Parent of mentally challenged child

[Slllinker]

Has anyone taken a mentally retarded child on a Disney cruise? It's not something I would pick, but my extended family is going and I'm not sure how it's going to go. She's ten, goes to regular public school, but is only 95% potty trained. It also means that we'll have to all go to the cabin at the same time; I can't leave her in there while we party on into the night. I guess most families of younger kids deal with that too. Any feel from experienced cruisers how good the staff might be? She's pretty autonomous, but a 1 to 25 ratio means if she has any extra need, there's no extra hand to deal with it. Ack! Nervous! Has anyone tried this before?

Thanks.

 

[barkley]

check on the disabilities board-there are some awsome parents over there who can answer alot of your questions.

 

[aprilgail2]

She's ten, goes to regular public school, but is only 95% potty trained. It also means that we'll have to all go to the cabin at the same time; I can't leave her in there while we party on into the night.
Thanks.

Why would "you all" have to go to the cabin at the same time, can't one person stay with her while the others go "party" ( not that Disney is a big party ship thats for sure!) you could just switch who stays with her each night.

 

[CaribGirl]

I think it is beautiful that you include the whole family. Being 10 she will enjoy it. On our last trip there was a group with 4 mentally challenged persons. They ranged in age probably from young teen to young adult (30) One was in wheelchair, and the rest were able to move about. I saw them frequently and they seem to be enjoying everytime we encountered them Also in no way did they seem to have difficulties getting around or enjoying the ammenities.

Good luck, and hope you have a great time.

 

[MelissaE1]

I have not had the experience of taking a differently abled child on a cruise, so I hope you don't mind me posting. (I have at various times worked and even lived with them, though).

If you go with the idea of spending a great vacation with your daughter, seeing the wonder that's sure to be on here face when she meets the characters, etc. and enjoying the ambiance of the ship yourself you'll have a great time. If you want to "party on into the night" , well, I wouldn't leave my 11 yo by himself while I did that, either, so you're in the same boat (no pun intended) as the rest of us with kids. As aprilgail2 said, Disney isn't known for being a party ship anyway.

I think Barkley's idea was great, also... I have seen numerous posts about people taking kids with an additional challenge on the ship. The staff at the Club/Lab seems to have most often been wonderful.

Even if for some reason you or she didn't feel comfortable with the abilities of the kids' areas, you will still have a great time. My son chose not to spend much time there last cruise, as he was somewhat shy. There are many, many other things to do and see. I think you'll be glad you went!

 

[Vanvmom]

Has anyone taken a mentally retarded child on a Disney cruise?

Thanks.

At risk of offending... I find it hard to believe that this is a relative you are talking about. Very politically unpopular usage of terminology...

BTW... I'm speaking as someone with some experience working with special needs children.

 

[mmouse37]

On every DCL cruise we have taken (14 to date) we have always seen special needs children onboard.....the special needs ran the gamut from mild to severe. Last cruise we saw a precious little infant with downs syndrome and have also seen adults in wheelchairs with more physical special needs. I would not worry too much....DCL has experienced it all.

MJ

 

[wide awake]

DH and I have taken our 15 yr old autistic DS on 3 cruises. We don't do the clubs, DS doesn't have the communication skills for that. DH and I just pick what we really want to do, what DS would enjoy, and what we'd all enjoy as a family and go from there. All three of us have always had a good time, it just takes being honest about your priorities...DH scuba dives, so DS and I usually do a beach day at ports. I love the Art of Entertaining and wine tasting series so DH is in charge during those times. DH and I switch off for Rain Forest or Spa treatments. DS loves the hot tubs so we all do that...he also likes the movies and shows. We can't do Palo but that is about it.

 

[kcashner]

I'm curious as to where you got the idea of a 1 to 25 ratio. We've been on the Magic 13 times, and the ratio is a whole lot more like 1 to 6.

As to meeting special needs--DCL has a reputation for being the best in this regard. They will do whatever they can to meet the needs of each guest on board, whether adult or child. On our last cruise, we were seated near a 6 year old with Downs syndrome and severe communication difficulties. Each night, he sat at the dinner table for a short time. His food was served very quickly. When he started getting restless, his mom or dad took him to the club, then returned to finish their dinner. Grandpa spoke with us at one point and explained that he just wouldn't do well sitting for an hour unless he was being directly entertained.

 

[GritsGirl]

Not sure where the original poster got his/her data, but it does match with DisneyCruise dot com's Frequently asked questions.......

"Can all children participate in youth activities?

Supervised youth activities are available on the ship from 9:00 a.m. to midnight for children ages 3-12. Children must be age 3 or older and toilet-trained in order to participate. Children must be able to interact comfortably within our counselor-to-child ratios of 1:15 (ages 3-4) and 1:25 (ages 5-12) and within our established age groupings of 3-4, 5-7, 8-9, 10-12. We are unable to provide one-on-one care. A child who becomes disruptive within the group may be excluded from participation. Parents sign their children (ages 3-12) in and out of activities and are provided pagers so they can keep in touch. Events have been designed for teens as well, ages 13-17. Teens do not need to be signed in and out by parents. There is no additional charge for these planned events."

If you choose to cruise with your 10 year old, I hope you have a GREAT trip!
There are family club (different locations than the adult clubs) activities each night (I can't think of what they are except for Kareoke which I can't spell correctly )

Grits

 

[Jennay]

YES you should bring the "special needs" child on the cruise. You sound very immature and I cannot beleive that you are her parent. Is she living at home with your or in a home? Let Just because the child has some special needs does that mean she should not go and participate? What if you were her! Wouldn't you feel left out? She is part of the family and has every right to go. She is 95% potty trained, that's great! Count your blessings. This post just made me sick.

 

[flexsmom]

Whoa, folks - where does the OP say it is "her" child? She says it's her "extended family", so could be a second cousin, twice removed, which means there's not many personal experiences dealing with that kind of a challenge, which is evident from her questions! I have a couple of cousins in my "extended family" that I've hardly met, much less vacationed with, but if I'm in the driver's seat to coordinate a family vacation (which I was recently), I'm going to try to learn as much as I can that is applicable for all of the various members who are traveling!

And before anyone refers me to the title of the OP's post, I took this as a call out to the "parent of a mentally challenged child" - not a self-titled thread! So what's more important - the honest solicitation for some good advice by someone not familiar with a situation so that the cruise is enjoyable for everyone in the party sailing, including the young girl - or whether or not the OP uses "proper PC terminology"?