NCL Splash Academy

[Livabeth]

I was just wondering if anyone has been able to move a child to a different/older age group in any of the NCL kids program??

 

We are travelling with friends on the Epic next February. My daughter will be 9 years old (2 months shy of her 10th birthday) on the cruise and our friend's daughter is 10. I called NCL to see if they would move her up to the 10 - 12 age group and they said their policy is to not move children between age groups. They said we could ask when we board, but they could not make any promises that this would happen. We are concerned with the two girls being in two separate groups.

 

Has anyone had any success in moving children to an older age group on NCL??

 

Thanks.

[mjkacmom]

NCL is very strict about age groups (I'm pretty sure it's an insurance issue). I've heard they will move kids on their birthday, up to another group, but not before.

[Julienatul]

I dont believe so but they have many times where there is "free play" and the groups are mixed. My kids were in 2 different groups on the Epic in March but played together at least once or twice a day for free play

[mitsugirly]

This question has been brought up several times on here and from what I remember everyone posting, they do not bend the rules (even if other family members are in a different group). People have posted that their child also turns a different age while ON the cruise and I believe they reported that once they turned a different age, then they were aloud to change the group. If you do a search here on the family board (or maybe in NCL's threads) you might be able to find the exact answer.

[crusinmama06]

Nope - not NCL. And the others are correct - I even asked about children celebrating their birthdays onboard. I was told by the counselors themselves that the kids could move up ON the day of their birthday - not one day earlier.

[Livabeth]

Thanks everyone for your feedback .. we were afraid of this. :( Other cruise lines (Princess and RCCL) have moved children who were very close in age to another group. I guess they will have to mix with others more and look forward to free play time together.

[crusinmama06]

The good news - those ages are more together than apart. At least they were on Gem. I will see how together they are on Epic on our next cruise.

[mjcruisers]

Let me tell you it is a crap shoot with NCL and this program. You ask them a question prior to booking and get answers, book and once on board it is a whole different story. When we complained the staff had a Who Cares attitude and that made things worse. We found out later some kids were grandfathered in as the ages had changed from the time we booked our trip and actually went on our cruise. We had no planned on adult time but made the best of our cruise. When we arrived home and contacted NCL our complaints were ignored until I posted on Facebook and only then did they ask on Facebook for us to contact them with our contact info. When they did contact us they quoted the program started at age 2 which was incorrect and the reason we were complaining about in thefirst place as our 2 year old had been refused entry to the childs program due to age. To add insult to injury the letter went on to say NCL was not responsible for any ads in brochures of Internet. So then I understood why on board the help had a WHO CARES attitude. So NCL, I guess takes your money and buyer beware!

[kitkat343]

There was a recent review on the Breakaway that addressed your concern, and the short answer was no, they would not allow children to be together across age groups.

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=222473

 

You can certainly try and ask, but you should consider a different line if you need your children to be in the splash zone together (although I'm not sure any line can guarantee ahead of time that they will move children into different age groups, as it may depend upon the specific number of kids on each cruise).

[russianmom]

When I sailed in May there was even a sign at the entrance to the Kids Club that stated there will be no moving of age groups….

[mjkacmom]

Let me tell you it is a crap shoot with NCL and this program. You ask them a question prior to booking and get answers, book and once on board it is a whole different story. When we complained the staff had a Who Cares attitude and that made things worse. We found out later some kids were grandfathered in as the ages had changed from the time we booked our trip and actually went on our cruise. We had no planned on adult time but made the best of our cruise. When we arrived home and contacted NCL our complaints were ignored until I posted on Facebook and only then did they ask on Facebook for us to contact them with our contact info. When they did contact us they quoted the program started at age 2 which was incorrect and the reason we were complaining about in thefirst place as our 2 year old had been refused entry to the childs program due to age. To add insult to injury the letter went on to say NCL was not responsible for any ads in brochures of Internet. So then I understood why on board the help had a WHO CARES attitude. So NCL, I guess takes your money and buyer beware!

 

Sorry you were surprised - NCL started the transition more than a year ahead of time. I don't think 2 year olds have been allowed in the club since at least January, and there were many, many months of heads-up on CC. I assume you booked your cruise well in advance.

[mjcruisers]

Although they were still sending us info via email in regards to the program 2 weeks prior to our cruises saying 2 years up. My complaint was the inconsistent ads and then their failure to admit it. Even upon return when we complained we received a letter saying 2 years and above. I want them to get it together as it is important to people.

[CruisinNewbiez2015]

Can children of different age groups be grouped together during sea day programming?

No. Children are placed in the appropriate age group based on their date of birth at the time of sailing. Please refer to Freestyle Free Play for time slots where friends and siblings can play together.

 

How can my children and their friends play together during Splash Academy on sea days?

Although children are placed in the appropriate age group, there are scheduled times when children of all ages can play together. Please check the Splash Academy Activity Program for the Freestyle Free Play activities and time slots.

 

What is freestyle free play?

Freestyle Free Play are designated time slots scheduled by the Youth Program Manager within the Splash Academy programs, which allow friends and siblings to play together. Although we advertise that children 3 – 12 can play together, the Youth Program Manager still reserves the right to keep 3 and 4-year-olds separate for the overall safety of the entire group. Please inquire with the Youth Program Manager with any questions.

 

Can my child move up an age group if celebrating a birthday during the cruise?

Children turning three during the cruise are welcome to participate in Turtles on their birthday. No exceptions can be made.

 

Children turning six during the cruise are welcome to register for and participate in the 6 – 9 age group, beginning embarkation evening.

 

Children turning 10 during the cruise are welcome to register for and participate in the 10 – 12 age group, beginning embarkation evening.

 

Children turning 13 during the cruise are welcome to participate in Entourage on their birthday. No exceptions can be made.

[dijid]

If there aren't a lot of kids on your sailing, they'll combine the kids club age groups for a lot of the activities. This happened to us once, and my older kids complained about having to be with the "baby" 6yos. As much as they hated it, my youngest loved that she got to be with her older siblings :)

[Richard_Claudia]

I was just wondering if anyone has been able to move a child to a different/older age group in any of the NCL kids program??

 

We are travelling with friends on the Epic next February. My daughter will be 9 years old (2 months shy of her 10th birthday) on the cruise and our friend's daughter is 10. I called NCL to see if they would move her up to the 10 - 12 age group and they said their policy is to not move children between age groups. They said we could ask when we board, but they could not make any promises that this would happen. We are concerned with the two girls being in two separate groups.

 

Has anyone had any success in moving children to an older age group on NCL??

 

Thanks.

I'Vs successfully moved ms 10 yo son to the age group below by speaking to the supervisor. It was on a med cruise in July and there were 4 Austrian kids on board, 3 of them under ten and they wanted to stay together also for language reasons. Be a bit persistant.

 

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