Camp Carnival - Age Police ?

[Family Girl]

Does anyone know how strict they enforce the age brackets for Camp Carnival ? :(

Our daughter is 8, son is 9. By Camp Carnival rules they should be in different groups, but we would like them to remain together.

Do you know if Carnival will have a problem with our 8 year old going with her brother and the older age group ? :confused:

[big_duck]

Camp Carnival will not permit members of the younger group in the older group. They also have the booking info so you can give your child a "virtual age".

 

Some on CC have stated that the Camp will permit older siblings in the younger group.

[sWampy]

We were on the conquest last week, and they had us write down our son's age every time we checked him in. I think if you put 8 or 9 on both kids forms when you signed them up, nobody would notice.

[JillianS1128]

don't try and lie! Camp Carnival gets a complete list of every child on board and their exact birthdates (down to the day) Try and lie and they'll catch you and will be less likely to help out a liar :)

[bkw67]

This is a great question for me, as we are sailing in March / April. My youngest daughter is 5 but will turn 6 in the middle of April. We are sailing with friends and all the other kids will be in the older groups. My daughter would be heartbroken to be the only one (out of 7 kids) by herself... especialy since she is only 2 weeks from being 6.

 

Should I be contacting someone at Carnival now, or once we get on the ship to beg that she be allowed in the older program?

[sailinglisa]

They will NOT allow a younger child into an older group! Period! But they have at times allowed an older child into a younger group. It all depends on how full the groups are and how the children interact with others, etc.

[TrinaLC]

I suppose you could put a different age on her booking information and they would never know since I don't believe a child needs a birth certificate or other form of ID (but I could be wrong about that).

 

But I'd feel uncomfortable telling her to lie about her age which you would have to do in case the staff asked her directly.

[big_duck]

I don't believe a child needs a birth certificate or other form of ID (but I could be wrong about that).

 

You are wrong.

[tef43]

I suppose you could put a different age on her booking information and they would never know since I don't believe a child needs a birth certificate or other form of ID (but I could be wrong about that).

Absolutely, positively 100% wrong.

 

http://www.carnival.com/CMS/Static_Templates/EMB_travel_document.aspx

[SeaPA1]

From what I saw on the Inspiration a few weeks ago, they definitely would NOT allow the younger kids to go with the older group. They DID allow the older kids to "move down" to the younger kids group. We brought our 2.5 year old down, along with his 8 & 11 year old cousins (obviously the age difference was much greater). The cousins didn't much want to go play with the toddler group after seeing the stuff available for the bigger kids. :D Our son was not happy at first, wanting to stay with his cousins (whom he idolizes), but that lasted for only a few minutes; once he got into the play room he quickly found fun stuff to play with & made new friends there.

[serene56]

It would depend on your sailing--if you are going during high peak family time--you will have a hard time. as many kids will be using the programs. Sialing during an off peak time your chances will be better.

 

The older can go down but the younger one can not go up-- (would you really want an 8 year old with the 9-11?? they can sign themselves in and out of the program.

 

As for the soon to be 6 year old. let her try the program for one day--if you find that they are bored the counselor will sugget they get moved--but they have to at least try it.

 

Sorry-- but it really is for the kids protection that they do this.

[hightownCO]

I don't understand how exceptions cannot be made in some cases for a kid to be moved up to an older group. I realize it's a big ship and sometimes millions of kids on board and two million parents wanting exceptions made. However, sometimes not making exceptions just doesn't make sense.

 

For example, my daughter is 12, a friend going is 13. Another friend of ours would like to book but at sail date, her daughter will be 11 yrs 8 months. Now her 11 year old is 6 inches taller than my DD and the 13 year old! She's also well into puberty more obviously than my DD. Yet she's to go to the younger group. This girl has started her periods and she's to go with the 9yr old boys???

 

Right now, they won't book because they can get no assurances from Carnival that she can go to the 12-14 yr old group. That's just stupid, IMHO.

[Jasonsterling]

I also think sometimes exceptions need to be made. Trying to fit everyone into the same mold just does not work (that goes for kids as well as adults). My brother and I are only a year apart and would have been very disappointed to have been seperated into different groups on vacation. I can understand the idea keeping children safe ect. but honestly a couple of months or even a year off of the age requirement is a little much to quibble about on Carnival's part, especially if the parents are ok with the situation. Of course we could have just not gone to Camp Carnival but I suspect we would have ended up two of those kids I just recently complained about, using the elevator as a toy and the hot tub as a pool- LOL

 

That said, it's Carnival's ship and Carnival's rules. I suppose one could investigate others lines and see if the policies are more fluid. If I were in the position outlined above that's what I would probably do and then go with the line that best fit my needs (including financial needs of course).

[serene56]

For example, my daughter is 12, a friend going is 13. Another friend of ours would like to book but at sail date, her daughter will be 11 yrs 8 months. Now her 11 year old is 6 inches taller than my DD and the 13 year old! She's also well into puberty more obviously than my DD. Yet she's to go to the younger group. This girl has started her periods and she's to go with the 9yr old boys???

 

Right now, they won't book because they can get no assurances from Carnival that she can go to the 12-14 yr old group. That's just stupid, IMHO.

 

the age limits on a ship are there to protect your kids..no matter how unfair people think they are. I am pretty sure that Royal and Princess are just as tight. The age groups are 9-11 12- 14 and 15-17.

If the 11 year old finds themselves bored then talk to the counselor but your friends didnt even try it. Already have their minds made up.

To state that the 11 year old started her period and its sad that she has to be in the program with 9 year old boys????? Being 11- boys should NOT be a priority. Having fun is whats its about --not what age the boys are in her group.

 

At least in this age program these kids have somewhat of a program to follow. the 12-14 year olds want to hang out by themselves..(i dont see why the 11 year old couldnt hang out with them..just cant do the group program..which these teens dont do anyways.

 

What would the parents of the 11 year old girl do if their daugher was put into a situation she couldnt handle?

[BambiRumsey]

I would much rather have my 11 year old daughter who has started with puberty hanging around 9 year old boys than 14 year old boys!!!!!!!

[tef43]

I would much rather have my 11 year old daughter who has started with puberty hanging around 9 year old boys than 14 year old boys!!!!!!!

Bravo! Spoken like a responsible parent.

[Cuizer2]

Do you people who recommend lying as a solution really believe this is the best way to solve a problem?

 

How is the crew going to determine who qualifies for an exception and who does not? Perhaps everyone could fill out an information card. Then all the girls could answer questions like, have you had your period yet? Are you more mature than your friends? Have you started puberty yet? Should make for an interesting introduction to cruising for the first timers.

 

They are going on a cruise and Camp Carnival is optional. At nine and above they can sign themselves in and out. If they don't want to be in the program, then they don't have to be. As to moving into the older group, how are the kids in the older group going to feel with a much younger kid in the group? Don't the other kids feeling matter in this at all?

 

Actually, I think the younger ones should be allowed to move up to the older age group just as soon as girls who are 15 years + 50 weeks are given drivers licenses because they started puberty early and have already had 40 periods. We will have to work out some way for boys who are 15 years + 50 week to get their driver's license early also. Then wait until the ones who are 15 years + 49 weeks start complaining.

 

Either you have the rule or you don't. If 11 years + 50 weeks should be in the older group, how about 11 years + 49 weeks? If the football team makes it to the one yard line, perhaps they should be given four points instead of the full six for a touchdown. If someone loses an election by two votes or less, then they should be treated as co-winners. Where are we going to draw the line?

 

If this is such a big issue, why not take the cruise two weeks later?

[JillianS1128]

OK, I normally do not post in the camp carnival threads as I don't want to become some spokesperson, but here goes. I was a counsellor with camp carnival for two years in 2002-2004. Here's my 2 cents.

 

*Like I said in a previous post, camp carnival gets a master list of every passenger under the age of 18. It contains their names, cabin numbers, place of birth and Birthdate. Which means we/they will know down to the day how old your child is (ie: 11yrs, 8 months, 2ks old.) This cannot be faked as it is taken from your childs' birth certificates. IF you try and pull a fast one, saying that the list is wrong, you will have to bring in some form of identification (birth. cert.) to contradict the lists (and yes, every once in awhile, the list gets messed up)

 

*Do not try and lie on your form and get pissed off and rude when you're caught. That's not the way to go about getting favours/exceptions made! (ie: why would I want to do a favour (that could potentially cost me my job) for someone who lied to us and is now treating me like crap and being rude?)

 

*Yes, exceptions are sometimes made. This is most likely done on cruises with lower kid counts. Almost always, if your child'd birthday is within 2-4 weeks of the cruise, they will be moved up. (not always, so don't take my word as contract)

 

*If you would like an exception made, the best thing for you to do is to first of all, be honest on your form. Then, take your form and very politely and respectfully talk to either the Youth Director or the Assistant Youth Director. Explain your situation to them and see what they say. Almost always, they will ask you to have your child try out his/her own age group for a day, see what happens and then talk to the YD again. Don't get rude with this, it's a logical step to take.

 

*Please do not put it into your childs' head in any way that "UGH, they won't move my kid, so he/she's going to HATE it, this program sucks blah blah blah" Kids are really perceptive and they pick up on everything you say and do. If you have a bad attitude about it, they will have a bad attitude about it. Not a good thing going in. (and also not the way to go about getting your kid moved up!) If the child goes into their own program grumpy and with attitude, it's just proof to us that they're obviously not mature enough to handle their own age group, let alone the older one. They (and you!) have to earn that priviledge.

 

*Don't use the "well this is a family holiday and my kids want to spend time together and now they never will" line. Well gee, if this was a family vacation and you were so concerned with spending time together...I don't imagine you were planning on sending them off to CC 12 hours a day... RIGHT?? ;)

 

*Reasons for exceptions not being made: There are a lot of reasons. And, they are as varied as their are cruisers, but I'll give you a few.

-on any given cruise, there are up to 1600 children on board. Yup, that's right. Exceptions cannot be made for everyone. And the "can you just do it for me??" doesn't work. Because if I make an exception for you, I have to make it for everyone...it's not logical

-camp carnival is a VERY stressful, VERY chaotic thing to run. There is so much that goes into it, most that you never see. The only thing that keeps us from chaos is being super organized. Rules have been put in place for a reason, throwing the regulations out the window can really hurt things.

-believe it or not, we really do care about your children (trust me, if I didn't care about kids, I would not be in a room with 90 2-5 year olds for 10 hours a day!) and we do really want them to have fun and be safe. These rules and regulations have been put in place because, believe it or not, we know what we're doing. They have arrised from years of running camp carnival programs and have become rules for a reason.

-also, you have to think about it from the other side. What if we moved every 8 year old that wanted to be in the 9-11 group? Then, the 11 years olds would suddenly hate their group because they are suddenly in a group with "a bunch of 8 year olds" etc etc etc. Also, in the case of the 9-11 year old group, the kids in that group are allowed to leave camp carnival whenever the want to-they don't need a parent to come get them. And, that's just not that safe for kids under 9. (heck, even some 9 years olds, let's be honest)

-If we let one kid move, it's also hard to now say "where's the line" do we now let kids who "well, they're almost 8, and you let that 8 year old move up so....". The line HAS to be drawn somewhere.

-letting 11 year olds into the 12-15 group. The biggest reason behind this? the 12-15 year old have their teen disco with the 16-18 year olds. Do you want your 11 year old girl at a disco with 18 year old boys???

 

-in the case of almost 2 year olds, this CANNOT be done, even if your child is less than a month away from being 2. This is for actual legal purposes, not due to our own regulations.

-ditto for the waterslide. If your child isn't quite tall enough to go down, we're not saying no because we're jerks, it's also an actual LAW that has been put in place by the manufacturer of the waterslide, not by Carnival itself. Do you want to help me break the law, lose my job and end up paying fines or going to jail?

 

 

*Please don't listen to your travel agents with regards to camp carnival. They basically say anything to make the sale. Almost everything I've heard from guests that have come from their TA's are false...too bad because then expectations are made..

 

ok, that's it for now. I hope this has cleared up a few things...again, if you are hoping for an exception, be nice about it, take it to the youth director, don't be deceitful, don't be rude and, accept what is given to you and be a parent and pump your kid up no matter what. If you look excited, they'll be excited and I promise you, they'll have a blast. And there will be plenty other "almost 9 year olds" in their group. And, if your KIDS must be together, then I guess your 10 year old won't mind being in the 6-8 yr old group, if all that matters is them being together ;). (as like someone said, it's more likely that they'll move a child down an age group than up)

 

happy cruising :)

[puffer46]

Maybe they need to CONSIDER changing the age groups. It seems to me that 8,9,10 yr.olds have more in common together and 11,12,13 yr.olds would as well. Just a thought !!!! Not looking to start a "war". :D

[nrdsb4]

Maybe they need to CONSIDER changing the age groups. It seems to me that 8,9,10 yr.olds have more in common together and 11,12,13 yr.olds would as well. Just a thought !!!! Not looking to start a "war". :D

 

But no matter how they design it, someone will ALWAYS be just on the other side of the cutoff and will want exceptions made for them.

[nrdsb4]

Jillian,

 

Thanks for your thoughtful and informative post. :)

[serene56]

Jillian did make a good point-- the 11 year old will be a few months younger then the friends/cousins when it comes time to get drivers licenses... I neevr looked at it like that before.. but it is a good point.

I bet the older relatives wont wait til the 11 year old catches up on age.

[Family Girl]

This is great information and exactly why we enjoy this board so much.

I've got to be honest, we have contemplated having the kids lie about their age. Problem is I don't think it is the best solution. Trying to explain why the kids need to lie about their age might be a little touchy. Our primary reason for wanting them to be together is just so that they could keep an eye on each other. We are pretty selective about sitters at home, let alone going on a vacation. Our 8 year old also is not crazy about being seperated from her older brother. :(

From the post's so far, I think we will approach the Director at the beginning of the cruise and ask for them to be together. If we have to make a choice, we will probably move the 9 year old down to the 8 year old group. That will eliminate the problem of my son testing his independence and checking himself out of Camp.

Thanks again for the info. :D

[JillianS1128]

But no matter how they design it, someone will ALWAYS be just on the other side of the cutoff and will want exceptions made for them.

 

exactly. It's not going to make a difference. Then there would be 7 year olds wanting to be in the 8-10 group and 10 year olds wanting to be in the 11-14 group etc etc. (and then, you'd have 10 and 11 year olds in the disco with 16-18 year olds...) No matter how you slice it, you can't please everyone.

CC always considers changing age groups, mostly because of the issue of putting 2 year olds in the same group as 5 year olds..making groups 2-4, 5-7, 8-10, 11-13 and 14-16. BUT, still you're always going to have people who aren't happy with how it is. and that adds on an extra age group, which means a lot more staff. there's always going to be mature 5 year olds that should be in the 6-8 group and immature 6 year olds that should be in the 2-5 group etc etc etc., that's life.

 

and,like someone said, the legal driving age is 16...I'd like to see you in a court of law saying "well, he's 15 and 10 months, that should be good enough" :) there's always gotta be a cutoff and those cutoffs are in place for a reason and that's that :)

 

if you have any other CC questions, lemme know, now that I've "outed myself" :)

[JillianS1128]

again, lying about the ages of your children will get you absolutely nowhere as Camp Carnival get that special sheet of EVERY childs' REAL birthdate (that the ship takes from the mandatory birth cert/passport) SO, unless you're going to commit a felony and get a fake birth certificate :) lying about the ages just plain will not work, as EVERY form CC gets filled out by the parent is double checked with our master list. So, the only thing lying will accomplish is ticking off your counsellors :) not something you want to do to someone you want a favour from :)