TMJplus1 Posted May 30, 2017 #1 Share Posted May 30, 2017 Hi all - we are heading to Alaska soon with our 13-year-old in tow and she is very nervous about making friends on the ship. I would love to hear from anyone who traveled with teens, and if you have any pics of the teen areas or even their scheduled activities please share. I'm encouraging her to at least go to the teen meet 'n greet which I hear is the first day of the cruise? Also any other tips for cruising with a teen - such as how to keep in touch with her on the ship, "rules" for personal safety, etc. Thank you so much! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheeto Posted May 30, 2017 #2 Share Posted May 30, 2017 Curious to read the replies to this too. We have our 13 yr old daughter too. We will be on the eurodam on the 17th of June. She is too shy to go the teen club on her own so it will most likely be just the 3 of us together all the time. Which we enjoy anyways, I just hope she isn't too bored with us. I don't think it will be a problem since there is really only 1 true sea day. Glacier Bay should have us pretty busy and then the last day to Victoria I think we will be resting up from our intensive port days. I did tell her we would go with her if she wanted to at least check out the Teen Club, so we shall see! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moparop Posted May 30, 2017 #3 Share Posted May 30, 2017 We are taking an almost 13 year old in July. I've told all three of my kids (7, 11, and the 13) that they need to go for at least an hour of the 7pm meet-up on the first night. While we haven't cruised HAL, we have cruised before and that first night is key. The counselors work hard to make a community quickly and if they skip that night, it's much harder to break into the group. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCalicoCat Posted May 30, 2017 #4 Share Posted May 30, 2017 Definitely encourage them to go the first night. That way they can participate in scavenger hunts, etc. My son is 8.5 & can't wait for camp! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mamascott Posted May 30, 2017 #5 Share Posted May 30, 2017 I hate to be that person.. My 14 yo hated it. But his was a combination of being super seasick, and WiFi withdrawal. 😂 We went to Alaska last summer, and he was a mess. He's never been motion sick before, and he's been traveling since he was a baby. None of us expected him to get so sick. He was miserable the whole trip. However, my 11 year old daughter had an amazing time. She made tons of friends, did all the activities, went to all the shows with my mother. She had more fun then the rest of us put together. This year we are doing a 14 day cruise. I told my oldest to bring his scholarship essay to work on, and I bought him a bigger memory card for his phone for music and games. We are bringing books, cards, games and most importantly, meds. 😂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMJplus1 Posted May 30, 2017 Author #6 Share Posted May 30, 2017 Curious to read the replies to this too. We have our 13 yr old daughter too. We will be on the eurodam on the 17th of June. She is too shy to go the teen club on her own so it will most likely be just the 3 of us together all the time. Which we enjoy anyways, I just hope she isn't too bored with us. I don't think it will be a problem since there is really only 1 true sea day. Glacier Bay should have us pretty busy and then the last day to Victoria I think we will be resting up from our intensive port days. I did tell her we would go with her if she wanted to at least check out the Teen Club, so we shall see! Cheeto - We're on the same exact cruise! I wonder if our daughters would be interested in meeting (FB or Snapchat?) before the trip...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMJplus1 Posted May 30, 2017 Author #7 Share Posted May 30, 2017 We are taking an almost 13 year old in July. I've told all three of my kids (7, 11, and the 13) that they need to go for at least an hour of the 7pm meet-up on the first night. While we haven't cruised HAL, we have cruised before and that first night is key. The counselors work hard to make a community quickly and if they skip that night, it's much harder to break into the group. Thank you - I've told her the same so hopefully she'll go the first night at least for a bit. I figure the counselors have experience with icebreaker games and such. I did offer to go with her but of course that made her more horrified. :eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMJplus1 Posted May 30, 2017 Author #8 Share Posted May 30, 2017 I hate to be that person.. My 14 yo hated it. But his was a combination of being super seasick, and WiFi withdrawal. 😂 We went to Alaska last summer, and he was a mess. He's never been motion sick before, and he's been traveling since he was a baby. None of us expected him to get so sick. He was miserable the whole trip. However, my 11 year old daughter had an amazing time. She made tons of friends, did all the activities, went to all the shows with my mother. She had more fun then the rest of us put together. This year we are doing a 14 day cruise. I told my oldest to bring his scholarship essay to work on, and I bought him a bigger memory card for his phone for music and games. We are bringing books, cards, games and most importantly, meds. 😂 I didn't even think about seasickness - we did a Mexican Riviera cruise with her several years ago and she was fine. But lately she's been prone to carsickness on long rides. Was dramamine or anything else helpful to your son? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheeto Posted May 30, 2017 #9 Share Posted May 30, 2017 Cheeto - We're on the same exact cruise! I wonder if our daughters would be interested in meeting (FB or Snapchat?) before the trip...? I will definitely ask her tonight. I will let you know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moparop Posted May 30, 2017 #10 Share Posted May 30, 2017 I didn't even think about seasickness - we did a Mexican Riviera cruise with her several years ago and she was fine. But lately she's been prone to carsickness on long rides. Was dramamine or anything else helpful to your son? We used Bonine with my son. It's supposed to be less drowsy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMJplus1 Posted May 30, 2017 Author #11 Share Posted May 30, 2017 I will definitely ask her tonight. I will let you know. Yay! I'll do the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMJplus1 Posted May 30, 2017 Author #12 Share Posted May 30, 2017 We used Bonine with my son. It's supposed to be less drowsy. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annalisa0 Posted June 19, 2017 #13 Share Posted June 19, 2017 My teen daughter and her cousin will be on July 29. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Crew News Posted June 19, 2017 #14 Share Posted June 19, 2017 Hi all - we are heading to Alaska soon with our 13-year-old in tow and she is very nervous about making friends on the ship. I would love to hear from anyone who traveled with teens, and if you have any pics of the teen areas or even their scheduled activities please share. I'm encouraging her to at least go to the teen meet 'n greet which I hear is the first day of the cruise? Also any other tips for cruising with a teen - such as how to keep in touch with her on the ship, "rules" for personal safety, etc. Thank you so much! Here is a link to the teen activities that I have scanned on previous cruises which should be typical of what to expect. I am just off the Noordam to Alaska and only saw teens at dinner. The ones that I spoke to loved Club HAL and spent all of their time there. You can leave sticky notes on your stateroom door and leave voice messages on the stateroom phone letting each other know where to meet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
janmcn Posted June 20, 2017 #15 Share Posted June 20, 2017 Our granddaughters loved Club HAL! (10,13,15). They instantly made friends they wanted to have lunch with,etc. No worries! Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Crew News Posted June 20, 2017 #16 Share Posted June 20, 2017 Here is a link to the teen activities that I have scanned on previous cruises which should be typical of what to expect. I am just off the Noordam to Alaska and only saw teens at dinner. The ones that I spoke to loved Club HAL and spent all of their time there. You can leave sticky notes on your stateroom door and leave voice messages on the stateroom phone letting each other know where to meet. Forgot the link: http://www.rogerjett-photography.com/specialty-2/holland-america-lines-kids-activities-examples/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMLincoln Posted June 20, 2017 #17 Share Posted June 20, 2017 We took 3 grandkids to Alaska, 15, 13 and 11. The oldest stuck close to us, wanted to do more adult things, but the younger two did Club HAL most of the time, made friends and had fun. But the MOST successful activity was swimming!! They loved being in the pool even if the weather outside the covered roof was cold or rainy. Rules: #1. Don't fall off the ship! So no climbing on railings, Period. Not to get a better picture, not to tease your sister, not to dare someone.... feet only on the deck or a deck chair. They were very good about this one. #2 No going into anyone else's cabin without one of us (Grandma or Grandpa). We explained it's like going into a stranger's house. Never became an issue. #3 Let us know where you are going on the ship, leave a note or a phone message. This was a little harder but it all worked well. #4 We have dinner together, unless other arrangements are made ahead of time, which were never needed. Our kids spent a lot of time enjoying the scenery, looking for wildlife, sharing binoculars, trying new foods... they loved the variety of foods! Enjoy! m-- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksqueak Posted June 20, 2017 #18 Share Posted June 20, 2017 I just got off the Zaandam with a 13 year old. Couldn't keep him out of the Loft for teens. He loved it and made lots of friends. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robincorn Posted June 20, 2017 #19 Share Posted June 20, 2017 Just got off the Eurodam with two teenage boys 15 and 18. They did not go to the teens club at all but we all had a great time together. We all went together to the food demos and spent a lot of time playing games. Eurodam has many more board games than other lines and we took advantage of it. They also enjoyed playing ping pong and all the food. i allow them a lot of freedom on the ship since they can't go far. We would meet up once in awhile and then go our separate ways. We did eat dinner together and do excursions together. A lot of bonding time. My one son did take bonine most of the trip to prevent seasickness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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