Children in bars on board

On the recent TA from NY to Southampton I noticed a number of parents bringing their children to the bars, especially late in the evening. One evening I saw a toddler up at 1am in one of the bars with parents who were not watching what he was doing at all.

One parent (could it be the same lady who shushed the book signers mentioned in another post?) gave 'the look' to a group of passengers enjoying themselves at one of the bars. It was evening and clearly her little girls were being disturbed by the adults (for whom bars are designed I would have thought).

I ask fellow travellers this: if it is illegal for children to be in bars on land, why is it seemingly acceptable for them to be in bars at sea?

Did I see underaged drinking (teens, not the toddlers)? You bet. Did I see the parents giving it to the children? Of course. But that's a whole different issue altogether. As is watching an on duty bartender guzzling from a champagne bottle on NYE and struggling to pour drinks for passengers.

But I digress.

Little kids shouldn't be in bars in my view and adults shouldn't be given 'the look' for allegedly disturbing a game of children hand clapping. The parents should know better.

But I should end by stating that I had the most wonderful time. It was just something that stood out and I know it irked a lot of others. Not for the fact the children were there per se, but moreso that some parents clearly didn't act appropriately and keep their young ones out of adult areas.

One parent (could it be the same lady who shushed the book signers mentioned in another post?) gave 'the look' to a group of passengers enjoying themselves at one of the bars. It was evening and clearly her little girls were being disturbed by the adults (for whom bars are designed I would have thought).

Yeah that's weird. Bars (especially in the evening) are for adults to have a drink and socialise (even loudly) and it's bizzare that this woman thought that the adults in the room should be quiet so that her kids could enjoy their game of patty-cake in complete/near silence.

I ask fellow travellers this: if it is illegal for children to be in bars on land, why is it seemingly acceptable for them to be in bars at sea?

Is it illegal? I've often seen children in bars and pubs, I thought that they just needed to have a parent or adult with them.

Did I see underaged drinking (teens, not the toddlers)? You bet. Did I see the parents giving it to the children? Of course. But that's a whole different issue altogether. As is watching an on duty bartender guzzling from a champagne bottle on NYE and struggling to pour drinks for passengers.

I'm glad the toddlers were not drinking. Toddlers have no self control when they're drunk. ;)

I don't think it's unreasonable for the bar staff to enjoy a few on new years eve, but if it's impacting on their ability to serve customers than that's a different story.

Little kids shouldn't be in bars in my view and adults shouldn't be given 'the look' for allegedly disturbing a game of children hand clapping. The parents should know better.

 

But I should end by stating that I had the most wonderful time. It was just something that stood out and I know it irked a lot of others. Not for the fact the children were there per se, but moreso that some parents clearly didn't act appropriately and keep their young ones out of adult areas.

Glad you had a good time. You should write a review.

Tell me where exactly should the children purchase their soft drinks? It's not as if the teen rooms serve them.

In my opinion it's fine for children to be in the bars. Adults shouldn't be getting drunk in the first place.

As for the underage drinking that is between the crew members who served them and the parents who let them.

I think that children under the age of 13 should be accompanied by an adult.

Tell me where exactly should the children purchase their soft drinks? It's not as if the teen rooms serve them.

 

In my opinion it's fine for children to be in the bars. Adults shouldn't be getting drunk in the first place.

 

As for the underage drinking that is between the crew members who served them and the parents who let them.

 

I think that children under the age of 13 should be accompanied by an adult.

There is a kids area for a reason. Granted, from what I heard and saw Cunard needs to cater more for teens (mainly during holiday periods) as they were clearly bored and roaming, some causing trouble (like banging on the ship's bell at midnight and running from crew - why they were unattended at this hour is beyond me).

Never said adults were getting drunk. Quite the opposite - people were just having a few drinks and laughs. That they apparently disturbed simeone's little kids playing patty-cake (thanks Whitemarsh, I forgot what it was called) is ludicrous and the parents should know better than to be treating a bar as a playground. Bars are for adults, not kids.

Incidentally, two men came to blows on the TA after one parent's screaming child in the Chart Room irritated some to their limit. The irritated man I believe told the other man to remove his child and the parent punched him. Or something like that. Security had to deal with them. Not sure what happened afterwards.

Nothing against kids btw and I actually blame the children's space organisers for failing to cater for their older younger passengers. Even on NYE they refused to put on a teen disco with soft drink. Pretty poor given there were near 100 kids (of which some 40 or so were teens).

Glad you had a good time. You should write a review.

I could, but would anyone actually want a full review of 19 days haha?

I completely agree with you about the patty-cake issue.

I think that teens/children should be given a chance in a bar. If they behave and don't disturb anyone they should be allowed to stay, if they are over the top, running around screaming or even drinking alcohol they should be asked to leave and be banned from all bars for the duration of the cruise.

My teen, who is 14 has many a time has sat alone at a bar and order at soft drink while playing on his iPad.

A for the getting drunk part, just like on land if you are drunk a bar will most likely stop serving you. It should be the same on ships, just because you are on a cruise it is no reason to be getting drunk.

Glad you enjoyed your cruise. To say QM2 is awesome is an understatement. :)

I completely agree with you about the patty-cake issue.

 

I think that teens/children should be given a chance in a bar. If they behave and don't disturb anyone they should be allowed to stay, if they are over the top, running around screaming or even drinking alcohol they should be asked to leave and be banned from all bars for the duration of the cruise.

 

My teen, who is 14 has many a time has sat alone at a bar and order at soft drink while playing on his iPad.

 

A for the getting drunk part, just like on land if you are drunk a bar will most likely stop serving you. It should be the same on ships, just because you are on a cruise it is no reason to be getting drunk.

 

Glad you enjoyed your cruise. To say QM2 is awesome is an understatement. :)

Fair point, but I really don't know where you are getting this idea that people were falling around drunk!

I could, but would anyone actually want a full review of 19 days haha?

Yes, of course. I did a blog of my last voyage (22 days) and a lot of people seemed to enjoy it. I'm sure they'd enjoy reading your review.

A word of warning though, in my blog I happen to mention that one of my table companions had the mussels and said it was "delicious". The usual suspects on here had to weigh in with their confected outrage over my supposed breach of confidence. :rolleyes: Happily the moderators deleted their ridiculous posts and the blog continued.

Actually, ignore the warning - it will make your review more interesting. :)

Incidentally, two men came to blows on the TA after one parent's screaming child in the Chart Room irritated some to their limit. The irritated man I believe told the other man to remove his child and the parent punched him. Or something like that. Security had to deal with them. Not sure what happened afterwards.

That's shocking! How terrible. It is a sad indictment of where society is going that this kind of incident occurred. I'd mention how inconsiderate it is to just sit there and let your kids scream the house down, but I don't relish the usual retorts of "it's their holiday and they just want to relax and enjoy themselves, who cares what their kids are doing" or "I never notice what other people's kids are doing".

Yes, of course. I did a blog of my last voyage (22 days) and a lot of people seemed to enjoy it. I'm sure they'd enjoy reading your review.

 

A word of warning though, in my blog I happen to mention that one of my table companions had the mussels and said it was "delicious". The usual suspects on here had to weigh in with their confected outrage over my supposed breach of confidence. :rolleyes: Happily the moderators deleted their ridiculous posts and the blog continued.

 

Actually, ignore the warning - it will make your review more interesting. :)

 

 

 

That's shocking! How terrible. It is a sad indictment of where society is going that this kind of incident occurred. I'd mention how inconsiderate it is to just sit there and let your kids scream the house down, but I don't relish the usual retorts of "it's their holiday and they just want to relax and enjoy themselves, who cares what their kids are doing" or "I never notice what other people's kids are doing".

Okay, I will write one. I don't hold back anyway - I speak / write my mind.

Yes, the blow is terrible. Admittedly, discounting the TA brought a lot of unusual people on board. There was a noticeable difference between the Christmas cruise and the TA that followed.

Still, it was a great trip all round. Guess I'll start writing that review.

I often have sympathy for very young children on "cruises", T/A's are a wee bit different and you'd expect to encounter more youngsters I guess. Children want to run around and play, which usually involves noise and the main deck or lounge areas on the more sedate ships are not conducive for this, certainly the pool areas are not. Children can get easily bored and have little freedom on ships & a careful choice of lines and ships to suit the whole family (not just the parents who tag their children along with them regardless) is often the solution. Hence the success of NCL, RCI, Disney et al.

Many passengers who actually like children do not appreciate the more robust/vociferous youngsters in close proximity on what is supposed to be a luxurious and relaxing experience. Other people's children do not lend themselves to that experience for the most part. Children are much better catered for on the family friendly lines and ships. It can be a dilemma if you are not expecting to be surrounded by children at every turn, such as school term times etc, but find that you are!

I have to say, when there are only a few children on a ship it has never created any disturbance or problem for us, at all. I agree with the view that a diverse age range adds to the overall experience - providing that the children are well behaved. Most are, sadly some are not - that becomes the issue, not the general but the particular.

Thus, Cunard - and others such as HAL & Celebrity - ought to have the courage to do what P & O have done and consider introducing adult only ships. I think they set the age limit at either 16 or 18, can't recall. That may be a tad high in my view . The concerns I had with P & O were the overtly British nature/style and the mediocre catering outside the speciality restaurants, which tend to be excellent in my experience on Arcadia. The lack of children is tempered by the presence of lounger hogging adults, of course, but generally - it works pretty well.

If just 1 of QV or QE were adult only I'm guessing there would be plenty of demand.

...Incidentally, two men came to blows on the TA after one parent's screaming child in the Chart Room irritated some to their limit...

Absolutely disgraceful! Didn't they know that fighting is permitted only in the laundrette?

:D:D:D

J

Absolutely disgraceful! Didn't they know that fighting is permitted only in the laundrette?

 

:D:D:D

 

J

Haha! Well, you could hardly move in the laundrettes! So busy and half the machines were out of service.

But truly, everyone I ran into in the laundry areas were perfectly lovely and good humoured.

I often have sympathy for very young children on "cruises", T/A's are a wee bit different and you'd expect to encounter more youngsters I guess. Children want to run around and play, which usually involves noise and the main deck or lounge areas on the more sedate ships are not conducive for this, certainly the pool areas are not. Children can get easily bored and have little freedom on ships & a careful choice of lines and ships to suit the whole family (not just the parents who tag their children along with them regardless) is often the solution. Hence the success of NCL, RCI, Disney et al.

 

Many passengers who actually like children do not appreciate the more robust/vociferous youngsters in close proximity on what is supposed to be a luxurious and relaxing experience. Other people's children do not lend themselves to that experience for the most part. Children are much better catered for on the family friendly lines and ships. It can be a dilemma if you are not expecting to be surrounded by children at every turn, such as school term times etc, but find that you are!

 

I have to say, when there are only a few children on a ship it has never created any disturbance or problem for us, at all. I agree with the view that a diverse age range adds to the overall experience - providing that the children are well behaved. Most are, sadly some are not - that becomes the issue, not the general but the particular.

 

Thus, Cunard - and others such as HAL & Celebrity - ought to have the courage to do what P & O have done and consider introducing adult only ships. I think they set the age limit at either 16 or 18, can't recall. That may be a tad high in my view . The concerns I had with P & O were the overtly British nature/style and the mediocre catering outside the speciality restaurants, which tend to be excellent in my experience on Arcadia. The lack of children is tempered by the presence of lounger hogging adults, of course, but generally - it works pretty well.

 

If just 1 of QV or QE were adult only I'm guessing there would be plenty of demand.

I have no issues with teenagers being on board, but the line really should organise more things for them to do. They cater for the really little ones but between 13-17 there is nothing to do. The teens were bored and some resorted to silly behaviour.

I don't blame the teens, I blame the hopeless people in charge of deciding that teens can occupy themselves without hassling others passengers.

But I must say, the Commodore Club is no place for patty-cake. Truly, I sometimes wonder whether people should have to pass a sensibility test to become parents!

Okay, I will write one. I don't hold back anyway - I speak / write my mind.

 

Yes, the blow is terrible. Admittedly, discounting the TA brought a lot of unusual people on board. There was a noticeable difference between the Christmas cruise and the TA that followed.

 

Still, it was a great trip all round. Guess I'll start writing that review.

Ben:

That was my response that got lost--I was going to encourage you to please write about your journey. I remain in admiration for your going solo on such a grand adventure. I know you enjoyed your time in NYC as well. I am sure you have some great stories to tell. The added bonus is that when you reach a certain age, you will not have to rely on your fading memory.

Jeanne

When aboard a cruise ship do we have to comply with the laws of the land that apply to whatever nation the ship is registered with? I ask this because licensing laws regarding the consumption of alcohol?

I have found that complaining in a bar when folks have had a 'bit' to drink might not be the most sensible of acts and might not get the results that were intended.

It looks like we have pre-judged the poor complainant in the library and now she is responsible for this latest saga??

Children tend to behave in a manner that their parents believe is acceptable so I might suggest complaining to the parents about rowdy behaviour could see a response that is not the one we were after??

I need my beauty sleep so will not be in the bar at these unearthly hours :D

Ben:

 

That was my response that got lost--I was going to encourage you to please write about your journey. I remain in admiration for your going solo on such a grand adventure. I know you enjoyed your time in NYC as well. I am sure you have some great stories to tell. The added bonus is that when you reach a certain age, you will not have to rely on your fading memory.

 

Jeanne

Just checked in to the Ritz in London. Only 3 days til I fly home. I'm actually tired and ready to return to Oz.

I guess I should write a review, now that you and Whitemarsh have insisted haha.

Fair point, but I really don't know where you are getting this idea that people were falling around drunk!

I mean in general, I am not saying it happened in this case. Children shouldn't be around if their is someone who is.

I have no issues with teenagers being on board, but the line really should organise more things for them to do. They cater for the really little ones but between 13-17 there is nothing to do. The teens were bored and some resorted to silly behaviour.

 

I don't blame the teens, I blame the hopeless people in charge of deciding that teens can occupy themselves without hassling others passengers.

 

But I must say, the Commodore Club is no place for patty-cake. Truly, I sometimes wonder whether people should have to pass a sensibility test to become parents!

If only Cruise Critic had a "like" button such as the one on FaceBook :)

When aboard a cruise ship do we have to comply with the laws of the land that apply to whatever nation the ship is registered with? I ask this because licensing laws regarding the consumption of alcohol?

 

I have found that complaining in a bar when folks have had a 'bit' to drink might not be the most sensible of acts and might not get the results that were intended.

 

It looks like we have pre-judged the poor complainant in the library and now she is responsible for this latest saga??

 

Children tend to behave in a manner that their parents believe is acceptable so I might suggest complaining to the parents about rowdy behaviour could see a response that is not the one we were after??

 

I need my beauty sleep so will not be in the bar at these unearthly hours :D

That's true! We haven't experienced ill-behaved children on cruises, probably because we generally travel when school is in session.

But I seem to cross paths with them just about anywhere else I go. (ever spend 8 hours on a plane with a brat kicking your seat back???) I have given up trying to complain to a parent. It's just too risky. Obnoxious/rude kids generally have obnoxious/rude parents. If you're lucky, all you get is a pathetic "what can I do about it?" shrug. And it goes downhill from there from a "how dare you complain about my child!" rant to getting punched like the passenger in the Chart Room.

That's true! We haven't experienced ill-behaved children on cruises, probably because we generally travel when school is in session.

 

But I seem to cross paths with them just about anywhere else I go. (ever spend 8 hours on a plane with a brat kicking your seat back???) I have given up trying to complain to a parent. It's just too risky. Obnoxious/rude kids generally have obnoxious/rude parents. If you're lucky, all you get is a pathetic "what can I do about it?" shrug. And it goes downhill from there from a "how dare you complain about my child!" rant to getting punched like the passenger in the Chart Room.

There is something they can do: give the great a swift kick up the bum. I mean this figuratively of course.

Too many do gooders these days though. I remember a hippy looking young female trying to make a citizens arrest on a mother who lightly smacked her son for squealing in the shopping centre. Loved the reaction though, when the mother told her to bugger off and if she touched her shed have her for assault. A group of older shoppers all cheered the mother and the hippy (I should say trendy, new aged, Labor - that's democrat for you Americans - voting) then slinked off.

But yes, I agree it's hard to speak up these days the way some people carry on.

That's true! We haven't experienced ill-behaved children on cruises, probably because we generally travel when school is in session. quote]

 

We've travelled with our kids on QM2 since they were, um, 6 and 9. So, on 13 trips we've seen/interacted with a lot of the kids aboard in addition to seeing them around the ship, etc.

 

For the most part, I'd say the kids aboard are very well-behaved and pleasant to be around. And I think most pax enjoy having the "good" kids around. (Once on the elevator a few years ago, when my son asked a lady which floor she wanted, she nearly hugged him she was so pleased with the "kindness". Her husband - who must have been reminded of jacketed elevator operators when he was younger - suggested my son should trade his tuxedo in for an elevator jacket and "accept tips".

 

(Does anyone remember what those jackets are called?)

 

On this last Christmas/NYE trip, though, I saw my first case of kids running through the ship shouting like red indians with no parental supervision or any manners/self-control previously taught by the parents.

 

That said, the shorter "holiday" trips seem to feature a larger number of unpleasant adult pax as well. We just figure they're par for the course and enjoy the overwhelmingly wonderful rest of the course.

 

On this last trip, we did make sure to send our 15-year-old son to do the laundry, though. No sense in exposing ourselves to the possibility of laundry-room violence! ;)

 

On this last Christmas/NYE trip, though, I saw my first case of kids running through the ship shouting like red indians with no parental supervision or any manners/self-control previously taught by the parents.

 

 

On New Year's Eve I saw the sadest thing on this cruise. It was about 12:45am and I went into G32 after the Queen's Room slowed down. We entered from the starbord side closeset to the bar and there sitting along the bankette was a boy about 9 years old. He was sitting alone, no one else was close by. He stayed there for quite awhile by himself, he wasn't bothering anyone, but he just looked very bored.

I never did see any adults around him and I don't know what happened or why he was even in G32. Staff were posted at the entrance to check for minors but I don't know how this little boy got there. The bar was fully staffed that night becuase it was New Year Eve and it was very busy.

I mean in general, I am not saying it happened in this case. Children shouldn't be around if their is someone who is.

That's exactly right, which is the very reason young children have no business being in bars in the evening. On the other side, this Christmas trip had a lot more children than usual and the adults traveling without children should be able to have an adult only experience in the lounges.

I did notice the younger ones many times being escorted around the ship on various adventures by the children's staff. I don't know for sure, but they all seemed to be having a good time and the staff seemed to be very good with them so I do credit Cunard with providing quality time for their young passengers.

That's true! We haven't experienced ill-behaved children on cruises, probably because we generally travel when school is in session.

 

But I seem to cross paths with them just about anywhere else I go. (ever spend 8 hours on a plane with a brat kicking your seat back???) I have given up trying to complain to a parent. It's just too risky. Obnoxious/rude kids generally have obnoxious/rude parents. If you're lucky, all you get is a pathetic "what can I do about it?" shrug. And it goes downhill from there from a "how dare you complain about my child!" rant to getting punched like the passenger in the Chart Room.

We were never taken to bars / restaurants when we were young. These places were for adults only. If we had visitors to our house, we were told to sit quietly and read a book and only speak when spoken to - and that's what we did. If we were bored, we weren't bad mannered enough to say so, but generally, we were perfectly content.

Sadly, some children these days need to be constantly entertained or they become bored very quickly and they seem incapable of devising constructive ways of entertaining themselves without it involving expensive electronic equipment. Children throughout time have always wanted to mimic their parents and will always want to try smoking and drinking if their parents do it in front of them - it's natural and it's how children learn. Bad behaviour from children will often relate to them observing adults behaving badly, so it's up to us adults to set a good example to our and other peoples children.

As others have said, I have no problem with well behaved children, wherever they might be. Unfortunately, we have rarely been able to visit a pub, restaurant, hotel, theatre or shop in recent years without having young ones either running around or yelling the place down. Just when you feel like saying something, you see the parents or parent and decide that you either don't want to be thumped or that the message will fail to penetrate.