Cruising with an almost 3yr old. Lots of questions.

[Joseph Andrew Hunt]

My wife and I have cruised before but not with Disney. We have also never cruised with our son. He will be a few weeks shy of his 3rd birthday when we sail on the Magic in late March. Does the nursery book up fast? I was hoping to book nursery time as soon as it was available for us, January. Are there toddler specific activities on board? Any advice or suggestions from anyone that has sailed before with toddlers his age?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

My wife and I have cruised before but not with Disney. We have also never cruised with our son. He will be a few weeks shy of his 3rd birthday when we sail on the Magic in late March. Does the nursery book up fast? I was hoping to book nursery time as soon as it was available for us, January. Are there toddler specific activities on board? Any advice or suggestions from anyone that has sailed before with toddlers his age?

Everyone is limited to a maximum number of hours they can book in the Nursery pre-cruise. This allows everyone who needs time to get something. Once onboard, additional time can be booked, if available.

Cost: $9.00 an hour for 1, $8.00 for additional child.
Max hours:
3 or 4 night cruise – 10 hours
7 night cruise – 18 hours
14 night cruise – 35 hours

 

[otten]

My wife and I have cruised before but not with Disney. We have also never cruised with our son. He will be a few weeks shy of his 3rd birthday when we sail on the Magic in late March. Does the nursery book up fast? I was hoping to book nursery time as soon as it was available for us, January. Are there toddler specific activities on board? Any advice or suggestions from anyone that has sailed before with toddlers his age?

We did our first cruise when my oldest was 3 and my youngest was 10 months. We booked a discounted room after the cruise paid in full date so everyone else had had a chance to book things before us. We didn't have a hard time booking the nursery and we were also able to get in on short notice a few times.

When we sailed they had "toddler time" in one of the lounges a few times and kids younger than 3 can also visit the kids clubs during open house times. It was a great age for a cruise.

One piece of advice: if at all possible try and get him potty trained before sailing. Kids in swim diapers can't go in the pools and are limited to the toddler splash area.

 

[Chemist]

Just a reminder...

Kids who are not potty trained will NOT be allowed in the pools, not even with swim diapers.
(This is common to all cruise lines, not just Disney.)

And if he does have a poop accident in the pool, it will be closed for HOURS.

It may be hard to cruise with a old two year old or young three year old who sees this neat pool and can't understand why he can't swim.

 

[Joseph Andrew Hunt]

I've heard of toddler time but have never had it explained. What exactly goes on during this time? Are characters present?

 

[hnthomps]

I've heard of toddler time but have never had it explained. What exactly goes on during this time? Are characters present?

No characters. It's just a playtime.
We actually never went, it was always when we had the nursery scheduled.

I found cruising with a 2 year old quite a bit more challenging than I expected. It was much easier for us when our kids were over 3 - there's not a ton for a 2 year old to do, and only Nemo's reef, functionally, for one in diapers. That said, we still loved the cruise we did when our youngest was 2! The trip report in my signature is from that cruise.

 

[lundve]

We cruised on the fantasy when our youngest was 10 months old - one time at sea I believe toddler playtime was in the basketball court - they brought up a bunch of toys and CMs played with all the kiddos while the parents talked nearby. There was only a handful of us. We also had plenty of nursery drop in time available to us.

 

[gotomu212]

I've heard of toddler time but have never had it explained. What exactly goes on during this time? Are characters present?

When we were on the Fantasy they closed off one room of the kids Club (Andy’s toy story room) and had mats and toys around. A CM led the kids in singing and some sort of skipping/tag game if they were interested but most kids ran around like toddler maniacs.

You can also take them into the clubs during any of the Open House times. You stay with them but there are activities that go on and some involved characters.

 

[Spotthecat]

We hit all the open house times in the kids club and our 35 month old had a blast! Nemo's Reef is brilliant and he didn't want to come out. We never used the nursery that sail as the CMs judged that he was mature enough to be signed into the kids club even though he was just shy of 3 (I don't think they allow this anymore). But we hung around the hallway just in case he needed a change or a hug lol.

Best thing to bring with you: portable chair with tray that straps to a chair so kid can eat snacks in cabin without messing up the room and BE CONTAINED for a bit. Lifesaver!

 

[slindamood]

We just got off a cruise on which my grandson turned 3. He liked the nursery and there was plenty for older toddlers to do, so going there was no problem, even after turning 3. The only times we have found the nursery full is the last night of the cruise, when everyone wants the final evening out or needs to pack. I always book that night first.

Toddler time is fun, as is Wake up with Disney Junior (a young child dance party about 9 AM, complete with character appearance). The toddler area off Promenade Lounge on the Magic is available at all times it seems with the large cushion blocks to build with, even though the actual program by CMs is not going on. There is a locked gate so parents can listen to the music have a drink, but not worry about child escaping.

One thing that surprised us for both the 3 year old and his 1 year old sister - they like eating meals in the nursery. They have macaroni and cheese, pizza, and toddler friendly foods seated at a small table with other children. We found partway through the cruise that instead of taking the two to the nursery when they were finished with their meals in the dining room, it worked better to have them eat in the nursery during the first part of our meal in the dining room, then pick them up before our dessert so they could eat a bit more (their plates would be waiting) and see the show in the dining room. we left clean clothes that that CMs changed them into after eating but before their pick-up time.

 

[Quellman]

Lots of great advice. On embarkation day, until muster drill, the Nursery is in open house mode. It is a great idea to visit the space with the kiddo to show them around and get them excited. When it came to drop off time, they couldn't check ours in fast enough, he was already beating on the door to be let in!

Sometimes characters will also visit the nursery, so you might be surprised to hear that Mickey stopped by. You can always request tips be applied to the nursery service, but we have brought a bag of individually wrapped candies as a thank you for the staff in the nursery.

 

[Riss]

We just got back around a week ago from a cruise with an almost 3-year-old and I guess the only advice I have is that they may not always want to take naps. I know for the child we took, his naps have been getting later and later or he just doesn't take one throughout the day. We were on a 4-night Bahamian Dream cruise and he only took a nap on 2 separate days, the first embarkation day and the sea day, for the other 2 he had gone to bed by 8:30, sleeping through 2 shows and the fireworks.

Also, for the child we took, the villains part during the 2 shows that he did see, The Golden Mickey's and Beauty and the Beast, kind of freaked him out. So I guess just be prepared in case he starts to get uncomfortable during a show because it suddenly took a turn to the dark side.

 

[hardis5]

Our youngest turned 3 during one cruise. When younger, we always took an umbrella stroller to use during excursions (kept under the bed fold down when not in use) and as other poster said, naps were a challenge but he often did need with the activity and over-stimulation. We founds for naps, if and when he showed signs needing we'd just head back to the cabin for some quiet time forgetting any schedule that was difficult to maintain on-board. Tried our first full theater movie (partial success one day watching the balance another day).

His first cruise at 18 mos we tried to do too much and still keep a schedule...impossible and we needed naps from trying to do discovering subsequent times, do not overfill days and go with the flow led to much more enjoyable cruises. What you do not do, see, participate in or miss this first Disney cruise they can help you address through an on-board booking to keep you coming back for more.

 

[Joseph Andrew Hunt]

Thanks everyone for all the great tips and advice. This is a dream come true for my wife. She has always wanted to take a Disney Cruise, much more than going to Disney World itself, so this is going to be an awesome time. Our little boy will turn 3 a couple weeks after the cruise and we are treating it like a birthday present. I've started showing him videos on YouTube about the "Mickey Boat" and I think he will have a great time. He loves to sing and dance and to be around other kids, even big kids.

 

[slindamood]

We also had a problem with much needed naps for 1 and 3 year old. We found that the nursery CMs are expert at getting toddlers down for naps and started taking the two either just before lunch, meaning they would eat lunch in the nursery then go down to naps, or after lunch with us. Our evening meals were much better with the naps. The nap area is dark and standard cribs, the CMs have rockers to hug and rock them to sleep.

 

[Joseph Andrew Hunt]

We are seriously considering put our son in the nursery on the Nassau day. We are not really all that sure about taking him into an unfamiliar area. Love the idea of him being at the nursery during lunch so me and my wife can have a little time for ourselves. However, we are really excited about doing things as a family on the ship as well.

 

[Jerry@dvcstore]

My wife and I did a 3 night Disney Cruise and we have a 3 year old. We had a wonderful time and our son loved the nursery. We used the nursery 2 of the 3 nights for a few hours and our son didn't want to leave. We did not have any issues booking him into the nursery and booked it the same day we checked him in. We did not pre-book any of his stays. The Care givers were super sweet and our boy enjoy his time with them. It will be a blast for all. Have fun

 

[lilouisianagal]

We cruised when our son was a month and a half shy of three. It was a great time! We pre booked our nursery times, but were able to add more on board without issue. We liked to book it about 45 min to an hr into dinner then maybe an hr after we would be done. He would eat with us then one of us would run him up to the nursery then we could finish a leisurely dinner and relax after before picking him up. We just let the servers know the plan and they brought his food out first (including his desserts). Characters do come visit the nursery and they send home pics. We cruised in February and Nemo’s reef was COLD at times. He had a blast and still asks to go back and he’s 5 now.

 

[Joseph Andrew Hunt]

We cruised when our son was a month and a half shy of three. It was a great time! We pre booked our nursery times, but were able to add more on board without issue. We liked to book it about 45 min to an hr into dinner then maybe an hr after we would be done. He would eat with us then one of us would run him up to the nursery then we could finish a leisurely dinner and relax after before picking him up. We just let the servers know the plan and they brought his food out first (including his desserts). Characters do come visit the nursery and they send home pics. We cruised in February and Nemo’s reef was COLD at times. He had a blast and still asks to go back and he’s 5 now.

The nursery takes pics with the characters. That’s good to hear. I would love to have those included.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

The nursery takes pics with the characters. That’s good to hear. I would love to have those included.

"Included" as in the photo packages? They're not. But you just get a copy of them, if your child has a picture taken with one. Instant pictures (think Polaroid).