Help, what ship is best for 4 and 2 year old?

[dadof2boys]

Hello everyone,

My wife and I have been on 6 cruises with Carnival and are finally wanting to try something new. We are a little nervous as we are very familiar with the Carnival product and their ships. We are wondering what ship (besides EPIC) offers fun activities for children, water park, great kids club, children’s pool, etc. Itinerary is not as important as we end up just hanging out port days due to having the little guys with us. So please, suggest away.

[ggcruiser]

Why not the EPIC? It's great with kids!

 

If you're gonna have 2 kids in your room, I like the layout of the Pearl (balcony cabin). It's a nice size ship and has great amenities.

[Richpontone]

The Jewel, the last time I checked, had Nickolodeon on board their ship. Check NCL.com for more details. Also, type in Jewel and Nickolodeon in the search engine on the CC boards for user reviews.

[rjm11]

The Dawn and the Star both have fantastic kids pools at the aft. In my opinion, better than the Jewel class ships (Pearl, Jade, Gem, Jewel). The kids pool area has small pool slides (one really small into a wading pool type area, and two larger.... about the size of a twisty slide at a playground). And a kids size swimming pool that is only 2.5 feet deep, and a kids hot tub. My kids loved this area- they were in it all the time at that age.

 

Also these ships have the "kids buffet" which is great- kids sized chairs/tables and buffet area that are at their height stocked with kid friendly foods. We ate lots of breakfasts and lunches there- great to park the kids there while we gathered our food from the grown up area.

 

And there are fantastic "2 bedroom family suites" on these ships (as well as on the Jewel class)- great set up with two bedrooms and 2 bathrooms and full suite perks- one of which is having any meal from ANY RESTAURANT served to your room by a butler.... this was great as we could take the kids to the buffet for dinner, then come back and put them to bed, and have a nice dinner delivered to our room for the two of us. Well worth the extra price for the perks and space.

[45014]

Just remember that the 2 year old MUST be potty trained.

[dadof2boys]

The suggestions are great. This is exactly what I was looking for. As to no Epic, that's just because its going to Europe. Nothing personal against the ship. :)

[dadof2boys]

Just remember that the 2 year old MUST be potty trained.

 

I thought that was just for the pools? I was under the impression that the kids club was okay, just that they contacted you for changing of the diaper. Has that changed?

[amilicia]

I thought that was just for the pools? I was under the impression that the kids club was okay, just that they contacted you for changing of the diaper. Has that changed?

 

No, you're correct, that is just for the pools. They will still call you if and when your child needs a changing.

[RosieCanberra]

The good ship Lollipop would be good, don't know if it is still sailing though.

Mic:D

[Sauer-kraut]

The good ship Lollipop would be good, don't know if it is still sailing though.

Mic:D

 

Yes, but she never sailed as "The Lollipop" was an airplane or back in the day, an airship.

[dexddd]

The Dawn and the Star both have fantastic kids pools at the aft. In my opinion, better than the Jewel class ships (Pearl, Jade, Gem, Jewel). The kids pool area has small pool slides (one really small into a wading pool type area, and two larger.... about the size of a twisty slide at a playground). And a kids size swimming pool that is only 2.5 feet deep, and a kids hot tub. My kids loved this area- they were in it all the time at that age.

 

Also these ships have the "kids buffet" which is great- kids sized chairs/tables and buffet area that are at their height stocked with kid friendly foods. We ate lots of breakfasts and lunches there- great to park the kids there while we gathered our food from the grown up area.

 

And there are fantastic "2 bedroom family suites" on these ships (as well as on the Jewel class)- great set up with two bedrooms and 2 bathrooms and full suite perks- one of which is having any meal from ANY RESTAURANT served to your room by a butler.... this was great as we could take the kids to the buffet for dinner, then come back and put them to bed, and have a nice dinner delivered to our room for the two of us. Well worth the extra price for the perks and space.

 

For kids 4 & 2 and if Epic is not in consideration, I'd agree with the Dawn and Star. The Spirit has a similar pool in the back but not as much stuff as the Dawn and Star.

[billet]

The Dawn and the Star are great for the kids although the Pearl etc are nicer for the parents.

[thomscots]

No, you're correct, that is just for the pools. They will still call you if and when your child needs a changing.

 

 

Make sure you understand how the pager/phone system works for diapers. I missed a diaper call and was charged $200 hospital fee for the diaper change.

[smeyer418]

The Jewel has Nickelodeon characters aboard. We did it with the two grand-kids last February. During president's week it was the actual people who did the voices for TV other than that it was a tape(not the week we were on)...which was fine with the kids-they neither know or care.

[GORDONCHICK]

Make sure you understand how the pager/phone system works for diapers. I missed a diaper call and was charged $200 hospital fee for the diaper change.

 

 

WOW! I would have needed to be changed after getting that one!!! We didn't cruise until ours was 3.5 and potty trained, so we didn't have to worry about that one.