Let's see if I've got this right

[JohannaM]

I've been browsing the boards for a while, seeing what I could put together to make our cruise as successful as I could. We're sailing in the beginning of August 2008 to Alaska with our, will then be, 20 month old son. We're on Celebrity, outside cabin, no verandah. We live local to the port, so it will be a nice easy drive too and from the ship.

 

Grandma and Grandpa (Oma and Opa) are also coming along - we got a cabin two doors down, which is nice. We're at early seating, they are at late, but that's okay, we don't necessarily want to be on top of each other the whole time. We're planning on bringing the baby monitor so maybe we can play cards in their cabin at night, will this work?

 

From what I've read - bring the Pack and Play - just in case - some people have had good cribs for the babies, some not so much. Some the sheets are good, some not so much.

 

Bring the umbrella stroller - not the big Graco. Store it in the shower when not in use.

 

Don't need to bring booster seat for dinner - the high chairs should do fine.

 

We were thinking of seeing if we could coordinate for one of the formal nights that we get a sitter and go to the formal dinner with my parents. Do you think this will be too challenging seeing as we're normally at different sittings?

 

Don't bring too many toys - he'll be too busy having a good time. I've also read the crew tends to be really good to the little ones, missing their own. Other people's experience on X?

 

One of the reasons we picked X was that it has a daily program for little ones. What have other people experienced with this program?

 

We can get milk, but it might not be whole milk. Bring a small container of dishsoap for washing sippy cups.

 

Other than that... I think most ports we'll probably just walk around town. That way we won't have to stick to time schedules for coming and going on excursions.

 

Oh, one more questions - lifejackets. Do we need to buy one and bring it along for him, not only for on the ship, but I was wondering for tenders (which we use in Sitka)?

 

Thanks everyone, and thanks for your other posts - I'm learning a lot.

[6rugrats]

You do not need to buy a lifejacket; they should have an appropriately sized one for your son onboard.

 

Dinner seating is assigned right? That might make it difficult for you to dine at a time for which you are not assigned. Have you thought about trying to change to the same seating, once you are onboard?

[rebeccalouise]

Have a wonderful time. For the night that you and your parents dine- get the incabin sitting and go to the specialty restaurant. It will be well worth it.

 

You probably can't sit at the late dining with your parents.

 

Celebrity is great for traveling with tots. :)

[6rugrats]

There is no specialty restaurant on Mecury.

[CeleBrat]

Wow Johanna! You have done a great job getting prepared for your cruise! Aren't these boards great for information?

 

We have been cruising since the kids were 4 months old, and have a few suggestions:

 

1--Recommend that you DO try to alter your dining so that you are sitting with your parents. Preferably the early sitting. That way there will be (4) sets of hands that can help keep your baby/toddler entertained as dinner can sometimes last a long time. Upwards of 1.5 hours!

 

2--We never had luck using a baby monitor. I believe the metal walls of the ship interfere with the reception.

 

3--We have never brought along an infant lifejacket for the tenders. If it is a ships tender (actual lifeboat), then there should be infant lifejackets stored onboard. If it is a shore tender (belonging to Sitka), then you may want to ask where the infant lifejackets are located so that in the event of an emergency you are prepared. As I recall, the tender ride in Sitka isn't very long--5 minutes perhaps.

 

5--We sailed Celebrity for our honeymoon (14 years ago!!), so have no idea what kind of milk they have on-board. But--I bet if you go to the Celebrity website you could find info on how to request the milk as a "special need". Most cruiselines have a "special needs" or "dietary" department that can be contacted beforehand.

 

What other ports will you be visiting besides Sitka? We cruised Alaska when the kids were 3 and 5, and can recommend a few kid-friendly activities for Ketchikan, Juneau, and Victoria.

 

Have fun!

 

CeleBrat

[JohannaM]

Thanks for the replies!

 

No, there is no specialty restaurant on the Mercury. My folks prefer the later seating, and for us, the earlier one is a must because of our son. However, I will leave it up to my parents if they want to change or not. They might, but I won't ask them to. Althought your point of a few extra sets of hands to keep them happy is a good one! I'd say we'd bring the small dvd player as I've seen mentioned, but he doesn't watch tv (simply not interested) so that wouldn't do the trick. I figure if push comes to shove I understand on the Mercury the casual dining is also excellent, and if we need to, we'll go that route if we find dinner is too long for him to handle.

 

Thanks for the info re: lifejackets and baby monitors. Both good to know. We'll bring the monitor anyhow, but we won't plan on that then.

 

Other stops - we'll also be in Ketchikan (leave at 1 PM) and Juneau. I'd thought of maybe finding some cool play ground to bring him to - let him burn off some energy, but haven't had too much luck on the town's websites. So kid friendly activites would be really appreciated.

[wrangler4u]

Our baby monitor worked on the Mercury back in 2004. We were in an aft cabin and it worked right outside on the deck. For us what worked for dining was this. Take the girls to early dinner, or order from the kids menu and have it delivered to our room, feed them. Get the ready for bed, (shower, jammies, snuggles) put to bed. We'd get ready for late dinner, have in room sitter come, and then off we'd go to the show and then dinner then a half our or so of exploring the ship. The sitter was way worth it. It was like a date every night. The Mercury at the time had a system that you could set up and call into your room and "listen in" like a monitor to listen to what was going on. We had a pager that the sitter could use to page us if there was a problem. We really liked our sitter so requested her to come every night. Also, when you get on board, tell your concierge that you have your son, and what type of things they could recommend for you to do. Ours was fabulous, and we were grateful for his suggestions! Our room steward told us the day we boarded that he would put fresh milk in our mini bar every night! We could also check out a box of toys from the kids club. Hope you have a great time!

[crusinmama06]

Great job! You picked up alot. :D Now you'll have to come back and tell us how it went.

[aaklang]

Sounds like you have made really good plans. We are also going to Alaska on Celebrity (but in May on Infinity). Our son will be almost one year. I was able to call Celebrity and get Gerber baby food pre-ordered and it is supposed to be waiting in our room when we board. Your baby is probably not eating baby food anymore, but if she is, you should check into that. We plan to use the in-room babysitting at least a couple of nights. Most of the time, he will join us at early dinner though.

 

I'll try to post a review in late May or early June so be on the lookout for that. Hopefully I will have some tips and maybe I'll find some good playgrounds in the ports. One thing I do know - we are bringing very few toys. I went away this weekend and he was happy playing with random household items and barely touched the toys I brought.

[VPIcruiser]

Hi. I would love to hear your kid friendly suggestions. Our DS will be almost three years old and DD will be 15 months. We are planning to go to the glacier in Juneau, the raptor center in Sitka, and either the duck tour or the lumbar jack show in Ketchican. We cruised to Alaska before having kids but things will be different this time.

 

Thanks.

[Luxuriate]

We had in-room babysitting on the Mercury for our four-day PNW cruise last October. GREAT! A wonderful young lady from Jamaica babysat our 2 year-old son. She mainly just watched him sleep. I swear she just sat there and watched him the whole time on the first day. The second night I told her to bring a movie or a book. She did but said some parents expect her to actually sit and "watch" the baby sleeping. Ok????

 

I was impressed with Albertina and definitely trusted by little boy to her.

 

Cheryl

[Mercury]

Hope you have a wonderful cruise - we went on the Mercury to Alaska in 2000 for our honeymoon and absolutely LOVED it!

 

I have also been doing quite a bit of research as we will be going on our first cruise with DD who will also be 20 months when we cruise in July.

 

You mentioned that X has a daily program for little ones, but as far as I know it only starts from 3 years (same as Princess). Not sure if anyone who has been on X can verify this? We have however had replies from other helpful parents on this board that children younger than this age are allowed in the play area if they are supervised.

 

(PS) Are you originally from South Africa? Ouma and Oupa are very often used here to refer to Granny and Grandpa!

 

Happy Cruising!

[JohannaM]

Celebrity and RCCL have a Fisher Price sponsored program, and they have times especially for the kids under the age of three. From the X web site:

 

Toddler Time

Children participating in organized X-Club events must be age 3 and fully potty trained. However you can accompany your child to the Fun Factory or any organized activity. Toddler Time is also offered to allow the parents of toddlers and their children to interact with other children their age. The X-Club team will provide suitable toys and products for your toddlers. Please check the X-Club daily program for times and locations. In accordance with USPH policies and standards, Celebrity has provided each vessel with lavatory based changing tables and baby wipes.

 

From what I've learned I think there are two times a day when you can bring your little ones in to play especially? Not quite sure, but this was a selling point for me.

 

Nope, not South African, but Dutch background - same roots!

 

Do I need to specifically request a children's menu for him in advance? (like you would any specialty diet?) or will it be available at the table like we would order?

 

Thanks everyone for such good info - especially about requesting the milk! This is great.

[TheRaven]

Having previously lived in ketchikan ( im 1/2 Tlinget) theres a good playground near the heritage center i think it was off of the Schoenbar bypass but im not sure ill call my brother ( still lives there) for more info good luck have a great time

[6rugrats]

Unless your child has some sort of problem, a children's menu is not a specialty diet, and you should be given on in the dining room.

[crusinmama06]

 

Do I need to specifically request a children's menu for him in advance? (like you would any specialty diet?) or will it be available at the table like we would order?

 

Thanks everyone for such good info - especially about requesting the milk! This is great.

 

Children's Menu - available in the dining rooms...

 

[Kerry's Girls]

 

Oh, one more questions - lifejackets. Do we need to buy one and bring it along for him, not only for on the ship, but I was wondering for tenders (which we use in Sitka)?

 

Thanks everyone, and thanks for your other posts - I'm learning a lot.

 

They will have baby/child life jackets on the tender, but your child won't be able to wear it - it's only for emergencies. If you want to be able to put your child in one for the tender ride, you'll need to bring one. I've done this with my twins - just makes me feel better if we or they were jolted overboard I know they wouldn't sink before I could get to them, but I've NEVER heard of that happening.

 

Best,

Mia

[smoothy]

Thanks for the replies!

 

No, there is no specialty restaurant on the Mercury. My folks prefer the later seating, and for us, the earlier one is a must because of our son. However, I will leave it up to my parents if they want to change or not. They might, but I won't ask them to. Althought your point of a few extra sets of hands to keep them happy is a good one! I'd say we'd bring the small dvd player as I've seen mentioned, but he doesn't watch tv (simply not interested) so that wouldn't do the trick. I figure if push comes to shove I understand on the Mercury the casual dining is also excellent, and if we need to, we'll go that route if we find dinner is too long for him to handle.

 

Thanks for the info re: lifejackets and baby monitors. Both good to know. We'll bring the monitor anyhow, but we won't plan on that then.

 

Other stops - we'll also be in Ketchikan (leave at 1 PM) and Juneau. I'd thought of maybe finding some cool play ground to bring him to - let him burn off some energy, but haven't had too much luck on the town's websites. So kid friendly activites would be really appreciated.

 

What you may want to do is buy street maps for the cities (or if you are a member of AAA maybe get them there) and they should indicate parks on them. If you want to get really fancy, Google Earth the parks you find on the maps and see if they have play structures