Solstice with a child

[Linda-E]

Has anyone been on Solstice with a young child? DH and I are cruising with DD, SIL, and granddaughter (20 months old) on January 18th.

 

Are high chairs easy to find in Oceanview cafe?

 

Did anyone try in-cabin babysitting at night and how did that go? We are hoping to have a babysitter for a couple of hours at night to go to shows, casino, etc.

 

Were there any children's activities that one of us could accompany her to? Any toys, etc. that can be borrowed from the kids' center?

 

Thanks for any info. :D

[ellbon]

I can only say children under 3 on any cruise have to be with the parents. No cruiseship wil babysit at night a child that young. I have seen the little ones sleeping all over the ship.

 

I have been told by young parents that you can take the child to the play area and use the toys there. parent can not leave them there.

 

it is goibng to be a long week. Good Luck!

[cruisebunny32]

Although I have not been on the Soltice class ship yet, I have sailed with both of my children when they were young on M-class. I have seen an increase in activites and events for people traveling with you children.

 

Yes there are highchairs and one of the waiters will be happy to get one for you if you can't find one.

 

They have childrens menus in the Dining Room. Plenty of kid friendly foods including oatmeal, yogurt, fresh fruit for breakfast. They also have cereal in boxes which is good to grab for snack later. At dinner you can get the fruit and veggie of the day pureed if you like. They will also do mashed potatos. The kids menu is great and they can cut up fruit for appetizer. Sometimes you need to be creative...but you can do it. After all you are paying for 3rd person rates...get everything you can!

 

They kids club is for 3 year olds and potty trained (they ask for birth cert) but the last 2 years on M-class they had a "toddler room" with age specific toys and games. I could take her to any of the programs...I just had to stay with her. They did have a toy chest that you can sign out and borrow for the week. It appeared that they clean the toys regularly. They also have a contract with Leap Frog.

 

If the baby still eats babyfood or formula..call customer service and order the food and formula at least 6 weeks ahead. Tell them exactly what you need (1 peas, 1 carrots, 1 applsauce prefer Gerber) It will be in the cabin when you arrive, or shortly after. I ordered my specific formula and got what I asked for. I was leary of this but it was fine. Not sure if they do any specialty formula. My dtr was on Good Start. Someone will call you to confirm your order. You do have to supply your own diapers and wipes. They have changing tables in most of the public bathrooms.

 

I suggest bringing a stoller and one of those devices where you carry your kid on your back. They do provide a Pack and Play. Bring a sheet from home if you are afraid of allergies.

 

I tried the in room baby sitting. You have to book it ahead at pursers desk. A young girl will come and give you her pager, So she can beep you. They have a fee for this. We gave an extra tip. She put our child to bed for us. We used it for when we went to specialty restaurant.

 

any other questions? Please post. You can have a good time with a baby! We did! My kids are 8 and 3 and my 8 year old has been on 6 cruises. (mom and dad went alone 2 xs)

[Linda-E]

Thanks very much cruisebunny32 for sharing your experiences.

 

I hope Solstice has that toddler area too. We are four adults and we will each spend a couple of hours a day with our granddaugher on sea days. We're bringing a small inflatable pool and some other toys that she loves as well. We'll also bring a couple of pack and play sheets.

 

We are very interested in the night time babysitting and I will check with the purser as soon as we board. DH and I are dining in Murano one night; DD and SIL in Murano another night; and all four of us in Tuscan Grill (after Sadie's bedtime) on yet another.

 

Robin, X website says babysitting is available for 12 months and over. We plan to see all three new shows!

 

Would still love details from anyone who has been on Solstice with a toddler.

[ellbon]

I have only been on princess and see strollers at night and i mean late. maybe Celebrity is better at helping parents with little ones. i have never been on a ship that has an area for the under 3 set but the parents tell me they stay with the child in a the 3 and older room so the child can play.

[Linda-E]

Robin,

That's why we chose to cruise on Solstice over the new Ruby Princess. :)

 

Linda

[ellbon]

Robin,

That's why we chose to cruise on Solstice over the new Ruby Princess. :)

 

Linda

about two years ago a locla editor wrote of her time on RCI with a child under 2, Parents were not happy campers at all.

 

I hope you have better luck with help. they could not get a baby sitter ever and could not do many port trips due to this child. The older one had a good time.

 

I will enjoy seeing the ship in 13 days and I will be looking for the little people and seieng what mom can do for help.

[cruisebunny32]

Linda..good idea to share the wealth and everyone take her for a few hours. My husband always took the baby back to the cabin in the afternoon for a nap and I had time to go shopping on my own. That was luxurious. We had people with us everytime too...and they took the kids for periods of time and that was nice.

 

The staff on the ships LOVE kids and your baby will be well taken care of. We have had waiters give our kids toys, make things for the kids from the napkins and papers, and bring them extra treats. They all have their own kids which the miss very much. We fondly remember our waiters for what they did for our kids. On my first cruise with my son (he was 8 months) he was still on formula and of course started squirming and wanting a bottle just as my meal was being served. I decided to feed him so everyone around us would enjoy their dinner. You can't feed a baby and eat at the same time unless you have finger foods, so our waiter came back, cut my meat and fed me! I felt very pampered! The cabin steward/stewardesses are also great. I remember we had one named Rebecca and we would come around the corner and my son would yell "rebecca!" and she would come out to see him. She would unlock my door if I had a sleeping child with me. It was just all around great.

 

I am sure you will have fun on your cruise. I am anxious to hear how it all went. Don't let those negative types get you down! They haven't experienced it...I think it is so great to take a vacation with the entire family!

[pesto126]

Agreed - we took our daughter on a MIL cruise when she was 18mos old.. the only problem, she wasn't allowed to go into the water because she was still in diapers - at that age - they see the water and certainly want to go in! Overall though - it was a great trip and I have very fond memories of her all dressed up, dancing to the music after dinner and enjoying the spotlight.

 

We were on the 12/7 solstice sailing and although we didn't bring her along, I did see a few kids. Most were 5+ so spent most of the time in the kids place - but there were at least 4 or 5 younger than 1 year olds around as well. It was very nice to see families spending time together on vacation!

[kitty9]

Celebrity does have in cabin sitting and group sitting for those 12 months and older. The private sitting is not assured and you must sign up for the service as soon as you board the ship. If there are no volunteers, there's nothing that can be done other than using the group sitting in the kids club that starts at 10pm and goes until 1am. Private sitting is $8 an hour and the group sitting is $6, payable in cash only.

[Joanniebop]

Hi..Just reading info about the Solstice in order to make an informed decision to book or not. Can't believe that you are from Deptford..so am I.

Since I lost my DH recently I am thinking about going alone and just searching for any info to help me make my decision. Of course I should take this to another forum, but just had to say Hi to my neighbor in Deptford, NJ.

[Linda-E]

Thanks to those who posted positive comments. I am sure that we will have a wonderful time! I'll post when we return.

[Longboysfan]

I did walk through the new tots area on Solstice - deck 15 forward elevators.

It was spectacular. Lots of things for the kiddies and interactive toys. Every child had a cubby for their things. I am sure you could use the area or borrow some toys they have there.

[cruisebunny32]

Joanniebop:

 

Celebrity is the best in my opinion. The do not have Single rates, however...so it can become pricy. Try to get a friend to go along.

 

 

Long Boys...glad you were able to walk through. So the area is nice? I have heard good and bad so I was just wondering. Did it seem like they had a lot of counselers? Did you see any of the kids day planners?

[Linda-E]

I thought I'd report back that we had a wonderful cruise on Solstice with our darling granddaughter. There were lots of kids onboard.

 

Celebrity provided a nearly new pack and play, which was fine except that it made the cabin quite hard to navigate at night. Food was no problem - there are lots of choices for breakfast and lunch in the buffet. There's a kids menu in the MDR but the waiters brought the "Princess" anything she wanted. Blueberries and ice cream were waiting at the conclusion of every meal! Between courses, Dad or Grandpa would take her for a walk - the bartenders at the Martini Bar were her favorite show.

 

The kids area is bright and clean and has toys that you can sign out for the week. They have lots of Leap Frog toys. From 12-2 and 5-7 pm, there is toddler playtime when they can play if accompanied by an adult, but we went at other times too and it was never crowded. The staff seemed very nice.

 

We brought an umbrella stroller, which was a good decision. It folds out of the way, but we used it often to walk the decks. We toured every nook and cranny of the ship. Since she's not diaper trained, we didn't use the pools, however she and other toddlers played in the fountains near the pool (like a big set of sprinklers).

 

She slept through San Juan (including a ride on the free shuttle bus), toured St. Martin with us and an excellent private guide, walked around Tortola with her parents, and skipped Labadee - it was a nice quiet day on the ship.

 

I highly recommend the photographers on this ship. We were able to get some nice formal shots. In addition, we did a private sitting both in the studio and in one of the lounges. It was expensive - but they took the best photos ever, both posed and candids.

 

Finally, the babysitting service was excellent! DD went to the pursers desk immediately upon boarding to request a sitter every night except the first. It took a couple follow-up phone calls, but the sitter was excellent! She was prompt, courteous, and the baby loved her!

 

Any Solstice questions, feel free to ask.

 

Happy travels,

Linda

[martodd]

I am so glad you had a positive experience. We love cruising with our children that are now 8, 12 and 16 and have been doing it since they were babies. I agree that the waitstaff can really spoil them!!! One cruise we were on when our oldest was 2 the Maitre D' had a dish of the chocolate goodies from the midnight buffet the night before waiting for her at the table when we came in because he heard us say she would be to tired to go.

Once again, I am so happy that you enjoyed yourself and that you are helping to develop a love of cruising in the future generation.;)

[cruisebunny32]

Linda...I am so glad that the experience was great for you. I knew it would be. Celebrity continues to pamper even its smallest cruisers and that is why we keep coming back. Those waiters are really something!

 

Marti...hey there friend!

 

The stroller or some sort of pack is a must!

 

I had forgotten about the pack and play....but it was in our cabin too. Glad it could fold up during the day! We had a regular portable crib on our first cruise with my son and it did not fold up...they took away one of our chairs (we didn't have a sofa on Century) to make it fit...and that was a little rough. But we made it through and it did not ruin our cruise. We were happy to have him with us.

 

As far as spoiling the kids...that is very true. So true that I think my son missed the waiters when we returned home just as much as we did! My 8 month old son would not eat much baby food after the cruise...not after he ate so well on the ship!

[familyfuninthesun]

Thanks Linda for starting this post and for all those that wrote in. I have learned so much! Taking our 5 year old and almost 2 year old sons on the Solstice in January. Posted my first posting a few min. ago and then came across these postings. Answered many ?'s. Glad you had a wonderful trip. I hope the kids keep busy during the day so they crash at night. :) Happy Travels! ~Laura