7 day cruise with an infant

[ncmvp]

Is it crazy to do this with a child less than a year old?

 

[Gillian]

Probably. But we're going in 2004! DS/DD should be ~10 months. Wish us luck!

 

[flexsmom]

We're going in December with DD4 and DS7months. My theory is that at 7 months, he can't run away anywhere so it's actually better to go at that point rather than a year later when he's being a "toddler" and scampering all over the place! Also, I think a cruise is a great vacation for a family with an infant because you have so many fun recreation options, but are so close to your room in the event of an explosion from either end, a desperate need for a nap, or any other traumatic event that might occur!

 

[dis4me]

We did the cruise with a 6 month old and are about to do it with a 18 month old. We had a great time although there were a few things we couldn't do because I felt bad leaving the baby in Flounder's. As long as you don't plan on doing marathon days and allow the baby to be on his schedule you will be fine.

 

[gassmandy]

Our little girl will be 7 1/2 months old when we go this Nov. my mom says it is an easy age because she won't be walking yet!!!!!

 

[shmoogrrrl]

We just did it with a 10 month old, and she LOVED it. She was very taken with the Characters and loved the ocean.

I don't know how old your wee one will be, but one of the coolest things we found was that our servers were very good at bringing Katie food to try. She had a lot of new things and we didn't have to pay for them at a restaurant for trial and error like we might at home.

The only thing to keep in mind is that you may miss a few things keeping to their schedule. We didn't feel that we missed too much though, so it wasn't a problem. The folks at Flounders Reef were wonderful!

You won't regret it!

Kathy

 

[justcruisin]

A cruise is truly a vacation you can ALL enjoy. Consider a balcony cabin, you can enjoy lovely evenings and breakfasts together. We found travelling with an infant easier than with a toddler! Maybe an evening or two at Flounders ... DS was fine and the CM's are terrific.

I've learned one thing in the past couple of years .... Don't wait, do it while you can!

Another suggestion is to book your cruise ASAP ... it will only get more $$$ as you wait. Your deposit is refundable up to 60 days before cruising.

 

[4nana]

I agree with the above posters and think you will have a wonderful trip with your bebe. We had two 18 mo toddlers in our family reunion who kept us busy, but it worked out really great. They did better than we thought on the plane, cruise, meal times, excursions, etc., even tho they were off schedule. We made sure they got their nap in daily - they slept in Dis play packs provided. Our servers made sure they got something to snack on before dinner, were good about serving them first - also heating milk for their bottles. We also brought them small toys/books for entertainment during the wait periods. Be sure to get one of those wonderful Graco strollers at G/Services, which is a life saver. Can't help you with Flounder's as we had our own sitters. Have a wonderful trip!

 

[mom2grace]

We cruised the Magic when DD was 8 months (Was not walking). It was great!

Be sure to get a balcony, we had a cat.7.

We took our own stroller/car seat combo (the big kind), she actually slept in that on the sun deck covered from the sun. We also took it to dinner, we had late seating.

Offer some table foods before your cruise, I only took formula. Make sure you have plenty of formula & diapers!! Very expensive.

We used the pack-n-play, it was fine. Room steward/we collapsed it during the day.

We used Flounder's, it was fine, I am a stay-at-home mom.

She became afraid of the characters as the week went on, wish we had done photos early on.

We went to Tea with Wendy, and to St. John (on our own).

I could go on and on...... Now that she is 2, I would go before the walking stage or after 3 (because of the kids clubs)

Susan