Looking for advice on travelling with a Toddler

I already posted this on the RCL board, but it was suggested to me that I try posting it here as well:

Hello fellow cruisers,

My wife and I are thinking of booking our 6th cruise, #2 with RCL. However, this will be our first time travelling anywhere with our toddler, who will be about 21 months at the time of travel. The idea scares me! But we haven't left the city in over 2 years and I think it's time!

We are thinking of going on the Freedom on 8/24. We are bringing my wife's mother along as a babysitter, and going to get 2 non-adjoining rooms (one balcony for us, and an inside cabin for the babysitter and the baby).

I would love to hear your "generic" toddler travel advice, and as well I have some questions:

1. Has anyone ever brought a bed-rail with as an alternative to dragging a whole portable crib/pack and play? I was thinking of buying this:

http://www.toysrus.ca/product/index.jsp?productId=2685702

I just want to make sure it will fit on the bed (or maybe the couch).

2. How is the daycare? My son will need help "transitioning" as he isn't so fast to warm up to strangers. Are they willing and able to accomodate children who have some trouble adjusting? I've seen some overall positive reviews about the service, just wondering...

3. Has anyone ever tried to use a baby monitor on board? The one I have is known for it's strong signal strength (Motorolla MBP36). I know it won't work very far, but our rooms are about 15-20 rooms apart. It has a range of about 600' when unobstructed but I don't know how much interference/metal will get in the way. It would be nice if it worked so he can sleep in one room while the adults hang out in the other.

4. How do you get your little one from the airplane to the cruise? I'm thinking of renting a car.. That would mean a lot of mom and baby waiting while dad (me) goes and rents a car, and later while I return the car. I just don't see any other safe way to travel around Florida. I guess the alternative is a taxi, but I'm guessing they aren't so happy to wait while you install and remove car seats!

Thanks for reading!

We just returned from the Freedom on Sunday with our son who is 10 months old. We had a wonderful time and would not 2nd guess going again!

We used the pack n play they have on the ship which I'd recommend. I'm not sure if the rail would fit on the bed but I def. do not think it'd fit on the couch. They had a weird shape at the bottom, not your normal couch style near the bottom.

We loved royal tots and our son did too. He is also very open to new people so I know that made it a bit easier. However, the staff was wonderful when we saw them with the children who were having a harder time. We really have nothing bad to say about the service and would recommend highly. They do give you a phone so if they have any issues they will give you a call if they need you to come back.

Did not use monitor.

We rented a private car and they provided the car seat for us free of charge. They picked us up from MCO and dropped us off at the hotel in Cocoa Beach and then did a return trip. We did take the hotel shuttle to the port and we held him during that portion.

I did bring sitters on trips (one on land and one at sea) in the past and here is what worked for me. I gave the sitter her own outside cabin. Her hours were mutually agreed up on in advance. It worked fine and we are still good friends. Just make sure that everyone is on the same page.

I paid for all of her travel expenses but no salary on top of that. She had mornings free. She was responsible for the baby from 12-3 and from 6-10 every day. The rest of the time she was free to do what she wanted and I paid all of her excursions and non-alcoholic expenditures. She even went on one excursion without the baby and us. We made the trip worth her while.

What I realized is that there is in cabin babysitting and now Royal has daycare for little ones as well. The next cruise I did not bring a sitter but the grandparents pitched in and I used the in cabin sitting at night. It was much more cost effective than the $ 2000 I spent on the sitter on previous trips and that was just for her expenses- no salary.

Oh sorry- I misread the OP's post. I thought they were bringing grandma AND a sitter. Sorry for all the unsolicited advice on sitters!

I think the only thing I would change in your plan is to have connecting rooms. I did have connecting cabins when there were four of us and it worked out just fine. My son slept in the other room but did spend most of his waking hours in our cabin. This way the adults can hang out in the other cabin and on some ships you can take out the divider on the balcony and make one big balcony.

Oh sorry- I misread the OP's post. I thought they were bringing grandma AND a sitter. Sorry for all the unsolicited advice on sitters!

 

I think the only thing I would change in your plan is to have connecting rooms. I did have connecting cabins when there were four of us and it worked out just fine. My son slept in the other room but did spend most of his waking hours in our cabin. This way the adults can hang out in the other cabin and on some ships you can take out the divider on the balcony and make one big balcony.

That's tempting, actually. It's only about a $700 difference ... I might just book two balconies side by side :) I'll see what the wife thinks!

I'm very lucky that my wife's mother is basically an unpaid part-time sitter. She drives my dear son to daycare every single day! When he was a colicky infant, she used to come every morning and watch him so we could sleep from 7-11am. I'm so happy that I'm able to take her on this trip to thank her for all she does for us!

Grandmas are great aren't they! My oldest son is the apple of my Mom's eye and she did so much with him when he was little. She absolutely adored him and I'm sure your Mother in law is the same way. Have a wonderful trip!:)

I already posted this on the RCL board, but it was suggested to me that I try posting it here as well:

 

3. Has anyone ever tried to use a baby monitor on board? The one I have is known for it's strong signal strength (Motorolla MBP36). I know it won't work very far, but our rooms are about 15-20 rooms apart. It has a range of about 600' when unobstructed but I don't know how much interference/metal will get in the way. It would be nice if it worked so he can sleep in one room while the adults hang out in the other.

 

 

 

Thanks for reading!

While the baby monitor may be known for its signal strength in homes, placing it in a steel box like a ship's cabin will render it virtually useless. Unless you have adjoining or adjacent cabins, or directly across the passageway, you will probably hear nothing. Just looked, and saw it's a video monitor, which will almost definitely not work between cabins. It even says that with both units indoors, it is limited to 100 feet, which would be about 8-10 cabins away, and that would be if they were wood and drywall, not steel.

I don't know if you had mentioned how old your toddler is. if you had, I apologize. We cruised with DS1 when he was 15 months, 2 yrs and 3 yrs, and it was one of the most relaxing ways to vacation with a toddler. It's not a vacation from parenting, but at least we didn't have to worry about anything else and the ability to be walking distance to bed, food and entertainment is so much easier.

re car: check if the rental car agency does a one-way rental from airport to cruise terminal. I don't know where you are sailing out of but there are often agencies that will do courtesy shuttling in and out of some cruise terminals and are only a couple minutes away. I don't know if you are planning to fly with your own carseat or if you're trying to avoid having to bring it. I've rented a car in FL from the Port Canaveral cruise terminal and used the rental agency's car seat without any issues. I personally would have no problems either with hailing a taxi and installing our carseat either. The seatbelt installation doesn't take long on ours.

bedrail: I've heard of some families who had the steward turn the couch around so the "open" side faced the wall for their toddlers. When DS1 was small enough, we reserved a packnplay through the cruiseline and just used that. We've also had him sleep on the floor on a toddler-sized sleeping bag, and I've also heard of families using inflatable bedrails that are tucked under the sheets to form a speedbump that the child is less likely to roll over.

video monitor - unlikely to work. With DS's early bedtime, we usually got a balcony room so that we could sit out on the balcony during his naps and after he was asleep for the night. The first trip, we were with friends but their room was across the hall from us. We would prop the doors so we could hear him, and see his PnP from our friends' room as long as we weren't being loud enough to disturb anyone else in the hall. I'd also be comfortable with connecting rooms and letting the kids sleep in our room while hanging out next door with the connecting door open so we can hear them. Given that others have access to your room, such as room stewards, I wouldn't trust being anywhere out of earshot or line of sight from my room if my kids were sleeping in it.

General -

Go with their flow. You know your kids best and what their habits and needs are to be content. If your little one is flexible and can stay up later without repercussions, go ahead and let them stay up and enjoy. Or if you know your child has no problems falling asleep in a stroller and can sleep through a rock concert, then go ahead and take them out with the stroller. If your child is like mine and needs the bedtime routine and time to stay the same or he will be a cranky little bug, keep your routine.

Same goes for mealtimes. If there is a snack or drink your child really loves and comes in single serve packs, it's great to have on hand for port days and for keeping them happy while in long waiting lines. If they have the single serving cereal boxes in the buffet in the morning, those are also handy for port day snacks for little ones. We would try to keep meals shorter since DS was often tired at the end of the day and not keen on sitting in a highchair for 2 hours. When we had the option on NCL, we would have dinner as early as possible, and usually a meal only lasts about an hour with freestyle cruising. With a traditional dinner sitting on Carnival, our servers knew to get DS's meal out as soon as possible and that we would be having dessert plated to go for us to enjoy back in our room after DS was tucked into bed. The staff on any of our cruises though were always amazing with DS, learning his likes and dislikes, and interacting with him to keep him smiling.

Lounges that aren't being used during the day are also a decent quiet place for little ones to toddle around and explore during the day. We brought a small inflatable pool which we used on our balcony for DS to splash in, and also doubled as a bathtub for him as our bathroom only had a shower. We took turns between DH and I keeping our son content before he was old enough for children's programs, while the other would get to do whatever activity he/she wanted. Ultimately, a calm content child = much happier vacation for everyone involved!

I don't know if you had mentioned how old your toddler is. if you had, I apologize. We cruised with DS1 when he was 15 months, 2 yrs and 3 yrs, and it was one of the most relaxing ways to vacation with a toddler. It's not a vacation from parenting, but at least we didn't have to worry about anything else and the ability to be walking distance to bed, food and entertainment is so much easier.

 

re car: check if the rental car agency does a one-way rental from airport to cruise terminal. I don't know where you are sailing out of but there are often agencies that will do courtesy shuttling in and out of some cruise terminals and are only a couple minutes away. I don't know if you are planning to fly with your own carseat or if you're trying to avoid having to bring it. I've rented a car in FL from the Port Canaveral cruise terminal and used the rental agency's car seat without any issues. I personally would have no problems either with hailing a taxi and installing our carseat either. The seatbelt installation doesn't take long on ours.

 

bedrail: I've heard of some families who had the steward turn the couch around so the "open" side faced the wall for their toddlers. When DS1 was small enough, we reserved a packnplay through the cruiseline and just used that. We've also had him sleep on the floor on a toddler-sized sleeping bag, and I've also heard of families using inflatable bedrails that are tucked under the sheets to form a speedbump that the child is less likely to roll over.

 

video monitor - unlikely to work. With DS's early bedtime, we usually got a balcony room so that we could sit out on the balcony during his naps and after he was asleep for the night. The first trip, we were with friends but their room was across the hall from us. We would prop the doors so we could hear him, and see his PnP from our friends' room as long as we weren't being loud enough to disturb anyone else in the hall. I'd also be comfortable with connecting rooms and letting the kids sleep in our room while hanging out next door with the connecting door open so we can hear them. Given that others have access to your room, such as room stewards, I wouldn't trust being anywhere out of earshot or line of sight from my room if my kids were sleeping in it.

 

General -

Go with their flow. You know your kids best and what their habits and needs are to be content. If your little one is flexible and can stay up later without repercussions, go ahead and let them stay up and enjoy. Or if you know your child has no problems falling asleep in a stroller and can sleep through a rock concert, then go ahead and take them out with the stroller. If your child is like mine and needs the bedtime routine and time to stay the same or he will be a cranky little bug, keep your routine.

 

Same goes for mealtimes. If there is a snack or drink your child really loves and comes in single serve packs, it's great to have on hand for port days and for keeping them happy while in long waiting lines. If they have the single serving cereal boxes in the buffet in the morning, those are also handy for port day snacks for little ones. We would try to keep meals shorter since DS was often tired at the end of the day and not keen on sitting in a highchair for 2 hours. When we had the option on NCL, we would have dinner as early as possible, and usually a meal only lasts about an hour with freestyle cruising. With a traditional dinner sitting on Carnival, our servers knew to get DS's meal out as soon as possible and that we would be having dessert plated to go for us to enjoy back in our room after DS was tucked into bed. The staff on any of our cruises though were always amazing with DS, learning his likes and dislikes, and interacting with him to keep him smiling.

 

Lounges that aren't being used during the day are also a decent quiet place for little ones to toddle around and explore during the day. We brought a small inflatable pool which we used on our balcony for DS to splash in, and also doubled as a bathtub for him as our bathroom only had a shower. We took turns between DH and I keeping our son content before he was old enough for children's programs, while the other would get to do whatever activity he/she wanted. Ultimately, a calm content child = much happier vacation for everyone involved!

Some good info here thanks. I will be cruising with a 2 year old next year.

Don't be afraid to try the main dinning room!

All kids are different, but we actually find the main dinning room easier with the kids than trying to feed everone at the buffet.

The buffet requires non stop running, one person sitting with the kids while the other goes and gets food. In the MDR, at least someone is bringing the food to you. In our experience, once the waiters get to know your kids, they have things ready to go. For example, on our last cruise our son was eating a lot of fruit the first night, so every night after that he had a fruit bowl waiting for him when we sat down.

We haven't cruised with our toddler yet but he's spent plenty of time on airplanes and in hotel rooms.

I think one of the big things to look at is how important routines are to your child. Some just go with the flow and others need things like meals and naps done at the same time every day. That will make a big difference in your experience.

I recently cruised with a toddler.

The bed (pack & play) Carnival provided was great, no complaint there.

Kids menu was the same as any restaurant menu. Balcony room had adequate space for playing while in room. At 16mos, we bathe her in the sink with no problems (took pool but never used it).

The only problem we encountered was at the dining room table. She did not want to sit in the highchair but wanted someone to hold her. This got old after a couple dinners.

Some have asked bout sea sick, we had no problem we could identify but she did start having early morning crying spells on the last 2 days on a 7 day cruise.

The ship did not have whole milk. Plenty of fruits, cereal and baked good for snacks.

I would not cruise with her again until she can sit quietly though a dinner but cruising was a good choice if you are going to vacation.

We never cruised alone with a toddler. We always had grandparents at that age and thankfully we just ate in shifts for dinner. This way no one felt like they couldn't dress up and enjoy a refined leisurely meal once a day. We fed our toddler in the buffet and then drop him off with the grandparents and eat at the early dinner. We did need a break from him and this was good for all involved.

While the baby monitor may be known for its signal strength in homes, placing it in a steel box like a ship's cabin will render it virtually useless. Unless you have adjoining or adjacent cabins, or directly across the passageway, you will probably hear nothing. Just looked, and saw it's a video monitor, which will almost definitely not work between cabins. It even says that with both units indoors, it is limited to 100 feet, which would be about 8-10 cabins away, and that would be if they were wood and drywall, not steel.

Sorry to high jack your thread, but I have a question about the monitor. We have the same monitor and will be cruising with a 1 year old and 2 year old. We booked connecting outside rooms. Will the monitor work if we shut the connecting door? My son needs it very dark and quiet and I don't want to go to bed at 8:00 :)

We cruised when my son was 20 months. it was just us and my son, and we went with another couple who also had a son the same age. we were on independence, - sister to Freedom

we were set to use the pack n play but felt it took up too much space (we had a balcony) so we turned the couch around so the opening was against the wall and he slept just on top of the couch that way all week. He loved it and had no issues.

both couples used the day care. both boys would cry upon drop off but be fine within minutes. they even give us cell phones so we can call and check on the boys. or vice versa. we would leave our strollers there and let the boys fall asleep there in their strollers.

one night my friends took my son for dinner so we ate alone and the other night we took our friends son so they had a night alone. another night both boys went to day care so the 4 of us ate alone. and we ate with the boys in the dining room the other nights. we just told the waiter we needed to be out in an hour. it was done.

overall my son had a wonderful week and we are taking another cruise with him on Liberty at the end of this year. He can't wait!

Kids love cruises!:)

we were set to use the pack n play but felt it took up too much space (we had a balcony) so we turned the couch around so the opening was against the wall and he slept just on top of the couch that way all week. He loved it and had no issues.

Ahh, I was hoping to hear from someone who actually did this! Were you able to turn the couch back again during the day so you could use it, or is it really too heavy to turn more than once in the trip?

This seems to be the best option for my 2.5 year old that's still in a crib. I'm cringing at the idea of the upper bunk at this age, he's too big for the PnP, but I don't want to take up precious floor space with the foldout bed (which is our other option). We do have a foldup toddler cot we're considering, but the less we have to bring the better! (Driving, but still.)

Ahh, I was hoping to hear from someone who actually did this! Were you able to turn the couch back again during the day so you could use it, or is it really too heavy to turn more than once in the trip?

 

This seems to be the best option for my 2.5 year old that's still in a crib. I'm cringing at the idea of the upper bunk at this age, he's too big for the PnP, but I don't want to take up precious floor space with the foldout bed (which is our other option). We do have a foldup toddler cot we're considering, but the less we have to bring the better! (Driving, but still.)

It's not heavy at all. However, we chose to leave it turned the whole time. it left the floor open for play without stepping on anyone - we stuck the "coffee table" in the corner. we just sat on the bed or on the balcony, we didn't "need" the couch. in the past my husband and i used the couch to dump stuff on so this actually forced us to be neater and put stuff away!! my son would sometimes play in his "special bed" while we were in the room too. it just wasn't worth flipping and unflipping and making up "his bed" with sheets and stuff and unmaking it. :D

Sorry to high jack your thread, but I have a question about the monitor. We have the same monitor and will be cruising with a 1 year old and 2 year old. We booked connecting outside rooms. Will the monitor work if we shut the connecting door? My son needs it very dark and quiet and I don't want to go to bed at 8:00 :)

I'm hoping that will work because my sister is going to be in the cabin next door! I don't know about yours, but my monitor will start beeping if it loses signal from the base unit. So you'll know right away if you're out of range. We've gone outside in the back yard that way, and certainly we're downstairs all the time, so I'm not concerned if I'm within range. I know the range will shrink significantly due to the ship's construction, so I've already talked to my sister about being next door. Heck, I don't mind sitting in the hallway outside if necessary. But I know my son, it's going to be challenging to get him to fall asleep with us in the room. He's fine once asleep, though, but for some reason us being there causes him to go hyper. I couldn't cosleep, either. :)

Maybe you should get him ready for bed and then take a nice stroll on the deck (if it is dark enough). Between the motion of the stroller and the ship-he might just conk out for you. This will at least be more fun for you. My son was a live wire too. I ended up falling to sleep before him but it was fine because at least he slept in late.

RebeccaLouiseAgain - babysitters in the room! Tell me more. Thinking of doing this but would love to hear how this worked for you. We will have my 23 month old son, 6 year old niece and 4 year old nephew. (Allure)

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RebeccaLouiseAgain - babysitters in the room! Tell me more. Thinking of doing this but would love to hear how this worked for you. We will have my 23 month old son, 6 year old niece and 4 year old nephew. (Allure)

 

 

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You have to make arrangements for this at the front desk and it is subject to availability. It $19 per hour for up to three children. On Celebrity I went the first day and arranged for two nights. On Allure they also have group babysitting for kids 6 months- two years for a fee. Kids 3 and older there is a $5 per hour fee per child in the youth program after 10.

My two and a half year old came with us on Freedom in April and had a blast. Most if the time he went everywhere we went including the diamond lounge, shows, and late dinner in the main dining room but went to the daycare twice and did fine even though he's extremely shy and doesn't normally go to daycare. We are going on the same cruise you mentioned on 8/24 and he's tagging along again at 34 months.

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I haven't cruised with a LO who is that little, but here's what I can offer:

1. I think the ship's PnP option is probably a great one, but if your LO already sleeps in a bed, this is a great option:

http://www.onestepahead.com/Stay-Put-Inflatable-Bed-Rail-Set.pro

We used it on our first cruise when our DD (3.5) slept in the upper berth. We had NO worries about her falling, so I wouldn't hesitate to use it for a 21-month old who was sleeping closer to the floor.

4. I would travel with your car seat on the plane so your LO can sit in it. We flew with our DD when she was ~18 months old, and at that age, it was great to have her strapped in to the seat that she already knew. Then you will have your seat at your destination and won't have to worry about whether the rental seat is the right one for her LOs age, where it has been, how many collisions it has been involved in. You just never know. Yeah, you'll have to stow it in your state room, but I would do that to not have to worry about any "what ifs" while traveling.

Don't be afraid to try the main dinning room!

 

All kids are different, but we actually find the main dinning room easier with the kids than trying to feed everone at the buffet.

 

The buffet requires non stop running, one person sitting with the kids while the other goes and gets food. In the MDR, at least someone is bringing the food to you. In our experience, once the waiters get to know your kids, they have things ready to go. For example, on our last cruise our son was eating a lot of fruit the first night, so every night after that he had a fruit bowl waiting for him when we sat down.

Yes, particularly if you are at a table that consists just of your party (DW, DH, DGM and DS) the wait staff can easily accommodate a much quicker paced meal. You can also skip the appetizer course (because no one would skip dessert :eek:). Check the menu earlier in the day so you know exactly what you want to order to further compress the timeline. Most LO are not really capable of sitting through a two-hour meal, but many can handle 45-minutes to an hour. And as the above poster mentioned, the table service is a nice perk.