First Time Cruise On The Allure With Baby.....Need Help

Hey Everyone,

I'm writing this for my sister who is not a CC member. She will be going on the Allure in June with her DH and Son, who will be 1 year and 6 days old. That being said......

What is there to do with/for the baby?

What are the does and don't's with/for the baby?

What will cost and what will be complimentary regarding the baby?

Can she and her husband get any alone time?

I have already sent her CC's Do's and Don't's for cruising with a baby article, along with some threads from here that other have posted about their experiences with having a baby on board.

I know she is looking for general info, but also if any of you have specifics for the Allure itself, or personal experiences I know she'll love it. Her husbands parents are taking them and the rest of their family on the cruise so leaving the baby at home is not an option.

Thanks in advance!

Whatever they do with the baby at home, they will do on the ship. There are no "dos or don'ts"!

The baby (toddler) is a "soul"...they will pay for the child, just like another person...tips, too!

Allure does have group babysitting...so sure, they can get some "alone" time.

This is not rocket science...they are a family, and will do family things. Sounds like they will have some "helping hands"...good for them!

They will need to bring any and everything that is "baby specific"...all meds, diapers, wipes, supplies, etc...that they will need...the ship has little, if anything for babies.

The Royal Babies nursery is I believe $6-8.00 per hour...We (grandparents) were very interested in the nursery onboard our Oasis cruise since we knew we would be cruising as a family with a 17 month old grandson in May..We were amazed at the facilities offered by RCI and don't doubt your family will be too.

There are 2 options for alone time--the nursery (around $8/hour) or in room babysitting (around $19/hour and only offered if their are staff members available to do this). We used the nursery one night & it was great!

The baby will probably enjoy the carousel, the fountains in the promenade (under Rising Tide), the splash area for diapered children and all the sights/sounds. He might like the aqua show and the character breakfast.

The baby will pay a full third person fare and full gratuities.

Make sure they take plenty of diapers, wipes, baby toiletries & baby medications (even if they've never needed them before). I'd suggest a stroller &/or carrier for navigating the ship.

Is there any complimentary baby care/babysitting? Just want to give my sister a heads up on what to budget for.

Hi

We cruised with a 1yo on Brilliance of the Seas on our last cruise.

There is no free babycare, we used in cabin babysitting every night after he'd gone to sleep and was none the wiser! It cost $19/hr and was worth every penny and they sent the same 2 lovely people every night. We booked it as soon as we embarked at guest services as the babysitting is available on first come first serve basis.

They also had a toy borrowing programme for free from the kids club which we utilised so no need to take toys.

Plenty of food options were available.

We took enough nappies wipes etc to last the cruise.

We had a great time and I'm sure your sister will too. Allure is obviously much bigger than Brilliance and has even more facilities.

Is there any complimentary baby care/babysitting? Just want to give my sister a heads up on what to budget for.

There is no free babysitting. There is in cabin for $19/hour (not always guaranteed to be available as crew members volunteer to do it).

The nursery is around $8 per hour. The nursery has a minimum of 2 crew members at all times (more depending on number of kids). They have cribs, rocking chairs, changing station, toys, videos, etc. They will feed, change & put little ones to sleep (in crib or stroller depending on parent requests). They also provide parents with a phone that works on the ship in case they need to reach you (we registered day 2 & had the phone all week). DD loved the nursery!!

There are some programs for toddlers/babies that are free, but parents must attend with them.

RCCL just ended their partnership with Fisher Price so the future of toy lending is up in the air (RCCL says no more, but some who have sailed recently report that they've been told it is available while they still have toys).