suggestions for pre-teen rules to follow on ship

[famcruiser]

We're on the RCI Freedom the end of June. We are traveling with a group and our 12 yo son and his 13 yo friend will be too old for a formal kids program. This will be the first time for both boys to not be in a full time program. So, we are going to let them do things on their own. What are suggestions for rules for them to follow (other than the obvious - ie. "never go into someone else's room")? They're good kids, but we're afraid that the freedom they will have onboard will have them doing things that they normally wouldn't. We've already laid out some rules, but are afraid that we aren't thinking of everything. Any suggestions would be appreciated!

[iamaqt2]

I'm not super familiar with RCI's Adventure Ocean program, but I do know they have a 12-14 age group with lots of fun supervised activities. Here is a sample page from cruisinmama's extensive collection of daily programs:

 

[akcruz]

Here is a contract that I found on CC and have tweaked for our use. As each family is different take what you can out of it and add as you feel necessary.

 

My number one suggestion is to sit down with the kids BEFORE you trip to make sure they understand what is allowed and what is not. Also make sure they know the consequences if the rules are not followed. We had to use them once with my son, never again after that he learned his lesson!

 

First of all we want all of us to have fun. This should be a relaxing, enjoyable vacation. We hope that noting our expectations and rules before we depart will avoid any misunderstandings on-board. Note that violation of these rules will result in you being required to stay with us or in your cabin and therefore you will not be able to participate in any of the teen activities. These rules are not in place to say that we do not trust you, but to ensure we can all enjoy our trip.

• You are not to enter any cabins other than ours. It does not matter if it is the cabin of a new friend or someone we know (unless one of us expressly approves this).

• No one else is to enter our cabins.

 

• If you are in your cabin alone – hang the do not disturb sign on the door. This should prevent any RCCL employee from entering. Please ensure you remove it when you leave the room.

• You are not to drink any beverage unless it is handed to you by a family member or an RCCL staff member. You are not to drink from anything you have let out of your sight. Some people have been known to slip drugs into other people’s drinks. This is a lifelong rule that should be followed in any social situation.

 

• We expect to know where you are on the ship. We will use notes in our cabin to let each other know where we can be found.

• You are not to loiter or play in the stairwells, hallways, or elevators. Activities such as “knock and run” or calling other cabins to hang up will not be tolerated.

 

• We will decide on a curfew each night. The ship’s curfew is 1 AM since you are under 18. We have the right to require you to be in the cabin earlier if we feel the need.

• Your Sea Pass is tied to my credit card. It is to be used only by you. You may not buy other people drinks, snacks, arcade games, or souvenirs. You have a budget of $xx. If you exceed this budget without our approval, you will need to reimburse us.

• If you loose your Seapass you are to immediately notify one of us.

 

• We expect to eat dinner together most nights. There is flexibility if there is an alternate activity you would prefer to attend as long as we have discussed it in advance (at least that morning).

• If there are kids you would prefer to hang out with instead of the teen club, I need to meet them.

• If you order room service, you must tip the delivery person. We will provide a small amount of money for this.

 

• If we arrange a check-in time and you miss it then you are “grounded” for the next 24 hours. This means that you must stay with us or in your cabin.

 

• No visits to the outside areas of the upper deck at night alone.

 

• Put anything of value into the cabin safe. Cell phones are only to be taken out of the safe when we ask you to. Texts and calls are expensive and not in your budget.

• Do not leave the ship without one of us.

[cb at sea]

I think they would enjoy the young teen program...not to say they're be there every minute, but they will have activities for them to do!

[famcruiser]

Thanks! I knew there was something important we hadn't thought of (drinking something from someone else)! And, I like the contract idea. I think they'll think twice (or more, hopefully) about doing something they shouldn't when they signed a contract. I'm pretty sure they will join in most of the activities in the teen program, but we want to cover all bases in case they don't. We're all looking forward to it; it's been a few years since we've cruised. To us, a cruise is one of the most relaxing vacations there is.

[jerin]

Our basic guideline for our tweens is to think about what they're doing, and if it's something that they wouldn't do if we were supervising (we have stricter standards of behavior than most people), then DON'T do it. We're fine with giving them some freedom to roam (buddy system required), but the minute they are observed by one of the adults in our party, by a staff member, or by another adult on the ship acting UNsupervised, they WILL be CLOSELY supervised for the rest of the week.

My parents used similar guidelines with us, and we've used them with our children before, and they've been pretty effective since the expectations for behavior have been pretty consistent since day 1.

[PHXscuba]

I bookmarked this in the spring and just reviewed it because we are leaving on a cruise soon with our teen and younger kids.

 

Figured I'd bump it up so others could see it or add their ideas. Thanks for giving me something non-confrontational from a third-party source. My son thinks I'm the only party pooper,:rolleyes: so it's nice to show him others have reasonable behavior and safety rules too.

 

PHXscuba

 

P.S. I've learned to never assume teens will think about a situation or a danger like adults do. Example: last year before a trip to Disneyland we had a brief talk about getting separated that I assumed was mostly for the younger kids. Our smart and responsible DS13 said, "if we get separated in the park I should just go back to the hotel and wait for you, right?":eek: I had to stress to never leave the park without us. Would have NEVER thought of that.

[Isaboo]

Thank you so much for sharing this. I only added one thing....about not throwing anything overboard no matter how small. This is great and we plan to use it for the tween/teen travining in our large group in June!

 

Here is a contract that I found on CC and have tweaked for our use. As each family is different take what you can out of it and add as you feel necessary.

 

My number one suggestion is to sit down with the kids BEFORE you trip to make sure they understand what is allowed and what is not. Also make sure they know the consequences if the rules are not followed. We had to use them once with my son, never again after that he learned his lesson!

 

First of all we want all of us to have fun. This should be a relaxing, enjoyable vacation. We hope that noting our expectations and rules before we depart will avoid any misunderstandings on-board. Note that violation of these rules will result in you being required to stay with us or in your cabin and therefore you will not be able to participate in any of the teen activities. These rules are not in place to say that we do not trust you, but to ensure we can all enjoy our trip.

 

• You are not to enter any cabins other than ours. It does not matter if it is the cabin of a new friend or someone we know (unless one of us expressly approves this).

 

• No one else is to enter our cabins.

 

 

• If you are in your cabin alone – hang the do not disturb sign on the door. This should prevent any RCCL employee from entering. Please ensure you remove it when you leave the room.

 

• You are not to drink any beverage unless it is handed to you by a family member or an RCCL staff member. You are not to drink from anything you have let out of your sight. Some people have been known to slip drugs into other people’s drinks. This is a lifelong rule that should be followed in any social situation.

 

 

• We expect to know where you are on the ship. We will use notes in our cabin to let each other know where we can be found.

 

• You are not to loiter or play in the stairwells, hallways, or elevators. Activities such as “knock and run” or calling other cabins to hang up will not be tolerated.

 

 

• We will decide on a curfew each night. The ship’s curfew is 1 AM since you are under 18. We have the right to require you to be in the cabin earlier if we feel the need.

 

• Your SeaPass is tied to my credit card. It is to be used only by you. You may not buy other people drinks, snacks, arcade games, or souvenirs. You have a budget of $xx. If you exceed this budget without our approval, you will need to reimburse us.

 

• If you loose your Seapass you are to immediately notify one of us.

 

 

• We expect to eat dinner together most nights. There is flexibility if there is an alternate activity you would prefer to attend as long as we have discussed it in advance (at least that morning).

 

• If there are kids you would prefer to hang out with instead of the teen club, I need to meet them.

 

• If you order room service, you must tip the delivery person. We will provide a small amount of money for this.

 

 

• If we arrange a check-in time and you miss it then you are “grounded” for the next 24 hours. This means that you must stay with us or in your cabin.

 

 

• No visits to the outside areas of the upper deck at night alone.

 

 

• Put anything of value into the cabin safe. Cell phones are only to be taken out of the safe when we ask you to. Texts and calls are expensive and not in your budget.

 

• Do not leave the ship without one of us.

[YellowBird06]

Great info, bumping the thread. :)

[sarahc78]

We just gave these to our tweens and teen to read and sign over the weekend.

 

We told them in order to get on the cruise they needed to abide by these rules.

 

It worked perfectly ;)

 

 

 

__________________, the undersigned, agree to the terms of this contract allowing me the privilege to be aboard the ship, Celebrity Summit, without adult supervision. I understand there are rules of the ship which must be obeyed at all times. Failure to obey the rules of the ship will result in an immediate termination of this contract and suspension of all non-adult supervision privileges.

 

Celebrity Cruises Rules for non-adult supervision privileges:

 

• Do not leave the ship without a parent or adult.

 

• No one else is to enter our cabins.

 

• Treat all staff with respect.

 

• You are expected to be well mannered at all times. Please, thank you, no thank you, etc… Please hold doors open for adults, stand back allowing people to exit the elevators before entering, etc…

 

• Floors are for walking upon/standing upon. Chairs, tables, railings, etc are not. Do not climb onto / stand upon anything that is not designed to be stood upon. Do not climb onto / stand upon anything that is a restricted area.

 

• Do not go into any restricted areas or Celebrity staff areas.

 

• Do not throw ANYTHING overboard the ship.

 

• Inside voices in the hallways between the hours of 8pm-9am (Regular voices may be used around the cabins during the other hours)

 

 

• You are not to enter any cabins other than ours. (Unless you are given prior approval).

 

• Do not go out onto balcony w/ out a parent/adult present.

 

 

• If you are in your cabin alone – hang the do not disturb sign on the door. This should prevent any Celebrity employee from entering. Please ensure you remove it when you leave the room.

 

 

• Please carry your SeaPass card with you at all times. Guard it as you would cash$$.

 

 

 

 

 

• Your SeaPass is tied to our credit card. It is to be used only by you. You have a budget of $_____. This amount is expected to last you the entire cruise. You are not to you exceed this budget without prior approval. (Please keep all receipts)

 

 

• If you lose your Seapass you are to immediately notify one of us.

 

 

 

• You are not to drink any beverage unless it is handed to you by a family member or a Celebrity staff member.

 

• You are not to drink from anything you have let out of your sight. Some people have been known to slip drugs into other people’s drinks.

 

 

 

• We expect to know where you are on the ship. We will use notes in our cabin to let each other know where we can be found.

 

 

 

• You are not to loiter or play in the stairwells, hallways, or elevators. Activities such as “knock and run”, pressing all the buttons in elevator, calling other cabins to hang up will not be tolerated.

 

 

 

• The curfew will be decided on each day. It will vary depending on the organized activities that are planned on the ship for the teens, and what time we need to start the next day.

 

• Dinner is expected to be eaten together each night. There is flexibility if there is an alternate activity you would prefer to attend as long as we have discussed it in advance (at least that morning).

 

 

 

• You will be expected to be washed and dressed for dinner 15 minutes before our allotted dining time of _______. You must be on time to be courteous to other guests who are dining at the same table.

 

• If you order room service, you must tip the delivery person. We will provide a small amount of money for this use only. (please do not order more food than you plan on eating)

 

• There will be pre arranged check-in times if for some reason you miss one of these you will lose your privileges for the following 24 hours. This means that you must stay with us or in your cabin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Absolutely no visiting upper/open deck areas in the evening w/ out parent/adult supervision

 

• Please stay out of adult only pools & Jacuzzis

 

• While swimming please be courteous no diving, belly flops, cannon balls, splashing, etc…

 

 

• Please make good use of hand sanitizing stations on the ship. Before eating all meals and snacks please sanitize your hands.

 

 

 

By signing this contract I agree to the follow all above said rules.Failure to obey the rules of the ship will result in an immediate termination of this contract and suspension of all non-adult supervision privileges.

 

Parent/Guardian_______________________________ Date_________

 

Minor Passenger_______________________________ Date_________

[Meyer2]

Some good info!

[RoadTripFanatic]

Another thing I would add is to follow the buddy system. Where one of them goes the other must follow. There is safety in numbers even if it is just too of them.

[newbiecruiser09]

We used this type of contract with our then 12 yr old son last cruise (and the 7 yr old DD signed one too cause she wanted to-even though she would never be alone). It worked great and we were able to talk about some of the rationale behind the reasons before in a non-in-the-moment calm way.

[stephuney]

love this thread ... thank you!

[graceinmelbourne]

Our basic guideline for our tweens is to think about what they're doing, and if it's something that they wouldn't do if we were supervising (we have stricter standards of behavior than most people), then DON'T do it. We're fine with giving them some freedom to roam (buddy system required), but the minute they are observed by one of the adults in our party, by a staff member, or by another adult on the ship acting UNsupervised, they WILL be CLOSELY supervised for the rest of the week.

My parents used similar guidelines with us, and we've used them with our children before, and they've been pretty effective since the expectations for behavior have been pretty consistent since day 1.

 

This sounds very reasonable and I think we will use your guidelines with our 12 and 15 year old on our cruise.

[graceinmelbourne]

Thanks for posting the contract of 'rules'. I am going to print that out to take with us. The kids will think it is lame but I will make sure they read it and understand it.

[kassimer1]

a few more things.

tell them never to follow a crew member just because they say to. If for some reason a crew member needs you child to go somewhere have Your child tell them that they would love to but they have to go to the service desk first and have them ask the service desk personel to verify that the crew member really does need your child. It has not been unheard of for crew to rape passengers. Make sure they know the way there. Of course also tell them if there is an emergency alarm going on they can follow the crew to the muster station. never ever enter crew areas.

 

As for the sea pass card after our first shock of a bill. we always have a certain amount on DS's sail pass and once he runs it out its gone.

 

Make sure both boys know what to do if they get hurt. DS fell and lacerated his head open and the only other person around was another teen. thankfully he knew to use the phone in the lounge to call the infirmery.

[kelbre]

Great tips!!!! We have just booked for next March and friends are going to accompany us as well. I am going to print this and keep it handy!!!

Kathy

[happyaussies]

Minor Passenger-Parental-Guardian Contract

 

Failure to obey these rules will result in complete full adult supervision at all times until the completion of the cruise.

 

 

I, _________________ the undersigned, agree to the terms of this contract allowing me the privilege to be on board the ship, , without full adult supervision at appropriate times.

 

I understand the failure of these rules will result in privileges being withdrawn and will result in an immediate termination of this contract and complete full adult supervision.

 

I will not leave the ship without a parent or guardian

I will not enter any other cabin and will not allow any other person into my cabin.

I will hang the “do not disturb” sign on the door while in the cabin alone.

I will not enter any restricted or staff areas.

I will not use adult only facilities

I will not throw anything overboard

I will not put any foreign material in the toilet system

I will notify the purser’s desk immediately if I loose my cruise card

I will not lend my cruise card to anyone else

I will obey the curfew set each day

I will regularly use the phone message system to inform of my where abouts while on board

I will only drink beverages handed to me by a staff member and only those always in my sight.

I will eat with my parents or guardians, breakfast in the buffet, lunch and dinner in the dining room

I will wash and dress for dinner each night

I will use hand sanitizer often and wash hands before eating all food at all times

I will not visit open decks in the evening or at night without parent or guardians

 

I will be well mannered at all times

• Treat all staff with respect.

• Say please, thank you, no thank you, etc

• Please hold doors open for adults

• Stand back allowing people to exit and enter the elevators.

• Voices in hallways at nights are to be kept to a minimum

• Be courteous to other guests who are dining at your table.

• Be courteous while swimming and not annoy others

 

By signing this contract I agree to follow the above rules.

 

Failure to obey these rules will result in full adult supervision at all times until the completion of the cruise.

 

 

Parent/Guardian_______________________________ Date_________

 

 

 

Minor Passenger_______________________________ Date_________

Edited April 26, 2012 by happyaussies

[Bostoncruiser35]

We are travelling with a large group and as such I will be having the pre-teens and teens sign such a contract. I am also planning a scavenger hunt with safety items on it for them to take pictures of such as:

A ships officer ( you must know what position they hold) Who to go to in an emergency

The kids club Where they will spend some time

Your room so they know how to get there from different locations

The pool rules sign so they know the rules and can be held accountable for them

Adults who are cruising in our party who are not your parents the more adults they know the better- 8 eyes are better than 4, 4 eyes are better than 2~ you get the idea

A candid shot of your parents ( a picture of them with out them knowing you are taking it) a fun way to find your parents

The medical office god forbid they need it

Where was your Muster Drill again god forbid they need it

A ship’s phone not in a cabin with a piece of paper that shows the emergency line for the infirmary if there was an emergency all kids know how to call 911, why should being on a ship be any different.

 

There will be fun things as well but I feel it is important for the children to show they know these things in a fun way. I will probably add more to it as I think of them.

[kidnme]

We are travelling with a large group and as such I will be having the pre-teens and teens sign such a contract. I am also planning a scavenger hunt with safety items on it for them to take pictures of such as:

A ships officer ( you must know what position they hold) Who to go to in an emergency

The kids club Where they will spend some time

Your roomso they know how to get there from different locations

The pool rules sign so they know the rules and can be held accountable for them

Adults who are cruising in our party who are not your parents the more adults they know the better- 8 eyes are better than 4, 4 eyes are better than 2~ you get the idea

A candid shot of your parents ( a picture of them with out them knowing you are taking it) a fun way to find your parents

The medical office god forbid they need it

Where was your Muster Drill again god forbid they need it

A ship’s phone not in a cabin with a piece of paper that shows the emergency line for the infirmary if there was an emergency all kids know how to call 911, why should being on a ship be any different.

 

There will be fun things as well but I feel it is important for the children to show they know these things in a fun way. I will probably add more to it as I think of them.

 

This is an awesome, excellent idea!

Thank you!!

We're going in a couple weeks to the Bahamas on our 1st cruise and this is a great way to involve our 14yr old in a fun, non confrontational way AND, it will give us some good shots to put in our vacation video as well!

 

We had already planned to let everyone take turns with the video camera for 10 minutes at the end of each day, to log a "Personal Video diary" of what they did that day, then we can all watch them when we get back.

The "Best ones" will be used to cap each day on our vacation video.

[kidnme]

We are travelling with a large group and as such I will be having the pre-teens and teens sign such a contract. I am also planning a scavenger hunt with safety items on it for them to take pictures of such as:

A ships officer ( you must know what position they hold) Who to go to in an emergency

The kids club Where they will spend some time

Your roomso they know how to get there from different locations

The pool rules sign so they know the rules and can be held accountable for them

Adults who are cruising in our party who are not your parents the more adults they know the better- 8 eyes are better than 4, 4 eyes are better than 2~ you get the idea

A candid shot of your parents ( a picture of them with out them knowing you are taking it) a fun way to find your parents

The medical office god forbid they need it

Where was your Muster Drill again god forbid they need it

A ship’s phone not in a cabin with a piece of paper that shows the emergency line for the infirmary if there was an emergency all kids know how to call 911, why should being on a ship be any different.

 

There will be fun things as well but I feel it is important for the children to show they know these things in a fun way. I will probably add more to it as I think of them.

 

This is an awesome, excellent idea!

Thank you!!

We're going in a couple weeks to the Bahamas on our 1st cruise and this is a great way to involve our 14yr old in a fun, non confrontational way AND, it will give us some good shots to put in our vacation video as well!

 

We had already planned to let everyone take turns with the video camera for 10 minutes at the end of each day, to log a "Personal Video diary" of what they did that day, then we can all watch them when we get back.

The "Best ones" will be used to cap each day on our vacation video.

[Jaylasmom]

Great advice, will have to use this with our kids this year on their first cruise.

[sjb.illinois]

This is all such great information!! I am subscribing to this thread - thanks for all the good tips!

[nancydru]

We just gave these to our tweens and teen to read and sign over the weekend.

 

We told them in order to get on the cruise they needed to abide by these rules.

 

It worked perfectly ;)

 

 

 

__________________, the undersigned, agree to the terms of this contract allowing me the privilege to be aboard the ship, Celebrity Summit, without adult supervision. I understand there are rules of the ship which must be obeyed at all times. Failure to obey the rules of the ship will result in an immediate termination of this contract and suspension of all non-adult supervision privileges.

 

Celebrity Cruises Rules for non-adult supervision privileges:

 

• Do not leave the ship without a parent or adult.

 

• No one else is to enter our cabins.

 

• Treat all staff with respect.

 

• You are expected to be well mannered at all times. Please, thank you, no thank you, etc… Please hold doors open for adults, stand back allowing people to exit the elevators before entering, etc…

 

• Floors are for walking upon/standing upon. Chairs, tables, railings, etc are not. Do not climb onto / stand upon anything that is not designed to be stood upon. Do not climb onto / stand upon anything that is a restricted area.

 

• Do not go into any restricted areas or Celebrity staff areas.

 

• Do not throw ANYTHING overboard the ship.

 

• Inside voices in the hallways between the hours of 8pm-9am (Regular voices may be used around the cabins during the other hours)

 

 

• You are not to enter any cabins other than ours. (Unless you are given prior approval).

 

• Do not go out onto balcony w/ out a parent/adult present.

 

 

• If you are in your cabin alone – hang the do not disturb sign on the door. This should prevent any Celebrity employee from entering. Please ensure you remove it when you leave the room.

 

 

• Please carry your SeaPass card with you at all times. Guard it as you would cash$$.

 

 

 

 

 

• Your SeaPass is tied to our credit card. It is to be used only by you. You have a budget of $_____. This amount is expected to last you the entire cruise. You are not to you exceed this budget without prior approval. (Please keep all receipts)

 

 

• If you lose your Seapass you are to immediately notify one of us.

 

 

 

• You are not to drink any beverage unless it is handed to you by a family member or a Celebrity staff member.

 

• You are not to drink from anything you have let out of your sight. Some people have been known to slip drugs into other people’s drinks.

 

 

 

• We expect to know where you are on the ship. We will use notes in our cabin to let each other know where we can be found.

 

 

 

• You are not to loiter or play in the stairwells, hallways, or elevators. Activities such as “knock and run”, pressing all the buttons in elevator, calling other cabins to hang up will not be tolerated.

 

 

 

• The curfew will be decided on each day. It will vary depending on the organized activities that are planned on the ship for the teens, and what time we need to start the next day.

 

• Dinner is expected to be eaten together each night. There is flexibility if there is an alternate activity you would prefer to attend as long as we have discussed it in advance (at least that morning).

 

 

 

• You will be expected to be washed and dressed for dinner 15 minutes before our allotted dining time of _______. You must be on time to be courteous to other guests who are dining at the same table.

 

• If you order room service, you must tip the delivery person. We will provide a small amount of money for this use only. (please do not order more food than you plan on eating)

 

• There will be pre arranged check-in times if for some reason you miss one of these you will lose your privileges for the following 24 hours. This means that you must stay with us or in your cabin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Absolutely no visiting upper/open deck areas in the evening w/ out parent/adult supervision

 

• Please stay out of adult only pools & Jacuzzis

 

• While swimming please be courteous no diving, belly flops, cannon balls, splashing, etc…

 

 

• Please make good use of hand sanitizing stations on the ship. Before eating all meals and snacks please sanitize your hands.

 

 

 

By signing this contract I agree to the follow all above said rules.Failure to obey the rules of the ship will result in an immediate termination of this contract and suspension of all non-adult supervision privileges.

 

Parent/Guardian_______________________________ Date_________

 

Minor Passenger_______________________________ Date_________

 

Thank you! This is so great! I WILL be making my kids sign this. I have been nervous about my 12 and 16 year olds roaming the ship. The last time we cruised they were 6 and 11 and it was Disney. They never left our side except to go to the kids are a few times. Going on the Allure will be a whole new ballgame.