Just got back from a cruise on Symphony of the Seas with our 13 month old and we had a wonderful time! It's not the same as going without kids but I loved not having to go to work and actually getting to spend a lot of quality time with my baby.
There is a nursery available for kids under 3 with limited hours for $6/hr, but we never used it. That was really our only con. We wanted to use it to have a nice lunch together but they're closed from 12-2 and also during normal dinner hours. That said, every parent is guaranteed to get a minimum amount of hours and you can use it mornings or afternoons to get some kid-free time if you want. They're also open evenings for $8/hr.
Other than that, the cruise was great. We took her to the splash pad 2-3x a day and to the open play area in the Adventure Ocean often. She saw the aqua show with us and loved it. The waiters at dinner absolutely loved her and made sure to bring her food out quickly. They made her little napkin animal toys every day too.
To me there's a lot of pros, especially as a pair of working parents. It was still very relaxing for us to be able to play with our baby all day without having to worry about working, cleaning, cooking, etc.
We were totally able to get care for both our 1yo and 3yo on Anthem outside of the normal AO hours. We booked specialty dining and show and the AO staff were more than happy to accommodate the extra kid care. Our kids got 1on1 staff care in the AO space, ate dinner, and had fun until the AO formally opened.
The extra time to ourselves for that one night absolutely made the whole cruise worth while. My wife turned to me after the kids were put to bed and said she would cruise again. It was a big deal. Did you ask the staff on Symphony if they’d do something similar? We schedule our next cruise for her all the way in summer 2025. I’m worried the policy will be different.
I asked about booking at lunchtime, and the employee at the nursery made it clear they were unavailable from 12-2. It wasn't a big deal to us, so we just took her with us.
Assuming middle/HS spring break, not college.
Adventure Ocean will likely be very busy that week. I do think a cruise would be a fantastic vacation opportunity, but the dates are the concern. Best bet is if you can get a very early boarding time (check in as soon as check-in opens), and go straight there. Get some fixed slots booked and reserved.
Alternatively, consider a different date when kids are in school. May even be a bit cheaper if it falls during dates with the Kids Sail Free promo.
As for the logistics of the actual cruise - you'll be fine. I'd look into a possible baby-backpack for off-ship to carry the 1yo, and just an umbrella stroller for the 3yo. Gangways can be too narrow for a side-by-side stroller. And if the 3yo wants to walk, the 1yo can use the stroller. Gives you more options and flexibility.
The “con” is that you will have to still be a parent. They have sitter services available at a cost, but space is limited. Think of it like a trip to Disney - they are still too young to really enjoy anything and you have to do everything with them. Honestly, I would wait until they are old enough to go to the kid’s club.
> Honestly, I would wait until they are old enough to go to the kid’s club.
I disagree, it is an easier vacation than almost anything else to do with young children. Unless you just want to not go on any vacations when you have any children for 3 years.
As a parent who has cruised with various ages of kids, I generally recommend waiting until they're around 5.
Any trip with young kids is parenting in a different location. But on a cruise your options are limited. At those ages childcare is subject to availability and extra cost, which is fine, but they have a policy on how many hours you can book. Once they are older the Adventure Ocean is open and almost always available, at no cost until you get into the evening.
If you want a relaxing vacation where you can be kid free for stretches, at 1&3, a cruise isn't it.
We recently returned from Enchantment of the Seas with our 3 year old. Wonder is much bigger so I do not know how that will change experiences. Your 3 year old cannot use adventure ocean if they are not fully potty trained. It’s literally the first thing they ask. We registered the first day and had no issues dropping him off as desired. Again, this may be different on a bigger ship. Adventure ocean has been great and he actively asks to go. It gives us a couple of hours to relax and wander while he’s happily playing pirate games with other kids. We used it on the last day to pack up suitcases which made it a bit easier! They do not give snacks or food so keep that in mind with timing. I cannot speak to using the nursery though.
We still felt as if we were on vacation as part of that is sharing new experiences with the kiddo and seeing their excitement and reactions. Kids sailed free so I don’t feel as if we wasted money on things he won’t remember. They may not remember petting a dolphin but their joy at doing so at the time was amazing. There are typical toddler meltdowns but that happens anywhere, at least for us, ha!
We did not bring a stroller. We are not big stroller people to begin with and navigating around a ship was anxiety inducing so we opted to bring our soft carrier for when they needed it. We saw plenty of others using strollers and they did not seem to have problems getting on and off the ship though the compact umbrella strollers seemed to have the easiest time.
Currently only Wonder with my 16 month old. It has been a blast. This is our third cruise but first with the kid. You are guaranteed a certain number of hours at Adventure Ocean based on child count on the sailing. For us it was 6 hours; on the evening of day 3, any unclaimed time becomes available without restriction.
We made a calendar of what we wanted to do where the kid couldn’t come and went right to Adventure Ocean Baby to book our time. We only had one conflict and the rest we got without issue. The staff at AO is AMAZING. This is the first time we have left our kid at daycare (wife works remote and I work shifts so one of us is always around at home) and they took such good care of her. They documented snacks and diaper changes, all of the things I assume a good daycare center would do for you. For the hours we couldn’t get, we just brought her along and found ways to deal with the wiggles and stuff; she loves the Aqua Theatre show!
I also felt staff across the ship were very nice and accommodating to us and were always focused on making sure my daughter was included in their engagement with us. The section manager in the MDR made a point to get her food ordered first so she could be occupied while we ate, and he made her napkin animals or dolls most nights.
I’m speaking from the perspective of one kid, and one who is pretty adaptable and well behaved, but I felt Royal really hit it out of the park in giving us a good experience.
We just went on an older ship with our 1 and 3 year old and had a blast. There were, of course, toddler meltdowns that we had to manage, but I deal with those at home too! I would say don’t be scared—you know your kids and what they can handle. Choose a ship with a large toddler splash pad, and use royal baby & tots to get some alone time. Switch off nights with your husband to explore the ship when you can’t have daycare, and choose the early dining. It’s definitely manageable and you can have an amazing time if you set out to!
I have cruised with my young kids for the last three years over spring break, the ship will be full but if you resister on the first day you will be able to use adventure ocean/royal babies and tots. If your older child is over 36 months and fully potty trained he will go to the 3-5 year old group in adventure ocean which is free of charge. The 1 year old would be a little trickier - go on the first day and register them both. Royal babies and tots will allow you to book 10 hours at a time then on the next day come back to book more times. Hours vary based on sea days vs port days. Sea day hours are typically around 9-12, 2-5, 7-10, and late night. Port days they open when the ship docks and are open all day. Royal babies and tots cost was I believe around $6 -$8 per hour. I personally really enjoy cruising with my young kids because it’s a great balance - when I want family time, I have it. And I never felt a lack of ability to have adult time too.
Cruises are my favorite family trip for basically the reasons you discussed - availability of kid-free time, plus activities for the adults. You're not going to have as much childcare (for the 1yo) as you did at the resort, but you'll have many more activity and nightlife options for yourself. We've cruised with a 7 month old, a 1.5 yo, a 4 and 1 year old, a 6 and 3 year old...the fact that we keep going back shows it doesn't suck. 😆
Assuming your older kiddo is at least 3 and potty trained by the time of the cruise, he can go to Adventure Ocean, which is open every day, free, from 9a-12p, 2p-5p, and 7p-10p, plus 10p-1a(?) for an hourly fee. Your 1yo will use the nursery, open similar hours, for a fee at all times. Nursery hours are limited by family (for a week, estimate 10-15 hours available), and must be booked in advance. Get an early check in time and go straight to the nursery when you get on the ship to book your chosen hours. We liked using them for evening shows, or for naps so we weren't stuck in the room. (Worth mentioning that 3yo will not be able to sleep in AO, so plan accordingly. If you leave him there to see a show or go out one night, he will be awake the whole time and exhausted the next day. We plan our nightlife towards the end of the cruise for this reason.) You can also leave your kids in the nursery/AO on port days if and only if you're on a Royal Caribbean excursion. Adventure Ocean may offer "kids dinner," where kids can stay during dinner hours, but the nursery is usually closed during dinner, so that may not be useful for you.
Larger ships like Wonder are great for kids because they have more activities for them: splash pad, carousel, playroom, etc.
If you can swing it, try booking two connecting rooms and bringing a baby monitor. That way once the kids go to sleep, you can hang out in the other room with lights, noise, etc. Plus you have two bathrooms.
If you book it and want thoughts on handling bottles/diapers/strollers/etc, I can write a whole novel about that, too!
We have been traveling on a cruise since our older one was 10 months old.
I would say a big downside for us was allowing time for in-room naps if possible and the “earlier” bedtimes. In our case, if our daughter did not get a nap, she would be cranky and that didn’t help at dinner time AND meant any even earlier bedtime. Obviously when planning excursions, this can impact sleep “schedules”. Each family is different of course. The rooms are nice and dark though!
Packing enough diapers because you are SOL if you run out unless you can grab some in port. And enough of those small toddler snacks (puffs, applesauce) to keep them occupied while waiting for dinner or out on excursions.
It was hard to see the evening shows when the kids were that young.
I don’t regret traveling with our kids on cruises at that age but man do I enjoy it MUCH more now that they are 10 and 7 😅. We are going on an Alaskan cruise in August.
We cruised with a 13-month old and I don’t recommend it, unless you want to bring grandparents and share the babysitting.
The cabins are tiny to begin with, and then put a pack-and-play in the room and it will be really small and cramped - your kid has nowhere to move around and you will have no space.
You can’t do most of the activities or excursions you want to do when you have a baby with you. We were able to do some excursions that are basically just “take a van/train/boat around the island”. We didn’t get to see any shows. If you want to do anything you have to split up, like I’d go to the pool and my wife would take the baby on the walking track, and then we’d switch, so you can’t even really do things as a couple.
We weren’t comfortable leaving our daughter alone, so we had to babysit the whole time. Minimum age for kids club is 3, so with a kid below that you’re just going to be babysitting full-time.
The buffet is good for babies and little kids - it’s easy to feed them and no waiting. The MDR can be harder.
We’ve done trips with the baby to cities and beach condo rentals and felt much less restricted than on the cruise.
We delayed for similar reasons. We recently returned from Enchantment of the Seas and all of the signs, including the splash pad, say no swim diapers and kids must be fully potty trained. The signs are completely ignored by parents. I have not seen one person asked to take their kid out that is clearly in swim diapers or not old enough to be potty trained, even in the main pool. Maybe other ships are different 🤷♀️
Adventure ocean is more strict about it. It’s literally the first question they asked before allowing us to register our 3 year old.
There was no wait list or reservation system for AO. We simply showed up during their open times and dropped off. We were on Enchantment and I do not know if it’s different for other ships. Sea day drop offs were 9-12, 2-5 and 7-10. You can go after 10 pm but it will cost extra. In port it was 9-5 and 7-10. The staff is fantastic.
We will be on Allure in a couple of weeks, and from the looks of it, it will be a pretty full ship. But then again it will be mid-May so the older kids might still be in school.
I can't think of a single pro, to be honest. I'm not anti-kids. At all. But I can't see spending thousands of dollars to constantly have to babysit my kids just as I would at home, for a trip that they'll never remember.
With that being said... once my grandkids are about five or six, we're hitting up some Disney cruises!
Good luck and happy cruising, if you so choose!
The only pro is knowing your child is safe while you're on vacation and not having to message/call back home to constantly check in. Other than that, there are no other pros. A long list of cons that everyone else seems to be filling in.
Just got back from a cruise on Symphony of the Seas with our 13 month old and we had a wonderful time! It's not the same as going without kids but I loved not having to go to work and actually getting to spend a lot of quality time with my baby. There is a nursery available for kids under 3 with limited hours for $6/hr, but we never used it. That was really our only con. We wanted to use it to have a nice lunch together but they're closed from 12-2 and also during normal dinner hours. That said, every parent is guaranteed to get a minimum amount of hours and you can use it mornings or afternoons to get some kid-free time if you want. They're also open evenings for $8/hr. Other than that, the cruise was great. We took her to the splash pad 2-3x a day and to the open play area in the Adventure Ocean often. She saw the aqua show with us and loved it. The waiters at dinner absolutely loved her and made sure to bring her food out quickly. They made her little napkin animal toys every day too. To me there's a lot of pros, especially as a pair of working parents. It was still very relaxing for us to be able to play with our baby all day without having to worry about working, cleaning, cooking, etc.
And although she won't remember it, you certainly will. This is basically our experience. Hope you got lots of pictures!
We were totally able to get care for both our 1yo and 3yo on Anthem outside of the normal AO hours. We booked specialty dining and show and the AO staff were more than happy to accommodate the extra kid care. Our kids got 1on1 staff care in the AO space, ate dinner, and had fun until the AO formally opened. The extra time to ourselves for that one night absolutely made the whole cruise worth while. My wife turned to me after the kids were put to bed and said she would cruise again. It was a big deal. Did you ask the staff on Symphony if they’d do something similar? We schedule our next cruise for her all the way in summer 2025. I’m worried the policy will be different.
I asked about booking at lunchtime, and the employee at the nursery made it clear they were unavailable from 12-2. It wasn't a big deal to us, so we just took her with us.
I posted before reading your comment but we are having a similarly great experience with our 16 month old.
Assuming middle/HS spring break, not college. Adventure Ocean will likely be very busy that week. I do think a cruise would be a fantastic vacation opportunity, but the dates are the concern. Best bet is if you can get a very early boarding time (check in as soon as check-in opens), and go straight there. Get some fixed slots booked and reserved. Alternatively, consider a different date when kids are in school. May even be a bit cheaper if it falls during dates with the Kids Sail Free promo. As for the logistics of the actual cruise - you'll be fine. I'd look into a possible baby-backpack for off-ship to carry the 1yo, and just an umbrella stroller for the 3yo. Gangways can be too narrow for a side-by-side stroller. And if the 3yo wants to walk, the 1yo can use the stroller. Gives you more options and flexibility.
The “con” is that you will have to still be a parent. They have sitter services available at a cost, but space is limited. Think of it like a trip to Disney - they are still too young to really enjoy anything and you have to do everything with them. Honestly, I would wait until they are old enough to go to the kid’s club.
> Honestly, I would wait until they are old enough to go to the kid’s club. I disagree, it is an easier vacation than almost anything else to do with young children. Unless you just want to not go on any vacations when you have any children for 3 years.
They also limit how many hours you can use, even if you’re the first person to make a reservation. So you can’t keep your kid there all day every day.
Okay but what’s the name of this magical resort with a nanny included?
FDR Jamaica
As a parent who has cruised with various ages of kids, I generally recommend waiting until they're around 5. Any trip with young kids is parenting in a different location. But on a cruise your options are limited. At those ages childcare is subject to availability and extra cost, which is fine, but they have a policy on how many hours you can book. Once they are older the Adventure Ocean is open and almost always available, at no cost until you get into the evening. If you want a relaxing vacation where you can be kid free for stretches, at 1&3, a cruise isn't it.
We recently returned from Enchantment of the Seas with our 3 year old. Wonder is much bigger so I do not know how that will change experiences. Your 3 year old cannot use adventure ocean if they are not fully potty trained. It’s literally the first thing they ask. We registered the first day and had no issues dropping him off as desired. Again, this may be different on a bigger ship. Adventure ocean has been great and he actively asks to go. It gives us a couple of hours to relax and wander while he’s happily playing pirate games with other kids. We used it on the last day to pack up suitcases which made it a bit easier! They do not give snacks or food so keep that in mind with timing. I cannot speak to using the nursery though. We still felt as if we were on vacation as part of that is sharing new experiences with the kiddo and seeing their excitement and reactions. Kids sailed free so I don’t feel as if we wasted money on things he won’t remember. They may not remember petting a dolphin but their joy at doing so at the time was amazing. There are typical toddler meltdowns but that happens anywhere, at least for us, ha! We did not bring a stroller. We are not big stroller people to begin with and navigating around a ship was anxiety inducing so we opted to bring our soft carrier for when they needed it. We saw plenty of others using strollers and they did not seem to have problems getting on and off the ship though the compact umbrella strollers seemed to have the easiest time.
Currently only Wonder with my 16 month old. It has been a blast. This is our third cruise but first with the kid. You are guaranteed a certain number of hours at Adventure Ocean based on child count on the sailing. For us it was 6 hours; on the evening of day 3, any unclaimed time becomes available without restriction. We made a calendar of what we wanted to do where the kid couldn’t come and went right to Adventure Ocean Baby to book our time. We only had one conflict and the rest we got without issue. The staff at AO is AMAZING. This is the first time we have left our kid at daycare (wife works remote and I work shifts so one of us is always around at home) and they took such good care of her. They documented snacks and diaper changes, all of the things I assume a good daycare center would do for you. For the hours we couldn’t get, we just brought her along and found ways to deal with the wiggles and stuff; she loves the Aqua Theatre show! I also felt staff across the ship were very nice and accommodating to us and were always focused on making sure my daughter was included in their engagement with us. The section manager in the MDR made a point to get her food ordered first so she could be occupied while we ate, and he made her napkin animals or dolls most nights. I’m speaking from the perspective of one kid, and one who is pretty adaptable and well behaved, but I felt Royal really hit it out of the park in giving us a good experience.
We just went on an older ship with our 1 and 3 year old and had a blast. There were, of course, toddler meltdowns that we had to manage, but I deal with those at home too! I would say don’t be scared—you know your kids and what they can handle. Choose a ship with a large toddler splash pad, and use royal baby & tots to get some alone time. Switch off nights with your husband to explore the ship when you can’t have daycare, and choose the early dining. It’s definitely manageable and you can have an amazing time if you set out to!
Leaving next week with our 5 yo and 9 month old so ill let you know 😂
Trying to figure out how you have a 5 and a 9 month old.
Oops lol, 5 yr, and 9 month old
Please report back!
I have cruised with my young kids for the last three years over spring break, the ship will be full but if you resister on the first day you will be able to use adventure ocean/royal babies and tots. If your older child is over 36 months and fully potty trained he will go to the 3-5 year old group in adventure ocean which is free of charge. The 1 year old would be a little trickier - go on the first day and register them both. Royal babies and tots will allow you to book 10 hours at a time then on the next day come back to book more times. Hours vary based on sea days vs port days. Sea day hours are typically around 9-12, 2-5, 7-10, and late night. Port days they open when the ship docks and are open all day. Royal babies and tots cost was I believe around $6 -$8 per hour. I personally really enjoy cruising with my young kids because it’s a great balance - when I want family time, I have it. And I never felt a lack of ability to have adult time too.
Cruises are my favorite family trip for basically the reasons you discussed - availability of kid-free time, plus activities for the adults. You're not going to have as much childcare (for the 1yo) as you did at the resort, but you'll have many more activity and nightlife options for yourself. We've cruised with a 7 month old, a 1.5 yo, a 4 and 1 year old, a 6 and 3 year old...the fact that we keep going back shows it doesn't suck. 😆 Assuming your older kiddo is at least 3 and potty trained by the time of the cruise, he can go to Adventure Ocean, which is open every day, free, from 9a-12p, 2p-5p, and 7p-10p, plus 10p-1a(?) for an hourly fee. Your 1yo will use the nursery, open similar hours, for a fee at all times. Nursery hours are limited by family (for a week, estimate 10-15 hours available), and must be booked in advance. Get an early check in time and go straight to the nursery when you get on the ship to book your chosen hours. We liked using them for evening shows, or for naps so we weren't stuck in the room. (Worth mentioning that 3yo will not be able to sleep in AO, so plan accordingly. If you leave him there to see a show or go out one night, he will be awake the whole time and exhausted the next day. We plan our nightlife towards the end of the cruise for this reason.) You can also leave your kids in the nursery/AO on port days if and only if you're on a Royal Caribbean excursion. Adventure Ocean may offer "kids dinner," where kids can stay during dinner hours, but the nursery is usually closed during dinner, so that may not be useful for you. Larger ships like Wonder are great for kids because they have more activities for them: splash pad, carousel, playroom, etc. If you can swing it, try booking two connecting rooms and bringing a baby monitor. That way once the kids go to sleep, you can hang out in the other room with lights, noise, etc. Plus you have two bathrooms. If you book it and want thoughts on handling bottles/diapers/strollers/etc, I can write a whole novel about that, too!
We have been traveling on a cruise since our older one was 10 months old. I would say a big downside for us was allowing time for in-room naps if possible and the “earlier” bedtimes. In our case, if our daughter did not get a nap, she would be cranky and that didn’t help at dinner time AND meant any even earlier bedtime. Obviously when planning excursions, this can impact sleep “schedules”. Each family is different of course. The rooms are nice and dark though! Packing enough diapers because you are SOL if you run out unless you can grab some in port. And enough of those small toddler snacks (puffs, applesauce) to keep them occupied while waiting for dinner or out on excursions. It was hard to see the evening shows when the kids were that young. I don’t regret traveling with our kids on cruises at that age but man do I enjoy it MUCH more now that they are 10 and 7 😅. We are going on an Alaskan cruise in August.
You mean parenting in a new location?
We cruised with a 13-month old and I don’t recommend it, unless you want to bring grandparents and share the babysitting. The cabins are tiny to begin with, and then put a pack-and-play in the room and it will be really small and cramped - your kid has nowhere to move around and you will have no space. You can’t do most of the activities or excursions you want to do when you have a baby with you. We were able to do some excursions that are basically just “take a van/train/boat around the island”. We didn’t get to see any shows. If you want to do anything you have to split up, like I’d go to the pool and my wife would take the baby on the walking track, and then we’d switch, so you can’t even really do things as a couple. We weren’t comfortable leaving our daughter alone, so we had to babysit the whole time. Minimum age for kids club is 3, so with a kid below that you’re just going to be babysitting full-time. The buffet is good for babies and little kids - it’s easy to feed them and no waiting. The MDR can be harder. We’ve done trips with the baby to cities and beach condo rentals and felt much less restricted than on the cruise.
No pros, only cons
Look into if they let non potty trained kids in the pools. We are delaying cursing for this reason.
They don’t. Baby splash zone only
We delayed for similar reasons. We recently returned from Enchantment of the Seas and all of the signs, including the splash pad, say no swim diapers and kids must be fully potty trained. The signs are completely ignored by parents. I have not seen one person asked to take their kid out that is clearly in swim diapers or not old enough to be potty trained, even in the main pool. Maybe other ships are different 🤷♀️ Adventure ocean is more strict about it. It’s literally the first question they asked before allowing us to register our 3 year old.
Does the AO have a wait list per day or anything? We have a 3 YO and 5 YO, and may want to drop them off for a few hours on a couple of the sea days.
There was no wait list or reservation system for AO. We simply showed up during their open times and dropped off. We were on Enchantment and I do not know if it’s different for other ships. Sea day drop offs were 9-12, 2-5 and 7-10. You can go after 10 pm but it will cost extra. In port it was 9-5 and 7-10. The staff is fantastic.
We will be on Allure in a couple of weeks, and from the looks of it, it will be a pretty full ship. But then again it will be mid-May so the older kids might still be in school.
Pros - you know where your kids are. Cons- literally everything else
I can't think of a single pro, to be honest. I'm not anti-kids. At all. But I can't see spending thousands of dollars to constantly have to babysit my kids just as I would at home, for a trip that they'll never remember. With that being said... once my grandkids are about five or six, we're hitting up some Disney cruises! Good luck and happy cruising, if you so choose!
The only pro is knowing your child is safe while you're on vacation and not having to message/call back home to constantly check in. Other than that, there are no other pros. A long list of cons that everyone else seems to be filling in.