Ideas for what to do with our 2yo on Explorer of the Seas

[magsnden]

Hi everyone!

 

i posted a similar request on the RCCI boards, and i'm really counting on you friendly and experienced parents to help me out, as i encountered very few practical ideas, and more "bad idea to bring a 2yo in the first place."

 

i understand that our 2yo will not be allowed in the pools, and was hoping for some ideas (besides letting him eat whenever he wants - lol) on what kind of things we can do with him while one of us is with our 4 yo in the pool.

 

i know of the playtime (though i don't remember what it's called), but i thought it's only for about 45 min in the mornings.

 

 

we're leaving this saturday, and we are VERY excited about this trip - i just think i'll feel a little better if i have some good ideas.

 

thank you all in advance!

[Patsfan3]

In Dec we took our two year old on the Mariner. He loved it! We had a PR and he loved to people watch. He also really enjoyed the mini golf.

 

He loved the evening shows, the ice shows and a concert one night.

 

I think his favorite thing was riding the glass elevator.:)

[magsnden]

In Dec we took our two year old on the Mariner. He loved it! We had a PR and he loved to people watch. He also really enjoyed the mini golf.

 

He loved the evening shows, the ice shows and a concert one night.

 

I think his favorite thing was riding the glass elevator.:)

 

does PR mean promenade room? because you reminded me of that novelty - we have one too!

 

thanks for posting, it's so nice to finally hear that a 2 year old (and his parents) can actually have a good time on a ship!

 

please everyone, keep 'em coming !!

[Julienatul]

We took our DD to an empty lounge during the day and let her toss a small ball around. She loved chasing after it. She also loved exploring the ship. The disco has great lights they can chase around during the day when no one is in it. You could always bring a small blow-up pool to splash in. Even just walking around exploring the decks are an adventure for a two-year-old.

[sljordan1]

We took our son when he was 2 on the Mariner. He loved it also!

 

We did the mini golf several times. We did the 1hr play time thing with him and he enjoyed that. He loved shuffleboard. That is on deck 4 or 5 and it is shaded so it is nice to gte out of the sun. He made up his own rules but had a greta time playign with us! He generally just enjoyed wandering around the ship and going in the elevators and looking at things.

 

You think several days at sea might take a lot of filling in but really it flies by. Our son still napped and we would take him for a stoller rider around the promenade deck until he fell asleep after lunch. AFter he woke we would go upstairs and find the ice cream and then wander around a bit and then it was time to get ready for dinner.

 

I am sure you will have a great time!

[magsnden]

thank you all for your suggestions! i really didn't think about any empty lounges for him to just run around a little ( i have only gone on 1 cruise and it was quite a while ago!).

 

it's a nice idea to go find the ice cream shop and share a dessert with him after his nap. well, maybe we'll each have to get our own ice cream - i'm pregnant and am loving ice cream these days. i guess i might even get to nap too! it really is going to be a vacation for me too!

 

please keep your ideas coming, i'm getting more and more excited and relaxed with each post!

thank you!:)

[KyleesMom]

I was pregnant when we took our 2 year old on our first cruise and we had a great time. We were on carnival so she did do kids camp but she really enjoyed dancing on the pool deck to the band...we took color/sticker books with us to EVERY meal to help her sit still longer...plus those magnadoodles are the best ( with the pen hooked to the side). We would let her pick out some candy from the candy shop everyday...and the stairs...she loved to go up and down them..plus it helped me work off all that dessert:) We also took a kiddie float and she would play in that instead of the pool...hope that helps!

You will have a great time. It was alot of work...but worth it to have a family vacation.

We are planning on cruising again when my 10 month old turns 2!

Happy Cruising!!

Tif

[gvi]

We didn't cruise with our boys until the youngest was 4, but we did travel a lot with our boys at that age. (Wasn't for lack of wanting to!) One thing we found invaluable were light sticks - the kind you snap to make light up? The boys would play with them constantly - and they make a great night light in a cruise cabin. (We STILL travel with them and our oldest is 10.) The bracelet ones are great too!

 

My four year old will play with a set of poker chips for hours - just stacking and sorting and stacking and sorting. We have some that are larger so I don't have to worry about the choking hazzard. Another favorite of his since he was smaller is a set of playing cards - especially if they have fun pictures. He doesn't need anyone to play with him, but sometimes we would let him make up his own games to play with us.

 

Just some thoughts. You will have a wonderful time!