Ahoy, Kim!
The
youth programming aboard Disney Cruise Line is fantastic no matter which ship you are on! I'm excited for your sailor to experience them on your upcoming vacation.
The best thing to do to become familiar with the Oceaneer Club and
Oceaneer Lab is to read the detailed descriptions on the Disney Cruise Line website because there are some differences depending on which ship you are sailing on. For example, the Disney Magic is the only ship with the Mickey Mouse Club area while the Disney Dream is the only ship with the Disney Infinity Game Room. Both the club and lab offer some imaginatively themed areas that your sailor can explore when he/she is checked in. They are connected, so it's not uncommon for kids to go back and forth, and the counselors are there to help if needed. This is a great option because both areas will offer planned activities so it works out to just move to the other space to participate. The only time a child cannot go back and forth is when one area offers "Open House" hours. If a child is checked in and does not have the self-check privilege, he/she must stay in the area offering secured programming at that particular time. This is always noted in the cruise newsletter.
All kids ages 3-12 are welcome to participate, but some activities will be geared more for ages 3-7 and others for 8-12. If you aren't sure, I always recommend asking the youth counselors. The lab often offers hands-on experiments like Anyone Can Cook and Super Sloppy Science while the club may offer Parachute Games and Little Einstein's Adventure to give yon an idea.
Once you are on the ship, check out the spaces together the first afternoon and pay attention to your cruise newsletter for the list of activities. Have fun!
Nancy