Good cruises for teens

[caldonialee]

So I'm not a guest time cruiser but a friend asked me to go in a cruise with her, her daughter and some of the daughters friends (and asked if of help find a good cruise for them). I'm in my 40's, no kids, never traveled with them so I need advice on which cruise line (Carnival or Royal Caribbean) would be good for teens? They're around 17 so nothing to juvenile. I was thinking Carnival as it seems more "fun" but again, being older, I'm more there for the higher end wine/food/show experiences so what do I know! It'll be mid March (spring break) out of either Tampa or Orlando (we live in Florida). None of the kids have done a cruise before, and I think my friend may have only done one, so I'm the designated "expert". Any advice on a good cruise line for older teens?

[crystalspin]

3 minutes ago, caldonialee said:

So I'm not a guest time cruiser but a friend asked me to go in a cruise with her, her daughter and some of the daughters friends (and asked if of help find a good cruise for them). I'm in my 40's, no kids, never traveled with them so I need advice on which cruise line (Carnival or Royal Caribbean) would be good for teens? They're around 17 so nothing to juvenile. I was thinking Carnival as it seems more "fun" but again, being older, I'm more there for the higher end wine/food/show experiences so what do I know! It'll be mid March (spring break) out of either Tampa or Orlando (we live in Florida). None of the kids have done a cruise before, and I think my friend may have only done one, so I'm the designated "expert". Any advice on a good cruise line for older teens?

I too am child-free and have not yet sailed on Carnival, but we did a trans-Atlantic on Royal Carib (Rhapsody of the Seas, so a smaller ship as they go these days). I will say they did a lot of fun things in the Attrium (maybe called Centrum on RCI). Most with music -- theme performances, 50s-60s-70s/Motown etc.

 

Spring break maybe a little crazy on those shorter cruises, and Carnival has a bit of a reputation for having rowdy pax, not saying if deserved! But I'd be leaning to Royal myself. 

 

Both lines have their own 'board' on CC.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/51-royal-caribbean-international/

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/133-carnival-cruise-lines/

You can post on both -- not everyone follows First Time Cruisers.

[Essiesmom]

How many minors will be involved?  I think you should look at Carnival, Royal Caribbean, NCL, and MSC.  Pay close attention to the requirements for booking the cabins.  Are you prepared to share a cabin with one or more?  I’m assuming they are all female?  Most lines require an adult age at least 25 in a cabin with minors that are not related to you (or her).  Read the fine print.  EM

[mom says]

Essiesmom brought up a very important point about the number of minor age children and assigning cabins to them. There are quite stringent rules about that. Something that your friend needs to sort out before going any further. Personally, I'd stay away from Carnival during spring break. RCI or NCL might be a good choice.

[caldonialee]

I didn't think about minor/adults per room. She's definitely only looking at Carnival and Royal. It's all girls, I think they were talking about 4 teenagers at first but that'll likely be narrow downed to 3 once they start booking, so 2 rooms total (1 of which is her kid). I think Royal is a better bet, but it's not really up to me. The rooms will connect, that's a definite. 

[CruisingWalter]

12 hours ago, caldonialee said:

So I'm not a guest time cruiser but a friend asked me to go in a cruise with her, her daughter and some of the daughters friends (and asked if of help find a good cruise for them). I'm in my 40's, no kids, never traveled with them so I need advice on which cruise line (Carnival or Royal Caribbean) would be good for teens? They're around 17 so nothing to juvenile. I was thinking Carnival as it seems more "fun" but again, being older, I'm more there for the higher end wine/food/show experiences so what do I know! It'll be mid March (spring break) out of either Tampa or Orlando (we live in Florida). None of the kids have done a cruise before, and I think my friend may have only done one, so I'm the designated "expert". Any advice on a good cruise line for older teens?

 

Great question! First off, Tampa will be very limited in your options, generally smaller ships that may not be as interesting to the teens (or you) because they won't have as much 'stuff' that appeals to them. Plus they tend to be older ships in Tampa. Port Canaveral, Port Everglades and Port Miami will all have much better ship options for the teens. The ships that are most interesting to me out of Tampa are the Celebrity Millennium class, but your teens probably won't like it, they're more adult-centric.

 

Three cruise lines right off the bat are Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Lines and Carnival, plus you might look at MSC. MSC is surprisingly affordable given that they appear much more upscale than the others. They all have teen clubs, but in addition, there is a lot to do throughout the ship for them.

 

On Royal Caribbean I'd be looking at Voyager class and up. Some ship names are Mariner of the Seas, Freedom of the Seas, Odyssey of the Seas and Symphony of the Seas, each of those gets bigger with each name. My favorite class right now is the Quantum Class (Odyssey) because it has the huge sports plex that becomes many things including roller skating and bumper cars, plus they have the iFly sky diving along with the usual flow riders and ice skating. Of course the big Oasis class (Symphony) has zip lining and other features as well. The teens would not be bored on these ships and there is plenty for the adults whether you want an active or chill vacation.

 

With NCL I'd be looking at the Breakaway Class or higher. These have extensive ropes courses, mini golf, sports courts, virtual reality games, some laser tag and more. A few of them have electric go kart tracks up on top. Not virtual track, actual racetracks on the top of the top of the ship with actual go karts. This class of ship also has the awesome Waterfront around Deck 8 that is a huge outdoor promenade to relax, you can eat out there and NCL has really good entertainment. The main dining room is 'ok' but their speciality dining is really good. Some ship names including NCL Getaway, Escape, Joy (go karts) and the NCL Prima is headed over to Miami right now which is the newest and most incredible of the NCL ships.

 

With Carnival the Mardi Gras sailing out of Port Canaveral is their newest (until Celebration gets to Miami in November) and is a really fantastic ship to sail. Lots of included food options, fun entertainment, lots of pools and a huge water park/activities area on the upper deck including the Bolt roller coaster. I would definitely recommend Mardi Gras or Celebration for a cruise with teens and you could also look at the Vista or Horizon. But the Vista seems to be having a lot of issues of late with propulsion and more recently water issues. Lack of running water or hot water to cabins. I have a full playlist on the Mardi Gras on my YouTube channel. I'm not permitted to link to it here, but if you search Where's Walter Travel or whereswaltertv you'll find it easily enough. 🙂

 

MSC has the Divina in Port Canaveral and Seashore in Miami, soon to be joined by the Seascape. Most folks here don't talk about these ships because they seem very 'adult' and very expensive when you look at their videos. But oftentimes the pricing is very similar to Carnival and Royal Caribbean. This is an Italian-based cruise line that has a famous Svaworski crystal staircase in the atrium of every ship, but they also have a lot that your teens will enjoy. Full water park and ropes courses, zip line through the middle of the ship and some really amazing pools, especially the Seashore/Seascape. Some amazing looking arcades and other things as well. 

 

Obviously a travel agent or travel advisor would be a huge help to you guys to pick out the right ship and itinerary. They're 100% free to you, so it just makes sense to have one help you guys pick the right ship, cabins, itinerary and various options both onboard and at the destinations. We're not allowed to recommend TA's here on CC because they are owned by a travel company. 

 

Happy to answer any additional questions you may have. Sounds like y'all are planning a really fun vacation!!  

 

 

Edited October 10, 2022 by WheresWalter

[1025cruise]

Something else to mention. You say all of the teens are around 17. If any of them are 18, they will be excluded from the teen activities. 

[Essiesmom]

I have a number of thoughts about cruising with older teens.  They are all different…how do they feel about dressing up?  Most cruise lines are casual, but have one or two nights where you are encouraged to dress up.  If they like to dress up, have prom dresses that they have only worn once, a cruise is an opportunity to wear them again.  MSC is an Italian line, and though they are sailing from the US, they still have about half of every sailing guests from Europe.  My experience is that the European women tend to dress more smartly in the evenings than we are accustomed.  The more international flavor might be interesting for the teens.  So, since you will be driving to the port, the amount of luggage will not be a concern.  

My second thought involves cabins.  You have teen girls.  One bathroom per cabin, and they are not sized for two at a time.  Sailing from Port Canaveral, carnival Magic and Mardi Gras have ocean view cabins (deluxe OV) that have a split bath.  One has toilet, sink, shower, the other has sink and small tub.  That second sink and mirror might be a peace saver…. EM

Edited October 10, 2022 by Essiesmom