Never travelled with kids

[njcruiser357]

Question:

 

My husband and I have been on 1 cruise - we would love to take our kids, but we need some help with rooms. Should we get a suite? 2 rooms or what? It is cheaper to put all 4 in one room, but what cabin category is suitable for that? Our kids are 11 and 7

 

Thanks for the help

 

Jackie

[skyview851]

4 people using 1 bathroom requires a little planning, but it can be done. You didn't specify what line you will be sailing....suites & family rooms vary from line to line. We have used 2 connecting standard cabins before & that worked well, and is sometimes less expensive than a suite, and you have the benefit of 2 baths.

[ineedacruise]

There is a wide range of options available to you.

 

You can go with one cabin that has upper and lower births. Down fall, one bathroom and as the kids get older the cabins get smaller. Still, if its the only way you can afford to cruise, do it!!

 

An ocean view, with a cabin across the hall. You may not be as comfortable with the kids across the hall from you, but you get two bathrooms and the phones are always available.

Connecting cabins, this may be a good option but a bit more money than across the hall. Still two bathrooms, plenty of sleeping room, privacy, but you can have a door open between you.

or

A suite, a room with more floor space and a bigger bathroom.

 

Search out prices for different cabins and options, and find what works best for you. We have done an inside, an ocean view twice, and are now booked in a suite.

[serene56]

We have done 5 to a cabin on Carnival Sensation. It was do-able since I was out to save some money and we did save over 700 dollars by booking us all into one cabin. You diodnt state what lines you will be interested in looking at - summer time being premium time. By looking at the cost by puttin all 4 to a cabin (3rd and 4th passenger does get a smaller rate) then compare it to putting 2 people in two cabins may only be a difference of 200.00 to get the extra cabin.

I like cruising a lot-- it is not a once in a life time opportunity for me as it is for some people. so I go the cheapest way possible,

[emmysmom]

We did a mini-suite last year with our kids - at the time were 8 and 12. It worked great - alittle crowded when their beds were out in the evening. We are doing the same on this years cruise!

[njcruiser357]

We haven't booked anything yet. Is there a cruise line that is best? We enjoyed the golden princess last year a lot - we had a balcony room - which was awesome, but I can't imagine 4 of us in there. How do you know if there are upper and lower berths?

 

Thanks again!!

[emmysmom]

Mini-suites on the Diamond have a sofa that folds out into a bed and one bed that pulls down from the ceiling. My son loved sleeping up there. They really enjoyed having their own space and TV!

[serene56]

Im sure the cabin you had on the Princess only held two people. THe cabin you book next will hold 4 = Carnival has bigger cabins. Inside and oceanviews are 185 sq feet.

 

I would look at prices to see which lines I may be interested in. If ther is a huge price difference between two cruises I get rid of the higher one.

[cruisinqt]

We always cruise with our children ages 5 and 7. And we've always booked an inside because it's cheaper and allows us to have 2 cruises a year instead of just one.;)

 

With an inside, most cruise lines have upper bunk beds that pull out from the wall. So the only time they're seen or in the way is at night time when you're sleeping. Otherwise, it's pushed back into the wall and you have an entire basic inside cabin. The cabins are small, but doable. The bathroom is no problem since the kids both bath at night time before they go to bed, and my husband baths quite early since he's used to getting up really early in the morning. And I bath around 8 - 9 am after he's done and gone. So the bathroom has never been a problem for us.:)

 

On both Carnival and RCI there is a separate make-up/vanity area that's apart from the bathroom which helps me to free up the bathroom for the rest of the family while getting ready for dinner. Overall, the insides work for our family of 4 quite well, but we are pretty easy going and are happy knowing that it will allow us an extra cruise.:D Plus, if the bathroom space is a major issue for you, you can always use the showers in the spa area. My husband does that often since he is 6'6" and the spa showers are much larger than the cabin showers.

 

An inside cabin is doable, but a little cramped. But since we are out and about the ship almost the entire time and use our cabin only to sleep in, it works for us. If money is not an issue for you, then by all means, book a suite. But if money is an issue for you, an inside cabin will work for a family of 4. It works for us.:)

[Marge M]

We are a family of 4 (15 yr son, 10 yr daughter) and we booked 2 insides that were beside each other. It only cost about $200 more to get the extra cabin. We figured the extra space and extra bathroom were worth it, especially on formal nights when we were all trying to get ready at the same time. My husband roomed with our son, and I roomed with our daughter. If our kids were the same sex, they probably would have shared a room, but it worked out okay. We did go to the purser's desk and get extra keys for each room, that way my husband and I could get into each other's room.

[merela]

but we have 2 kids, 3 and 5. I feel safer with an inside cabin and we have 4 in a room. We still all sleep together, so we put the beds together and 4 of us sleep in one bed. DH is 5'9" so this sleeping arrangement is doable. Anyone over 6' will feel this arrangement slightly cramped. DH can actually go up to the bunk and sleep there, but in high seas, it can feel kind of dizzy sleeping up there, so he prefers to sleep with us. The bunk beds are good and fun for kids 10 and up, especially if they don't have bunk beds at home.

 

We do take advantage of the 3rd and 4th passenger rates, usually comes at about 50% or less of the adult rate.

 

When our kids are in their teens, I'm not sure whether we would put them in another room. But we usually travel with my sister and her family, so perhaps we'll let the 4 kids have 1 room when they are older and the adults have their own rooms. I wouldn't feel comfortable for the kids to be in their own room until they are in their mid-teens.

 

Of course, if your children are used to their own rooms and you want the privacy of your own room and you can afford the extra cost, get 2 rooms. 2 inside cabins (and sometimes one inside cabin and one outside cabin) will always be cheaper than a suite. Just compare the prices of different rooms once you decide on a ship and itinerary.

 

If you look at the Princess brochures, you'll find ship's layout of cabins. The cabins which will accommodate 3 or 4 people are indicated by red or black dot (can't remember which). The 4-people cabins go really quickly, but once booked, you are unlikely to get upgraded ever if you have a 4-people cabin. All the ships are booked at full capacity these days, so the chance of upgrades are not very good.

 

I prefer Princess because we always enjoy the food on board. The kids program is not too bad. I've heard better kids' programs on the Carnival and RCCL for older kids (early teens and teens), but Carnival and RCCL's 3rd and 4th passenger rates aren't as good as the rates offered by Princess usually.

You just have to look around and find a price range that's comfortable to you.

HTH.

[cruzinrn]

We haven't booked anything yet. Is there a cruise line that is best? We enjoyed the golden princess last year a lot - we had a balcony room - which was awesome, but I can't imagine 4 of us in there. How do you know if there are upper and lower berths?

 

Thanks again!!

 

We have had 4 to a cabin with upper and lower berths and have had cabins where there weren't any uppers, they would just turn the sitting area couch into a double bed nightly.

[busybusybusy]

A minisuite on the Golden Princess worked out great for us last summer with our two kids, ages 10 and 15. The only hard part was getting out on the balcony once the sofa was pulled out. It was manageable, just took some reorganizing. It was much cheaper than 2 connecting cabins.

 

Have a wonderful time!:D

[cbr47]

Question:

 

My husband and I have been on 1 cruise - we would love to take our kids, but we need some help with rooms. Should we get a suite? 2 rooms or what? It is cheaper to put all 4 in one room, but what cabin category is suitable for that? Our kids are 11 and 7

 

Thanks for the help

 

Jackie

 

Our daughters are 9 and 11 and we've cruised many times with them. We always book an outside cabin for the 4 of us. It does seem to be getting a bit cramped, as they've gotten older, but it's not terrible. Bathroom use isn't a problem as we, too, all use the shower at different times. The 3rd and 4th bed is usually a berth off the upper walls, which the kids really enjoy. We like outside cabins because we like to see daylight and the kids like to watch the sea when they get up in the morning. We ALWAYS shop around for our cruise prices and research cruiselines, ships and cabin sizes. We know others who book 2 cabins for themselves and kids, with mom rooming with one and dad rooming with another. It's really personal preference. Take the kids and book what you can afford to. But enjoy!

[AmyBeth68]

A minisuite on the Golden Princess worked out great for us last summer with our two kids, ages 10 and 15. The only hard part was getting out on the balcony once the sofa was pulled out. It was manageable, just took some reorganizing. It was much cheaper than 2 connecting cabins.

 

Have a wonderful time!:D

 

We love the minis on the Princess Grand class ships. We have cruised twice with our children starting when our youngest was 3 and LOVE those minisuites. They are really quite spacious and now we're spoiled.

 

Unfortunately we were unable to book a mini for our upcoming cruise so we opted for a standard balcony and an inside across the hall. I'd prefer if we were all together, but this does give us an extra bathroom.

[wisefamily4]

We have a Cat 11 suite for our next trip on carnival pride. Our boys are 6 & 7 and we wouldn't want them across the hall until they're a little older. There are combo cabins available on some of the carnival ships that have a balcony cabin with an ajoining inside cabin at the front of the ship. We may try this next time. Either way (suite or combo), it has to have the balcony.:)

When the boys are old enough to share a cabin across the hall from us, we will be sailing in an aft wraparound - something to look forward to.

 

 

Question:

 

My husband and I have been on 1 cruise - we would love to take our kids, but we need some help with rooms. Should we get a suite? 2 rooms or what? It is cheaper to put all 4 in one room, but what cabin category is suitable for that? Our kids are 11 and 7

 

Thanks for the help

 

Jackie

[whale-watcher]

We have 3 kids, so in the past we have always needed 2 rooms (usually side-by-side balcony cabins, with the partition open between the balconies). This fall we are trying a Royal Family Suite on the Enchantment of the seas -- anyone with previous experience with one of these roome?

[danem]

I've never been on a cruise, but we booked a family oceanview stateroom on Royal carribean. It looks great!

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/cabinclass/cabinTypes/cabinType/home.do;jsessionid=0000qQOrKBx7joIYHw803reSlGc:v29bc4qk?br=R&cabincls=O&cabinType=FF

[Cruisin' Chick]

We get the inside cabin too. Just have one child (now 7) but can't see putting one that age in another cabin, even with the 11yr old looking after him/her. The Princess cabin with the bunk beds works fine. While we are at dinner, the room steward puts down the upper bed from the wall. Girl always wants the upper bunk.

[boatbunny]

We also have 2 young children, ages 5 and 8. We are about to take our third cruise with RCCL (Explorer this time, Adventure last cruise). We were upgraded last time to a Junior Suite, and we booked that same room this trip. The room was very large, plenty of room to move around and the bathroom is huge. We actually had a handicap room on AOS, which meant there was no tub in the bathroom. This made it so easy to give the kids showers at the same time.

 

This room also has a walk in closet with tons of hanging space and shelves. It was nice because there was never any luggage in our way of moving around. There were 2 extra wide twin beds put together for a large bed, and a full size pull out couch.

 

Also, the balcony was heaven. We'd come back to the room after the 9 pm show, put the kids to bed, and out onto the balcony to enjoy the ocean passing by or reading or...... It gave us the extra space we needed. Of course, we lectured the kids about never going out onto the balcony without one of us, and they had no problems.

 

This cabin is actually a good deal for a family of 4, it is a little less expensive than the family suite, and really does have a lot of room if your kids are still young. If they were older, I'd go for the family suite.

 

Have a great trip!

 

PS If you are undecided about which cruise line, I can't say enough about how accomodating RCCL is with young kids and the Adventure Ocean program is awesome. My kids are requesting to go every night on this trip!

[shrimp0]

I too must say that RCCL for families is the greatest!!!! (especially on a Voyager Class ship).

 

One helpful hint... we are not used to only having one bathroom... I usually asked my son if he had to go before either of us was going to use the bathroom in the morning. Well, one morning he decides he HAS TO GO NOW.... after my husband just went in. Here is the hint... we had a room that was on deck 6 near the stairs.... all we had to do was go down the hall and right down the stairs to the public bathroom on deck 5!!!!! Know where the public facilities are ... and if you can... get a cabin nearby!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[whale-watcher]

Glad to hear the good reviews of RCCL for kids. One of the reasons we picked the Enchantment is the bungee trampoline that will be added in the lengthening/refurbishment. Anyone know what the minimal age is for the trampoline (or the rock wall, for that matter)?

Thanks!

[stacieps]

We are also a family of 4 (kids now 5, 7). We've cruised Canrival twice with our kids, once with an OV cabin and once with a balcony. Of course we have been spoiled with the balcony and have booked one for our Nov. cruise. We found the space adequate and didn't have any problems. One tip that I used and found to be great was the over-the-door shoe holder - my son (5) loves to play with action figures and small toys, the shoe holder was great for holding all of that stuff in addition to the sunscreen, lotions, etc. The cabin probably would have felt too small if we were stepping on toys all the time!

[whale-watcher]

shoe holder sounds like a great idea. My 6yo was into ocean-related toys, and there was nothing worse than "finding nemo" with your bare foot in the middle of the night!

[boatbunny]

We were just at a vacation expo with RCCL reps there and they also had a small rock climbing wall set up for kids to try. I asked what the min age on the ship was for rock climbing and was surprised to find out it is only 6 years old. We were kind of bummed because last cruise my daughter was 6 and she loves to climb on the rock walls. So, she is so excited to do it on this trip.

 

Rep said they will ask you if the child has ever tried it before, but that will not stop them from participating, just for the guide to know the level of experience!

 

Have fun