Age requirement for teens to have their own cabin?

[heathrow42]

..I was just reading the travel section of our local paper. A woman wrote in asking for ideas on where to take a group of 17-18 yr olds for spring break (under $1000 each) The author's first inclination was a cruise, but then went on to say that wasn't an option because "most lines
won't allow teenagers to stay in a cabin without an adult. One adult per
group won't cut it"

I was really surprised by that.. I guess I figure at the very least an 18 yr old is considered an adult everywhere else, (maybe not by mom and dad!) and that they would be old enough to "be the adult on the reservation" And I really imagine that 17 would be old enough as well. Especially if the parent, books the rooms and has them all next to each other, and handles all the financials.

Any ideas? does Disney have a policy on this?

--heather

 

[jel0511]

Yes, if all occupants are over 18, then DCL allows an 18 year old to book a room. If even one of the occupants is under 18 (17 counts) then the adult must be 21.

 

[kcashner]

Reality is that DCL doesn't care who sleeps where if a family books more than one cabin, but for booking purposes, you must have an adult in each cabin.

For example, for a family of 5 (depending on season, category, etc.) it can be cheaper to book 2 category 11 or a 6 and an 11 rather than a 4. If the parents are booking 2 cabins, they must technically list mom as the lead name in one and dad in the lead name in the other...and split the kids however. When they check in, DCL will issue an extra "blank" kttw to the adult so Mom can have a key to both rooms. Once on board, mom and dad can sleep in one cabin and the 3 kids in the other. However, DCL has covered itself from a legal and insurance standpoint in having an adult booked in each cabin.

I'm not sure what the policy is on an 18 year old booking a cabin (I honestly thought it was 21), but I know that if anyone is under 18, there must be a 21 year old booked in the room.

THe age group that is the most problem for DCL is the older teens..in terms of bothering other guests, stupid stunts (one jumped off deck 4 into the water while the ship was docked!), excessive noise in halls late at night, etc. It generally isn't really bad stuff, just teen junk. There is even a special security person assigned to the teen age group. The usual remedy for dangerous activities is that the teen is only allowed out of his/her cabin when accompanied by a parent--that puts the kabosh on the activities quickly.

 

[dletz]

This is funny, because our band of 100 students went on a cruise in high school. We did have chaperons on the cruise, but the students didn't stay with (or even near) the chaperons. I wonder if it's different for something like this, of course this was before DCL, but it wasn't like we were the only ones on the ship.

 

[BriarRosie]

I think the booking policies have changed over the last 10 years,
mostly due to the Spring Break crowds that have booked cruises
so they could legally drink at 18.

Years ago, when Carnival had that "party animal" atmosphere, it
must have gotten out of hand. I remember booking a cruise
when my friend and I were both 20 without any problems.

But, within a few years, I booked a Carnival cruise where I was
26, travelling with a 24 and 20 year old, and they only let us book
the cabin because I was over 25, or some such nonsense.

Let's just say that Carnival in 1990 was a LOT different than
Carnival in 1997. And I believe it changed for the better.

 

[hmneal]

I can tell you that for our family, DCL wouldn't allow our 20yr old to be the 'adult' in the room! We booked two rooms, hoping to put our four children in the same room so my DH & I could have our own room. Nope! They said because she isn't 21, we had to put my name in one room and DH in the other! I realize we'll sleep where we want so it won't be a big deal, but they stick to 21yrs old as the adult!