Caribbean Princess Patters? Kids programs?

[AliceS]

Does anyone have copies of the patters or menu from Caribbean Princess? We are taking our daughter and family for their first cruise and she wants to see what all is offered. Information about kid's programs will be helpful, too. Thanks.

[OnlineMom]

Here's a list of patters from March 2005 - the most recent ones I've come across online:

 

http://www.cruisingthecaribbeanprincess.com/pattersA.html

[tennesseecruisermom]

Hi,

We just returned from the caribbean princess christmas cruise. I didn't keep the patters, but there is stuff for kids to do all day. The kids centers were as good as on the disney ship. They had huge areas with indoor and outdoor facilities. If you let me know what age kids you are talking about, I can write more.

[OnlineMom]

My kids will be 5.5 and 6.5 when we cruise in the Spring. I'd love to hear more from you and what you thought about the kids' activities you observed!

[tennesseecruisermom]

The carribean princess has a large playroom with computers, arts and crafts, and games. They have a door to outside with private pool and play area. They have their own ping pong tables. They took the kids out of the center for activites like movies under the stars and a jugglers show. They also took them to the disco for dancing/playing around. They played games on the paddle tennis court. I was impressed.

[CariBear]

We were on the 12/3 sailing of the CB and my 3 year old daughter had a great time at the kid's club! I believe there were only 145 kids on our sailing, so the most kids I saw at one time in my daughter's room was about 15. Most of the time there were about 10 kids. My daughter was the littlest one in the group, so I think she might have received a little extra attention...but she had such a wonderful time on her 1st cruise. We came home with a ton of arts/crafts projects and she also received a little plush Princess raindeer as a gift (all wrapped in Christmas paper) on the last day. DH and I went on a 4 hour excursion in St. Thomas and we felt very comfortable leaving our daughter onboard in the kid's program (I am a very overprotective mom, so I thought this would be hard for me to do). Our daughter still talks about her "friends on the big ship!" If you have any questions for this age group, please let me know!

[merela]

were very similar. We were on the Diamond, Sapphire, and Star. Since Caribbean Princess is in the same category as these ships, their kids' zone facilities will be similar. Take a look at the Sapphire Kids' Patters:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=250207

 

These kids' patters were very similar to our Alaskan and Eastern Caribbean itineraries, except that for the Alaskan cruise, the theme was wintery (polar bears, icebergs, etc...)

 

As for the menus, check out this thread to get an idea of the way Princess set up its menus:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=249520

 

Some of the dishes appeared in all of our Princess cruises. I remember there was a Caribbean night dinner on our Eastern Caribbean itinerary. Lots of seafood dishes are offered for Princess' Caribbean itinerary.

 

I think you are in for a treat because Caribbean Princess is a new ship and Princess must have sent their best chefs over to Caribbean Princess because all the food reviews for the Caribbean Princess have been good to excellent in the last 6 months.

 

Just do a search "menus" on this board and you may find one for Caribbean Princess.

[AliceS]

Thank you so much for the information. We will be on CB in early October, so there may not be many children on board? Our two will be 9 and 4 at that time. They have never been on a cruise. We are sailing with our daughter, her husband and the two little ones. Pop and I have been on many cruises, this is the first time with family and we're excited. Tell me more.

[merela]

And the children under 17 maybe broken up into 3 groups or 4 groups depending on how many children are on board.

 

If the 4YO has preschool experience and is comfortable with parents leaving them at unfamiliar places, then he/she will do well. The kids club's activities for the youngest group (usually 3-5) are designed for 4.5YOs, so your 4YO will fit right in. I find some of the activities for this age group are a little difficult for a 3YO to manage. My almost 4YO was screaming and crying when we were trying to leave him in the kids' club. The head coordinator Charlotte told us to go and she would take care of him. When we picked him up 2 horus later, we found out that Charlotte held him the entire 2 hours because he never stopped crying. My DS was still adjusting to his first preschool when we went on that cruise. I'm sure things would be different now that he has adjusted perfectly to preschool. Even if your 4YO grandchild refuses to stay in the kids' club, an adult can stay in the club with him/her and do the activities together. I know that defeats the purpose of adult having an alone-time, but kids will have fun doing some crafts and playing board games with parents. Parents with under 3 children can also go up to the kids' club and enjoy the facility with your children. You just can't leave your under-3 children with the counsellors.

 

On the first day when the kids show up at kids' club after the parents have registered them, they will have an ice breaker session for older kids. So your 9YO will meet other kids in his/her age group. I highly recommend going the the "get-acquainted" sessions. Kids maybe able to partner up early and they'll have a friend for the entire cruise. I see that happen a lot, especially for girls. The registration process is more for consent form signing and parent orientation (info. on when and how to pick up and drop off children, etc...) because the kids' club coordinator already have all the names, ages, and cabin numbers of all the kids on board. There is a space saved for your child if his/her name is in the passenger manifest. During registration, you can fill out all the names of passengers that are allowed to pick up your child. Remember to bring a photo ID when you pick up your child. They are pretty strict about this rule which I understand.

 

Get a floor/deck plan of the Caribbean Princess for your 4YO and 9YO and let them learn about the ship before the board the ship. Tell them about your previous cruising experience and show them photos from your previous cruises. They'll appreciate the cruise more if they have some understand of what it's all about before they get on board.

 

I bought my kids special SeaBands for children. I made my kids wear them when I felt the ship rocking a bit. Because these Seabands are pretty, they wore them happily. The Seabands seemed to work because my kids didn't suffer from motion sickness. Also, spending time in the pool while the ship rocks helps too. The kids really enjoyed the waves created in the pool while the ship rocks.

 

I'm not sure which coast you are from. If you are coming from the west coast and cruising the Caribbean, I would suggest you do late seating for dinner or anytime dining, but if you are coming from the East coast without time differences, then do early seating. Kids generally do not do well eating at 8pm.

 

For you 4YO, you may want to consider bringing a portable DVD player. They are usually done eating before adults finish their entree, so a little diversion like a favorite movie will give the adults a more enjoyable meal.

 

For more information about cruising with children, visit the Family Cruising board.

 

I've never been on Caribbean Princess, so I can only speak about my experience on the Star, Diamond, and Sapphire.

 

Please post specific questions about the kids' club if you have any.

 

HTH.

[clofty]

Merela, since you are so knowledgable about Princess kids programs I would like to ask you (our kids age 7 and 10 have only been on RCCL and Carnival) how they split the age groups of the kids? I thought I noticed on one board that it was 3-7 and 8-12. This is probably because there are not many kids on board. We are thinking of going to Alaska on Sapphire saling 3rd June Northbound and I am trying to see how similar the programs are to RCCL's which my kids absolutely adore. Thanks for posting and helping all who are trying to make decisions.:confused:

 

Of course if there is anyone else out there reading this post that maybe able to provided some valuable information on kids programs, please share it with us, thanks.