Only child at kids club?

[SunshineCruiser]

I have 3 children, but they are 2 1/2 years apart, and were in 3 different clubs, so each child was on there own. There will be many kids entering alone. You can always test it out and come back within a half hour to make sure they are happy the first time you leave them. That made my daughter feel better knowing we were coming right back, and when we got back she didn't want to leave.

[DahliaRW]

Originally Posted by melaniejh1016

The other thing is at dinner they matched us up with another family with a child the same age as ours They became instant friends and we would coordinate with that family to send the girls to the club at the same times each day so they'd have a buddy! It worked out great'

There might even be another disborder on your cruise with a child of similar age and you could meet up beforehand and then send them together later.

[jcjen519]

Originally Posted by melaniejh1016

The other thing is at dinner they matched us up with another family with a child the same age as ours They became instant friends and we would coordinate with that family to send the girls to the club at the same times each day so they'd have a buddy! It worked out great'

oh that would be awesome! On our last cruise we were with my parents and grandparents and uncle and his gf so we weren't matched with anyone. I wasn't even thinking along those lines, but that would be great.

[jcjen519]

Originally Posted by DahliaRW

There might even be another disborder on your cruise with a child of similar age and you could meet up beforehand and then send them together later.

That would be great

[Jane1967]

That is exactly what I was going to say. I am on a thread with others going on the same cruise. We are going to set up a meet for shortly after we get on the ship. That way the girls can get to know each other. We may take them all in the club together as well. Check and see if there is a thread out there for your cruise and put out some feelers.

[gunka]

I wouldn't worry about it, give it a try and see how it goes. On our first cruise our dd was ok with the club, but if she missed mom/dad the counselors would call us on our wave phone and we would go get her. On our second cruise she had turned 4 and wanted to go to the club. She maybe went there a couple of times for an hour or two and it worked out perfect....we never had to push it.

[It's A Small World]

I can relate. I was so hesitant that my girlies would not like it that I refused to take them. My hubby checked them in the first morning while I was in the gym. My 6 and 8 y/o were split into 2 different age groups. I am not kidding when I tell you they cried when we picked them up...they loved loved loved going. They met so many kid's their own age. Let him try it and see how it goes.

[Stephandy03]

My son was 5 when we cruised with Carnival. His younger sister was 2 at the time. He went to the club alone, so was essentially an only child in the kids club. He had no problem leaving sister and mom and dad behind!

[DisneyRegulars]

I was going to ask the same question! Our only son will have just turned 4 for our first cruise in feb 2014, and its great to here positive stories about the kids club. He's shy, and I would just feel so bad if he didn't have a good time, like I was being extremely selfish, so its nice to here all the positive experiences. I may consider it now, especially if I can find him a friend to go with him before hand.

[toniosmom]

Generally speaking, kids clubs on cruise ships can be a great experience for any child. However, the Disney cruise kids clubs are a whole different animal. They take kids clubs to a whole different level and are unbelievably amazing! They are truly the gold-standard of kids clubs. My son wouldn't leave at midnight, I had to wait until closing time 1am.

[Meghatron]

I think the problem is that people tend to see the clubs as "babysitting", with all the baggage that entails when we hire babysitters as home. The clubs are to babysitting what the adult areas of the ship are to adult-sitting: they are a dedicated space designed for a specific audience, paid for by cruise fare, with the intention of maximizing one's enjoyment of a vacation. The CMs are part of that and will do everything they can to get the children engaged and having fun, much like the CMs who run the pool games at Quiet Cove.

And, as much as the nursery is called babysitting by DCL itself, I think the CMs in there get underestimated, too. DD had an AMAZING time and we still have the folder of stuff she made with the CMs while she was in there--so there are activities for the toddlers along the lines of the clubs that is above and beyond merely paying someone to watch your child. I think the $6/hour is a steal given what we get in return.