All of our family is going on a cruise in a few months, but now I am not so sure that I want to go. We have a 3 year old and a child that will be one when we go. Both sets of grandparents are going so we will have plenty of help. Our families get along great. My problem is that my baby will be missing some shots the MMR ( which we were going to give him at 15-18 months) and his 15 and 18 month shots. He has had all of the previous ones on time. I really do not want to pump his little body full of shots all at once just to go on vacation. We are going to Grand Cayman, Jamacia and Mexico . My question is has anyone ever taken their baby on a cruise that age? Did you give them extra shots? How did it go? It is already paid for, but I am just nervous because he is too young to have finished all of his shots. I wish I would have thought of all these things before I booked it. We have gone on many cruises and I see babies on there all the time so I guess I didn't think about it. Any advice or experiences would be appreciated.
Thanks for taking the time to answer my question. I have decided to reschedule our trip for a year away so I can have all of his shots finished. He is not behind, but I have made sure he only received two shots at a time so I have put a lot of effort in spacing them out (so he does not get so many at one time) and I don't want to give him any extra before they are due. This will also let me give him his MMR at 2 years of age which I have decided I am more comfortable with. Thanks again.
Why not ask his pediatrician the best way to handle the shots? I don't think it will be a major deal. My guy (2.5) has had up to 3 shots and an oral vaccine on top of that at just his regular visits, his ped is a stickler for doing them on time regardless of how many he needs, might work out that way anyway for your son. He or she can figure out which ones to do before you leave and/or after you return.
Talk with your pediatrician. I suggest that delaying his shots until after the cruise would be OK. My daughter is having her baby's shots on a different time schedule with the pediatrician's approval. The traditional time schedule is arbitrary.
Your pediatrician would have the best answer based on your history.
Personally, I would say you are no more susceptible to stuff than you are here.
My twins first sailed when they were 10.5 months old. Depending on which cruiseline you go with, depends on whether you are eligible for childcare. There are one or two ships down in Florida that have a nursery. "most" others require you to be 3 years old to be in the "kids camp". RCL on some ships offers in room babysitting for a fee, but its hit or miss on its availability.
Anyway, regardless of whether you are in child care or not, cooties are everywhere on the ship...that's why they REALLY want you cleansing your hands all the time. Kiddos in diapers cannot get in the pools unless you are something like Disney with a special system. When you get off at port, you can book your cab to a beach, or book onboard for an excursion. Usually they take you to tame places. In cozumel, we just booked a private cab/van. Another time, we just caught a cab to the beach and had a nice time. Sometimes we just stay on the ship.
My girls are 3.5 and have had 3 cruises with a 4th coming up in December. Its a great way to vacation as a family! I say go for it (after asking your Doc).
My sister went on a cruise when her baby was 6 mo. old and he didn't get sick. So, Don't worry :-) Just wash your hands more than usual to prevent :-) Also, cruises hand sanitizers thru out the cruise to prevent illness.
Are you nursing? If you are the baby will have a lot of your immunities.
Don't give shots earlier than you are supposed to.
I think you will be alright - just be careful not to let the baby be around anyone who gets sick.
Dont worry about it. I delayed all my kids shots and they are fine. Your kids are too young for the childcare on the cruise so they wont be hanging out with all the germy kids all day.
The MMR shot at 15 months is the first shot of that vaccine, the other shots at that age are all boosters so he already ahs severel shots of those in his little body..
We took our daughter on a cruise when she was 26 months. Granted slightly older, but I'd say it's not something to be concerned with. You could at minimum, look at the State Dept website to see what they recommend in terms of vaccinations for varioius countries and mention to your pedi, but I'd guess you'll be totally fine.
