Bringing Blow Up Pool on Ship

You know this whole mess can be solved by the cruiselines stepping up and making an infant area. . .

The issue is complying with federal health laws. Since RCCI (and most cruise lines) use sea water in their pools and drain it into the ocean - they cannot use chlorine and most other common pool chemicals. That makes the hygene issues surrounding an infant pool very difficult to deal with.

We were playing ping-pong while patiently :rolleyes: waiting to debark the VOS in Bayonne when the health inspectors came to check out the children's area pools. I have never seen so many samples and test strips and stuff in my whole life -- there were three inspectors and 4 RCCI folks. It looked like CSI had invaded!

RCCI's web site for their new ships indicate that they are actively working on this issue but do not appear to have it all nailed down. In matters of hygene I'm glad that the line errs in the way of good hygene rather than taking short cuts. In the mean time it is nice that you can at least be responsible for your own pool.

PS - loved the pics!

He's not only topless, I'm pretty sure he's bottomless.

No! He's got on the swimmies. :D You just can't tell in that photo.

The issue is complying with federal health laws. Since RCCI (and most cruise lines) use sea water in their pools and drain it into the ocean - they cannot use chlorine and most other common pool chemicals. That makes the hygene issues surrounding an infant pool very difficult to deal with.

 

We were playing ping-pong while patiently :rolleyes: waiting to debark the VOS in Bayonne when the health inspectors came to check out the children's area pools. I have never seen so many samples and test strips and stuff in my whole life -- there were three inspectors and 4 RCCI folks. It looked like CSI had invaded!

 

RCCI's web site for their new ships indicate that they are actively working on this issue but do not appear to have it all nailed down. In matters of hygene I'm glad that the line errs in the way of good hygene rather than taking short cuts. In the mean time it is nice that you can at least be responsible for your own pool.

 

PS - loved the pics!

Oh I completly understand that but if Disney can do it then so can the rest of the cruise industry. RCCL paid loads of money to add all kinds of bells/whistles into Freedom and Liberty but they couldn't add an infant water spray area like Disney Magic/Wonder?

Like I said earlier in this post...according to those onboard Freedom recently they ARE trying to outfit the H20 zone with a small area for infants. We're leaving in the morning for FOS so I'll report back what I see. :D

Well - I will let people know how brining the pool goes for us in Dec. We are bringing a pool because since we had to pay full price for my son (on RCCL) - he gets to enjoy the ship just like everyone else. No, we won't be in anyone's "way", but we have as much access to the ship as everyone else.

I am shocked that people are acting as if families are doing something wrong brining a 3 foot pool on a boat that is thousands of feet in length. Come on people, lets be reasonable. The ship is big enough for a couple inflatable pools. If someone actually has to step around it - I'm sure it won't ruin their cruise. Just like it won't ruin our cruise having to step around someone smoking, or step around someone in a wheelchair, or step around someone who got a little too drunk and decided to lie down in the hall (yes, I have had to do that).

Looking forward to hearing about your experience, and I am right there with you about the full price of babies/toddlers who aren't eating any of the food or using the other amenities that are all part and parcel of the price. If the ships provided free baby food, diapers, and some kind of splash fountain, etc., then I would say it is all fair and square, but truth is that they provide pretty much nothing for toddlers and toddlers aren't even allowed in the "kiddie" pool unless they are potty trained. The main pool is 100% understandable, but to have a kiddie pool that the kiddies can't even use is kind of absurd. So, shame on the judgmental people out there that are so self-concerned that they feel it would be an affront to them to have the "inconvenience" of a 2-3 ft pool in their way. Is it an affront to me to have to walk around the smattering of overweight people that take up significantly more space on deck than those that are more fit? Nope. I just walk around them and get on with my vacation. Unless the cruise ships want to price babies/toddlers at a price point that reflects their actual accessibility to the ship's food and amenities, I think it is more than fair for parents to bring whatever entertainment they want to provide to their kids, without question.

Looking forward to hearing about your experience, and I am right there with you about the full price of babies/toddlers who aren't eating any of the food or using the other amenities that are all part and parcel of the price. If the ships provided free baby food, diapers, and some kind of splash fountain, etc., then I would say it is all fair and square, but truth is that they provide pretty much nothing for toddlers and toddlers aren't even allowed in the "kiddie" pool unless they are potty trained. The main pool is 100% understandable, but to have a kiddie pool that the kiddies can't even use is kind of absurd. So, shame on the judgmental people out there that are so self-concerned that they feel it would be an affront to them to have the "inconvenience" of a 2-3 ft pool in their way. Is it an affront to me to have to walk around the smattering of overweight people that take up significantly more space on deck than those that are more fit? Nope. I just walk around them and get on with my vacation. Unless the cruise ships want to price babies/toddlers at a price point that reflects their actual accessibility to the ship's food and amenities, I think it is more than fair for parents to bring whatever entertainment they want to provide to their kids, without question.

Since this thread is about 9 years old, I'm pretty sure that poster isn't going to report back. Cruise lines make a majority of their profit on alcohol, casino, shopping, spa services, etc., that adults use. They would much rather another adult was sharing your cabin, and not a baby, because they don't make any profit on a baby. DCL and some RCCL ships have splash zones for diapered kids. Pools on ships are not equipped to handle fecal contamination like pools on land.

We waited until all of the kids were potty trained and old enough for the lids clubs before cruising with them. However, a small blow up pool on the deck wouldn't bother me.

You would dump the soiled water in a drain, just like all the other nasty contaminated water on deck. They will be in a diaper in a self contained area that would not effect other guests.

They made a lot off my child with all those photos I just had to buy

Can the 12 month old not just wade in the really shallow part, i.e. not swimming?

No.

Can the 12 month old not just wade in the really shallow part, i.e. not swimming?

You've gotten the same response to this same question you've asked multiple times. Children who are not completely toilet trained are NOT allowed in pools or hot tubs or whatever water areas a ship has. No dipping toes, no splashing around. Bring a small blow up pool if you insist on your baby going into the water.

I wanted to add that I brought a blow-up pool for my 2.5 year old on Norwegian Dawn. There was a perfect spot for it by the kiddie T-Rex pool -- I filled the pool with a kiddie pail from the shower right there -- but my daughter wasn't too interested.

The pool, the Intex Inflatable 33.5 In. X 33.5 In. X 9 In. square green pool, bought on Amazon, fit exactly into the bathroom floorspace in front of the sink and between the shower stall and toilet stall and worked perfectly for bathing both the 2.5 year old and the 5 year old.

You want a blow-up TUB...not a pool! Just big enough for splashing....a pool is too big. The tub is useful in a shower for bathing, too.

Empty into a floor or shower drain...not onto the deck or into the pool!