Can You Leave Kids In The Cabin?

[jhorstma]

I'm one of those personal decision type people - give your kids responsibility commensurate with their maturity (though 6 and 8 seems a bit young to be unsupervised, if only because I can imagine my 2 at that age fighting and fooling around). For the record my DS11 and DD9 will have full sign-out priviledges when we sail next month, with agreed on rules and 2-way radios.

Here's my own angle on this pedophile thing - out of maybe 500 Disney cruises since the beginning of DCL, each with roughly 3000 passengers and crew (150,000 people total, albeit double-counting crew) - there's never been a reported case or even a rumored on-board case of child molestation, nor any muggings, assaults, armed robberies, or anything else. I'm sure that there have been plenty of simple thefts and probably hanky panky by unsupervised teens, but not a whiff of any parent's darkest fears (or else they'd be splashed across these boards and the news). Not to say it couldn't happen, but statistically that's pretty amazing. It's a safe ship and safe environment - probably safer than my kids playing outdoors at home.

 

[Mickeyhugger]

I agree jhorstma.

DH and I are very protective of our 10 year-old DD. (I won't even permit her to walk to a friend's house in our new neighborhood, and it's one of the 'safest' in the metroplex.) However, a couple of times on our most recent cruise (when she was 9), she was settled in with her books and gameboy and was fine when DH and I took a short walk on the deck. We had walkie-talkies and she knew not to open the door, even for us. Point I'm trying to make..we felt safer on DCL than our own neighborhood.

 

[ChrisnSteph]

This is a very interesting read...

I always wondered who these people are that we read about who leave their kids alone either in hotel rooms, houses, cars, etc. It is sad to see these parents are everywhere. Makes me want to go hug me kids. I'm sure the people who's houses caught on fire or who have had the police called on them when it is discovered they've left their kids alone in a hotel in Vegas assumed nothing would happen too. What a strange concept to me to ever put my kids potentially at risk. I agree the odds are very low, but the fact that one would take that bet is weird to me.

Just my opinion.

You are entititled to your opinion. However, I think you're missing the whole "use common sense" point. You are assuming that I am "one of those people..."? That's a pretty bold statement. Just because I think differently than you doesn't mean that I am the type of person to leave my kids alone in hot, parked cars, alone in hotel rooms in Vegas - an entirely different world than DCL in EVERY way and a really BAD comparison - and I don't leave my child home alone. I think Mickeyhugger said it best. DCL is in many ways safer than our own neighborhoods. You can stand upon your pedestal and think what you will, but since we all seem to agree that the odds are very, very low that anything remotely close to being horrible would happen to our kids while being left alone in a stateroom, I'll take comfort in that and not have a hysterical mental breakdown worrying about leaving my 9 year old for an hour to relax and do her homework, in a safe stateroom locked away from the rest of the population on the ship. Some parents seem to think that the more you shelter your children from the world, the better you are as a parent. All that is accomplishing is teaching children to be anxious and fearful of every little thing. It's not how I was raised, and it's not how I'll raise my children. (Oh, and just for the record, my husbands a firefighter/medic, and you better believe my kids know what to do in the event there was ever fire in our home, and my 9 year old knows how to perform CPR and the Heimlich. Every child should be taught that, you know, just in case.)

 

[dwkwootton]

We don't all seem to agree that the odds are very, very low that anything close to horrible could happen on the ship.

A 6 yr old is not a little adult. An 18 yr old is a little adult.

To suggest that a parent who is doing their job by properly attending to their small children is hysterical or overprotective indicates how weak the arguement is for leaving your 6 yr old alone ANYWHERE.

 

[crisi]

I actually wouldn't be worried about anything horrible.....personally I think that risk is way low.

But my six year old if he woke up while Mom and Dad weren't there in a strange place (and sometimes he does wake up) would be disoriented and frightened. And for me, that alone wouldn't be worth it. That is a much higher risk scenario.

 

[dwkwootton]

A six year old waking up from a nightmare in a strange place without his/her parents is horrible. Literally. Webster defines the word: dreadful, frightful, awful.

If you want to go out drinking, hire a babysitter instead of trying to justify negligence citing odds on pedophiles, bomb threats, fire drills, or a 55 foot wave hitting a cruise ship in Hawaii.

 

[Mickeyhugger]

From reading the most recent posts, I get the iimpression that the statistics about pedophiles and crimes are for parents who think their responsible 'older' children are capable of staying alone in a stateroom.

Obviously, a six-year old is too young.

 

[iluvallthingsdisney]

I have read everyone's posts on this thread. I find getting a glimpse into some of the opinions expressed here very interesting. My dd's are 5 and 7. I would never leave them unattended anywhere at these ages. Use your best judgement. Enjoy your cruise.

 

[devotedchristian]

I keep hearing "DCL is safer than the real world"

Do NOT get caught up in the "Disney Magic" .

Fact: Disney Cruise Lines IS the "real world" and I think the following scenairo needs repeating:

How would you know if a weirdo was keeping an eye on your room/kids? Suppose the creep saw you leave, then decided to knock on the cabin door, saying, "Room Service from Mickey!!" or used some other ploy to get the kids to open the door.

 

[ChrisnSteph]

A six year old waking up from a nightmare in a strange place without his/her parents is horrible. Literally. Webster defines the word: dreadful, frightful, awful.

If you want to go out drinking, hire a babysitter instead of trying to justify negligence citing odds on pedophiles, bomb threats, fire drills, or a 55 foot wave hitting a cruise ship in Hawaii.[/QUOTE]


Where the the heck did THAT come from? I agree that six is too young to be left alone. No argument there. It's obvious we all aren't going to see eye to eye on this matter. And that's ok. We're all entitled to our opinions. But the slamming of people's parenting skills and personal attacks need to stop. I'll be first.....

 

[Mickeyhugger]

Devoted Christian, I don't recall seeing anywhere on these boards that 'DCL is safer than the real world.'

If any parent has any doubt about there child opening a door to 'room service', by all means, DONT LEAVE THEM ALONE.

 

[dwkwootton]

ChrisnSteph, the original post questions leaving a 6 and 8 yr old unattended. That's where the heck that came from.

There's been pages and pages about this couple going out for a stroll, that couple going to the club (oh, but only for an hour), how low the odds are of something horrible happening, how mature is the 6 yr old .... that's where the heck that came from.

Leaving a 6 yr old child with only an 8 yr old child anywhere is appalling. This issue should not be taken so lightly and I'm not sure I'd dignify anyone who would do this as having enough parenting skills to criticize.

 

[devotedchristian]

Devoted Christian, I don't recall seeing anywhere on these boards that 'DCL is safer than the real world.'.

All that being said, I think that the DCL's cruise ship enviornment is a little different than the "real world."QUOTE]

As I said, Disney Cruise Lines IS the real world. And this certainly isn't the only statement on this thread that has made a reference DCL is *immune* to the dangers of society. It certainly is not.

Some say it depends on the kid's level of maturity...well there is an old saying that criminials get smarter and smarter each day.

I think people get so caught up in the Disney Magic, they tend to lose a sense of reality.

Just my opinion.

 

[married2grumpy]

All that being said, I think that the DCL's cruise ship enviornment is a little different than the "real world." Yep, with 3000+ people onboard there is going to be crime and has the potiential of some very horrific crimes (rape, molestation, kidnapping). It's quite likely that the demographic makeup of the guests are such that onboard we are actually safer from those type of crimes than off of the ship. A large percentage of pedophilia occurs inside of family groups (offender and victim are related to each other).

Actually, I think that statement above is way off. Yes you will have many families traveling together and you would think your children are at a lesser risk. That is why it is even more dangerous. These types of environments make parents more lax because they feel their children are safe because it is a "family" environment. Pedophiles want to be around children. Theme parks, playgrounds, near schools and yes, family cruise ships are loaded with children. Doesn't that make it more appealing to a pedophile?

 

[ChrisnSteph]

ChrisnSteph, the original post questions leaving a 6 and 8 yr old unattended. That's where the heck that came from.

There's been pages and pages about this couple going out for a stroll, that couple going to the club (oh, but only for an hour), how low the odds are of something horrible happening, how mature is the 6 yr old .... that's where the heck that came from.

Leaving a 6 yr old child with only an 8 yr old child anywhere is appalling. This issue should not be taken so lightly and I'm not sure I'd dignify anyone who would do this as having enough parenting skills to criticize.

When I said where the heck did that come from, I was referring to where you said "if you want to go out drinking.......". I even highlighted that portion in red to single it out. And I'm going to stand by MY original post. I wasn't being critical. I was stating my opinion and why I think that way. The ones being overly critical and judgmental are the people like yourself with your harsh comments, who think the world is black and white and that every family and the children within that family into the same mold. I'm a good mom. My children are good kids, and my daughter has a good head on their shoulders. She is aware of the dangers of the world because her father and I teach her. I think that the judgment I use is appropriate for MY children. It doesn't make me a bad parent, as you suggest. And I don't need you to dignify me. I would never suggest that you are a bad parent because you would choose to never leave your child alone. That's ridiculous! As I said in my original post, I was raised differently. My take on things are different. Doesn't make me a bad, neglectful or abusive parent. To believe that would assume that my own parents were that way, or any other person who was raised as I was had horrible parents. This whole subject reminds me of an incident this past fall, a woman parked her car in front of a gas station. Inside were her two children. The weather was typical fall weather, a little chilly. She left her children in the car , and went inside, bought a few snacks and some gas. Mind you, the car is right in front of the window where she could see it, less than 30 feet away, and locked. She had the keys. She stood in front of the window and kept an eye on it while she was inside. The line was a bit long so it took about 10 minutes to pay for her gas. In those ten minutes, someone flagged down a police car in the parking lot, and told the officer that a woman had left her kids alone in a parked car. Of course the officer comes in to check it out. The woman who flagged the officer down trailed right behind him, quite proud of herself. Turns out, the woman left her children, a 9 y/o girl and a 1 y/o son in the car because the baby was a child who had special needs. She was on her way back from checking him out of the hospital where he'd been for over a week with RSV. He had a compromised immune system and was hooked to medical equipment. She had her older daughter watch over him so that she didn't have to expose him to the elements or unhook him from his equipment that he needed. All she needed was to do was get gas. The children were not harmed, and the officer left without incident. This is an example of how some people in today's society are so paranoid and quick to jump the gun and be accusatory. I felt bad for that woman. It's just an example of how everything in life is not black and white, and how the decisions people make can be individual to that situation. That's all I'm trying to say.

 

[Ariel Wanna-be]

Would it be OK to leave the kids (mine are aged 8 and 6) in the cabin on their own?

Short answer? I wouldn't leave my very responsible DS7 alone in the cabin. I'd be worried sick the entire time.

 

[Mickeyhugger]

I am curious devoted christian and dwkwootten, have either of you sailed on DCL before?

 

[married2grumpy]

ChrisnSteph-

I don't want this to end up as a debate (which is were this whole thread is going) but do you really think there is nothing wrong with leaving those kids alone in the car for 10 minutes? Especially a child with a medical condition?

I guess we were raised different!

 

[Mickeyhugger]

I think the point she was trying to make in talking about the police incident is that every situation is different. I agree with the 'black and white' parallel.

 

[dwkwootton]

Yes, have sailed Disney 7 or 8 times.

Leaving a 6 yr old without his/her parents is unacceptable. Always. And appalling. Justifying it is despicable.

You missed your own punchline in the gas station story. Mom should have stopped for gas and snacks before picking up her sick child. Appalling? No. Not handled well? Right on.