Good News For People Travelling With Kids....

[ceilidh1]

Princess announced this today:

Princess Cruise Lines

Vaccinated children will now be able to sail!

Princess will now extend vaccinated cruises to children 5-11 who receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccination. This follows the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) news on recommending this specific vaccine for children 5-11 years old. This is welcome news for families and groups who had hoped to sail with Princess this holiday season with younger cruisers, starting in mid-December.

Princess is currently committed to operating vaccinated cruises, as defined by the CDC through February 28, 2022. These cruises are available for guests who will be fully vaccinated at least 14 days prior to the beginning of the cruise, have proof of vaccination, and in accordance with CDC guidelines, have a negative COVID-19 test result within two days of departure.

 

 

[caribill]

A couple of months ago Princess cancelled bookings for people that had children in that age range.

 

I wonder if Princess will allow rebooking the same cruise (if the children will be fully vaccinated) at no increase in cost for the people whose cruises had been cancelled by Princess due to having children in that age range.

[Honolulu Blue]

5 hours ago, ceilidh1 said:

Princess announced this today:

Princess Cruise Lines

Vaccinated children will now be able to sail!

 

Thanks for sharing.  This makes sense, and I expect it to be adopted by most cruise lines within the next few weeks.  They can delay a bit because full vaccination for those 5-11 won't come until, at earliest, December 10.

 

2 hours ago, caribill said:

A couple of months ago Princess cancelled bookings for people that had children in that age range.

 

I wonder if Princess will allow rebooking the same cruise (if the children will be fully vaccinated) at no increase in cost for the people whose cruises had been cancelled by Princess due to having children in that age range.

 

It will be tricky for those involved, but I say if the cruise is still of interest, it can't hurt to lobby for it.

[ceilidh1]

6 hours ago, caribill said:

A couple of months ago Princess cancelled bookings for people that had children in that age range.

 

I wonder if Princess will allow rebooking the same cruise (if the children will be fully vaccinated) at no increase in cost for the people whose cruises had been cancelled by Princess due to having children in that age range.

I have a 10 year old and cancelled my holiday sailing as I figured that it would be cutting it pretty close to get him fully vaxxed in time. I can do without that stress. I'm happy that the US has approved and is moving forward with vaccination - we are in Canada, not only still waiting on approval but also no idea yet what the interval between doses will be (here in BC it was several months for adults...). Fingers crossed our March sailing will go without a hitch!

[LACruiser88]

Our daughter (and 7 yr old granddaughter) had cancelled their Dec 29th, 10 day cruise with us before final payment.  

 

Our granddaughter gets her 1st vaccine tomorrow and 2nd at the end of the month.  They are rebooking the cruise with us, yeah!!!  😀

[Pansy2801]

10 hours ago, ceilidh1 said:

Princess announced this today:

Princess Cruise Lines

Vaccinated children will now be able to sail!

Princess will now extend vaccinated cruises to children 5-11 who receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccination. This follows the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) news on recommending this specific vaccine for children 5-11 years old. This is welcome news for families and groups who had hoped to sail with Princess this holiday season with younger cruisers, starting in mid-December.

Princess is currently committed to operating vaccinated cruises, as defined by the CDC through February 28, 2022. These cruises are available for guests who will be fully vaccinated at least 14 days prior to the beginning of the cruise, have proof of vaccination, and in accordance with CDC guidelines, have a negative COVID-19 test result within two days of departure.

 

 

Where is this posted on Princess website? I could not reserve a cruise with a 10 year old (who will be vaccinated before the cruise ) this morning. 

[ceilidh1]

15 minutes ago, Pansy2801 said:

Where is this posted on Princess website? I could not reserve a cruise with a 10 year old (who will be vaccinated before the cruise ) this morning. 

I posted a link above to the email that was sent to TAs yesterday. No idea if it has been updated on Princess website yet.

[Astro Flyer]

Since Princess & HAL are both part of the Holland America Group it would be good if PCL had the same promotion as HAL.

 

'Kids Cruise Free' on Select Departures through May 31, 2022
The offer is good on select sailings through May 31, 2022. Bookings must be made by Nov. 18, 2021. 

Ships in the Caribbean include Pinnacle Class Rotterdam and Nieuw Statendam, along with Eurodam and Nieuw Amsterdam. Koningsdam and Zuiderdam are on the West Coast exploring Mexico, Hawaii and the California coast, as well as Panama Canaltransits. In late spring, Eurodam, Koningsdam and Zuiderdam will be in Alaska; Nieuw Statendam and Rotterdam head to Europe; and Zaandam will be cruising in Canada/New England.

 

Cruise Fares Start at $898 for a Family of Four
With the "Kids Cruise Free" offer, starting fares for a Holland America Line cruise are $449 per person, double occupancy, so a family of four could take a vacation for just $898. Over the holidays, cruise fares begin at $549 per person, double occupancy, making a cruise getaway a great option over school break. *Taxes, fees and port expenses are extra. Restrictions apply.

 

https://www.carnivalcorp.com/news-releases/news-release-details/holland-america-line-launches-kids-cruise-free-offer-just-time

[LACruiser88]

@Astro Flyer  That's a great deal!  Hopefully, Princess will follow...

[Astro Flyer]

5 hours ago, LACruiser88 said:

@Astro Flyer  That's a great deal!  Hopefully, Princess will follow...

That would be good…Jan Swartz was previously the PCL president & is now the Holland America Group president so she still oversees PCL.
 

I understand that the different HAG cruise lines don’t always have the same marketing & policies but the same offer would be appreciated by PCL clients who had to change plans because children were not allowed to cruise.

[Coffeeluvr05]

@Astro Flyer I saw this today too and was hoping to take my grandkids with on a HAL cruise, but it was a no go.  Darn!  HAL has done this before so I don't think this is a new thing for them.  I'm not super familiar with their promos but in researching itineraries before, I found them to have other "kids sail free" cruises as well.  They probably don't attract a huge number of families, but if they can entice those of us to take our grandkids, we probably will and we will likely be willing to spend on them while we are there too.

[Steelers36]

6 hours ago, Astro Flyer said:

That would be good…Jan Swartz was previously the PCL president & is now the Holland America Group president so she still oversees PCL.
 

I understand that the different HAG cruise lines don’t always have the same marketing & policies but the same offer would be appreciated by PCL clients who had to change plans because children were not allowed to cruise.

 

3 hours ago, Coffeeluvr05 said:

@Astro Flyer I saw this today too and was hoping to take my grandkids with on a HAL cruise, but it was a no go.  Darn!  HAL has done this before so I don't think this is a new thing for them.  I'm not super familiar with their promos but in researching itineraries before, I found them to have other "kids sail free" cruises as well.  They probably don't attract a huge number of families, but if they can entice those of us to take our grandkids, we probably will and we will likely be willing to spend on them while we are there too.

Never sailed with HAL, but let's be honest here - their rep is catering to the geriatric set and I realize this is at least partly in the past, but it isn't likely most people's first choice to take kids on, so this type of promo is something they might need to attract younger demographic whereas more kids already on Princess.  I imagine if cruise lines want to attract kids, the main competitors for that are Disney and RCL, depending on age-range.

 

[Pansy2801]

12 hours ago, ceilidh1 said:

I posted a link above to the email that was sent to TAs yesterday. No idea if it has been updated on Princess website yet.

Thank you. Sorry I did not look first time all the way, but I sent the link to my TA and she was able to hold a cruise for my family ( with a younger than 12 child) till Sunday when he is supposed to have the first vaccine. So hopefully it will be a holiday cruise for us. 

[VaCruzers]

Ugh..really hoping for an extended amount of time before cruising with kids resumes. That would be the ideal cruising situation!

 

 

Edited November 6, 2021 by VaCruzers

[Steelers36]

45 minutes ago, VaCruzers said:

Ugh..really hoping for an extended amount of time before cruising with kids resumes. That would be the ideal cruising situation!

 

 

Avoid school holiday times.  We have never had an issue with kids on board Princess.  I guess they were all pretty well-behaved.

[ceilidh1]

19 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

Avoid school holiday times.  We have never had an issue with kids on board Princess.  I guess they were all pretty well-behaved.

I've seen far more badly behaved adults than badly behaved kids...

[Coral]

5 minutes ago, ceilidh1 said:

I've seen far more badly behaved adults than badly behaved kids...

I have seen both. Though I blame the adults for the kid's behavior because most of the time the kids are unsupervised and parents don't seem to have a clue what their kids are doing.

Edited November 7, 2021 by Coral

[ceilidh1]

15 minutes ago, Coral said:

I have seen both. Though I blame the adults for the kid's behavior because most of the time the kids are unsupervised and parents don't seem to have a clue what their kids are doing.

Agree! When we finally get back on a ship next year, my oldest will be almost 15 and in the teen kids club. I know they have far more freedom in wandering the ship/leaving the club, etc. While I'm not concerned about her behaviour so much, I do know that if she is with a group that are not behaving well then, by association, she is also part of that "badly behaved" set. I intend to have a conversation, set specific groundrules, and let her know the consequences of bad behaviour. Both kids know that bad behaviour will result in no more cruises....and I don't think they would risk that! Lol.

[memoak]

Younger kids are usually well behaved teenagers not so much. Too much time on board and the start playing press every button on an elevator and run or lay out on a stair forcing people to step over them. Yes I have encountered both plus some really foul mouthed kids 

 

[jimbo1683]

Long live the ban on kids cruising

[kitkat343]

On 11/6/2021 at 12:29 AM, Steelers36 said:

 

Never sailed with HAL, but let's be honest here - their rep is catering to the geriatric set and I realize this is at least partly in the past, but it isn't likely most people's first choice to take kids on, so this type of promo is something they might need to attract younger demographic whereas more kids already on Princess.  I imagine if cruise lines want to attract kids, the main competitors for that are Disney and RCL, depending on age-range.

 

We sailed with HAL and a three year old using a Kids Sail Free promotion.  Our cruise was a seven day cruise that was in the middle of a longer 21 day cruise from Ft. Lauderdale, so the passengers were skewing older than even a normal HAL cruise.  It's a great deal, but please note that prior to covid, the kids club hours/activities on HAL are much more limited than on Princess and the fellow passengers were not thrilled to have small children aboard.  But I really loved the itinerary, so I was very glad to have this experience but families should be aware of the limitations of sailing on HAL.

[NIX70]

We have an issue in that we're looking to book a Med cruise with the family at Easter next year. All great, everyone in the family vaccinated, EXCEPT. In the UK, which is where we're from, Government guidance is that children under the age of 16 should only have one jab (and we have a 15 year old). So does that count as "fully vaccinated" for Princess??

[Roberto256]

On 11/5/2021 at 12:51 AM, ceilidh1 said:

Princess announced this today:

Princess Cruise Lines

Vaccinated children will now be able to sail!

Princess will now extend vaccinated cruises to children 5-11 who receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccination. 

 

What about kids from other countries who have received other than the Pfizer vaccine?

What about kids in the US who receive a different vaccine when/if one is approved in the next few weeks?

 

[ceilidh1]

1 minute ago, Roberto256 said:

 

What about kids from other countries who have received other than the Pfizer vaccine?

What about kids in the US who receive a different vaccine when/if one is approved in the next few weeks?

 

As far as I know, Pfizer is the ONLY approved vaccine for kids under 12 right now - maybe I'm wrong? I would assume that if another vaccine becomes approved the requirements would be modified by Princess, just as they have been doing all along.

[nocl]

3 minutes ago, Roberto256 said:

 

What about kids from other countries who have received other than the Pfizer vaccine?

What about kids in the US who receive a different vaccine when/if one is approved in the next few weeks?

 

If they receive a vaccine authorized for their age group by either the FDA or WHO then they are fine.  If it is not authorized then they will not be considered to be vaccinated on ships leaving from the US.