I've FINALLY Witnessed It (or Elevator Adventures on the Wonder)

[inkkognito]

For a long time, I've seen posts complaining about kids in the elevators who push all the buttons, but in 29 cruises I've never witnessed it myself. I was beginning to feel left out!! By the number of posts I've seen, it seemed to be epidemic, but never when we were around.
But FINALLY, on #30, it happened when we were up by Beach Blanket Buffet. Two little boys were getting a major kick out of jumping in the elevators on Deck 9 after the people got off, pushing all the buttons, then jumping out again while laughing in wicked glee. I know it was probably frustrating for the people down below, but in watching them it was very funny...maybe that's because I'm pretty much still a kid trapped in an adult body. They thought it was the most hilarious thing (I must confess, it's the sort of thing I probably would have done myself as a kid).
Thankfully, we have never yet witnessed "elevator rage" caused by people who refuse to move to allow others to get out. Quite the contrary...it's amazing to see how many people will actually fit into one elevator. People are so accommodating...they always try to make "room for one more." A great way to get to know your fellow cruisers a LOT better
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[vicnmickey]

Your story reminds me of the commercial were the guy yells, hold the elevator my wife is having a baby and the dog jumps up and hits all the buttons.
My thought on kids and the little things they do, is we were all kids once and we should lighten up a little and be like them once in awhile. Heck, your on vacation, hit all the buttons on the elevator. It will take you longer to get there, but your on vacation for god sake, what else are you going to do:>
More people should be like you Barb and enjoy the small things. Kids are only kids once, let them enjoy life.

 

[donnabres]

this surely sounds like something my oldest grandson might do. He would get such a kick out of it. I agree, kids will be kids.


I'll have to watch for this in May.


Donna

 

[natt]

And if it really frustrates you, take the stairs and burn some calories I truly feel it takes less time to do the stairs, however as time went on after excusions and excercise classes,etc., "UP" became WAY harder than "DOWN"

 

[Bev J]

Well I guess I don't think it is so funny. It's fine for kids to have fun, but why do we feel it is ok for kids to misbehave. What about the people who can't take the stairs and have to wait for that elevator to hit every floor and then the other kids who do it on the elevator on the up side. Where are the parents? These are probably the same kids who ran around the resturant and took stuff from our table while the parents laughed about it.
My kids are 8-24 and know how to behave with respect for others.

 

[MnParrothead]

I agree with BevJ. There are many people who are on Disney cruises that can't just run up and down stairs to get where they need to go (seniors, people that use wheelchairs or people with hidden disabilities such as arthritis. I don't think it's funny or cute. There's plenty of other things for kids to do on the ship.

 

[wdw1972]

I don't use the elevators at all unless I'm traveling with someone who must (due to a disability), but I would certainly have told those kids to stop playing with that elevator. A friend of mine who requires a longer-than-normal wheelchair spent way too much time not able to get on an elevator on her last (final) Disney cruise. Each time an elevator would come, people would rush over and get inside before she could get there, leaving no room for her & she'd have to wait for another...and another...and another. To have it further delayed by *brats* pushing all the buttons for kicks is not cute or fun at all.

There's so much for kids to do on the ship - there's no excuse for anyone to excuse when they misbehave like that.

 

[Buckaroo's Dad]

if it really frustrates you, take the stairs and burn some calories

Sorry Nat, but I completely disagree with this statement. Yes, I can take the stairs but that's not the point. My mom is older and no longer has the mobility to either climb or descend stairs. She is not the only cruiser to encounter difficulty navigating steps. At night she tends to excuse herself from any late-night activity in order to get some rest. The dear woman is tired and, according to your interpretation, must wait what I deem to be an inordinate and unnecessary amount of time because some parents are too inconsiderate to be responsible for the actions of their "adorable" (to them, perhaps) children. I think not.

Also, I would never allow my son to act with such disrespect. It is a vacation from our routines at home, NOT a vacation from the manners he has been taught. At age 9, the dear lad knows very well to let older people enter the elevator first while holding his hand by the door so it doesn't close on them. And, if the elevator becomes too full, he knows to wait for the next one rather than push everyone else already inside.

 

[Gillian]

Yes, the point is not that we should take the stairs to avoid being annoyed by the kids, but rather the kids should have been taught not to do this type of thing in the first place!

And maybe it would be funny. Once. But not over & over again while people are waiting.

As we've seen on other threads lately, there are still rules, even on vacation. This time, they are the rules of common curtesy and we should all teach our kids to follow them.

But please check back with me in 8 years, when my 2 year old is 10!! It's easy to judge, but hard to be a parent.

 

[Penny12]

Yes...this happened to me last cruise! All the buttons pushed one time - it took me....a good minute, yes I said a <i>whole</i> minute longer to get where I was going. Boy was I mad!

 

[abitjaded]

Originally posted by wdw1972
....A friend of mine who requires a longer-than-normal wheelchair spent way too much time not able to get on an elevator on her last (final) Disney cruise. Each time an elevator would come, people would rush over and get inside before she could get there, leaving no room for her & she'd have to wait for another...and another...and another.....

We too had a wheelchair rider and I would have preferred to get on an elevator with every button pushed by kids messing around, than to have watched elevator after elevator come cramed full of able bodied folks going a couple floors and too lazy to get off and make room for us. I can't condone unsupervised kids, but kids, even good kids, can do pretty "childish" things. I found the actions of adults much more irritating and rude, folks who cut in front of the WC because we are going too slow, then glare at you if they get rammed. Folks who have their chairs in the restaurants pushed out too far and won't respond till you are practically yelling at them to scoot in so we can get by. And I could rant on.... Kids pushing elevator buttons are not the problem, the elevators and (some of) the adults on them are.

Carla

 

[sandee]

We thought comedian Gary Delaney (?) was funny but when he did the bit on kids pushing all the elevator buttons, I think he actually put the idea into some kids heads. This wasn't a problem on our trip until after his act. Then there was almost never a time when all the buttons weren't pressed. We were waiting at one point for an elevator after dinner when 3 boys around 9 or 10 came charging up, stepped on my poor mom's feet and jumped onto the elevator ahead of us. There were quite a few of us who had been waiting so I just held the door open and told the 3 of them to get off please. My mom has serious foot problems and their clowning around could have caused her whole trip to be ruined. As it was she had tears in her eyes - it really hurt her. I saw more kids running around unsupervised on this trip then on any previous one.

 

[cathie]

We were on the Feb. 27 Wonder & travel with 3 kids ages 15, 11 & 8 , along with our disabled friend who uses a very large motorized wheelchair. We were fortunate to not have seen any kids playing with the elevators & it was difficult enough to get Steve into a elevator. Most of the people were very understanding when they realized only one person could fit with Steve in the elevator, and many people would hold the doors open for him. Our kids took the stairs most of the time & have learned to be considerate of people who have to use the elevators. Those kids who were playing with the elevators should have been reported immediately & told how inconsiderate their actions were. A lot of people just don't realize how difficult it is to have limited mobility & these kids need to be told the reason why what they did was wrong.

 

[house_of_princesses]

I'm in agreement with you, abitjaded. Children will act like children unless a parent/responsible adult guides them into adulthood. These children need to be told how their actions affect others. Unfortunately, we seem to be running out of courteous adults, too. I won't start in on the rudeness I've been encountering while out and about in my neighborhood. We need to find our way back to "do unto others...".

 

[bossladypu]

My husband and I took our first ever cruise on Mar. 16, 2003 on the Disney Wonder. We had a great time, but I was really shocked with how kids were allowed to roam freely and be so rude. I was getting on an elevator when 3 little kids (6, 4, 2 [I'm guessing their ages, but they couldn't have been older then that and probably younger]) were playing on the elevators. They got in and pused a button when they went to get off the little boy (2) threw himself down on the ground half in and half out of the elevator screaming. The older girl asked me to help her because she couldn't get him (which I was going to do anyway). So I picked him up and tried to gently lay him outside the elevator with the girls, but he kept thrashing and kicking so he landed rather hard. I was in shock that three little kids were allowed to play on crowded elevators that were hard to get in the first place. I do not blame the children for this because if I were that age I would be doing the same thing - but where were the parents?

I love Disney, but will have to re-think going on a Disney cruise if kids are allowed to roam so freely. Now don't get me wrong I have 4 children and 6 1/2 grandkids and I know how kids are.
My three boys were always getting into trouble. I'm very tolerant of children and mine got by with a lot (my sisters call me a marshmellow when it comes to kids), but still as much freedom as some of the kids had I was shocked. Not all the children who I saw unoccupied by an adult were behaving badly, but they were at an age where they should have know how to act.

I know if I do decide to take my three grand-daughters on a cruise they will be given one chance and if they mess that up then they will have to stick with me or wait for me to pick them up at the Oceaneer Club.

 

[CRSNDSNY]

Originally posted by house_of_princesses
I'm in agreement with you, abitjaded. Children will act like children unless a parent/responsible adult guides them into adulthood. These children need to be told how their actions affect others. Unfortunately, we seem to be running out of courteous adults, too. I won't start in on the rudeness I've been encountering while out and about in my neighborhood. We need to find our way back to "do unto others...".

Well stated!

 

[plutojudy]

Yes, kids will be kids. But while they are playing on the elevator people in wheel chairs are trying to get to another floor so that they can also enjoy their vacation.

 

[JOC]

Originally posted by bossladypu:

I do not blame the children for this because if I were that age I would be doing the same thing - but where were the parents? I love Disney, but will have to re-think going on a Disney cruise if kids are allowed to roam so freely.

Maybe the fact that it's a Disney cruise makes parents more complacent about letting their kids roam around unsupervised. Still, that doesn't excuse bad behavior, does it?

 

[natsmom125]

Don't get me started on elevator etiquette.....personally, I've never seen any kids acting up...but adults who are rude and
inconsiderate.....how can you teach your kids manners when
adults don't even have them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Back to kids.....and elevators. With me, it's a safety issue.
I work for the fire department and we respond to lots and lots of
calls where people are stuck in elevators....usually it's just a
malfunction and the guys can get them out. However, I wonder
if on the ship....if an elevator got stuck....do they have the proper equipment to get them unstuck?????? I'm sure Disney has done all the proper training and I'm assuming they have the right equipment...but could you imagine the parents screaming at CS if one of their little darlings' got stuck on the elevator??????? And the little darling was the one who got the elevator stuck in the first place??? Wha hoo.....I'd like to hear that one!!!!

I have a DD...and she is no angel...by a long shot...but she'd better never play with something as dangerous as an elevator.

OK..well, that's enough about that.............
And it's JMOTCW......

Phyllis

 

[natsmom125]

Don't get me started on elevator etiquette.....personally, I've never seen any kids acting up...but adults who are rude and
inconsiderate.....how can you teach your kids manners when
adults don't even have them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Back to kids.....and elevators. With me, it's a safety issue.
I work for the fire department and we respond to lots and lots of
calls where people are stuck in elevators....usually it's just a
malfunction and the guys can get them out. However, I wonder
if on the ship....if an elevator got stuck....do they have the proper equipment to get them unstuck?????? I'm sure Disney has done all the proper training and I'm assuming they have the right equipment...but could you imagine the parents screaming at CS if one of their little darlings' got stuck on the elevator??????? And the little darling was the one who got the elevator stuck in the first place??? Wha hoo.....I'd like to hear that one!!!!

I have a DD...and she is no angel...by a long shot...but she'd better never play with something as dangerous as an elevator.

OK..well, that's enough about that.............
And it's JMOTCW......

Phyllis