Advice for Trip with Teens/Young Adults

[cari110]

My husband and I are traveling with our daughters (18 and 20) and their boyfriends (19 and 22) in June...we will be in Naples, Rome and Livorno 3 days in a row...we have booked private tours with Rome in Limo for each port (8 hours each) but the teens/young adults are saying that they don't want to do 3 days in a row of "sightseeing"...I hate to think of visiting Italy and not seeing it all, but am thinking of dropping one of the days to give the teens a rest day....I think they are more excited to stay up late and "dance the night away" on the cruise ship...any suggestions of the 3 which would be the one to drop? I was thinking of Livorno - we are scheduled to see Pisa and Florence that day...Any advice would be appreciated! We are not a family that does too much of the museums, history, etc...my girls are more into shopping and looking at beautiful sights, eating good food...but I am keeping in mind that we don't have a lot of $ to spend shopping!!!

[cruisemom42]

Wow, this is a tough one. I must have been a very geeky teen/young adult, because I enjoyed seeing all of these sites with my parents as a HS senior....:o

 

I would not drop Rome, first thing. So that leaves Naples and Florence/Pisa. I don't know what you are tentatively planing with RIL for those two days, but from the sound of your group, I'd vote for Florence/Pisa rather than Naples.... for the following reasons:

 

Florence has some fun shopping opportunities in the markets, and it's a cool place to just wander. You don't have to go in a lot of museums. (Although I suggest you just "pop in" to see Michelangelo's David, which is truly something not to be missed -- your daughters and their boyfriends will get a giggle out of all the tacky souvenirs featuring David as well....) Plus teens always seem to love the leaning tower.

 

On the other hand, the beauty of the Amalfi coast (if you're doing that) may be lost on teens/young adults, who might view it as a long and boring car ride. Yes, Pompeii will be interesting -- but probably only for about an hour, based on your comments. And it will also likely be hot and crowded in June.

 

Just my thoughts, of course....

[cruisemom42]

Forgot to add: On the day that your younger group doesn't want to sightsee, can you still go on your own and leave them on board? Sounds like you really want to see the sights.

 

I have an 18-year-old son and we're planning a pretty heavy itinerary of sightseeing on our upcoming Greek isles cruise. If he wanted to "opt out" one day, I wouldn't hesitate to let him stay onboard on his own. Then again, he kind of knows the drill -- if mom is paying for the trip, he'd better participate in the sightseeing. ;)

[cari110]

Thanks for the advice...I'm considering all of it...yes, I would definitely allow the 4 of them to stay on the ship and go off with my husband alone...I would probably change to a ship excursion on that day to save money, since the Rome in Limo is for 6 people for 500 Euro for the day...but then again, I like what you said about your son knowing that he does what you want him to do since mom's paying for the trip!!!

[euro cruiser]

We had a similar situation a few years ago on a family trip to Italy. We had rented a villa way out in the country in Tuscany, and my cousin's daughters (then 18 and 20) were BORED out of their minds after the first three days of a two week stay.

 

The only time they really enjoyed themselves were "city" trips, for the shopping. That seemed to be the only thing that interested them (well, that and the wine). They loved, loved, loved Rome (to quote one of the real NJ housewives). Their parents dragged them to the Vatican (good Catholics that they are), but they endured that in order to shop for the rest of the day.

 

I have to say that they really had no use for Pisa ... thought it was tacky and "stupid" (one of their favorite words).

 

So I guess what I'm saying is take them to Rome for sure. I can understand why the city of Naples might not thrill them, but it's an easy and fun high speed ferry ride from the ship to Capri, they might enjoy a beach day. Plus, Capri is where the "beautiful people" can be seen, that might be a draw.

 

And Cynthia, I find it hard to believe that you were ever a "geek". Our kids (I don't claim my cousin's) have also all loved traveling (even with us!) as you did, going to historical sites and museums, etc. That is, at least, up until the youngest one, who I'm assuming came from someone else's gene pool.

[chipmaster]

My husband and I are traveling with our daughters (18 and 20) and their boyfriends (19 and 22) in June...we will be in Naples, Rome and Livorno 3 days in a row...we have booked private tours with Rome in Limo for each port (8 hours each) but the teens/young adults are saying that they don't want to do 3 days in a row of "sightseeing"...I hate to think of visiting Italy and not seeing it all, but am thinking of dropping one of the days to give the teens a rest day....I think they are more excited to stay up late and "dance the night away" on the cruise ship...any suggestions of the 3 which would be the one to drop? I was thinking of Livorno - we are scheduled to see Pisa and Florence that day...Any advice would be appreciated! We are not a family that does too much of the museums, history, etc...my girls are more into shopping and looking at beautiful sights, eating good food...but I am keeping in mind that we don't have a lot of $ to spend shopping!!!

 

What a dream line up for 72 hours or one can see it as a tour from hell, so much to see and so precious little time.

With RIL you really will be setup to see as much as is physically possible or as leisure as you decided. We did these 3 ports with RIL and packed it to the gills, wouldn't have had it any other way after not having been to two of the 3 ports ever and Rome was 15 years removed.

 

You paying, if so I guess you have a little more say, and can I be your child too :D

 

If not then they are old enough to decide if they want to stay on the ship, pick and choose which ports to tour and figure out what they want to DIY. I assume they are old enough and responsible enough and travel savy enough you'd trust them to venure off the boat on their own and DIY.

 

If they have never been to these place IMHO its your duty as a wise parent to impress on them the huge opportunity and make the go, expecially if you paid for everythign else, and even if you didn't for them to trust you. Do the smorgsborg crazy tour and next time come and do the shopping.

 

By the way two years ago my kids thought at the time very unimpressive, but as they reflect back now two years later I think they've come to appreciate what they really saw.

[kazganymede]

Just returned from a cruise with 3 teens so I can understand their attitude.

But you should just leave them on board and do these places yourself, especially as they are old enough to look after themselves.

We left our 13 year old on board in Palermo while we saw the catacombs.

[carlmm]

If you cannot convince them to join you in seeing the world I would recommend to make Naples the port "to drop". The mayor reason is the proximity of the port to the sights. The ship docks right in Naples and public transportation is easily available.

 

This implies

- you as parents do not rely on a driver or tour, depending on what you want to see. Pompeii and Herculaneum are a short train ride. The ferry to Capri docks close by. Naples with its churches and museums is right there.

- the young adults could still decide to go out and see something later on if they fancy without the need to travel to some other place. Even within maybe 500 or 1000 metres from the ship there are several sights, like a fortress and a royal palace, as well as a major shopping area with many shops geared to younger people.

[cari110]

wow, so much to see/do, so little time!!! I now remember how I felt when my husband and I did a cruise of the Hawaiian Islands for our honeymoon...I never thought about taking a ferry over to Capri...I think that sounds almost perfect for the 4 teens/young adults...we could do a combo of beach/shopping/sightseeing/eating...I am a little nervous of going off without a tour, but think we can handle it. Any advice on what to see, where to go, ferry info. would be greatly appreciated...Again, thanks to all for all advice!!! I'd like to be able to do it all, but that is impossible with just one day in each port!!! I was so looking foreward to the drive of the Amalfi Coast, but now thinking about Capri, I think I would rather be up and moving than sitting in car for a long, but beautiful drive (and besides that, I tend to get car sick!)

[globetrecker]

My husband and I are traveling with our daughters (18 and 20) and their boyfriends (19 and 22) in June...we will be in Naples, Rome and Livorno 3 days in a row...we have booked private tours with Rome in Limo for each port (8 hours each) but the teens/young adults are saying that they don't want to do 3 days in a row of "sightseeing"...I hate to think of visiting Italy and not seeing it all, but am thinking of dropping one of the days to give the teens a rest day....I think they are more excited to stay up late and "dance the night away" on the cruise ship...any suggestions of the 3 which would be the one to drop? I was thinking of Livorno - we are scheduled to see Pisa and Florence that day...Any advice would be appreciated! We are not a family that does too much of the museums, history, etc...my girls are more into shopping and looking at beautiful sights, eating good food...but I am keeping in mind that we don't have a lot of $ to spend shopping!!!

 

Have you guys considered maybe splitting up? Maybe set up a meeting time and allow the younger group to go out and explore on their own while you and your husband do sight-seeing. As a way for everyone to kind of enjoy themselves.

[euro cruiser]

Capri is easy to do on your own. The ferry station, Molo Beverello, is right next to the cruise ship port. I'm actually in Naples at the moment and not using my own computer, so I don't have all my bookmarks handy.

 

There are three ferry companies that go back and forth from Molo Beverello to Capri Marina Grande. There is a Capri tourism web site that shows the companies and schedules, http://www.capri.net/en/ship-timetable. Right now it might only have the winter schedules listed, check again closer to your cruise date.

[samavarcruiser]

What a dream line up for 72 hours or one can see it as a tour from hell, so much to see and so precious little time.

With RIL you really will be setup to see as much as is physically possible or as leisure as you decided. We did these 3 ports with RIL and packed it to the gills, wouldn't have had it any other way after not having been to two of the 3 ports ever and Rome was 15 years removed.

 

You paying, if so I guess you have a little more say, and can I be your child too :D

 

If not then they are old enough to decide if they want to stay on the ship, pick and choose which ports to tour and figure out what they want to DIY. I assume they are old enough and responsible enough and travel savy enough you'd trust them to venure off the boat on their own and DIY.

 

If they have never been to these place IMHO its your duty as a wise parent to impress on them the huge opportunity and make the go, expecially if you paid for everythign else, and even if you didn't for them to trust you. Do the smorgsborg crazy tour and next time come and do the shopping.

 

By the way two years ago my kids thought at the time very unimpressive, but as they reflect back now two years later I think they've come to appreciate what they really saw.

 

I agree :)

[euro cruiser]

Another option, if they don't want to commit to a day in Capri, is to simply walk off the ship and do one or two things in Naples, than walk back on. It's a great port for that.

 

They might enjoy the Naples Underground tour, which is probably one of the best places in the city to be when it's hot, because it's cold down there. I took the tour yesterday and it was fun, but not for the claustrophobic, that's for sure. http://www.napolisotterranea.org/en/index22352.html