for bathing and possible splashing use and it worked great for baths. It was too cool and windy to let her splash in it near the pool, though.

 

For a stroller we brought our Baby Jogger City Mini and man, do we love that stroller. It did not quite fit through the cabin door so we had to fold it and bring it into the cabin separately from the baby. It was great in the ports, especially with the recline which allowed her to nap when we were exploring. We also brought our Boba carrier. We used the Boba around the ship during the day rather than the stroller and it worked out very well. She's used to being worn and enjoys it a lot. We also brought one of our diaper bags and a small backpack.

 

One of the best things we brought was our our Kidco Go-Pod. It is a portable activity seat that collapses like a camp chair. Anyways, it was awesome and we used it up on the Lido deck when the weather was nice - we had a lot of people asking about it and saying what a neat idea it was. We just opened it and hooked some toys to the toy loops. If you don't already have one or would use one they are a bit spendy, but we had it anyways and are glad we brought it! We could relax and read on the Lido and she could play and we knew she was safe and contained (not crawling everywhere).

 

For toys we kept it very minimal - a few board books, a set of stacking cups, some small quiet toys, and those plastic links.

 

Activities

We tried to keep her normal schedule, which includes two naps and going to bed around 7:30 PM. She had us up at 5 or so every morning so there were no real late nights for us, either. In port we were able to let her nap by reclining the stroller and giving her a blanket. On sea days we went back to the cabin for most naps.

 

I admit, once she was asleep we didn't feel at all bad about loading her into the stroller or the Boba and going around the ship. :o She was happily asleep and we weren't confined to the cabin starting at 7 PM! For the production shows we got her bathed, nursed, and in her jammies and then went to the early shows (8:30). For one of them she was awake for half of the show and enjoyed the music and dancing very much, then fell asleep on my lap. The second production show she slept start to finish in the Boba. Several evenings we loaded her into the stroller with a blanket and wandered around the ship, including a few stops at the martini bar and up at the Lido for pizza.

 

We know our baby and if she had not been just fine with going out and about while asleep we certainly wouldn't have done it. We also probably won't be able to do this when she's older. Unfortunately we did get one or two comments from busybodies when leaving the production shows about how our baby should be asleep in the cabin. :rolleyes: I thought that was a bit silly. She was asleep and very comfortable in the stroller or in the Boba and if she so much as stirred we headed back to the cabin for the night. We were back in our cabin by 9:30 most nights so it's not like we were trucking a cranky, tired kid around to a smoky piano bar at 1 AM. ;)

 

The Night Owls program was available but we didn't use it. It didn't start until 10 PM and we were usually getting ready for bed ourselves at that point since she's such an early riser.

 

In the ports we chose easy walking excursions to be done at our own pace. We generally went out in the mornings and then went back to the ship for a late lunch and DD's afternoon nap. In the two Canadian ports we knew that it would be safe to walk around on our own and since we had done this itinerary before we had an idea of what would be fun to do.

 

 

Overall

Cruising with an infant is different, but was very enjoyable for our family. It was a week where neither DH or I had to go to work, cook, or do much in the way of cleaning and laundry and that alone was really nice. The crew on the Glory were really great with the baby. Several of the crew and staff told us about their little ones at home and went out of their way to be nice and talk to Lily. We had so many people tell us she was beautiful and well-behaved! :)

 

As she approaches toddlerhood we are probably going to wait for our next cruise until she's over 2 and can go to Camp Carnival for at least a few hours. Alternatively we will see if any relatives want to join us - my parents have expressed interest. We'll go for a Caribbean itinerary next time, too.

[cb at sea]

Isn't breastfeeding the best thing?!! No formula, no bottles, no mixing...just do it when needed! Good for you! Both my kids were breastfed...in public and no one ever "noticed"...so easy!

[Mom2B&Z]

Glad you enjoyed your trip "up north" ;)

I had to giggle at your comment about a 10 month old being an "older" bf'ing baby. We Canadians get 52 weeks off work with our little ones, so many more people are bf 'ing "older" babies.

[jennygirlmt]

Isn't breastfeeding the best thing?!! No formula, no bottles, no mixing...just do it when needed! Good for you! Both my kids were breastfed...in public and no one ever "noticed"...so easy!

 

Agreed! And in regards to no employees saying anything about nursing in public, I almost want someone to say something to me just so I can tell them they can go eat their lunch in the bathroom or a closet :-)

 

Thanks for the tips, we are taking my 13 month old to Alaska in July so this was quite helpful.

[croozymooner]

Thank you! What a great review! We are sailing to Bermuda with our 11 month old in August and just didn't know what to expect. Your review was quite helpful.

 

As an aside, although we formula feed, I think it's ridiculous that anyone would make negative remarks about breastfeeding an infant in public. A 10 month old is still an infant!

[orpiment]

Going on the Glory to Canada on Monday w a 7 month old. Thanks for the helpful info. We already have the Kidco go-pod. How cool is that thing?

Question. Did you notice the pack and play that the ship offered? I requested one for our room. Just wondering what they use.

[drenee73]

Wow! That was great! We're cruising for my DD's 1st birthday in October. You answered about 3/4 of my questions before I even asked! :)

 

THANKS!

[Julie Jean]

Really helpful - thanks for sharing

[Katiebug430]

Going on the Glory to Canada on Monday w a 7 month old. Thanks for the helpful info. We already have the Kidco go-pod. How cool is that thing?

Question. Did you notice the pack and play that the ship offered? I requested one for our room. Just wondering what they use.

 

Love the Go-Pod! It is so convenient.

 

Sorry, we did not notice the ship's crib/pack & play. We never saw our room steward so I didn't get a chance to ask whether it was a portacrib type of thing or an actual pack & play. I have read that the sheet that the steward puts on the ship's crib mattress is a normal flat sheet and that makes me a little nervous. I would recommend bringing your own crib sheet and a pack & play sheet as well if you have concerns about that.

[DiploTraveler]

For a stroller we brought our Baby Jogger City Mini and man, do we love that stroller. It did not quite fit through the cabin door so we had to fold it and bring it into the cabin separately from the baby. It was great in the ports, especially with the recline which allowed her to nap when we were exploring.

 

My wife and I will be cruising with my to-be 16-month old baby on HAL in Nov. We have a City Mini stroller, but we assumed it'd be too bulky on the ship and were planning to get an umbrella stroller. It sounds like you didn't have much of a problem?

[chipperberg]

Thank you SO much for your time! This was SO helpful! We are cruising with our 10 month old at the time in February for 7 days. Luckily, my mom is going with us and staying with him down the hall. Phew! But the tips are super helpful and greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[sparky-elpaso]

I had to look up "sleep sheep" on the net - had no idea what it was. :) Clever idea that I wish had been around when my kids were little.

[Julie Jean]

I just wish you could buy Go-Pods in the UK - they look fabulous!

[Ashera0]

Thank you for this wonderful account and more power to you for still breatfeeding. And people that make comments about the sleeping baby being in the cabin should mind their own business!!!! My little one is a light sleeper so not an option but it is nice you could have that evening stroll. Thanks for sharing...how long did dinner take in the MDR? Wondering if they sped it up because you had the little one.