Disney's Flounder's Reef

[biggroofy]

It is my understanding that Disney's Oceaneer Club is FREE for guests (Age 3-7) and we do not have to pre-register our child for it.

How about Disney's Flounder's Reef? I've read that there is a charge per hour. Now I am in my 75 day window - should I register my 6-month-old baby to this nursery? If I decide not to use the service, will I still be charged for this registration?

Thanks!

[OurMsBrooks]

Oceaneers Club is included in the price of your cruise for the 3-7, but you do want to register the child for it ahead of time, which I believe you can do on the DCL website. You can register your child and choose your password, and then at the port you can check in and get your pager before you even board the ship.

There is an hourly fee for Flounder's Reef. I'm not sure about how to register for that, since we didn't need to use it on our most recent cruise. When we used it a couple of years ago, I recall that we went there immediately upon boarding to sign up for the times we wanted, and there was no problem whatsoever. We had heard that it filled up quickly, but we must have been lucky. We used it three or four times, and never had a problem getting exactly the time we wanted.

TIP: Do NOT take the little one into the Oceaneer's Club for a tour, or let him/her see it in any way!! DS2 was devastated when he found out that where he would be going was so much less cool than where DD5 was going. Not that Flounder's Reef isn't nice (it is!), but it's no Captain Hook's ship, and the toddlers know it!

[OurMsBrooks]

Oh...disregard my tip. Just saw that your little one is only 6 months. Don't think baby will mind!! Oops. Also, I don't think they charge you if you cancel. We picked DS up early once because he cried, and they did not charge us for that time.

[mommasita]

Here is information on Flounder's Reef for you http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/cruis...f-Nursery.html

[Pinkprincessmom]

We cruised with a 9 month old and used Flounders almost every day during our late dinner seating. It was a life-saver. It is well worth the $6/hour.

We pre-registered online and booked 6 hours before boarding. You can book up to 10 hours before the cruise and additional time if it is available. We would have booked all 10 hours online, but had problems with the server. On the day you embark, Flounders has an open house where parents can go check it out and stay with the kids. We booked the remaining of our 10 hours and got on the waiting list for more.

Our 9 month old is crawling up a storm. Flounders has open hours on sea days where families can come stay and play with the kids. The club for 3-7 year olds is open for you to come play and stay with your infant as well. The best time to go is when the older kids are at meals and the club is almost empty. It was a nice time for DS to exert some energy.

I hope you have a great cruise.

[gweeptrish]

Originally Posted by Pinkprincessmom

The club for 3-7 year olds is open for you to come play and stay with your infant as well. The best time to go is when the older kids are at meals and the club is almost empty.

Really?! I could take my 15 month old to the OC to run around like a maniac as long as I stay with her? That's fantastic!

-Trish

[Pinkprincessmom]

Yes, Trish, that is correct. There are times listed on the navigator for toddler time. When it is not listed, meal times are the best times b/c it is less crowded. We went once when everyone was there and it was a bit rowdy for my 9 month old, but might be okay for a 15 month old. When we went for family time, usually there were 3 other kids there max. Sometimes we had it all to ourselves.

[gweeptrish]

Originally Posted by Pinkprincessmom

Yes, Trish, that is correct. There are times listed on the navigator for toddler time. When it is not listed, meal times are the best times b/c it is less crowded. We went once when everyone was there and it was a bit rowdy for my 9 month old, but might be okay for a 15 month old. When we went for family time, usually there were 3 other kids there max. Sometimes we had it all to ourselves.

Now I'm really excited about our cruise. My daughter will LOVE that.

[biggroofy]

Thank you for everyone's comment. We are also looking forward to our first cruise in March

After logged onto DCL web site, I have registered my 4-year-old kid to Oceaneers Club (and yes, created password). Now I have just registered my 6-month-old to the Flounder's Reef, but I haven't click on "Reserve Nursery" to book a timeslot yet.

DW is still thinking if we will need Flounder's Reef, because:
1). She breastfeed the baby
2). The grandparents will be in the stateroom next to us, so when we go to Palo , we can pass the baby to them.

One more issue to clarify - I've read this saying "There will be a 2 hour minimum charge" - will we still be charged if we do not reserve any time slot?

[Pinkprincessmom]

The 2 hour minimum is only if you reserve time. For instance, if you reserve 6-7 pm, you will be charged for 6-8 pm. So basically, if you're going to book one hour, you may as well book 2. If you do not use Flounders at all, there will be no charges.

My DS is 9 months old and primarily nurses. We had the late dinner seating and put him in Flounders every opportunity we could. Dinners are at least 1.5 hours. It was much more enjoyable without DS. Our inlaws also cruised with us. We alternated going to matinée or evening shows so one would have the baby. I hated to impose too much on them though b/c I wanted them to enjoy the cruise too.

Depending on your child's temperament, you may want to reserve some time. You can cancel it up to 4 hours ahead of time with no penalty.

The staff is really great. They recognized DS by name after the first meeting. When they would see him in other places around the ship they would talk to him and he would respond positively. We've never used a baby-sitter outside of grandparents for DS or DD who is 7. We felt very comfortable leaving him in the care of the staff of Flounders.