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Luxury Cruising and Kids, best options


PhotoGal07
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I’ve seen a few older posts on this subject, and I’m hoping to find some more updated info. We have a 5 and 7 year old, and are looking for better service and less crowded areas than we would find on a standard Carnival Cruise.

 

I’m not looking for what will not work (Please do not worry, I will not be not be taking my children on a Silversea Cruise during the school year). But I am interested in the newer options, whether they be on a luxury line, or the “luxury” feel on a mega-ship.

 

We tend to stick to Caribbean itineraries, as beaches and snorkeling are a big hit with the kids. We are also considering an Alaska itinerary in another couple years. And we are at a point where they can handle longer meals, though occasionally we do still have to cut the meal a bit short and either skip or get dessert to go if our 5 year old is getting restless.

 

Rock walls and bowling alleys are of less interest to the kids. Beaches, pools, a quiet spot to read and look at the ocean (per my daughter), tend to be the priority. A few evening shows would not go amiss either, as we are getting to the point where bedtime can be pushed back past 7:30pm without consequences the next day.

 

We’ve done the Disney cruise concierge level twice now, and have enjoyed it. But the children are starting to outgrow the desire for character meals, and the novelty of playing with Goofy on deck. Kids clubs are not as important, we usually spend most of our time together, and the children rarely spend more than two or three hours in the kids club over the course of a whole week.

 

We’ve also tried NCL, but not Haven (regular Suite). Both products were lovely, though both still had the obvious problem of far too many people crammed into most public spaces. Disney had the concierge sundeck which was a welcome respite, and we utilized our balconies quite a bit as well.

 

We started out doing Carnival and RCI, so we’re no strangers to the cattle calls of the mass market ships, but the Four Seasons is more our speed.

 

So for those of you that have cruised with children, what are the best current options? Stick with Disney, try NCL Haven, a specific luxury line in the summer? Any thoughts or past experiences would be welcome.

Edited by darkpixie08
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Crystal has special places for the under 18 crowd. One for children and one for teens. If over a few are on a cruise they will have what they call junior activity directors on that cruise. Almost all of there summer cruises have the junior activities directors. They get to do things that us regular guests don't get to do like tours of the bridge!

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Luxury Cruise Lines

 

The following is copied from the Seabourn website:

 

Although families are starting to come on Seabourn, the line does not actively look to attract them. They place two crew on board to manage a children’s program during the summer and convert the card room into a club room for them. However, there are many other lines that have better facilities, programs and cater specifically for families and I would not recommend Seabourn as a line well suited to families. It is not the most sensible choice if you want to take children on a cruise. It is, though, likely to be the passengers rather than the line that resents having children on board. When I spoke to some of the crew about this they joked that passengers transform from being parents, grandparents and family-loving people into child-intolerants until they step back on land at the end of the cruise. So Seabourn focus their activities on keeping children busy and away from the rest of the guests.

 

Regent's Club Mariner is very popular during the summer months. Here is a link to the website with information pertaining to their children's cruises:

 

https://www.rssc.com/experience/enrichment/discovery-exploration/club-mariner

 

And from the Silversea website:

 

Silversea does not have a dedicated Children's Program onboard, and does not provide for the care or supervision of children. On the Silver Shadow, children over the age of six months are allowed as long as they are accompanied by a responsible adult over the age of 21.

 

For better or worse, Seabourn's explanation is how many (but not all) luxury cruisers feel about children onboard. Speaking for myself - we have "been there - done that" in terms of raising children (and we loved doing it). There are so many cruise lines with things to do for children and only a handful where there are few or no children. We do not sail in the summer because of the children's programs.

 

Ultra Premium Cruise lines:

 

Viking Ocean either does not permit children or limits there. Here is a link to an article from last year https://www.travelpulse.com/news/cruise/the-simple-pleasures-of-adult-only-viking-cruises.html

 

Oceania - found an article from 2012 where they were going to try out children's programs on their ships but could not find anything recent.

 

Azamara is listed in an article "The Best Five Cruises without Kids".

 

There is one luxury line - Paul Gauguin that sails in the South Pacific that, In my opinion, would be great for children due to the area where they will be (lots of things to see and do while ashore). It is a small ship with somewhere between 300 and 400 passengers.

While this post may not be super helpful, it likely will give you an idea of which cruise lines to avoid.

Edited by Travelcat2
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If you are adventurous, check out the luxury ship Europa 2 on the Hapag Lloyd cruise line, where the program is in both English and German (though 95% of pax are from German countries). They even have adjoining family suites and bilingual kids supervisors.

I was on a holiday cruise and there were 45 or so well-behaved kids on board out of 516 pax and they had all kinds of things for them, so parents could do things with or without kids. I believe kids under 12 sail free if in the same suite.

 

 

https://www.hl-************/search-results?q=children

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I too would look at Crystal Cruises.

 

During the times of the year when families with children sail with them (Summer, holidays, etc.) they have Junior Activity Counselors on board and run children's programs. As Texas Tillie noted they have two dedicated rooms for children.

 

We just took our family on a Crystal Cruise last May and that included three grand children.

 

Many years ago we took our children on Crystal.

 

It is a wonderful luxury line experience.

 

The crew is just wonderful with the children in all venues including the dining room.

 

Children's menus are available for meals but there are lots of items that children enjoy that are on the regular menu or that you can special order.

 

Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

Keith

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