Cruising with a 2 year old

[gavinfromlondon]

Hi All

 

My wife and I are considering going on a RCCI cruise with our daughter next summer when she will be two and I'd be grateful for any comments/ experiences etc.

 

Just to give some facts:

 

(1) We would be sailing from Southampton so a big plus for us would be not having to take her on a flight;

(2) We would be looking at having a Junior or more probably Grand Suite so there would be space for her to crawl around and we could also eat in the room if we needed to;

(3) We have realistic expectations in that we know we would be limited on eating, entertainment etc but we think the pluses of a cruise would probably outweigh the negatives.

 

From a previous posting on another cruise forum, I believe that small children on cruises is a topic that illicits some emotive responses. However, I'm not interested in the rights or wrongs, just keen to get any feedback (positive or negative!) from anyone who has been on RCCI with a little one.

 

Many thanks in advane for your assistance.

 

Gavin

[B_Mc]

We cruised with DS at 10 months and 22 months, I have nothing but good things to say. We had very early mornings and missed almost all the shows but such is life! We found a JS to be very spacious, we had a PNP, our stroller and still LOADS of space. We used room service every AM, we brought lots of fruit back to the room from the buffet and ate in the MDR every night!

[cb at sea]

The MDR is VERY welcoming of children...no need to worry or confine yourselves to the cabin!

A JS or better will give you a tub for bathing your child...much easier (for most kids) than a shower only!

Cruising is a vacation...and for you, it's a "family" vacation! Go! Enjoy!

[gavinfromlondon]

Thanks to the couple of you that replied, we have gone ahead and booked. Went for the Grand Suite as wasn't a big price difference for the extra space. We have realistic expectations so think all will be fine.

 

Not having to take her on a flight is also a massive plus...

 

Any other advice from people who have cruised with little ones this age also appreciated!

[Iluvcruising2]

We took our 2 kids on their first cruise when both were under 2! No joke!

 

Back then, our girl was 6 months and our boy was 18 months.

 

We cruise with HAL Oosterdam though.

 

Still, we had a great, great time and we weren't even in a suite. We had 2 balcony cabins (the adults were my parents, my wife and I).

 

I don't know about RCI, but on HAL they set up the play-pen for us.

 

[drarill]

My children started cruising when they were two and three and now at 13 and 14 they are D+ on their own rights. We also had a GS for their first cruise and it was really convenient. If you have a GS you can have a drink at the Concierge Lounge with your wife before dinner, and you can bring the child. Back when we cruised with our small children we couldn't use the CL because children were not allowed, now you can. You can also pay for in room baby sitting, if you are comfortable with that, and enjoy dinner at one of the specialty restaurants. (some people take well behave children to specialty restaurants really early in the evening, we never did)

We sailed on the IOS from Southampton once and the crossing of the Bay of Biscay was really tough. Talk to her pediatrician about this and ask him/her for medication if needed.

I will highly recommend using private tours on the ports you want to explore. They will adapt to your family situation and will be the best for everyone.

We have cruised with our children in RCCL, Celebrity, NCL and Disney, and have enjoy each one, with their positives and negatives! Do the same, children grow too fast. In a blink of an eye you will have a teenager, and that's another story!!:):)

[cruisnseas]

Royal is very kid friendly! Of course at 2, there will not be an adventure oceans program where you can drop the kiddo off all day but it doesn't sound like you are looking for that. There will be a play room (you might want to ask for it) and programs for parent/kid play time. I didn't work with Indy as she sailed out of England only when I worked for Royal (but of course now will move between US and England) so I am not sure all of the amenities but I am sure the family forums on this board can help out quite a bit.

[bionicman97]

We took an 11 month old in September and had a great time on the Freedom.

 

I did a review with lots of details:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1715156

 

It's a little different with a little one, but we still had a great time and we are taking him on the Navigator Ina couple weeks :)

[spookwife]

biggest thing will be unless they are fully potty trained they cannot go into the pools at all( no swim diapers allowed)

 

you can see about in room babysitting if you want some alone time. I THINK you can borrow toys as well from the kids clubs/nursery? for use in the cabin. also since you are in a GS the concierge lounge will have DVDs you can borrow as well. no idea as to content however...

 

the board games i saw were all for older kids though on EN but there might be a better selection on your ship.

[SMASHROX]

DH and I cruised with our 6 month old at the time on Oasis and cannot speak highly enough for the children's program. We took advantage of the toy lending program, open playtime, puppet show and babysitting service (in the nursery). We booked a JS and definitely glad we did since we found ourselves spending more time in our cabin with the LO.

[sparky-elpaso]

Watch out - the crew will spoil your little one - they miss their kids.

[Cshgrand]

We have had a GS past few cruises with our son who is now 4.5. I def think you have made a good choice there! The in room dining is very well done and doesn't feel at all like you are compromising and ordering room service, sitting out on your balcony eating mdr food (in pjs in our case) is a lovely experience.

Have also found the concierge lounge an asset as it helps our son chill out and adjust to the more formal atmosphere before dinner - they also serve crudities which help us keep him going to a 6.30pm dinner. Good tip from spookwife to regarding DVDs - yes they do have kids titles in my experience. We have borrowed similar Pooh, Thomas and several Disney Pixar type films from both lounges we looked for them in.

Make use of taking breakfast in Portofino or Chops too - once they know you will be coming each morning they will have a high chair waiting for you!

Also on Independence next year, really looking forward to drive to port too!

We also have eaten on specialty restaurants with our son (6pm reservation) and really enjoyed the experience. Took our pudding to go and ate it on the balcony after little one was in bed.