HAL with kids??

[williamson_ja]

I am considering taking our cruise on HAL this year as they are doing the 3rd and 4th passengers free promotion right now, but have a few questions.

 

1. How appropriate are the shows for younger viewers? Are the dancers pretty scantily clad? Pictures from the Carnival line have scared me away from them. lol

 

2. Is this a pretty clean ship... and do people get sick a lot? We (dh and I) cruised on Disney in Jan. and everything was sooo clean! They have you sanitize your hands every time you eat anywhere and when you come back on the ship. I have heard that other lines are not so strict as this and many people end up getting sick. I don't want to spend my vacation sick!

 

3. Is it a very smoky atmosphere? I have a daughter with severe asthma that can't be around a lot of smoke.

 

Thanks for the help!!

[candbgirl]

It's hard to say if the shows ae too risque for your kids since you don't mention any ages. My experiene is that they are song and dance shows and can be enjoyed by any age. They do have a commedienne sometimes and they sometimes can go a bit too far. But it isn't the norm. As far as clean, my experience with HAL is that they are very clean and consciously remind everyone to wash hands etc. They have disinfectant opportunities everywhere around the ship and especially at the entrances and exits of all dining facilities. There can be an issue with smoke if your child is really sensitive.

[FireIce0010]

Depending on the time of year that you're cruising, HAL can be great for kids. The winter months and longer cruises tend to be older. You're smart at staying away from Carnival. :eek:

[Berk987]

I am considering taking our cruise on HAL this year as they are doing the 3rd and 4th passengers free promotion right now, but have a few questions.

 

1. How appropriate are the shows for younger viewers? Are the dancers pretty scantily clad? Pictures from the Carnival line have scared me away from them. lol

 

2. Is this a pretty clean ship... and do people get sick a lot? We (dh and I) cruised on Disney in Jan. and everything was sooo clean! They have you sanitize your hands every time you eat anywhere and when you come back on the ship. I have heard that other lines are not so strict as this and many people end up getting sick. I don't want to spend my vacation sick!

 

3. Is it a very smoky atmosphere? I have a daughter with severe asthma that can't be around a lot of smoke.

 

Thanks for the help!!

 

 

Eurodam - Nov 08 travelling with 4, 4, 2 and 7 month.

Westerdam - Nov 09 travelling with same kids all one year older.

Niew Amsterdam - Dec 10 will be travelling with same kids, one year older by then.

 

Our kids love the shows, singing and dancing. We go to the early 7:30 show right after our 5:30 MDR dinner. Baby usually in the back in a stroller in case she needs to leave with daddy.

 

We don't go to the comedy shows since I'm sure of the language.

 

Anything that involves singing and dancing we go. IE Elton John show, Eagles show.

 

Very clean. We have never been sick other than a bit of seasickness.

Hand sanitizer everywhere and when you come aboard from the islands also.

 

Have not notice smoke except in the casino and we don't gamble so we stay away. I hate the smell of smoke, makes me nauseous. But both trips, it didn't bother me.

 

Your kids, if over 3, will enjoy Club Hal. If you need more info on travelling w/kids on HAL, just let me know.

[benny salami]

:cool: Many threads like this about kids and HAL that caters to an older crowd. My advice would be to book and enjoy. The shows are family friendly-even the comedians are squeaky clean. The musicals are like old tyme Broadway. Over the summer/Christmas break there will be many kids, especially on shorter cruises. Ships are all very clean-constant painting and polishing.

 

If you want to be constantly surrounded with children then choose another line. The plus is that you never go on an elevator and see all the buttons pushed or have screaming kids running down the halls at all hours.

[schoolinmy3]

My daughter (age 10), myself and one of my sons (age 19) all have asthma. We were on our first cruise in 2007 on the Westerdam without our kids and the only time we encountered smoke that was annoying was on our balcony. We had a SY suite. It was cigar smoke from the suite next to us and the fellow drank his coffee outside in the morning with his cigar reading his paper. I didn't consider that a negative for me but I did notice it. My daughter has severe problems with smoke and perfume and a host of other skin sensitivities. She is going with us on our cruise next month but I don't see a problem as we don't go to the casinos and if there is smoke from a neighboring balcony we just will go elsewhere if it is bothersome. Hopefully we won't be surrounded by chain smokers :D. We did not have any issues inside our stateroom or in the hallways.

As far as taking kids on HAL, my kids do not like to be surrounded by kids, they actually prefer peace and quiet and are not used to all the commotion.:eek: HAL may or may not have a lot of kids on the cruise depending on itinerary and time of year.

 

diane

[williamson_ja]

My kids are ages 5-15. We are going over a fall break in October. The rates are good then and I won't have to drive through the snow to get to the port. :) We homeschool most of our kids, so they are used to not having TONS of kids around. In general, we like a more sophistacted and calm atmosphere. This sounds like it will work well for us! We love broadway style shows. Glad to hear that everything sounds good!

[schoolinmy3]

My kids are ages 5-15. We are going over a fall break in October. The rates are good then and I won't have to drive through the snow to get to the port. :) We homeschool most of our kids, so they are used to not having TONS of kids around. In general, we like a more sophistacted and calm atmosphere. This sounds like it will work well for us! We love broadway style shows. Glad to hear that everything sounds good!

 

We also homeschool our youngest, our older two have graduated and one is in college. They were also homeschooled. That is why we also can travel at odd times. Makes for relaxing vacations and cheaper airfares when we do have to fly. :p The 10 yo and the 17 yo are avid book readers. We are at the library several times per week. For this cruise we are taking a Kindle my husband just bought off of eBay and a sony e-reader he bought for my son last year. We are in the process of loading them up with books!:D We booked two rooms, an inside and a balcony, to accommodate the five of us. With all the ports we will be stopping at in the Mediterranean they will probably be so worn out they won't miss the constant entertainment late into the night that is on some of the cruise lines anyway. My sons are hoping the entertainer for the piano bar is as good as we have heard on these boards. When we went in 2007 aboard the Westerdam my husband and I really enjoyed the music. I have been reading some positive reports about the shows as well.

diane