Cruise ships sure make it tempting to travel with children. Since Disney sailed into the competition last year, there's a renewed interest in the family dollar. Norwegian expanded its program to include toddlers, Princess dropped the minimum age to include infants, and Carnival expects 200,000 children to sail before the year ends. Wilson hobbles down the narrow hall, maintaining his balance with his elephant, Toothbrush, under his arm. The seasickness medicine stays in the suitcase all week.
Dinner brings our next worry.
We see on the menu that pate, salad, pheasant consomme, beef Wellington and a cheese course will arrive before Wilson's favorite - dessert. We know the number of kids on board is 200 among 1,500 total. The odds that our dining companions will also eat rice with their hands, as Wilson does, are against us. Her appreciation for Beanie Babies, Matchbox cars and macaroni and cheese saved us during Western Night, Caribbean Night, casual night and two formal-wear nights. It's a top complaint among parents on Internet cruise-review sites.