6 Essential Tips for Parents Cruising with their Kids

Back in April, we asked all of our Carnival mums and dads a very important question: what are your essential tips for any parents taking a first time Carnival cruise with their kids?

As usual, we received an abundance of great advice, which we have distilled into the following top six tips you can read below.

Two girls enjoying the splash zone.

1. As soon as you board the ship, your kids will want to head straight for the pool and waterpark. Tania L suggests packing their swimmers and a change of clothes in a carry-on bag for embarkation. And don’t worry about towels – we have plenty of those.

2. When heading out on shore excursions, big beach towels can be quite cumbersome for little ones. Tracy B suggests bringing a small hooded beach towel instead that they can wear like a robe and is easier for them to carry.

Family playing on a beach. 3. Post-it notes are a great way of letting everyone keep track of each other. Natalie G suggests leaving one on your mirror or stateroom door whenever you head out, to let others know where and when you’ll be.

4. Stepping off the ship and onto to a beautiful South Pacific island is one of the best things about cruising. However, stepping on something unwanted can also ruin a perfectly good time for the whole family. Even though kids think they’re invincible, Nikki A suggests a good pair of beach shoes to help avoid any shore excursion dramas.

5. Sometimes we’re so excited about experiencing every last moment of each and every minute, we forget about the simple joys of rest and relaxation. One of those joys, according to Jennifer V, is enjoying a fun board game or card game during those blissful moments of downtime. We suggest giving Monopoly a miss though, for the sake of family unity.

A boy playing in the ocean themed playground 6. Kids Club is a popular destination for young ones, and Amber F suggests signing yours up on the first day so they get the most out of the experience. If they’re a bit anxious about attending, you can go to family time with them, check out the child-friendly Seuss-A-Palooza Story Time, the incredibly fun Thing 1 & Thing 2 Birthday Breakfast*, towel puppet theatre and towel folding.