Current Youth Activities CM -- Ask me anything!

[lbgraves]

Hello! Thanks for all the great info!! My question is regarding our 5 year old dd from our 6/12 fantasy cruise. All 3 of my girls were in the play area together with their 2 cousins and my 4 year old at that time wanted to leave. She is beyond shy and my older children asked the cm to call us to leave and they said the 4 year old needed to tell her that she wanted to leave. ...

I would suggest you tell the older girls to tell the CMs they want to leave and have you paged on the wave phone. When you get there, they can tell you what's going on. You don't have to take the other kids out because they had you paged.

Regarding pp question about the Aquaduck height requirements: I have a 4 yo son that was 41 inches barefeet. I tried having him keep his Keens on to get measured, no dice. they made him take them off, measure barefoot and denied him admission. He was upset, wanted to go with big brother since all the WDW rides that he likes are only 40 inches tall requirement and he FINALLY made that one. Really wish it was only 40 inches for consistency sake.

Originally, the minimum height was more than 41 inches. It was changed about a month after the Dream launched. That probably has something to do with the variation from the standard WDW height.

 

[orangesub]

Perhaps all the kids who want to move to a higher aged club would feel better if they read these posts. It seems the Disney ships are packed with highly advanced kids who are younger than the club they want to be in.

 

[BenbowInn]

Perhaps all the kids who want to move to a higher aged club would feel better if they read these posts. It seems the Disney ships are packed with highly advanced kids who are younger than the club they want to be in.

Haha!! Think my 5 year old is too young for the teen club? He's very mature for his age...

 

[tinks_1989]

Hello,

We are coming on our first cruise in February from the UK. I am interested in what gifts you guys would like? Any UK favourite chocolates like Flakes or Jaffa cakes? (Prince Naveen requested we bring Jaffa cakes next time lol) can we bring a hamper type gift and you share it between you or do you prefer separate gifts? Just I could have more of a variety if I could do a group present.

 

[LiamsMom]

New to posting...sorry if posted in wrong spot....wondering what the procedure is for children in the youth clubs during an actual emergency .

 

[mab2012]

Great thread, very informative.

What I'm wondering is if there is any downside to granting my child self-check privileges? Aside from the obvious concerns about whether the child can be trusted or will be safe on the ship unsupervised, of course.

My 8-year-old is a sensible, cautious sort. I have no concerns whatsoever that she would abuse the privilege, or put herself in an unsafe situation. But most likely she would choose not to use the self-check, particularly as she will likely want to stick together with her 5-year-old brother. (So why bother granting the privilege? Because I feel it's important to encourage her independence, and to show her that we believe in her abilities and trust her judgement. Maybe. I haven't decided yet.)

In what ways are kids with self-check privileges treated differently from those without? I presume that if she asked a counsellor to text us rather than checking herself out, they would do that? Or if she did choose to check herself out, could she ask the counsellors to send us a quick message to say "X has checked herself out of the club and is coming to find you", so that we know to expect her? (I don't think I'd give her a wave phone - too likely that she would lose it!)

I did see something earlier in the thread about self-check kids being sent off to get their dinner while the younger kids were invited to eat at the club (or something of that sort, sorry if I'm mis-remembering). Would my child with self-check privileges also be able to stay and eat if she chose to? What about an emergency situation? If I gave her specific instructions to stay put with her brother until we came to get them, would that be okay, or would she be encouraged to go to the muster station on her own? Are there other situations I haven't considered that might be different for self-check kids?

Thanks so much!

 

[xuLauren]

It's funny how different people are in terms of what they are comfortable letting their kids do. I'm the one that is eager for my 4 y/o to go on the aquaduck. She knows how to swim without assistance, thanks to twice weekly private swimming lessons for 8 months, and the slide is an enclosed tube that you then sit in an inner tube to go down and you land in a trough, not the deep end of a pool. And I would not let her go on it without myself of my husband. To me, just about any kid could go down that, with a responsible person.

On the other hand, I cannot imagine letting my child, especially since I have daughters, have those self check out permissions. Call me awful, and definitely paranoid, but I think a Disney cruise is a prime opportunity for a pedophile to be a passenger and pull, or lure, kids into a room. I'm not worried about the staff - it's the other passengers! Therefore there's no way I'm letting my daughters out of my sight on such a huge ship... Sorry to put that out there... but it's a different world these days.

 

[KerriL]

It's funny how different people are in terms of what they are comfortable letting their kids do. I'm the one that is eager for my 4 y/o to go on the aquaduck. She knows how to swim without assistance, thanks to twice weekly private swimming lessons for 8 months, and the slide is an enclosed tube that you then sit in an inner tube to go down and you land in a trough, not the deep end of a pool. And I would not let her go on it without myself of my husband. To me, just about any kid could go down that, with a responsible person.

On the other hand, I cannot imagine letting my child, especially since I have daughters, have those self check out permissions. Call me awful, and definitely paranoid, but I think a Disney cruise is a prime opportunity for a pedophile to be a passenger and pull, or lure, kids into a room. I'm not worried about the staff - it's the other passengers! Therefore there's no way I'm letting my daughters out of my sight on such a huge ship... Sorry to put that out there... but it's a different world these days.

No, not awful or paranoid, I agree with you. It's not about trusting your child, it's about trusting the 3000+ strangers on board. And you should be worried about the staff...one did molest an 11 year old girl on the Disney Dream...awful.

When our older kids sailed they had each other and were able to leave the clubs as they were 14 and 12 and they had to stay together. I am faced with the issue of what to do with my 12 year who won't have a sibling close in age when we sail in April. Just her 4 year old brother. I don't even know if I will let her go to Edge.

 

[sushi2]

I know this is a long thread, so my apologies if I am repeating a question (-I read the first 19 pages, then decided to jump to the end!).

How many kids use the kids clubs? Is there a limit where no more kids are accepted? It seems like the kids clubs would be super crazy and packed, especially on sea days. Does it get too overwhelming?

Thank you for answering so many questions!

 

[DreamBound23]

No, not awful or paranoid, I agree with you. It's not about trusting your child, it's about trusting the 3000+ strangers on board. And you should be worried about the staff...one did molest an 11 year old girl on the Disney Dream...awful.

When our older kids sailed they had each other and were able to leave the clubs as they were 14 and 12 and they had to stay together. I am faced with the issue of what to do with my 12 year who won't have a sibling close in age when we sail in April. Just her 4 year old brother. I don't even know if I will let her go to Edge.

Kerri, I am on the fence about this also. My nephew (age 12) will be with my DD (age 11), however I don't feel right about letting them have the freedom to do whatever they want. Maybe I'll purchase a wave phone holder that she can wear around her neck (and not lose.) That way they can call before they leave.

 

[KerriL]

Kerri, I am on the fence about this also. My nephew (age 12) will be with my DD (age 11), however I don't feel right about letting them have the freedom to do whatever they want. Maybe I'll purchase a wave phone holder that she can wear around her neck (and not lose.) That way they can call before they leave.

I've been agonizing over this but there is no way I can feel comfortable allowing her to be anywhere on the ship alone. If she wants to go to the tween club I'll just drop her there. If you feel that your nephew and daughter will be able to stay together and go for an activity and then meet you at a designated time then they should be fine. Just have them check in with you when they leave.

Hope you enjoyed the 50 degrees today! Looks like we are back to the freezer tomorrow!

 

[DreamBound23]

I just purchased a little pouch to hold the wave phone. I will feel better knowing I have constant communication with them.

Ugh, I cannot believe how cold it's going to get! Brrrr.

 

[Weedy]

They need to learn some independence. A Disney Cruise is a great place to test their wings. They will be 16 before you know it. Are you just going to hand them the car keys at that point.
This year will be our 13th cruise. My kids will be 16 and 18 on the cruise. Each year we let them have more freedom. They always did great.

 

[KerriL]

They need to learn some independence. A Disney Cruise is a great place to test their wings. They will be 16 before you know it. Are you just going to hand them the car keys at that point.
This year will be our 13th cruise. My kids will be 16 and 18 on the cruise. Each year we let them have more freedom. They always did great.

This isn't my first rodeo...our older kids are 27, 24 and 23. Real life happens soon enough I know but we won't be allowing them to test their wings on a cruise ship. And no, we didn't hand them the keys to the car when any of them turned 16...that happened when we, as parents, determined that they were ready, not the state we live in. Everyone needs to do what they feel works for their own family.
I am happy to say that my older kids are all responsible, independent young adults and one is even a crew member on a cruise ship

 

[Nannylisad]

All we can do it what we are comfortable with. I'm sure a 4y/0 can not just sign them selfs out. We do what we can. We will have 15,13, 12 and 10 on the ship in May. They can stay together and absolutely no going back to the cabin alone and with out our ok. We will rent extra phones for ALL.. We do what we can to have safe kids and piece of mind. :0)
I read along time ago ( a special on kid predators ) to keep kids modest in dress ... So now I'm a freak on modest bathing suits and coverup.!!! I know I know I know .... I just feel better

 

[KerriL]

I just purchased a little pouch to hold the wave phone. I will feel better knowing I have constant communication with them.

Ugh, I cannot believe how cold it's going to get! Brrrr.

Where did you get the little pouch?

 

[Nannylisad]

Where did you get the little pouch?

I have seen them on Etsy

 

[KerriL]

I have seen them on Etsy

Thanks!

 

[scrt69]

I'm SO going to do this.

me too!!!!

 

[Minniemiss]

About the Wave phone pouches, there are new phones on the Magic that are bigger than the other ships.