Child-care at CP hotels

Hi! I'm more of a lurker for info rather than a poster, but here goes. My search on this topic came up short.

I read on the CP website that child-care is available at the CP hotels. This is what it says and the link where I found it:

"Baby-sitting services are available for guests of our hotels only. Service may be requested at the Hotel Services Desk in the Hotel Lobby. Availability is not guaranteed."

http://www.cedarpoint.com/public/park/kids/trip_tips.cfm

Has anyone used this service? Thoughts? Thanks for your input.

Way back in my day the child care was typically a seasonal employee who had time off and would be able to do it. Back then I don't recall it being requested very often. As a parent today I'm not sure I would have utilized the service...not to disparage the Point or it's staff members. I'm just very particular about who watches the kids.

Perhaps they have changed the service over the years (particularly as the insurance companies have clamped down on everything else). For instance, maybe they require potential "sitters" to take a basic first aid course.

Best advice is to call the resort and ask.

I'm with Chief. We're bringing our 18-month old with us this year...I'd much rather push her around and use parent-swap then utilize a service like this. Only mentioning it in case you had not heard of the parent-swap feature available at CP...

I'm a single mom, my kids are 5 and 15. This is the first year I will be taking the young one and thought the child-care option might work for a few hours so I could get some coaster ride time in. If the Parent Swap program would allow for my 15 year old to act as the other responsible party, that would work too. From what I read, it didn't specify an age that the other "parent" had to be. We're planning 4-5 trips this year, so if I'm not able to ride coasters on a few of the trips, that is fine...I can wait until the trips where the younger one isn't with us.Thanks guys.

I would think that the 15 year old would qualify...but, not knowing your 15 year old, isnt that free childcare? Or maybe that's what you meant...

How fun, though. I cannot wait until our daughter is just a bit older (like your 5 year old) to watch her and ride with her on Jr. Gemini, etc...

My son, the 15 year old has agreed that he will help with the little one but to be honest, he's not too thrilled about taking time away from his ride time.

I talked to a Katie Woopser (sp?), a supervisor at Hotel Breakers and she gave me some details on the services they offer:
1. Babysitters are CP employees.
2. The rate of service is determined by the parent using the service.
3. Parent signs waiver for services.
4. The parent determines and documents where the babysitter is allowed to take the child(ren) (ie stay in parent hotel room only, go to the arcade, etc). The parent can also bring the sitter into the park with them and have the sitter take the child(ren) to areas of the park specified by the parent.
5. Availability is not guaranteed. It is recommended to call the hotel you are staying at a few days before your visit to make arrangements.

I'm not sure if this is something I will do or not. Like others have stated, I'm hesitant on leaving my child with a stranger. But the information is handy to have, nonetheless.

Sounds like it hasn't changed much...though I don't remember the waiver.

I'm not familiar with Ohio laws anymore but I suspect the park would have to carry a child care license (and certainly insurance for that purpose) if they offered an official babysitting service. (IE, drop off at a particular place to leave the kid for a portion of the day or evening.)

If the company couldn't sell the rooms without offering something more substantial then it probably would have been done already.