Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to wonder how I am supposed to entertain 2 small children on a 10-hour ferry crossing?

59 replies

Spearshake · 09/08/2016 13:06

We are booked onto a 10-hour ferry trip from England to France. Going is fine (night crossing) so hoping the kids will sleep. Coming back though, is a 10-hour daytime crossing and I am not sure I can handle 10 hours stuck on a boat with a 6 and 3 year old. Once we have 'explored the boat' (30 minutes), what else is there to do? Seriously? colouring books, reading books, I-spy, playing cards, erm...then what?

OP posts:
TwatbadgingCuntfuckery · 09/08/2016 13:53

I would pack

DIY 'eye spy' lists
twist up crayons and colouring books
a book to read
a blanket each (calming for stressed out kiddies to wrap up in a blanket)
some small cheap toys like a kaleidoscope, cup in ball, playing cards, travel guess who? or who is it? is the cheaper version.
Snacks or enough change to buy lots of snacks.

I would also plan to eat meals if poss that send them into a food coma. For mine its mash and sausages or pizza. Eat some carby goodness then shuffle them off to watch a film if available straight after food. Blankets you've brought will hopefully send them to sleep for a bit or at the very least they'll remain calm whilst they digest it Grin

whippetwoman · 09/08/2016 13:59

We went Caen to Portsmouth on the way home last year and my then 3 year old was exhausted after the ferry trip. Kids cinema, disco, shops, played on the ipad, went exploring and on trips to the decks. He fell asleep the minute I strapped him into his car seat before we'd even left the ferry. I was knackered too mind.

It was a long time but also kind of fun. I got him a toy from the shop which was a plastic ferry with two cars that you can roll on and off and he played for ages with it. He still plays with it now, a year later. We didn't even get a cabin, just found some normal seats. I'd do it tomorrow in heartbeat. So gutted we're not going away this year!!

DamaskRose · 09/08/2016 14:27

yy to 'tour' of ferry taking longer than 30 mins if you want it to. And you can re inspect it later on if necessary. It will be loads easier than train/plane/or automobile, even if 10hrs does sound daunting beforehand.

Original poster
Spearshake · 09/08/2016 14:28

Oh, wow! I feel SO much better about this now. I was seriously dreading it, to the point that it would have been on my mind the whole trip. I didn't realise they had all that stuff on the ferry. Mind you, I usually do Dover - Calais, and haven't done a long ferry trip since I was a kid. I like the idea of what to pack, TwatbadgingCuntfuckery (great name, btw) and also someone else mentioned wrapped-up treats, unwrapping as they go along. All super ideas. I was thinking of bringing a Bored Box in case we get shit weather in Brittany...but if the sun is shining and/or I keep them entertained in other ways while we are camping, I might only need to crack open the Bored Box on the ferry.

OP posts:
GeorgeTheThird · 09/08/2016 14:33

We always book a cabin too.

YelloDraw · 09/08/2016 14:43

Oh its easy on a ferry.

There will be a play room type thing, maybe a cinema room, shops to look at, food to eat, some looking at the sea to do, some sleeping - done.

firawla · 09/08/2016 14:46

I agree definitely get a day cabin, that way you can get some quiet and not worry about them being too loud in the crowded areas etc. For the cinema, as soon as you get on board go to customer services and book it. I say this because we have been on ferries where the decent options all sold out!

Jenijena · 09/08/2016 14:51

Get a cabin. The club cabins, which were only £35 in June, have cbeebies on the tv.
Get a children's meal - they come with a reasonable bag of goodies...
Enjoy the food in the self service restaurant, it's pretty good value and tasty.
Soft play, children's area, I've done a treasure hunt on them before.
If you're really lucky, dolphin spotting...

Hippywannabe · 09/08/2016 14:51

Are you doing Plymouth-Roscoff? we are this week :-)

Original poster
Spearshake · 09/08/2016 15:14

Hippywannabe - We're doing Plymouth - St Malo next week. I'm wondering if Roscoff might be closer to where I need to get to!

OP posts:
Original poster
Spearshake · 09/08/2016 15:15

Nope! St Malo is the port we want. We're heading to the south of Brittany.

OP posts:
Original poster
Spearshake · 09/08/2016 15:16

cbeebies? If I have cbeebies, my life will be sorted

OP posts:
LivingOnTheDancefloor · 09/08/2016 15:18

I'm well aware this is awful parenting really, and there's no way I'd ever treat her like this day to day
When traveling all rules can be bent Smile at least this is what we are doing here.

Tuiles · 09/08/2016 15:35

10 hours to Brittany - is it a rowing boat!!

We're going Portsmouth - Cherbourg soon and that's only 3 hours. Then 3.5 hour drive to Vannes.

TeenAndTween · 09/08/2016 15:38

Day cabin (much cheaper than a night cabin). You can dump your stuff and walk around more easily.

Lap top & DVDs work for us in the cabin. Then I get to read too.

Huldra · 09/08/2016 15:50

Day cabin, get one. You can leave your bags there and have a place to contain them if it gets too much. Tablet with downloaded programs and blue tooth speakers were invented for times like this.

I have older kids and leave them in the room watching films on their laptops whilst I have coffee on deck. Then go back for a snooze before the drive.
For the younger ones there is the cinema and usually some kids entertainment in one of the bar areas.

thecitydoc · 09/08/2016 16:15

I can never understand why people book things and then wonder how they are going to cope with the journey. Surely the sensible thing would have been to work this out firsts and then decide whether it was worth booking. My OH is a member of a face book page and there are frequent posts from people saying "I have booked a long weekend away in [insert any number of well known places] - any suggestions of things to do". These have included London and New York!! Not much help to OP but perhaps a thought for next time. I would avoid the problem and fly.

augustwashout · 09/08/2016 16:17

I got a bag of small party bag type toys from amazon (£10 for 100) and wrapped 18 of them up in tissue paper. I also got 2 slightly bigger toys and wrapped those too. I used them as surprises, bribes, boredom relief... they worked like a charm! Every 30 minutes I let her 'lucky dip' her hand in the bag of presents. If she wasn't doing what she'd been asked, she wouldn't get a present

^^ awful parenting? Confused Bloody genius parenting if you ask me, genius Grin great trick Grin

tinyterrors · 09/08/2016 16:43

We used to do both the Holyhead to Dublin and the Rotterdam to Hull 12 hour ferry crossing frequently when I was a child and it was long but preferable to a 5 hour drive then Calais to Dover crossing and then the drive from Dover to Yorkshire. Much easier to find something to do on a long ferry crossing than on a long drive.

A day cabin is a life saver. You can pack as much food as you want for the trip and take a blanket, toys, pens, paper etc and dump it all in the cabin instead of having to find somewhere to sit and keep an eye on it all.

I used to spend most of my time colouring my new book, playing in the play area, exploring the ship and playing on my gameboy. A tab or ipad would be even better if you put a couple of films on it and make sure to have a charger in your bag.

A pack (or three) of cards were always a winner for me. When I was little (2-4/5 ish) we'd play snap, memory games and card bingo, as i got older we started playing take two, last card, gin rummy, crib and I learned solitaire and the like.

I was always allowed something new from the shop when we were about half way if I behaved. I used to love the ferry crossing and was rarely bored even though it was just me and my parents and I'd made the trip loads of times. With two they'll likely entertain each other a fair bit and you'll be surprised how fast the time goes.

ghostyslovesheep · 09/08/2016 16:56

flying I always used to take a bag of tat from Poundland / Asda etc (20p crayons, 10p note pads, cheap dolls ...) and if they got lost it didn't matter but every 20 mins or so I'd pull another thing out of the bag to keep them occupied

thankfully they are older now so mainly pester me for crisps, pop and Heat magazine (and Alcohol - I'm looking at you 14 year old DD1 ...jog on for a while longer dear)

TheSconeOfStone · 09/08/2016 17:06

Which channel crossing takes 10 hours? We did Plymouth-Roscoff day crossing each way (my two would never sleep on a ferry) at 6 and 3. Booked a cabin for seasick DH to collapse in, watched magic show, watched Maleficant in the cinema, stood on deck, soft play, meal or two. Total doddle. Easiest journey we have done my bloody awkward, non-sleeping, hyper little darlings.

hellokittymania · 09/08/2016 18:05

Sticker and activity books, audiobooks, small puzzle if you have a day cabin

GinandJag · 09/08/2016 18:06

Get a cabin

BabyGanoush · 09/08/2016 18:12

Gosh, I fid lots of long haul flights when mine were this age, you become a sort of pro in the end Grin

Bring little toy cars (new ones, don't give them all at once), let them watch movies on i-pad, let them have snacks that take long to eat (popcorn, crackers), take it an hour at a time.

It'll be fine

Couldashouldawoulda · 09/08/2016 18:25

OMG - we did that crossing recently with two small DC. Younger than yours. We had a big cabin, which helped, but it was still unbelievably stressful. I wouldn't do it again until mine are older, tbh.

Swipe left for the next trending thread