My Cruise Tips - Carnival Spirit

Although, these are specific to Carnival Spirit - these still do apply to just about any cruise ship or cruise line!
On day one, do a self guided tour of the ship, starting at the top and work your way down.
Grab a full Fun Times (the daily newspaper for the ship telling you all about the activities) from guest services on embarkation day - you are given a boarding day edition when you check in, but the full version is at guest services and in your cabin.
Sign up to Camp Ocean (kids club) on Embarkation day.
Port side = Left when facing forward (I remember it by knowing both have 4 letters).
If you are in a rush for a drink, look in the Fun Times for an area that might be less busy ie avoid the pig and whistle if the parade is on.
No cash is used on board.
The Blue Iguana Mexican & Guys Burgers are included in your fare.
Make sure you notify your bank that you are travelling and will have some strange transactions on your credit card - on our previous cruise many many people thought they had setup to pay their sail & sign account on their credit card, but their bank stopped the transaction and they couldn't leave the ship on disembarkation day until the account was settled at guest services.
Download the Fun Times App before boarding.
You can view your sail & sign account on the Fun Times App.
If you choose to pay your sail & sign account with a linked debit card, be aware that Carnival will take 'holds' everyday similar to when you check in to a hotel, then at the end of the voyage they will take the whole amount and return the holds. The holds can take a few weeks to be returned by your bank.
You can order room service 24 hours.
Guest services is open 24 hours, so if they have a line you can try later.
You can access your cabin from 1pm on embarkation day.
The Main Dining Room (MDR) menu changes daily.
There are 3 types of sittings in the MDR. Main sitting (about 530pm), second sitting (about 8pm) and 'any time dining'. If you are main or second sitting, you will have an allocated table, waiter and assistant waiter, so you sit at the same table for the duration of your cruise.
You can order multiple dishes in the MDR, so if a few items tickle your fancy order them.
The MDR serves breakfast every day, it is a nice option if you don't like the buffet.
Pizza Pirate has food 24 hours including pizza, softserve ice cream machines and tea / coffee station.
No power boards allowed.
No irons allowed.
There is an area at the front of Deck 4 called the Cove. This was a free play area for most of the cruise, with toys, puzzles, big screen tv etc. We utilised this alot. Only downside was, no lift access, you access via Deck 3 via The Jungle Walk.
EU or US power adapter required for use of personal electrical in your cabin. There is 1 AUS outlet.
Every time I see a purel dispenser I use it, in hope that I won't pickup someone else's flu etc.
Pack a jacket as it can get chilly on the top decks while the ship is moving.
Having your photo taken onboard is free, but obviously you have to buy the print. So you can have your photo taken 500 times and not be out of pocket, until you purchase one.
Luggage delivery is a huge process for Carnival Spirit, 2500 passengers with at least one piece of luggage, no wonder it can take all night! Make sure you pack your toiletries and a change of clothes in case you are one of the unlucky ones that get their luggage upwards of 10pm. If you have contraband i.e. Alcohol, weapons, irons, power boards in your luggage, yours will be even later & you will probably need to get it yourself from security on deck 1.
If you have your heart set on something in the Fun Times, ensure you arrive early, Carnival Spirit has almost 3,000 passengers and can get busy at times.
You do not need to pack bathroom or beach towels.
Travel insurance is a must! You never know if your luggage will decide to take a dip in Sydney Harbour, whether you will get seasick or the dreaded stomach flu on board, Medicare is not a system used by any cruise ship so you have to pay out of pocket to see the ship Doctor. (My mum sprained her ankle onboard once, and hubby stood on a sea urchin in the South Pacific, so you never know!!).
The emergency muster is mandatory, boring and taken seriously by the crew. But don't let it ruin your embarkation day, it is only 30mins!
Remember things will probably go wrong, but how you react will determine whether it ruins your trip or not 

Seaplex - Must have for Cruising with Tweens & Teens

I've come to the conclusion that when I cruise with tweens & teens a ship with a Seaplex is a must have!!

The Seaplex is a huge indoor space at the back of the ship. Activities we saw being run in there included:

Dodgem Cars
Dodge ball Competitions
Basketball Competitions
Volleyball Competitions
Basketball Free-play
Roller Skating
Trapeze / Circus School
Dance Classes
Soccer Competitions

The best part was, as it was a full size basketball court, there was room to have one activity at one end, and another at the other - there are nets that drop down from the ceiling to separate the space!!

There is also a mezzanine level of the Seaplex that in addition to being a great spot to view activities below, has four "Sea Pods" that have multiple table tennis tables (free), air hockey (fee $2.50) and 5 Xbox consoles and controllers (free).

I've also reached the conclusion that the Ovation has a very small arcade for this very reason - THERE IS SO MUCH COMPLIMENTARY STUFF ON OFFER IN THE SEAPLEX!

There is also a Hot dog food truck & a Freestyle Soda Machine to keep your tweens & teens sorted for food & drinks.

A tip from me - reserve the Escape Room as soon as you can either via Cruise Planner before the cruise, or on board via any of the Ipads you see around. It was a lot of fun and the sneaky staff don't advertise it much. It is complimentary and only takes a maximum of 12 people at a time but due to scheduling issues (the room is shared between escape room and teen lounge) they don't run it very often.

Please see pic below with some labels to help you get your bearings!! This is standing on the starboard side looking towards the port side.

Let me know if you have any questions about the Seaplex and I will try and answer them :)

Happy Cruising.

How to Keep a Baby Entertained on a Cruise Ship

Having done 1 (yes 1), cruise with a 12 month old in tow, I know consider myself an expert on how to keep a baby entertained on a cruise ship haha.

All of my tips will be based on our recent 19 night cruise on Ovation of the Seas, these tips may not be achievable on all Royal Caribbean cruise ships, so ensure you do your research first!!

Obviously the easiest way to keep them entertained is to enroll them on Embarkation Day in the Adventure Ocean Royal Tots program, for more information on that please read my previous post here.

If enrolling your child into Adventure Ocean to be minded is not your thing, do not dismiss Adventure Ocean entirely! They also offer:

Toy Lending Library - which I scoured through on Embarkation Day, it was a folder with photos of the toys available for borrowing with a corresponding number. Before borrowing anything I ensured that they were sanitised between borrowings and was told they definitely were. We chose a couple of toys and borrowed them for the duration of the cruise, but you can take them back at anytime. The toys were good quality, mostly Fisher Price.

Free Play Zone - This space on Deck 11 between the Adventure Ocean rooms was AMAZING. We used this multiple times a day to let bub burn off some energy. It helped that we were only about 30m from this space as our cabin was on Deck 11. For Health and Safety The Zone has a gate so no little ones can escape, a place for shoes, hand sanitiser and basin. There are no nappy changing facilities here, which I can't really understand why there is no family bathroom. The closest was on Deck 14. In terms of toys a play equipment. There was an inbuilt slide & firemans pole, a long plastic tunnel and about 30 toys - again mostly Fisher Price, check out the pics below!! Adult supervision is required at all times. Thankfully I was there when a group of older kids, probably 10 came in, they were ok to start with just using the slide, but it turned into a game of tip which involved running and jumping over toys, I asked where their parents were and told them to stop playing tip as this was not an area for their age group.

If keeping your baby entertained in the fresh air by the pool is more your style, then ensure your ship has a Baby Splash Zone. Again these are not on all ships! We didn't use this space as often as we wanted to, as our itinerary was too cold or raining. But bub still enjoyed the few times he played here nonetheless. Remember to bring Suncream & a Hat as there was no protection from the sun. I gave feedback to Royal Caribbean onboard and via survey that the Baby Area should have some cover from the sun, or even have a small area in the inside pool.

Research any ports you are visiting and schedule an outing to a local aquatic center or the beach so bub can get some proper swimming done. Also finding a great park or play center on land can be helpful.

We also spent some time in the Seaplex, Bub enjoyed people watching and the music.

Try to eat in the same place / area for your meals. The staff will get to know your bub and after a few nights will be singing, dancing and even running off with them while you get some food into your belly.

Although some ships have a Toy Library, I'd still recommend bringing a few favourite toys for your bub and if they are older, a 'special' cruise toy you've purchased just for the ship.

We were lucky enough to still have Dreamworks characters on our sailing, these entertained bub a few times. But unfortunately, they are going to cease their operations onboard from 1st April 2019. Read more here.

For us, it was more important to have a happy bub on his very close to normal routine, rather than sending him to Adventure Ocean in the evening, but this is also an option for you!! But don't fret if Bub isn't sleeping the best onboard. This will give you a chance to go out and enjoy the nightlife and hopefully get them to sleep in their pram or stroller!!

Happy Cruising!

Cruising Travel Hacks for Cruising with a Baby

Being a regular cruiser I have come across a few hacks in my day, some good, some great and some crap. I thought I would share the new ones I implemented cruising with a 12 month old.

* Only toilet trained kids are allowed in the pools on every cruise ship. Some Royal Caribbean ships have a splash area for untoilet trained kids. This area is on its own filtration system, so if a child has an accident, they can drain the area quickly without affecting the majority of passengers. Don't quote me on this but I was told by crew that the reason untoilet trained kids aren't allowed in the other pools is that it is fresh ocean water, without ANY normal pool chemicals that would kill any bacteria.
SO we packed an inflatable splash pool that bub could play in on our own balcony, you could also use it on the pool deck, I have seen them used before, but we cruised to New Zealand and it was too cold on the pool deck for swimming. We also used the inflatable pool for bathing bub in the bottom of the shower. Being inflatable it was easy to fit in our luggage.

* The standard cabins on most ships are small, and having a bub still having a day sleep and a bedtime of 730pm meant we spent more time in our cosy cabin than pre bub cruising. I purchased some heavy duty magnetic hooks from eBay and some block out curtains and hung these easily from the roof. Other people have suggested shower curtains, but I was concerned about the airflow through shower curtains and opted for regular curtains for this reason. The curtain offered almost complete block out of the light from the TV. It was perfect! Also protected bub from the direct flow of the A/C, hubby and I like to have a cooler room. So be sure to check where the A/C outlet is, otherwise you might freeze your bub.

* White Noise App on an old device, I say old device here so you can leave it on the desk with the white noise playing while you play with your current device. We had ours set to Beach Waves so it fit in perfectly with the cruise cabin noises. We don't use White Noise for bub to sleep at home, but I wanted to ensure that me using the bathroom at night and hubby's snoring didn't startle bub awake.

* I packed Coat Hanger organisers, another eBay purchase. I found these useful with all of Bubs nappy changing items in them and used another one in the bathroom over the shower glass. Many people suggest an "over door organiser" but this wouldn't work as well on a Royal Caribbean ship as it would cover all the hooks for your towels in the bathroom.

* Research the ports you are visiting and see if there is ANYWHERE you can restock for the essentials. We cruised for 19 nights, and there was no way I could pack enough nappies for that trip, so we restocked in Hobart and again in Auckland. I packed enough initially for 5 days. This made it easier to get to the ship without another piece of luggage just for Nappies.

* Research the ports for any aquatic centres close to the ship, or resorts you can visit where bub can actually have a swim. We did this in Hobart & Wellington.

* Ensure you pack a barrier cream, like Sudocream, as bub developed his first bout of Nappy Rash while we were away, he has never ever had it before. I put it down to a different diet and ALWAYS being on his butt either in a high chair or pram as opposed to home he'd be crawling around most of the day.

* Speak to your waiter on night one in the dining room and ask them to record a special order for you in advance for every lunch & dinner on the cruise so bub can be served first. We asked for Pureed mince, sweet potato, potato & zucchini for every main meal and then Pureed banana, pear & apple for bubs dessert. We also said we would eat in the dining room for lunch whenever it was open (Sea days) and we would eat in the buffet for the Port days. We asked for it to come out at 530pm for dinner and 12 noon for lunch. Most of the time this was on time and perfect. A few times we had to wait, and once the waiters saw how bored bub got waiting ie squealing they realised why we'd asked for it to come out straightaway.

* Start trying your bub on foods they have onboard BEFORE you go. If you choose to not put in a special order you may encounter issues, as everything in the buffets and restaurants is seasoned and our bub likes bland - luckily for him I am a very bland chef hahaha.

* Bring snacks for your baby from home. These come in handy if you take them to Adventure Ocean, off the ship for Port days or just when they get hungry onboard and you can't find a food they like.

* I decided to bring our own portacot & all bedding. I am SOOOOOOOO glad I did, as the portacot in our cabin upon arrival was tiny, it had a weight limit of 14kg on it too and bub was very close to this weight. It was also only setup with a fitted sheet. I am not sure if the cabin steward would have brought more bedding later, but I have heard other people say all they were given was a sheet and they had to ask for adequate bedding for their bub.

* Pack a backup sleep bag, sheet, blanket(s) & comforter, if bub has an accident or is sick you don't want to be without these while they are sent off for cleaning.

* If you can get some rubber bibs and get bub used to them before you go. I had some and tried them a week before we left and bub cried when I put it on him, so he didn't have enough time to get used to it. I do not recommend disposable bibs as this is just more waste on top of all the wipes and nappies that the ship has to dispose of.

* Bring a peg airer, we used this to dry our swimwear and bub's bibs that I rinsed in washing detergent in the shower. Our shower did not have a small clothes line it in like we were used to on other ships.

* Ovation has a toy library in Adventure Ocean that you can borrow toys to play with around the ship. We still took a few favourites from home though.

* Bring your own plastic cutlery if that is what bub is used to.

* Only bring a couple of bottles if you are formula feeding, you won't have enough room in your bathroom to store many before washing them up. We took 3 bottles (bub was having 2 a day) and 1 bottle for water. I then washed them up every morning and refilled. There was a kettle in our room, so we could sterilise them. Bring a deep cup or jug, or ask your stateroom attendant for one, so you can warm bottles using the boiling water in that.

* Bring any pain relief you think bub might need. There won't be anything commercially available on the ship for them, you would have to see the ship doctor and if you are travelling to another country it might be hard to find something in a local pharmacy.

* Getting off the ship with a pram or stroller is pretty pain free, but getting back on the ship and when you initially board is another story. Some security staff made us fold the pram up and put through the scanner, others went through everything even opened his fabric books looking for stuff. They also tried to carry the pram with bub in it downstairs to be scanned. I had had enough by then and said "no, can't we use this scanner here?" which we were standing beside. They said "No, this is for people requiring wheelchairs only" to which I replied "It is dangerous to carry a baby down the stairs in a pram, so we will use this one, or the elevator" and they finally said ok. So if you don't feel safe doing things security is instructing you to do, or bub is sleeping just say no, you want an alternative.

The curtain we placed up with magnetic hooks on the ceiling, the coat hanger organiser + more magnetic hooks with the bibs, coat hanger organiser in the bathroom & giving bub a bath in the bottom of the shower in his inflatable pool.

I think that is it for now, but I can add to this as I recall things!!

Happy Cruising

:)