Which Carnival ship to pick? Sailing with 1.5yo and 4yo

[kj_connections]

I'm having trouble deciding which Carnival ship to pick. I've only done Carnival Valor many years ago. Most recently I've done Oasis of the Seas and MSC Divina which I loved.

 

Which Carnival ship would you recommend given that I'll be sailing with my hubby and 2 kids? Preferably a ship that sails out of Florida. TIA

Edited December 2, 2015 by kj_connections

[Tapi]

I would aim for a Dream class ship (Dream, Magic and Breeze). Magic is coming to Port Canaveral when Breeze leaves Miami to go to Galveston. Our son was just shy of 2 years old when we sailed on the Dream and we had a very nice time, even though he was not old enough for Camp Carnival yet.

 

So with that said, keep in mind that on Carnival you will not have kids activities for your 2 year old like you did on the Oasis of the Seas and their Royal Babies and Toddlers program. Also, there's no Baby H2O Zone, so he will not be allowed in pools either if he's not potty trained yet like on the Oasis.

 

There's a very limited "under 2" program on Carnival which will allow you to drop your youngest one off at Camp Carnival for 2 hours early in the morning on sea days and from port arrival time until 12pm on port days. There will also be babysitting from 10pm until 2am.

[kj_connections]

Thanks for the tip on baby programs. Maybe I'll look into another cruise line as well.

[fam2cruise]

I really love RCCL for my kids too but we mostly sail Carnival due to cost. We LOVED the sunshine! We sailed with an almost 1 year old and almost 4 year old.

Edited December 2, 2015 by fam2cruise

[skrufy]

Any of the ships with waterworks.

[cruiser fanatic]

I would do any of the Dream class: Dream, Magic, and Breeze. They have the waterworks and they would really enjoy that. Dream sails out of New Orleans, Magic sails out of Galveston until April 2016 and then will move to Port Canaveral, Breeze sails out of Miami until May 2016 and then will move to Galveston. Typically, New Orleans will be the cheapest out of those 3 ports.

Edited December 2, 2015 by cruiser fanatic

[monza]

We'll be sailing next December with a child just shy of 2 years old, actually will be 23 months old.

 

I have read somewhere here in the postings that Carnival may be a little flexible and accommodating if he is potty trained and not in diapers.

 

Anyone have any experience in a similar circumstance.

 

Also is the babysitting for fee good for under 2's?

[Tapi]

I have read somewhere here in the postings that Carnival may be a little flexible and accommodating if he is potty trained and not in diapers.

 

Anyone have any experience in a similar circumstance.

 

Also is the babysitting for fee good for under 2's?

Absolutely zero wiggle room, potty trained or not. Our son was also one month shy of 2 and the Camp staff emphatically said that they could not allow him to participate until he officially turned 2. We were not upset as we had already expected this but asked anyway since some people had erroneously posted here that they "sometimes make exceptions". Turns out that what they will allow is for kids to jump from one age group to another if they are close enough in age and they have another sibling in the other group. But they will not make such exception for those who haven't turned 2 yet.

 

About the babysitting, it's done as a group in the Camp Carnival facilities. As mentioned above, it starts pretty late (at 10pm) and there are no organized activities. We peeked when we sailed on the Dream and the kids were just laying on the floor, some asleep and others watching a movie.

Edited December 3, 2015 by Tapi

[hlb76]

We just booked Triumph for an Oct 2016 cruise. It's our Xmas gift to the kids and bringing the grands too. They will be 3 and 22 months. We debated and debated which ship to go on. I really wanted something with waterworks but it did not work out. The oldest camp go to camp if he wants the youngest we need to keep entertained hopefully it will be an easy task but for 4 days we can do anything..right?

[Lerin]

Any ship is fine, at those ages your kids will be happy just to be out and about with mom and dad. Pick the ship you like and leave it at that.

 

There are a couple hours on some mornings where your under 2 year old can go into camp-you need to be with him, it is not a drop off service. In the late evening he can go starting about 10pm. There is an hourly fee for this.

 

To the poster who asked about the 23 month old. NO, they will not let him into camp. If it's that important to you then it's best to postpone your cruise 1 month.

[Sooner-Cruisers]

Absolutely agree on the waterworks, our lo loved the Magic!

[Tapi]

There are a couple hours on some mornings where your under 2 year old can go into camp-you need to be with him, it is not a drop off service.

 

 

Unless something has changed, drop off service is allowed in the morning hours. Same hourly fees as the ones for late night babysitting applied. We never used it because the hours were ridiculous (like 8am to 10am) but they were part of the "Under 2" services.

Edited December 3, 2015 by Tapi

[Tapi]

Absolutely agree on the waterworks, our lo loved the Magic!

 

 

Waterworks is indeed great (and for the little ones there's the Miniworks area on select ships). BUT keep in mind that kids still need to be potty trained to go in this area. As mentioned before, unlike what the OP experienced with the Baby H2O Zone on her previous Royal Caribbean cruise, there are NO Carnival ships with water areas for babies/toddlers in diapers. Of course, there are always a few parents that will sneak a kid in a swimmer pull up, but that's a topic for another thread.

[Carnival_Brides]

Waterworks is indeed great (and for the little ones there's the Miniworks area on select ships). BUT keep in mind that kids still need to be potty trained to go in this area. As mentioned before, unlike what the OP experienced with the Baby H2O Zone on her previous Royal Caribbean cruise, there are NO Carnival ships with water areas for babies/toddlers in diapers. Of course, there are always a few parents that will sneak a kid in a swimmer pull up, but that's a topic for another thread.

 

This! FWIW--some ships enforce and some do not. They have enforced it on my last two cruises and parents were asked to remove their kids.