Oceaneer Club vs. Lab

[Nutsmom]

Admittedly, this is probably a newbie question but I sure could use some insight from those of you who have cruised before. What is the difference between the Oceaneer Club vs. Oceaneer Lab for the kiddos? We're cruising with our two daughters (10 & 5 at time of cruise) this fall, and I was just curious about the difference between the two. Can the girls move freely between the Club and the Lab, or do we have to check them out/in to each?

I noticed both have open houses on embarkation day, so trying to figure out if we can flow from one to the other, etc.
Thanks in advance!

 

[DISNEY FANTASY]

Originally , the club was for 3-7 and the lab was for 8-12 with seperate groups within each. People complained that their kids couldn't be together so now you can find kids 3-12 in either one. Kids can switch as long as both are secured programing. If there is an open house, only kids who are with their parents can go to that area that is open.

 

[Quellman]

I'll add this, the club, is largely a play space and has the magic floor, and things like that. The lab has more hands on type things. It is where super sloppy science happens, the anyone can cook classes, etc.

 

[Nutsmom]

Oooh, that's helpful to know. My 10 y.o. loves to bake and get her hands on things, so sounds like the Lab may be more her style. My 5 y.o. likes it all, so I think she'll just be all over the place. Thank you!

 

[bumbershoot]

Especially for the 10 year old, get her engaged in reading the scheduled events for the Lab so she knows what she's looking for each time she goes. DS, as an older kid in the Lab, liked having some structure, so he would go *for* super silly science, etc, and then would play afterwards. They aren't the best at announcing what's happening, and he missed an event or two (he probably got wrapped up in watching someone play a videogame), so going specifically for something around 10 minutes before that time worked well.

 

[Nutsmom]

Especially for the 10 year old, get her engaged in reading the scheduled events for the Lab so she knows what she's looking for each time she goes. DS, as an older kid in the Lab, liked having some structure, so he would go *for* super silly science, etc, and then would play afterwards. They aren't the best at announcing what's happening, and he missed an event or two (he probably got wrapped up in watching someone play a videogame), so going specifically for something around 10 minutes before that time worked well.

Good tip..because I think missing something that she had wanted to do would also throw my 10 y/o off. Thank you.

 

[hanscarlet]

Which boat are you going on? 3 out of the 4 boats they can travel freely, last year they had to be escorted to the lab on the Wonder

Like others said, the lab is better for the older kids and the 5 year old will like the club

 

[KT2038]

The Club always has something going on too and there's lots of cool programs like Toy Story Boot Camp, Royal Ball with Cinderella and Plutos PJ Party. It depends on the Child. We have 12 year olds that stay in the club and 5 year olds who prefer the Lab. We do announce each and every program over the loud speaker and encourage the children to participate. If they don't want then we can't force them.
If you have any further questions or concerns, please let me know.

 

[Nutsmom]

Which boat are you going on? 3 out of the 4 boats they can travel freely, last year they had to be escorted to the lab on the Wonder

Like others said, the lab is better for the older kids and the 5 year old will like the club

We will be on the Fantasy.

 

[bumbershoot]

We do announce each and every program over the loud speaker...

This has not been my son's experience in four cruises on the dream. Or if they are announcing it, they need to know their system isn't working well. That's why we started having him go for specific events.

 

[Shanti]

This has not been my son's experience in four cruises on the dream. Or if they are announcing it, they need to know their system isn't working well. That's why we started having him go for specific events.

Kids who are focused on a given activity often tune out announcements, so that might have been what happened in his case.