Current Status of Adventure Ocean?

[Ggrrl1]

I'm booked with some family including my four year old twins on the Anthem during February break. My husband can't join us because of work. I had been hoping to use Adventure Ocean to allow me some relaxation time, but the stories I'm hearing about the current status of the program sound horrifying. I could get by on only being allowed 12 hours like some have said. However, I've also heard folks say they were limited to 5 hours, which isn't much over the course of a week. I've also heard that the children participating had to sit alone in circles? That sounds a bit like punishment in a Victorian era orphanage. 

 

Is this true of all ships? Do the programs vary by ship? Anyone else have any experience with AO recently? Of course, the twins are unvaccinated since they aren't yet eligible. I had thought this would actually be the perfect vacation right now since at least I know everyone comes from a family where the adults have been vaccinated (heck, it's likely safer than a trip to our local grocery store). I would appreciate any information about the current status of the program. And as an aside, if the kids' club is this severely restricted, I feel like Royal should let people know. 

[goodtoglow]

I haven't read any of that.... we are heading on Oasis in February and I sure hope the AO isn't that restricted or I'm rethinking our plans to cruise 

[spooky981]

I believe you are limited to five hours per day by appointment, with drop ins allowed when there is space. I can't speak to the distancing required when inside.

[rockmom]

Here is the link to a review from this past week for Allure.  @spooky981 it was just 5 hours for the entire sailing.  @goodtoglow and @Ggrrl1 check out post #18 and #30. 18 addresses the situation of 5 hours for the whole cruise and #30 talks about how kids have to sit on a circle by themselves and not leave that circle the whole time.  

 

  

Edited December 8, 2021 by rockmom

[spooky981]

Well that experience sounds miserable. I can only hope that things are different in March when I go.

[Heckah]

According to that review, I believe the "circle" is for unvaccinated children.  If your kids will be vaxxed, they won't have to be in the circle.

[QuickGold]

This video covers this topic at the 2:50 mark:

 

 

[Ronaldo807]

We were on Oasis over Thanksgiving. We were allotted 5 scheduled hours for the entire week. We were allowed unlimited drop ins/additional time assuming that space was available. We ended up asking for additional time on three of the nights where my daughter had a one hour reservation and space was available each time. They do try to keep the kids spaced out from each other.

 

Keep in mind the protocols may be different in February and there is also going to be less kids on your sailing compared to a Thanksgiving sailing.  

[ugagal07]

We sailed on Harmony over Thanksgiving.  It was a complete and utter disaster.  Stood in line 45 minutes on embarkation day to register for 2 3-hour slots per child.  On day 2, they opened up for 2 more per child, if space allowed.  All those additional slots were gone within 30 minutes, except for port times.  They had drop in options, if space allowed, but no one was ever really successful with that from what I heard. I also heard multiple examples of the reservation being "lost" or parents with kids in 2 age groups not being able to get their slots at the same time.

 

Our kids went twice for 3 hours, but the check-in process took forever.  We had to line up 15-30 minutes early, then when they opened the doors it was another 30 minutes to get in, so really only 2.5 hours.  There is no "interaction" allowed among children.  There was indoor soccer, but the goalie couldn't touch the ball with their hands or they had to then go sanitize everything again.  No sharing of crayons when coloring. No parties. No face painting. No crafts. No science lab. No movies.  My kids asked not to go back. Typically they love the kids club.

 

It was a very long week since the water slides didn't open until late morning, the pools and hot tubs were limited in capacity, and flowrider/abyss/rock wall/zip line/ice skating didn't have a lot of open hours. 

 

It was enough for us to say no more RCCL until things ease up with the disaster of dining, shows, and lack of activities.  The mantra of the week was hurry up and wait in line, then wait some more.   

[atxcarter]

We were also on the Oasis sailing over Thanksgiving - I can concur with previous posters. We have a 7 year old and 4 year old - 7 YO was allowed 5 hours for the WEEK. Four-year old had slightly more - I think it was maybe 8 for the week? Pre-covid, we had typically done a 2-3 hr block per day most days. There is no pickup service during evening dining due to protocols.

 

They said there might be drop in availability later in the week but we gave up trying because parents would line up and spots were gone immediately. It was really frustrating to never have any evening hours available - we didn't get one chance to just have after-dinner drinks in the Schooner Bar for a couple of hours. Fortunately the kids wanted to attend some evening shows with us - but even that was problematic as our show reservations weren't honored and people were turned away at the door to the theater. They told us to come as vaccinated adults to the late show - but we couldn't because - no child care - kids not able to join us and too young to be left unattended.

 

We definitely made the best of it and tried to be flexible, but we needed some small blocks of time kid-free and it quickly became apparent that wasn't happening. I do hope things improve during the coming months. Our 7 YO is now vaccinated so we hope that eases things.

[ONECRUISER]

2 hours ago, Heckah said:

According to that review, I believe the "circle" is for unvaccinated children.  If your kids will be vaxxed, they won't have to be in the circle.

Great Point!

[Ashland]

3 hours ago, Heckah said:

According to that review, I believe the "circle" is for unvaccinated children.  If your kids will be vaxxed, they won't have to be in the circle.

The under age 5 kids should be able to wear a mask and participate...instead of being kept in circles.

Most of these kids go to daycare/pre-school where this is the policy when their inside the classroom. RCI needs to rethink this and adapt their policy at AO to ensure the "Family Friendly" cruise experience for not only the kids but the parents as well.

 

I'm hoping this policy changes for the better by the time we sail in late April 2022. This will be our 3rd try at sailing after an RCI cancelled cruise and a L/S.

[cynt]

What a mess? Another example of no one in management having critical thinking skills. 🙄 

 

Hopefully everyone complained on the survey, to guest services and posted on social media so Royal will be better prepared for the Christmas and NY cruises.

[Ashland]

2 minutes ago, cynt said:

What a mess? Another example of no one in management having critical thinking skills. 🙄 

 

Hopefully everyone complained on the survey, to guest services and posted on social media so Royal will be better prepared for the Christmas and NY cruises.

I hope everyone also will complain as loud as they can....RCI needs to better manage this and quickly!

 

[Borat]

is it the same every ship and every sailing? this is pretty ridiculous to not let people know.  To me this is a big deal and would affect the trip for both the kids and adults.  If it is a new policy they should be telling people.  If this is just a 1 off, then i guess it was just bad luck for that cruise.

[atxcarter]

18 minutes ago, Borat said:

is it the same every ship and every sailing? this is pretty ridiculous to not let people know.  To me this is a big deal and would affect the trip for both the kids and adults.  If it is a new policy they should be telling people.  If this is just a 1 off, then i guess it was just bad luck for that cruise.

I think it depends on ship occupancy, and that it is higher during holiday season(s). Also a higher % of the pax are children during those times as well (i.e. higher AO demand). 

 

We did a short 3 night weekend on Freedom in October, and getting the kids into AO was comparatively MUCH easier. There were still limited hours, but there were more total hours per child, and the cruise was only 3 nights vs. 7.  We (wrongly) assumed Thanksgiving would be the same - need to plan/schedule but adequate hours per child. I guess in hindsight that might seem naïve but to your point, RC is not communicating this with parents ahead of time. 

[Ggrrl1]

I tried contacting Royal about what is going on with the program. I will not be holding my breath waiting for response. I will be traveling with my 15 year old nephew who I can probably bribe a time or two to watch the kids so I can hit the casino, but I am still considering cancelling. It seems like a bait and switch that they aren't making it clear that this is the way they are operating. Hopefully the twins will at least be able to interact with one another if they go

[queenL]

Wow!  I'm in the same boat as the OP.  I will be upset if I can only have my kids in the club for 5hrs a week.  That should definitely be disclosed.

[Borat]

7 hours ago, queenL said:

Wow!  I'm in the same boat as the OP.  I will be upset if I can only have my kids in the club for 5hrs a week.  That should definitely be disclosed.

Someone I spoke to recently told me the 5 hours per week does not include extra hours after 10pm for payment. In other words if you don’t mind paying for it after 10pm, they won’t limit you. Not sure if that’s totally true but I did hear that from 1 person who just came back 

[cruiserjt]

It is hard to predict protocols and trends with this crazy Covid.  I am seeing more and more attention paid to vaccination and access.  My children are now older - but if they were under 12 - I would definitely vaccinate. It may be the make or break part of AO availability.  For the OP - unless Royal commits to some major revamp of the program for children who are not eligible for vaccines - I would definitely consider cancelling and going when they are five and vaccinated or when this stuff goes away. I have twins and they never loved the kids club but they enjoyed it enough to give my husband and I a few evenings to breathe. I would have hated to have to schedule their time there.

[spooky981]

Just have to hope this is temporary. I would expect plenty of precautions but treating unvaccinated kids as if they're radioactive is a bit overbearing. Everyone is tested prior to getting on, at that point masks should be adequate in the kids center.

 

Daycares across the country operate this way every day and they don't even have testing unless you show symptoms.

[atxcarter]

On 12/9/2021 at 7:40 AM, Borat said:

Someone I spoke to recently told me the 5 hours per week does not include extra hours after 10pm for payment. In other words if you don’t mind paying for it after 10pm, they won’t limit you. Not sure if that’s totally true but I did hear that from 1 person who just came back 

LOL - I wish I could stay up after 10 PM but I'm getting too old for much past 10:30. We let our kids stay up until 11ish on our Thanksgiving cruise and regretted it - they were overtired monsters bouncing off the walls.

[goodtoglow]

I am seriously debating canceling our February cruise on Oasis after reading this thread..... my 4 year old won't be vaccinated and my 5.5 year old will not be at 14 days post second dose before we board the ship (he will be considered "fully vaccinated" with 2 days left of the cruise, unless I can convince public health to allow him his second dose 5 days early). Ugh. I don't know what to do

[spooky981]

On 12/10/2021 at 9:16 PM, goodtoglow said:

I am seriously debating canceling our February cruise on Oasis after reading this thread..... my 4 year old won't be vaccinated and my 5.5 year old will not be at 14 days post second dose before we board the ship (he will be considered "fully vaccinated" with 2 days left of the cruise, unless I can convince public health to allow him his second dose 5 days early). Ugh. I don't know what to do

 

Are you waiting on appointments from your pediatrician? Mine was trying to put me on the schedule three weeks later so I just walked my kids into a CVS without an appointment and they had their first shot within about 20 minutes.

[goodtoglow]

On 12/12/2021 at 11:15 AM, spooky981 said:

 

Are you waiting on appointments from your pediatrician? Mine was trying to put me on the schedule three weeks later so I just walked my kids into a CVS without an appointment and they had their first shot within about 20 minutes.

I'm in Canada... we were pretty delayed in approving the vaccine for kids, its only been 2 weeks that kids have been able to receive it and in BC we only started immunizing the kids 10 days ago (my son received his the first day possible). They are spacing the shots out by 8 weeks. If public health will allow my soon to get his at 7 weeks 2 days he will be fully immunized for the cruise. I'm also pondering taking him across the border to Bellingham if thats feasible/acceptable. What is the dose interval for the kids in the States?

I'm also at the point where I may cancel the cruise if Canada makes us quarantine upon returning... announcement coming tomorrow apparently :(