Car Seats - What to do? Travelling with small children...HELP!

[TorontoGamblers]

Hi all!

 

I'm going on my 1st cruise Jan.8th (RCCL - Mariner of the Seas). I'm travelling with a newborn and 2 year old. I'll have an infant carrier for the plane for my newborn so no concern there. My 2 year old however has a giant car seat that I wasn't planning on bringing, but my question is how do you get around the islands on shore excursions without the car seat?

 

Any advice? Do people bring car seats? Do the cabs on the islands have them available?

 

Thanks for the help!

[AC Stew]

Hello, and congrats on the new baby!

 

I cannot advise you on the car seat for your toddler, except to say that you would have to include it as part of your checked luggage. If you decide to bring it, be aware that most airlines are now very strictly monitoring baggage allowances. That large car seat might possibly put you into the "excess" category; be sure to check with the airline.

 

And finally, a warning. Unless you have booked an actual seat for your infant, there is no guarantee that you will be able to use your infant carrier/seat while on board. You are traveling at a peak time and I would venture to guess that your flight will be full. Fact is, you might not even be able to bring it on board at all, unless it is included in your allowed cabin baggage allotment.

 

Personally, I realize that the baby carriers are a godsend and obviousy, the safest way for your little one to fly. I would always attempt to move people around in order to accomodate a mother, but if a flight is full, your flight attendant's hands are tied.

 

Just wanted to arm you with information.

 

Good luck,

Air Canada Stew

[FamilyMiracle]

Hi all!

 

I'm going on my 1st cruise Jan.8th (RCCL - Mariner of the Seas). I'm travelling with a newborn and 2 year old. I'll have an infant carrier for the plane for my newborn so no concern there. My 2 year old however has a giant car seat that I wasn't planning on bringing, but my question is how do you get around the islands on shore excursions without the car seat?

 

Any advice? Do people bring car seats? Do the cabs on the islands have them available?

 

Thanks for the help!

 

We ALWAYS bring car seats..... my children's safety is my number 1 priority. You will also need a car seat to get from the airport to the pier as well, and most taxi drivers will not let you in, without the required car seat. Now, the carribbean is an entirely different entity. You are sometimes lucky to find a seat belt there, however, I still had my car seats there as well, and we waited and got a taxi that had seatbelts, or we have stayed by the pier as well. I, personally, will not put my children in undue danger without using a car seat. We also have always booked them their own plane seats from the time they were 4 months old, so we knew we could have their car seats onboard, etc.

 

Any other questions, feel free to ask.

[TorontoGamblers]

Thanks for the advice...I'd love to hear more.

 

My parents are driving to Florida and will pick my daughters and I up at the airport in Orlando. They are going through Toronto so I'll give them a car seat in advance so getting from the airport to the pier won't be an issue. I'm really just concerned with the offshore excursions and getting her safely off the boat in Cococay, St.Martin and St.Thomas.

 

Does anyone know if the ships stock car seats? I'd hate to have to store mine along with an infant carrier and a pack in play in my cabin!

[wrp96]

You won't need a car seat at CocoCay. There are no roads on that island.

 

And no, the ship does not provide car seats.

[MICruizers]

In the Caribbean, Central America, or South America, you will be lucky to find a car with seat belts...that is the truth.

[Chexmix]

You won't need the car seat for St. Thomas or St. Martin either. You can have the room steward hold the larger car seat in a holding area for you. This will give you your valuable space in the cabin.

[TorontoGamblers]

You won't need the car seat for St. Thomas or St. Martin either. You can have the room steward hold the larger car seat in a holding area for you. This will give you your valuable space in the cabin.

 

Thanks for the feedback, but if I don't need a car seat in St.Thomas and St.Martin then are you saying I can walk from the dock into town?

[Sheffie]

Thanks for the feedback, but if I don't need a car seat in St.Thomas and St.Martin then are you saying I can walk from the dock into town?

 

In St. Maarten you can take the water taxi over to the main part of town.

 

I don't remember how close the town is in St. T., but we did take an open air taxi. They are like bench seats.

[TorontoGamblers]

Well it looks like no car seat is needed for Cococay. It also looks like i can walk into St.Martin, but if I want to go to Orient Beach I apparently need to take a cab. Numerous people say that the cabs don't even have seat belts, so what do people do with infants? Car seats seem useless if there isn't a seat belt.

 

Advice?

[kfgarrow]

You can get a cab in St. Martin that will have seat belts. If memory serves me right, there are more passenger car cabs in St. Martin than St. Thomas. St. Thomas has a lot of vans and open air jitneys with bench seats. You will be able to get a cab with a seatbelt, but it will require patience and persistence on your part as drivers are impatient to turn over fares on busy days. Extra tipping upfront will help.

 

Orient Beach is one of my favorite spots in the world and the kids would enjoy it. Since they are so small, the occasional naked person probably won't even cross their radar.

[TorontoGamblers]

You can get a cab in St. Martin that will have seat belts. If memory serves me right, there are more passenger car cabs in St. Martin than St. Thomas. St. Thomas has a lot of vans and open air jitneys with bench seats. You will be able to get a cab with a seatbelt, but it will require patience and persistence on your part as drivers are impatient to turn over fares on busy days. Extra tipping upfront will help.

 

Orient Beach is one of my favorite spots in the world and the kids would enjoy it. Since they are so small, the occasional naked person probably won't even cross their radar.

 

Thanks Kelly. I've heard good things about Orient Beach. I have a feeling my oldest daughter (2) will be spewing out "bum" and "peepee" alot on Orient Beach!

[kfgarrow]

Thanks Kelly. I've heard good things about Orient Beach. I have a feeling my oldest daughter (2) will be spewing out "bum" and "peepee" alot on Orient Beach!

 

LOL! The little ones tell it like it is, that's for sure. At Orient, you will get a bit less nudity if you stay to the left hand side of the beach (left when facing the water). There will still be a few nude strollers but nothing like the far right side, which has warning signs about total nudity since it is a naturalist resort. The beach is more than a mile long so keep "left" and "right" in perspective. Have fun, Orient is paradise!

[Chexmix]

Thanks for the feedback, but if I don't need a car seat in St.Thomas and St.Martin then are you saying I can walk from the dock into town?

 

In St. Thomas it will be hard to find any vehicle with a seat belt. As others have said they have ALOT of the open air jitney buses and those have bench seats.

 

In St. Martin you can find ones with seat belts as the French side of the island requires them. You could then get your car seat from the cabin steward that morning or the night before stopping there. Also when you get off the ship they have someone at the end of the pier that can get you a taxi. Let them know your requirements and they will try to accomadate you.

 

However, it is hard to find vehicles with seat belts/car seats as they don't require them like we do in the US.

[TorontoGamblers]

In St. Thomas it will be hard to find any vehicle with a seat belt. As others have said they have ALOT of the open air jitney buses and those have bench seats.

 

In St. Martin you can find ones with seat belts as the French side of the island requires them. You could then get your car seat from the cabin steward that morning or the night before stopping there. Also when you get off the ship they have someone at the end of the pier that can get you a taxi. Let them know your requirements and they will try to accomadate you.

 

However, it is hard to find vehicles with seat belts/car seats as they don't require them like we do in the US.

 

So do most people just hold there children on the these open air buses?