Longer sailings and children

[addictedtotravel]

We are just off the March 6th Equinox 10 day and heard from a dad that there were 40 children total. I know at least two were babies and a few preteens. I asked how it was working and he said that they have two kids (7-9 years old guessing)and were traveling with their friends and their two so it worked well. He said there are too many children for them on Royal Caribbean. I did see a small group with the counselor one day looking happy.

[Chitown12562]

I would blame the parents and not the children. If my child was unruly, or if you want to be cute "fussy", I wouldn't put them in a situation where they would cause others not to enjoy their vacations. I want to enjoy my vacation too and don't want to have to leave dinner to deal with my child.

 

If my child was not ready to be in a mature environment why would I force them to be there? Why would I place my needs above others and make them out to be bad, because I don't understand what environments my child is best suited for? With children growing up so quickly it was easy for us to take appropriate family vacations we could all enjoy during their first 4 years and mini adult vacations my SO and I could enjoy without the children. So quickly those years are gone and children grow up. Then they are ready for more mature environments.

 

Having said my piece I'll share 2 examples. The first was a Valentine's day dinner in a beautiful candlelight environment. 2 tables away a "fussy" child whose parents solved the problem by giving them a brightly glowing iPad mini with the sound turned up.

 

The second, 2 Celebrity cruises. Well behaved teens who I only saw during the muster. Younger 3-4 year olds walking hand in hand through the pool area with a kids club attendant, being asked nicely by the attendant to be silent as some adults were napping in the sun. Well behaved children enjoying a show at the theater as performers came out to greet them.

 

I love children, always will. Loved my children then, love my grandchildren now. But I will use my uncommon sense to deciding what is a comfortable and fun environment for them, me, and those around us.

[boatlover19]

I must admit I am a member of the camp that does not understand why parents would want to bring children on a line like Celebrity, when there are other more family friendly lines available. I say this because I think having children on a boat with few of their peers and very limited activities for them is a breeding ground for discontent, crankiness and dissatisfaction. Under these circumstances you are going to have episodes of bad behavior that is disruptive to other passengers. It has also been my experience that people always overestimate the quality of their own children's behavior and will often "loosely" interpret rules regarding where children are allowed. I understand the ideas of families traveling together and seeing the world, but why not take children on a line with pools, water parks, rock climbing, characters, and most importantly, other children to entertain them. I know my opinion maybe unpopular, but I've never experienced positive outcomes when children are brought into adult environments.

[Project_gal]

Having no children of my own, I am not a child-oriented person. My husband, a retired primary [7-11] school teacher, is not keen on spending his cruises with children. We [with one exception] have only sailed on 14 or 15-night cruises on Celebrity.

 

We have found that the few young children who have shared our cruises have been delightful. They have always been well behaved and the other adult passengers have enjoyed watching them dressed-up for formal nights, posing for photographs, etc.

 

I cannot say the same for bored teenagers on transatlantic cruises. I believe that parents should really ask themselves if a long cruise with a high number of sea days is a treat or a punishment for children in this age group. Especially on ships with fewer activities likely to entertain them.

 

It is difficult for most people to listen to someone else's protesting baby. I certainly do not want to hear a baby cry whilst enjoying a meal in a restaurant [and the MDR is, after all, a restaurant] although I would not be impolite enough to make my feeling known as described by the OP. Again, such very young children gain no benefit from a cruise of any length and are much happier with their usual routine at home.

 

Assuming the OP's 5 year old is well behaved, there is no reason why there should be any problems. However, parents should be honest with themselves when considering cruising with children that are not going to enjoy the experience. It is fair neither to the child nor the other passengers.

Edited March 26, 2015 by Project_gal

[Lsimon]

We've cruised many times with a couple who have a child who started cruising Celebrity at an age well under 5 and is now a little over that age and sails Celebrity at least once a year. All, or most, of their Celebrity cruises were longer cruises of 10 to 14 nights and they always had the kids club operating. The kids club was not crowded but there were always enough kids to have a small group for nice activities. The child loved the kids club and even though they occasionally sailed on another cruise line the child liked Celebrity the most. Their child is well behaved and had no issues at all around the ship with guests or staff, and many staff tends to give young children extra attention.

Edited March 26, 2015 by Lsimon

[norwegianwood57]

All the topics here about bringing children on adult cruises end up pretty much the same. There are those of us who sail this line and not RC or Carnival or Disney to avoid kids on board. We specifically do longer cruises in order to achieve a kid free environment. We specifically try and find itineraries and times that accomplish that.

 

Here you will rarely find posters who will tell you that they want adult only cruises, for obvious reasons. Those that find it convenient to drag their kids along a line that offers them little, then will pounce on them, as I am sure they will on me very soon.

 

Others will quickly point out that the only problems they have seen, have been with older folks. This is the standard fare.

 

There are a huge number of people who sail Celebrity because there are fewer kids on board. Even folks who drag their kids say they prefer less kids on board.

 

Celebrity is building new ships , while welcoming families to help with the bottom line, I doubt they will be adding kid friendly amenities, thus still being a primarily adult attracting line, which we appreciate.

[boatlover19]

All the topics here about bringing children on adult cruises end up pretty much the same. There are those of us who sail this line and not RC or Carnival or Disney to avoid kids on board. We specifically do longer cruises in order to achieve a kid free environment. We specifically try and find itineraries and times that accomplish that.

 

Here you will rarely find posters who will tell you that they want adult only cruises, for obvious reasons. Those that find it convenient to drag their kids along a line that offers them little, then will pounce on them, as I am sure they will on me very soon.

 

Others will quickly point out that the only problems they have seen, have been with older folks. This is the standard fare.

 

There are a huge number of people who sail Celebrity because there are fewer kids on board. Even folks who drag their kids say they prefer less kids on board.

 

Celebrity is building new ships , while welcoming families to help with the bottom line, I doubt they will be adding kid friendly amenities, thus still being a primarily adult attracting line, which we appreciate.

 

Very well stated. I will say that I'd prefer adult-only cruises. It may not be a popular opinion, but I believe there should be events and spaces where adults can relax and recharge amongst themselves without children present. After reading some of the posts in this thread, I am having a difficult time believing that young children prefer Celebrity over lines like Royal Caribbean, Disney or Carnival, I don't buy it. I think parents that bring children on lines like Celebrity are doing it for their enjoyment, not the child's. Maybe they (the parents) don't want to sail on the more family friendly lines.

[matt0148]

[CanadianDee]

 

LOL.

 

We cruised Carnival 2.0 with our granddaughter for the reasons others have stated ... the kids club, the awesome waterpark, the other kids. (Disney cruises are off-limits for us; that is a special cruise with Mom and Dad.)

 

She tried the kids club twice, but didn't like it. (She loves school and thought it would be more like school - go figure.) She didn't care for the waterpark, preferred swimming with us. And she point-blank told us she wanted to stay with us, not go with other kids. She and her Papa are best buddies.

 

Her favourite bits were dressing up for dinner, watching the sunrise and the ship dock with Papa, swimming with us, and exploring the ship.

 

She found the Carnival ship to be too noisy and too crowded. Essentially, as some of you have said, too many damn kids. ;-)

Edited March 26, 2015 by CanadianDee

[Algebralovr]

There are plenty of children who prefer a lower keyed environment and are less athletic. The active and athletic teens and tweens may prefer Royal or another more child centered line. My DD would have preferred Celebrity while my son Royal. She wants to sit in the shade in the open air and read her book. He wants to run and jump and be active. She wants fewer people, he likes to be around more people.

 

It is all a matter of finding the right place for your family. We like Celebrity. We plan to keep sailing them ourselves, and taking our young adult children every so often. Once we are blessed with grandchildren, we will bring them along on Celebrity until the are old enough that they need the activities of a line like Royal. But again, it all depends on the kids.

 

OP, your child is young enough to be happy anywhere. Feel free to take them on the cruise you want to go on, and enjoy the time together. Don't worry about the grumpy people who say kids don't belong.

[Queen of Oakville]

I must admit I am a member of the camp that does not understand why parents would want to bring children on a line like Celebrity, when there are other more family friendly lines available. I say this because I think having children on a boat with few of their peers and very limited activities for them is a breeding ground for discontent, crankiness and dissatisfaction. Under these circumstances you are going to have episodes of bad behavior that is disruptive to other passengers. It has also been my experience that people always overestimate the quality of their own children's behavior and will often "loosely" interpret rules regarding where children are allowed. I understand the ideas of families traveling together and seeing the world, but why not take children on a line with pools, water parks, rock climbing, characters, and most importantly, other children to entertain them. I know my opinion maybe unpopular, but I've never experienced positive outcomes when children are brought into adult environments.

 

I don't want to see a misbehaving child any more than the next person. When my kids were young, I made sure they were napped and fed before we left the house to avoid those "meltdowns" that occur when kids are tired or hungry. On the extremely rare occasion (one comes to mind) at the Olive Garden, we cancelled our order and asked that they make it to go. I took my daughter to the car, and hubby waited for food. He denied it to me, but I suspect that he picked up the bill for the neighbouring tables. We felt THAT bad about ruining someone's dinner.

 

There have been times on restaurants or cruises, when I wonder why a parent doesn't remove a child who is misbehaving. But to applaud, that is just plain rude.

 

Even if the situation were reversed and it was a loud/drunk/boisterous adult who was asked to be removed ....applauding would still be rude.

 

 

All the topics here about bringing children on adult cruises end up pretty much the same. There are those of us who sail this line and not RC or Carnival or Disney to avoid kids on board. We specifically do longer cruises in order to achieve a kid free environment. We specifically try and find itineraries and times that accomplish that.

 

Here you will rarely find posters who will tell you that they want adult only cruises, for obvious reasons. Those that find it convenient to drag their kids along a line that offers them little, then will pounce on them, as I am sure they will on me very soon.

 

Others will quickly point out that the only problems they have seen, have been with older folks. This is the standard fare.

 

There are a huge number of people who sail Celebrity because there are fewer kids on board. Even folks who drag their kids say they prefer less kids on board.

 

Celebrity is building new ships , while welcoming families to help with the bottom line, I doubt they will be adding kid friendly amenities, thus still being a primarily adult attracting line, which we appreciate.

 

 

No pouncing.

 

What you fail to understand that is that some kids LOVE celebrity. They have an excellent kids club with caring counsellors. My kids have been on X, HAL, Disney, Royal and Carnival - their favorite? Hands down is X followed closely by Hal. Their least favourites are Carnival and Royal.

 

Just as some adults are better suited to HAL or X over Carnival ... the same goes for kids. I know my kids well enough to know which environment they are going to thrive in.

 

On X (and HAL too) they would BEG me to go to the kid's club, all day long, and they'd ask to stay late. On Carnival - they both hated it. On Royal, it was "we'll go if you want alone time, but we'd rather not go".

 

X makes our kids feel special. I'm happy to spend my vacation dollars on a cruise line that gives my child wonderful vacation memories. DH and I like X too :D

[norwegianwood57]

This topic is about bringing kids on longer cruises. Those who drag their kids have always said, if you dont want to see children , go on longer cruises, avoid school vacations, etc.

 

We do all that. So when I saw that topic, I thought wait a minute, there goes our opportunity to travel on an almost kid free cruise. Yes even one kid is too many, when that kid is jumping into the pool, splashing everyone and the parent tells you that they paid the same as you did and will do as they wish.

 

So I am not at all happy to see ANY topics that have people asking questions about bringing their children on board .

 

When it is not holiday time and the cruise is a lengthy one with a port intensive itinerary, you betcha many of us will be giving these parents a dirty look as they drag their kids to all those places that children are just craving to see.

 

As for all the children just loving the nothingness of Celebrity, how many of them have been on Disney and have said, oh that is boring, I prefer Celebrity and if they have said that , I would begin to worry.

[matt0148]

This topic is about bringing kids on longer cruises. Those who drag their kids have always said, if you dont want to see children , go on longer cruises, avoid school vacations, etc.

 

We do all that. So when I saw that topic, I thought wait a minute, there goes our opportunity to travel on an almost kid free cruise. Yes even one kid is too many, when that kid is jumping into the pool, splashing everyone and the parent tells you that they paid the same as you did and will do as they wish.

 

So I am not at all happy to see ANY topics that have people asking questions about bringing their children on board .

 

When it is not holiday time and the cruise is a lengthy one with a port intensive itinerary, you betcha many of us will be giving these parents a dirty look as they drag their kids to all those places that children are just craving to see.

 

As for all the children just loving the nothingness of Celebrity, how many of them have been on Disney and have said, oh that is boring, I prefer Celebrity and if they have said that , I would begin to worry.

 

Sounds like you might want to consider renting a private yacht where you can better control who else is on board.

[CanadianDee]

 

So I am not at all happy to see ANY topics that have people asking questions about bringing their children on board .

 

 

Perhaps you should take this up with Celebrity, as their cruise ships *do* have kids programs which suggests they are courting families looking for an alternative to Disney/Carnival, etc.

 

Like us.

 

Sincerely,

Not-"Dragging"-Kids-Onboard

Edited March 26, 2015 by CanadianDee

[Queen of Oakville]

This topic is about bringing kids on longer cruises. Those who drag their kids have always said, if you dont want to see children , go on longer cruises, avoid school vacations, etc.

 

We do all that. So when I saw that topic, I thought wait a minute, there goes our opportunity to travel on an almost kid free cruise. Yes even one kid is too many, when that kid is jumping into the pool, splashing everyone and the parent tells you that they paid the same as you did and will do as they wish.

 

So I am not at all happy to see ANY topics that have people asking questions about bringing their children on board .

 

When it is not holiday time and the cruise is a lengthy one with a port intensive itinerary, you betcha many of us will be giving these parents a dirty look as they drag their kids to all those places that children are just craving to see.

 

As for all the children just loving the nothingness of Celebrity, how many of them have been on Disney and have said, oh that is boring, I prefer Celebrity and if they have said that , I would begin to worry.

 

Well my kids prefer Celebrity to Disney, but you need not waste your time worrying about them. They are very happy and anxiously awaiting our next Celebrity sailing on Silhouette.

 

I recognize your opinions and writing style, and with only 20 posts to your name (several of them on this thread), I suspect you are another child-hating cruise critic member who has reincarnated under a new name. Your name escapes me, but it would be easy enough to figure out.

 

What I don't understand is why you would bother to waste your vacation dollars on the "nothingness of Celebrity?"

Edited March 26, 2015 by Queen of Oakville

[Cruisin_Vol_Fan]

Thanks to those helpful posters who gave great advice-I am feeling better about taking my child on an X cruise. My son is very friendly and latches on to his favorite few counselors at the kid's club. We were on Oasis of the Seas the first week of March and I could not tear my child from that kid's club-that is all he wanted to do-forget the carousel, waterpark, and Dreamworks parade! He wanted to spend all his time at Adventure Ocean! He is well behaved, but I know his limits (and mine), so we would probably choose the buffet over the dining room most nights.

 

A little common sense goes a long way. You seem to be ahead of the game by knowing your child and his behavior and tendencies and already being concerned about bothering others.

The kids club will run as long as there is a child onboard who is registered. The counselors are onboard and paid so they will be open for business and excited to have him!

Don't discount your son's abilities. Our boys were 4 & 6 on their first cruise and LOVED the dining room. You can always ask for his food to be "expedited" and then take him to the kids club when he finishes. (He would eat his dinner while you had appetizers.) That would allow you to enjoy family time in the dining room without forcing him to sit for hours. Do a test run at a restaurant in your hometown before you go - one that has tablecloths and set places so he can see the difference. It's a great learning experience!

Enjoy your cruise. Celebrity would not offer a kids club if they didn't want kids onboard. People can be so hateful about kids for no reason. But if you are respectful of other's space and vacation and show your son that being respectful garners respect...it will be great!

[Stede Bonnet]

I will never forget how on our Mediterranean cruises there are always parents who have their small children in strollers and there they are over all those cobblestones. The kids , exhausted, bum-pity, bump, bump.

 

Shame on parents who drag their kids on cruises to make it convenient for themselves.

How do the children who live in these areas get around?

[MicCanberra]

While the ratios of children on board greatly diminish due to the itinerary and the length of the cruise, Celebrity does have a kids club and does cater for children of all ages.

I think X does a splendid job at keeping the kids entertained despite not having the gimmicks of some other lines, if people want child free cruise they need to go elsewhere, as there will nearly always be a child on board even if you do not see or hear them.:D

[villauk]

All the topics here about bringing children on adult cruises end up pretty much the same. There are those of us who sail this line and not RC or Carnival or Disney to avoid kids on board. We specifically do longer cruises in order to achieve a kid free environment. We specifically try and find itineraries and times that accomplish that.

 

Here you will rarely find posters who will tell you that they want adult only cruises, for obvious reasons. Those that find it convenient to drag their kids along a line that offers them little, then will pounce on them, as I am sure they will on me very soon.

 

Others will quickly point out that the only problems they have seen, have been with older folks. This is the standard fare.

 

There are a huge number of people who sail Celebrity because there are fewer kids on board. Even folks who drag their kids say they prefer less kids on board.

 

Celebrity is building new ships , while welcoming families to help with the bottom line, I doubt they will be adding kid friendly amenities, thus still being a primarily adult attracting line, which we appreciate.

 

Very well stated. I will say that I'd prefer adult-only cruises. It may not be a popular opinion, but I believe there should be events and spaces where adults can relax and recharge amongst themselves without children present. After reading some of the posts in this thread, I am having a difficult time believing that young children prefer Celebrity over lines like Royal Caribbean, Disney or Carnival, I don't buy it. I think parents that bring children on lines like Celebrity are doing it for their enjoyment, not the child's. Maybe they (the parents) don't want to sail on the more family friendly lines.

 

Obviously Celebrity think very differently than you both as this was the title page of a recent email I received:

 

 

Appears that 'dragging' is optional :rolleyes:.

[MicCanberra]

obviously celebrity think very differently than you both as this was the title page of a recent email i received:

 

 

appears that 'dragging' is optional :rolleyes:.

 

lol,:d

[norwegianwood57]

As I said most of us who look for adult cruises would not bother to post our opinions here, knowing that the comments that follow will be defensive, combative and quite predictable.

 

The poster asked a question, wondering if there are adults that frown on those who bring children on board for longer cruises. He got the answer. They may not say it here, but they will definitely mind.

 

Whenever someone asks the question , whether they should or should not bring a child on a celebrity ship, I will always answer the same way. I will always defend the ability to have an adult atmosphere on board Celebrity ships. No need to waste your time sleuthing out my writing style or the number of posts. It is irrelevant.

 

A question asked, a response given. Not of your liking? That is the nature of questions that are opinion based.

[az_tchr]

This topic is about bringing kids on longer cruises. Those who drag their kids have always said, if you dont want to see children , go on longer cruises, avoid school vacations, etc.

 

We do all that. So when I saw that topic, I thought wait a minute, there goes our opportunity to travel on an almost kid free cruise. Yes even one kid is too many, when that kid is jumping into the pool, splashing everyone and the parent tells you that they paid the same as you did and will do as they wish.

 

So I am not at all happy to see ANY topics that have people asking questions about bringing their children on board .

 

When it is not holiday time and the cruise is a lengthy one with a port intensive itinerary, you betcha many of us will be giving these parents a dirty look as they drag their kids to all those places that children are just craving to see.

 

As for all the children just loving the nothingness of Celebrity, how many of them have been on Disney and have said, oh that is boring, I prefer Celebrity and if they have said that , I would begin to worry.

 

My wife drags her "child" to formal dinners - We compromise with a coat and tie. I am told I cannot do my daily running exercise on the stairs. That it is not polite to ask for a doggy bag at dinner for that extra desert. People also need to put up with his atler ego - a moose.

 

Occassionally my hubby is cautioned about his behavior and told to not act like a 6 year old, but about 99% think he is quite charming. The other 1% like you need to stay home or be sentenced to 5 years of spring break in Daytona Beach with drunk college kids.

 

PS - I have in many cruises ever had a parent who said their childern could be rude. Almost universally the children are appropriate in their behavior as are parents in thier discipline. Probably have had more unreasonable adults acting like 3 year olds after too much alcohol or with their shorts would too tight over some complaint about a trivial problem.

Edited March 26, 2015 by az_tchr

[Corgis mom]

Sounds like you might want to consider renting a private yacht where you can better control who else is on board.

 

I resent that. We went on a 14 day cruise on the Summit to Quebec and back. There was a set of twins...young...6 months or so. They always came in late. Then SCREAMED all through dinner.

 

I asked someone why they couldn't drop off the kids with a sitter, and was told that when babies are in "nappies", they cannot be left with a cruise employee. I guess that makes sense. I will tell you that when they, only once removed the screaming babies, we were all relieved.

 

They were placed at a table under the stairs so they only disturbed half the dining room. Unfortunately, we were in the wrong half. I understand they spend as much as we, but we don't disturb them. They made our dinner miserable. We traveled on a long cruise, and late September to early October. We thought we were avoiding small children.

 

I don't think we should be blamed for trying to avoid children, doing our best, and still being made miserable by parents who didn't care. As we can't afford a private yacht, what are we to do?

[midwestchick]

Well, a table full of adults clapping for the child being removed, and telling the parents that a cruise is no place for a child, is also bad behavior ... worse, in my opinion.

 

Since you quoted me, I will respond by saying I did not say in my post that I agreed with the clapping or people telling parents a cruise is no place for a child.

When a post like this one presents itself, it is bound to get a mixed responses.

[SuzanneA]

This topic is about bringing kids on longer cruises. Those who drag their kids have always said, if you dont want to see children , go on longer cruises, avoid school vacations, etc.

 

We do all that. So when I saw that topic, I thought wait a minute, there goes our opportunity to travel on an almost kid free cruise. Yes even one kid is too many, when that kid is jumping into the pool, splashing everyone and the parent tells you that they paid the same as you did and will do as they wish.

 

So I am not at all happy to see ANY topics that have people asking questions about bringing their children on board .

 

When it is not holiday time and the cruise is a lengthy one with a port intensive itinerary, you betcha many of us will be giving these parents a dirty look as they drag their kids to all those places that children are just craving to see.

 

As for all the children just loving the nothingness of Celebrity, how many of them have been on Disney and have said, oh that is boring, I prefer Celebrity and if they have said that , I would begin to worry.

 

I don't normally take exception to the "no kids" on Celebrity posts- but this is just plain rude and insulting. I'm not "dragging" my kid anywhere. And yes, we've been in Disney cruise line, too. News Flash: your cruise is not this super high end vacation- it's still a mass market cruise- get over yourself and if you want something truly special- you've got to spend more money... Even a private yacht- which I do own myself- guess what?! My kid is on it. You were a kid once- if people didn't have kids then our species would be in trouble. That is all.