Cruise Questions DD with Down Syndrome/Autism

[seethruguy]

We are addiing a 3 day cruise on the Dream onto our (almost) annual trip to Disney. Dad, Mom, DD 12 with Down Syndrome and falls on the autism spectrum and DS 8.
We would like to have our own table at dinner. Not anti-social, but DD can go from happy and laughing to knocking a drink over in no time and I don't want to upset anyone elses dinner. Would this be a problem? How do I arrange it?
Also I was wondering about the kids clubs on the ship I think there are some things she would really enjoy. She has some speech but is not exactly verbal. Can a parent stay with her, at least to get her settled in? Also she is potty trained but needs a little help sometimes. If she needed to go and she could let a CM know would they page us to assist her? She may have no interest, but I'd like to give her the chance to enjoy these programs. Both Kids love vacations and Disneyworld so I'm pretty sure the cruise will be a big hit, just want to try and plan ahead as best I can.

 

[pls5286]

We are taking my DSS who will be 12 next june on a cruise next Oct and he is Autistic. (He will become my DSS on the cruise). These are our plans and we have already talked to DCL about them. It is not my first cruise, but DF and DSS first cruise. I also have a DS who will be almost 15 and a DD who will be 8.

-Bumping DSS down to the Oceaners Lab with DD so he does not have free roam of the ship. Kids in Tween club do. DCL was happy to accomadate once I explained his Autism. He will be more comfortable having DD in there with him and we will be much more comfortable knowing he cannot leave when he gets ready to.

-If you decide to bump her down let them know about toileting issues. They cannot take her to the RR, but they can page you to take her. They tend to be very accomadating with Special Needs Kids

-Dining you need to call now and request a single table. Let them know why. But know it is only a request. We have one in too.

 

[mickeymom1]

We have been on many cruises with my oldest DS who is now 10 who has Down syndrome (and is on the spectrum) and we have never had any issues onboard. Cruising is actually one of the most relaxing vacations that we take as a family!

With the kids club we have always bumped him down to the younger age groups (He has a younger brother & sister). You just have to let them know when you are registering on the first day (either in the terminal or at the club when you initially get the id bracelets for the kid's club).

It is also never a problem for you to stay or check up on them at any time. I would suggest that you take her to the bathroom as soon as she checks in to the club, then she will be good to go for a while (it can get very distracting with the constant activities going on!). If there is ever an issue, they will always page you and I am sure if you spoke with them at the club and let them know what you would like to do they would work with you.

One other thing that we would do with our son is really monitor what activities were happening and where they would be going, when he was at the club (there is a daily schedule in the navigator that they follow to the minute!!). For example, we didn't feel comfortable with him transitioning between the kids club and the sports deck or going to the buffet for meals. I am not saying that the counsellors aren't watching the kids, but I know that they are responsible for a lot of kids walking down the hallways of the ship and can not provide any extra attention for my son and my son can sneak away in a flash. It's just not something that we personally felt comfortable with, others may, but just wanted to share.

If you haven't already, fill out the medical form and send it into them. This may also help with the table request.

I can't give any personal advice with the table seating because we usually sail with a large group of family that we sit with. You can try to make a request before hand, but you can always go as soon as you get on the ship to check on your seating and speak with the head of the dining room to see if your table can be moved if you are infact seated with other families.

If you have any other questions, I would be glad to try to answer them! I am the same way you are about trying to figure out as many details as possible! Our kids keep us on our toes everyday, so there is nothing wrong with trying to iron out some details about your vacation

Good luck & I hope that you enjoy your cruise!

 

[seethruguy]

Thanks for the info. I called and they said the table for 4 was no problem and they would note it but I'll check when we get on board. They also said that since the kids clubs are no longer separated by age (which I had read) she could go to which ever we felt was best for her. The CM said that since she had no medical concern like asthma, allergies or needs oxygen I didn't need to fill out a medical form. I don't really think pottying will be to much a problem as we'll probably check on her fairly often and one of us can take her to the bathroom then. Our next problem might be how to get her to leave Castaway Cay, the girl loves the beach Buy we'll work something out. Thanks again and I'm sure to have more questions as the day gets closer

 

[grits98]

When you get on-board, immediately go to Rockin Bar D (or wherever they have people set up to make dining changes on your cruise) and you can check that your family got its own table. It will not be a problem for them to check, and if needed, to make the change at that time. Trust me - this will not be any kind of problem.

We have always found the child care staff to be fantastic!

Enjoy the cruise!

.

 

[PatMcDuck]

It was years ago, but we did not have a good experience cruising with my son who has Down Syndrome and Autism. At the time, we used a stroller for him quite often, and getting around the ship with that can be tricky. Some doorways have "bumps" you have to navigate over, I understand why, it is to prevent water from getting inside in a storm, etc. But it made it harder. He has orthopedic issues, that were worse at this time, that is why we used the stroller for walks.

I was led to believe that the kids club could accommodate him, but they seemed unsure and pretty clueless. Sean is non-verbal. He was about 9. We understood they could not remind him to go to the bathroom. They agreed to let him stay on the computer if he got upset about taking turns. We ended up leaving him once, for only about an hour, we were too worried. The staff, while nice, seemed uncomfortable. It was not ME being overprotective, I sent him to sleep away camp for a week each year, etc. I did not want the staff to be too stressed out watching him.

We have 4 kids, the others enjoyed the various kids programs quite a bit. It was only a 3 day Cruise (thankfully). My husband and I were left taking turns in the evening walking around the ship, alone, while the other one of us stayed in the room with Sean. He would be falling asleep by 8:30pm. At Castaway Cay, it was also hard, he cannot walk on the sand and is very fair skinned.

So for us, no more cruising with Sean, we have it so much easier at the parks. Obviously our experience was unusual, as others here report quite positive feedback.