Current Youth Activities CM -- Ask me anything!

[Docvaden]

Yay!! I'm so glad I found this!! I have a 5 y/o little girl that has some sensory issues, mild cerebral palsy and some developmental delay. She is in a cdc preK and does well!! I'm concerned about a few things... If she has a BM will someone be allowed to help her clean?? She usually does a decent job but occasionally forgets... She also struggles with getting her clothes completely put back( they may be twisted even if they are all the way up). I am not leaving the ship while she's in the club it anything like that, I just thought the socialization would be good for her...and it would give her dad and I time to enjoy a grown up spot in the ship with it being a first cruise and all! We are going on the Magic... Do you have any advice for us to make this trip as smooth as possible. We have done WDW twice and she's had an amazing time... Want the same for this!!

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Yay!! I'm so glad I found this!! I have a 5 y/o little girl that has some sensory issues, mild cerebral palsy and some developmental delay. She is in a cdc preK and does well!! I'm concerned about a few things... If she has a BM will someone be allowed to help her clean?? She usually does a decent job but occasionally forgets... She also struggles with getting her clothes completely put back( they may be twisted even if they are all the way up). I am not leaving the ship while she's in the club it anything like that, I just thought the socialization would be good for her...and it would give her dad and I time to enjoy a grown up spot in the ship with it being a first cruise and all! We are going on the Magic... Do you have any advice for us to make this trip as smooth as possible. We have done WDW twice and she's had an amazing time... Want the same for this!!

The CMs in the Club are not allowed to "help" in any way with the toilet process. Most likely DCL legal department is just making sure that there could be no legal issues with possible "inappropriate touching". In Disney-speak "potty-trained" means the child is able to recognize that he/she needs to use the toilet, can undress, use toilet, clean themselves, redress, and wash hands without assistance.

 

[I❤MICKEY]

Have you ever done the Panama Canal repositioning cruise? I've read that there are not a lot of children due to the length and time of year. My children are 3 and 5. In your opinion what would be the pros/cons for the club/lab for kids on this type of cruise? They loved Friendship Rocks on our last classic ship sailing. Do you think they would do it for this sailing? Thank you.

 

[CMontheseas]

Have you ever done the Panama Canal repositioning cruise? I've read that there are not a lot of children due to the length and time of year. My children are 3 and 5. In your opinion what would be the pros/cons for the club/lab for kids on this type of cruise? They loved Friendship Rocks on our last classic ship sailing. Do you think they would do it for this sailing? Thank you.

Hi! I certainly have, and you are absolutely correct - Panama cruises have drastically lower numbers in our spaces, and the nature of the cruise tends to result in kids who seem much more polite, and well adjusted to cruising. In fact, if you asked CMs about their favorite kid memories and moments, they happen mostly on our longer repo cruises!


Pros: Friendship rocks will be much more intimate, Mickey and Minnie will often do a 'secret pep talk' with the kids near the dressing rooms backstage. Also, the kids get to see so much scenery/props/set pieces from the shows, but usually don't really appreciate it haha!
-There will be a sleepover night midway through the cruise where we babysit as the kids slumber on our pirate ship under the stars in the Oceaneer Club. This is after a big evening of dance parties and pizza and games and the characters 'tuck them in'. Depending on the character manager, if they schedule a princess or two or Peter Pan, they may even tell bedtime stories and actually tuck them into our mats & blankets! (Also a *quality time* night for parents)
-on Canal day, there will be outdoor sports activities at base camp on the Sports Deck
-Way more interaction between the kids and counselors, more crafts, a lot of one-on-one time


Cons:
-Some of the kids programs will be run several times and may be boring for the children
-

 

[I❤MICKEY]

Thank you so much for your response. A few more questions if you don't mind.

-There will be a sleepover night midway through the cruise where we babysit as the kids slumber on our pirate ship under the stars in the Oceaneer Club. This is after a big evening of dance parties and pizza and games and the characters 'tuck them in'. Depending on the character manager, if they schedule a princess or two or Peter Pan, they may even tell bedtime stories and actually tuck them into our mats & blankets! (Also a *quality time* night for parents)-

I this different than the Pluto "Sleepover" party?

-on Canal day, there will be outdoor sports activities at base camp on the Sports Deck
-

Would this be available for the kids 3-12? Would we check them in/out at that location or would they be transferred similar to going between the lab/club?

Are there any Panama canal specific activities for the kids?

We are considering the Pirate Ship excursion in Puerto Vallarta. Have you had any children that have done this excursion and come back to talk about it? Or even cast members who may have gone? Any insight you can provide regarding this excursion is appreciated.

Any other excursions you've heard kids really rave about on this sailing?

Again, thank you so much for your response. Hope you are having a wonderful holiday season.

 

[lbgraves]

I this different than the Pluto "Sleepover" party?

The Goofy or Pluto sleepover party is just an activity in the lab/club that lasts 30-60 minutes with the character appearance part of the time. The repo sleepovers actually have the kids sleeping in the club/lab that night. My son did this in 2008 and had a ball. They went up on the pool deck & had a dance party when the area was closed off to other guests, and he still has the drawstring bag commemorating the event.

 

[I❤MICKEY]

The Goofy or Pluto sleepover party is just an activity in the lab/club that lasts 30-60 minutes with the character appearance part of the time. The repo sleepovers actually have the kids sleeping in the club/lab that night. My son did this in 2008 and had a ball. They went up on the pool deck & had a dance party when the area was closed off to other guests, and he still has the drawstring bag commemorating the event.

This sounds so cool. Thank you for the information.

 

[CharleySue]

I don't have young children but have loved reading all the posts. I work in an office and we have lots of magazines ... People, Sports Illustrated, Time, etc... that are thrown out when they're a few weeks old. We're cruising in late January and I was wondering if the stateroom hosts enjoy these? Since I don't have young children, could I still bring some to the kids area and drop them off? It just seems a waste for them to be thrown out when it sounds like you guys would really enjoy them.

 

[mkrmom]

Ahhhh! guests like you are what we smile all day for! (I mean, we have to anyway, but when we're thought about, it makes everything worthwhile.)

As far as magazines go - ANYTHING. We're all in our mid-twenties, stuck on a ship, and we really have no way of knowing world events or pop culture. One week we passed around a Bridal Magazine a guest left in our trash bin, that's how starved we are for literature. Even a Time/Newsweek/Cosmopolitan/US Weekly/Anything from last month would make us happy! We don't quite look things up on the internet as it's so expensive we budget our time for family/emails. When we go shopping, it's for our underwear/hygiene essentials as opposed to things to read.


With candy, chocolate bars alll the way. Those mini-chocolate bars like kit-kats, reeses, O-henrys, etc. are awesome because they're small and we can sneak them in our pockets to go eat in a closet somewhere (we can never be seen eating anything where a guest might see us!). Starburst is a huge deal because they're portable and individually packaged. Really stuff we can shove into our pockets for a little-pick-me-up at the end of a 10-hour shift are faaaantastic!

Thank you so much for giving us ideas for the CMs!!!

 

[mommy2allyandaveri]

We are cruising the Fantasy April 12, 2014, will you still be on board? Any idea what your assignment might be?

I'll bring goodies for you guys too!

 

[Lisamarie4400]

I stocked up on the mini candy bars after Christmas sales. I sure hope I can get rid of it all in our short 3 days.

 

[DisneyTravelers2008]

We booked the "teens only" excursion at Castaway Cay for snorkeling, kayaking and biking. It says it is 4 to 4.5 hrs long. Any comments on this? How far out do they kayak? My son is experienced in kayaking in rivers and lakes but not the ocean. It was only $35...that seems really cheap...not that im really complaining ...Im just curious. He is quite excited about this and hope it does not disappoint...

 

[disney minnie]

We are going on a 4 day Dream cruise my son will be 14 years 8 months and his friend that we are taking with us will be 15 years 3 months. This will be the first time taking a friend on a trip. We have been on 2 Disney cruises before and my son LOVES the clubs. BUT I know they are only going to go on this trip if they are together. I don't blame them since I'm paying for a friend (who happens to be my Godson) to go with us.

Will they be in the same club?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

We are going on a 4 day Dream cruise my son will be 14 years 8 months and his friend that we are taking with us will be 15 years 3 months. This will be the first time taking a friend on a trip. We have been on 2 Disney cruises before and my son LOVES the clubs. BUT I know they are only going to go on this trip if they are together. I don't blame them since I'm paying for a friend (who happens to be my Godson) to go with us.

Will they be in the same club?

Yes. Vibe (the teen club) is ages 14-17.

 

[disney minnie]

Thank goodness!

 

[MinnieM00]

I'm having a really hard time searching for the answer to this question and hope you can help!

What port day and time is the princess royal tea on the western Caribbean fantasy?
I sail march 29, 2014

Thanks!

 

[disneyfan19712006]

A little something extra:

If you really want to go above and beyond and thank a youth counselor (for free! Without having to pack anything!), it's by giving them a Mickey Bar.

Did you know you can have as many of these as you want on the ships - for free? Did you also know that we as CMs never ever get to have them unless a guest directly gives us one? In fact, when the kids get to have them for a program/activity and there are a bunch left over - we have to toss them all in the trash.

Heartbreaking. Mickey Bars are actually a big deal for us. We dream up clever ways to sneak one on our last day but never obviously do it. But one time, a pair of guests asked for a whole bunch of Mickey Bars from room service and promptly brought it down to us at closing time in the Club. You should've heard the cheering that ensued around the room.

Adding this to our cruise plan in February.

 

[DisneyBuffinDE]

My DS is 10 and is an awesome sports kid. He plays up and can usually out play a 12 year old. Will there be any sports type things for him?

 

[SacCruiser]

My Kids had a great time on the Fantasy cruise 12-14-13 - 12-21-13, Not sure if you were in the Lab/Club but they were Johnny and Alyssa. We were able to drop off some Starburst candy one of the nights, hope you were able to get some!

 

[MaleficentRN]

Hi, CMontheseas!

Are there any plans on changing activities in Edge next year? And did they get Disney Infinity for that space?