Toddler Questions

[MorganL]

So, again, first timer - never cruised at all and excited to do our first DCL cruise in January.

I am travelling with the spouse, our 2 year old daughter and my in-laws. I was a little disappointed to learn about the swim diaper restriction as I highly doubt she'll be potty-trained by then but it is what it is... at least Disney has something for those kids. Is the area for the swim diaper crowd a decent size? In the pictures it looks tiny... wasn't sure if it was just the angle.

Also, suggestions on what to do with that age-set on-ship? She's pretty good about sitting still so we intend on seeing the shows. A lot of the activities on the website seemed to be geared towards the 3+ crowd. Is there an interactive floor that is NOT in the kids club? She'd get a kick out of that but again, can't attend the kids club....

Any suggestions would be great! Thanks so much!
Morgan

 

[DISNEY FANTASY]

The toddler splash area is very nice. Its near all the children s pools, safe and fun.

Pre activities are limited.

Can attend the shows or see films in room if required.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

So, again, first timer - never cruised at all and excited to do our first DCL cruise in January.

I am travelling with the spouse, our 2 year old daughter and my in-laws. I was a little disappointed to learn about the swim diaper restriction as I highly doubt she'll be potty-trained by then but it is what it is... at least Disney has something for those kids. Is the area for the swim diaper crowd a decent size? In the pictures it looks tiny... wasn't sure if it was just the angle.

Also, suggestions on what to do with that age-set on-ship? She's pretty good about sitting still so we intend on seeing the shows. A lot of the activities on the website seemed to be geared towards the 3+ crowd. Is there an interactive floor that is NOT in the kids club? She'd get a kick out of that but again, can't attend the kids club....

Any suggestions would be great! Thanks so much!
Morgan

While she can't go to Oceaneer's Club during regular programming, you can take her there during the Open House times to do activities there. These occur roughly 1 or 2 hours a day in either the Club or Lab space.

Here's a shot of Nemo's Reef. It seemed pretty large to me. One thing, be aware that some older kids can come in and start monopolizing the area. A word the the nearby CM will usually ease the situation.

 

[MorganL]

Much better photo of the area!! Thank you!!!

 

[MorganL]

View attachment 117964 View attachment 117966 View attachment 117967 The toddler splash area is very nice. Its near all the children s pools, safe and fun.

Pre activities are limited.

Can attend the shows or see films in room if required.

I assume this is the Fantasy? I should have mentioned we are on the Dream. That change anything? Thanks!!

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I assume this is the Fantasy? I should have mentioned we are on the Dream. That change anything? Thanks!!

AquaLab is only on the Fantasy (well, also the Magic). The Nemo splash area I posted is on the Fantasy, but the Dream one is quite similar (just different figures) - the space is the same.

A not so good shot of the Dream Nemo area (from the other side of it). Where you can see the sort of boat shape with Nemo peeking out across the area in the first picture is where the little pink octopus creature is in this picture

 

[Jessterly]

Hi!!!! I think you're going to have an amazing time. We took our then-20 month old on a 7-day cruise to Alaska two years ago and didn't really know how much she would get out of it. Here are a few tips:

Consider sending her to the nursery at dinner time ($6 an hr at that time). We had the late seating so we did this almost every night except when we were eating at Animator’s Palate. Our daughter loved it, and at the end of the week, they gave me a package with artwork, pictures they had taken of her, and a little graduation certificate. Amazing. Best of all they have a two-way mirror in front so you can spy on your child but they can’t see you. Perfect! They also have a “quiet room” with cribs that is dark so she would sometimes be asleep when we came to get her.

Toddlers can also use the Oceaneer Club when accompanied by an adult during designated open house times. Take advantage of this!!! Our daughter adored the slide & play areas. It was so well done, and sometimes the characters make special appearances for the kids. Since we cruised, Disney has added toddler time on the schedule where they bring out toys and games into one of the closed-off spaces on the ship. There’s a Disney Junior dance party on some mornings for more outgoing toddlers.

Check the buffet for juice if you need it for your little one. Even on off hours, they were kind enough to allow me to put some in our daughter's sippy cup. I just asked nicely. We're not big juice people, but we needed it a few times for her since she was eating a little differently than at home.

Bring a mini-med kit including thermometer and motrin/tylenol and appropriate dosage of each. Our daughter got a little bug for about 24 hours and it was so much easier to treat her in the room rather than track down medicine & dosage info from the infirmary. It may have just been that she was SO overtired after 3-4 days, but it didn't really put a damper on our trip. We just got a little extra relaxation time in the room.

I think you'll find the splash pad on the Dream to be great!

Take advantage of all the fun activities on the ship. The theater plays classic & new Disney movies all day and we would go pop in for 30-40 minutes at a time until our daughter got restless. You can also get sandwiches/food from the buffet and have a “picnic” on one of the deck lounge chairs. She got a kick out of that. We liked Funnel Vision, the movies out on the pool deck, too.

If you figure out that she likes characters, try to get the first princess appearance. They didn't have tickets on my ship, but some do now. In our experience, the first princess appearance was the least crowded. I got in line 45 mins ahead of time and there were about 20 people ahead of us. Family entertained our daughter, took her on a walk, etc. until the line started moving.

Hope this helps!!! You're going to have an awesome time!!!

 

[PrincessShmoo]

nursery at dinner time ($6 an hr at that time).

Nursery is $9/hour now.

 

[MorganL]

Hi!!!! I think you're going to have an amazing time. We took our then-20 month old on a 7-day cruise to Alaska two years ago and didn't really know how much she would get out of it. Here are a few tips:

Consider sending her to the nursery at dinner time ($6 an hr at that time). We had the late seating so we did this almost every night except when we were eating at Animator’s Palate. Our daughter loved it, and at the end of the week, they gave me a package with artwork, pictures they had taken of her, and a little graduation certificate. Amazing. Best of all they have a two-way mirror in front so you can spy on your child but they can’t see you. Perfect! They also have a “quiet room” with cribs that is dark so she would sometimes be asleep when we came to get her.

Toddlers can also use the Oceaneer Club when accompanied by an adult during designated open house times. Take advantage of this!!! Our daughter adored the slide & play areas. It was so well done, and sometimes the characters make special appearances for the kids. Since we cruised, Disney has added toddler time on the schedule where they bring out toys and games into one of the closed-off spaces on the ship. There’s a Disney Junior dance party on some mornings for more outgoing toddlers.

Check the buffet for juice if you need it for your little one. Even on off hours, they were kind enough to allow me to put some in our daughter's sippy cup. I just asked nicely. We're not big juice people, but we needed it a few times for her since she was eating a little differently than at home.

Bring a mini-med kit including thermometer and motrin/tylenol and appropriate dosage of each. Our daughter got a little bug for about 24 hours and it was so much easier to treat her in the room rather than track down medicine & dosage info from the infirmary. It may have just been that she was SO overtired after 3-4 days, but it didn't really put a damper on our trip. We just got a little extra relaxation time in the room.

I think you'll find the splash pad on the Dream to be great!

Take advantage of all the fun activities on the ship. The theater plays classic & new Disney movies all day and we would go pop in for 30-40 minutes at a time until our daughter got restless. You can also get sandwiches/food from the buffet and have a “picnic” on one of the deck lounge chairs. She got a kick out of that. We liked Funnel Vision, the movies out on the pool deck, too.

If you figure out that she likes characters, try to get the first princess appearance. They didn't have tickets on my ship, but some do now. In our experience, the first princess appearance was the least crowded. I got in line 45 mins ahead of time and there were about 20 people ahead of us. Family entertained our daughter, took her on a walk, etc. until the line started moving.

Hope this helps!!! You're going to have an awesome time!!!

Very useful information!! Thank you for your time!!!

 

[mylittlebuttercup]

We sail on the Dream with our two year old this month, so I will post back with first-hand experience then. But from my first DCL cruise (just adults) and research, I would suggest some of the following activities, many of which have already been said.

-Utilize open house times at the club and nursery.
-Play in Nemo's Reef.
-Book additional nursery time if you want some adult time.
-Go to the activities geared toward the younger set like Wake Up with Disney Junior, Pirates and Princesses dance party, toddler time, etc. (See sample Navigators posted online to get ideas.)
-Do the Midship Detective Agency.
-See lots of characters.

 

[cscream13]

IMHO, the splash pad offered on the Dream and Fantasy is the best water option for the diapered-set on any cruise line/ship, and I did a lot of research on this point before booking our first Disney cruise. Most have nothing, and a few have a very small areas with some floor geysers. By comparison, Nemo's Reef is quite large (about 1500 sq. feet if I remember correctly) and has a lot of interactive water features including floor geysers, squirting fish figurines, a "wall" of rain, a small slide, etc. My son LOVED it when he was about 8 months old, and even more so when he took him a second time when he was almost 2. You will not be disappointed the pool is off-limits - this is a much more interactive and entertaining option!

Beyond that, I echo what some previous posters wrote. Take advantage of the nursery! The women assigned there are great with kids and it was worth every penny to have a few hours to eat or sit by the pool without having to entertain a 2 year old.

The open-play time in the kids' clubs is a great option - its a few hours each day and they get carte-blanche to run around in the areas so long as you are with them. Andy's Room is especially fun for this age. There is also an open play activity on the Goofy Sports deck one or two mornings where they put out some balls and toys and let the kids run around together in a netted-in area. It wasn't very organized, but I was surprised to find my toddler was just happy for some time to run around unrestrained.

If your daughter is still drinking milk, be forewarned its hard to find after breakfast. You can take an extra carton in the morning and store it in your cabin - or we would walk by the Windjammer after dinner and ask for a couple of cartons. They were always happy to go find some in the back when we asked.

If you haven't already, you can request a pack-n-play and a Diaper genie for your room! Cruise ship cabins are small compared to regular hotel rooms and odor travels quickly, so it is great having the diaper genie to contain the diaper smells. Your cabin steward will change it 1-2 times each day to keep your room fresh.

If sitting still in a quiet theatre for the production shows is too much good behavior to be expected, try the pool deck at night. No expectation of your toddler being quiet and they often show movies on the Funnel Vision.

Happy to answer any questions! You will love DCL - I was hooked on the family-friendly atmosphere and excellent service from my first experience! ENJOY!

 

[PrincessShmoo]

If your daughter is still drinking milk, be forewarned its hard to find after breakfast.

On DCL ships, the drink station has milk. It's in large metal dispensers. Never had a problem getting milk at any time of day.

 

[cscream13]

On DCL ships, the drink station has milk. It's in large metal dispensers. Never had a problem getting milk at any time of day.
View attachment 118036

Thanks for the heads up! I never realized there was a dispenser - I always just looked for the cartons to bring back to me room!

 

[afyoung]

And room service delivers cartons of milk at no additional charge (like for the bottled water).

 

[cscream13]

And room service delivers cartons of milk at no additional charge (like for the bottled water).

True - but after dinner, room service could take 30-45+ minutes, and when you're ready to get your toddler to bed, you don't want to wait that long! (At least I didnt). But I look forward to cookies and milk in the room at night as the kids get older

 

[ubish00]

DCL also provides bottle warmers if your child likes warm milk at night.

My little one loved walking/running around the decks and chatting with the CMs at that age. They would initiate conversations with her and play for a few minutes before moving on.

She also loved sitting in the big windows and looking out and there are so many areas for them to explore. There's usually a character dance party in the main atrium that's fun for them too.

On a final note, Disney cruisers are wonderful people and many would just stop and chit chat/play with my niece during the cruise. I was so impressed by the friendliness.

Your child will have a wonderful time.

 

[MorganL]

We sail on the Dream with our two year old this month, so I will post back with first-hand experience then. But from my first DCL cruise (just adults) and research, I would suggest some of the following activities, many of which have already been said.

-Utilize open house times at the club and nursery.
-Play in Nemo's Reef.
-Book additional nursery time if you want some adult time.
-Go to the activities geared toward the younger set like Wake Up with Disney Junior, Pirates and Princesses dance party, toddler time, etc. (See sample Navigators posted online to get ideas.)
-Do the Midship Detective Agency.
-See lots of characters.

Yes!!! Please report back! It's a weird age insomuch that she's not a baby and quite active but not quite ready for the camps and bigger kid activities. Can't wait to hear your thoughts! Thanks for the ideas! Going to add them to my list!

 

[MorganL]

DCL also provides bottle warmers if your child likes warm milk at night.

My little one loved walking/running around the decks and chatting with the CMs at that age. They would initiate conversations with her and play for a few minutes before moving on.

She also loved sitting in the big windows and looking out and there are so many areas for them to explore. There's usually a character dance party in the main atrium that's fun for them too.

On a final note, Disney cruisers are wonderful people and many would just stop and chit chat/play with my niece during the cruise. I was so impressed by the friendliness.

Your child will have a wonderful time.

Oh she will love the character dances! She loooooves dancing! Thanks so much!

 

[JonKPest]

We took our kids and 3 grand babies on the Fantasy last December, as the cruise date got closer I was surprised to see the weather and sea temperatures falling so grand pa ordered three wet suits for the little ones. The cool winds on the ship and at Castaway Cay did not stop them from enjoying the water activities plus less sun block was needed.

JonK

 

[amanda ek]

There are tons of things to do! We were busy everyday which is what we like vacation-wise. On our most recent cruise on the Fantasy in May our daughter was 2 and not potty trained. We started each at sea day at Wake up with Disney Junior. From there we usually went to an open house (she mostly wanted to play in the toy story room). We ate lunch together and then put her in the nursery from 12-2 for her nap. After her nap we would go to Nemo's Reef or toddler time. In the evenings we met characters (she loved all the non-face characters), went to dance parties, etc. I think going to the shows depends on ur kid. We took her to alladin...she was into it but scared by the cave of wonders. She lasted maybe 30 minutes. We also ate at cabanas a few nights for dinner instead of the MDR and I can't recommend that option enough...sometimes you just don't want to do long drawn out dinner with a two year no matter how hard ur servers try to make everyone happy. We are looking forward to returning to the Magic for our next cruise in January and are excited bc hopefully she will be potty trained and can go in the pools. If not, we will still have an amazing time!