twopugs Posted March 25, 2008 #1 Share Posted March 25, 2008 What is the best way to deal with this? I assume that bringing the umbrella stroller up to the deck is not an option....or is it? My son gets quite squirmy when there is alot to look at so I think holding him for the drill might not be the best idea. Would it be ok to put him in a chest/back carrier? (bjorn, ergo, etc.?) Also, will they have a baby/child lifejacket in the cabin or do we need to request one in advance? (Carnival) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitty9 Posted March 25, 2008 #2 Share Posted March 25, 2008 I would go down a few minutes early, and YES bring the stroller or bjorn. They have a couple of options for the life vest thing. Mostly, they have small enclosed little carriers that will float on the water in case of emergency. Think of a waterproof dog carrier--not saying your child is puppy-like, but that's the best example I can think of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crusinmama06 Posted March 25, 2008 #3 Share Posted March 25, 2008 Well the big problem with the stroller is that you aren't allowed to take the elevators during the Muster Drill. The beauty of it though is that a few times when I have been standing with the kids, we were excused by the crew to go and wait inside :D See there are benefits to taking young kids. ;) You will be asked to wear a life vest, so the carrier wouldn't work either Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tikcho Posted March 25, 2008 #4 Share Posted March 25, 2008 Princess does their muster drill in their theater so we never had to go on the deck but basically we skipped the stroller and carried my one year old (no bjorn). We had an adult sized life jacket in the cabin for him but they never asked me to put it on him. Basically, once they saw we had a baby they allowed me to sort of stay on the side holding him and just watch. Because he is very swirmy and we were inside, after about 15 min I put him on the floor and allowed him to crawl around and the staff were fine with that. Probably you can't do that on the deck. But I think all staff is very accommodating to parents with little kids. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twopugs Posted March 25, 2008 Author #5 Share Posted March 25, 2008 maybe the stroller is our best bet. It has a shoulder strap, folds like an umbrella and is light. We can carry it up to the deck, put on our vests and hope that they excuse us early. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eskwire Posted March 25, 2008 #6 Share Posted March 25, 2008 Before you commit to the stroller, be sure your muster station is near your cabin, otherwise, like cruisinmama said, you will be carrying the stroller up LOTS of stairs. Have fun, and yes, they will most likely excuse you and let you take care of your child's needs. They are very accommodating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randig Posted March 25, 2008 #7 Share Posted March 25, 2008 We were on Carnival this past summer with our 6 month old. We did not request a baby life vest since we were bringing our own but they did have a baby one in the cabin for us. We were also allowed to take it off mid drill because she was becoming a little fussy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2112 Posted March 25, 2008 #8 Share Posted March 25, 2008 I don't have any advise for you. Our muster drill with our 7 month old was easy, but I can say I'm not looking forward to the muster drill with my 2 year old that takes place at 9:30 pm for my Destiny cruise in May. :eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitty9 Posted March 25, 2008 #9 Share Posted March 25, 2008 I have to respectfully disagree with crusinmama on the elevator thing and muster drills. I'm disabled, and I always take the elevator to the drills and I've seen many parents with strollers on the elevators going to the drill. As I said, if you go down to the muster area a few minutes before the drill starts, you can use the elevator and you can use the stroller. And once the drill is over, you can also use the elevator to go back to your cabin. Every cruise line I've been on has allowed the disabled and parents pushing strollers to use the elevators, as long as they do this about 5 minutes before they sound the alarm for the drill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crusinmama06 Posted March 25, 2008 #10 Share Posted March 25, 2008 I have to respectfully disagree with crusinmama on the elevator thing and muster drills. I'm disabled, and I always take the elevator to the drills and I've seen many parents with strollers on the elevators going to the drill. As I said, if you go down to the muster area a few minutes before the drill starts, you can use the elevator and you can use the stroller. And once the drill is over, you can also use the elevator to go back to your cabin. Every cruise line I've been on has allowed the disabled and parents pushing strollers to use the elevators, as long as they do this about 5 minutes before they sound the alarm for the drill. They have always told us no elevators, to leave space for those who are disabled and truly need to use them. ;) But that is during the drill after the alarm sounds. So you're 100% correct. It's best to get there early before the drill begins. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitty9 Posted March 25, 2008 #11 Share Posted March 25, 2008 I don't have any advise for you. Our muster drill with our 7 month old was easy, but I can say I'm not looking forward to the muster drill with my 2 year old that takes place at 9:30 pm for my Destiny cruise in May. :eek: 2112, when we cruised on Destiny and left late, our muster drill was at 10am the next morning. This was a cruise out of NY. I don't know if this will be the same for you, but on the four cruises I've taken that have left late in the evening, they've held the drills the next morning. It would be tough to do a drill at 9:30 because that would happen during the late seating dinner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2112 Posted March 26, 2008 #12 Share Posted March 26, 2008 2112, when we cruised on Destiny and left late, our muster drill was at 10am the next morning. This was a cruise out of NY. I don't know if this will be the same for you, but on the four cruises I've taken that have left late in the evening, they've held the drills the next morning. It would be tough to do a drill at 9:30 because that would happen during the late seating dinner. Everything I've read says 9:30 ppm. We are in port the next day (and every day since the ship is in port every day with no at sea days) at 8:00 am - so I guess it would have to be the evening of departure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncmomof2 Posted March 26, 2008 #13 Share Posted March 26, 2008 On both of our Carnival cruises and our RCI, our cabin steward brought the appropriate toddler/child-sized life jacket(s) after seeing our little one(s) and/or we asked for them -- it seems like we had to ask on one or two or maybe all of the cruises, but I don't remember for sure...:o The youngest either of our children ever was was 21 mos, so we just held her when we had to and let her wander around us the rest of the time. On at least one of the carnival cruises, we spent most of the time in a lounge, so it was easy to let the kids wander a bit. That was the most recent, so I'm afraid the details of the others are lost in the mist...:o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr0315 Posted March 26, 2008 #14 Share Posted March 26, 2008 We've sailed Carnival three times with a baby under 2 and the little life vest was always there waiting for us in our cabin. We were told that strollers were not permitted for muster drills (at least the ones that are held outside on deck) because they crowd you together like cattle! The only time we were able to use the stroller was in Alaska on the Spirit. Rainy weather pushed the drill inside to the lounge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grizzy Posted March 27, 2008 #15 Share Posted March 27, 2008 I don't have any advise for you. Our muster drill with our 7 month old was easy, but I can say I'm not looking forward to the muster drill with my 2 year old that takes place at 9:30 pm for my Destiny cruise in May. :eek: We're on the Destiny sailing before you and will have our 19 month old boy with us. Gonna be interesting especially when you factor in the long exciting day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mgkdk Posted March 30, 2008 #16 Share Posted March 30, 2008 My 2cents....please practice like you would if there was a real emergency. That is what this is for. Plan for "just in case". KNOW what you would do if you HAD to evacuate to your muster station. Have a bag ready to grab that would have the essentials you would NEED to have. I know...ya..ya...ya..my family always rolls their eyes at me and I hope I'm NEVER right but...."just in case". Safe travels! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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