Kids & Teen Program Questions - Oasis of the Seas

[Song and a Dance]

Hello!

 

We sail Oasis next weekend and I am combing the boards for any last minute advice of course! Thanks to everyone for all the great info! My question is about the Adventure Ocean Club and Teen Program. We have 3 children that will be using the programs and I'm wondering if there are charges for any of the things they will do within the program such as the arcade or use of the computers inside the teen lounge. Does anyone have experience with this? Do you know if the arcade machines cost money? Do they charge the teens for computer time? Are the teens able to get snacks and drinks by using their seapass cards while in the lounge? I'm ok with much of this...but would really like to budget for it rather than be surprised by a bill at the end.

 

Any info would be appreciated.

Thanks so much everyone!

[shrimp0]

I can help a little with your questions...

 

extra charges- adventure ocean ends its regular free programming at 10pm each night. Children 11 and under who are there past then will be charged at about 6 dollars per hour to stay for late night party zone. ( i believe it is open til 1 am)

 

On the Oasis, there is also a charge for children to be in Adventure Ocean during lunch times on SEA days. (on port days they are open the entire time the ship is in port with no extra charges and they take the kids for lunch)

 

The arcade does cost to play all the games.. and not cheap!!!! There will be one hour on one day where the games will be turned on for free use.

 

I am pretty sure the computers are also an extra charge... depending what the kids are using them for ( if using WiFi)

 

There are no snacks or drinks in the younger kids groups for charge. and no soft drinks available for the younger kids either. They will at times take them somewhere for a snack of ice cream or something. and have water available in the rooms. Now, for the teens, yes, i do believe they can get soft drinks in the teen lounge... in this case, if you think your kids may be wanting to have a drink.. it may be worth while to purchase the soda package... this way they can get all the soda they want any time anywhere for free. there are plenty of free snacks around the ship.

 

you can also take away charging privileges of you children and teens if you do not want them to be able to use the sea pass to charge. this is done at check in. you will also be able to see charges on your tv for all in your cabin .. anytime. this way there are no BIG surprises at the end of the week.

[praline3001]

Hello!

 

We sail Oasis next weekend and I am combing the boards for any last minute advice of course! Thanks to everyone for all the great info! My question is about the Adventure Ocean Club and Teen Program. We have 3 children that will be using the programs and I'm wondering if there are charges for any of the things they will do within the program such as the arcade or use of the computers inside the teen lounge. Does anyone have experience with this? Do you know if the arcade machines cost money? Do they charge the teens for computer time? Are the teens able to get snacks and drinks by using their seapass cards while in the lounge? I'm ok with much of this...but would really like to budget for it rather than be surprised by a bill at the end.

 

Any info would be appreciated.

Thanks so much everyone!

 

Hi there!

We also have 3 kids and will be sailing on the Allure so similar thought patterns. :D

 

Something I found out early on that can be done ...and I think EVERY parent should do this!!!

You can arrange all the seapass cards on your reservation differently. EXP..

Hubby: credit card secure

Wife: credit card secure

(in my case)

17 year old: spending limit $200

15 year old: spending limit $100

11 year old: spending limit $50

 

You pay these amounts up front when you check in as a cash secured seapass card... you can pick any amount you want to.. I was just giving an example. Once they use all of their money on their card, you or hubby will need to go to guest services and "refill" their amount for them to charge with it.

 

I love this!!!!!!!! My teens want the freedom to do what they want at the same time I can control how much they blow. There are no surprises this way.

 

Also look into getting the kids their soft drink package, especially if they are teenagers. This will cut back on their nickle and diming you lol

 

 

Here is a bit of a long but VERY funny experience I had in 2007 on the Grandeur... While waiting for dinner I observed this itty bitty tiny woman beating the living crap out of this 6 foot tall teenager... she was pulling his head down to her level so she could beat him in the head!!! I was agast! It surely looked like child abuse to me. Being the normal child advocate I asked her if there was anything I could do for her as she seemed upset and I was worried maybe the kid tried to grab her purse or something..... I did it all very politely :D

She then showed me the piece of paper she was using to beat him with (along with her hand on the back of his head)

Her 17 year old son blew $900 in the arcade during the week. She had just gotten the invoice. She was *trusting* him with an open card...

 

After I saw the bill I chuckled and said, "Carry on!" and walked off. At 17 and being that horribly irresponsible with his parents' money .. he needed a *come to Jesus" talk. LOL

I will never forget that woman.... and that is why my kids will have a cash limit set until they pay for their own cruises :D

 

Explain this to your kids.. that stupid Zoltar ..slide you card and I will read your future cost $1 every time they swipe that card ..same with the arcade games.

 

From what I understand RC has made a deal with Wii and they have wii games in the kids' lounges. I have no idea how many or how often they are allowed to use them. I don't think their is a charge for them but you can always call and check.

[akcruz]

To add a few more comments, mainly on the teen age -

 

I believe in the teen area they have a discounted rate to use the internet on the computers (something like $.30 a minute as compared to $.55 elsewhere).

 

If your teens will be drinking soda definitely get them the cards. One of our rules is if you set a drink down and it is out of sight even for 1 moment, dump it and get another. If they had to pay for each . . . the cards for under 18 are not that expensive and worth the peace of mind to me.

 

Set limits with your kids on what they can spend. We set a daily limit with our son. Each night we go into the account on the tv to make sure he has only charged what was allowed. Great way to teach them responsibility and show them where the money goes.

 

Last, set rules for your kids (of all ages) as well as consequences if the rules are not followed. My daughter has always been great and never had issues. My son on the other hand needs to be reminded regularly of the rules. Only once did we need to impose consequences and since then he has been much better.

[kassimer1]

There is no charge for the wii in the teen lounge and from what DS said they were on all day long. its nice how they seperate the lounge into little sections for the teens. there is a video game section, a computer section ( yes there is a charge), a music studio ( let your kids know about the DJ scratch academy its free and is for 1 hour a few times during the week. If they go every time they get a free t shirt. They learn how to use a DJ turntable. DS didnt really want to go and i thought he would like it so i said just try the first one. He loved it and was so happy i made him go.) there is also a big screen tv with a bunch of sofa cushions in front of it for watching movies and playing games. There is a second room that is the teen disco. Another spot in the lounge is a circular wall with benches and filled with bean bags incase some just want to talk. The teen staff is there all day so no worry about them doing things they shouldnt. Parents are not allowed in the teen lounge except the first day to meet the Councillors. but the round windows to the outside of the ship are one way mirrors incase you just want to peek at your kid. We did not know that they were one way until we were trying to get DS's attention and none of the kids noticed us waving. I later asked DS why he didnt wave and he said that he couldnt see out the windows.

I also agree with above poster it is much safer for you to put a set amount on the teens card and not link then to you credit card. we linked it the first cruise we went on and told DS he had 100$ to spend. well he liked the virgin frozen drinks and didnt know they cost extra. we had a bit of a surprise. now we just link it to his own credit card but you can put cash on it instead.

[praline3001]

My kids are pretty responsible. However there have been more then a few responsible adults that got their invoice and went "ACCKKK oops. I guess its hot dogs and beenie weenies for the next month!"

 

All cruise ships are experts at spending your money. They turned it into a fine art. It is very difficult for even the most responsible kid not to get sucked in especially when most adults get sucked in and spend more then they wanted to as well....

 

There are so many things that cost money that kids don't always think about ... the virgin drinks being one. Zoltar another.. even which snack places cost money and which are free... to a kid the cupcake place looks no different then what is served freely at dessert time lol

 

That is why I like the secured cash system. They are free to budget what they want/need but at the same time ~ when its gone its gone and they have to hit up the big daddy for more cash ;)

 

Also I will actually see my teenagers once in a while on the ship.... running out of cash will force them to come be loving to their parents rather then hiding from us the whole week HA HA HA

[elainesj]

I just sailed on the Liberty of the Seas. On this board, I knew we had the ability to set limits on our kids Set Sail Passes. However, when I tried to do that at check in, I was told "no", there was no way to do that. I insisted I wanted to put a limit on my kids Set Sail Pass and they told me the only option would be to not allow ANY charging or to have no limit.

 

I ended up not making an issue of it and allowed open charging for my kids. If I had felt stronger about it, I would likely have asked to speak to a supervisor or whatever but I had just wanted it as a safety measure and it wasn't a huge deal for me.

 

My kids earn their own pocket money doing chores (they do not get an allowance). They are very careful with their spending since they have to work for their money. I did run into a minor issue with my DS9 charging money to his Set Sail Pass without my knowledge. We had gone with him to the arcade and helped him load $10 in arcade credits. Another day he was in the arcade by himself and loaded another $10 on his Pass. I found out pretty quickly when I noticed he had more credits than I expected and he got into trouble with me. That night, we checked our TV and it turned out he "accidentally" loaded yet another $10, making it a total of $30. He was surprised and I think it was possibly an accident (although entirely possible he did it and wouldn't admit it). It wasn't a huge deal to me as he had brought $50 to spend on the cruise and he was within his limit. He ended up regretting spending so much on the arcade because that cut into his souvenir money. Oh well - lesson learned for him.

[Song and a Dance]

Wow...all excellent information and advice. I see how it can add up quickly. I have purchased the soda packages and I love the idea of being able to further limit their spending on the seapass card and will check into that right away.

This is our very first cruise and I think we can all enjoy it this way!

 

thank you!

[Song and a Dance]

 

Here is a bit of a long but VERY funny experience I had in 2007 on the Grandeur... While waiting for dinner I observed this itty bitty tiny woman beating the living crap out of this 6 foot tall teenager... she was pulling his head down to her level so she could beat him in the head!!! I was agast! It surely looked like child abuse to me. Being the normal child advocate I asked her if there was anything I could do for her as she seemed upset and I was worried maybe the kid tried to grab her purse or something..... I did it all very politely :D

She then showed me the piece of paper she was using to beat him with (along with her hand on the back of his head)

Her 17 year old son blew $900 in the arcade during the week. She had just gotten the invoice. She was *trusting* him with an open card...

 

After I saw the bill I chuckled and said, "Carry on!" and walked off. At 17 and being that horribly irresponsible with his parents' money .. he needed a *come to Jesus" talk. LOL

I will never forget that woman.... and that is why my kids will have a cash limit set until they pay for their own cruises :D

 

 

 

HAHAHAHAHA!!! This is great! Thanks for sharing this story...great reminder!

[praline3001]

Wow...all excellent information and advice. I see how it can add up quickly. I have purchased the soda packages and I love the idea of being able to further limit their spending on the seapass card and will check into that right away.

This is our very first cruise and I think we can all enjoy it this way!

 

thank you!

 

 

If they give you trouble setting it up, tell them you want cash secured seapass cards for your 3 kids. For some reason they are trained to say "No" when asked if you can limit the card or put restrictions on it. However all guest can use a cash secured seapass card, not just kids. I know a wife that makes her hubby get it as when he drinks ...he forgets how much he spends HA HA HA

[Song and a Dance]

I just sailed on the Liberty of the Seas. On this board, I knew we had the ability to set limits on our kids Set Sail Passes. However, when I tried to do that at check in, I was told "no", there was no way to do that. I insisted I wanted to put a limit on my kids Set Sail Pass and they told me the only option would be to not allow ANY charging or to have no limit.

 

I'm curious, you say you tried to do it at check-in. Do you mean check-in at the port before getting the cards and before boarding or do you mean after you were on board later at guest services? I just want to understand where I should ask about this.

[reallyitsmema]

I'm curious, you say you tried to do it at check-in. Do you mean check-in at the port before getting the cards and before boarding or do you mean after you were on board later at guest services? I just want to understand where I should ask about this.

I think that is exactly why the pp had issues setting a limit. It is my understanding that you have to go to guest relations on board the ship and put down cash and set a limit, not at check in.

 

We always told our son what he was allowed ot spend each day and would check the tv at night to confirm his charges. He knew if he went over his limit, he was responsible for the charges. We felt it was a good lesson in responsibility.

[Song and a Dance]

If they give you trouble setting it up, tell them you want cash secured seapass cards for your 3 kids. For some reason they are trained to say "No" when asked if you can limit the card or put restrictions on it. However all guest can use a cash secured seapass card, not just kids. I know a wife that makes her hubby get it as when he drinks ...he forgets how much he spends HA HA HA

 

Thank you so much for passing this info on to us! It's so great to be able to get info ahead of time like this so we can travel with less worry about what's to come. 10 days and counting!!!