Princess with Kids?

[jbuckent]

We are discussing a Alaska cruise with our kids 9 & 12. From my research if you want to cruise Alaska, you choose Princess. If you want to cruise with kids, you choose Disney. I want to do both! Will we be out of place on Princess? We have done Disney many many times, and go back because we feel welcome with our kids. We are not sore thumbs in the dining rooms, shows, or other public areas, everything is family friendly. My kids are not fans of the kids clubs, they rather spend time with us. Will there be plenty of things for us to do together on Princess?

[notentirelynormal]

Princess loves kids and the kids will love Princess. Unless they have to be occupied with stuff 24/7 they will have a good time. There are clubs but there is also lots to do on the ship. My kids loved Princess growing up and now their kids love it. Funny, on almost every cruise we went on when my kids were young, they wanted to spend most of the time with us. My DD could fold napkins in any design by the time she was 10.

 

We leave in April for the grandson's sixth cruise. He will be 11 at the time. My granddaughter will be on her third and she will be 9. There are pools for them as well. Check out the shore excursions and see what they like. I know you'll find something.

 

The crew loves kids. After all, they have kids at home that they miss. As long as your kids are well behaved they will treat them like royalty.

 

http://www.princess.com/learn/onboard/activities/discovery-at-sea/

Edited October 21, 2015 by notentirelynormal

[crazymomof4]

My 14 year old son recently told me that the Princess cruise we did as a family 4 years ago was his favorite vacation ever! I was surprised, since I assumed Disneyworld would be his favorite. Anyway, we took all four kids and they all had a great time (ages 10, 12, 17 and 18 then). We enjoyed swimming, ping pong, trivia, movies and especially meal times- we are foodies. A lot of the time we would hang out up the stairs by the inside pool and read or play ping pong and just relax. My kids weren't too excited about the kids clubs, but they did spend some time there. I really think the youngest really enjoyed being able to order whatever he wanted (he is a seafood lover and in the minority) and he tried all kinds of things that week and really enjoyed himself. (Fish, pate, escargot, rack of lamb.)

 

We also enjoyed getting off the ship and looking around together at the new places (Our cruise was Mexico). My husband and I have done Alaska a couple of times with Princess though, and there are many interesting things to see at each of the ports.

 

I think your family will have a great time together on a Princess cruise and it is a much better deal than Disney!

 

Kristen

[cheeseclan]

My son, now 17 has been on 26 cruises and most of them with Princess. When younger he would go to the kids club for a little while but then hang with us. There was always something for us to do as a family wether it was on the ship or off. As the others have said the staff really enjoy having kids on board since most of them have families at home.

Do not worry, they will have a blast in AK and anywhere else you choose to cruise:)

[shredie]

We are discussing a Alaska cruise with our kids 9 & 12. From my research if you want to cruise Alaska, you choose Princess. If you want to cruise with kids, you choose Disney. I want to do both! Will we be out of place on Princess? We have done Disney many many times, and go back because we feel welcome with our kids. We are not sore thumbs in the dining rooms, shows, or other public areas, everything is family friendly. My kids are not fans of the kids clubs, they rather spend time with us. Will there be plenty of things for us to do together on Princess?

 

I am a huge fan of Princess' kids' clubs. We take our grandkids with us, and they love them. For Alaska, there is a lot of activity, including the Junior Rangers program. Princess clubs are designed to have structured activities all day, unlike Disney, where I gather the kids' clubs are just big holding areas to corral the kids and keep them out of the parents' hair. Besides, if you want to see Alaska, why not take a cruise that will focus on the itinerary and not an entertainment empire?

[cruisequeen4ever]

I sailed Princess for the first time as a teenager and loved it! Princess has a great kids' program!

[Mom33]

Families are in abundance on Alaska cruises. You won't feel the least bit "out of place" on a Princess cruise. :D

[shanecindy21403]

We've started taking our 10 yo grand daughter on almost every cruise now and her next one will be next May she's going to Alaska with us. Every cruise that she's been on with us she's had a blast. The crew go out of their way to make her feel special.

[OCruisers]

Princess is an excellent choice for Alaska.

Princess and HAL have been going to Alaska much longer than others and have great reputation.

 

Even if your children don't normally like youth programs on ships, they may on Princess.

Maybe they would just go and check it out to see what they think for themselves.

[katisdale]

We have taken on grandchildren on cruises in the Caribbean, Med, and Alaska. The younger girl (now a teen) really loved the clubs when she was younger. In mentioning Alaska I do have to brag a bit on the clubs. There were Alaska specific activities that included private time with Libby Riddle of Iditerod fame and also with Park Rangers. Those activities, especially with the park Rangers on the day we were in Glacier Bay, were priceless.

[JimmyVWine]

1. An Alaskan cruise in the summer will be replete with families so there is no chance of you sticking out like a sore thumb.

 

2. You need not worry that Princess isn't Disney when it comes to entertainment for kids. On an Alaskan cruise kids don't need invented stimulus to amaze them. Alaska will do that for them. These cruises are family bonding vacations with lots of time off the ship doing outdoors activities together. It's not the type of cruise where people drop their kids off in a youth center everyday at 8:00 and then pick them up after dinner. I can think of many circumstances where DCL would be the better choice but Alaska isn't one of them.

[caribill]

Even if your kids will normally not participate in the kids' clubs, I suggest you bring them there the first evening to find what activities they have that are oriented to being in Alaska. They may find those activities worth attending.

[jbuckent]

Thanks for all the assurance! I think we will make the leap and book with Princess!

[OCruisers]

Thanks for all the assurance! I think we will make the leap and book with Princess!

 

Especially for Alaska, you're making a great decision! :D

 

LuLu

[AZbeachboy]

My 14 year old son recently told me that the Princess cruise we did as a family 4 years ago was his favorite vacation ever! I was surprised, since I assumed Disneyworld would be his favorite. Anyway, we took all four kids and they all had a great time (ages 10, 12, 17 and 18 then). We enjoyed swimming, ping pong, trivia, movies and especially meal times- we are foodies. A lot of the time we would hang out up the stairs by the inside pool and read or play ping pong and just relax. My kids weren't too excited about the kids clubs, but they did spend some time there. I really think the youngest really enjoyed being able to order whatever he wanted (he is a seafood lover and in the minority) and he tried all kinds of things that week and really enjoyed himself. (Fish, pate, escargot, rack of lamb.)

 

We also enjoyed getting off the ship and looking around together at the new places (Our cruise was Mexico). My husband and I have done Alaska a couple of times with Princess though, and there are many interesting things to see at each of the ports.

 

I think your family will have a great time together on a Princess cruise and it is a much better deal than Disney!

 

Kristen

 

Where is the indoor pool? I have never seen one. Which ship. I have seen them on RCL but never Princess.

[StLouisCruisers]

Where is the indoor pool? I have never seen one. Which ship. I have seen them on RCL but never Princess.

 

These Princess ships have covered pools:

 

Coral

Island

Grand

Golden

Star

Diamond

Sapphire