flounder's reservation policy

[cgdmom]

Does anyone know how many hours or times you can book at flounders? We plan to go to palos 1st then to the spa then to flounders . Can I book a 4 hour window for each day ? or do I have to make one ressie and then come back? THanks so much! We can't wait for july 5th!

 

[TiggerPU88]

Hi!

When we cruised, we were allowed to make up to three reservations and then could sign up for additional space each day if it was available. We went for mostly daytime (only one evening), so didn't have much trouble. We felt the daytime hours were preferable, befcause we wanted our 1-yr-old out of the sum in the middle of the day anyway.

Good luck & enjoy. Our DS LOVED Flounders. If your child is not used to child care or has never been away from you, though, be sure to hire a babysitter a few times before you go. Some children had a tough time, but they seemed to be kids who had never been away from their moms.

 

[cathyrob]

When we went back in Feb. we could sign up for as many as we wanted, but then had to specify our top three choices. I signed my son up for two hours in the early afternoon, and then two more hours early evening (after dinner). He ended up going only 2x, and I cancelled all the rest, because he had and us too, more fun being with family. We opted not to go to Palo's because we have so many top notch Italian rest. in our area, so that was not an issue. Our spa treatments were not at the same time, so that too was not an issue. We did travel with other people, so one night my parents watched him while we went out and about. But other than that, he came with us.

 

[fred ferdlap]

After using Flounders on 3 trips we found that the concept is for flounders to limit the bookings until they know your kids will tolerate and you are comfortable.

Two times we were with other couples and their children either cried or were otherwise unhappy. The parents only used the place one time.

The place is open until midnight, and I recall passing by around 10:30 and it was shut tight.

We used it every night during meal times as our then 18 month old had a limited attention span. There was never a problem with getting additional time, you just need to plan ahead.

One time there was a mis communication and we called and requested 5:45 and they wrote down 6:00. We waited for 15 minutes because the correct ratio was not on staff. They were very strict, but accomodating.

If you ever want a time slot which is filled, work with the staff and be patient. Especially on hot sunny days and port days, the kids are wipped out and really do not last long.

 

[DWEBBNY]

We were on the may 17th magic and my 8 month old daughter did not like flounder's. She has trouble leaving my side. What we ended up doing was taking her to dinner in her stroller (late seating) and letting her fall asleep. Then we just rolled her into flunder's for a few hours and we went and had fun. She never woke up and we were able to still spend some time alone. It worked out great. They always let us add time slots. I did find that they didn't do well with crying babies. I felt they really didn't try they just paged the parents. I know I was not the only mom to feel this way.

 

[TiggerPU88]

DWEBBNY, we saw just the opposite. We saw the staff really trying to comfort crying children. One woman held a crying child in her arms for 30 minutes. The challenge is that when too many children are requiring one-on-one care like that, it is hard for the staff to adequately supervise the children who want to play. (They are very careful about their staff-to-children rations and I found the care to be excellent.)

In speaking with some of the parents of these children, I learned that some of these kids had NEVER been left with a sitter or any kind of child care. A cruise (or really any vacation) is not the time & place to start that, IMHO. My 1-yr-old son loved Flounders, but he has had babysitters and child care and he adapts well to new environments. We know that when we take our next cruise, it will be even more fun for him.

I think the real key is to be willing to be FLEXIBLE! You are on vacation. You want to have some alone time, but you want your children to be happy, too. I love your stroller solution and hope that parents whose children experience separation anxiety use it.