Which cruise for a 4 yr old

[ppxyz]

We are planning for a cruise in Jun / July 2006 but we are totally lost as to which cruise line to choose esp. with a 4 yr old. This is our first family cruise and need something where the kid is not bored..

 

We plan to travel from Seward or Whittier to Vancouver. Any inputs pls. thanks

 

Do we always have to wear formal clothes or is it always a mixture of both?

 

Also will cruises allow us to eat any time that we choose (ofcourse 7-10PM) or do we always have to come at times allocated to us.

[hotmike98]

On a 7 day cruise there will be two formal nights. Most lines request no jeans or shorts during dinner in the dining rooms (ok in the buffet).

 

If you choose Princess, you can do Personal Choice dining, which allows you to choose the time for dining (some restrictions, go to Princess threads and search on that topic). On our first trip to Alaska on Holland, there were times when our daughter wanted to participate in children's program during our scheduled dinner time. Simple solution: We took her to the buffet, then dropped her at children's program and picked her up after our dinner. You can also order room service in the even someone doesn't get his/her nap and gets cranky. This can include DH or DW.

 

I have been to Alaska on Holland and Princess. Both have excellent childrens' programs. Believe me, your little one will not be board. Highly recommend the lumberjack show (Ketchikan), as it will hold his/her attention, and its only a little over an hour, so won't get bored. It's touristy, but well done. Other excursions you might consider are Saxman Village (Ketchikan). We loved the canoe trip in Juneau, but I am quite sure there's an age limit on that. Perhaps a visit with the sled dogs? Very expensive if you do the helicopter one, but there are others with wheeled sleds, or sometimes you can just visit the puppies without riding.

[Budget Queen]

You might want to find a line that has the kids center open for meals. A 4 year old may find it hard to tolerate extended dining that is common with the cruiselines. Princess is the only one way cruise to have anytime dining.

 

If traveling interior, distances are vast, so have plenty of activites- twice what you think you'll need.

 

Ships have alt dining buffets available if you don't wish to do the formal dining rooms. Formal nights- 2 will require approprite attire if you wish to eat in the dining rooms.

[vacationfool]

NCL STAR to Alaska offers a great pool area with water slides close to their kids center, also ice cream cones! They also offer a movie theatre, but not sure about movies geared for that age. The playroom looked fun(we didn't use it, kids grown) although i did find interest since I am in the childcare field. The crew caring for the children (about 10 on this past trip that i saw) seemed very attentive to their needs and entertainment. The NCL STAR also offers a kid size buffet! There are colorful seats for about 15 kids or so, right in the same area as adults. It is geared for children to serve themself. However I never seen chocolate milk, a great sadness to me! Your child may enjoy their own biconulars for viewing, and maybe start a collection game- where you could buy a souveiner at each port, after reading about it or seeing it from the ship, like dolphins or an eagle, etc. it may help in remembering this trip at his age.

[vacationfool]

NCL is also free style cruising, so no set time to eat, and you can eat with just your own family. There is a formal night and lots of nights where you can get your pictures taken, but you do not have to dress formal at all. its all up to you! there is one resturant that is open 24 hours and room service. There are pay resturants but you do not need to pay, there is always food available, and if you do decide to go to the pay resturants, they do sometimes offer 2 for 1 nights. I would not highly recommend the photo studio, they goofed our pictures pretty badly, but then again having one to remember this cruise is priceless!

[ppxyz]

Thanks. So far Princess and NCL is what I have.

 

How is Carnival Spirit or Celebrity for kids? Anyone used their kids programs.

Do they have freestyle dining options.

[trcori]

We've sailed six times on Celebrity in three years, starting when our son was 6. Their kids program is a lot of fun -- the Celebrity ship that goes one-way in Alaska has a nice airy, open, big kids' center with a ball pit and outdoor play area -- they allow kids 3 and up as long as they're completely "trained." As for "freestyle" dining, X has two traditional dinner seatings BUT you also can take advantage of a nightly "casual dining" option, in the buffet cafe but usually with table service (often there's one buffet per cruise if it's a long port stop stretching into the evening), plus you can get anything off the restaurant menus for room service, AND there's pizza/pasta available from early afternoon till at least 1 am. Can't speak entirely to the itinerary as our X cruises to Alaska have both been RTs, Mercury from Seattle last month, and Infinity from Vancouver two years ago, but we love the line -- TR

[lindalo5032]

We loved our Carnival Spirit cruise to Alaska in July 2005.

 

They do have a buffet on the Lido deck for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We ate all our meals there and never used the dining room. There is also La Playa Grill on the Lido deck that stays open till 6:30 p.m. serving hamburgers, hot dogs, french fries, etc. Also, there is a 24 hour pizzeria on the Lido deck.

 

We didn't have kids with us, but we did see the Club Carnival (kids group) eating in a designated area on the Lido Deck every night. This is a dinner supervised by Carnival employees for kids whose parents want to eat in the dining room or Supper Club without the kids. They looked like they were having a good time.

 

Also, it was warm enough that a lot of kids and parents were using the swimming pool, so there are things for kids to do.

 

Enjoy your cruise--you will LOVE Alaska!!

[ppxyz]

trcori - which Celebrity cruise did you take - name pls. thanks

[Momj47]

Here's a link to the Princess web site info on cruising with kids. As long as she's over 4, she'll be able to participate in the kids programs. The kids on our cruise in June seemed to like it. Good luck and enjoy your cruise.

[trcori]

ppxyz -- we sailed Mercury from Seattle this year (8/26, last possible week before school started!) and Infinity from Vancouver in late August 2003. Infinity is a sister ship to Summit, which is the Celebrity ship that does one-ways in Alaska (Vancouver to Seward or Seward to Vancouver), so that's how I know its layout & features -- TR

[ppxyz]

thank you all. will check it out. I have to decide with Celebrity, Princess and NCL. Will check out the web sites regarding the kids activities for 4 yr old. Will post back what we decide. However if anyone has personal experiences pls. post it. thanks