Adventure ocean

[mommaduck00]

Good morning! I have a few questions about AO on RCI for you. This is our families first cruise with potty trained children so our first opportunity to use this. We leave saturday for florida (eeek!!)

 

1. How strict is the age seperation guideline? My oldest is 8 but 9 in July. She hates the thought of hanging out with "a bunch of kindergarteners" as shes finishing 3rd grade. Size wise, she's the size of a 12 yr old at 5'1" and 110 lbs, she speaks japanese, plays violin, & truly precocious but will she be stuck as at the time of the cruise, she IS still 8 yrs old?

 

2. Flipping children on you, my youngest is a bit of a pain at times. He is 3.5 & for the last 3 months, I thought potty training was finally in our past. Hes regressed a lot over the last couple weeks. I cringe at his accidents because that can ruin my grand plans of time in a lounge with sunshine & kindle on an at sea day! What is AOs policy on accidents? And does anyone help the newly potty trained clean themselves after a #2? At least for my kids, it was a few years before they finally figured out how to properly clean themselves.

 

3. Does AO ever take the kids to the splash pool or any activities outside for that matter?

 

Thank you VERY much for all your help! Its much appreciated!

[GatorGirl]

I was on FOS with my 3year old twin boys and my 5 year old daughter. Also my niece and nephew were on the cruise too 7 year old twins).

 

1. They are very strict about ages. If your daughter is unhappy, speak up and ask to change her to the older group. They might accommodate your request depending on how many kids are on the cruise.

 

2. The staff does not help in any way. One one my boys shorts fell off and he had to put them back on himself. No worries though, he didn't mind that they were on backwards. :) Not sure what the policy is about accidents. But, take him potty right before you walk in and hopefully he won't need to go until you get back.

 

3. The kids remain in Adventure Ocean at all times. They only take them to lunch on specific days.

[reallyitsmema]

They have a three strikes and you are out policy for accidents so I agree with the PP to have him go right before you take him. They do have short potties for them that make it easier if they do use the bathrooms but they will not help with cleaning or clothes. Just make sure he is in something that he can easily pull back up if he does have to go.

[mommaduck00]

Thank you very much! We're sailing sunday on Freedom for an eastern Caribbean cruise and I'm so excited! Must admit nervous though as my son can blow the three strikes the first day if he's so inclined.

[tx121]

Just talk to the staff/manager to see if it is possible to bump up your child. If the counts are low, they MAY combine the two age groups together. 6-11yr olds.

As far as your younger child, I guess try to have him go to the toilet before dropping him off. If he has 2 potty accidents, I believe he cannot come back. I think 3 strikes is for behavioral issues. Do not send him in with pull ups or diapers as it's not allowed and they will turn him away.

[MisterOJ2]

 

1. How strict is the age seperation guideline? My oldest is 8 but 9 in July. She hates the thought of hanging out with "a bunch of kindergarteners" as shes finishing 3rd grade. Size wise, she's the size of a 12 yr old at 5'1" and 110 lbs, she speaks japanese, plays violin, & truly precocious but will she be stuck as at the time of the cruise, she IS still 8 yrs old?

 

We cruised last month over spring break. My oldest daughter was just 3 weeks shy of her 9th birthday. I was a little worried about her not liking being the oldest in the room either. But, she loved it. They had a lot of games and competitions where they gave out prizes (some of them were pretty nice too) to the winners and she racked up.

 

She sort of wound up being the queen of the room and she loved that. It seemed like wherever we went on the ship when the AO wasn't going, kids were always coming up to her and saying hi and waving and whatnot - like she was some kind of a kid celebrity. :D

[smacksgirl11]

Good morning! I have a few questions about AO on RCI for you. This is our families first cruise with potty trained children so our first opportunity to use this. We leave saturday for florida (eeek!!)

 

1. How strict is the age seperation guideline? My oldest is 8 but 9 in July. She hates the thought of hanging out with "a bunch of kindergarteners" as shes finishing 3rd grade. Size wise, she's the size of a 12 yr old at 5'1" and 110 lbs, she speaks japanese, plays violin, & truly precocious but will she be stuck as at the time of the cruise, she IS still 8 yrs old?

 

I have been very fortuante with the age guidelines, like you my daughter was always very close to being grouped with the next age range, and when asked it has not been an issue. She moved up groups on the Freedom and Jewel, so you should be fine.

[sunnysavannah]

As far as the potty training / accidents issue goes, I wouldn't be above bribing him! (Or rewarding him, if you must.)

 

If he is a regular morning fellow ;), I might not take him until his done his duty, just to be sure. If after lunch is his thing, then keep him with you for a while.

 

Is he excited about AO or hesitant to go? If he's excited, it might be an incentive to go in the potty, if he knows that he won't be able to go if he doesn't.

 

Maybe, just maybe, he'll be with the other kids and want to do it because they do. Hopefully they ask them often if they need to go.

[alligeek]

Thank you everyone for your posts!

 

We're also traveling with a 3 year old who is somewhat potty trained (he tells us when he needs to go about half of the time).

 

Adventure Ocean is stressing me out. We're cruising on the Grandeur, which has a nursery. Should we take our chances and send him to AO for an hour or two after he's done his business and hope for the best, or should we attempt to send him to the nursery for an hour or two if we need some adult time?

 

Of course, the other option is that we keep him with us at all times, which wouldn't be the end of the world, but we could sure use some mom-and-dad time. ;)

[alligeek]

... and one other thing. *warning: rant ahead*

 

Other cruise lines seem to have RCL beat in the 2-3 year old scene. Seriously, Carnival and NCL change diapers. I can understand the legal and occupational issues that may come with diaper changing andy why RCL wouldn't want counselors changing diapers, but couldn't the camp counselors call the parents for diaper/Pull-up changes when they're warranted?

 

Seriously, by our next cruise, DS will be 100% potty trained (even if we have to wait until he's 13!), but it seems like RCL is not as family-friendly as other lines.

[ebrasl]

So my 5 year old had an accident at Ao. It happens. His was big and a number two and messy. I think he was just so evicted he forgot to go. aO couldn't have been better. They cleaned him up gave him a clean pair of shorts and he went on his way. We never knew until we came to get him. The nicely told me not to stress and he had two more chances. It was honestly not a big deal at all.

[alligeek]

So my 5 year old had an accident at Ao. It happens. His was big and a number two and messy. I think he was just so evicted he forgot to go. aO couldn't have been better. They cleaned him up gave him a clean pair of shorts and he went on his way. We never knew until we came to get him. The nicely told me not to stress and he had two more chances. It was honestly not a big deal at all.

 

 

Thanks, ebrasl. :) I'm glad they were good to your DS!

[dfgf]

I work at a church daycare where they separate kids by age. If I had a dime for every 8-year-old who was the smartest/tallest/strongest 8-year-old ever (per their mother) I would be a wealthy man. Put her in the 5-8 room and don't start drama on her behalf. She'll love it. There will be other 8-almost-9 girls there.

 

My son had an accident at RC and the staff was very accommodating - they couldn't have been nicer about it. So I don't think you have anything to worry about. I did get the "two more strikes" speech with which I have no quarrel.

[mommaduck00]

I work at a church daycare where they separate kids by age. If I had a dime for every 8-year-old who was the smartest/tallest/strongest 8-year-old ever (per their mother) I would be a wealthy man. Put her in the 5-8 room and don't start drama on her behalf. She'll love it. There will be other 8-almost-9 girls there.

 

My son had an accident at RC and the staff was very accommodating - they couldn't have been nicer about it. So I don't think you have anything to worry about. I did get the "two more strikes" speech with which I have no quarrel.

 

My daughter and I have been dealing with a lot of rude parents this past year. She IS only 8 with the personality of a playful 8 year old but towers over other children. She is 5'1" tall and 115 pounds for crying out loud! Lol definitely not the size of a typical 8 yr old. & I can't begin to tell you the dirty looks I get when we go to the park & she plays. They assume she's a very immature teen. Shes (literally) head & shoulders taller than her class & the 4th grade as well. So I'm not going to start drama just to start it but rather to prevent teasing from smaller kids to her about her size or from parents being unvomfortable that this gentle giant is playing with their kids. But yes, we'll see how it goes!

[gwcruzer]

We cruised last month over spring break. My oldest daughter was just 3 weeks shy of her 9th birthday. I was a little worried about her not liking being the oldest in the room either. But, she loved it. They had a lot of games and competitions where they gave out prizes (some of them were pretty nice too) to the winners and she racked up.

 

She sort of wound up being the queen of the room and she loved that. It seemed like wherever we went on the ship when the AO wasn't going, kids were always coming up to her and saying hi and waving and whatnot - like she was some kind of a kid celebrity. :D

 

I want to thank you for your response. We are taking our granddaughter

On the Oasis in Nov. she will be 8 in Aug., but will be in the third grade. I was concerned that she would be the only 3rd grader in her group. After reading your above response I feel that leaving her in her age group is where she belongs.

Thanks again,

Gail

[dfgf]

I've found that the Adventure Ocean children are always really nice and respectful. One of my sons is disabled and they practically fall over each other trying to help him with things. I hope you're pleasantly surprised just like I was. Some of the other kids were really great!

[Treysar]

I've found that the Adventure Ocean children are always really nice and respectful. One of my sons is disabled and they practically fall over each other trying to help him with things. I hope you're pleasantly surprised just like I was. Some of the other kids were really great!

 

hey Dave -

My sons have autism and we are going on the EOS in April. They will be 4 and will not be potty trained. I am worried about AO. It is nice to hear they were good to your son.

 

On a different note - I thought they give parents beepers and call if the kids have a dirty diaper, no???

[UCF_Knight]

On a different note - I thought they give parents beepers and call if the kids have a dirty diaper, no???

 

Unfortunately, Royal Caribbean doesn't allow kids in pull-ups or diapers to participate in the Adventure Ocean program. Also, they do not give out beepers to parent like some other cruise lines do.

[Treysar]

Hm. According to autism on the seas, beeper service is available, as well as provisions for potty training. I'll need to look further in to this. Thank you for the tip!

[dfgf]

They make an exception for children with disabilities.

 

From their website:

 

Children with Disabilities

Royal Caribbean welcomes children with disabilities, especially in our fun-filled Adventure Ocean program. Upon request, every efforts will be made to provide reasonable accommodations that will meet the needs of children with disabilities. Some of these accommodations can include:

 

 

• Adventure Ocean grouping by ability (rather than age)
  
• Adventure Ocean toilet-trained policy exception
  
• Pagers for parents of children in Adventure Ocean program
  
• Babysitting Services
  

[dfgf]

That information is from:

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/allaboutcruising/accessibleseas/otherNeeds.do

[Treysar]

Thank goodness!

[sealeggs]

Thank you very much! We're sailing sunday on Freedom for an eastern Caribbean cruise and I'm so excited! Must admit nervous though as my son can blow the three strikes the first day if he's so inclined.

 

Looks like you may have to put the Kindle down.

[CudaGirl]

Looks like you may have to put the Kindle down.

 

That comments is a bit uncalled for. You don't know the situation and the kids want to have some time playing with other kids and not doing everything mom and dad want to do.

[alisatj]

I had some of those same questions. So thanks for asking :). Glad to hear about the 3 strikes thing. My ds3 is not exactly as consistent as I'd like. Although most of his accidents seem to happen at home - not when we're out and about. Hopefully he'll be good!

 

I also wondered if they ever took the kids to the splash area or anything. So good to know that too.