Decisions, Decisions, Decisions - please help!

[kfrisk]

I am having a very hard time deciding what cruiseline and what ports I want to take a cruise on for the first time - myself and my kids. Carnival seems to be the most budget-friendly (though I would like to sail on one of the newer ships with the waterparks and they are spendier) but Royal Caribbean seems to have the better reviews and onboard experience (just from what I have read IN the reviews and on these boards) and I don't really know much about Norwegian, either, other than it's the Nickelodeon line. And as for ports - I have no idea!!!! LOL There are so many options. So, here is a question for any of you who would like to respond (especially if you cruised with kids): Which cruise line did you cruise on and what did you like about it? And if you cruised with kids - which destinations did you think worked out best for them? The kids will be 15, 15 & 9 at the time of travel. Also, which month was your favorite time? I was thinking April, but I am open to other options - I just see that the cruiselines only go out to about April right now with their offerings. Thanks in advance for your assistance.

 

Kris

[KKB]

For several reasons:

 

1--3 years ago we almost booked Carnival since 12 of us were going; but the cheap rooms were all bunks--not what the adults wanted. Once we bumped up to rooms that weren't all bunks, the price was comparable to RCCL.

 

2--Our extended family has cruised a lot. My uncle took all his kids/grandkids on Carnival & they said never again. They compared it to staying at a Motel 6 after getting used to the Hilton

 

3--My 86 year old aunt (who is out several nights a week with her 83 year old boyfriend--dancing, gambling, drinking) said there wasn't enough to do on Carnival--she was bored!!:eek:

 

That being said, if the right price came along on Carnival I wouldn't rule it out! (and many have had a wonderful time on Carnival)

 

While we have had a good time on all our cruises, the kids say RCCL has the best teen club. (they have done DCL kids club, RCCL & Princess)

 

MX Riviera was our least fav ports; won't do it again. We have enjoyed all areas of the Caribbean. We do find Eastern to be more relaxed; vendors at Western ports are usually more aggressive (particularly Jamaica & Mexico), but we will cruise any of the Caribbean (tho St. Thomas, Eastern, is to be avoided for a while due to illness...depending on how soon you are planning to cruise).

 

Hope this helps!

Edited January 26, 2014 by KKB

[cb at sea]

If you haven't been to any of the Caribbean ports, any will do! All will have something fun to do! I would choose by which ship/cruiseline could give me the best cabin for the best price!

 

You need to know that ship cabins are nowhere near the size of hotel rooms, so be prepared for that!

 

Get yourself a guidebook on your potential ports, if that's the criteria you'll be using...find out something about where you want to go! Libraries have guidebooks!

Edited January 26, 2014 by cb at sea

[donaldsc]

There are a whole bunch of books at your local library on Caribbean cruise. You need to take them out and do some research.

 

DON

[1kaper]

If you haven't been to any of the Caribbean ports, any will do! All will have something fun to do! I would choose by which ship/cruiseline could give me the best cabin for the best price!

 

You need to know that ship cabins are nowhere near the size of hotel rooms, so be prepared for that!

 

Get yourself a guidebook on your potential ports, if that's the criteria you'll be using...find out something about where you want to go! Libraries have guidebooks!

 

I agree with this.

 

Our first Caribbean cruise we just went with the most affordable price for the time we were going. I had no complaints about the ports. The second Caribbean cruise I just chose for different ports.

A lot of ports offer the same types of excursions, so there isn't a huge difference unless you have one particular interest that can only be found as a specific port.

Cruise Critic does a pretty good break down of each port to get you started as well like this one

http://www.cruisecritic.com/ports/newport.cfm?ID=3

Just type in your port in search.

 

We've only sailed Carnival and i have no complaints so far. We don't have children yet so I can't really offer perspective on that or what other lines have to offer.

[baronessk]

I did a ship inspection of NCL, and they appeared to be VERY kid friendly (water slides and parks, etc.) and as I don't have kids, I will skip NCL and stick with Royal Caribbean or Princess. A good friend of mine with kids similar ages to yours like Royal Caribbean. Sometimes even the larger ships have good rates and April might. Just keep checking!

[Cruisin' Chick]

I had started dating a guy who had been on his first cruise the year before and it was a Carnival ship. He had enjoyed himself and when it looked like we were going to be together, he talked me into trying a cruise -- which was from our home port (an hour's drive) and on Carnival. We also looked at Royal for subsequent cruises, but either the date we wanted was filled on their ship or when I called about their smoking policies in the dining room (since I didn't see anything listed on their site), I discovered that they still had a smoking section (this was in the mid-late 90s), but Carnival had a no-smoking policy for the entire dining room. So we continued on with Carnival. My daughter was 23 months, 3 years and 4 years on her Carnival cruises. Of course ,for the first one, she was a month shy of getting to take part in the children's activities. The next two, she couldn't wait to go to the kids' room every morning-- she would ask, "Is ship school opened yet?"

 

The next year, my hubby got an offer from one of his workers for a friends and family discount on Princess and we took him up on it. Since then, our next five cruises were on Princess. My daughter was 5, 7, 8, 13, and 15 on those cruises. Once she became a teen, she felt the teen program was lame so she'll meet up with new friends her age and hang out, watching movies, swimming, etc. I think any cruiseline's teen program would be lame for her -- she's at that age.:rolleyes:

 

Now, with us trying to stick with longer cruises (more than 7 days), Carnival really doesn't have those, Royal Caribbean doesn't have self-service laundries (and with a family member who's allergic to regular detergent, this is a dealbreaker), and NCL doesn't sound like my cup of tea (we didn't enjoy flexible dining the one time we didn't clear the waitlist for traditional dining). HAL and Celebrity don't seem right for us, either.

 

If you go when school is out for most kids (here in Los Angeles, the second biggest school district in the country, spring break is always the week leading up to Easter), there will be plenty of kids on board for your kids to meet. I don't know if you're talking about 2014 or 2015, but cruises for this year have been announced. But the ones at a high demand (such as spring break), may be already sold out for April.

 

What I would do if I were you, is to talk to friends who have been on cruises and ask for recommendations for a travel agent. Best is a "cruise specialist" as they have been on various cruises, ships, itineraries.

 

Go in with an idea of dates you can go (bring a school calendar with you), your budget (keep in mind that if you're going to fly to your embarkation port, you should do so at least a day ahead and stay in a hotel that night). Hopefully you'll talk with your significant other and the kids and ask what they'll want to do (water sports, beaching, tours), where they want to go (your kids are old enough to go online and visit websites for various ports -- you can help them google them, or read some guidebooks from the library). If it's during the summer, you may want to consider some place like Alaska (which kids really like) -- with Caribbean itineraries, there's always the chance the itinerary might be changed if a hurricane might occur in the area -- the captain might go to western ports instead of eastern, and vice versa.

 

The TA should be able to fit your family to the right ship and itinerary.

[dorisis]

I would choose these lines as best for children; Disney...Royal Caribbean...Carnival. Pricing would be in the reverse order. A short cruise on any line will give you a taste of cruising. a longer cruise will addict you.

[kfrisk]

Thank you very much everyone - for all of your replies. I am pretty sure we made a decision - Royal Caribbean on the Freedom of the Seas next April. :)

[Cuizer2]

I am having a very hard time deciding what cruiseline and what ports I want to take a cruise on for the first time - myself and my kids. Carnival seems to be the most budget-friendly (though I would like to sail on one of the newer ships with the waterparks and they are spendier) but Royal Caribbean seems to have the better reviews and onboard experience (just from what I have read IN the reviews and on these boards) and I don't really know much about Norwegian, either, other than it's the Nickelodeon line. And as for ports - I have no idea!!!! LOL There are so many options. So, here is a question for any of you who would like to respond (especially if you cruised with kids): Which cruise line did you cruise on and what did you like about it? And if you cruised with kids - which destinations did you think worked out best for them? The kids will be 15, 15 & 9 at the time of travel. Also, which month was your favorite time? I was thinking April, but I am open to other options - I just see that the cruiselines only go out to about April right now with their offerings. Thanks in advance for your assistance.

 

Kris

 

I have taken kids on both Carnival (2004) and Royal Caribbean (2007). I've posted some reviews, with photographs, that you might want to review and then decided for yourself ...

 

Allure of the Seas - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1928555&highlight=review

 

Carnival Inspiration - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1916011&highlight=review

 

Navigator of the Seas - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1810031&highlight=review

 

Carnival Splendor - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1777222&highlight=review

 

Enchantment of the Seas - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1591335&highlight=review

 

Carnival Freedom - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1432492&highlight=review

 

Carnival Miracle - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1360813&highlight=review

 

 

The following review is one of the the cruises with the kids, but does not include photographs (I did not write a review of the 2004 cruise) ...

 

Freedom of the Seas - http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=30442

[trish1c]

Thank you very much everyone - for all of your replies. I am pretty sure we made a decision - Royal Caribbean on the Freedom of the Seas next April. :)

 

Good for you!

 

Now the secret to not making yourself crazy is stop looking. You will make yourself nuts of you keep second guessing yourself.

 

Spend some time reading through the RCL boards. Read the official website, especially the fine print. Get your passports. Start researching the islands. Be prepared to have a great time!

[RosebudKJ]

We went on Freedom of the Seas last summer and absolutely loved it. Our kids were 11 and 13. They had so much fun that they were trying to come up with ways to hide on the ship so they could stay. The sports deck was their favorite. The ship is beautiful and so large you will not feel crowded except during big events like parades and formal pictures. Great choice!!