Are all RCI ships filled with kids?

[Grandprix]

Families that spend thousands on vacations generally bring well behaved children. Not always though.

My pet peeve is the fake handicapped that storm around on mobility devices and expect special treatment for nothing more than being lazy. More than once had to scold these careless twits when they have run over my boys, mom, and wife.

[Ladysilver]

I am NOT trying to insult anyone, and I am asking this question seriously.

 

We are a senior citizen couple and cruise frequently. We do not have children or grandchildren and find that when we travel or dine out, we prefer not having too many kids around.

 

We have done over 16 cruises on 6 different cruise lines. Right now, our preferred line is Celebrity, but not by much. We have specifically avoided RCI because we assume that the rock walls, skating rinks, zip lines, etc. will attract hoards of families with kids and teenagers.

 

Are we wrong in our assumptions?

 

 

I can tell you when we were on the Navigator in May, there were a LOT of kids and a LOT of college age kids also. We usually cruise in the winter (preferably early december) and there aren't many kids then.

[spookwife]

I am NOT trying to insult anyone, and I am asking this question seriously.

 

We are a senior citizen couple and cruise frequently. We do not have children or grandchildren and find that when we travel or dine out, we prefer not having too many kids around.

 

We have done over 16 cruises on 6 different cruise lines. Right now, our preferred line is Celebrity, but not by much. We have specifically avoided RCI because we assume that the rock walls, skating rinks, zip lines, etc. will attract hoards of families with kids and teenagers.

 

Are we wrong in our assumptions?

 

yes. you need to stick with longer cruises( in excess of 7 days) to avoid kids.

 

with the number of homeschoolers and the number of parents who justify taking their kids out of school all year round for 'educational' purposes, there really is no longer any time where there are few to no kids on board on a typical 5-7 day itinerary on any mainstream line.

[Desert Cruizers]

We have seen children on all our cruises and haven't experienced any disruptive children. Have seen adults with poor manners. We enjoy our cruises regardless of the ages.

[homeschoolmama]

Smaller rccl ships, voyager class or smaller and travelling off peak times will minimize your chances of alot of kids. 2nd or 3rd wk in Sept after school starts is good, mid to late January is good, after Christmas break but before spring breaks. The first 2 weeks in Dec after Thanksgiving cruises is perhaps the best time. Rest assured tho, even with a fair number of kids on board you can find many spots on the ship to have peace and quiet......and apart from holiday and spring break times the kids do tend to be well behaved

 

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[negc]

Clearly there are times of year and types of cruises (TAs, repositioning, or cruises longer than 7 nights, for example) that will attract far fewer youngsters. but I think that some people are also underestimating how well the Adventure Ocean program removes kids from the general population for large parts of the day (and evening). We have been on many cruises during peak times for families and have been surprised to discover how many young people were actually onboard with us because we so rarely encountered them and while the rock walls, flow riders, etc. attract a younger crowd, unless you intend to participate in those activities, those features will actually reduce the amount of interaction you will have with the younger set. Don't let the idea that RCI ships will be overrun with kids prevent you from experiencing all that those ships have to offer people of all ages.

[alwaysflyin]

There were almost no children on the one we took earlier this year, 13 nights from FLL to Barcelona, on the Liberty.

 

My daughter is 3 and we were told that there were 19 children in the 3-5 age group. I understand it was similar in the other age groups. Thus, children were a tiny fraction of the passengers.

[MrsPete]

I think I'm echoing what others have said, but I think the TIMING of your cruise is more important than the cruise line. If you cruise during summer or holidays, you will encounter more children. If you cruise in the fall or winter, you'll find the ship is less full and is mainly adults.

 

For what it's worth, I agree with your philosophy. It isn't that I don't want to cruise with children, it's that when families cruise, they tend to cruise with Mom and Dad PLUS the kids in one cabin . . . and it adds up to a more crowded ship. More people in line at the buffet, longer lines to disembark at the islands, more people in the pool. It's not children who are the problem -- it's larger crowds.

[AlanAllyn]

We sailed the Allure in July to celebrate my 75th birthday. Other than the noise during the day from the pools when on our Central Park balcony, children never seemed to get in the way.

 

Usually, however we avoid summers and school vacations.

 

Another rule: The longer the cruise, the fewer children.