Traveling with my teenagers in different class cabins?

[GypsyCouple]

Hi Everyone,

We are a family of 5, which includes our 3 teenagers (ages 16, 17 and 18). We are booked on an upcoming cruise, but are in different class cabins. My intention was for my husband and I to be in a suite and then book our kids in ocean view cabins. Honestly, this is our very first cruise and my husband required some convincing. I want this to be a fantastic experience so that it leads to many more cruises in our future, especially because we will be empty nesters in just a few short years. At the same time, I dont see the need to pay 4 times the price to have our teenagers in a suite. They dont want to hang out with us anyway 🙂 I ended up booking 1 suite and 2 ocean view cabins. I booked directly through Celebrity and was required to have an adult listed on each room. This means my husband is on the suite, I'm on one of the ocean view rooms and my 18 year old is on the third room. In order to take advantage of the air credit, my 17 year old is listed on the suite with my husband. I'm confused about several things. The celebrity booking person i spoke with said that once we got on the ship Guest Services would be able to change the names on the rooms so that Im listed on the suite with my husband. Anyone done this? Im assuming its important because the suite includes access to Luminae, Michaels and a beverage package. I want to make sure i can access that stuff along with my husband. Will my sea pass be correct? If i book specialty dining for my husband and I, which is included in our suite, will it be all screwed up because it would be reserved for my husband and 17 year old and then later switched to me? Since right now Im not technically reserved in the suite. 

 

I also have concerns about how this will effect our boarding process, luggage, etc. The suite includes some type of priority boarding. Celebrity said they would allow our entire family of 5 to board together, but im not feeling confident in that.

 

Also, newbie question, but our reservation says dining at 6pm. Does this mean dining in the Main Dining Room? How do I make sure they have all 3 of our rooms dining at the same table? Is there a way to link all 3 reservations? 

 

Lastly, I received email confirmations for all 3 reservations. But, yesterday I received travel documents for 1 of the reservations, but not the other two. Is that normal?

 

Clearly, I'm confused! Cruise experts....please help! 

 

Thank you in advance!

Heather 

[Mynki]

When you get to the cruise terminal find the line for suite boarding and make it known that you are travelling with your children. They will let you check in together. 

Only those booked in a suite will be able to dine in Luminae unless you specifically arrange with the maitre 'd to have those staying in other rooms to dine with you. You need to understand though that this is on a spaces availability basis and is not guaranteed. There is also a charge per person per meal. 

I won't lie here, but your situation has a few complications. It looks like the non suite members of your party will be expected to dine at a set time in the MDR. 

You're highly likely to get many replies to your questions on here, but in reality I think you need to head straight to guest services the minute you embark and explain your situation to see what they can do for you. If Celebrity insist on having an 18 year old in each room at booking I'm not sure they will allow you to 'officially' switch rooms. 

Dining is likely to be problematic and potentially costly if you want to all dine together in Luminae etc. In all honesty I'd try and get this resolved before boarding to try and avoid any headaches. If not your seapass card will have you listed in an Oceanview and you are correct you won't be able to access Michaels Club or Luminae until things are resolved. 

[CruiseCrew123]

Could you not put all 3 kids in one Ov therefore you don’t have the issue with splitting yourself from your husband 

[cruiseerf]

When you check in at suite class.....Check everyone in "As Booked"  and then make it known when you visit Michaels club....Michaels club can do the switching of "Who's on first" without waiting in the day 1 crowds at guest relations o4 confusing the part time retiree who is checking you in and most probably wouldn't get it.  

 

Luminae will be interesting, depending how busy it is.....Some cruises its a madhouse and they don't allow guests, others they occasionally do at "off times".....remember they are doing you the favour......That said, you are ALWAYS welcome to dine with your kids in the Main dining room at any time.  Michaels club can get you a reservation and usually some special treatment in the melee of 1000 people dining....Also, if they bend any rules for you, I suggest you TIP over and above what is included.  With money you get honey.....regardless they will work with you, however if they are going out of their way....make it worth their while$.  Enjoy.  

[Morgsmom]

I, too, would vote for putting the 3 kids in one OV room as you are paying 2x for the one child in there by him/herself (though if it is 2 boys and 1 gal I might understand.)  However if they are siblings I would save the $ (I would guess close to $2000USD all in) and put them in one room.  

 

In my case it is tricky because hubby and I have a 25 yo boy (his) and 23 yo girl (mine) so I really can't put them in the same room.  For us to cruise together we look for sailings with very low or no single supplement.

 

Totally agree with trying to get this all straigtened out once onboard as, yes, everything right now is very complicated.  In fact if it were me (my opinion ONLY), I'd actually bump DOWN to a Veranda room for yourself and hubby, making sure that you get the bev package if that is important to you.  I wouldn't be happy/comfortable going to Michael's Club or Luminae knowing that my kids had to go to MDR (or go get pizza) by themselves.  You and hubby can always go the Suite route once the kids are out, but there are so many things that they won't have access to that you will, it might be awkward.

[ipeeinthepool]

4 hours ago, GypsyCouple said:

Hi Everyone,

We are a family of 5, which includes our 3 teenagers (ages 16, 17 and 18). We are booked on an upcoming cruise, but are in different class cabins. My intention was for my husband and I to be in a suite and then book our kids in ocean view cabins. Honestly, this is our very first cruise and my husband required some convincing. I want this to be a fantastic experience so that it leads to many more cruises in our future, especially because we will be empty nesters in just a few short years. At the same time, I dont see the need to pay 4 times the price to have our teenagers in a suite. They dont want to hang out with us anyway 🙂 I ended up booking 1 suite and 2 ocean view cabins. I booked directly through Celebrity and was required to have an adult listed on each room. This means my husband is on the suite, I'm on one of the ocean view rooms and my 18 year old is on the third room. In order to take advantage of the air credit, my 17 year old is listed on the suite with my husband. I'm confused about several things. The celebrity booking person i spoke with said that once we got on the ship Guest Services would be able to change the names on the rooms so that Im listed on the suite with my husband. Anyone done this? Im assuming its important because the suite includes access to Luminae, Michaels and a beverage package. I want to make sure i can access that stuff along with my husband. Will my sea pass be correct? If i book specialty dining for my husband and I, which is included in our suite, will it be all screwed up because it would be reserved for my husband and 17 year old and then later switched to me? Since right now Im not technically reserved in the suite. 

 

I also have concerns about how this will effect our boarding process, luggage, etc. The suite includes some type of priority boarding. Celebrity said they would allow our entire family of 5 to board together, but im not feeling confident in that.

 

Also, newbie question, but our reservation says dining at 6pm. Does this mean dining in the Main Dining Room? How do I make sure they have all 3 of our rooms dining at the same table? Is there a way to link all 3 reservations? 

 

Lastly, I received email confirmations for all 3 reservations. But, yesterday I received travel documents for 1 of the reservations, but not the other two. Is that normal?

 

Clearly, I'm confused! Cruise experts....please help! 

 

Thank you in advance!

Heather 

 

I understand the concept but I think you are over reaching with you and your husband in a suite and your kids in non-suite rooms.  The suite benefits are only for suite passengers and everything about this will be a hassle.  Yes, you can probably sweet talk your self though a lot of this, but why set yourself hassle at every step.  Particularly if this is your first cruise and you want it to be a good experience.  I would have voted for the same concept but get a couple of balcony rooms and an inside.  It will be much easier to get additional room keys and everyone will be eating at the same place.   If you want to eat somewhere a little more fancy, book some specialty restaurants.  Remember, you will only be as happy as your least happy child.

Edited June 16, 2019 by ipeeinthepool

[chemmo]

What suite are you in? Only RS and PH have speciality dining included...

 

Both of these suites have a sofa bed in the living room area which one of the children under 18 could have reducing your need for three rooms. Your 18 year old would then be with your other teen and you could be 2nd suite guest saving all the mess....

 

If you are not in either of these suites then there is no speciality dining included and whilst Sky Suites can take a third guest you do loose privacy...A Celebrity Suite for three could work...

 

 

 

 

 

[waterbug123]

Another option, re:  dining...   have a frank discussion with your kids about their expectations.  Our teens have RARELY been interested in dining with us.  They make friends and/or hang with each other and are perfectly content, and prefer, to go to the buffet by themselves or eat pizza every night, lol.  We do usually pick 2 nights that we tell them we expect the entire family to eat together and in this situation I'd just make specialty reservations for those nights.  If your kids DO have an expectation of eating with you every night, plan to join them in the MDR.  It really isn't fair to ask Luminae staff to make an exception every night for guests whose room doesn't give them that perk.

As for room switching, if you can't "officially" change yourself to the suite I wouldn't sweat it; you can just get an extra key for that room.  You'd have to be with your husband to go to Luminae/Michael's but you'd likely be planning to be together then anyway.  I can assure you that no one in Luminae is going to question who your husband's guest is when he shows up with you instead of a teenager.  Probably the same for Michael's though I can't speak to that from personal experience.  Ditto if your husband makes a specialty dinner reservation for cabin #1234; the staff at the restaurant couldn't care less who his dining companion is SUPPOSED to be (based on room reservations) vs. who ACTUALLY shows up with him.

[dkjretired]

Here is Celebrity's official policy on adults and children in the rooms.  There should be no problem with you and your husband being in the same room, it is Celebrity's policy.  We did it several times when our kids were young.

 

For voyages originating in North America, no guest younger than the age twenty-one (21) will be assigned to a stateroom unless accompanied in the same stateroom by an adult twenty-one (21) years old or older. A guest's age is established upon the first date of sailing. This age limit will be waived for children sailing with their parents or guardians in connecting staterooms; for underage married couples; and for active duty members of the United States or Canadian military. Certain other restrictions and conditions will apply; such as compliance with the age twenty-one (21) alcohol policy, and proof of marriage for underage couples or proof of active duty military status required.

 

You stated that this had something to do with the air and of course I do not know where the kids cabins are located, they do consider across the hall to be connecting. 

 

You will not have a problem checking in together.   Your real problem is dining together. 

[upwarduk]

4 hours ago, cruiseerf said:

Also, if they bend any rules for you, I suggest you TIP over and above what is included.  With money you get honey...

You shouldn't have to resort to bribery.

[TeeRick]

We have done this and we dined in the MDR together at the same table.  A few nights we took our non-suite kids into Luminae after asking the Maitre 'D and reserving a time.  But be aware that it is $30 pp extra for dinner in Luminae for your non-suite guests for dinner.  ($20 lunch, $10 breakfast).  But still much less expensive as a Specialty Restaurant if you all went together.

[cynbar]

This may all work out, but frankly, it sounds like it will be a hassle and not my idea of a relaxing, stress free vacation. I agree that if you can, change the reservation for your kids into 1 cabin for the 3 of them, with you and your husband in the suite. Even if your kids are in a balcony, it will be cheaper than 2 cabins. Then, talk amongst yourselves about what your dinner expectations will be. As mentioned above, you can ask to have them dine with you in Luminae but it is not guaranteed and will cost you $30 extra per child. You can dine with them in the MDR, but Luminae is one of the main suite perks you are paying for so not sure if you want to do that too often. Also, there are 2 kinds of MDR dining, Traditional (with a set time, set table every night) and Select (show up when you want.) Sounds like they may be assigned to early Traditional at 6 pm, in which case there may not be room at their table. Of course, if the kids expect to eat pizza/burgers/buffet most of the time, that will be less of a problem. You said in your original post that you want your husband to get hooked on cruising -- you've got a lot of red flags with your current plan that may torpedo that. 

[awhfy]

Personally, I’d forego the Suite for this cruise & get either a family balcony & connecting (or across Hall) cabin. Use this vacation as an intro to cruising & family bonding time prior to the chicks leaving the nest. Save the Suite for when it’s just you & your husband. MDR is really good, enjoy it

[dkjretired]

5 minutes ago, awhfy said:

Personally, I’d forego the Suite for this cruise & get either a family balcony & connecting (or across Hall) cabin. Use this vacation as an intro to cruising & family bonding time prior to the chicks leaving the nest. Save the Suite for when it’s just you & your husband. MDR is really good, enjoy it

 

Agree, keep in mind that whoever winds up booked in the suite will not have an assigned seat in the MDR. 

[GypsyCouple]

Thank you EVERYONE for your responses. You put my mind at ease! I feel confident that we will be able to check in and board together. Once we are in the ship, I will head to the concierge at Michaels and get the rooms/names corrected. 

 

Celebrity would not allow us to book more than 2 people per room because we are sailing in 6 weeks and the ship is at capacity. But either way, our kids need/want their own space. We would not do well in the same room and since we have 2 boys and 1 girl, our daughter will get her own room without having to deal with her 2 older brothers. The rooms are connected though, so I think they will enjoy having their own “compound” of rooms. They also won’t want to sit and eat with us each night. I like the idea of having us all dine together a few nights and then they can do their own thing the other nights. They will most likely be hitting the buffet and pizza! Honestly, since they are all just one year apart, they’re sort of like a little “gang” (I say that jokingly) and will hang out together and probably know more about the ship and experience more than my husband and I. 

 

Thank you again for taking the time to help a cruise newbie out! I really appreciate it!

Heather 

[JFontaine]

I’d keep the suite. You want a special experience and that’s a suite.

 

You didn’t mention how far away the kids rooms are from yours, but it sounds like ocean view versus suite is far.  I would rearrange that, and put the kids in inside rooms near you.  The ship might not be helpful rearranging rooms that are far apart.  They don’t have to be directly across the hall, but they need to be close by.

 

i assume that your suite comes with a beverage package, and you will need to get it removed from one child’s pass and applied to you.  That is another hassle.

 

When Luminae was first introduced the policy was that they would allow children in separate cabins traveling with parents in a suite in Luminae, not on a space available basis.  You will have to pay for that.  There is usually a reduced rate when you purchase every day access, which I have done many times.  

 

For approximately the same amount of money you can cruise in a 2 bedroom/2 bathroom suite on one of the bigger Royal Caribbean ships, get rid of these hassles, and have more for the kids to do. You might want to check that out. 

 

Good luck, have a great trip.

 

Edited to add that I now see that you are traveling soon on a full ship, so you might not be able to move.  Hopefully they will accommodate you, but if not, just ask for some extra keys. The ship  doesn’t check to see who is sleeping where, especially if the kids are quiet in the cabin and there are no noise complaints from neighbors.

 

 

 

 

Edited June 16, 2019 by JFontaine

[AnneDieuLeVeut]

Hi GypsyCouple,

 

We're also a family with teenagers about to take our first cruise.  We have two kids, not three, but we had a lot of the same concerns you do.  After hashing through them with our very patient agent we booked two veranda cabins.  My name is on one, and my husband's name is on the other.  These cabins don't include the suite perks, of course, but with the difference in price we can just separately purchase specialty dining for date night(s), etc.   We will get extra key cards (although here's hoping that pesky reservation in between our two cabins upgrades so we can use the connecting door and remove the partition between our balconies 🙂 ).  In the kids' cabin the bed will be separated and made up into twins, and when one is showering and dressing the other can hang out on the balcony.  

 

Booking your and the kids' staterooms Aqua Class would include access to a smaller dining room each night, Blu, and the Persian Garden and Relaxation Room.

 

Something to consider.

 

Anne Dieu Le Veut 

[the_dylaness]

This is interesting-

 

We are booked in adjacent AQ and concierge cabins in Feb.  We (DH and myself) are in the AQ and our kids are in Concierge with the nanny.  I know our kids won't be allowed to dine in Blu with us- they don't like long sit down dinners anyway so they  will get some room service or buffet and then head to the kids club.  But they are small, not teenagers! The only other blip I can see is the embarkation lunch for concierge- I think it's crazy this (or equivalent) is not offered for AQ pax since those cabins cost more.... so I don't know if we will be allowed to eat lunch with our kids on embarkation day 😞

[dkjretired]

10 minutes ago, GypsyCouple said:

Thank you EVERYONE for your responses. You put my mind at ease! I feel confident that we will be able to check in and board together. Once we are in the ship, I will head to the concierge at Michaels and get the rooms/names corrected. 

 

Celebrity would not allow us to book more than 2 people per room because we are sailing in 6 weeks and the ship is at capacity. But either way, our kids need/want their own space. We would not do well in the same room and since we have 2 boys and 1 girl, our daughter will get her own room without having to deal with her 2 older brothers. The rooms are connected though, so I think they will enjoy having their own “compound” of rooms. They also won’t want to sit and eat with us each night. I like the idea of having us all dine together a few nights and then they can do their own thing the other nights. They will most likely be hitting the buffet and pizza! Honestly, since they are all just one year apart, they’re sort of like a little “gang” (I say that jokingly) and will hang out together and probably know more about the ship and experience more than my husband and I. 

 

Thank you again for taking the time to help a cruise newbie out! I really appreciate it!

Heather 

 

Mid they give you any trouble show them the quote I gave which is directly out of their website. Make sure you do get at least a couple of nights in Luminae.

 

 

[warmwinds]

What you should also do fairly soon after boarding is go to Michaels Club (or the Retreat depending on Ship and when) and ask to see ALL the dinner menus for the week for Luminae.  Since your kids probably won't be eating with you in Luminae but maybe just once or twice, this way you can choose the night(s) when they like something on the Luminae menu.  While in Luminae you can also choose items from the MDR menu (again, depending upon ship) but to me it sounds foolish to PAY to have them in Luminae on a night when they would eat from the MDR menu anyway.  

[alfredo22]

FWIW, Celebrity will absolutely bend on the rules for ages in a stateroom.  I am cruising next month with my 6 & 9 year olds alone in an inside stateroom (at least by ticketing).  We did this to make sure adults would be able to dine in Luminae.

 

the stateroom is across the hall from my parents SS, so that was “good enough” for celebrity.  My wife and I are in a nearby CS— likely the kids will end up sleeping in the living room... unless we are real lucky!

 

if your OV are no where near your suite, this concept may not be palatable to celebrity.

[williamfturcotte]

Suites are great . You will love it . I have 13 teen year olds  , half the time they want to eat in the café , then hang out without us . We eat in Luminae on those nights . Its much cheaper paying the extra fee if the kids eat with you then getting two Suites . I think your going to be fine . 

 The Cruise booking agent was the one to give me the Idea of getting one suite and an inside cabin . Everyone hangs out in the suite during the day and just uses the inside as a bedroom . Its a great way to save money . 

[Fogfog]

We've sailed with our kids (now adults) at various ages

Our concern was to be in the same Muster station just in case

We often did one balcony and put them in an inside across the hall. 

Have also done connecting rooms w balconies which works well.

 

Have you considered doing all balconies? or all Aqua or Concierge? If its a first cruise-- not sure if you realize you could have the balconies opened to eachother... Which is a nice feature. 

It would solve the distance problem, changing keys, dining etc. 

Don't know which ship this is--you could do specialty dining for some of those meals as well. 

 

Seems to me it would be a lot to ask to have 3 people not in suite class to regularly eat as "guests" in Luminae. (even with space and the $fee) 

 

[warmwinds]

I can't imagine going on a cruise with my family and not eating meals with them.  Sometimes it's the only time to reconnect after the day - when they were little, they would be off in the kid's club all day, older they'd be off hanging with their new friends, but we ALWAYS had dinner together.

[helen haywood]

Different strokes for different folks.  Maybe they plan on having lunches together.