Organized activities for 14 year olds?

[HappyCruiser383]

Hello, We'll be sailing to Mexico on the Mariner in May with two 14 year old girls (not twins - one is his, the other is mine). Can anybody tell me what kinds of organized activities they may have on the ship for the 12-14 crowd?

 

Also a big worry is the late night activities. :confused: If we want to go to bed at 9pm, is it ok to let the girls run around with their friends and enjoy the teen clubs? They would love to stay up until 1am every night doing the whole club scene. . . we're too old for that. Are we bad to let them have fun while we sleep???

[scooter90]

I can't say specifically what the activities are for your cruise, but when we cruised on the Mariner three years ago, our DD was 13. They had a variety of activities and I know it was hard to get her to have dinner with us! We gave her a curfew based on the following day (e.g. if it is a day at sea, then she could stay up/out later and if it was a day in port then she had to go to bed earlier so as not to ruin the activities the following day).

 

We would make sure we would meet her at a specific time and walk her back to the cabin (or her older cousin who was on the cruise with us did this). But that was because she was alone and we didn't want her walking the ship late at night alone.

 

Just because the ship's curfew is 1:00 a.m. doesn't mean you need to hold to it every night. Our DD still keeps in touch with some of the kids she met on that cruise -- I'm sure your 14 year olds will find plenty of teen activities and will enjoy themselves thoroughly.

[HappyCruiser383]

What kinds of activities did they have for the teenagers? I think back at my previous cruises and can't remember seeing any activity listings for the teens.

[akcruz]

What kinds of activities did they have for the teenagers? I think back at my previous cruises and can't remember seeing any activity listings for the teens.

 

Here is a link to Cruisinmama's site where she has a lot of the teen and kids compasses

 

http://s204.photobucket.com/albums/bb196/cruisinmama06/Royal%20Caribean%20AO%20Compass/

 

Most ships have fairly similar activities so just find the right age group and see what's listed. Copies for your cruise will be left in the cabin along with regular compass at night.

 

As for 'letting them run around the ship' remember there are a lot of people on board. Not to scare you but you probably want to have an idea of where they are. Our rules have always been to let us know where they will be and who they will be with. My kids are older teens now and love RCI. Your kids will have a blast, but please keep an eye on them. Not that you do this but rmember parenting does not stop just because you are on vacation. The kids are your responsibility.

[HappyCruiser383]

Your kids will have a blast, but please keep an eye on them. Not that you do this but rmember parenting does not stop just because you are on vacation. The kids are your responsibility.

 

Thank you AKcruz. I agree, all parents should watch their kids. I'm just trying to find out exactly how much we need to watch a 14 year old that is legally able to watch herself at home (after school, for example). They obviously don't need constant supervision such as a 2 year old would. I want the 14 year old girls to be able to have fun in the clubs but won't want to stay up until 1am with them to supervise. Oh the joys of being a parent right? :rolleyes: