12 year old about to be 13 - which club?

[NCLinda]

Hi. I understand that they maight let a child who is about to age out go to the older club. Our situation is that Rebekah is about to be 13 - 5 weeks after our cruise. Should I inquire about her being with the older kids or should I leave well enough alone? Also, if I was to inquire, when do I do that?
Thanks, Linda

 

[Cruisin]

Our daughter was 4 month short of 13 when she first cruised. She did not like the club that she was supposed to be in and therefore did not attend except for a few brief times. She said it was too much like babysitting. I never even thought about asking to put her in the older category.
We went the next year when she was 13 yr and she had an absolutely wonderful time. If your daughter is a very mature 12yr old, then you might want to try to get her into the older group.

 

[Verandah Man]

Our DD was within three weeks of turning 13 on our cruise in August. We were told that if she was within one month of turning 13, then she could join in with the teen group, which she did, and had a good time with the other teens.

 

[SueEllen]

There are a few things to consider...
Having just sailed with a 12 year old who will be 13 soon and VERY mature for her age (even looks more like 16 than 12!) I can offer this to you:
Exceptions are made--however they ask your child to at least give their age group a try. VERY FEW exceptions are made and are on a case by case basis. One thing very important to consider is that there are teens up to 18 years old in the teen club. While your daughter might be quite mature and think the kids club is to babyish--she might not be mature enough to be hanging out with 17-18 year olds.
I thought long and hard about this. The teen area looks so cool, and it is quite tempting to those wishing to be a teen (almost there!) but in the long run it might not be the best choice.
My daughter did not end up doing anything really with the 10-12 year old group, but she had a good time anyway. There were several activities she was interested in doing, but instead she mostly went to the movies or to the pool or whatever happened to be going on at the time.
Best of luck to you.
Sue Ellen

 

[jrabbit]

Your DD is in one of the age groups DCL does NOT excel in. The 12-14 age group is either "too old" for the 11/12 group but are also way to young to be with kids up to 18. Most of the activites for the 13+ group start in the afternoon and go until 2am. Most pre-teens and early teens still need a lot of sleep and 2am is to late, and for those who go to bed "early" like around midnight, there are no activites available before lunch time.

If DD is a mature 12 going on 15, she will probably do well in the teen club. If she has had a more sheltered life, and if she enjoys younger kids, the 11/12 ocenaneers lab is really the place for her. What will probably end up happening is that she will be hanging out with mom and dad a lot because she will feel that she does not fit in with either group.

 

[professorandmom]

IMHO - my daughter turned 13 several weeks before the cruise. She too was caught in the middle - BUT she met several other early teens in common grounds and then hung out with them. She didn't participate in many structured activities but went to the movies, swimming etc with her new friends. I think that since there were several people in "her boat" it worked out well.
Barbara