Cruise Cards and Kids

[resordanis]

Hi all,

As we are about to travel with our grandchildren for the first time, can someone please enlighten me as to how the cruise cards work with children and their spending? Can they have a limit on using their cards? Is it something we can organise at Reception, so that they only have a limited amount on their cards? Just would like to let their parents know prior to the cruise, so that their is no little surprises at the end!!

Thanks

[croydonCruiser]

I don't think you can really set a limit. We've always linked the kids cards to our credit card, so in theory there is no limit (well our card limit :eek:)! I'm not too sure how it would work if you put cash on their cards instead. I think if you use the cash option, P&O want a minimum of $300, but again I'm not sure if that's per card or per cabin account. Some here will have paid with cash and will be able to let you know. $300 was a lot more than what we wanted them to spend anyway!

 

In practice, we decided in advance how much the kids were allowed to spend each, and told them that that amount was all they had on their cards. They thought it was a fixed limit, and we were happy to let them think that. :rolleyes:

We went through with them the sorts of things they'd be able to buy, so for example if they bought 1 ice cream, 1 mocktail and 1 iced/hot chocolate each day, they'd still have enough left for the odd chocolate bar or a souvenir. We also told them that they weren't to buy anything for any of their friends. We got a printout from reception every couple of days to check their expenses. I'm not sure which ship you will be on, but we found that the printouts were different in the detail they showed on the Pacific Sun and the Pacific Pearl. I can't remember the Pacific Dawn's. You may need to ask for the printout to show expenditure per person.

[resordanis]

I don't think you can really set a limit. We've always linked the kids cards to our credit card, so in theory there is no limit (well our card limit :eek:)! I'm not too sure how it would work if you put cash on their cards instead. I think if you use the cash option, P&O want a minimum of $300, but again I'm not sure if that's per card or per cabin account. Some here will have paid with cash and will be able to let you know. $300 was a lot more than what we wanted them to spend anyway!

 

In practice, we decided in advance how much the kids were allowed to spend each, and told them that that amount was all they had on their cards. They thought it was a fixed limit, and we were happy to let them think that. :rolleyes:

We went through with them the sorts of things they'd be able to buy, so for example if they bought 1 ice cream, 1 mocktail and 1 iced/hot chocolate each day, they'd still have enough left for the odd chocolate bar or a souvenir. We also told them that they weren't to buy anything for any of their friends. We got a printout from reception every couple of days to check their expenses. I'm not sure which ship you will be on, but we found that the printouts were different in the detail they showed on the Pacific Sun and the Pacific Pearl. I can't remember the Pacific Dawn's. You may need to ask for the printout to show expenditure per person.

Hi,

Thanks for the advise. We are on Jewel. As we have never travelled with children (well, not for many years) I was not sure of the procedure. I will advice their parents as to what you have outlined. We used to do this also when our son was a lot younger and travelled with us, so things haven't changed.

I was just unsure if the kids were allowed to charge and if so, how to monitor it, you have answered the questions, thanks!

[thied]

Hi all,

As we are about to travel with our grandchildren for the first time, can someone please enlighten me as to how the cruise cards work with children and their spending? Can they have a limit on using their cards? Is it something we can organise at Reception, so that they only have a limited amount on their cards? Just would like to let their parents know prior to the cruise, so that their is no little surprises at the end!!

Thanks

yes you can set a limit on childrens cards and you do not have to put the $300 on there cards as you do for adults,

 

If you were to put $100 cash on there cards and not link there card to any credit card , The childrens card will stop working when they reach the limit.

 

 

we did what croydonCruiser said about what they can or can not buy and no buying any thing for there friends on or off the ship.

 

Thats what we have done.

[resordanis]

yes you can set a limit on childrens cards and you do not have to put the $300 on there cards as you do for adults,

 

If you were to put $100 cash on there cards and not link there card to any credit card , The childrens card will stop working when they reach the limit.

 

 

we did what croydonCruiser said about what they can or can not buy and no buying any thing for there friends on or off the ship.

 

Thats what we have done.

Thanks for the information

[Bella cruiser]

Hi,

We just put $100 cash on our son's card and had no problems as it wasn't linked to any credit card. You can easily check on the credit left if they need a top up.

[resordanis]

Hi,

We just put $100 cash on our son's card and had no problems as it wasn't linked to any credit card. You can easily check on the credit left if they need a top up.

Yes, that is what we will do! Plus I am going to give them a notebook/pen so they can keep their own calculations of their account! Just don't want their parents having any surprises considering it is their first cruise!

[Aussie71]

This is a great thread. I also, was wondering how I was going to handle this situation with my two kids. So the information has been great.

 

Can any recommend what an acceptable card limit would be for teenagers for a 7 night cruise in winter?

 

I was thinking that $100 each should last them the whole trip, beause their cards should only be used when they are not with us (i.e. kids club). I think it should be enough, but am I being totally unrealistic?

 

I am assuming that we could top it up if needed.

[resordanis]

This is a great thread. I also, was wondering how I was going to handle this situation with my two kids. So the information has been great.

 

Can any recommend what an acceptable card limit would be for teenagers for a 7 night cruise in winter?

 

I was thinking that $100 each should last them the whole trip, beause their cards should only be used when they are not with us (i.e. kids club). I think it should be enough, but am I being totally unrealistic?

 

I am assuming that we could top it up if needed.

 

Not that we have travelled with kids before, but I was only going to suggest that our grandchildren get about $50 to $60 to start off with. I think $100 is more than enough but I guess it depends on the ages. Ours are 11 and 13, so not sure whether that makes any difference. It will be interesting to hear what others have to say. At least we can put a limit on their spending. I think that makes a difference!:)

[croydonCruiser]

We allowed $100 each for the 8 night Pacific Sun cruise when they were 9 and 10, and $120 for the 10 night Pacific Pearl one a year later. I thought that was more than enough for them! They didn't really need that much. They mainly spent it on drinks and ice creams. They averaged 2-3 items a day, and it easily covered that.

[tassie cruiser]

Agree with all of the above. Also, has the OP said which ship? If it was Princess or RCCL then the Pizzas, deck grills, room serice etc... is free. A drink card would be great as well, from memory (prob wrong) but think its about $4-50p/day that is paid at the start of cruise.(if not purchased at beginning of cruise, it will still cost the same) If its P&O drinks, snacks etc.. do add up.

Fiona

[Aussie71]

Sorry, I forgot to mention the ship. We are cruising on the Pacific Dawn during school holidays in June 2012. I believe that this will be after the refurb (not sure if the prices will increase). I do not believe that P&O have a drinks card for the kids. We might take some softdrink on with us.

[LouLou28]

Like others have mentioned; we have done similar. My husband and I link our cards to our credit card, but not our children. We then visit the Purser's desk and put a dollar amount (when they were younger; we would start with $20 on their cards) - they would each go (of their own accord) to the Purser's desk to check on the current limit.

 

The only thing I do differently; is sometime during the last day; I go to the Purser and link their cards to our credit card - so that even if they overspend on the last day (unintentionally of course) we can dissembark without having to settle up their account. Our experience on our first cruise was that our son had bought, for his sister, some of the 'gold by the inch' made into a ring (he was 10 and she was 6 .. so it was a nice gesture ;)) - he spent about $3 or so - but becaust the stand where they sold it was not in one of the shops; they were putting though 'off line' vouchers - which meant they were put through to the account that night when the shop closed.

 

When we went to disembark the following morning; we were 'bonged' instead of 'binged' when we swiped his card and had to go to the Purser's Desk to settle the account ... of course, I had no cash on me - had to pay by credit card; which they had to put through manually and get authorisiation (yep for the grand total of $2.75!) ... all in all it took about 20 minutes (and quite a bit of stress on the kids part!!!).

 

Anyway ... since then; we have usually had ship board credit, which they get to spend first too ... then we cash them up for the remainder of the cruise!

 

Whatever you decide - have a great cruise with them!:)

[Mum81]

We returned from a 7 night cruise on Pacific Dawn on Saturday. We travelled with our 2 children aged 4 and 8 years. We put cash onto their cards, so that their limit was restricted. You do not have to put $300 on, you can put any amount you like.

 

However after a couple of days we went and transferred the $150 cash we had put on each card back to our cards due to the fact that the children were always with us, unless they were in kids club, therefore we were ordering our drinks together, and naturally you can't charge alcohol to the kids cards, so their cards were never being used.

 

Also we didn't have to stress so much about them misplacing their cards. Another tip, we took soft drink on with us to keep in our cabin fridge. I think we used about 15 cans over the week between four of us. It wasn't so much for the saving (soft drinks are only $2.75 on board) but the convenience of not having to go upstairs to the bar if the kids were thirsty.:)

[resordanis]

We returned from a 7 night cruise on Pacific Dawn on Saturday. We travelled with our 2 children aged 4 and 8 years. We put cash onto their cards, so that their limit was restricted. You do not have to put $300 on, you can put any amount you like.

 

However after a couple of days we went and transferred the $150 cash we had put on each card back to our cards due to the fact that the children were always with us, unless they were in kids club, therefore we were ordering our drinks together, and naturally you can't charge alcohol to the kids cards, so their cards were never being used.

 

Also we didn't have to stress so much about them misplacing their cards. Another tip, we took soft drink on with us to keep in our cabin fridge. I think we used about 15 cans over the week between four of us. It wasn't so much for the saving (soft drinks are only $2.75 on board) but the convenience of not having to go upstairs to the bar if the kids were thirsty.:)

Thanks for the information. I think their parents were going to take some softs drinks.

Can you tell me if there was plenty for the kids to do? My two grandchildren are 11 and nearly 14. I am thinking the 11 year old will be fine but not sure about the 14 year old.

[Mum81]

Thanks for the information. I think their parents were going to take some softs drinks.

Can you tell me if there was plenty for the kids to do? My two grandchildren are 11 and nearly 14. I am thinking the 11 year old will be fine but not sure about the 14 year old.

 

I couldn't tell you for sure as my kids are much younger, but I do know that the staff from the kids clubs/tennage areas are absolutely great. If your 14 year old is quite trustworthy, we found that most kids this age were getting around the ship on their own and with their new found friends and we didn't see one hint of trouble. They have special "mocktail" and softdrink stations set up on deck 12 so that the teenagers can get their own drinks without actually going to the bar.

 

I will dig out the Pacific Daily shortly and tell you what kind of activities/events they had for the older kids.:)

[resordanis]

I couldn't tell you for sure as my kids are much younger, but I do know that the staff from the kids clubs/tennage areas are absolutely great. If your 14 year old is quite trustworthy, we found that most kids this age were getting around the ship on their own and with their new found friends and we didn't see one hint of trouble. They have special "mocktail" and softdrink stations set up on deck 12 so that the teenagers can get their own drinks without actually going to the bar.

 

I will dig out the Pacific Daily shortly and tell you what kind of activities/events they had for the older kids.:)

Thanks for that, any information would be appreciated:D

[Mum81]

Ok here we go, some of the planned activities that might (or might not!) interest your kids:

 

*Teens only juggling class

*Teens farewell disco (on the last night)

*Junior Prom Night

*Teens only deck party

*Paper Airplane Challenge

*Scavenger Hunt

*Zumba Dance Class

*Fashion Show

*Youth Table Tennis Tournament

*Gecko Making

*Kids Line Dancing Party

*Lunchtime Movie

*Mocktail Demos

*Family Wii Tennis

*Laser Show

*Family Island Night

*Hip Hop Dance Class

*Family Wii Baseball

*Family Wii Basketball

*Pictionary

*Arts and Crafts

*Teens pool games

And many more things!

 

It really is what you make it and if your kids go with a good attitude towards having a great time, I'm sure that they will. If you have any more specific questions, I will keep an eye on this thread.:)

[resordanis]

Ok here we go, some of the planned activities that might (or might not!) interest your kids:

 

*Teens only juggling class

*Teens farewell disco (on the last night)

*Junior Prom Night

*Teens only deck party

*Paper Airplane Challenge

*Scavenger Hunt

*Zumba Dance Class

*Fashion Show

*Youth Table Tennis Tournament

*Gecko Making

*Kids Line Dancing Party

*Lunchtime Movie

*Mocktail Demos

*Family Wii Tennis

*Laser Show

*Family Island Night

*Hip Hop Dance Class

*Family Wii Baseball

*Family Wii Basketball

*Pictionary

*Arts and Crafts

*Teens pool games

And many more things!

 

It really is what you make it and if your kids go with a good attitude towards having a great time, I'm sure that they will. If you have any more specific questions, I will keep an eye on this thread.:)

 

THANKS for the information. I will pass it on to their parents.

They will be going with the right attitude I am sure. I just want there to be activities they can do, so their mother can have a rest too!

Thanks again:D

[croydonCruiser]

My daughter was 11, so was in the HQ club, which is for 11-14yo. Both your grandchildren will be in that one too. They have a lot more freedom than the younger kids, and do not need to sign themselves in and out of the club. HQ is open until either 1.00am or 1.30am (can't remember which :rolleyes:), but you do need to give them permission to sign out after 10.30. We initially didn't, because we didn't want her wandering the ship on her own late at night :eek:, but after a few days (and much nagging on her part) we did. She had strict rules though, including calling us in the cabin when she was leaving the club, and having to be back by 12 at the latest.

 

Other rules we had, that applied to both kids, were that under no circumstances were they to enter anyone else's cabin. If a friend needed to go to their cabin for some reason, our kids had to wait outside. We also told them they weren't to bring anyone else into our cabin. We also didn't want them on the open decks without us, but this wasn't as big a concern as when they were younger. We couldn't enforce it anyway on the Pearl, as you had to go outside to reach HQ! There were other things too, such as no pressing all the buttons in the lifts, no making nuisances of themselves, no running etc etc...

 

You will probably find, as we did, that once they make some friends, the kids are in and out of HQ all day. They tend to "hang out" and just go to the club when there are particular activites on that they are interested in. We took some post it notes so that we could leave messages to each other, and stuck them on the mirror. We did expect them to let us know where they were going, and we also gave them certain times that they had to check back with us.

 

It can be a bit worrying, knowing that they are out of sight for much of the day, and it did take a few days before we gave them the freedom I've described above. We wanted to be sure they knew their way around first, and that we, and they, were comfortable with the ship.

 

We happened to be in the Dome early one evening when the HQ kids came in for their Junior Prom, so we stayed to watch. It was a bit disconcerting to see these older 14yo boys trying to get our 11yo to get up and dance with them! :eek: She may be 11, but she is very tall, and could easily be taken for a 15yo! Luckily she refused, and we both heaved a sigh of relief!

[tassie cruiser]

I have found with the kids club that its important for them to go to the first meeting. That is often when they meet and form their friends/groups etc... Our kids would do quite a lot of activities but also they would just go there as a meeting point to meet their new friends then go off and do their own thing. If something was on that they were interested in they would do but otherwise their group of friends would be off on their own.. They form such good life long friends on cruises (we have found that anyway) my kids still keep in contact with people they met on cruises years ago.

To start with you may worry where they are and what are they doing etc... but honestly there is no neeed to worry. I remember one cruise a couple years ago they had a movie marathon in the kids club which was due to finish at 3am. My daughter (16 at the time) and is very sensible, wasnt back in the cabin by 4, so I sent DH to go look for her and I actually was quite worried, we ran into a security man who we have become friends with and he knew our daughter (through previous cruises) anyway, DH told him about her not being back and we were worried and he spoke into his walkie talkie thing and within a couple minuits he said " she is with a group of them in the theatre eating pizza and talking" so we went there and sure enough there they were, a group of about 12 eating pizza and talking, they had no idea what time it was and what all the fuss was about.They were having a lovely time just chatting etc.. The security guy put on his growly voice and told them to get to bed and next time inform parents of their where abouts. So, I guess what I am saying is there are cameras everywhere and it is very safe.

Fiona :-)

[resordanis]

My daughter was 11, so was in the HQ club, which is for 11-14yo. Both your grandchildren will be in that one too. They have a lot more freedom than the younger kids, and do not need to sign themselves in and out of the club. HQ is open until either 1.00am or 1.30am (can't remember which :rolleyes:), but you do need to give them permission to sign out after 10.30. We initially didn't, because we didn't want her wandering the ship on her own late at night :eek:, but after a few days (and much nagging on her part) we did. She had strict rules though, including calling us in the cabin when she was leaving the club, and having to be back by 12 at the latest.

 

Other rules we had, that applied to both kids, were that under no circumstances were they to enter anyone else's cabin. If a friend needed to go to their cabin for some reason, our kids had to wait outside. We also told them they weren't to bring anyone else into our cabin. We also didn't want them on the open decks without us, but this wasn't as big a concern as when they were younger. We couldn't enforce it anyway on the Pearl, as you had to go outside to reach HQ! There were other things too, such as no pressing all the buttons in the lifts, no making nuisances of themselves, no running etc etc...

 

You will probably find, as we did, that once they make some friends, the kids are in and out of HQ all day. They tend to "hang out" and just go to the club when there are particular activites on that they are interested in. We took some post it notes so that we could leave messages to each other, and stuck them on the mirror. We did expect them to let us know where they were going, and we also gave them certain times that they had to check back with us.

 

It can be a bit worrying, knowing that they are out of sight for much of the day, and it did take a few days before we gave them the freedom I've described above. We wanted to be sure they knew their way around first, and that we, and they, were comfortable with the ship.

 

We happened to be in the Dome early one evening when the HQ kids came in for their Junior Prom, so we stayed to watch. It was a bit disconcerting to see these older 14yo boys trying to get our 11yo to get up and dance with them! :eek: She may be 11, but she is very tall, and could easily be taken for a 15yo! Luckily she refused, and we both heaved a sigh of relief!

All this information is greatly appreciated. Thanks:)