Booking both Tastings and Youth Clubs?

[Cruise]

Not sure if I'm missing something, but it looks like the various "tastings" (Rum, Beer, Mixology, Margarita, etc.) are still part of the advance bookings that you sign up for in advance according to your CC status. My sister and her husband are cruising for the first time with their kids (and without me, can you believe it?!?!), and she's Silver since she and I have sailed a couple times together, so her window for the tastings would be 90 days out. As suspected, these are some of the first things to book up and be sold out (though I realize you can keep checking back and things open up).

The issue comes in with booking for the Kids' Clubs. It looks like DCL is still limiting times to one 2.5 hour block per kid, per day which can only be reserved after completing online check-in at 30 days out.

So, I guess my question is - how does this work if they actually wanted to do one of the Tastings as a couple? Obviously they can book the Tasting ahead of time and HOPE they can get a Kids' Club block that happens to be at the same time AND has enough slots available for all kids in their party. But if, at the 30 day mark, they don't have the stars align to allow that, they're just SOL and one (or both) of them have to cancel their tasting? The kids are aged 10 and under, so leaving them on their own to just wander the ship isn't really an option. Is there something I'm missing in the planning of this?

It doesn't seem like Disney really thought this out. I'm kidless and have always advocated for DCL as actually being great for kidless adults since "they know how to entertain kids and specifically planned for adult only areas," but it seems like they really dropped the ball on this one.

 

[DisneyPiPhi]

I'd say sign up for the tasting and then see if they can find an accompanying kids club time - my experience is that the times are plentiful. If it doesn't work out, ask upon boarding about shifting to another tasting, or ask at the kids club about adding that time.

We sailed on the Dream in September and had no trouble booking daily club times for my daughter and adding additional sessions during the sailing, even day-of.

 

[Freeman867]

You shouldn't have any issues getting the appropriate kids club time. Book the tastings and the kids club stuff will follow.

 

[Cruise]

Thanks for the reassurance! None of us has any experience with the "limited" kids' clubs hours and I was hoping that, even though it's set at 2.5 hours a day, there were still plenty of slots for those blocks. Thanks!

 

[soniam]

They used to release tastings on the ship as well, but I don't know if that's still happening.

 

[MomOTwins]

Just tell them to book lids clubs as soon as their 30 days open. It doesn’t sell out that fast.

The one caveat (which existed pre-Covid) is there is usually one early afternoon Champagne tasting on embarkation day that happens before the kids club opens around 4pm. So if they want the Champagne tasting, tell them to avoid that embarkation day one.