Celebrity good cruise line for children??

[jtand2]

Good day, my family and I are avid cruisers, cruising on all the major lines. We booked a cruise for this Thanksgiving on Celebrity Reflection. I have 6 and 4 year old boys and they have already been on 4 cruises. After cruising on the Royal Princess last Thanksgiving I was a little hesitant about booking this ship because of the experience on that ship, but the price was right!! Can anyone out there give me some feedback if you have taken kids on this ship? Thanks.

[Colorado Buffalo]

Don't worry.

 

I was the one that was worried a month ago but we just returned 8 days ago and my 5 year old LOVED the 'Fun Factory'

 

Celebrity doesn't have nearly as many children aboard and maybe that's why she loved it as there was much more one on one interaction.

April 6th Silhouette sailing and there was probably 10-12 max children in her age group. The staff was wonderful.

[Queen of Oakville]

From what I've gathered so far ..... if your kids love sailings with lots of kids on board ... then X may not be their favourite.

 

But, if they prefer sailings with fewer kids ... then they will probably enjoy.

 

My kids prefer HAL to 2 Disney and 2 DreamWorks cruises on Royal. But they are way happier with attention from and interaction with a counsellor. Screaming kids running amuck is not their idea of fun :)

[dkjretired]

If you are going over Thanksgiving the chances are you will a lot of kids on the cruise unless its a longer cruise. I have taken my kids over the years on Celebrity and their children's programs are excellent. They do not have all the bells and whistles of some other cruise lines but they seem to provide much more individualized service in the children's programs. I have actually seen people post on this board that their kids enjoyed Celebrity more than Disney.

[Tdhutton]

I have a 7 yr old. We have taken him on disney, carnival, and rccl. He says that celebrity kids club is the best.

 

 

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[Redtravel]

I sail with my extended family often. We have taken the kids on Celebrity and other cruise lines. Without a doubt, they love the Fun Factory. The staff is fabulous with kids.

[beachchairs2]

stcik with disney and carnival...

[DrLookGood]

We sailed on Celebrity when my kids were 5 and 12. It was Alaska sailing and I am not sure how many kids were aboard. Anyway, both of my kids loved Celebrity. Fun factory is a great program and I much rather prefer it to Carnival's program. And so do my kids. They are not 9 and 16 respectively.

 

We were on Carnival Conquest over spring break in March. My 9 year old daughter only went to kids club 3 times. She said it was boring and the counselors were rude. I am always amazed when people praise Carnival's kids club. I don't think it is that great.

[Shake]

stcik with disney and carnival...

 

Best advice. And throw NCL into this group as well. ;)

[dkjretired]

Best advice. And throw NCL into this group as well. ;)

 

Not the best advice, be advised that there are some people who don't want kids on Celebrity cruises and will express that desire. Most of these people have never taken a child on a Celebrity cruise, I have as well as a lot of people and they have great children's programs. I would take the kids just so they aren't subject to the smoking policies on the other lines. I was on NCL and thought I was on a smokestack and I'm someone who never complains about smoking.

[kfrey68]

Celebrity has a great kids program. My DS, now 12 has sailed Carnival, NCL and Celebrity. He prefers the Celebrity Fun Factory over the others. He is all set for his 4th Celebrity cruise in June.

 

I suspect all those that are just replying that you should stick with another cruise line just don't want to see kids on their vacation and to some extent I can understand but it is not fair to lump all families into one category. My DS knows clearly what is the expected behavior and what is clearly not acceptable. We have given him prove ledges based on him meeting those expectations and we have had numerous positive comments about his behavior from much of the Celebrity staff from cabin Stewarts all the way up to the captain.

[Haynecourt]

We sailed celebrity century to alaska last year with daughter 11, and niece 10, they both had so much fun at the fun factory, the staff, crew, waiters, stage performers were very helpful, friendly and gave them treats ... Both enjoyed the cruise very much.

[yvonneh]

Not the best advice, be advised that there are some people who don't want kids on Celebrity cruises and will express that desire. Most of these people have never taken a child on a Celebrity cruise, I have as well as a lot of people and they have great children's programs. I would take the kids just so they aren't subject to the smoking policies on the other lines. I was on NCL and thought I was on a smokestack and I'm someone who never complains about smoking.

 

Well said and so true!

[rebeccalouiseagain]

My son age 13 loves Celebrity. He has sailed most of the mainstream lines and love Celebrity.

[sprockie]

We have sailed on mostly HAL and now Celebrity - both not traditionally heavy with kids. It's the style we prefer as parents. The kids loved HAL and they will love Celebrity just as much or more. I won't subject myself to a cruise experience I don't care for (Carnival) to make sure my kids are surrounded by tons of other kids.

[cruiser77]

Our girls (4) would not stay at the kids club on Disney, but loved being at the kids club on Summit. The staff on Disney seemed like bored college student just trying to earn money for college, as in Summit the staff seemed enthuastic, knowledgeable and happy to interact with the kids. Huge difference! Celebrity does not have slides and computers etc., but they have a fantastic staff that actually interacts with the kids.:)

[Eleris]

I started sailing with mine when they were 4 and 7 years old and the loved it. My daughter (4) never wanted to leave the kids club and my son never wanted to go because he was shy. No problem for me he and I went and did line dancing classes and other activities onboard. They are both adults now 20 and 23 and both Elite members. The other thing your children will get from cruising with Celebrity is dressing for dinner and table manners in a more formal setting. During the high school years my two never had a problem wearing a suite or formal dress because it was like going to dinner on the ship. They tried different foods they would have never tried and sat through all the entertainment which opened up a wide variety of culture for them. They don't usually have opera singers anymore but back in the day the entertainment could be anywhere from a opera singer to a magician. There are many things I think your children can take away from a Celebrity cruise that go beyond the kids club. :)

 

Ellen

[Dawg74]

Hi, we took our three children on the Eclipse this past New Years for 14 nights and they loved it. The kids are 7, 10, and 13, and they have been on one carnival cruise before. They only participated a little bit in the kids club but they had tons of fun. We played mini put, bocce ball, swam in the pools and hot tubs, enjoyed many fine meals,together, it was great. There were also several activities on board such as the boat building contest which kept the kids busy as well. Basically you had to collect junk to build a boat and then float it in the pool on the last sea day. Our kids enjoyed the many different ports we visited to. They certainly do enjoy the movie screen, high ropes and water park on carnival but they don't need that constantly. Our kids just enjoy travelling and breaking normal routine, I bet yours would to. What ever you decide, have fun.:)

[Mermen]

Good day, my family and I are avid cruisers, cruising on all the major lines. We booked a cruise for this Thanksgiving on Celebrity Reflection. I have 6 and 4 year old boys and they have already been on 4 cruises. After cruising on the Royal Princess last Thanksgiving I was a little hesitant about booking this ship because of the experience on that ship, but the price was right!! Can anyone out there give me some feedback if you have taken kids on this ship? Thanks.

 

Honestly, I think other cruise lines would be more "fun" for your children. Our son and daughter are older now but when we started cruising, (elementary age) they seemed to enjoy being with the older folks, dressing up for supper, the treasure hunts, etc. but know of other children who were bored at times with the children's programs. There typically are not a lot of kids running about. I guess it probably depends on your children, the time of year you go and itinerary, and what makes them happy... lots of "theme-based activities" like water slides, events, etc. or not? :)

Edited April 24, 2014 by Mermen

[kfrey68]

I started sailing with mine when they were 4 and 7 years old and the loved it. My daughter (4) never wanted to leave the kids club and my son never wanted to go because he was shy. No problem for me he and I went and did line dancing classes and other activities onboard. They are both adults now 20 and 23 and both Elite members. The other thing your children will get from cruising with Celebrity is dressing for dinner and table manners in a more formal setting. During the high school years my two never had a problem wearing a suite or formal dress because it was like going to dinner on the ship. They tried different foods they would have never tried and sat through all the entertainment which opened up a wide variety of culture for them. They don't usually have opera singers anymore but back in the day the entertainment could be anywhere from a opera singer to a magician. There are many things I think your children can take away from a Celebrity cruise that go beyond the kids club. :)

 

Ellen

 

I totally agree. My DS (12) loves to dress for dinner and has become very good about trying different things to eat and many people don't believe some of the things he eats. This is not saying that he would pass up pizza or anything but definitely is willing to try new things. He also enjoys the lecture by the staff nothing's such as how the ship moves and navigation.

[Bababooey Land]

stcik with disney and carnival...

 

dont listen to them. there is a group on the message boards always trying to dissuade people from bringing kids on Celebrity. We have taken many cruises on Celebrity with kids from infant to age 8 and they love it every time we go! the kids club is very good!

[wallie5446]

Good day, my family and I are avid cruisers, cruising on all the major lines. We booked a cruise for this Thanksgiving on Celebrity Reflection. I have 6 and 4 year old boys and they have already been on 4 cruises. After cruising on the Royal Princess last Thanksgiving I was a little hesitant about booking this ship because of the experience on that ship, but the price was right!! Can anyone out there give me some feedback if you have taken kids on this ship? Thanks.

We sailed the Century back in 1998 over Thanksgiving with our then DD at 15. This was her 3rd Celebrity cruise. It is to this day her favorite cruise line. Go, enjoy, they will love it.

 

ps: I did not read the other comments, if some said don't go, don't pay them no mind. Been there done that, got the t shirt!!!

 

ps: just off the Reflection, a wonderful ship! Our favorite in 25+ years.

Edited April 25, 2014 by wallie5446

[jtand2]

Awesome, thanks for the tips! We went on the Royal Princess and the ship was great, the kids club was adequate, my kids never complained about it. It was the fellow passengers that irked my wife and I. They're a pretentious bunch and I was trying to get a sense to see if that is what Celebrity is like.

[scifimonkey]

Our 12 year old loved the Silhouette even though he didn't get a lot of chance to spend time in the kids club due to the port intensive nature of our cruise. Unfortunately there are people on all cruise lines who for some reason seem to believe that children should not be allowed. Given the wide choice of adults only ships it is astonishing that they choose to sail with family friendly lines.

Thankfully this post illustrates that even in a group of cruiseaholics these people are in a sad minority.

Don't have any concerns about Celebrity the kids will love it! take them to Q-sine and you will be the best parents ever!!

[rebeccalouiseagain]

I second the Qsine suggestion. Kids will love it.