Taking 12 year old nephew with us, have questions..

[BTwurddle]

We are considering taking our 12 yo nephew on an upcoming cruise. It's a 7 day sailing on Legend, a smaller ship like Rhapsody or Vision. My partners sons are grown, I don't have any children and haven't traveled with them either. He is a very mature, mannered and respectful young man (think a young Thomas Edison type)

 

We would like to take him along with us as a treat. His mom and stepfather are involved in a lot of their own activities and although they do things together he still gets left at home a lot. I was fortunate enough as a kid to have parents that loved to travel which made a huge impact on my life and I would love for us to be able to share that same sense of adventure and discovery with him.

 

My concern is this, at his age should I plan to supervise him the majority of the time or at his age would others be comfortable letting him venture about the ship on his own from time to time? One of my pet peeves on vacation are wild unruly children running around unattended. Would you feel generally safe (on this size ship) letting him explore on his own some if he wanted to? Naturally the point is to spend time with him, but I dont want him to feel like he's being watched over, at the same time I'd like to feel free to relax with my better half the way we like to, feet propped up on the rail watching the world float by. I dont know much about the youth programs on RCCL but knowing him, I doubt it would be something he would be very interested in, but possibly.

 

Thanks in advance for any advice. The older I get the more I realize how long the learning curve to life can be! Happy Cruising everyone!

[PattyW]

I think 12 is an age for a reasonable amount of freedom. You certainly don't need to hover over him, but you should have an idea of where he is (and he should have an idea of where you are) whenever you are apart.

[Grandma Dazzles]

He may surprise you and enjoy the youth programs! Make sure he goes the first night, as many kids make friends for the cruise then. It may depend on the time of the year as to how many kids on board. At his age he will be able to come and go - sign himself in and out.

 

The ship is no different than home. Basic rules of safety and security. Make sure he understands the rules, such as no entering other cabins, etc. I would say it depends how much freedom he is used to at home. Ships usually have a 1:00 a.m. Curfew.

 

You didn't mention what type of cabin arrangements you were planning. If you are sharing a standard cabin would suggest a Pullman cabin rather than sofa sleeper.

 

Make sure you have all your legal issues covered, e.g. Passport, permission from parents, medical treatment authorization, etc.

 

Join your meet and mingle as there could be other kids that you can get to know on line prior to the cruise.

[BTwurddle]

Thank you Patty and Dazzle, safety is my biggest concern. I think independence helps young people go into adulthood with enough confidence to be successful. He lives in a suburb of Houston and is used to walking home from the school bus, being at home alone, walking to friends houses and parks ect. My thinking was that it's a ship, so a rather controlled environment with only so many places he could venture and I would always make sure he knew what areas we would be in and if he couldnt find us to return to the cabin. (common practice when cruising with the rest of my family has always been to leave each other messages in our mailboxes or slipped under the door if plans changed.)

 

We will be in suite accommodations (RS) so he will be sleeping on the sofa, but likely wont even pull it out, we will just ask our cabin attendant to make up the long end of the sofa for him. (he can sleep in the back on my pickup truck stretched out for a six hour drive and never even know when we get where we are going) Im under the impression he wouldnt be allowed access to the concierge lounge during cocktail hour, naturally thats appropriate and I thought to myself thats a great time to let him shower, get dressed and meet us for dinner.

 

Thanks again for your replies ladies

[SheehanDJ]

He is a very mature, mannered and respectful young man (think a young Thomas Edison type)

 

Googling Young Thomas Edison:

 

"... imaginative boy Tom as he continually gets into mischief and causes accidents locally with his chemical experiments."

 

I would say most definitely NOT!

 

Seriously though, 12 is kind of one of those tough ages. He's either going to have a blast or be bored out of his mind with really no middle ground. Really depends on the kid, our middle child was 12 (son) when we took our three kids, he had a blast playing basketball all day long, by the time evening rolled around he was beat so normally went to bed after the evening show.

[Bombay&Tonic]

My oldest is 12 and we will be taking him on his 2nd cruise in March next year. His first was last year and he was only 10. Even at 10, it was a great opportunity to give him some freedom to explore on his own. With advance permission, he was able to sign himself in and out of the kids program activities based on the schedule.

 

The best recommendation that was given to me regarding cruising with kids is something I will gladly share. Pick up a decent pair of 2-way walkie-talkies. I found some at a local sporting goods store for about $40 that included a charging base. Give one to your nephew and hang on to one. Its an easy way to communicate on the ship and relay changes in location. It will allow you both to enjoy the cruise more.

[nelly55]

Im under the impression he wouldnt be allowed access to the concierge lounge during cocktail hour, naturally thats appropriate and I thought to myself thats a great time to let him shower, get dressed and meet us for dinner.

 

 

 

Minors are allowed in the CL at any time if accompanied by an adult, it is the DL that restricts access for minors during cocktail time.

[BTwurddle]

Hindsight being 20/20, I should have mentioned I used Edison as a loose metaphor lol. He a very self sufficient and behaved young person, and that says a lot coming from me.

 

Thanks for the suggestion of the radios. That is an excellent idea I remember having read before years ago but had forgotten about! Thank you for reminding me, we will certainly buy a set and try it out!

 

At cocktail hour we have always experienced the concierge very politely going to each guest/group in the lounge who had children with them in the CL and inviting them to find other activities for the youngsters. While I'm one who believes children are best served when exposed to responsible adult activities, many times the CL has turned into ANYTHING but a responsible adult activity! Even if he is permitted that would still give us an hour or so to excuse him to take care of his personal time while we relax with some fellow passengers.

 

Thanks for all the great replies guys!

[caseymorgan]

At 12 he will have a great time. It is impossible to be bored on these newer ships. The walkie talkies don't work very well due to steel walls on the ship. Your best bet is texting with cell phones or just leaving notes in the cabin.

[cb at sea]

I would allow him freedom to come and go to SPECIFIC places for SPECIFIC reasons. I don't think any "child" should roam without reason...that's just trouble waiting to happen. Tell him where you'll be and have him come to find you if his plans (that's he's told you about) change! Having physical check-ins is a good thing.

[widallas]

I agree about walkie talkies...they are hit and miss for working, and no one wants to be the guy in the hallway screaming "what? Huh? Where are you?"

 

Traveled with our boys in 2011 (ages 12 and 9 then) and will be cruising next June (will be 17 and 14). My older son loved the freedom of being able to come and go, but didn't really do many of the teen programs. His favorite part of the cruise was people watching, stalking the yogurt machine on the pool deck, and enjoying room service on the balcony with a book. Our youngest is psyched to finally do the teen programs...I expect he'll be doing basketball, slides, and the flow rider nonstop.

 

We expect to have clear check-in times, they will have breakfast and dinner with us (at least to check in -- thy can head out if they have other plans), and we need to know where they are...if we check and they aren't where they are supposed to be? They get to spend the day...with us, all day. Be clear with your mutual expectations ahead of time and follow-through. And have a great time cruising with your nephew!!!!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[evelyn51]

Thank you Patty and Dazzle, safety is my biggest concern. I think independence helps young people go into adulthood with enough confidence to be successful. He lives in a suburb of Houston and is used to walking home from the school bus, being at home alone, walking to friends houses and parks ect. My thinking was that it's a ship, so a rather controlled environment with only so many places he could venture and I would always make sure he knew what areas we would be in and if he couldnt find us to return to the cabin. (common practice when cruising with the rest of my family has always been to leave each other messages in our mailboxes or slipped under the door if plans changed.)

 

We will be in suite accommodations (RS) so he will be sleeping on the sofa, but likely wont even pull it out, we will just ask our cabin attendant to make up the long end of the sofa for him. (he can sleep in the back on my pickup truck stretched out for a six hour drive and never even know when we get where we are going) Im under the impression he wouldnt be allowed access to the concierge lounge during cocktail hour, naturally thats appropriate and I thought to myself thats a great time to let him shower, get dressed and meet us for dinner.

 

Thanks again for your replies ladies

 

Please, please tell me him sleeping in a moving truck bed was another loose metaphor! Yikes!!

Edited December 19, 2015 by evelyn51

[BTwurddle]

LOL! Sorry, by the back of my truck I meant the back seat...not the bed.