Tips for Crusing With An Infant

Our family took a Disney cruise in December, 2004, when Zeke was only three months old.  We hadn’t planned things that way, but several emergencies required rescheduling the cruise.  Twice.  Ugh.

I was looking through our Passporter Guide To Disney Cruises and found a sheet with notes on having a good cruise with an infant.  OK, so it’s 14 months late, but here are some things scratched out for posterity in case somebody out there is googling around for tips on taking an infant on a cruise.

Strollers.  By all means take one when you’ve got an infant.  It’s a critical piece of equipment which we used for any number of, uh, uses:

• Naps.  (For Zeke, not us).  Recline that thing, put a couple blankets over the hood and let that tyke sleep.
• At dining tables.  Zeke was too small to sit in a high chair, so the stroller served as a great place to park him during mealtimes.
• Beach machine.  We dragged the stroller out onto the beach which wasn’t that much of a pain.  It gave us a place to let Zeke snooze while we played.
• One big con: elevators aboard ship.  The center elevators were always packed.  Use the fore/aft lifts if you’re wheeling your stroller around.
• Tip: store the stroller in the split bathroom in your stateroom.  Great out of the way spot.

Pack ‘n Play / Crib. Ask for a crib/Pack ‘n Play when you make your reservations.  Also specifically ask for sheets.  One would think…  Also, be careful if you have your own blankets because we had one go missing during sheet changing day.  Stowe your personal baby blankets each morning to avoid that.

Rice Cereal.  Zeke was still too young for pureed vegetables, so we took scads of rice cereal and a few Tupperware (tm) bowls to feed him.

Baby Sling.  We got a Baby Bjorn when Lydia was born and have gotten terrific use out of it with both kids.  The BB is compact and easily fits in a suitcase with all the tons of other baby gear.  Vital for shipboard carrying of a not-so-little infant.

Onboard Nursery.  The staff at the nursery was just terrific — the first time we’d left Zeke at any form of daycare, so my wife was a bit nervous at first.  Do some careful scheduling of daycare so you can hit Palo’s for a great meal or just get a bit of quality time with your mate.