Brilliance 12nt Med Venice - too port intensive for small children?

[BWP]

Hi! We are thinking of booking the 12nt Med Venice cruise on the RC Brilliance OTS, June '11. The itinerary seems fabulous, ticking so many dream ports... but we'll be travelling with three small children - 18mnth, 6yr and 7yr old. Will it be manageable, or is it just a little too ambitious with small children?

 

Many of the posts I've read relate to travelling with slightly older children or young teens... I would really appreciate advice/feedback from any other families who may have done this trip with small children, similar age group to mine.

 

Alternatively, we are also considering the 14nt Italian Med cruise, Independence, June '11. Just wondering which cruise/ship would be more child-friendly?

 

Many thanks!

[Lisou]

Bonjour BWP,

 

I am a single mother and I cruised in a port intensive Western Med cruise with my 6 year old in the fall of 2009 and I think it is quite manageable. What I would suggest is to hire a private driver in each port and limit it to your family only so if your kids are ``acting out`` or tired then you can adjust your port visits accordingly. Also, I would suggest to limit what you see in each port. Do not take the attitude ``I`m in Europe and I may never see these things again, so I need to see everything I can...``. Another suggestion, would be to bring a stroller for your 18 month old for every port.

 

What I did with my 6 year old is to involve her in choosing all the port activities and to limit to only those few activities. For example, in Rome, she was only interested in seeing the Coloseum, the Trevi fountain and eating gelato...so we took a train from Civitavecchia to Rome and we did only those three things and then we returned to the boat. At the Livorno port, rather than going to Florence, we booked a private driver and went to Pisa and Lucca (where we rented bicycles to ride on the ``wall```).

 

Whenever we were not on port (and as soon as we returned from port) she went straight to the kids`program.

 

It was a memorable trip for both of us and we are planning on returning next fall!

 

Enjoy and have fun!

[chipmaster]

I think all depends on what you hope to get out of the ports.

 

We did Med a couple years ago when our youngest was 7. She came with us on all but one tour. Honestly, I think the drives, ruins, museums were for the large part over her head ;) The one port we left her in the kids club she loved it. Even with almost 1/2 of the kids speaking a different language she had a blast and wanted to do the kids club in every successive port. We choose to make her go with us in Rome, Florence/Pisa, and Naples, never regretted it. Overall if you do private I think no problem.

 

The big challenge will be the 18month old. Probably want to walk around and the long drives could wear on the toddler, also if going in the summer can be hot and crowded. As long as you know the limitations traveling with younger kids bring I think still a special opportunity as long as you consider the days activity carefully, no problem.

 

Hi! We are thinking of booking the 12nt Med Venice cruise on the RC Brilliance OTS, June '11. The itinerary seems fabulous, ticking so many dream ports... but we'll be travelling with three small children - 18mnth, 6yr and 7yr old. Will it be manageable, or is it just a little too ambitious with small children?

 

Many of the posts I've read relate to travelling with slightly older children or young teens... I would really appreciate advice/feedback from any other families who may have done this trip with small children, similar age group to mine.

 

Alternatively, we are also considering the 14nt Italian Med cruise, Independence, June '11. Just wondering which cruise/ship would be more child-friendly?

 

Many thanks!

[junglejane]

We went to the Med when our youngest was 7 and had a very similar experience to Chipmaster. Our DD came with us on all but one tour, when she begged to stay behind in the kid's club. But the Med is hot in the summer and there is lots of walking. They will probably be bored by most of the museums. Also, our experience was that in Italy there is no such thing as a child's admission price -- they pay the same as an adult to go in most of the museums and churches (not sure about the toddler -- maybe free?).

 

If you decide to go, I totally agree with the recommendation to do private tours. That way you don't have to wait for everybody else to get out of the gift shop and back on the bus! Plus your kids can be fussy or cranky in private, and your driver can make last minute adaptations to your itinerary.

[Kerry's Girls]

I did a 12 day port intensive Med Cruise with twin 5 year olds. We had the time of our lives, but I agree with the previous posters - it depends on what you want out of it.

 

I spent a lot of time on the ports of call boards figuring out kid friendly things to do in each port, and, as a previous poster said, we either booked a private tour ahead of time, hired a cab for the day on arrival, or did private tours with other families from our roll call - so we could go at our own pace, only do kid friendly things and not worry about bothering other passengers who are on the trip of their lifetimes too. Also, having a car and driver meant we could leave car seats, backpacks, etc in the car while we explored - AND the amazing thing was that going private is usually less expensive than the large ship tours.

 

I think reasonable expectations made all the difference - we didn't visit any museums, and didn't miss them at all. We didn't over schedule. We brought lots of snacks, treats and water.

 

We also watched a lot of programs and looked at books ahead of time. You'd be surprised the places Dora, Backyardigans, etc have been, so we found some shows on the places we were going, and also watched some Rick Steves, so my girls were excited about climbing the Acropolis, etc. There are lots of places that are about exploring, cathedrals that look like storybook castles, parks to play in with kids from all over the world, etc. We actually had a vacation with no whining!

 

I will say, that by the last port (Malta for us), they were tired. So was I to tell the truth. They stayed on the ship to play in the kids club while I dragged myself around a bit to at least see part of it.

 

I had lots of people tell me it was a waste to take them at this age, that cruising is not the way to see Europe, etc. But, actually, I think a cruise is the best way to see Europe at this age. They get little tastes of each place, but get to go back to something comfortable each day, and no worries about food, packing/unpacking, etc. Also, we hit a lot of places that I otherwise never would have gone to, and now we know we want to go back. And I have a 5 year old who can't wait to live in Barcelona some day.

 

Best,

Mia

[kestrel]

It's good to have more choices re. ports. You are not "required" to spend full day at a port just because the cruise ship stops there all day. I will suggest that you decide based on your priority. If you have 4 port days in a row, you can always "make your own sea day" by skipping a port or spending only half day touring.

 

Your kids are very young, and therefore I don't think they can have full-day sightseeing at every port the cruise stops. You will have more flexibility if you book private tours as others have mentioned. You can also leave the kids in kids club and do your own sightseeing if you are comfortable. (Personally I am not comfortable with this option.) Families with young kids can still enjoy Mediterranean if they understand they don't need to "see all" in a single trip. There is always next time. Enjoy!

[cb at sea]

Your kids won't give a whit about the "history" of any of the ports....this is something you are doing for YOU...not them!

[kitty9]

If you go with the realization that this trip is more for you than for the kids, then it might be OK. Since you have three young ones, the challenges will be magnified threefold. Remember, it will be very hot and humid in the Med in summer, and that fact will greatly affect what you can and cannot do with regards to tours and the kids. Many of the ship sponsored tours are very long, in the range of 10 to 11 hours, for ports like Rome and Florence. Also, the docks for those two ports are about 90 minutes from the center of town---perhaps not the best tours to take with kids on a large bus that's not very air conditioned (buses and buildings with air conditioning in Europe are not anywhere near what we're used to in the US). The distance to ports is probably another reason why it's not the best idea to leave the kids on board the ship while you take those tours.

 

If you want to take this cruise you have to be realistic that you will be spending a lot of money and not getting everything out of the cruise that you would if the kids were older. As for them remembering anything about this trip, I'll ask, do you remember anything from when you were that young? While the two older ones might have a few flash memories, the toddler won't remember anything. You'll be the one with the memories.

[BWP]

Thanks for all the feedback.

 

Ordinarily I would never dream of taking such small children on a European tour - I agree that the kids will be too young to appreciate the cultural value, and they will probably tire easily and be a little bored with the sightseeing of the ports.... But this trip is the opportunity of a lifetime - it's being sponsored by my parents, who are cruise fanatics and want us to join them on their 40th wedding anniversary. :) It's really hard to be practical when facing such a generous gift - and it will be lovely to have the whole family together to celebrate my parent's great union. My sister and her two children (2 and 4yrs old) will be joining us too.

 

BUT - the logistics of travelling with an 18mnth, 2yr, 4yr, 6yr and 7yr old is freaking me out a little! :eek: Not to mention that we will be starting our journey in Cape Town, South Africa, so will first have to endure a 12hr flight to London, and then a connecting flight to Barcelona!

 

Thank you for raising some valid points though - I guess we're not obliged to visit every port just because the ship is docking there... we can be selective and determine which ones will be more child-friendly, and tour those ports privately rather, so that we can dictate the pace etc in terms of the kids... And it sounds as if while onboard the older children will have a blast in the kids clubs. (Incidentally, does anyone know how strictly the age groups are adhered to? Ideally would want the 4, 6 and 7yr old cousins all together in one group.)

 

One thing's for sure: I will be spending many hours researching these forums in a bid to gain every piece of advice to help make the journey more "smooth sailing"!

[bhcruise]

We did a 12 nt. port intensive cruise with an 11 month old and a 3.5 yr. old. We had a great time and I would definitely say go for it. We also did private drivers or cabs, we did not do any group tours. My 3.5 yr. old stayed on the ship for one port but all the others she was with us and had a great time. She is now almost 7 and still remembers most of the trip. I did a ton of research before going and planned days that were interesting for everyone, but to be honest we didn't skip anything just because we had the kids with us. My son who was 11 months obviously does not remember anything and slept through most if it! We are actually getting ready to do another 12 nt. cruise, my daughter will be 7 and my son will be 3.5. Go for it and have a great time, you will get plenty of advice here and on the boards for the different ports.