Is it realistic to do excursions with a toddler?

We only have experience of going on one cruise, and that was before DD was born, but what we found is that we really enjoyed the shore excursions rather than just going ashore under our own steam. We know it's more expensive than doing it yourself, but we really appreciated the quality of the information we were given, and the fun characters we met on these tours.

We're now considering booking a cruise for next year to the Baltics when DD will be 3, but what I'm wondering is if there'll be excursions which will be suitable for her, as in interesting for mummy & daddy but also something that she won't get completely bored by and therefore frustrated. I guess there are certain ones that we'd definitely have to stay clear of, and maybe favour the 1/2 days ones instead of full day but other than that what to watch out for? Whilst we'd love a cruise, our reason for going is to go an visit the places we dock in, so not doing excursions and staying on board all the time isn't really options for us. Exploring the ship are for at sea days.

Does any others have experiences of this? How have your toddlers coped with excursions?

I really think your choices of excursions will depend on your child...is she easy-going and enjoys riding? If so, a 1/2 day tour would probably work. If your daughter is easily bored and gets fidgety, then even several hours may be too much!

Many folks will book private tours that can be tailor-made for your circumstances...cut short if DD gets irritated, without affecting other folks on the excursion or spending more time somewhere that is interesting to your child.

If you go to the "Port of Call" boards, you can get ideas of what excursions others have found that worked for them.

As CB said, the best of both worlds is a private excursion. Then you're not held hostage in a planned museum or shop with a miserable kid. When I did a Europe/Egypt cruise with young kids we did a mix of private tours and tours with other families on our roll call here. I can't tell you how wonderful it is to be able to stop and get an ice cream, or move along when something isn't as interesting, or get to stop and play with locals in a playground you spotted because you have your own guide who is on your time. That way you get all the same information (and have the guide's full attention, so you can ask all the questions you want), and they can create a more kid friendly itinerary. Most people here told me not to take my kids to Ephesus in Turkey, but with a private guide (who I found on the ports of call boards here), it ended up being one of our favorite places ever. When I booked a tour company, I asked for a kid-friendly guide and no long museum stops and NO shopping stops - if we saw a store we wanted to visit, we asked, but that way we avoided the "sponsored" shopping stops.

I've heard the Baltics are a great choice for young kids. Spend some time on the ports of call boards here and I'm sure you'll find good guides/things to do in each. And the cost is often either less or not much more than the ship tour. Have fun!

Best,

Mia

It's whole different ball of wax with a three year old. The tours aren't geared to this age group. One thing to consider is to leave the three year old on board for tours that aren't age appropriate. In the Baltics, I imagine the sites are relatively close to the ship and if you do an excursion, I'd pick a 1/2 day morning tour when your child will be at her best. By afternoon they may be more fussy. Steer clear of the Hermitage with a three year old- it will be wall-to-wall people and she will have zero interest.

I found that with this age they enjoy exploring. So in each port I chose a fort, a palace with extensive grounds to run around and play grounds where my son could play. Ruins are ideal because they are already ruined. Most historic places have maps that allow you to explore at your own pace. If any of the ports have things to do with animals- an aquarium, a zoo, a science center or amusement park environment- I'd try to switch things up once in a while for her sake.

It really does depend upon your child. At 3, your DD may or may not have dropped her nap, and that will be an important factor in terms of the length of your tour since one parent may need to return with her to the ship to supervise her nap or perhaps you can hire an on ship babysitter to stay with her while she sleeps. Part of the level of difficulty of this trip may be how easily your child adapts to changes in routine, as I believe there may be 3 time changes during a Baltic cruise (I've read that on these boards, but I don't know if that was written by people who started their cruise in England or in Copenhagen).

A girl would probably be potty trained by 3, but if she isn't you might want to consider a cruise line that would let her stay in the kids club if she isn't potty trained (NCL would give you a beeper and one parent needs to stay onboard in case she needs to be changed).

In terms of how your child handles tours, that really will depend upon your child's temperament and personality. My son loves to explore, and at 2 he really enjoyed a walking tour of the city of Cartagena. Many of the churches had interior courtyards he could explore and we took turns supervising him and visiting the sights. Our private tours of cities at 2 and 3 were quite successful. We brought a variety of cereal boxes from the ship with us on the tours, and whenever my son got fussy we let him pick a new cereal and he was happy again. The private tours we booked gave us the flexibility to make changes (which really weren't necessary) but we didn't have to worry about our son holding anyone up or disturbing other guests which was an enormous relief for me.

In the Baltics, your DD might really like the Tivoli gardens in Copenhagen, the Vassa museum in Stockholm (please try to get there as early as possible, since others have noted that it fills up quite quickly) and the Peterhof fountains in St. Petersberg. Tallin, Estonia is supposed to be a very charming small town that is very easy to explore.

I have no children so take this with a grain of salt!!!

Could you perhaps bring a nanny along -- maybe an older niece/cousin (make sure the child is very familiar with the person) -- and then y'all can all do things together but if there's something you and your husband wish to do, you have a built-in babysitter -- if you're not comfortable with leaving your daughter on board while you go off ship at the kids' club. That might be cost prohibitive but I thought I'd mention it.

As CB said' date=' the best of both worlds is a private excursion. Then you're not held hostage in a planned museum or shop with a miserable kid. When I did a Europe/Egypt cruise with young kids we did a mix of private tours and tours with other families on our roll call here. I can't tell you how wonderful it is to be able to stop and get an ice cream, or move along when something isn't as interesting, or get to stop and play with locals in a playground you spotted because you have your own guide who is on your time. That way you get all the same information (and have the guide's full attention, so you can ask all the questions you want), and they can create a more kid friendly itinerary. Most people here told me not to take my kids to Ephesus in Turkey, but with a private guide (who I found on the ports of call boards here), it ended up being one of our favorite places ever. When I booked a tour company, I asked for a kid-friendly guide and no long museum stops and NO shopping stops - if we saw a store we wanted to visit, we asked, but that way we avoided the "sponsored" shopping stops.

 

I've heard the Baltics are a great choice for young kids. Spend some time on the ports of call boards here and I'm sure you'll find good guides/things to do in each. And the cost is often either less or not much more than the ship tour. Have fun!

 

Best,

Mia[/quote']

 

Cute photo, do you have twins?

As others have said, it all depends on the kid(s). Ours are 5 and 7. Our 7 year old is going on cruise number 5 this year. We find that morning excursions work best for us. Even at 5, we find afternoons to be hit and miss with our son. We have early morning kids...so by the afternoon sometimes our son gets tired. We do our excursion in the morning, return to the ship for lunch, and judge from there. Last year, our daughter wanted to go to the kids' club in the afternoon, so we dropped her there and the three of us went back into Grand Cayman, and just walked a bit and grabbed an iced tea. Our son was thrilled he got a little alone time with M and D, and daughter was happy because she had her fun.

Our son turned 4 just a few weeks before his first cruise. The shore excursions were a blast and he loved them, but I agree you will have to know your child and know what you are comfortable with. Our son still napped most days, especially with all the activity, so that got a little tricky. If I were to do it again, I probably would've picked shorter excursions since we had early dinner and it made naps short and somewhat hectic "You need to fall asleep right now!"

Other than that though, it was sooo worth it to take him with us. We did all private tours, which I highly recommend. You can cater more to your family and your child.

In Jamaica, we did a private tour company that took us river tubing, to the beach, and out for an authentic lunch. The river tubing was perfect for him, fun, fairly short (around an hour total), and not too intense. The beach of course was great and good amount of time (we stayed 2 hours).

In Grand Cayman, we took a private company beach snorkeling tour. We tried him in the water for snorkeling, and he was excited, but the sea was choppy so that ended fast. He was happy just hanging on to me that first stop, and the second stop DH and I had to switch off snorkeling. The third stop was the sting rays, which he absolutely loved, as he did the 4th stop which was starfish. Of course, in both stops, lunch was fine. This one had a lot of time on the boat, which he really enjoyed.

In Cozumel, we went to an AI that was also known for its extensive kid's play area. DH got his fill of drinks and food, I got a mix of laying out and playing (I'm pregnant so no drinking for me!) and DS had a blast playing in the sand and the play area.