Formula and the water situation...

40 days away from setting sail with our LO. Since he will be turning 1 on the cruise, he will not be completely switched over from formula to milk. Any suggestions on how to handle the formula situation? We use bottled water now, but the price on NCL for bottled water is ridiculous, and they do not allow you to carry on your own bottles of water. I understand the tap water on the ship is decent but is it acceptable for my LO in his formula? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

The ship's water is as clean and pure as bottled water. It's fine! Especially for an almost 1 year old, who will be eating foods (made with the ship's water!!). It's fine! It's made by reverse osmosis, which takes EVERYTHING out of the water. Most of the water comes from your home port, and is run thru purifiers, and they supplement that water with RO water.

Ship's tap water is absolutely fine. That's what I used for mine (we did milk while on board and formula for ports). Whatever you're using to feed him (bottles, sippy cups), bring some spares - easy to lose them when you're on the go and you don't want to be without.

All the best,

Mia

Once again, I will have to correct cb on a few facts, that seem to get in her way.

"most of the water" is not from the home port, but depending on the itinerary much of it is. And the shore water brought onboard is not sent through purifiers, it is used nearly as is. Reverse osmosis does not take "everything" out of the water, but much of ship's water is made by distillation, which does.

Now, having said all that, I will agree that ship's water is just as pure, if not more so, than 90% of bottled water. The one suggestion I will make is to either get the water for the formula from the buffet, a dining venue, or a bar, as their water dispensers have carbon filters that remove the mandated chlorine needed for sanitization of the water. If you do use water from your cabin sink, get a pitcher or glass of it, and leave it uncovered in the cabin or in the fridge for a couple of hours to allow the chlorine to dissipate naturally. The chlorine level in the water is not considered harmful, but it is higher than municipal water supplies (and you have been using bottled water), so any change in diet can affect the ankle biter's GI tract, and lead to discomfort not only for them but for you as well.

That was pretty uncalled for, Cheng. No need to be rude.

This will be our third cruise dealing with formula. My son will be 11 months this Sunday when we cruise.

We paid for the bottled water just for peace of mind. Cheng's idea of getting it from the bar isn't a bad alternative though.

We also use the 8 oz ready to feed bottles where you just shake and pour. These are great for when you are in port and don't want to mess with mixing and scooping. A little pricey but we use our $5 off checks and get two packs at Walgreens before our cruise.

40 days away from setting sail with our LO. Since he will be turning 1 on the cruise, he will not be completely switched over from formula to milk. Any suggestions on how to handle the formula situation? We use bottled water now, but the price on NCL for bottled water is ridiculous, and they do not allow you to carry on your own bottles of water. I understand the tap water on the ship is decent but is it acceptable for my LO in his formula? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Just a thought...is there a special needs department for NCL (like RCI has) ?...Perhaps they would allow you to carry on a gallon jug of the "Nursery Water" you can buy or would provide some for you..RCI provides distilled water for CPAP machines...I would consider this a special need.

That was pretty uncalled for, Cheng. No need to be rude.

 

This will be our third cruise dealing with formula. My son will be 11 months this Sunday when we cruise.

 

We paid for the bottled water just for peace of mind. Cheng's idea of getting it from the bar isn't a bad alternative though.

 

We also use the 8 oz ready to feed bottles where you just shake and pour. These are great for when you are in port and don't want to mess with mixing and scooping. A little pricey but we use our $5 off checks and get two packs at Walgreens before our cruise.

Not uncalled for at all regarding CB. She spews incorrect nonsense on these boards, never comes back to a thread, and has done this for many years. Frankly, he was being kind. :rolleyes:

When we went on our first and second cruise with out DD she was 13 and 15 months and still using formula. Big carnival and RCI provided a gallon of distilled water in the stateroom. I called the special requests Dept. No difference in situation of this and a CPAP.

Not uncalled for at all regarding CB. She spews incorrect nonsense on these boards, never comes back to a thread, and has done this for many years. Frankly, he was being kind. :rolleyes:

I stand corrected then. My apologies

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Echoing the masses, but I'll share our experiences... ;-)

We were on cruises with our then 6 month old and later 9 month old, and used tap water from the room both times without any issues. But we don't use bottled water at home anyway, so it's probably not too much different for her. [We actually started with bottled water for formula at home, but then switched to tap water after our dentist recommended using the fluoridated tap water instead, and we have good quality water here in the NW. But fluoridation can also be a personal opinion, so to each their own and choose what's best for you and your family.]

A few other useful things we learned after the first cruise though:

1) We had no problem just letting the faucet run a minute or so to get the water hot enough to make reasonably warm formula bottles. If it got too hot, just added a bit of cold to bring it back down. No need for special heating.

2) If you're using reusable bottles, make sure to bring a small bottle of dish soap and a bottle brush! We had the bottle brush but forgot the soap, and let me tell you, trying to wash a bottle using bar soap just doesn't quite work as well. ;-) We managed to pick up a little bottle of Dawn in port and it made a world of difference.

Good luck! Cruising with a wee one is challenging but fun!

Thank you everyone for your wonderful responses!

As suggested, I did contact NCL regarding bringing on water. They have actually granted me an exemption to their carry-on beverage policy. I have a nifty little bottle icon on our boarding pass to indicate this. GREAT TIP for others if they find themselves in this predicament.

I had considered using the tap water on the ship, but I didn't want to upset his stomach any more than necessary. And I didn't want to switch to tap water now at home because, honestly, he won't be on formula much longer.

I do intend to introduce him to milk before we leave so I can decrease the amount formula, but it will be too soon to switch over completely. Temperature is not an issue as he drinks room temperature formula.

Thank you all again for your helpful comments! We are looking forward to our cruise!

Thank you everyone for your wonderful responses!

 

As suggested, I did contact NCL regarding bringing on water. They have actually granted me an exemption to their carry-on beverage policy. I have a nifty little bottle icon on our boarding pass to indicate this. GREAT TIP for others if they find themselves in this predicament.

 

I had considered using the tap water on the ship, but I didn't want to upset his stomach any more than necessary. And I didn't want to switch to tap water now at home because, honestly, he won't be on formula much longer.

 

I do intend to introduce him to milk before we leave so I can decrease the amount formula, but it will be too soon to switch over completely. Temperature is not an issue as he drinks room temperature formula.

 

Thank you all again for your helpful comments! We are looking forward to our cruise!

You're very welcome...so glad my post #6 helped.....I was pretty sure this was considered a special need and you would be allowed to bring on your own Nursery Water...Enjoy cruising with your little one.

Actually the exception is in NCL policy:

"with the exception of purified or distilled water in factory-sealed containers for use in conjunction with medical devices or for the reconstitution of infant formula"

https://www.ncl.com/faq#can-i-bring-water-or-soda-board

Actually the exception is in NCL policy:

 

"with the exception of purified or distilled water in factory-sealed containers for use in conjunction with medical devices or for the reconstitution of infant formula"

 

https://www.ncl.com/faq#can-i-bring-water-or-soda-board

Any one know if dcl has the same policy? I don't formula feed, but they don't know that. I'd love to have bottled water for my twins in our stateroom.

Any one know if dcl has the same policy? I don't formula feed, but they don't know that. I'd love to have bottled water for my twins in our stateroom.

On DCL you can bring as much bottled water onboard as you want. Has to be in carry-on though, not checked luggage.

On DCL you can bring as much bottled water onboard as you want. Has to be in carry-on though, not checked luggage.

That's right. Thanks. Too many cruise line and different rules.