Parents please follow the guidelines!!!

[dosi]

I am a parent and I love my son and I want him to have a great time when he goes on vacation with us. But I understand that rules are rules and will always comply with whatever the cruiseline asks of us.

 

On our recent 2 night cruise on the Coral it was pretty chilly outside. Chilly enough that we told our five year old the pools were too cold to swim in. There was an interior pool that was very warm and lovely but there were signs all around it stating adults only. We understand and we just figure there will be no swimming for Timmy on this trip.

 

HOWEVER we seem to be the only parents that did understand. Every time we passed the indoor pool there were little ones in the pool with their parents. Then Timmy would say "Now can I go swimming?" and we would have to tell him no. He would ask why the other kids got to and not him and we told him the other kids parents were breaking the rules and we just couldn't break them. That it was wrong.

 

My point is, it would have been much easier for us if other parents followed the rules too. It is very difficult to get a five year old to understand that something is wrong when he sees both adults and his peers participating in the wrong behavior. I would like to think that my son will grow up to admire the fact that his dad and I are responsible and rule abiding, but for the present I think my boy somehow thinks we gypped him. After all, "All the other kids and their folks were in the pool mom."

[Hello-Kitty]

well thumbs up to you!! That is very courteous of you and your family.

 

I do not have kids but i do love children alot. I have been on many cruises and saw children in adult pools and that ticks me off! There are appropriate areas for the kids to go. Just like smoking, i am sure the parents do not want their children to be in a cloud of smoke.

 

I brought my niece a few trips ago and the same scenario happened, i did not let her in the adult pool.

 

 

"why can people just folow the rules"

[rambill]

Kudos to you, Doris, for teaching your son right from wrong. I hope the ship's personnel asked those people to please remove their children. It always amazes me the number of people who think the rules don't apply to them.

[JacquieP]

Unfortunately, most parents feel that if they tell their children "no", it will "suppress their creativity".

[Hello-Kitty]

well i have noticed the deck attendants are the only crew members that dont follow up on the rules of the ship, i guess they feel bad saying no.

 

I find that they let the children swim in the pool and they also dont monitor the lounge chairs, people could be gone for hours while others are trying to find a chair to sunbathe.

[cruzbabe]

Good for you dosi! I'm a parent and love my kid but would never let him get in the adult swimming pool or jaccuzzi. On our cruises, while my son is at FunZone, I relax at the adult pool and unfortunately cold or not I see kids and parents who have no respect for others or any guidelines.

[Onessa]

Very often, when the weather restricts outdoor swimming, the ship's management will set aside and publisize times when the indoor pool is open for family swim. If your ship did not do this, I would have asked about it from the ship's management. I've experienced this on several cruises (AK, Canadian Maritime, Baltic itineraries) and it really cut down on "illegal" use of the pool by children. The kids and their parents knew when they could and could not swim, and pretty much complied. Adults who are "kid-adverse" knew when to avoid the area and didn't seem much put out. Finally the kids did not feel as though they were being excluded from an activity for which they had looked foward.

 

That being said, I do comend the OP for sticking to her beliefs.

[spongerob]

Thank you, Doris.

[kryos]

I brought my niece a few trips ago and the same scenario happened, i did not let her in the adult pool.

Well, that's very admirable of you ... though I'm sure your niece probably didn't think so. :)

 

Seriously, though ... if I had been the OP, I would have spoken to one of the deck people about it. Seems pretty unfair to restrict children from the indoor pool when the outdoor ones are not usable because of weather. It's fine to say no kids in a certain pool when those children have options and can readily use another one. But in this case, at the very least, there should have been a period of time ... perhaps two hours in the afternoon ... where children were welcome in what was normally an "adults only" pool.

 

While I am not a parent, I can well understand a child's desire to swim while on a cruise ... and if I was telling my kid no when he could readily see other kids in the pool, I would have wanted to know why those kids were in there. I'd have spoken to someone about it. Perhaps the parents of those kids had received permission for their children to be there ... and the OP could have obtained the same permission if she had only asked.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[Dreamer333]

I agree with Rita... If I saw a bunch of children swimming in the pool and there were Princess employees around, I too would simply ask if children are being allowed in this pool since the other pools are unavailable. If the answer was yes, than I'd tell the kid to go ahead and jump in.

 

Under "normal" circumstances, kids should swim in the pools they are allowed.

[dosi]

Perhaps the parents of those kids had received permission for their children to be there ... and the OP could have obtained the same permission if she had only asked.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

 

I did ask and was told that the pool was for adults only. I did not push the issue as my job was to be a passenger and enjoy my trip, It was only a three day trip and there will be many many more pools for swimming in the future. I just wish other parents did not feel they were exempt from the rules. I am sure that had I brought Timmy into the pool the staff would have said nothing. But I am sure I would have heard about it at some point from some one. There were at least 6 or 8 large signs around the pool stating adults only. Since I had no interest in using the adults only pool by myself I really saw no way I could complain about the no kids rule not being enforced.

 

And yes it would have been nice if Princess had set a couple hours per day aside for the kids to use the pool but they didn't and that is their choice.

[Onessa]

And yes it would have been nice if Princess had set a couple hours per day aside for the kids to use the pool but they didn't and that is their choice.

 

Let Princess know that other lines are doing that and that if they want you as a repeat customer, perhaps they should consider it as well.

[dosi]

Let Princess know that other lines are doing that and that if they want you as a repeat customer, perhaps they should consider it as well.

 

I would much prefer that parents simply follow the guidelines as they are presented. This really is not so much a Princess problem as it is a parenting problem.

[bdjam]

I would much prefer that parents simply follow the guidelines as they are presented. This really is not so much a Princess problem as it is a parenting problem.

Kudos to you – while not a parent myself, I think you explained it the right way to your son. Hopefully he will understand your decision and hopefully he had another diversion to make his cruise enjoyable. It’s unfortunate that you were pushed into the position you were because others couldn’t respect the rules.

[where next?]

If the weather is too cold for kids to swim in the pools that they are supposed to swim in, then there should be set aside times for them to swim in a warmer pool. As a parent, I believe in following rules but I also go on family vacations that my entire will enjoy. My kids love to swim and why should they be excluded just because the weather is being uncooperative?

 

I think we can all share in this world, and that includes sharing with our children. My kids have met many wonderful kids and adults traveling without their children because they are mature, responsible kids that can communicate with adults.

 

I expect my kids to respect both adults and other children and I'd like to see that same respect returned to them. That is how they will learn how to be wonderful adults!

[bdjam]

As a parent, I believe in following rules but I also go on family vacations that my entire will enjoy. My kids love to swim and why should they be excluded just because the weather is being uncooperative?

Because it’s an adults only pool…? :confused:

[coiran]

Alas - my question of the day - "Should infants bring their parents on a cruise??"

 

Ron

[dosi]

and in actuality would have loved it had Princess set aside even an hour per day for family use of the inside pool. But the didn't and therefore I think parents that ignore the "no kids" policy are setting a bad example for both their own children and mine.

 

It is inconsiderate to the adults who want to relax in a grown up area to ignore the "no children" sign, and it really makes it hard for parents who respect the rules when others are seen over and over again ignoring the rules.

[dosi]

Alas - my question of the day - "Should infants bring their parents on a cruise??"

 

Ron

 

 

Perhaps I am missing something here, but infants have not been mentioned. My son is five and a very good swimmer. He has been potty trained for several years. My main point was not that he should have been allowed to go into the pool but that the other parents should have followed the rules. As a matter of fact most of the kids I saw using the pools were well out of diapers and there were quite a few young teens at one point chasing each other and playing a rather vocal game of Marco Polo (gawd I hate that game).

[Smiles3usa]

...as the children get older either. We recently had parents in our area get arrested for having a party where all the teenage kids got drunk (and rowdy). The parents excuse: well, they are going to drink anyway, we didn't provide the liquor (I don't know why the stores just won't sell it to kids--deflecting blame a bit), we prefer they do it in a supervised environment, besides we took away all the car keys.

 

Being a parent is NOT easy. Be a responsible parent is a lot harder. There will always be some parents who will make "reasonable" excuses why their children are not subject to the rules. And that makes the job of being a responsible parent all the more difficult. Just take refuge in the fact that in the long run providing responsible parenting provides for responsible adults, who have been taught right from wrong and who know that is important to respect the rules, and authority, even when they might not agree.

[AliceJ]

Doris:

 

I add my thanks to you for following the ship's rules although it is not always easy. We have had to explain to our 5 y.o. about similar circumstances on various occassions. We are doing our best to raise her as a positive member of society and that just because other people have no consideration for rules that are clearly stated, that does not make it "right" for us to follow suit. Bravo!

 

Alice

[TheParrotHeads]

Thank you Doris. I appreciate your courtesy for the adults onboard. I would never complain about my cruies to Lauren if there were more parents like you out there. In fact, I am never upset with the children, but rather furious at the parents for their lack of responsibility and arrogance.

[cruise fairy]

Just curious to know which ship were you on? We've sailed the Golden and the only adult pool I knew of was the Terrace Pool, and it was uncovered. I thought the covered pool was for everyone, but then again I wasn't really looking for signs that restricted its use.

I have children, but they are 22 and 24....so they don't fall within this guideline.

Good for you in making your child follow the rules. However, I do agree with some of the other posters.....if the weather doesn't permit all pools to be used and I assume you did pay cruise fare for your child, then exceptions should be made, even if it is for a short time period.

Happy Cruising!

[Kokanee2]

I have been on one cruise before without kids, the next one they will be coming with us and will be looking forward to it. I do not remember which pools were adults only and which pools allowed kids. We are booked on the Caribbean, could someone let me know which ones are restricted to the little ones.

[Hondu]

I too commend the opening post. We live in a society where parents intend on being their kid's friend and they refuse to teach respect and responsibility. This will go a long way in teaching your child not to circumvent rules for immediate gratification.