Splash Academy FAIL

[rbxlady]

We're cruising NCL (on the Getaway) for the first time later this year and will be cruising for the first time with our kids (9 and 11). Our kids are looking forward to Splash Academy based on what their older cousins have told them. That said, I am prepared for a limited or non-existent Splash Academy, if that's what happens.

 

However, compared to this, I would much prefer the way the Getaway crowd found out this week, i.e., by a blanket statement upon embarkation (or before, if possible, to manage expectations better).

[Laszlo]

On 7/25/2022 at 7:10 AM, dexddd said:

I didn't read the whole rant, but did catch the part about no one there wanting to deal with 'infuriated' parents.  The crew there are normally very young and used to dealing with young children not infuriated adults.  

 

Maybe try management.

What did parents do before the Splash Academy? 

[mjkacmom]

1 minute ago, Laszlo said:

What did parents do before the Splash Academy? 

Booked land vacations which are much easier with small kids.

[NYMama]

I do understand the disappointment if your kids were really looking forward to it.  I am booked on the Getaway in February.  I already prepped my sons based on the feedback in regards to Splash Academy.  Neither seems keen on going to Splash Academy anyway, since it seems they group all ages together now.  If it is not an option, I think they will be fine with it.  There is so much to do on the ship for kids.  Waterslides, splash area, pool, arcade, sports complex area, giant chess board, ropes course, etc.  Plus, I plan to bring some card games to occupy us as well.

[rbxlady]

10 minutes ago, NYMama said:

it seems they group all ages together now

One of the things my kids were looking forward to was doing some separate activities with kids their age (to the exclusion of the other), so it's good to know that may not happen.

Edited July 26, 2022 by rbxlady
clarity

[Homosassa]

1 hour ago, Laszlo said:

What did parents do before the Splash Academy? 

We knew that we were booking a family cruise and that meant our daughter would be with us 24/7 (or 24/14 on her first cruise).

 

The cruises were enjoyable and many family memories were made (last cruise with our now 38 year old daughter was three weeks ago - we didn't need the kid's program for her),

[gvgseg]

Can anyone confirm whether Splash Academy is operating as normal on Encore? I am sailing next week and my 10 and 7-year olds do like going there sometimes when they don't want to sit through trivia, art lectures, or more adult-oriented evening shows.

[Bluefox]

5 hours ago, Homosassa said:

It certainly could have been  a great life experience teaching moment for the whole family for how to handle disappointments and adapt to a situation.

 

If one travels, there will be many unexpected problems.  Some of the best travel memories will be the alternate experience that one would have never had if everything had gone to plan.

It was, but you have to understand this was after 5 nights of being turned away... Everyone seems to want to lecture me on how to handle this when in reality- I shouldn't have had to deal with this at all on our vacation. And I handled it appropriately, thank you very much. 

[mjkacmom]

51 minutes ago, Bluefox said:

It was, but you have to understand this was after 5 nights of being turned away... Everyone seems to want to lecture me on how to handle this when in reality- I shouldn't have had to deal with this at all on our vacation. And I handled it appropriately, thank you very much. 

 

51 minutes ago, Bluefox said:

It was, but you have to understand this was after 5 nights of being turned away... Everyone seems to want to lecture me on how to handle this when in reality- I shouldn't have had to deal with this at all on our vacation. And I handled it appropriately, thank you very much. 

I do sympathize, I would’ve been bummed too, but I don’t know what else they could’ve done if it was a staffing issue for the week.

[NYMama]

On 7/26/2022 at 12:52 PM, rbxlady said:

One of the things my kids were looking forward to was doing some separate activities with kids their age (to the exclusion of the other), so it's good to know that may not happen.

I will clarify, that Splash Academy is 5-12 year old children.  The teens, 13-17, have their own club.  But my sons are going to be 9 and 12 at the time of sailing.  I know 100% that my 12 year old will have no desire to participate in activities with children significantly younger.  And my kids would definitely prefer activities separate from one another.  But with the small number of kids currently allowed in Splash Academy, there is no way that they can separate the kids by age.

[PTC DAWG]

On 7/26/2022 at 12:13 PM, mjkacmom said:

Booked land vacations which are much easier with small kids.

Exactly.

[dandelpino]

On 7/25/2022 at 11:56 AM, travelhound said:

For the people that think it's a place to dump the kid, you must not have ever had a child in the club.

I'm 33 years old and have a child of my own now. I've been cruising since I was 10 years old and I loved the kids clubs when I was a kid. A cruise would be a very boring affair for any child if they didn't have an appropriate place to play and interact with other kids. Plus they do all kinds of cool activities - like a scavenger hunts across the ship.

 

Maybe some parents just 'dump' their kids at the kids club but I guarantee you the kids are not upset about it. 

[rbxlady]

2 hours ago, NYMama said:

I will clarify, that Splash Academy is 5-12 year old children.  The teens, 13-17, have their own club.  But my sons are going to be 9 and 12 at the time of sailing.  I know 100% that my 12 year old will have no desire to participate in activities with children significantly younger.  And my kids would definitely prefer activities separate from one another.  But with the small number of kids currently allowed in Splash Academy, there is no way that they can separate the kids by age.

Good to know, thanks! Mine are 9 and 11, so similar deal, the older one wants little to do with the younger one and younger kids in general (though he’s pretty good with younger kids when he has no other choice).

[ceilidh1]

On 7/25/2022 at 6:34 PM, Bluefox said:

THANK YOU! I wasn't trying to dump them. My husband works offshore (and was sadly NOT on the cruise with us), I work from home, and we just moved here last year. They are basically entertaining each other most of the time during the summer because they don't really have any friends yet. They LOVE the kids club. I cried because I felt like I was failing them and not giving them the part of the vacation they were most looking forward to. 

 

 

In all likelihood, the folks that accuse parents of "dumping" their kids at kids club are the same ones that complain when kids are in the pools, restaurants, and shows. I wonder how adults would feel if they got onboard and were told "sorry, the pools aren't available for this sailing" or "sorry, only 2 bars are open so take a number and hope you get to have your drink this evening".

 

I have sailed with my 2 kids since they were under a year old and they have LOVED kids club on every line we sailed. I have literally had to force them to leave in order to eat dinner as a family! We sailed Bliss in April and Splash Academy was closed (we were informed ahead of sailing and received $100 credit for the arcade). Since my youngest is now 11, it wasn't a huge concern - he did miss hanging with friends but we were well prepared for the fact it would be closed. I would have been disappointed had I not known ahead of time, too. What I DID notice on this sailing was the number of kids that were visible in all areas of the ship...I have sailed with far more kids onboard and never really noticed them - because they were being entertained in the kids club!

 

Sorry you had to deal with this!

[Homosassa]

17 hours ago, dandelpino said:

 A cruise would be a very boring affair for any child if they didn't have an appropriate place to play and interact with other kids. Plus they do all kinds of cool activities - like a scavenger hunts across the ship.

 

Maybe some parents just 'dump' their kids at the kids club but I guarantee you the kids are not upset about it. 

Funny, we were just on a family reunion cruise.  It was the first cruises for my two great-nieces (10 and 12). They were the only under 18 family members on the cruise.

 

While both checked out the kids' program for their age levels the first day, neither had any interest in attending for the rest of the cruise.  They instead hung out with the various adults in the family, many of which they were meeting for the first time.

 

They loved the trivia and other games, participating in the meals in both the MDR, specialty restaurants and buffet, the excursions, and virgin drinks when the rest of us were indulging in adult beverages.

 

They were a delight to be with.

[mjkacmom]

19 minutes ago, Homosassa said:

Funny, we were just on a family reunion cruise.  It was the first cruises for my two great-nieces (10 and 12). They were the only under 18 family members on the cruise.

 

While both checked out the kids' program for their age levels the first day, neither had any interest in attending for the rest of the cruise.  They instead hung out with the various adults in the family, many of which they were meeting for the first time.

 

They loved the trivia and other games, participating in the meals in both the MDR, specialty restaurants and buffet, the excursions, and virgin drinks when the rest of us were indulging in adult beverages.

 

They were a delight to be with.

My kids loved the clubs when they were little, and the teen club, the 10 - 12, nope. It’s just an awkward age. Fortunately I always had more than one that age so they were able to do things on the ships themselves for short periods.

[mconthehighseas]

I know this is almost 2 months later, but I hope
1- you wrote to the cruiseline about your experience.  I doubt the staff could adequately convey what you did here to their home office.
2- that you requested a partial refund or future cruise credit. Part of the reason you chose NCL instead of a line without a children's program is so you could have some adult time on your vacation.

Wishing you better cruises from now on

 

Edited September 28, 2022 by mconthehighseas
typos