My three sons - are ages 1,4, and 6... Questions about camp

So we are cruising on the adventure of the seas and my children will be 4,6 and 1 . Two questions 1) The one year old I know will not be able to go in the pool bc of the swim diaper issue - but do you know if there would be an issue with me /hubby holding him so he could get a splash - not submerge him? 2) I know the ages for the kids programs are states at 3-5 and. 6-8 - am a little worried about my 4 year old not wanting to be without his brother - any idea if they would ever make an exception to let them be together somehow? Any insight would be great

So we are cruising on the adventure of the seas and my children will be 4,6 and 1 . Two questions 1) The one year old I know will not be able to go in the pool bc of the swim diaper issue - but do you know if there would be an issue with me /hubby holding him so he could get a splash - not submerge him? 2) I know the ages for the kids programs are states at 3-5 and. 6-8 - am a little worried about my 4 year old not wanting to be without his brother - any idea if they would ever make an exception to let them be together somehow? Any insight would be great

Having a child in diapers in or above the pools is a violation of USPH regulations, and you may be asked to stop. Will you see others doing this, or can you get away with it? Most likely, yes. If the crew are diligent and see this activity, the approved method is to close the pool for about an hour while it is super-chlorinated.

The technical answer to number 1 is no, you may not do that. The issue is if there were an accident, then the pool needs to be closed, drained, scrubbed, and refilled.

With number 2, again, the technical answer is that they tend to be strict. They might make an exception. But, would the 6 year old enjoy doing activities based for the younger ones?

Thanks for your technical answer - I really hope my ship is not too technical - bc I get the reasoning behind not allowing babies with diapers in the pool but - there should be a tiny little splashy area for these poor babies lol (I booked before I became pregnant) lol anywho- the four year old might be perfectly comfortable with the 6-8 but not sure about the other way around. Anyway I was wondering if anyone has experience with either of these issues.

I would be very surprised if they allowed a 4 year old to step up.

The issue really is insurance liability. That tends to be the number one reason stuff like this is a big no.

Some ships do have a splash area for little ones.

So we are cruising on the adventure of the seas and my children will be 4,6 and 1 . Two questions 1) The one year old I know will not be able to go in the pool bc of the swim diaper issue - but do you know if there would be an issue with me /hubby holding him so he could get a splash - not submerge him? 2) I know the ages for the kids programs are states at 3-5 and. 6-8 - am a little worried about my 4 year old not wanting to be without his brother - any idea if they would ever make an exception to let them be together somehow? Any insight would be great

No one is going to be angry if you allow a baby to get wet (not submerged) and you won't be the only one in the same boat (pun intended).

The first day- head to the kids club during afternoon orientation and sign up session. The kids will get to see the club, meet the friendly counselors and you will be present (no activities until evening on the first day). The kids can get the feel of it while Mom and or Dad is there as a safety net. I don't think they will be bothered about being in different groups. Some things will be done together and they will be able to visually see each other to some extent.

Bring a blow up bath tub for the baby to have a splash. You don't want to be the cause of the pool being closed for cleaning.

The kids clubs are very used to having siblings in different age-appropriate groups. They can't let little ones age up because then they'd have to do it for every family with siblings and none of the older kids want to be in a group with small children. They will sometimes let children "age down" if appropriate and there's space, but most older kids don't want to go to the younger group. They will probably have a great time each in their own group - just play up how exciting it is that they each have their own play area.

Have a great time.

Best,

Mia

I've seen people use the little inflatable baths. Put it between sun bed and use your ice bucket to fill it. Make sure you tip the water in to the drain & no where else. The baby looked perfectly happy in her little pool of water. I believe people use them in the bathroom too as no baths on board. I don't know if your 4 yo will use the shower☺ you can get them on line cheap and they pack small too. Have fun☺

Thanks for your technical answer - I really hope my ship is not too technical - bc I get the reasoning behind not allowing babies with diapers in the pool but - there should be a tiny little splashy area for these poor babies lol (I booked before I became pregnant) lol anywho- the four year old might be perfectly comfortable with the 6-8 but not sure about the other way around. Anyway I was wondering if anyone has experience with either of these issues.

RCI does have this on some ships, the Freedom, Oasis, and Quantum classes. However, it is a major cost to install one of these splash areas, with their separate water supplies, added sanitizing equipment, and operating cost, so you won't see them on the older ships.

I agree, you should be looking at a Freedom or Oasis class that has the H2O fun zone (is that what they call it)? Your little one will have much more fun. However, you also need to check and find out if diapers are allowed in that area? I'm not sure.

I wish i could remember which ship it was (may have been Disney or may have been Oasis) but there was a glass enclosed area with a nemo like theme that was intended for little ones. My son was within the age requirements but was always being kicked out (because he is tall) and they thought he was older!).

As for the kid's club, it will depend when your sailing is and how many kids are on board, but for Royal, always count on a lot of kids. Count on the older kid moving down and not the younger moving up.

On Celebrity, I was successful in getting my 8 year old moved up to the 9-11 group, but that was because they had only 4 kids in that group~but even then, they fought it for a few days. Again, because he is a tall (and mature) kid, he was much more at home in the 9-11 group than he was playing baby games with the 6 to 8 group (as he called it!).

Thanks all! The little pool is a Great idea!!! I didn't think of that!

So we are cruising on the adventure of the seas and my children will be 4,6 and 1 . Two questions 1) The one year old I know will not be able to go in the pool bc of the swim diaper issue - but do you know if there would be an issue with me /hubby holding him so he could get a splash - not submerge him? 2) I know the ages for the kids programs are states at 3-5 and. 6-8 - am a little worried about my 4 year old not wanting to be without his brother - any idea if they would ever make an exception to let them be together somehow? Any insight would be great

1) No it's not allowed. But everyone thinks they are a special snowflake and tries it anyway, despite the crew telling them otherwise. This inevitably results in the pool being shut down for at least an hour. This happened daily on our last NCL cruise because they were diligent. Please don't be those people.

2) No. They will not make an exception. if they did, again, every one thinks they are special and will ask for their "mature" child to be aged up so they can hang out with the "older kids" and have more fun or for siblings/cousins/etc to be grouped together. It gets messy when there are 200 kids and everyone is asking to be special. So the policy is to keep the kids in their age groupings otherwise everyone and their brother is asking for an exception. The only time I've seen an exception was with special needs kids.

Lol - I AM a special snowflake Lolol - thanks btw I would NEVER put my child in the pool when I know It's not allowed - I've just been on cruises where they didn't even allow me to hold the baby near the pool - which is absurd! Being that I have two other kids in the pool. We booked this many moons ago before I even knew I was pregnant - so now we are Just trying to figure it all out. Thanks for your input .

You can take your child and get him wet in the outdoor shower! Or, bring a blow up tub, and fill it with an ice bucket...empty into a floor or shower drain...not onto deck or into the pool!

As far as the kid's club...take them both the 1st night. It's not like they won't have some visual contact...but the 6 year old will be bored to tears with the 4 year old activities and they will not let the younger one move up....

I agree, you should be looking at a Freedom or Oasis class that has the H2O fun zone (is that what they call it)? Your little one will have much more fun. However, you also need to check and find out if diapers are allowed in that area? I'm not sure.

 

 

I wish i could remember which ship it was (may have been Disney or may have been Oasis) but there was a glass enclosed area with a nemo like theme that was intended for little ones. My son was within the age requirements but was always being kicked out (because he is tall) and they thought he was older!).

 

 

 

As for the kid's club, it will depend when your sailing is and how many kids are on board, but for Royal, always count on a lot of kids. Count on the older kid moving down and not the younger moving up.

 

On Celebrity, I was successful in getting my 8 year old moved up to the 9-11 group, but that was because they had only 4 kids in that group~but even then, they fought it for a few days. Again, because he is a tall (and mature) kid, he was much more at home in the 9-11 group than he was playing baby games with the 6 to 8 group (as he called it!).

Disney Dream has Nemo's reef. The wonder also has a splash pad.

Honestly though, if the baby is in diapers, they don't know they are missing on the pool.

Agreed - just asking

No one is going to be angry if you allow a baby to get wet (not submerged) and you won't be the only one in the same boat (pun intended).

 

The first day- head to the kids club during afternoon orientation and sign up session. The kids will get to see the club, meet the friendly counselors and you will be present (no activities until evening on the first day). The kids can get the feel of it while Mom and or Dad is there as a safety net. I don't think they will be bothered about being in different groups. Some things will be done together and they will be able to visually see each other to some extent.

Yes, there are actually people who will be at least very annoyed, if not angry, if a non toilet trained kid is anywehre near a pool. If a child is iin or above the pool, they are supposed to close the pool for a hour and re-treat it. If, in the hourly tests, the pool is found to have a certain amount of fecal product, the pool has to be emptied and refilled. This happened several times when I was on the Navigator in December.

Lol - I find this hysterical with the amount of drunk adults are peeing in the pool all day.

I totally get why babies in diapers are a no - and I will not be bringing my baby in the pool

Lol - I find this hysterical with the amount of drunk adults are peeing in the pool all day.

But urine does not contain bacteria unless you have a bladder infection. Nasty, but not dirty. Stool, however, is nasty and dirty. EM