Pool Question.. concern??

[ksumom]

I've been researching this board and other Disney sites for weeks now. From what I've heard there is really no "real" swimming pool for kids over say 6-8 years old? Unless you're over 18 there is no pool for kids to swim in? My two DD's will be 13 & 11 by the time we cruise in 2005 and they both love swimming, but they enjoy diving, jumping into the pool and swimming in the deep end. Is there no pool for this type of swimming? I really need to prepare them ahead of time after telling them that there are 2 different pools for the kids. Another question is how can they slide into the mickey pool without it being very deep?

Thanks for all the help!

Susan from Kansas

 

[praisehisname]

I have to say, this is the only thing I was a little disappointed about. My kids were 5, 7, and 9 when we cruised in February, and you are right. There really isn't a pool for them to swim, jump, or dive in. The Mickey pool is unbelievably crowded with mostly toddlers and preschoolers. The Goofy pool is small, in my opinion, and only 4 ft deep. They did the slide a bunch, but it definitely was not an "all day" activity.

Just my 2 cents,
Denise C. in MD

 

[mickeyboat]

There is no real pool for jumping and diving. There just is not enough room on the ship. The Mickey pool is very shallow and the goofy pool is long but not wide. There are kids who jump in the Goofy pool but the pools are so crowded, this is not a very safe practice.

The Mickey slide does not empty into the Mickey pool. It ends at the bottom of the slide. The slider stands up, then exits the slide at the edge of the Mickey pool.

Hope this helps.

Denae

 

[aprilgail2]

The Goofy pool is pretty small and not much room for kids to be jumping in without jumping onto other kids. Can't really "swim" in there most of the time because it is very crowded, mostly you just jump in, cool off and hang out.

 

[SandraLee]

Does anyone know of any other ship that has a good pool for the kids? I'm thinking of venturing out to another cruise line and would like some pool suggestions.

 

[tink5697]

My dd (6 almost 7) LOVES to swim in deep water as well. Last year on the 3 day Wonder she was just happy to be in water honestly. She was with her cousins and meeting new friends, she had a blast.
I was thinking too that this year she may want to do more *swimming* so we are definitely venturing onto the beaches in St Martin and St Thomas. I also LOVE swimming in water that is so clear (Unlike here in NY) So that is our goal. But nonetheless, she is still looking forward to the pools (Saying that the goofy pool is her favorite).
And the slide at the Mickey pool actually comes down onto a wet rubber type mat. I was impressed that there was someone there at the bottom of the slide for smaller kids to help them get up. The child just gets up, and walks away they don't go into deep water at all.

 

[jrabbit]

Even the adult pool is small. It looks a lot biger than the Goofy pool but it's an imagineering illusion. Along both sides of the pool there is a area 4-5 wide and just a few inches deep for sitting in the water without going "all of the way in". I think that the swimming pool part is about the same size as the Goofy pool, just a little shorter.

 

[tkd lisa]

I don't think you'll find a real "Swimming" pool on any cruise ship. There just isn't room for it. There is lots of beach swimming in the ports, and Castaway Cay is a beach lovers paradise. There is a cool platform area on the family beach where the kids can jump off ropes and so on.

There are lots and lots of other activities for the kids on board ship. Check out the kids navigators on Barb and Tony's site www.castawayclub.com to see what they can do. But it includes: computer and video games, karoke, contests with legos/knex, making flubber, creating your own commercial with a team of other kids, playing on the sports deck, etc. There are also many first run movies in the theaters, shuffle board on deck 4, putting challenges, build a race car challenges, etc.

My kids were 8 and 10 the first time we cruised, and 9 and 10 the 2nd time (almost 11 that time). They swam just about every day, but probably no more than an hour long. There were just too many other things to do. My DD swam all day at Castaway Cay, but my DS was having too much fun in the club. We had to drag him out for his parasailing excursion.

Good luck, and feel free to ask any other questions.

 

[DisneyJam]

I agree the pools are not really the size for swimming, but I have been on many cruises (Disney, RCL, NCL etc).... Basically, all on board pools are not much larger. They are pretty much just good for cooling off a bit. Cruise ships just don't have the space to put a very large pool on board.

 

[maminnie]

With all the people, how do they keep them clean/safe for swimming? Has anyone ever asked a crew member? We have a pool and understand the chemical/filtration part of it, but boy are they crowded. Do they drain them and refill them at night? We were on the four night/Wonder a few years ago and we were amazed at how small the pools were.

Also, why aren't they more strick about swim diapers and non-potty trained children as it it for everyone's safety and health?

We are going on the Magic this week, and the pools continue to concern us for our children ages 6 and 10.

Thanks in advance.

 

[mrsfuzzmo]

I agree, you'll be hard pressed to find any other lines with pool even as big as Disney. Disney has some of the larger ones on the sea. You also should take into consideration that many ships have salt/sea water pools which isn't quite as pleasant as the fresh water pools. I know that some RCCL ships were fresh water (Magesty of the Seas had nice big freshwater pools), and I have heard that Princess are fresh as well. May be something you want to look into. My husband hates salt water, and loves swimming, and now he say's he won't go on another cruise that has salt water pools.

 

[tink5697]

tkd lisa - We were at the family beach, and I think I saw the platform off to the right of the family beach (???) but no one was there or using it at all. We were there very early and left CC about 2:00 or so. Is it just used by the club or can I take dd down there?
TIA for any info!

 

[mmouse37]

There are very few resort pools and probably no cruise ship pool that will allow jumping, especially diving for obvious safety reasons.

I have been on other cruise lines than Disney and the pool situation is about the same. No jumping or diving....as others have said...cruise ship pools cannot be that big or deep for space reasons.

The best bet on DCL is the Goofy pool at off peak hours for kids your ages. I have seen the Goofy pool many times virtually empty and other times when it was completely full.

MJ

 

[tink5697]

That's a good point MJ. The night of the deck party, DD thoroughly enjoed swimming with maybe 8-10 other kids in the pool. She was in all of her glory swimming at 10:00 at night with music and goofy dancing around!

 

[ldb1030]

ksumom-
Nothing to add to this post, just noticed you are from Kansas and that you MUST be for KSU!!!

A fellow WILDCAT fan!!!:

 

[rjones69]

the pools were a big dissapointment for us. The Mickey pool was so shallow and the slide down for my 10-year was rough. She hit her face coming down and sliced open her eyebrow. The goofy pool is extremely small, so small in fact that there is NO jumping allowed and the kids were so out of hand jumping they were jumping in on top of my two kids. I would guess that the goofy pool would comfortably only hold 6 kids at a time, any more than that they would be on top of each other when swimming about! The adult only pool was a problem also (too deep). I am 5'5" and I had to step on my tip toes to keep my nose above. My mom is under 5' so she had to get in and hold on to the side. Also the pools are so warm that they do not cool you off. When we go back we are not even going to attempt to use the pools. They just were not worth the stress it caused us all when trying to use them. It was a waste of our time that we could be spending on something else.

 

[ksumom]

Yep, we live in Manhattan so we see purple all the time!



K.. S.. U.... Wildcats!

Where are you from Lisa?

 

[Tiiiigergirl]

We cruised with our neighbors this winter (Not DCL) for a quick weekend getaway. The size of the pools was the biggest shock/complaint from her. She was prepared for the small cabin but not the small swimming pool. They really are just meant to be plunge pools. Water is heavy. Too much water on-board and down the ship would go!

 

[inkkognito]

Anybody can use the platform at the family beach. There were tons of kids (and a few brave parents) having a blast on it this past weekend.
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[ksumom]

Thanks for all the reports!!

I'll prepare the kids to have fun in the water mainly when we're at Castaway Cay... I'm sure they'll be jumping off the platform there!

Thanks again!