Cruise with a 17mo old?

[octobermoon]

Would you or am I crazy? This is my first child. Anyone done it? Stories?

[JBaxter]

Ive never done a cuise but my co worker did iwth her twins at 18 months. They flew home early

[Mama Khi]

Check out the family board at cruisecritic.com. A lot of people do it and have a lot of fun. I am considering a cruise with DD when she is 15 months. My only concern is if she got some type of norovirus. I have never gotten sick on a cruise but I still worry about her. Also she is not vaxed so I do think about that issue in going to the Caribbean.

[cschick]

We did an 5-day RC cruise with the kid when he was 18 months and loved it. You do have to work with the kid's schedule some, since on RC they aren't allowed in the children's center/daycare until they are 3 and potty trained.

He slept in the bed with us, since we didn't ask to reserve a pack'n'play nor bring ours. What we did was schedule morning excursions that he could go along on (no charge for him on those excursions), get back to the boat for lunch, eat on the boat, have him take his nap. Then, if there was time after his nap and before setting sail, hit up the shopping areas at the pier with him in the Ergo.

For dinner we ate in the main dining room and actually did late seating. They put us at a 4-person table that was all ours. Only one evening did I have to take him out before both of us adults were finished with dinner.

We then went on another cruise this past Jan, when he was 3.5 and potty trained. That was a little easier, since he could be left in the children's center (and he LOVED it).

One thing to note is that depending on the ship, kids may or may not be let in the pool if they are not potty trained. On the first ship/the first cruise (Enchantment of the Seas), kids in swim diapers could be in the sprinkler pool but not the main pool. On the second ship (Serenade of the Seas), kids in swim diapers were NOT allowed even in the kiddy splash pool.

[kgreenemama]

DH, my mom, dad, MIL, and I went on a 12-day cruise to the Baltic Sea last June with our 14-month old son. The vacation included an 8-hour flight to London + layovers, which was the most difficult part of the trip. Once we were there, things went well. Was it the best vacation I've ever had? Nope.

We were on Norwegian CL, and the service was impeccable. Not only did every waitress dote on DS, but by the end of the trip, they all knew him by name and fought to take him out of my hands and play with him for a few minutes. (Understandable, given that a lot of them are moms who are away from their own LOs for 10 months at a time.)

NCL has free style cruising, which allows you to eat pretty much whenever you want. There are several 'anytime' restaurants and they included a kids buffet with mac and cheese, spaghetti, hot dogs, jello, chicken strips, juice, milk, steamed veggies, cheese, cold cereal, fruit, etc. that made meals a snap. We did dine in the formal dining room for some meals, and they were always willing to modify foods for DS.

Having family there was great, because kids have to be 2 y o to attend the day care center (we checked it out anyway, and it looked great!). The grandmas babysat a few evenings, so DH and I could go out to some of the fine dining restaurants (where you pay $10-$15 for a gourmet meal - again at any time - there are no set seating times) or on excursions or to shows. They also had a family play room with toys, crayons, and games for us to spend time in.

DS sleeps in our bed at home, so sleeping with him on the ship was easy. They brought us a pack and play, which we never used. The room, in fact, the entire ship is a child-proof dream! Our son had the most fun running up and down the hallways outside our cabin, pointing to the colorful nautical carpet and squealing, "EESH! EESH!" (his word for 'fish').

There was a kids' channel on the TV - over there it was CBBs, which had some fantastic age-appropriate shows for DS to watch when the hallways got boring.

Kids in diapers cannot go into the pools. I don't think I got to swim once.

We visited six European countries, and spent an average of two hours in each port. DH would go out during naps, but I saw more of the inside of our cabin than anything else. Having to get back to the ship for naps and meals (granted, our son is NOT a stroller-sleeper and was too big for the Baby Bjorn), I do not feel that we got our money's worth. We had reasons for taking this trip with our parents when we did, but I wish we could have waited until DS was over 2 yo. BUT, it was 12 days of no dishes, laundry, or housecleaning or work of any kind - just us enjoying time with family, and THAT was cool!

[UrbanMamma]

We did a 6 day Alaskan cruise last year when he was 18 months. MUCH better than I expected (it was a vacation for all of DH's family of origin - I wouldn't have probably picked it or the timing on own) and very enjoyable. Part of it is expectations though. We made sure we kept nap time sacred, took few excursions (went off ship, but mostly just walked around town), and spent a lot of time wandering the boat. He fell IN LOVE with elevators and this string quartet that played in the room right outside the dining room at dinner time. So cute. The quartet would always switch to more kid friendly music when we were there.

We ordered room service for breakfast, that way we could take our time getting everyone out the door. Dinner was a little bit more tricky. We enjoy sitting down for family dinner and the family really doesn't do buffets. Plus, they (family) have a tendency to run late which doesn't work well for dinner and a toddler. So, we chose an early dining time for the group at my insistence. Holland America is one of the more formal eating lines. Because dinner is so long, DH and I ended up eating in mini shifts - but our waiter got the picture by the second day and would set aside the dish to keep it warm of whomever was wandering with the boy.

The crew was amazing - always willing to wash bottles/sippys, etc and lots of attention on the boy. Everyone knew him by name and what he liked (elevators, strawberries, etc). Some nasty looks from a few cruisers as we would come in and out of the dining room (I might call ahead and ask to be assigned to a table close to the exit if you choose and assigned dining time), but not too bad.

Oh, and if you are traveling with someone, get rooms close together and bring a baby monitor for evenings. You may not be able to dance all night, but bring some games, send someone out for dessert/drinks and have some fun in the adjoining room.

[ellemenope]

We just got back from a cruise, and it was wonderful. DD was 23 months at the time and was an all-star. Her behaviour was the most remarkable aspect of the whole trip. Cruising was actually less stressful than real life when it comes to her. She more than adapted to the cruising lifestyle. It made for a great vacation.

When I have time I will post a complete review of what it was like cruising with a toddler.