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Best line for babies


luvsbeingmom
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So we booked a cruise for March and then found out that I am pregnant one week later. We still want to go on a cruise but will have to wait a while. From my minimal research it looks like babies have to be six months old to sail. I have a 5 and 7 year old who cruised last year, and we all had a great time. So my question is what is the best cruise line for babies. Do any of them have childcare options even just for a couple hours at this age? It would be nice to be able to go to dinner with my husband a couple of times. Thanks in advance : )

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Disney currently offers a nursery on all 4 of its ships. Royal Caribbean is currently retrofitting its entire fleet with a nursery called the Royal Babies and Tots. The Disney nursery charges $9/hour for care, and Royal Caribbean charges $6 during the day, and $8 per night.

 

Please check the cruise line information for children carefully, as Royal Caribbean generally allows children to sail at 6 months, but the exceptions are:

 

On transatlantic, transpacific, Hawaii, select South American and other selected cruises and/or CruiseTours, the infant must be at least 12 months old as of the first day of the cruise/CruiseTour. For the purposes of this policy, any cruise that has 3 or more days consecutive at sea will require infants to be 12 months old on the first day of the cruise/CruiseTour.

 

According to recent cruisers, reservations for the Royal Tots nursery are made onboard the ship.

 

On Disney, the minimum age to sail is 6 months on most cruises. The minimum age for transatlantic, Hawaii, and Panama Canal itineraries is 1 year of age on the day of sailing.

 

Reservations for the disney nursery can be made online according to this schedule:

 

120 days in advance for Concierge and Platinum Castaway Club Guests

105 days in advance for Gold Castaway Club Guests

90 days in advance for Silver Castaway Club Guests

75 days in advance for First-Time Cruisers

 

 

In the longer term, both Cunard and Carnival allow two year olds to attend their regular, free drop off kids club programs. There may be other lines that accept two year olds, I just haven't fully researched them yet.

Edited by kitkat343
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Royal Caribbean has three programs. One is the Royal Babies or Royal Tots which are parent and child play sessions. These are 45 minute sessions held a few times per cruise. These are available on all ships. There is no fee for these.

 

Another is the Royal Babies and Tots nursery which is a drop off program. There is a $6/hour fee in the daytime and $8/hour fee in the evenings. This is not available on all ships. Reservations are highly recommended.

 

The third is the Sitters at Sea program which provides 2 sitters who come to your cabin. The sitters are pre-booked through guest services. Availability is not guaranteed so its best to book for all times you want as soon as you board. Children must be 12 months or older. The cost is about $19/hour. This covers all children in your immediate family (there's probably a maximum # of children though).

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/experiencetypes/category.do?pagename=onboard_cat_kids_teens_and_families

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