H2O park - with toddler

[KB1976]

I've been reading there is no swim diaper area on Freedom of the seas. Royal Caribbean's web site says the following. .

 

 

Please note: Due to Public health regulations, children in diapers, swim diapers, pull-ups, or who are not COMPLETELY toilet trained are not allowed in the pools, whirlpools, or H2O zone.

On the Freedom of the Seas and Liberty of the Seas children in diapers, or who are not toilet trained may use the Baby Splash Zone" specially designated for them

 

Has anyone used the baby splash zone, any pics availible. Just wondering what my 18 month old will have to do on board.

 

:) :D :)

[crusinmama06]

WOW...when we were on Freedom in May there was a separate section for the toddlers cause it was only 6" deep. And there was a HUGE sign next to it saying "Potty Trained Children Only"

 

I am sooo glad they made the switch. I had heard rumors that they were going to.

 

So that's from RCCL's web site? I'll have to post it on the main board...lol

 

The area has a little animal (an elephant I think or something like that) that sprays water onto the tots. It is completly separated (water wise) from mixing with the rest of the H20 zone. There is a wall between it.

 

Very cool!

[crusinmama06]

Here is the area they are referring to. This is an older picture but you can see the area. I don't know if they made any changes to it since this was taken.

 

[Ellanora]

Wow, this is great. It has been amazing to me how long it has taken cruiselines to come up with a fountain-y area for the littlest cruisers.

 

Come on, Carnival. Join the bandwagon, already.

 

BTW, Michele - is the H20 zone as awesome in person as it looks in pictures? There is something about it that seems so cool, just looks like a fun place to play. I can not wait until I can book one of those big ships and take my son to it.

[crusinmama06]

 

BTW, Michele - is the H20 zone as awesome in person as it looks in pictures? There is something about it that seems so cool, just looks like a fun place to play. I can not wait until I can book one of those big ships and take my son to it.

 

Yep it is REALLY neat. The only complaint I had about it was that right NEXT to the baby zone, there is a 6ft deep section that is actually DEEPER than the adult pool :rolleyes: What rocket science genius made THAT decision?

 

Yeah let's put a 6 ft deep section RIGHT NEXT TO the toddler pool. Yeah, great idea! :rolleyes: Boy won't those little tots be in for a surprise.

 

You can see the ladders to it right above the word "Baby Zone"...they are metal ladders. But all that divides the area is that small wooden step.

[Ellanora]

Yep it is REALLY neat. The only complaint I had about it was that right NEXT to the baby zone, there is a 6ft deep section that is actually DEEPER than the adult pool :rolleyes: What rocket science genius made THAT decision?

 

Yeah let's put a 6 ft deep section RIGHT NEXT TO the toddler pool. Yeah, great idea! :rolleyes: Boy won't those little tots be in for a surprise.

 

You can see the ladders to it right above the word "Baby Zone"...they are metal ladders. But all that divides the area is that small wooden step.

 

That does seem odd, especially with it being six feet in a kid's area - that's over many adult's heads, what's the point in that? Do they allow jumping in that area? It would surprise me if they allowed jumping into the pool, but I don't see why else a kid's pool would be so deep.

 

Thanks for the posting that picture, by the way, I love looking at all the pics of the water areas on Liberty/Freedom of the Seas.

[crusinmama06]

That does seem odd, especially with it being six feet in a kid's area - that's over many adult's heads, what's the point in that? Do they allow jumping in that area? It would surprise me if they allowed jumping into the pool, but I don't see why else a kid's pool would be so deep.

 

Thanks for the posting that picture, by the way, I love looking at all the pics of the water areas on Liberty/Freedom of the Seas.

 

Yeah they allow jumping. I just got so frustrated arguing with my 3 year old that NO she could not go into the 6 foot deep water. :rolleyes:

[charlies_mom]

Hey there,

 

Just got off the Freedom on Sunday and I was about to post about this anyway. They DO have a baby splash zone, right where the picture above has shown. It was awesome and the H2O zone was so great my whole family just played/swam there and took turns playing with my 14 mo son. We also walked around and let him touch all the big water fountain statues and he LOVED them. Be aware that your children may learn where the ice cream machine, Sprinkles, is and scream for ice cream all day like mine did.

:-)

[crusinmama06]

Hey there,

 

Just got off the Freedom on Sunday and I was about to post about this anyway. They DO have a baby splash zone, right where the picture above has shown. It was awesome and the H2O zone was so great my whole family just played/swam there and took turns playing with my 14 mo son. We also walked around and let him touch all the big water fountain statues and he LOVED them. Be aware that your children may learn where the ice cream machine, Sprinkles, is and scream for ice cream all day like mine did.

:-)

 

 

Was it full of infants? And was the water hot? When we were on it, the water seemed to heat up so fast.

[scoutdog]

Just want the make sure I'm reading this right. One poster mentioned that there's a sign by the toddler pool which contradicts what the website says about swim diapers.

 

Both the Liberty and Freedom do have these "baby splash zones" and they both really do allow swim diapers, right?

 

Thanks. Maybe we'll see y'all on one of the ships in June!

[charlies_mom]

Was it full of infants? And was the water hot? When we were on it, the water seemed to heat up so fast.

 

 

Hi, there were usually one or two infants and their parents in the pool. We actually were lucky to have the WHOLE H2O zone to ourselves several times. I can't believe that it was summer vacation on ship with 3k+ passengers!

 

Sometimes the water did get warm, but not more than bath warm. Also, it seemed to be emptied and refilled quite often, and it was cold when it was refilled.

 

We never went out at mid-day though because the sun is too harsh. That might have had something to do with it.

[crusinmama06]

Just want the make sure I'm reading this right. One poster mentioned that there's a sign by the toddler pool which contradicts what the website says about swim diapers.

 

Both the Liberty and Freedom do have these "baby splash zones" and they both really do allow swim diapers, right?

 

Thanks. Maybe we'll see y'all on one of the ships in June!

 

 

No, actually there WAS a sign saying no diapers. That sign was taken down and the area was turned into a Baby Zone and now allows diapers. :D

 

Sorry for the confusion.

[Cuizer2]

Well this thread got me to thinking, which is not a good thing. But since you don't know me, I'll let you off easy for now.

 

First the deep pool. I was standing in it, and I am six feet tall. I thought it was deep, but not six feet deep. So I check my photos. It is 5' 7". Deeper than I would make a kids pool. Yes the kids jumped in it. How no one got jumped on is beyond me. At any rate, even four feet is too deep for a non-swimming toddler, so no need to discuss the merits of the missing five inches.

 

As to the baby pool, I do have some photos of it. Here are a couple ...

 

 

At the bottom of the above photo is the deep kids pool. To the right, just behind the mushroom is the baby pool.

 

 

On the right is the circular "whirl" pool (the water moves around in a circle, but it is about half the speed that you would find in a land based water park). Just to the left of that is the baby pool. The sign you see says nothing about diapers or no diapers. It basically says no lifeguard, swim at your own risk and no diving. I don't recall seeing any of the toddlers on the cruise reading the sign however. The deeper pool is just behind the mushroom.

 

Other signs indicate the deeper pool is 5' 5" and 5' 6". So guess you can say the pool is five and one half feet deep, give or take an inch.

[crusinmama06]

Well this thread got me to thinking, which is not a good thing. But since you don't know me, I'll let you off easy for now.

 

First the deep pool. I was standing in it, and I am six feet tall. I thought it was deep, but not six feet deep. So I check my photos. It is 5' 7". .

 

 

HAHAHAHA forgive me for misrepresenting those extra inches. :p :D

[Cuizer2]

HAHAHAHA forgive me for misrepresenting those extra inches. :p :D

 

Never was a problem. Your point was valid on both accounts.

 

1) It is near the "baby" pool. Any pool over four feet is dangerous for a non swimming toddler.

 

2) It is deeper than the typical cruise ship pool. That was something I though about when I was standing in it. "This is the kids pool? Seems kind of deep."

 

Nonetheless, I never thought about it until you said it was six feet deep. Me, being me, had to check that out. I found several photos showing the 5' 7". Then I later found one that said 5' 6" and one that said 5' 5". Still, as I hope I am making clear, the five inches is not the issue. What you said was still valid.

 

While the depth of the pool was surprising enough, what really surprised me what that despite kids jumping in without looking, no one got jumped on. I thought that was a minor miracle.

[crusinmama06]

 

While the depth of the pool was surprising enough, what really surprised me what that despite kids jumping in without looking, no one got jumped on. I thought that was a minor miracle.

 

I gotcha and I totally agree! :D

[Kim4]

Forgive me for resurrecting an old thread, but I like to search for old threads that deal with what I'm interested in instead of starting a new thread.

 

 

OK, talk about confusion and a scared mommy!!!

I thought I read on RCI's website a tiny blurb about there being an area for kids with swim diapers on the Freedom of the Seas. So, that was the ship that I booked our family cruise on. Sounds great -- we're very excited.

 

I start to get a little paranoid and decide to double check. I start reading this thread and freaked out because earlier posts say that there were no swim diapers (I didn't check to see when the date was and that it was over a year ago. That was my fault).

 

So, I called my travel agent...she said no swim diapers on Freedom. (now I'm really starting to freak out)

 

So, I called RCI's "customer service" line. She at first had no idea what I was talking about, and then put me on hold to go check...and then came back and said no swim diapers on Freedom. Keep in mind that it is now September of 2008

 

 

Thankfully, before I went and cancelled our cruise....I read the rest of this thread. It seems (please correct me if I'm wrong) that there USED to be no area for kids in swim diapers to play, but now there IS a Baby Splash Zone -- a place for children in swim diapers to play in the water.

 

So, first off, is that right? I've seen a few people post that there IS a baby area, and I've seen pictures (thanks Michele!! You are a WEALTH of info!!).

 

Secondly, why does customer service not know this? It seems like there's been a baby area for more than a year, and they don't know the answer to this question? I can't believe that they would make an area like that and not make sure that everybody knew about it. There shouldn't be confusion about something like that. I know it's not important to most of the people on the ship, but for those of us with young children, it's VERY important!!

 

Thanks to all!!! :)

[crusinmama06]

Secondly, why does customer service not know this? It seems like there's been a baby area for more than a year, and they don't know the answer to this question? I can't believe that they would make an area like that and not make sure that everybody knew about it. There shouldn't be confusion about something like that. I know it's not important to most of the people on the ship, but for those of us with young children, it's VERY important!!

 

Thanks to all!!! :)

 

First off, if you learn anything from these boards it should be NEVER trust what Customer Service says...lol. ;) 9/10 they know NOTHING about the ship.

 

The Freedom DOES have the baby zone. That is a picture I actually took myself. When I was on Freedom back in April 07, they were JUST adding in the extra walls. They did it the week I was on it.

 

The SAME week they were adding in one on Liberty. By the time Independence was built, it was built with a Baby Zone.

 

The RCCL web site is sort of correct, it says that the Freedom ships do have a Baby Zone...what they don't say is that the Enchantment of the Seas ALSO has one. ;)

 

Just a little background, when Enchantment came out with a Baby Zone, I emailed customer service to confirm. They denied it existed. So I produced pictures (the pool and the sign). Then they said "Oh yes you're right. Sorry for any inconvenience" :p

 

So your TA is wrong (sorry but she is...lol).

 

All of the Freedom ships have a baby zone. :D

 

And feel free to send THIS to your TA - it is taken directly from the RCCL site...

 

Onboard Policies

 

Q: Are there any restrictions regarding children in the pools?A: Please note: Due to Public health regulations, children in diapers, swim diapers, pull-ups, or who are not COMPLETELY toilet trained are not allowed in the pools, whirlpools, or H2O zone.

On the Freedom of the Seas and Liberty of the Seas children in diapers, or who are not toilet trained may use the Baby Splash Zone" specially designated for them.

[NoelsCat]

I just wanted to reaffirm that there IS a baby splash zone on the Freedom. Our friend specifically booked on Freedom because of their 16 month old... an trust me -- they would have freaked out if she wasn't able to play in the water. I have pictures of the baby playing in the splash zone -- I would post them but I don't like to post other people's kids on the internet without their express permission.

 

Don't worry! There is a baby splash zone!

[Cuizer2]

I just wanted to reaffirm that there IS a baby splash zone on the Freedom. Our friend specifically booked on Freedom because of their 16 month old... an trust me -- they would have freaked out if she wasn't able to play in the water. I have pictures of the baby playing in the splash zone -- I would post them but I don't like to post other people's kids on the internet without their express permission.

 

Don't worry! There is a baby splash zone!

 

If you have photo editing software, just white out or block out the face, something like this ...

 

[Kim4]

Thanks again -- what a great site. How ironic that this site is so much better at providing info than the official cruise site. I mean, I was ready to cancel our cruise specifically with what the customer service rep just told me. I would imagine they are losing business because of poor customer service. Then again, that's probably true for just about any business!!

[k8lin_VA]

Hi!

 

Just adding on another question if that's OK? Our daughter will be almost 21 months for this cruise. She LOVES the water. We're booked in March for a cruise on Independence of the Seas. It seems since it's the same class as the Freedom and Liberty that it should also have the Baby Splash Zone? Can anyone confirm this???

 

 

 

Thanks!

[wrp96]

Hi!

 

Just adding on another question if that's OK? Our daughter will be almost 21 months for this cruise. She LOVES the water. We're booked in March for a cruise on Independence of the Seas. It seems since it's the same class as the Freedom and Liberty that it should also have the Baby Splash Zone? Can anyone confirm this???

 

 

Yes, Independence has the Baby Zone.

[crusinmama06]

Yes, Independence has the Baby Zone.

 

And it *might be heated* :D ;)

 

I swear I am going to ask that question when I get onboard...lol. So your POOLS are heated, what about the Baby Zone? ;)

 

But if the Baby Zone is as hot as it was on Freedom (just heated by the sun) then it doesn't need any more heat.

[ChristieK0310]

Hi,

 

just wanted to make sure that you are prepared for all events - bring a small inflatable pool with you for your little one. We did and if we had charged for hire it would have made a good dent in our final bill - lol!

 

Hope I don't steal your thread but thought i'd share our experience with you -

 

we have just arrived home after a good week on Freedom 21-28 Sep. DD turned one at disney after the cruise and we were really looking forward to her being able to splash about in the baby splash pool.

 

However - the pool NEVER opened. We were told initialy that it was closed for maintanance and come back in 2 hrs. OK, no probs. Back we came - same thing - 2 hours. Came back still closed.

 

Gave up for the day and returned next day - still showing closed. Lost the plot (outwardly calmly of course) and went to customer relations who were able to inform me (was probably about day 3 of the cruise) that a part was broken and they were having it sent to tomorrows port. Tomorrow came - part didn't. Told again - next days port...

 

You can see how the story is going! I did make a complaint about the fact that no sign was up at the pool to say that it would be closed for the duration of the cruise and the lack of information eg. nothing on the cruise compass - no alternative arrangements etc and was appoligised to and told they would send me a gift hamper. Tried to explain that it wasn't about a gift hamper just somewhere for my dd to 'splish splash' but got no where really.

 

Gift hamper arrived on last evening and consisted of 2 used fisher price toys and a badly damaged card book in an adventure ocean pillow case! Not very useful on last evening.

 

The blow up pool was a life saver.

 

Aside from this our experience with our dd was fantastic and if there are any questions I can help you with just let me know.

 

Christie