DCL with a 3 1/2 year old

[James&Gemma]

Hi

We'd be interested in hearing from people who have done a Disney cruise with a toddler.
We did a short cruise on the dream before our little boy was born and loved it but unsure whether it would be the best holiday for him next year.
We would be looking at going next November and possibly do a 7 night one from port Canaveral.
He will be 3 1/2 then and possibly still in nappies. We know he can't use the pools on board which wouldn't be an issue but would we also be restricted on what things we could book re excursions?

We wouldn't want to go all that way for a week so would probably do 10 days at WDW too or is it possible to do another cruise straight after?

Another option is doing a cruise LA way so we can pop to Disneyland. He loves CARS! We're a little bit nervous about the longer flight for him though?!

We've just come back from our 2nd trip to DLP with him and he loved it soooooo much this year!

We'd love to hear your recommendations! Thanks

[Bats]

Hi, so if he is still in nappies, he will not be able to use the youth activity (YA) areas. Pull ups are also not allowed inside the YA areas as all littlies must be able to use the bathroom on their own and not expect any help from the counsellors for that whole process.

The nursery is the only place he could go ($9 an hour currently) and that's a brilliant place, but it may impact on your budget of course.

For excursions - what would a 3.5 yr old want to do? Play in the sand on a beach possibly and you can grab a cab to any local beach in the Caribbean. You don't need to book cruise line excursions.

For DCL, you can do what's called a Back to Back (B2B) cruise on the same ship and if you have the same cabin for both cruises, you don't even need to pack up. You do have to leave the ship for a short time between the two cruises to clear customs though but it's not long.

If you wanted to do different ships, you'd have to stay overnight somewhere as the Fantasy (7 night cruises) sails on a Saturday with the Dream (3 or 4 night cruises) sailing on Fridays and Mondays (generally).

Hope that helps

Joa

[James&Gemma]

Thanks for your reply.
We're not really sit on the beach people so would defintely want to do some excursions of some kind but kinda guessed we would be resisted with certain ones if he was still in nappies! Swimming with rays, etc.

Thats good to know about the back to back cruises. We wouldn't want to do the Dream again but definitely interested in the fantasy.

Thanks again

[Bats]

Originally Posted by James&Gemma

Thanks for your reply.
We're not really sit on the beach people so would defintely want to do some excursions of some kind but kinda guessed we would be resisted with certain ones if he was still in nappies! Swimming with rays, etc.

Thats good to know about the back to back cruises. We wouldn't want to do the Dream again but definitely interested in the fantasy.

Thanks again

See more...

DCL excursions would definitely limit you, on an age perspective more than the nappies I think. They are very strict. But you could definitely do a DIY excursion if they allowed the age and nappy.

I know you're not sit on the beach people, but your son may well love it and you may enjoy playing with him, making castles, splashing in the water etc. 3.5 is a great age to paddle around with parents so don't rule it out completely (I hate sand so it wouldn't happen for me anyway)!

In Nov, the Magic does 4-7 night cruises from Miami. It's our favourite ship so you could always look at that option too.

Joa

[CarolynU]

We have done two cruises taking my 16 month old granddaughter and then the following year she was just over two years and three months. This was on The Magic in Europe. She had an absolutely fantastic time. We all did. She still talks about The Mickey Boat and remembers some of the things that she did. In fact we are booked on The Magic next year back to back, out of Miami, but we won't be able to take those cruises because the little brother made an appearance into the world last Wednesday and our cruises will clash with his first birthday and my daughter's husband will not cruise under any circumstances, so cruising over the babies first birthday isn't an option. Shame. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.
There is so much going on for little children especially if they love the characters, and lots of locations have slots for open houses where the toddlers can go providing that they are accompanied by an adult. Then there are craft activities, dance parties, shows and lots more.
My daughter elected to stay onboard in ports whilst I got off and took excursions. There was always something to keep them amused.

[Bats]

Originally Posted by CarolynU

We have done two cruises taking my 16 month old granddaughter and then the following year she was just over two years and three months. This was on The Magic in Europe. She had an absolutely fantastic time. We all did. She still talks about The Mickey Boat and remembers some of the things that she did. In fact we are booked on The Magic next year back to back, out of Miami, but we won't be able to take those cruises because the little brother made an appearance into the world last Wednesday and our cruises will clash with his first birthday and my daughter's husband will not cruise under any circumstances, so cruising over the babies first birthday isn't an option. Shame. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.
There is so much going on for little children especially if they love the characters, and lots of locations have slots for open houses where the toddlers can go providing that they are accompanied by an adult. Then there are craft activities, dance parties, shows and lots more.
My daughter elected to stay onboard in ports whilst I got off and took excursions. There was always something to keep them amused.

See more...

Huge congrats to you all!

[CarolynU]

Originally Posted by Bats

Huge congrats to you all!

See more...

Thanks so much Joa. A lovely new addition.

[mitch84]

Would it not be possible to potty train him? Not sure if there are issues preventing this?

[Buzz n' Piglet]

We are just off the Fantasy yesterday morning, with our non potty trained 2 year old. She had an absolute ball.

We didnt do it but there was plenty kids in the pool who clearly werent potty trained. They were both closed multiple times a day due to incidents.

Our daughter loved Nemos Reef, so lack of pool wasnt an issue.

[Bats]

Originally Posted by Buzz n' Piglet

We are just off the Fantasy yesterday morning, with our non potty trained 2 year old. She had an absolute ball.

We didnt do it but there was plenty kids in the pool who clearly werent potty trained. They were both closed multiple times a day due to incidents.

Our daughter loved Nemos Reef, so lack of pool wasnt an issue.

See more...

So frustrating isn't it. Selfish parents normally. Really wished the lifeguards and crew could be more strict about it. I don't go anywhere near those pools anyway - Quite Cove for me only!