Autism at sea

[Redtravel]

I just read in a cruise newsletter that RCCL has certified autism program. Has anyone used their services on a cruise. If so, how was it?

[Iaminspired]

I just read in a cruise newsletter that RCCL has certified autism program. Has anyone used their services on a cruise. If so, how was it?

 

We cruised on Explorer of the Seas this past December with my DD (17) who has Aspergers and needs a fair bit of intervention. It was before they implemented the Autism at Sea program but I found RCCL to be really great.

 

I contacted Special Needs in advance, and also RCL Dining to make sure we had a table she could tolerate in the Main Dining Room. We used Special Needs boarding (boarding was the most difficult part of the week) and the Group Coordinator checked in with us several times during the week and arranged last off departure for us with a private place to wait.

 

Please ask if you have any specific questions. I'm happy to answer.

[mconthehighseas]

This is a new program, which I just read about. I am posting an article about the program for those people who want to know what they should expect.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/cruiselog/2014/02/20/autistic-child-autism-friendly-cruise/5640629/

[Marie51]

We will be leaving Sunday on 6 day Indy with my autistic granddaughter. We have arranged a dining table by the window. We also plan to use other services offered and I will come back and let you know how it worked out for us.

[Iaminspired]

We will be leaving Sunday on 6 day Indy with my autistic granddaughter. We have arranged a dining table by the window. We also plan to use other services offered and I will come back and let you know how it worked out for us.

 

Have a great time! We unexpectedly found that having a table by the window in the MDR had an unanticipated problem. We cruised in December so it was dark at dinner time. The window acted like a large mirror and reflected the people in the dining room back at DD. You should be okay with sunset much later at this time of year. You can also ask for expediated dining, where your granddaughter gets her meal early and won't have to wait. Their Family Time Dining might also be an option for you (I forget your granddaughter's age) where the kids get their meals faster and Adventure Ocean staff then picks up the children enrolled from the MDR and takes them to Adventure Ocean, leaving the adults to have a leisurely dinner.

 

I hope you are able to use some of the positive suggestions. Have a great cruise!

 

Colleen

[ehfl]

If you're talking about the autism diet (high fat, low carb) I don't think they have a special option for this, although it's certainly accommodated if you chose to go that route with food choices. Not sure about other options.

[Marie51]

Have a great time! We unexpectedly found that having a table by the window in the MDR had an unanticipated problem. We cruised in December so it was dark at dinner time. The window acted like a large mirror and reflected the people in the dining room back at DD. You should be okay with sunset much later at this time of year. You can also ask for expediated dining, where your granddaughter gets her meal early and won't have to wait. Their Family Time Dining might also be an option for you (I forget your granddaughter's age) where the kids get their meals faster and Adventure Ocean staff then picks up the children enrolled from the MDR and takes them to Adventure Ocean, leaving the adults to have a leisurely dinner.

 

I hope you are able to use some of the positive suggestions. Have a great cruise!

 

Colleen

 

Thank you. We have 6pm dining so it will not be dark when we eat. Also my granddaughter does not eat but is fed through a tube so her meal doesn't really matter. She enjoys having a plate of food in front of her but doesn't eat. She will be 5 at the end of this month.

 

Again thank you for your kind words.

[Obx_1974]

My daughter is on the Ketogenic diet for a genetic disorder/seizures. She is also fed half her meals through a Peg tube. We are on the Allure this Sunday and have been in communication with the Special Needs dept and have been told that her diet can be accommodated on-board and can bring on as much liquid formula as needed.

 

We sent some of our recipes to RCCL which were forwarded to the ship.

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[racnug]

The autism services offered directly through RCI are different than booking a cruise with "Autism on the Seas". RCI has added a lot of helpful Autism services, including priority check in and boarding, dietary accomodations, pagers for Adventure Ocean, Toys which can be borrowed for the cruise, social stories, letting staff know if your child is having trouble waiting in line, etc. However, I wouldn't necessarily call what RCI offers a "program". I don't believe it is something you sign up for, but you can call the special needs department so they can note your reservation.

 

"Autism on the Seas" is separate from RCI and also has cruises with Disney, Carnival and Celebrity. If you book a group cruise, that is where the staff from "Autism on the Seas" is there to assist you throughout your cruise.

 

We did our first cruise ever with "Autism on the Seas" in 2012. Last year we went without them and RCI helped with priority boarding. We simply kept our daughter with us since she can not handle Adventure Ocean drop off, and the staff are not fully trained to deal with that like the "Autism on the Seas" staff are. It was still a wonderful cruise and RCI does have some helpful accommodations in place.

 

Here is some info about our group cruise with 'Autism on the Seas" that I posted to a different thread.

 

"Thought I would share our experience: Without Autism on the Seas, we never would have attempted a cruise with our nonverbal daughter. She was 4 when we did.

 

They are an amazing group and it opened up a whole new world to us. You are welcome to do everything on your own if you choose, and do not have to spend all your time with them.

 

The signs they hold up at port are for priority check in. We didn't have to go to the muster drill, which a lot of the kids could not handle, but stayed in the conference center with activities for the kids. They have private times reserved for the Flowrider, ice skating, rock climbing etc. so the kids are not overwhelmed and do not have a long wait time. These option are for parents and siblings too. Our daughter did not even go to the ice skating, she stayed with Dad, while I took our other two kids. The staff joined us in the main dining room to help with the kids, if necessary, so the parents could enjoy their meals. They watch the kids every evening and some afternoons, to give the parents a chance to fully relax, which we needed since the staff in Adventure Ocean could not take her because she would cry at drop off. Autism on the Seas knew how to handle this. They had Mom and Dad nights out with the staff. They helped during excursions, beach visits and played with the kids at the pool. It was a huge help for our first cruise.

 

There were only about 100 of us total, that included the kids, siblings, parents and Autism on the Seas staff. Of the 100, maybe 15-20 of the kids had Autism or special needs. We were on Freedom of the Seas. It is not a huge group and most people didn't even notice us.

 

We spent a lot of time on our own as well, at the pool, in ports, dining in the windjammer, exploring the ship, you don't spend the entire cruise with them.

 

I can not express how amazing this group is. Thanks to them, we learned we can handle a cruise without them also, which we did a year later(2013) and have another planned this year. Our autistic daughter loves cruising. Anyone considering cruising with them should do it. Can't wait to cruise with them again, miss the staff and the wonderful families we met. Thanks, Autism on the Seas!!"

 

Hope this helped!!

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