teachesfirst

3 hours ago, gigianne said:

I would like to be on your cruise, I think you and your group are going to liven things up.  I bet other passengers disembark the ship having had the best times of their lives because of you.  The Zuiderdam is a good pick for you - fabulous Captains and crew!  Come back to this thread after your cruise and let us know what a fabulous time you all had!

Its funny you say that.  We have been traveling together since our children met at 3 and 6 months.  They are 23 now.  We have been going to the same hotel for Memorial Day since they were 2.  So many guests have come up to us and said that they come back every year just to hang out with us because we are so much fun.  :)  

I'm excited now.  I think I might have had a wrong first impression.  Our group would have probably liked the rock climbing and flo riders, but we can make our own fun too.  

2 hours ago, Roz said:

 

 

I think you have the wrong impression of HAL cruises.  And by the way, we "older" passengers like to have fun too.

 

Roz

Yeah -- that is what I was wondering.  That is why I asked if I made a mistake.  I normally would have looked carefully at the ships, but to be honest, I didn't think about it because the dates worked with our limited schedules.  

And then I started reading all of these comments about HAL being so sophisticated and reserved and wondered if I made a mistake,  

And by the way -- I'm one of the "older" passengers. LOL  And one of our group is celegrating the 80th brithday and we ALL want to be like her when we grown up!  🙂 Thanks for all the input. 

The boys will be fine.  I just know they would have preferred shorts.  Dressed up for them is usually shorts and a polo with deck shoes.  They'll tough it out though - lol 

Dinner is where we all meet up.  I'm hoping we can get two tables of 10.  We all do our own thing during the day and meet up for dinner.  

My worries have be relieved...thanks for all the input! 

1 hour ago, Roz said:

 

What will you be doing that would ruin it for other passengers? Is your group loud and obnoxious?

 

Roz 

Well - -we are a group of 20.  Not obnoxious, but sometimes silly.  We are always considerate - which is why I'm bringing it up.  There were just so many descriptors of "quiet" "calm" "laid back" "older crowd" etc. that I was a bit worried.  

But I'm over it.  We are going to have a blast!  

We've already booked so there is no changing now.  We are a big enough group (and we travel together a lot) so we know how to make our own fun.  

I just want a balance of us having a good time, and other passengers not thinking we are ruining it for them.  

OK -- well....fun it is!  We will make it fun!  Excited to try a new cruise line!  I'll be here regularly until the cruise.  Thanks everyone! 

We will be on the Zuiderdam (sp?).  

We are a fun group - so I know we will make it fun.  It is just a lot of the posts on here talk about how low key, sophisticted, etc.  The adults will appreciate the better quality dining, but I just want the kids to feel comfortable.  I'd hate for people to resent having them around, especially since it is a group of 10.  Like I said, they are good kids, but I want everyone to have lots of fun!  We are all a bit silly at times.  

I used to participate on these boards YEARS ago, but we took a break from cruising and took other types of vacations. 

However, a good deal popped up over New Years that covered a 25th Anniversary and a 80th birthday so a group of us (10 adults age 50-80 and 10 kids age 16-23) are going on a cruise out of Ft. Lauderdale hitting Half Moon Cay, Turks and Caicos, Amber Cove and Key West.  

We liked the dates, price and these are new ports for us (except Key West - we are all FL residents) so we booked quickly.  I've never cruised HAL before.  

And now I'm worried.  We are a lively group -- even the adults.  I'm concerned that it is going to be too stuffy and not enough fun especially for the 16-20 year olds.  I was told they could not going into the club at night even if they don't drink.  These are all college kids except for the 16 and 17 year old.  What are they going to do on the ship?  They are too old for a kids camp and too young to hang with the adults which they are used to doing. I'm afraid everything is going to be too low key.  

I also didn't check the dress code.  We would all prefer not to dress up for dinner.  We are FL residents and used to shorts/capris and nice top even for nice restaurants.  I know the boys in particular are not going to want to wear pants.  

Did we pick the wrong cruise line for our group?  Thoughts? Ideas or tips?  Too late to back out now.  Everyone is very excited and I still like our ports.  These are good kids, but I want it to be fun for them as well.