Questions about The Kids Zone - Princess Diamond

[Summertime]

We are going on the Mexican Riviera cruise on March 26th on the Diamond. I have read just about every review of this ship but very few reviews are from the perspective of familes. Anyone have any thoughts to share about how things worked out with their children at The Kids Zone? Also, I have read conflicting reports about how the children are divided up. The Princess website has only two catogories listed, 3-7 and 8-12. I have read other posters say it's in three groups and other places it's 4 groups. I'm hoping for the 4th group which is 6-9 since both of my girls would fall into that catagory and I think my youngest who is 6 would have a hard time being without her older sister who is 8. Anyone had kids that were in the 6-9 age group? Did your kids enjoy being at the center? Did you feel comfortable letting them be there? How much time did they spend there? What kind of things would they do? Did you tip the helpers at the children's center and if so, how much? Any thoughts at all about the children's activity center would be most appreciated as I've heard very little about it.

 

Thanks a bunch,

Summer

[Cruisin' Chick]

From what I've seen, the age groups are based on the quantity. We've sailed in February on the Star a couple of years ago when fewer kids were on board (only 2 5-year olds including my daughter). They recombined three age groups into two. Last summer on the Sapphire (sister ship to the Diamond) there were 37 kids in the group she was in (I can't remember the exact range). Of course (I'm sure you've read the "wild kids" type of threads) not every kid participates. My girl always has enjoyed the kid programs on Carnival and Princess but she enjoys hanging out with everybody. Don't know what the problem is with others (maybe the parents).

I do recommend you check the schedule as soon as you go aboad for when the orientation meetings are. We showed up only a couple minutes late on the Star and the door to the Fun Zone was closed with a sign saying we need to go to the next meeting! They can be sticklers for promptness. And if you want to leave your child there for in-port babysitting (free) or post 10pm babysitting ($5/hr) you need to sign up ahead of time. But the counselors on the Sapphire was pretty reasonable: in one port, our excursion was running late and we didn't get back on the ship until a little after 5 (which was the time they close so they can go eat) and a couple of times, we got there a few minutes after 10 from our late seating dinner. But they were pleasant about it.

 

We put some cash in a tip envelope (you can get from room steward or the pursers desk) and give to them on the last day the zone is open.

 

If there's a lot of kids there, they may have some educational activities. On the last cruise, they did a solar system and a glaciers project. They'll have some competitions that they'll hand out certificates for (also "good sport" ones) that you can take to the store and get a really cheapie gift like tatoos or watch.

[AmyBeth68]

Unfortunately we haven't been on the Diamond/Sapphire yet but we have been on two previous Princess cruises. We typically cruise over spring vacation (Easter week) so there have been quite a few kids. On the Grand there were about 100 kids on the ship, however, many of them were teens so the FunZone wasn't crowded. My daughters were 3 and 5 at the time and thus grouped together. They LOVED that experience. The counselors were wonderful and they brought home so much stuff (stuffed animals, crafts, toys, etc).

 

Last year we were on the Golden Princess and there were 600 kids on board. The groups were broken down into smaller age categories because of the large numbers. My oldest was 6 and was in with about 10-15 kids each day. I believe her group was more like 6-8 year olds. Very manageable! My little one was 4 and was in with a group of about 10 kids ranging in age from 3-4. I really think they are flexible and adjust based on how many children are there in each age group so that the groups remain pretty small. My kids had a blast on this ship. They made so many friends and brought home tons of medals, stuffed animals again, the whole works. They even had a kids only talent show which was adorable.

 

On both ships the evening activities were a little bit more relaxed, watching movies, playing board games, etc. A few nights they had kids only dinners at the Horizon Court, these usually coincided with Formal Nights. We didn't let them go to the first one b/c we thought they should eat with us. But they begged to be with their friends for the second one so we gave in :). One night they host a Pajama Party with a karaoke machine and dance contest...that was another really fun night for the kids. We did the babysitting after 10 pm a few times, but we really only used it until 11:00 pm during Island Party and one late show.

 

On both trips my two girls didn't want to miss a thing that was going on. They really enjoyed all the days they spent there. As a matter of fact, they have told us repeatedly that they like Cruising just a little bit more than Disney. Can you imagine?!

 

Being that you are travelling during a Spring Break time period I'd guess there will be at least 100 kids on the ship. Your girls may possibly be grouped together.

[luv2cruise99]

I think the age groupings may depend on how many kids are onboard. We were on the Diamond's sister ship, the Sapphire, in November. There were only about 35 kids under the age of 12 onboard so they just did ONE grouping for ages 3 to 12. Of course they then had to "dummy down" the activities so that the younger kids could participate. The younger ones seemed to always be having a great time, but I felt really sorry for the older ones who always looked a little bored playing with the babies.

[Summertime]

It sounds like from your remarks that my girls have a better chance of being together if there are more kids on board. My travel agent told me that there are over 800 kids listed on the ship so I guess they'll probably be together!! It will be interesting to see how it all turns out. I hope that my girls enjoy the kids center, it sounds like it could be so much fun for them.

 

Summer

[AmyBeth68]

Also keep in mind that even if they are technically in separate groups, they will most likely be doing their activities nearby one another. My girls have always been in the same general area, even on our last cruise when they were in "separate" groups. I'm sure they'll be fine...and with that number of kids there will surely be a very active kids program. They'll have a blast! :)

[travellady]

Just sailed the Diamond Mexican Riviera last week. My son's group, the Pirateers, was ages 10-13. The next age group up started at 13 so I suspect 13 year olds could choose (or their parents could choose for them :-)My son loved it because he's 11 and got to hang out with older kids. Unfortunately, I can't speak for the breakdown of other age groups but the one room we walked into at first looked to have about 7-9 year olds.

 

However, as others have said, the age group split does vary depending on number of kids on the ship and their ages.

[Summertime]

Oh, travellady I have to ask - how was the weather? I'm hoping lovely and warm!

 

Summer

[travellady]

The first sea day headed down to Mexico was pretty cool though we did sit out on the deck and read. Monday, the second day was nice and warm and remained that way until Friday. By mid Friday, the temp was high 50's and breezy, very few people out on deck.

 

Puerto Vallarta was actually hot and humid, at first I thought it might rain but it ended up being just cloudy with some sunbreaks. Mazatlan was great - warm, not overly hot, though a little breezy on the beach. Cabo was perfect weatherwise, sunny and dry.

 

Also, we saw quite a few whales and dolphins headed down off Baja. Saw a couple of whales just as we left Cabo coming back. I must say that was one of the highlights of my trip though everything was wonderful.

[Summertime]

travellady - you need to do a full review for all of us who are counting the days for our Mexican Riviera cruises in the next few weeks on the Diamond! I'm so in the mood for a long, detailed recent review - go ahead, we'll wait while you whip it up:)

 

Summer

[ml64]

We'll be doing this iternerary in October and am very anxious to hear how you make out on your 3/05 cruise. This will be my 4th cruise but my first cruise with DS (5). I'm a little nervous about it so any expert advice would be greatly appreciated. I'm hoping he'll get involved in the kid's program while on board but he can be shy and might not leave my side. Only time will tell.

 

I'm also interested in any excursions you take that you and the kids enjoyed. I'll try to watch the boards for your review but I'd appreciate info over e-mail as well (if you can). E-mail is: mlynn64@hotmail.com

 

Anyway, hope you have a terrific cruise. Take care.

Lynn

[emmysmom]

Travellady - Do you know if the 13 year olds can also go to the teen center? Last year my son was in the 10-13 group - he wasn't too interested in some of the scheduled activities. I know he would have liked it more if he was able to go and hang out with friends, played video games, etc.

[Summertime]

Lynn, I'm hoping to do a full review of our cruise experience when we return home and I'd be more than happy to answer any questions you might have. I keep checking on the Princess reviews but there haven't been any new reviews for awhile although I've heard that people have written and submitted them but they haven't been posted so I keep checking. There's nothing like a good long review to help with the excitement of an upcoming cruise!

 

Summer

[Cruisin' Chick]

Summertime,

Hopefully the weather in LA will improve by the time you go. Last week it got up to the 80s/90s inland, 70s at the coast but mostly this winter it's been i the 50s/60s and rainy. It looks threatening right now.

[Laurin612]

I recently found out that there are only 20 kids on my upcoming Dawn Princess Southern Caribbean cruise. My kids usually make their own fun, but were looking forward to playing with other kids in the Kid's Zone .

 

I'm wondering whether the low number of children on board will be a good or bad thing. Obviously, I wouldn't want to be on a cruise with 1200 kids onboard, but 20 seems REALLY low. Has anyone else experienced this?

 

Laurin

[ladypalmtree]

Travel lady...my daughter is 4 months shy of being 13...she really does not want to be in the kid group..wants to hang out in the teen center etc...with my supervision and lots of rules of course..will they let her or are they very strict...and how do they know how old they are is the age on the sail card? mine better not be lol...:eek:

[emmysmom]

ladypalmtree - your daughter sounds like my son. He will turn 13 the month before our cruise. He would really like to be able to go to the teen center....not with the kids group.

[DavidO]

We just got off the Diamond Princess with our two kids ages 6 and 7 (one turned 6 during the cruise). The Fun Zone was split ages 3-7, 8-12, 13-17. My kids loved the Fun Zone and wanted to always go back. They did quite a few crafts, coloring, and games in addition to things like play station and movies at night. The kids came back with several small stuffed animals during the week, a t-shirt, some medals, pictures they colored and crafts they made, and more. We've been on several cruises and have seen both very good and very weak kids programs and the Diamonds was very good.

 

David

[emmysmom]

Thanks David for your info on the Fun Zone - my kids are really looking forward to it again. My 13 year old son will be thrilled to be able to go to the Teen Center!

[merela]

We are going on the Mexican Riviera cruise on March 26th on the Diamond. I have read just about every review of this ship but very few reviews are from the perspective of familes. Anyone have any thoughts to share about how things worked out with their children at The Kids Zone?

 

I'm going on Sapphire in October and I will bring back Kids' Patters and let you know what activities they offer on board. I think Sapphire and Diamond (and most Princess ships that size) run their kids' programs the same way.

 

Please search my name, Kids' program, Kids' menu in the Family Cruising board and Princess board for my 2 cents about Princess' kids program (look for posts dated 9/04-current).

 

I've posted a list of activities that was done in each age group on board the Diamond for our Alaskan cruise. The only difference would be the theme. Instead of icebergs and polar bears, you would get sand/sea/marine life for Mexican cruises.

 

My kids are a bit younger than your kids when they went to the kids' program, but whether your child will enjoy the kids' club really depends on their own comfort levels with strangers and strange places. Remember to prepare your child--of what to expect while on board. Of course, there is no way you can prepare for every possibile events that may or may not happen to your child while she is on board, but you can give her some ideas of what may happen.

 

I say generally, my 4YO (and later 5YO) DD did quite well. Of course, she didn't go to the kids' club all the time like some kids. She was worried that she may miss out something fun while her younger brother (too young for kids' club) is with me. So I let her hang out with me and her brother. I'm sure she would have more fun at the kids' club, but I can't really make her believe that.

 

I have no qualms about leaving my children in the care of the people working in the Kids' Club, even on port days. But I tend to want my children to go with me during meal times and disembark at different ports of call, so I don't mind if they choose not to go to kids' club.

 

 

Also, I have read conflicting reports about how the children are divided up. The Princess website has only two catogories listed, 3-7 and 8-12. I have read other posters say it's in three groups and other places it's 4 groups. I'm hoping for the 4th group which is 6-9 since both of my girls would fall into that catagory and I think my youngest who is 6 would have a hard time being without her older sister who is 8. Anyone had kids that were in the 6-9 age group?

 

How Princess divides up the kids' club depends heavily on the number of kids in each age. For our Alaska cruise last summer on the Diamond, it was 3-6, 7-9, 10-13, 14-17 (there were over 250 kids). But for our Caribbean cruise in January on the Star, it was 3-7, 8-13, 14-17 (maybe 30 kids total). So you really won't know until you get there and see the Kids' Patters in your cabin.

Just be prepared that they are very strict about the age categories. If they say 7-9, then your 6YO can't be with her sister and vice versa. Does your 6YO go to school? If she is in Kindergarten or grade 1, just tell her it's like school, but easier.

 

I think you are more worried about your younger daughter. Don't worry, just prepare her well and let her know ahead of time that there might be a possibility that she can't be in the same kids' club as her sister. But she'll get to meet kids her own age and make new friends.

 

Did your kids enjoy being at the center?

 

Yes....when I can persuade her to go there. She wanted to hang out with me and her brother more since she thinks her brother would have more fun with me (not true!).

 

Did you feel comfortable letting them be there?

 

Of course.

 

How much time did they spend there? What kind of things would they do?

 

My daughter probably spent about a minimum of 2 hours a day in the kids' club. She would check the kids' patter and pick activities she wanted to participate. Sometimes I go with her and play games with her (along with her younger brother who was too young to be in the kids' club) and sometimes she goes in alone.

 

The counselors will give you a beeper to call you in case your child needs you. You need to bring a photo ID to pick up your child. You can list a number of people who can pick up your child during the signup, but whoever picks up your child will need to show a photo ID. So they are good with security.

 

They keep the kids' club very clean and odor free. All the board games the kids play are brand new packages. They must open one for every sailing. Same with Playdoh.

 

There are lots of coloring pages for kids who enjoy coloring.

 

Also, most kids can spend from 9am-noon, 2pm-5pm, 7pm-10pm at the kid's club. During Formal dinner nights, the kids club will hold kids' dinner. But my DD wants to go to formal dinners with me. She wants to get all dressed up for formal nights.

 

Here is my post about kids' club activities:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=76416

 

Just substitute Alaskan-theme to Mexican-theme.

 

Did you tip the helpers at the children's center and if so, how much?

 

I was going to, but my DD decided not to go to kids' club that last day on the cruise, so I never made it up to the kids' club to say thank you. It's up to you. You don't really have to. I've heard people tip up to $20/child.

 

Any thoughts at all about the children's activity center would be most appreciated as I've heard very little about it.

 

Thanks a bunch,

Summer

 

There are always tons of stuff you can do with your kids besides the kids' club:

 

1. Explore the ship if you haven't been on this particular ship before. Rip out the pages of the floor plans from Princess brochures and give each child a copy. Do your own tour of the ship with your children that first day. I studied the floor plan with my DD before she went on board. We've been on the Princess ships 3 times and she has remembered the cabin number from every cruise!!!

 

2. Study the Kids' patters as well as the adult patters with your children every day while on the cruise. Use a highlighter to highlight activities you and your children would like to do.

 

3. Don't forget the signup that first day, usually after the muster drill (or sometimes at 7pm). Just check the kids' patter as soon as you board for the time of signup. The signup is easy, but takes time because you have to fill out several forms. Remember to get a Princess Pelican t-shirt from the kids' club counselors, in case they forget to give one to your children. Every child gets to color their own t-shirt.

 

 

BTW, if you are interested, I've listed the kids' menu on Princess:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=79028&highlight=menus

 

But let your children try the dishes from the adult menu. This is where my 5YO DD learned about souffles and creme brulees.

 

HTH.

 

If you have anymore questions, you can email me directly at

 

jtsaila@excite.com

[merela]

Travel lady...my daughter is 4 months shy of being 13...she really does not want to be in the kid group..wants to hang out in the teen center etc...with my supervision and lots of rules of course..will they let her or are they very strict...and how do they know how old they are is the age on the sail card? mine better not be lol...:eek:

 

They are very strict about kids' club ages. If they say 13-17, then if your child hasn't reached 13 during the cruise, she cannot go to the teen center. Personally, I would not want my almost 13YO DD hang out with 17YO boys. I know the teen group becomes cliquee (sp?) very quickly. I'm not aware that parents are welcome in the teen center though (just kidding!)

 

The ship has a list of everyone on board for each sailing, including their birthdays. Each fun zone/kids' zone has a list of children expected to be there and their cabin numbers. Of course not all children come to kids' club, but the kids' zone counsellors have that information and they figure everything out before your child ever set foot on the ship.

 

The age is not on the cruise card, but you need to sign up to come to the kids' club and they know where you belong. They keep a tight control of who comes and goes in each club. All of the counsellors will know your child's name by the end of the cruise.

 

Just be prepared that your almost 13YO DD may spend more time with you than with her peers. As long as you are OK with that, then you will be able to have a great time on board.

[Cruisin' Chick]

Yes, the counselors have a list of the kids and their ages. In fact when we got to the kids zone to sign her up, there was a sign that said: age 7 - 9, 37 children. The counselors may be strict with the age groups as if one child gets an exception, other kids of the same age may protest too.