June 3 cruise-many kids?

[lionheart]

Anyone been on a Baltic cruise begining of June...were their many kids? Not sure how the European countries school year is. I know in New Jersey, kids are in school mid to end of June.

 

THanks,

 

Kurt

[Artemis]

We're one of those nasty cruizin' families :D and our Texas school gets out before Memorial Day, so we often get an early jump on summer travel. There are not many kids cruising in early June--the majority of US schools aren't out yet, and European schools definitely go into mid June at the earliest. Other factors impacting the numbers of kids are itinerary, with the Med being the most popular of "the usual" European cruises and the Baltics being fairly low on the scale, and the cruise line and ship you cruise, e.g., last July, during peak Euro travel season, we cruised the Baltics on HAL's ms Rotterdam. There were very few kids aboard vs. in a few ports, we ran into the HAL Westerdam (more families) and I think an RCI Radiance class ship (lots more families). Obviously, you're going to find more kids on cruise lines considered more family-friendly than others and, within those lines, on their latest, greatest megaships featuring the bells and whistles designed to appeal to youth.

[readinglady]

We are doing the Baltic Cruise on the Rotterdam this July with our 3 daughters; ages 19,16 and 12. They are very excited about the ports. Did your kids enjoy this cruise? We did the Mediterranean last year on the Windsurf and they loved that.

[lionheart]

Thanks, I'm leaving my little kids at home. Too young (for now) Any kids going on these European cruises are very lucky.

[calmac]

We are going on NCL's Baltic cruise this year. It is interesting to note that there are no child prices for their excursions which I guess is due to the lack of children on these cruises.

 

The schools here in Scotland typically break for the summer at the end of June with those in England breaking up closer to the end of July.

[Artemis]

Hi Reading Lady & others with kids doing the Baltics,

 

We did the Baltics July 2005 on the HAL ms Rotterdam with a group of 9 including three young teens. Our own family had done the Med the previous summer (June 2004 on Celebrity Millennium), so I can compare/contrast.

 

1, for Reading Lady, the ms Rotterdam is a gorgeous ship. They have completed their Signature of Excellence upgrades, so your cabin accommodations will be very comfortable and first class. Everyone's favorite spot on the ship was the Explorations Cafe co-branded with NYTimes -- library, internet, news, DVD rental, java, music-listening, java, comfy seats, sweeping ocean views, and more! The new teen area is the nicest facility for teens you will find on any ship. I would have to say that on our cruise, whether due to cruise director's staff personalities, pax demographics or ???, we found the ms Rotterdam to be rather soulless. Be prepared to be surprised--and if you are not, then to make your own shipboard fun within your own group. We chose the Rotterdam specifically for itinerary and were not disappointed, especially with being able to cruise the Stockholm archipelago, we lucked out with a gloriously pleasant and sunny late afternoon departure through the scenic passage.

 

2, kids in the Baltics. Our kids, like Reading Lady's, are fairly well-traveled and are good travelers, so they made the best of the Baltics trip. It didn't prove to be one of their favorite trips, but there were many highlights, and they are happy to have visited that part of the world. Port stops are mostly dedicated to sightseeing, museums, local attractions and shopping. I researched bike rental opportunities, hikes and other similar "active" pursuits to be incorporated into port day activities, but you cannot become too emotionally wed to such ideas, as the weather, even in July, is iffy. In their peak summer season, a sweater/jacket was required certainly in the evenings and often during the day. In addition to the cooler temps, there are frequent rain showers, and also some windy days. So, e.g., we tromped all over Oslo in the unrelenting rain...it was fun, but I was glad everyone had a poncho and a warm sweater. Of course, the kids had shunned the idea of proper footwear, so their tootsies were cold and wet, but they knew better than to complain. :p

 

We rarely take ship's excursions, and this trip, we took none + only one organized private tour (in SPb). I will try to recall what our kids liked/didn't like in each port, YMMV:

 

Oslo - the new Nobel Peace museum was their favorite (it is very interesting and interactive, we like history and social causes, so it may/may not be up your alley), liked the Kon Tiki museum & the Munchs at the art museum, the viking ship museum was okay (poor curation/presentation), the main shopping drag was not that interesting--must get off beaten path

 

Helsinki - we had planned to take public transport up to the top of the mt. above the city, enjoy the scenic vista of the city, fjords, etc., and then rent bikes and do the downhill back, but it was too nasty even to grab a taxi and run out to the Vigeland sculpture park, so we started out inside the market house buildings, when the weather broke, we enjoyed the outdoor market (best of the entire trip--we all loved it!), and then walked all over the town centre, very attractive & some interesting shops, parks, churches, etc.

 

Stockholm - we went out to the park/living history museum with recreation of "old days," it was interesting and great to be outdoors walking (pretty day!), but would have been enjoyed more by younger children, so after a few hours, hopped a public bus to the city centre, enjoyed summer festival-like activities (live music, carnival-like bungee jumps, etc.) going on all over the park/boulevard that I think runs N-S from city centre to the water, and then went to the Old City for shopping (fabulous--we didn't buy a thing, but very interesting "good stuff" to be found here, from art to apparel to home furnishings, these are mostly upscale boutiques frequented by locals, with tourist-oriented shopping thrown in the mix, the kids liked walking around here, too), the Nobel museum (the Oslo one is Peace only, this is all Prizes plus life of Alfred Nobel, very interesting), and the Ice Gallery (not the same thing as the Ice Bar, but they are operated by the same corporate group, see their website for more info--kids thought this was great)

 

Note, I was bummed I had failed to learn that there were Segway tours in Stockholm--we saw them out where the living history museum is located. If your family has never done one, they are an absolute hoot. I would say that the learning/sightseeing aspect is low--you are really too busy having fun with the Segway itself and just enjoying the scenery (and grinning to admiring onlookers) as you whiz by.

 

Copenhagen - what's not to like??! great city, very expensive, so many places for everyone to have fun, on the love/hate meter re: Tivoli Gardens, we loved it--check the daily performance schedule online before your trip, the live music performances were outstanding and attended by many locals, we stayed for an extra couple of days after disembarking here

 

Aarhus (we took a horse-drawn carriage ride, rode bikes in the wind, in retrospect, son was disappointed he had not agreed to my offer to rent a car & go to the original Legoland, I have posted here before with details on how to do that trip if anyone is interested, just search the archives) and Warnemunde (we didn't do the Berlin trek, the traditional summer seaside resort is kinda neat, beach fun if you can brave the temps!, we trained into Rostock, nothing there did much for us)

 

St. Petersburg - crowning glory of the trip, of course, we went with DenRus, I cannot rave enough about them or the pluses of going via private operator vs. cruise ship tour bus, I really think with kids in particular, it is vital to go the private operator route, one museum we specially requested that most do not (we did a custom tour) was the Russian military museum, if you have folks interested in Russian war history, weaponry, geopolitical relationships in modern days, you might find this fascinating, we certainly did

 

Rotterdam - we didn't see anything here, we had spent 5 or 6 days pre-embarkation in Amsterdam, The Hague and Delft

 

3, Baltics vs. Med with kids. My kids preferred the Med, and I reasonably believe they are in the majority on that one, with the minority being composed largely by folks who have a family or other strong connection to Scandanavia, SPb, etc. The summer weather in the Med is nicer, the places they are visiting are more familiar and generate more pre-trip interest and anticipation, the local food is more familiar and, as you progress along the itinerary, more diverse than one finds in the Baltics, there are several "beach fun" days built into the itinerary, and aboard ship, there are more kids.

 

But don't get me wrong, the Baltics cruise makes for an awesome family trip, especially with older kids. :) Lionheart, I think you are wise to consider the age when your kids might enjoy the Baltics. In addition to thinking about what kinds of ports and activities are of interest to kids, you also have to consider the type of trip itself. A port-intensive cruise trip is a very different experience (for kids of all ages!) than a vacation cruise trip. It is hard work and physically and emotionally tiring to sightsee almost daily, with few At Sea days. We always try to schedule some post-cruise time either abroad or back home that is more relaxing, because you will likely have that, "I need a vacation from my vacation" feeling when you return from a Baltics or similar cruise.

[lionheart]

Great response,

 

Thanks

[Artemis]

Tallinn is so memorable, I can't believe I forgot it! We walked the entire day (half in the rain)...the walls, old buildings, scenic lookouts, etc., it's simply charming, and there's great shopping here, good prices, lots of stuff our teens liked (esp. Russian military-themed items).

 

Thanks for the feedback, Lionheart. Our kids have benefitted greatly from travel--we see it in their knowledge and opinions about the world, their open-mindedness toward new and different people and places, and in very objective ways when it comes to academic performance. With that said, I think the concept of being "age-appropriate" is very important to the selection of family travel opportunities. You and I seem to be on the same wave length in that regard. ;)

[readinglady]

Artemis,

Wow! Thank you so much for your input on your cruise. It really helps to have your input so we can make our plans when in port. I so appreciate your port explantations. My kids just loved the Mediterranean cruise last year and I have told them that this cruise is more port intensive. They enjoyed all of the excursions we did last year and loved all of the history. They are great travelers even our 12 year old. They are very excited about Scandanavia since my husband lived in Sweden as an exchange student while in college. We will even be able to see some of his friends when we are in Stockholm. Thanks also for the tips on the weather. We will go very prepared. Thanks for all your information.

[lansingisland]

I'm facinated by your mention of Segway tours in Stockholm. I'm going to the Baltics w/ 2 teens this June and would love to do this. Do you have any contact info? Thx

[Artemis]

Reading Lady, the personal connection y'all have to Sweden through your husband's experience & his friends will make the trip extra special for all of you, especially your girls. Enjoy planning it!

 

Lansing Island, I just Googled it, and the first hit looks pretty official: http://www.segways.se/index_en.htm The tour area discussed is in a very pretty part of Stockholm (well, I thought Stockholm was gorgeous all over!). I actually haven't done a Segway tour--my husband and son did in San Francisco while my daughter & I explored Haight Ashbury. I don't know who came back raving more enthusiastically, my son or my husband, LOL. They are dying to repeat the experience, and of course, now my daughter & I want to do it. I would've booked this had I known about it--it's exactly the kind of activity I always look for to provide a break from sightseeing.