Current Youth Activities CM -- Ask me anything!

[Meghatron]

Could you help with a difficult/delicate subject for most. I have searched extensively for more details/info about the smoking policy on Castaway Cay and have been unsuccessful. What is the official smoking policy on CC? Is it similar to the ships/parks, where there are specific locations? Can one smoke on the beaches, walkways, etc.? Is there a link to the official policy and smoking locations? Please folks, let's not turn this into another smoking thread. It's a simple inquiry that I'm confident many would like to know the details, regardless of position. We can always start a new thread for the discussion if needed. Thanks - You Rock

The Navigator for CC day states that there are designated smoking areas on the island and all other areas are smoke-free.

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[Bear3412]

The Navigator for CC day states that there are designated smoking areas on the island and all other areas are smoke-free.

Thanks. Do you know where they are located?

 

[Meghatron]

Thanks. Do you know where they are located?

No, I just remember walking past a couple. Any CM on the island will be able to direct you to the nearest one.

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[tinkerone]

Thanks. Do you know where they are located?

heres a link to a cc map and I don't see anything marked smoking but to be honest i'm not looking to hard.

http://disneycruiselineblog.com/cruise-planning/castaway-cay-map/

doesn't exactly help you but its a visual.

 

[DressmakerJ]

Hello CM,
Thank you very, very much for all of your insight! I have managed to read this entire thread and it has been quite helpful. My family is going on our first-ever cruise on the Fantasy at the end of this month. (Me, DH, DD--5 & DS--17 mos)

I would like to know what happens in the nursery during mealtimes. My son is scheduled to be there at midday on two days. Should I plan to feed him an early lunch or may I bring food for him? Are there highchairs in the nursery?

(If other posters know about this, please feel free to jump in. And if anyone is able to tell me what kind of highchairs are in the MDR, I would be grateful.)
Thanks so much!

 

[samily]

Here is a pic of the highchairs and booster seats:

http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/IMG_8756.jpg

 

[popisme]

I don't know if our wonderful cast member is still able to post but I have a question that hopefully someone can answer.


My daughter will be 13 at the end of March and we had originally planned our cruise for the beginning of March so that she would be able to go the Oceaneers club with her younger cousin. My daughter is VERY small for her age and also immature and I do not feel comfortable with her going to Edge at this point.

So here comes the problem..... We have had to cancel our March cruise because my nephew who has a CHD will be having open heart surgery and will not be well in time so we are going to have to reschedule....

Rescheduling means it will now be after my daughters birthday which would make her 13.... She is very disappointed that she might not be able to go to the Club/Lab and has no desire to go to the Edge because they will make fun of her and she won't have any friends. (she is just not on their level at all)

Are there ever any exceptions in this situation? Can we get a note from her Doctor that states that because of her size and maturity level she would be more suited to the Club/Lab.

Hoping we will be able to change the date to May which would only have her being a few months into 13.... Does that make a difference?

I am just sick about this because we could not possibly go without my brother and his family but I hate that it might not be possible for my daughter to have the trip she was looking forward.

We are going to be sailing on the Fantasy if that makes a difference?

Thanks in Advance for any help!

 

[100AcreWood]

I don't know if our wonderful cast member is still able to post but I have a question that hopefully someone can answer.


My daughter will be 13 at the end of March and we had originally planned our cruise for the beginning of March so that she would be able to go the Oceaneers club with her younger cousin. My daughter is VERY small for her age and also immature and I do not feel comfortable with her going to Edge at this point.

So here comes the problem..... We have had to cancel our March cruise because my nephew who has a CHD will be having open heart surgery and will not be well in time so we are going to have to reschedule....

Rescheduling means it will now be after my daughters birthday which would make her 13.... She is very disappointed that she might not be able to go to the Club/Lab and has no desire to go to the Edge because they will make fun of her and she won't have any friends. (she is just not on their level at all)

Are there ever any exceptions in this situation? Can we get a note from her Doctor that states that because of her size and maturity level she would be more suited to the Club/Lab.

Hoping we will be able to change the date to May which would only have her being a few months into 13.... Does that make a difference?

I am just sick about this because we could not possibly go without my brother and his family but I hate that it might not be possible for my daughter to have the trip she was looking forward.

We are going to be sailing on the Fantasy if that makes a difference?

Thanks in Advance for any help!

I would call and explain your situation. See what they can do. My dd is 11 and she went to the Edge. It was mostly kids around 11/12 when she went so she was comfortable. The counselors were wonderful but I totally understand your dd's desire to be with smaller kids and her cousins.

 

[gweeptrish]

Not sure if you are aware, but there is a meets forum here on the DIS with a separate thread for each cruise. People meet online beforehand and organize activities together as a group. We have linked dining with friends we have made on these threads and actually cruise with a few several times now. The best thing to do if you have a shy child is get them to connect with another kid their age through these meet threads. The parents are the ones who connect on these threads. The kids can then communicate before the cruise via email, Facetime, Skype, etc so that by the time they actually see each other onboard they have a few friends and it's like they have always known each other.

I'd love to do that but my husband has his heart set on the whole trip being a surprise for the kids, partially because there is a significant chance that we'll have to cancel at the last minute for work reasons (thank goodness for trip insurance with the "cancel for any reason" option!). They won't know we're going until the morning we leave.

 

[SailorsWhyf]

Thank you so much, CM for posting this thread. It's good to hear what we can do to repay you for all that you all do to keep the guests happy.

I have to say the posts have actually made me tear up a bit, being married to a sailor who is also very thankful for any little touch of 'home' makes your requests seem so obvious. I only wish I had thought of repaying y'all sooner!

 

[sarabguerra]

OMG I read all 50+ pages. OP CM, I hope you are feeling better! Thank you for all the great tips etc. With 2 autistic kids, you have set my mind at ease about our decision to cruise!

I have a question. DH and I both want to run the CC 5k. We're wondering if the lab/club, either on CC or on the ship, are open that early? We will have an 11, 8 & 6 year old then. And while they could probably join us, DH & I are kinda looking forward to an adult only run (they are usually in a jogging stroller & whining to stop). And there's no way I'm dragging my double jogger on a cruise ship, let alone on a plane!

 

[CMontheseas]

Hello CM,
Thank you very, very much for all of your insight! I have managed to read this entire thread and it has been quite helpful. My family is going on our first-ever cruise on the Fantasy at the end of this month. (Me, DH, DD--5 & DS--17 mos)

I would like to know what happens in the nursery during mealtimes. My son is scheduled to be there at midday on two days. Should I plan to feed him an early lunch or may I bring food for him? Are there highchairs in the nursery?

(If other posters know about this, please feel free to jump in. And if anyone is able to tell me what kind of highchairs are in the MDR, I would be grateful.)
Thanks so much!

During mealtimes, the same food that is being served in the Oceaneer Lab/Club spaces is also brought over to the Nursery. The children are sat down and fed at the same time. If your child isn't used to daycare settings or is typically a bit resistant or difficult to feed when with anyone else, they recommend that you take the child to eat before drop off (as Disney doesn't allow any staff to force-feed any children!).

I'm not a Nursery counselor so I'm not too sure about the bringing-in food part, sorry!

My daughter will be 13 at the end of March and we had originally planned our cruise for the beginning of March so that she would be able to go the Oceaneers club with her younger cousin. My daughter is VERY small for her age and also immature and I do not feel comfortable with her going to Edge at this point.


Are there ever any exceptions in this situation? Can we get a note from her Doctor that states that because of her size and maturity level she would be more suited to the Club/Lab.

Hoping we will be able to change the date to May which would only have her being a few months into 13.... Does that make a difference?

We are going to be sailing on the Fantasy if that makes a difference?

Thanks in Advance for any help!

Hello, I'm so sorry about your travel plans having to change!

Sadly I have to say that there are no exceptions in this situation, especially where it is a 13-year old attempting to be registered for the Oceaneer Lab or Club programming.

The majority of the kids in Edge are in the 11-12 range; the majority of the kids (just by looking at my screen every day) who populate the Lab are 8-9, the majority of the kids who hang around in the Club areas tend to be 4-6.
I know it might be difficult if she definitely does seem to fall into the 8-9 year old maturity level that would be perfect for the Lab, but the management is fairly strict about anyone older than the age-cutoff moving downward. In fact, when attempting to register anyone over 12 the system won't even allow a wristband to be created with their information, regardless of their size!


Please come to Edge with an open mind and not think we are a space where we even allow the kids to make fun of each other! I assure you that does not happen, especially on the Fantasy. We have tiny 11 year olds in here who we even think are immature for the space enjoying themselves every day!

If after the first two days she's absolutely not enjoying herself, then please speak to the Cruise Director or Manager of Youth Activities to see what they can do, but only after trying out Edge!
*(Note that trying to call and explain this in advance will get you to a land-based representative who will have no effect on any decisions made by he Youth activities management actually on board!)

I have a question. DH and I both want to run the CC 5k. We're wondering if the lab/club, either on CC or on the ship, are open that early?

Good question, it sometimes depends from ship-to-ship and often depending on the cruise for the scheduling! For the most part, they try to make sure that families will have Scuttle's Cove open and available on Castaway Cay for the 5k!

 

[popisme]

Thank you so much for your response. That makes me feel better! I let my daughter read your response and she said she will give it a try!!!!! She did ask if she would be able to still go and play with her cousin during open play times (I told her about this in hopes of making her feel better when this all started) and I told her yes so hopefully that fixes the problem....

 

[Seamama]

Sadly I have to say that there are no exceptions in this situation, especially where it is a 13-year old attempting to be registered for the Oceaneer Lab or Club programming.

I worry about this same thing (cousins getting split up due to age) but had an idea for a possible solution/compromise that still follows the rules... Since anyone (regardless of age) can be in the club/lab during Open House, how about sending the cousins there together during those times? Of course it's unsecured programming so you'd need to be comfortable letting all your kids/nieces/nephews be in there w/out an adult. (Or you could send one adult to just hang back and keep an eye on the kiddos.) I know you're not really getting the advantage of joint "childcare" at that point but at least the kids would get to experience the spaces together a little bit, hopefully easing the disappointment of not getting to play together in there.

Edit: Haha, I hadn't read your (popisme's) reply yet! We (your daughter and I) had the same idea! I think it will work

 

[DressmakerJ]

Here is a pic of the highchairs and booster seats:

Thank you! I will make sure to keep a clear tabletop near DS, so dishes & silverware aren't thrown on the floor.

 

[DressmakerJ]

During mealtimes, the same food that is being served in the Oceaneer Lab/Club spaces is also brought over to the Nursery. The children are sat down and fed at the same time. If your child isn't used to daycare settings or is typically a bit resistant or difficult to feed when with anyone else, they recommend that you take the child to eat before drop off (as Disney doesn't allow any staff to force-feed any children!).

I'm not a Nursery counselor so I'm not too sure about the bringing-in food part, sorry!

Thank you! I appreciate your taking the time to reply.

 

[lbgraves]

...
*(Note that trying to call and explain this in advance will get you to a land-based representative who will have no effect on any decisions made by he Youth activities management actually on board!)

I think this is one of the best things that you have posted and can be applied to most topics relating to something onboard when talking to the CMs at DCL's 800#.

 

[NiniMorris]

I know you may not be able to answer my question, but if you could point me in the right direction I would greatly appreciate it!

My youngest son will be 13 when we do our first cruise in October. Due to a severe brain injury he has a mental age of 5. At school he is in a self contained classroom with limited access to the main stream students due to a bullying issue in the past. All of his friends at school, at home, and at church are all in the 6 to 7 year old range. That is where he is most comfortable.

We are all looking forward to the cruise. He has seen every. single. video. out about the Disney Cruise Line. He is most looking forward to the kids clubs.

My problem is, if I read correctly, since he will be 13, he can't go into the clubs with the younger kids. I would NOT feel comfortable with him in the clubs for the teens. We have come a LONG way with him in the 8 years since the accident, but his social skills are seriously lacking.

His older sister will be 14 when we cruise and she has made it known she will NOT be responsible for watching him in the clubs...in fact she plans on sitting by the pool with her iPod and Kindle the whole trip!

Can you please point me in the right direction? I realize we still have 40 weeks before we cruise, but it will take just about that long to prepare my son if he does not get to go where he thinks he will...

Thanks in advance!


Nini

 

[JuliaHerrmann]

How do I know which princesses will be on board on Fantasy on january 25th? We would really like to meet Aurora!

 

[sarabguerra]

Good question, it sometimes depends from ship-to-ship and often depending on the cruise for the scheduling! For the most part, they try to make sure that families will have Scuttle's Cove open and available on Castaway Cay for the 5k!

Thank you!!!! Guess we'll just have to wait and see and hope for the best.