Toddlers First Cruise

[tm_aw_love]

Anybody have any tips/recommendations for getting our toddlers (2 & 4) excited for their first cruise? Wife and I have been several times, just not with the kiddos. Taking them on 7 day Mexican Riviera on the Splendor in September. 

[Cruiser_1977]

I'm not sure how you'd even get a 2 year old to understand. Hope some fellow CCers have ideas. Try this board as well, https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/28-family-cruises/

 

Thanks to Google...maybe read to them about cruise ships...YEP there are kids books about cruise ships...https://www.google.com/search?q=kids+book+about+cruise+ship&rlz=1C1CHBD_enUS772US772&oq=kids+book+about+cruise+ship&aqs=chrome..69i57.5919j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Edited April 8, 2019 by JennyB1977

[mdsgu]

First, don't stress.  I doubt the 2 year old will remember, but the 4 year old will, some of it.  Try to keep them on whatever routine you have at home: if they normally take a nap from 1 to 3, let them do so on the cruise.  If their bedtime is 8pm, keep it close to that on the ship.  We've sailed with our kids for almost 10 years now (the oldest will be 10 this summer), and we've not had any problems.  Just realize that, while you're on vacation, like at home, almost everything will revolve around them and their needs.

[MaryZ]

Toddlers are usually excited just waking up to start each new day.  I'd wait until the day you are packing to talk to them about your family vacation.  Show them pictures of the big boat and talk about the fun time they will have.

I'm sure it will be wonderful!

[Garth2]

Tell them that since she just retired from the Today show, maybe Kathie Lee will be there.

[pyropoodle]

my son went on  a cruise when he was 2 and he barely remembers.  now that his sister is turning 2 and he is turning 5, I've been letting him watch youtube videos of the kids clubs to show him the kinds of places/ things he'll be doing and showing him videos of the ships on the water.  he is just as excited as I am about our cruise.  

[Tjcalley]

We watch YouTube videos of the boat! It is all he talks about now !

[thehappierhomemaker]

definitely the YouTube videos of the ship, also I'd play up the whole ice cream machine thing, our kid's first cruise was when they were 5, 3, and 8 months and that is always the biggest hit (they are 7, 10, and 12 now)

[kyboymom]

Our youngest went on his first cruise with us when he was 2.  I didn't realize at the time how little he had been exposed to so there were lots of obstacles for us.  We live in a very small town so there is really only an elevator at the Hospital...which he had never been on.  So he completely freaked out when we took him on the elevator for the first time.  When we did an excursion in Mexico there was of course no car seat for him so he freaked out about that.  He had never just ridden buckled in a seat so he felt very uneasy of course.  I almost didn't pack enough outfits.  I thought I had plenty but as you know with toddlers everything they eat get's on them so he needed up to 3 changes of clothes per day.  I would recommend taking your umbrella stroller for the 2yo b/c they tire out pretty easily.  I did take a tablet with us which had movies downloaded on it so they was a saving grace when we were in the room trying to get dressed and having down time.  He wouldn't have any part of the Kids Camp at 2. I think that was also due to lack of exposure..lol..He had only stayed with Grandparents before and never in a day care setting so that was new for him as well.  Now fast forward to last year and he went on his second cruise when he was 3 almost 4 and he absolutely loved it.  He loved the kids camps, remembered the elevators and all that stuff was fun to him now.  We are heading out on another in a month so he is so excited.  He wakes up saying "Mom let's talk about vacation"...lol...So the first one was rough but they just keep getting easier the older they get.  Your 4yo should love it..your 2yo might stay at the kids camp since the sibling will be there. I forgot his toy bag in the car on our last cruise but we did manage fine without it since he loved spending most of his time at kids camp!  

[BNBR]

My 2 year old loved the kids club.  And they change diapers and everything if yours isn't 100% potty trained yet.  My 2 and 4 were in the same group.  They would hang out there as long as we would let them.  Which made LOTS of time for us on to enjoy our cruise as well.

 

If your 2 year old isn't in to the kids club, I'd probably cancel the cruise and stay home.  That's a lot of work to deal with 2 toddlers around the clock on a cruise ship, keeping them entertained, etc.

[fdwt994]

 Excited?  I'm not sure a 2-year old will have a clue. 

 

When we took our 4-year olds, we surprised them and didn't reveal until we were driving up to the ship.  They were indifferent.  Once they spent a couple days on the cruise, then they realized what it was all about and had a blast.

 

3 hours ago, BNBR said:

 

 

If your 2 year old isn't in to the kids club, I'd probably cancel the cruise and stay home.  That's a lot of work to deal with 2 toddlers around the clock on a cruise ship, keeping them entertained, etc.

 

We took our 2-year old on his first cruise and unfortunately he would not tolerate the kid's club.  I couldn't agree more with this statement.  1000%.  We waited until our next born were 4-years old when we took them, and it was immensely better.  

 

Good luck

[BNBR]

2 minutes ago, fdwt994 said:

 Excited?  I'm not sure a 2-year old will have a clue. 

 

When we took our 4-year olds, we surprised them and didn't reveal until we were driving up to the ship.  They were indifferent.  Once they spent a couple days on the cruise, then they realized what it was all about and had a blast.

 

 

We took our 2-year old on his first cruise and unfortunately he would not tolerate the kid's club.  I couldn't agree more with this statement.  1000%.  We waited until our next born were 4-years old when we took them, and it was immensely better.  

 

Good luck

 

It's worth a try though! Our 2 year old we had to almost fight to get him out of kids club, lol. Being with his brother obviously helped. Kids club does so much fun stuff, he loved it.  So taking him on cruises was a no brainer. 

 

I'd say to OP, give it a shot. Only one way to find out. Carnival is the only line that has full kids club starting at 2 instead of 3 as well, and includes diaper changes. So couldn't be a better time or line to try with a 2 year old. 

[fdwt994]

1 minute ago, BNBR said:

 

It's worth a try though! Our 2 year old we had to almost fight to get him out of kids club, lol. Being with his brother obviously helped. Kids club does so much fun stuff, he loved it.  So taking him on cruises was a no brainer. 

 

I'd say to OP, give it a shot. Only one way to find out. Carnival is the only line that has full kids club starting at 2 instead of 3 as well, and includes diaper changes. So couldn't be a better time or line to try with a 2 year old. 

Of course all kids are different, so for the OP's sake, I hope his 2-year old will be fine with the club.  Ours wasn't and it made things pretty miserable.

 

Our 4-year olds were a different story.  Like yours, we almost had to fight to get them out of the club also. They loved it!  

[Muumuu]

Also be aware they can have a real fear as everything is so large. Grandson freaked out on initial boarding for his first cruise but was fine once on

[Tjcalley]

Our two year old refused the kids club! At 3 he still refuses! We had a lot of fun with him though and did bring a tablet for down time. We also only have one child so we aren’t having to chase around two of them. 

 

His biggest excitement of the cruise is the elevators and the stairs. The last cruise I took him on we went up and down the stairs thousands of times a day!

[AtoZgirl]

We’ve taking our twins on two cruises (one for their 1st birthday and one for their 2nd birthday)!

 

Going on their third next month, at 2.5 years old. Yes, it’s not 100% a vacation, but since they are 2.5, they can enjoy the kids club. Last cruise when they had just turned two, they went to the kids club for an hour or two every few days, which was nice. We do plan to get a few hours each day to ourselves this upcoming cruise, since they have more experience with us leaving them in a child care environment when I go to the gym and they go to preschool two days a week now, too.

 

Our kids have traveled since they were about 6 months and have been many places, so we’re lucky in that sense. They’re great travelers and are pretty good kids in general (hitting the terrible two stage now though 😫), but we still enjoy the cruise and having them enjoy it with us. Most things we do, they can do. They really enjoy going to different places and the beaches. 

 

So many of the crew LOVE the kids, too. And mine enjoy the attention! 

 

Don’t cancel or second guess going! Enjoy the time as best as possible and see if it’s something you all love to do!

[Mediterranean_Honeymooner]

In order to get my kids (5 and 2) excited about their first cruise, I recorded every cruise show I could find on tv and then watched it with them.  I also took them to see Hotel Transylvania: Cruise Vacation.  As we watched, I really played up some of the exciting parts “look at the slides”, “look at the beach”, etc. By the time it was time for our cruise, they were both begging to go on “the big boat”! 

[Haagendawgs]

We showed our three-year old pictures of the small waterslides and then taught her to count backwards from 20 to get her excited. She figured out that when only 10 days were left we were almost ready for pink waterslides:)

[Mediterranean_Honeymooner]

FWIW, our 2 year LOVED the kids’ club!  It may have been different if she had been separated from her brother, but 2-5 years old are placed together which will work in your favor.  That being said, we only used the kids’ club twice.  We really enjoyed having the kids with us and it didn’t feel like we were overburdened or couldn’t have fun.

 

Kids are work, but not anymore so on a cruise than at home. 🤷‍♀️  My kids LOVED the cruise. They were both able to get excited beforehand due to my not so subtle prep work and they were excited to see the boat.  They loved the kids’ club, the main dining room, unlimited ice cream, the Cat in the Hat breakfast and parade, Waterworks, and our time at the beach in port.  They have both talked about it frequently since and can’t wait to cruise again.

 

I feel like a lot of the replies on here lean towards “you may not have much fun”, and I just want to tell you the flip side...”you may have a blast!”.  It may be one of the best trips you’ve ever taken and you may be counting the days until you can cruise with your small children again! I know I am. ❤️🚢👨‍👩‍👧‍👦

[CruisingBeans]

I think cruising is the best mom vacation. No dishes, no food prep, always kids food available and no extra charge so who cares if the don’t eat it! My kids love the water so always something to do. My oldest went on her first cruise at 2 and cried the whole time at the kids club- they called me to get her! Now she’s 8 - loves to cruise but doesn’t love the kids club but she’ll go. Her younger sister loves the kids club and would go all day. Take some laundry detergent and clean their clothes in sink. Blow up pool or bathtub works if they won’t shower. 

[Flytko]

Just got off the Vista with my 3.5 year old twin boys.  They had a blast, of course it was alot of work to keep up with them and make time to enjoy the cruise as well.  Our boys are pretty rough and crazy, and unfortunately had a couple of occasions where the kids club called us to talk to them.  We just picked them up for the day.  You just have to remember at that age, kids are used to a schedule.  When they are off schedule, they tend to be a bit more wild, like our boys. 😁

[Drazil65]

We started to book balcony cabins when our son was a toddler, it provided a place to go when he was napping (he had to keep his nap schedule for the most part or he was miserable) and still have that cruise feel.  We took turns each day one of us would take him to the cabin for a nap, once asleep, we could sit on balcony with feet up, a glass of wine and  enjoying a good book or just watching the ocean go by (very relaxing).  We always left the curtain inside slightly open so we could see him if he woke up but could have our little piece of cruise real estate out on the balcony and not feel like we were cooped up inside the cabin for the duration.   He is 16 now and we all still enjoy the balcony especially with that first cup of coffee and the sunrise... 

[Palmetto Pilot]

On 4/8/2019 at 10:17 PM, thehappierhomemaker said:

definitely the YouTube videos of the ship, also I'd play up the whole ice cream machine thing, our kid's first cruise was when they were 5, 3, and 8 months and that is always the biggest hit (they are 7, 10, and 12 now)

That's what we did for our 3 year old. We showed him YouTube videos of the kids club and water park areas. It got him pretty excited. He's 4 now and still talks about his cruise. 

[louanne93]

On 4/8/2019 at 7:17 PM, thehappierhomemaker said:

definitely the YouTube videos of the ship, also I'd play up the whole ice cream machine thing, our kid's first cruise was when they were 5, 3, and 8 months and that is always the biggest hit (they are 7, 10, and 12 now)

 

The ice cream!!! We always cruised with our kids when they were little and the ice cream was a huge factor! Now they are all grown and in college or have families of their own my husband STILL takes a picture of the ice cream machine and sends it to them in a group text! Lol!! Some memories last forever!

[Flytko]

4 minutes ago, louanne93 said:

 

The ice cream!!! We always cruised with our kids when they were little and the ice cream was a huge factor! Now they are all grown and in college or have families of their own my husband STILL takes a picture of the ice cream machine and sends it to them in a group text! Lol!! Some memories last forever!

The boys lived off of pizza and ice cream during the cruise lol