Royal Caribbean - Adventure Ocean

[Honeybflygirl]

Can someone please tell me if they have experience with taking kids on a cruise close in age, but in different kids clubs? I have a 4 year old and my friend has a child that will turn 6 a month before the cruise. Literally the ONLY reason she booked the cruise is because she thought our kids would be in the club together. Do you know if they will allow her daughter to go in the aquanauts with my daughter?!

[spookwife]

They will only combine the age groups if there few children on board.  You will not know until you board whether she will be allowed to move down

[leaveitallbehind]

Although it has been many years since our children were involved with the AO program, our experience is that generally they do not, basing the group age assignment on actual age as of date of sailing - especially if the ship has a lot of children and the groups are larger.  Each group is based on age appropriate activities for the age range, and your child - as you indicate -  would be in Aquanauts (3-5) and your friend's child in Explorers (6-8).  

 

I have heard of exceptions being made, however, so all you can do is ask when you check your children in.  But just understand that if there are others with similar situations they may not be able accommodate you as then they would have to make an exception for the others as well.

 

I certainly hope that is not the only reason she booked the cruise, should they not allow them to be together.....

Edited December 4, 2019 by leaveitallbehind

[cb at sea]

If they do allow it, the 6 year old is likely to be bored.  The activities are really age appropriate.  You can try it, and when the kids get there, you may find they don't need to be together all the time.

[Honeybflygirl]

They would never be bored with each other. They don’t even need activities. We booked this cruise SO they could be together. I don’t want them to be apart for that time, even if they would be fine. But I do understand what you’re saying for other kids. These 2 are on the same level.

[doug618]

They will probably allow it since the kids are traveling together.  When our kids were younger, which are 2.5 years apart they allowed them to move up or down depending on timing. 

I've even seen AO take siblings that are too old to be in the Voyagers and allow them in b/c they had a younger sibling.

You should go to the open house sign up and ask them to accommodate.

Whether a 6 year old will enjoy the Aquanauts will depend upon the kid's interest and maturity level.

 

[rimmit]

They typically are relatively lenient on moving down an age group. Moving kids up an age group is another matter.  They typically only move up if there are low kids numbers and they need to combine age groups.

 

ultimately every ship varies a little,  but you need to in expecting to only be allowed to move the 6 year old down at best,  and In the worst case scenario where there are a ton of kids then They are very strict With Age groups.

Edited December 7, 2019 by rimmit

[M-H-B]

On Explorer in March they let my son move down a group to be with a friend we were travelling with. It happens, you will just need to ask and see. 

[GarlicBread]

On 12/5/2019 at 8:25 PM, Honeybflygirl said:

They would never be bored with each other. They don’t even need activities. We booked this cruise SO they could be together. I don’t want them to be apart for that time, even if they would be fine. But I do understand what you’re saying for other kids. These 2 are on the same level.

 

You wont know until you get onboard. As it can change cruise by cruise. So probably best to prepare them not to be together.

 

Some managers have a blanket ban on group changes, even if a kid has a birthday on a cruise. Some will only move up and/or down within a few months of that age. Some will move within a year. It doesn't matter of they're on the same level or not, your kids or other kids. 

If they do allow a move then it's not done and dusted, if they arent suited to that age group they will move them back to the right group. 

 

You say they dont need activities, but adventure ocean is an activities based programme, not a free play free for all, so they will be expected to join in, which is why there are age groups...

 

But the good news is they can absolutely for sure be together everywhere else around the ship, especially if they dont need the activities that adventure ocean offers. 

[rimmit]

1 hour ago, GarlicBread said:

You say they dont need activities, but adventure ocean is an activities based programme, not a free play free for all, so they will be expected to join in, which is why there are age groups...

While they are expected and encouraged to do group activities it is not required.   However,  typically peer pressure and seeing the other kids having fun doing the activity causes almost every kid to give in and do the group activity.  I am not sure how they are running the newer AOs on the amplified ships where the 6-12 year olds are all in one room now.  From what it seems,  it looks a lot like how Disney runs it.   Throw everyone into a big room, and have scheduled activities.  You can participate or not and they don’t care.   
 

We like organized activities personally as it discourages just sitting on the iPads and video games for the entire duration they are in the Kids program.  On Disney if your kids just wants to play the iPads there for 8 straight hours no one will interfere or bother them.  In the Old AO program while that is a remote possibility they really encourage participation in group things.  With the new design on the new ships I am scared they have gone the Disney route regarding group participation.

 

has anyone who has been on the Oasis post amplification have experience on how it is run now with the 6-12 years olds all in one room?  

[GarlicBread]

58 minutes ago, rimmit said:

While they are expected and encouraged to do group activities it is not required.   However,  typically peer pressure and seeing the other kids having fun doing the activity causes almost every kid to give in and do the group activity.  I am not sure how they are running the newer AOs on the amplified ships where the 6-12 year olds are all in one room now.  From what it seems,  it looks a lot like how Disney runs it.   Throw everyone into a big room, and have scheduled activities.  You can participate or not and they don’t care.   
 

We like organized activities personally as it discourages just sitting on the iPads and video games for the entire duration they are in the Kids program.  On Disney if your kids just wants to play the iPads there for 8 straight hours no one will interfere or bother them.  In the Old AO program while that is a remote possibility they really encourage participation in group things.  With the new design on the new ships I am scared they have gone the Disney route regarding group participation.

 

has anyone who has been on the Oasis post amplification have experience on how it is run now with the 6-12 years olds all in one room?  

 

Thanks, I've worked in the clubs on both lines so I know how they work. 

 

I know Nav is a free for all, I wouldn't work there because after Disney, that's what I didnt like. Oasis is still more structured, remember, a lot of ships combine 6-11s all the time and have done for a long time, because they only have 2 rooms and one of those is for aquanauts. 

 

Sure if they dont want to do the activities they dont want to, but all the ships I've been on, there is limited if not no other options. Maybe coloring, maybe a bit of lego, but like I said, not a free play free for all zone. On my last ship, my manager said once activities started (in all rooms including aquanauts), anything else was to go away, if they didnt want to join, they could sit and watch, and they weren't the only manager I've had whose said that. 

(Apart from quiet port days, they're usually toys, movies a bit of craft, more child led.)

 

[rimmit]

2 hours ago, GarlicBread said:

 

Thanks, I've worked in the clubs on both lines so I know how they work. 

 

Sure if they dont want to do the activities they dont want to, but all the ships I've been on, there is limited if not no other options. Maybe coloring, maybe a bit of lego, but like I said, not a free play free for all zone. On my last ship, my manager said once activities started (in all rooms including aquanauts), anything else was to go away, if they didnt want to join, they could sit and watch, and they weren't the only manager I've had whose said that. 

(Apart from quiet port days, they're usually toys, movies a bit of craft, more child led.)

 

 

While not as experienced as doing 7 month contracts in a kids program,  we have been on the parental side of things for over 250 Adventure Ocean days between my 4 and 8 year old kids, and have experienced the kids program on all class of ships except the Empress and on 13 different RCI boats.  Plus Disney, X, and NCL.  They have been on boats with 1000+ kids.  Some with 6.

 

We give the RCI kids program an A+ and I just wanted to thank you immensely for the great care your staff gives to our kids.  It is by far our favorite of all the lines.   That being said,  as you have stated it varies considerably from boat to boat.   Sometimes it starts at 8Pm on embarkation day.  Sometimes 9pm.   Sometimes there is adventure time dining half the days,  sometimes maybe a day or two,  sometimes all the days but day one.  Sometimes there is my family time dining. Sometimes it doesn’t exist.   
 

The only way to know how things are handled on each individual ship is a live report from CC and even then it can vary considerably based on child numbers.

 

AO is not a free for all zone at all,  that’s what we like about it.  We call the Disney program « Pleasure Island » for kids.   It’s basically do whatever you want when you want.   I wasn’t saying it was a free for all,  at all,   And like you stated I have only seen the kids who aren’t participating typically coloring or some other low key activity.  We are super glad to hear that even after amplification that Oasis is not an all out free for all like Disney is.

 

Are you still working on the cruise lines?   Maybe you’ve had our kids before.  They are pretty memorable as the youth counselors tend to remember them if we see them At a later date on a different cruise or boat.  Zack and Lucy were their names.  They are remembered more often than not as we have a very unique Filipino last name.