getting married on board/bringing 17 mth old

[damiensmom]

Hi,

We are booked for the April 10th Dawn cruise out of nyc, our first cruise. We have been engaged for over a year and are thinking of getting married on board. We have a 17 mth old that is coming with us on the cruise - can't conceive of being without him for a week and cannot afford to pay for anyone to come wth us to give us alone time, but we will make due. We are driving to the port and leaving our vehicle there for the week (cost?). We have an af mini ste on deck 11.

Any tips, suggestions, advice from more experienced cruisers? All advice would be very much appreciated, but especially from others who have taken very young children.

Thank you very much,

Dee

[mkk]

I don't know much about the cruising with a young child part.. He is too young for any children's programs so he will be with you the ENTIRE cruise.... As far as getting married on board....last I knew..the ship had to be in port for ceremonies to be performed. I would think you would need to arrange this WELL in advance...

Hopefully others will respond with more info...

[hkburke]

DOnt know about weddings but here is our diary about travelling with an 18mo old on the Wind 12/03. Hope it provides a picture for you! We though her age and enthusiasm brought so much to the cruise!

Heather Burke

http://www.pinonpc.com/cruise-diary2.pdf

[rundogrun]

NCL arranges marriages through a third party. All weddings take place while in port on day 1, and are not casual affairs...there are definitely costs involved.

 

My in-laws wanted to do a vow renewal ceremony, which we coordinated once we were at sea (we tried to arrange it beforehand, with no success). Usually there is a priest or chaplain on board as a guest. We tracked this person down and they very willingly helped us out. Now, that was for a renewal of vows...not sure if it's that easy for a marriage (license and other issues aside).

 

You could go down to city hall, file the appropriate paperwork to be "married" and then try to do a small ceremony with the priest/chaplain on board. You might even be able to do something on one of the islands, with enough planning ahead. Since you are in an AF, you'll be able to use the concierge, who I'm sure will have other ideas or be able to help you out.

 

Good luck!

[GregInCharlotte]

...of leaving him with one of the grandmas for a week. Is that possible? We've been keeping our neice when her parents get away since she was an infant. She looks forward to it. We look forward to it. Her parents look forward to it.

 

My son grew up spending weeks at a time with both sets of grandparents.

 

Cruising, like much vacation travel, is incredibly stressful on babies.

 

Having a baby present is going to completely change your cruise experience. You'll miss late evening activities and get up earlier than honeymooners should.

 

I wish parents would consider leaving their child with trusted loving caregivers to be something good for both them and the child.

[seahorse]

NCL arranges marriages through a third party. All weddings take place while in port on day 1, and are not casual affairs...there are definitely costs involved.

 

My in-laws wanted to do a vow renewal ceremony, which we coordinated once we were at sea (we tried to arrange it beforehand, with no success). Usually there is a priest or chaplain on board as a guest. We tracked this person down and they very willingly helped us out. Now, that was for a renewal of vows...not sure if it's that easy for a marriage (license and other issues aside).

 

You could go down to city hall, file the appropriate paperwork to be "married" and then try to do a small ceremony with the priest/chaplain on board. You might even be able to do something on one of the islands, with enough planning ahead. Since you are in an AF, you'll be able to use the concierge, who I'm sure will have other ideas or be able to help you out.

 

Good luck!

 

If you booked with a a TA (one that you can call and have a conversation with) he/she can help you. You don`t just go on and arrange this. It can be quite involved. It has to be done when you are in port.

 

I agree with Greg. Try and leave your child at home (Just this once:) ) This is very special for you. A child on your first cruise can be stressful. You could take grandparents along to help:D

 

Make sure that balcony is always locked!!!:eek:

[rundogrun]

Actually no, assuming you're referring to the vow renewal. I shortened the story considerably. Our TA, who I've used for years and is excellent, desperately tried to help us out with NCL and customer service. All we were able to get was a phone #, which was to the third party wedding planner.

 

The renewal ceremony took place on board, at sea in the wedding chapel. It was coordinated seamlessly, once on board (despite our best efforts to arrange before hand) with the help of Ruth the concierge.

 

In effect, a couple that just had a civil ceremony done, could easily replicate this scenario on board.

[seahorse]

Actually no, assuming you're referring to the vow renewal. I shortened the story considerably. Our TA, who I've used for years and is excellent, desperately tried to help us out with NCL and customer service. All we were able to get was a phone #, which was to the third party wedding planner.

 

The renewal ceremony took place on board, at sea in the wedding chapel. It was coordinated seamlessly, once on board (despite our best efforts to arrange before hand) with the help of Ruth the concierge.

 

In effect, a couple that just had a civil ceremony done, could easily replicate this scenario on board.

 

As you mentioned, a wedding is more involved. A wedding planner has to get into the act if NCL does`t have one. Never did a wedding through NCL.

 

Son got married in Bermuda. We sailed on the Horizon. Everything about the wedding had to be done with the Bermuda authorities. We had a very nice reception on the ship.

[thewolffs]

I got married on a RCCL ship a few years ago. You should plan it as soon as possible. There is paperwork that has to be done. NCL should have a wedding coordiator (I believe it is called the Wedding Experience). Call NCL to find out. My TA took care of all the cruise planning (we had 25 guests come with us). I dealt directly with the coordinator. Usually you can get married in the departure port or on one of the islands. Since you are doing the 7-day itinerary, Nassau would probably be the only other port you might be able to get married at. It would be nice to get married on the beach. I liked doing it before the cruise left, then we were able to party and relax for the rest of the trip. I also agree that I might think twice about bringing your baby with you. Who will watch the baby while you are getting married? I'm not saying you wouldn't be able to do it, but just think about how romantic your honeymoon would be with a 17-month old. If you do decide to bring him, there are babysitting services onboard for a fee. Whatever you decide, you'll have the best time. Getting married on a cruise was the best decision we ever made. Good luck!

[damiensmom]

Well, thank you all for the advice. I am calling NCL on Monday to see what kind of special arrangements have to be made. Nothing at all fancy, just making it legal. A ceremony on the beach at Nassau would be perfect.

 

"thewolffs" posted that there is babysitting on board for a fee, but everyone else says there is NO babysitting whatsoever for children under 2. Which is correct??

 

If there is no babysitting at all and we could scrape enough together to bring someone with us, (leaving the baby behind is NOT an option), how hard would it be at this point to switch from one mini suite for 3 to two adjoining rooms for 4??

 

Well- we booked through vacations-to-go online which is about as unpersonal as you can get so I don't know how helpful they would be in trying to help us out with everything but I'll give them a call next week too.

 

Thanks again for all of your help. We hope to become old hands at this ourselves.

 

Dee

[seahorse]

Look at the home page of Cruise Critic and it gives you all the wedding info you need for weddings on NCL:)