Disney Dream Cruise - 18+ how strict?

[geoly1]

Hello! We will be going on our 2nd Disney cruise December 2012 with my sister's family who at the time of the cruise will have a 20 & a 17 year old...the 17 year old will be 18 in about 6 weeks after the cruise...does anyone have info on how strict DCL is about an "almost" 18 year olds regarding restaurants, quiet cove & beach on castaway cay? The kids club "edge" let my daughter 9 be there with her 11 year old brother..no problem.. Thanks!!!!

 

[moet7]

Hello! We will be going on our 2nd Disney cruise December 2012 with my sister's family who at the time of the cruise will have a 20 & a 17 year old...the 17 year old will be 18 in about 6 weeks after the cruise...does anyone have info on how strict DCL is about an "almost" 18 year olds regarding restaurants, quiet cove & beach on castaway cay? The kids club "edge" let my daughter 9 be there with her 11 year old brother..no problem.. Thanks!!!!

This can be a hot topic, so I will give you my two centsl

The only place that it will be a NO way would be in Palo/Remy........the other places don't ask for ID when you enter them, so it would be totally up to you if you want to follow the rules!

 

[justmestace]

Your room card will say whether you are an adult or not.
If the 17 year old is in an adult-only area, chances are, he/she will be asked to show that card and if so, will be asked to leave.

If you've been watching these boards at all lately, you'd see that DCL has begun to strictly follow their own age guidelines and they're no longer letting younger kids go into different age-group clubs, and they're probably taking more time in checking the adult areas, too.

 

[geoly1]

this can be a hot topic, so i will give you my two centsl

the only place that it will be a no way would be in palo/remy........the other places don't ask for id when you enter them, so it would be totally up to you if you want to follow the rules!

thanks!!!

 

[PrincessShmoo]

This can be a hot topic, so I will give you my two centsl

The only place that it will be a NO way would be in Palo/Remy........the other places don't ask for ID when you enter them, so it would be totally up to you if you want to follow the rules!

The adult areas are for 18 and over. We recently cruised with our 18 year old DS. For the first 2-3 days, every time he entered the adult only areas he was approached and "carded". Once the servers/CMs in the adult areas got to know him, they let him alone.

My experience is that DCL does monitor the adult areas pretty well.

 

[TDC Nala]

There is no provision for "almost" 18 year olds to use the adult areas.

And yes, sometimes they do ask for ID in areas other than Palo and Remy. That doesn't mean a drivers license - the room key will reflect that the person is under 18. Yes, they are strict. If they ask the 17 year old to show their card, it means they will have to leave the adult area.

 

[cmclaura]

Touchy subject.

We were just on the Dream with a newly minted 18 year old. She was at first unhappy about no longer being allowed in the Vibe but went to the 18-21 Club and had a great time, made some what seem to be lifelong friends. No problems in the clubs for her ALTHOUGH some of the others who were 21 or who had older siblings managed to obtain alcohol and some as young as 16 were imbibing. NOT DCLs fault, it was the fault of those who purchased it for them.

As far as the other adult areas such as Quiet Cove, it flat out wasn't quiet. A scandalous design flaw has a set of elevators pretty much emptying out into the adult area and there was a steady stream of people going through, many with children. It was constant and, as such, annoying. Even more so were all the gangs of kids who were going through on their own. I suppose no one is able to read a sign that says "18 and over only" as meaning "do not pass this way" because they came right through. Worse were the parents who brought their kids through.

Now, there were some obviously under 18s who wanted to use the pool and spa who were stopped by CMs for which we were grateful. There was the occasional 16 or 17 year old in the hot tub. Now, as someone who looked 14 when she was 21, I was willing to give them the benefit of the doubt as long as they were being quiet and respectful of others. But, on the whole, it's an adult-only area and it would be so nice to be able to relax and enjoy it without the teens.

My plea is to please play by the rules, which are there to benefit all of us.

 

[din]

The adult areas are for 18 and over. We recently cruised with our 18 year old DS. For the first 2-3 days, every time he entered the adult only areas he was approached and "carded". Once the servers/CMs in the adult areas got to know him, they let him alone.

My experience is that DCL does monitor the adult areas pretty well.

We had the same experience during our Baltic cruise with our DS. He was checked for about 2 days then the CM pretty much left him alone for the rest of the cruise..

 

[geffric]

Hello! We will be going on our 2nd Disney cruise December 2012 with my sister's family who at the time of the cruise will have a 20 & a 17 year old...the 17 year old will be 18 in about 6 weeks after the cruise...does anyone have info on how strict DCL is about an "almost" 18 year olds regarding restaurants, quiet cove & beach on castaway cay? The kids club "edge" let my daughter 9 be there with her 11 year old brother..no problem.. Thanks!!!!

very strict..

i had a son who was turning 18 on the cruise..guest services told us to send him down on his birthday and they would give him a new KTTW card.. but until then..he was not welcome in ANY of the 18+ areas..
i tried to make a Palos ressie for his birthday celeration.. they noted that he would be 18 at the time of the ressie..and was carded before they let him into brunch..

 

[kcashner]

It varies. The rule is that if you are under 18, you can't be in adult areas.

The "Quiet Cove" is the name of the pool--not that it is a quiet area.

My DD celebrated her 18th in Palo and they threw her a lovely celebration. We had arranged the reservation in advance by going thru a supervisor--you can't do it on line. And she was not carded on her birthday.

 

[Who's your Mickey?]

Touchy subject.

We were just on the Dream with a newly minted 18 year old. She was at first unhappy about no longer being allowed in the Vibe but went to the 18-21 Club and had a great time, made some what seem to be lifelong friends. No problems in the clubs for her ALTHOUGH some of the others who were 21 or who had older siblings managed to obtain alcohol and some as young as 16 were imbibing. NOT DCLs fault, it was the fault of those who purchased it for them.

As far as the other adult areas such as Quiet Cove, it flat out wasn't quiet. A scandalous design flaw has a set of elevators pretty much emptying out into the adult area and there was a steady stream of people going through, many with children. It was constant and, as such, annoying. Even more so were all the gangs of kids who were going through on their own. I suppose no one is able to read a sign that says "18 and over only" as meaning "do not pass this way" because they came right through. Worse were the parents who brought their kids through.

Now, there were some obviously under 18s who wanted to use the pool and spa who were stopped by CMs for which we were grateful. There was the occasional 16 or 17 year old in the hot tub. Now, as someone who looked 14 when she was 21, I was willing to give them the benefit of the doubt as long as they were being quiet and respectful of others. But, on the whole, it's an adult-only area and it would be so nice to be able to relax and enjoy it without the teens.

My plea is to please play by the rules, which are there to benefit all of us.

"Scandalous" is a little harsh when talking about the design of the ship and what you consider to be a "flaw". The use of the Quiet Cove pool area is restricted to adults, but on the Dream several CMs told us it was allowed for children to pass through the area from the forward lobby to the family pool deck.

As far as kids being loud as they passed through, that's a parenting issue. I get that the kids are extra keyed up on Mickey's boat, but it's still a parent's responsibility to be mindful of their children and their surroundings. If kids walking through the adults area annoys you so much, perhaps a cruiseline that caters to families with older children/young adults, such as Celebrity, would make you happier. After all, Disney's prime demographic is families with younger children.

 

[TDC Nala]

Under -18s passing through the Cove area is allowed. They're just not allowed to stay. The problem is with the design of the Dream and most likely also the Fantasy, in which anyone who accesses the deck through the forward elevators has to walk through that area to get to the rest of the deck. It was a silly design, not so sure about scandalous.

 

[Alexander]

Touchy subject.

We were just on the Dream with a newly minted 18 year old. She was at first unhappy about no longer being allowed in the Vibe but went to the 18-21 Club and had a great time, made some what seem to be lifelong friends. No problems in the clubs for her ALTHOUGH some of the others who were 21 or who had older siblings managed to obtain alcohol and some as young as 16 were imbibing. NOT DCLs fault, it was the fault of those who purchased it for them.

As far as the other adult areas such as Quiet Cove, it flat out wasn't quiet. A scandalous design flaw has a set of elevators pretty much emptying out into the adult area and there was a steady stream of people going through, many with children. It was constant and, as such, annoying. Even more so were all the gangs of kids who were going through on their own. I suppose no one is able to read a sign that says "18 and over only" as meaning "do not pass this way" because they came right through. Worse were the parents who brought their kids through.

Now, there were some obviously under 18s who wanted to use the pool and spa who were stopped by CMs for which we were grateful. There was the occasional 16 or 17 year old in the hot tub. Now, as someone who looked 14 when she was 21, I was willing to give them the benefit of the doubt as long as they were being quiet and respectful of others. But, on the whole, it's an adult-only area and it would be so nice to be able to relax and enjoy it without the teens.

My plea is to please play by the rules, which are there to benefit all of us.

Well, you can lump me in there. We were in a stateroom all the way forward, meaning 9A overlooking the bow. We would get on the forward elevator when heading to the pool and when we would get off remember where we were going to be (near the adult only pool). Well, I wasn't going to go back down a floor, cross to midship and then come up again just to avoid having my children walk through this area. It is a design flaw and until DCL gets it fixed, this is going to happen,. I spent several days at the adult pool and did not find the people passing through to be "constant" or "annoying". People with children quickly and quietly passed through as I did with mine.

 

[epcotrulz]

Why the doors of the Dream's Quiet Cove dump into the center versus the outside edges of the ship is beyond me. Who came up with that idea? Loved the Dream, but will not go on it again because of the design of Quiet Cove. When families pass through on the Magic/Wonder it's on the outskirts and not right in front of your face when you are on the loungers in front of the pool. I know I'm stating the obvious here, just wanted to add my $0.02.

To the OP, I have never seen anyone get carded on the Magic or Wonder. Can't comment on the Dream because there was too much going on to be even tell. Personally, I wouldn't have an issue with a 17 year-old hanging out in Quiet Cove with their family.

My issues are when people bring their baby stroller because their baby is sleeping -- yeah, until it wakes up and starts screaming right next to me -- AND the groups of 15 - 17 year olds who take over a hot tub and are acting their age. ;-)