Youth will be served on Explora Journeys

[Host Jazzbeau]

New article on Travel Weekly:

Youth will be served on Explora Journeys

[PrivateIdaho]

We had one child on each of our cruises and one was an infant. Even having a small youth club, Explora doesn’t offer kid entertainment at the same level as other larger & more family oriented ships. I understand they are marketing themselves as  family friendly but this is not the cruise line for kids. There are always exceptions, but my daughter would have been bored to tears. 

[uktog]

Currently onboard with some youth and younger people. It’s having zero impact on my enjoyment of the cruise and not one of them looks bored or fed up, quite the opposite in fact 

[no1talks]

17 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

New article on Travel Weekly:

Youth will be served on Explora Journeys

 

I know the cuisine on Explora I is being touted as stellar, but this is where I draw the line.

[Hlitner]

 

 

I cannot help but wonder would a teen enjoy being in a small youth venue with 6 year olds, or would they rather be on a large ship with water slides, wave pools, climbing walls, high tech video game rooms, etc.  

 

Given the reaction of the pizza chef (in the Emporium) when we asked if he would mind putting some pepperoni on a slice of margarita (NO!  that has not one of our menu items) how they will react to kids who have specific dietary requests.

 

Hank

[kelleherdl]

1 hour ago, Hlitner said:

 

Given the reaction of the pizza chef (in the Emporium) when we asked if he would mind putting some pepperoni on a slice of margarita (NO!  that has not one of our menu items) how they will react to kids who have specific dietary requests.

 

Hank

The only child on our recent 3-17Nov cruise was Captain Michelozzi’s son.  He was so cute. Every day at lunch the Captain carried him through the Emporium line. He ALWAYS stopped and got several slices of focaccia. I never saw him get pizza.  The kid loved his focaccia. 😀

 

[Hlitner]

48 minutes ago, kelleherdl said:

The only child on our recent 3-17Nov cruise was Captain Michelozzi’s son.  He was so cute. Every day at lunch the Captain carried him through the Emporium line. He ALWAYS stopped and got several slices of focaccia. I never saw him get pizza.  The kid loved his focaccia. 😀

 

The focaccia and other bread products were always good :).

[parallax]

Several years ago my daughter, who was 10 at the time, went on Crystal.  They had a small club for the children.  It is still her favorite cruise of all time.  They did fun activities, the staff treated her like royalty and she loved all the food options.  Our daughter has been on several of the mass market cruise lines and while she has enjoyed these cruises, she has found many of the child friendly activities disappointing due to the waiting in lines, the crowds, limited times, etc.  She is now 16 and we will be on Explora next month.  I'm not sure how active she will be in the club but  she likes it as an option, even if it just to initially meet kids around her age.   

[aururab]

My kids are onboard now, as I posted about separately.

They are absolutely loving every moment. The kids club is small, but they have been absolutely fantastic with the kids, and really talking to them about what they want to do being, instead of the typical - now it is craft time, now it is free time, etc they get on some larger ships.

The staff has been doing all sorts of things with the kids around the ship (with parents permission), including a scavenger hunt, playing basketball and pickleball. They have offered to take them to the pool several times, but the kids are having too much fun doing other things and have declined!

I am impressed with how child led it is. There is a range from about 6 to probably 16, with the older ones and coming and going more. In the evening they were playing games that somehow managed to incorporate them all, and we didn't have the heart to pull our kids out and put them to bed at a normal time. 

The hours are also entirely flexible, as all you have to do is ask the day before and they can extend them however you need. 

They also have plethora of high end VR, and video game consoles, but managed to offer enough other fun things to do that my electronics obsessed 11 year old is busy doing other things as well. 

I was of course a bit nervous about what this sailing would be like with kids along, but it is beyond perfect and we are looking at summer 2024 European itineraries with friends. 

Of course I wouldn't expect many children for mine to interact with if we weren't on a Caribbean sailing over an American school holiday, but it would be amazing to plan with friends with similarly aged kids. Even if there were less kids, then the staff is truly fantastic and I think the kids would be fine. 

On top of that, my kids are trying all sorts of foods they have never had before (my oldest now likes caviar, not sure this is a good thing or not ha!) and the restaurants have been great at slight modifications for their palettes (the salmon without the sauce for example at Sakura).

 

[Host Jazzbeau]

On 11/20/2023 at 10:47 AM, aururab said:

On top of that, my kids are trying all sorts of foods they have never had before (my oldest now likes caviar, not sure this is a good thing or not ha!)

Our son was a picky eater but we could always satisfy him at any restaurant with pasta and cheese – until he discovered lobster and filet mignon!  I feel your pain...

[commodoredave]

Kid-friendly luxury was not what I had in mind when booking our Explora cruise, but as long as the kids are well-behaved, I'm okay with it. Having said that, it's not where I would take our grandchildren. I prefer NCL, RCL and Princess for multi-generational cruises. As for my wife and I, it's usually Regent, Silversea or Seabourn. And I'm not sure a kid-friendly Explora will make it into that group in future.

[aururab]

3 hours ago, commodoredave said:

Kid-friendly luxury was not what I had in mind when booking our Explora cruise, but as long as the kids are well-behaved, I'm okay with it. Having said that, it's not where I would take our grandchildren. I prefer NCL, RCL and Princess for multi-generational cruises. As for my wife and I, it's usually Regent, Silversea or Seabourn. And I'm not sure a kid-friendly Explora will make it into that group in future.

I am not sure my kids would want to go back to another line after this!

 

Other than Disney of course!! But that is far from relaxing. 🙂

[commodoredave]

29 minutes ago, aururab said:

I am not sure my kids would want to go back to another line after this!

 

Other than Disney of course!! But that is far from relaxing. 🙂

Our policy is that he who pays the piper calls the tune. If our kids are paying their own way, they can choose whatever cruise line they want. If we are paying for them, it’s a mass market line. You must have very wealthy or persuasive children!

[parallax]

Great to hear that things are going so well.

[aururab]

20 hours ago, commodoredave said:

Our policy is that he who pays the piper calls the tune. If our kids are paying their own way, they can choose whatever cruise line they want. If we are paying for them, it’s a mass market line. You must have very wealthy or persuasive children!

Well, my kids are little so if I want to do anything longer than 3-4 days they are along for what we decide! Ha

[commodoredave]

What you spoil young remains spoiled in future.

[uktog]

I have just seen the most beautifully dressed young boy with his parents in Fil Rouge. He was impeccably behaved and a credit to his parents 

[Alethers]

The host in charge of Nautilus (under 17 years old) just announced that they have 0 children on board for this trip.

[uktog]

13 hours ago, Alethers said:

The host in charge of Nautilus (under 17 years old) just announced that they have 0 children on board for this trip.

2 were spotted this morning at breakfast 😂. As we hadn’t got to Dominica then they can’t have been the usual +25 from the immigration team. Parent was not dressed as an officer so maybe they were late bookings 

[aururab]

I know next to nothing about Dominica, and I am vaguely obsessed with visiting! Looking forward to hearing your report!

[saratogamomof3]

Any updates on bringing kids on this cruise line? We have never cruised before. Our kids are 13, 11 and 8. They really wouldn't want a kids club, just a nice pool and maybe some lowkey things to do on sea days. Everyone is recommending RCL or Norwegian, but these seem too big and chaotic to me and the itineraries aren't as appealing. I welcome everyone's input. They wouldn't care if other kids were on board and they are very adventurous eaters.

[commodoredave]

13 hours ago, saratogamomof3 said:

Any updates on bringing kids on this cruise line? We have never cruised before. Our kids are 13, 11 and 8. They really wouldn't want a kids club, just a nice pool and maybe some lowkey things to do on sea days. Everyone is recommending RCL or Norwegian, but these seem too big and chaotic to me and the itineraries aren't as appealing. I welcome everyone's input. They wouldn't care if other kids were on board and they are very adventurous eaters.

Most kids have more fun on cruise lines with dedicated facilities and programs for them. However, some children may prefer a slower pace with more adult-oriented activities and  atmosphere. If your kids are in the latter group, if they are well behaved, and if you are willing to supervise them, then Explora would be fine for them. Personally, when we've cruised with our kids and now our grandkids, we've always opted for the larger ships with RCL, Norwegian, Carnival, and Princess lines. But our kids/grandkids have lots of energy, and like socializing with other kids. 

[stan01]

18 hours ago, saratogamomof3 said:

Any updates on bringing kids on this cruise line? We have never cruised before. Our kids are 13, 11 and 8. They really wouldn't want a kids club, just a nice pool and maybe some lowkey things to do on sea days. Everyone is recommending RCL or Norwegian, but these seem too big and chaotic to me and the itineraries aren't as appealing. I welcome everyone's input. They wouldn't care if other kids were on board and they are very adventurous eaters.

 

Some internet tough love, please don't take this the wrong way.  How would your kids behave in the pool area and on the pool deck?  There will be up to 900 others who want to sunbathe, take a dip, sit in the jacuzzi for a bit, and enjoy the ocean air.  If a group of kids is making a lot of noise, splashing water, and running around the pool deck that detracts from other people's vacation that they have paid a lot of money for.  Explora does not have adults only spaces nor do they have kids pools.  If your kids would take a dip in the pool and sit in a deck chair reading a book or playing a video game with earphones on while you are nearby then I'm sure they'd be welcome.  If on the other hand they are going to be left alone for hours with squirt guns expecting the ships crew to watch them and terrorize the ship ... well you can see why the other 900 people might not be happy.  I'm being a little dramatic I know, but I'm sure this post will get a few likes and at least one person will reply that "this is exactly what happened to us" when a small group of kids took over pool area with no other place for adults to go.

Edited March 2 by stan01

[saratogamomof3]

11 hours ago, commodoredave said:

Most kids have more fun on cruise lines with dedicated facilities and programs for them. However, some children may prefer a slower pace with more adult-oriented activities and  atmosphere. If your kids are in the latter group, if they are well behaved, and if you are willing to supervise them, then Explora would be fine for them. Personally, when we've cruised with our kids and now our grandkids, we've always opted for the larger ships with RCL, Norwegian, Carnival, and Princess lines. But our kids/grandkids have lots of energy, and like socializing with other kids. 

Thank you for your input. I would put them in the second category. They really have no interest in kids' clubs, etc. I was particularly looking at an Explora itinerary for next February break that had a lot of port days. 

[saratogamomof3]

6 hours ago, stan01 said:

 

Some internet tough love, please don't take this the wrong way.  How would your kids behave in the pool area and on the pool deck?  There will be up to 900 others who want to sunbathe, take a dip, sit in the jacuzzi for a bit, and enjoy the ocean air.  If a group of kids is making a lot of noise, splashing water, and running around the pool deck that detracts from other people's vacation that they have paid a lot of money for.  Explora does not have adults only spaces nor do they have kids pools.  If your kids would take a dip in the pool and sit in a deck chair reading a book or playing a video game with earphones on while you are nearby then I'm sure they'd be welcome.  If on the other hand they are going to be left alone for hours with squirt guns expecting the ships crew to watch them and terrorize the ship ... well you can see why the other 900 people might not be happy.  I'm being a little dramatic I know, but I'm sure this post will get a few likes and at least one person will reply that "this is exactly what happened to us" when a small group of kids took over pool area with no other place for adults to go.

Thank you for your response! I completely understand what you are saying and I agree with you. We just came back from a week at Disney and there were terribly behaved children around every corner (I know it was Disney, but it was still very pricey and we were shocked at the level of chaos, especially at the hotel pools). The parents did nothing at all except give them 37 warnings while they drank daiquiris lol. So I do think we are strict and very aware of our kids at all times. Our kids have stayed at nice hotels all over Europe and did well. I was looking at a Caribbean itinerary for next February break that had a lot of port days, which I know they would enjoy.