Planning a cruise with a child that is not born

[BlondeNSgirl]

Hi,

 

 

I know this is an odd post. Can anyone tell me how it works if you book a cruise before you have your child? I would like to book a cruise for 2017 as I have found some fantastic deals. So, my questions are:

 

1. How hard is it to add the 2nd child after the cruise is booked and does it affect any sale price or deal you originally had?

 

2. If time wise it doesn't work out on the actual birth of the child, is it easy to change? I am looking at another Carnival Cruise. I'd like to wait until the child is at least a year before we cruise.

 

3. Is it better to book online now when you see a sale price, or, should I wait until our cruise next year and book on the cruise?

 

just a note, that I know I can't control when I get pregnant and I am fine with that, so, if it happens to be the 3 of us, that is fine as well. I do not want to pass up a great deal if I don't have to as I know I want to take a vacation regardless.

[SadieN]

Book the child as 'Baby Smith' or TBD (to be determined). Best to call to do this type of booking.

Do not book Early Saver. ES is a very restrictive fare.

[pkay414]

If I'm reading the OP correctly, there is no baby yet so I don't think you could book a cruise with a non-person. I would book the cruise since it's a fabulous deal and just take the chances of adding baby (if there is one) at a later time. I would also get trip insurance. We all know that one cannot predict when someone will get pregnant or when baby could come. You could very easily be in labor when your cruise is getting ready to leave or have a baby too young to travel or be too far along in your pregnancy to cruise. There are just way too many variables to plan for.

[Kerry's Girls]

You can not always add a passenger later, even to a stateroom that could fit them. There are occupancy restrictions not just on the ship as a whole but I believe in each area/deck of the ship as well due to lifeboats, so it's always best to book for as many as might go and then cancel the one if necessary. That way you all get the sale deal as well rather than having to deal later with the cruise line not allowing an addition without re-calculating all of you.

 

We have had pregnant women post here that they reserved a cruise for "Baby last-name", so it is done. If there were a possibility, I'd make the deposit for the baby and then just cancel if necessary.

 

Best,

Mia

[Keith1010]

If this was me I would call the cruise line.

 

Also be sure you know what the minimum age requirement is.

 

In short, I would ask the cruise line directly.

 

Keith

[cb at sea]

Definitely book for 3...much easier to cancel 1 than to add 1!!! You can list the name as "to be announced"...

[kitkat343]

I called Disney when I was pregnant a few months ago, and was told this absolutely can be done over the phone. In particular, Disney limits out the total number of children at specific ages on each individual cruise so their facilities aren't swamped, so it is important to book a nonrestricted fare that can be changed or cancelled for as many people who you think may choose to cruise.

[rebeccalouiseagain]

Keep in mind that not all cabins are "quads". Some are "triples". As for any impending birth- your child will have to be six months old in order to travel if it is a U.S or Caribbean cruise and 1 year old to do a European one. You also can not be more than 24 weeks pregnant at the time of the sailing.

Edited July 17, 2015 by rebeccalouiseagain

[Cruisin' Chick]

You can not always add a passenger later' date=' even to a stateroom that could fit them. There are occupancy restrictions not just on the ship as a whole but I believe in each area/deck of the ship as well due to lifeboats, so it's always best to book for as many as might go and then cancel the one if necessary. That way you all get the sale deal as well rather than having to deal later with the cruise line not allowing an addition without re-calculating all of you.

 

We have had pregnant women post here that they reserved a cruise for "Baby last-name", so it is done. If there were a possibility, I'd make the deposit for the baby and then just cancel if necessary.

 

Best,

Mia[/quote']

 

I would think this would be a major sticking point if the sailing is nearing capacity and seems to be a very difficult concept for some people to get. The total allowable capacity is not the same as the total number of berths. So some people have found it difficult to add another person to their cabin even if their cabin would accommodate the person.

 

Is it possible to just wait and see until after your baby is born? Or book a cruise on a refundable deposit with the idea that it will be just the three of you. By the time final payment comes around, you'll know if 1) you have a baby (and if old enough to cruise, and perhaps if baby wants to travel), 2) you are pregnant and are within the window of allowable weeks, 3) if you don't have a baby nor is preggers.

[BlondeNSgirl]

Thanks everyone for the help! I don't need to book now, I've just been looking and wanting to find a good price. I think I will just wait till the baby is born or I at least know the due date so I can plan for the cruise around the baby's first birthday. At least I know now that I can still add the baby even if they are not actually born. 😆

Edited July 17, 2015 by BlondeNSgirl

[gymbomb]

Thanks everyone for the help! I don't need to book now, I've just been looking and wanting to find a good price. I think I will just wait till the baby is born or I at least know the due date so I can plan for the cruise around the baby's first birthday. At least I know now that I can still add the baby even if they are not actually born. 😆

 

Good luck :)

 

We sailed with DS when he was 10 months old. We booked the cruise through our travel agent while I was pregnant. He was listed as TBD on the reservation, and name and birth date were added after he was born. Definitely book for max possible number, then cancel before penalty phase if needed.

[alane10]

I booked multiple cruises before and while I was pregnant. It took longer than expected to get pregnant, so I kept pushing out the cruise date until we had a positive result and due date.

 

Once I found out I was actually pregnant, the first cruise was booked for 6 months and 2 weeks after he was born in case he was late (and he was 11 days late).

 

I had one booked for 1 year and 1 week after my due date that had 3 days at sea. Since LO has to be 1 year old for cruises with at least 3 days at sea (for RCI), I had to change that to a different cruise, and was no big deal.

 

And like others have said, use Baby Lastname when booking. We also just used whatever the date was when I called as the birth date, and I called in to change both once he was born.

Edited July 31, 2015 by alane10