Considering first cruise- questions for family of 5

[cj_one2000]

13 minutes ago, George C said:

We like having a second bathroom and it’s only two of us 😁

That’s what poopouri is for 🤣 but I get you. My house has four bathrooms, ha!

[My3Daughters]

Wow- so many helpful responses! Thank you for sharing your insight and not making me feel like a jerk for asking these questions.  Asked the same thing in a Facebook group and got “why are you asking us, just call the cruise line”.  Im not overly concerned about the tiny rooms and one bathroom because we often travel for up to 10 days at a time in our 28 foot RV with no slide outs.. it’s VERY cramped but we do ok with it.  That said, if cost is similar I’d definitely consider two rooms to have the extra space and bathroom! 
 

A few follow up questions for those willing to indulge me further:

1. If you have a GOOD TA that is super knowledgeable and hard working, I’d love their info.  Not sure if you can post it here or message directly but I’d appreciate it.

2. Those who’ve mentioned smaller ships with plenty to do for teens.. can you tell me more? Which ships do you recommend and what did they have for teens and kids?

3. Time of year- I was initially looking at November or around thanksgiving or early December; but I’m guessing prices are high. Is January or February a good time to do the Caribbean? I want to avoid hurricane season as much as I can which I think is more sep-Nov. but still want good weather!

 

Thank you again, everyone is so welcoming and helpful!

[Billy Baltic]

21 hours ago, My3Daughters said:

Hello,  we are a family of 5 with three girls ages 13 and 9 (twins). We have never done a cruise before but I have done some research and believe royal Caribbean would be the best choice for us.  It’s clear that you can’t book a room for 5 online, but I tend to get real excited to travel and I would love to hear from others what they end up spending BEFORE I call for info only to impulsively book 😅.  I’m also super confused on whether it saves money or not to get a room that sleeps 5 vs two connecting rooms.  If you’re willing to share your own cruise cost and details or what you think the general range might be, and any other tips to consider,  I would greatly appreciate it! 
 

Some details that might help:

- we are most interested in the oasis or quantum class ships

- 7 night Caribbean is most likely our top choice

- we would want a balcony but could consider one facing Central Park or inside view if they have that

- my husband and I would probably have up to 4-6 drinks (alcohol) a day combined, max

- we do like excursions so I’d probably consider 2-3 of those when we stop

I have full awareness that I’m a total control freak and don’t love the idea of having to go through a travel agent if a problem arises, so my preference would be to book direct but I could be swayed.  
 

If you made it through this, thank you for your help!! 

We are a family of 5 and I cannot recommend ultra spacious balconies enough. Every Oasis class has a small number of these and we’ve used them multiple times. I know people go on about one bathroom but it’s never been an issue for us. There is a serious fixation with 2 bathrooms on CC. The kids love the fixed bunk beds. 
When our kids are older, we may look at two cabins but (the youngest are 8 and 11) we wouldn’t sleep right if they weren’t close to us at their current ages. 

[Tree_skier]

1 hour ago, My3Daughters said:

Time of year- I was initially looking at November or around thanksgiving or early December; but I’m guessing prices are high

I always cruise at this time.  The first couple of weeks of Dec are often good prices.  The weeks overlapping Christmas and New year are the expensive weeks. One thing to watch for is the date Thanksgiving.  I have had to book flights the day after Thanksgiving when it was late like it will be in 2024  and you will pay a premium for that. 

 

Also, sorry no one can help with TA's on the board.  That's not allowed and direct messaging is turned off on CC

Edited January 18 by Tree_skier

[taglovestocruise]

Skip Quantum, it's a dud for kids. Oasis Class is awesome for kids and adults.  We have done several cruises in late January in the Caribbean, weather has always been great. 

[Illbcruzn4life]

20 hours ago, moesyk4 said:

We did a regular balcony cabin with a family of 5 in 2017. Our kids were younger (4,5, and 10) at the time and it was cozy but very doable. This time it was cheaper to book two inside guarantees so we went with that. We did that on the Allure and we loved the ship!

how close were the cabins they assigned you?

[My3Daughters]

1 hour ago, Tree_skier said:

I always cruise at this time.  The first couple of weeks of Dec are often good prices.  The weeks overlapping Christmas and New year are the expensive weeks. One thing to watch for is the date Thanksgiving.  I have had to book flights the day after Thanksgiving when it was late like it will be in 2024  and you will pay a premium for that. 

 

Also, sorry no one can help with TA's on the board.  That's not allowed and direct messaging is turned off on CC

Thank you, I didn’t know you couldn’t share TAs but makes sense!

[Marie2]

Newer ships have a lot of activities but are also bigger and more expensive. Newer ships also seem to have more options for families of five. We have only been on Anthem and Adventure and while I want to try a newer ship,  we got a much better deal on a twelve day from a local port but on a ship that does not have water slides. We paid 3500 (not counting gratuities)  for my family of five in an ultra spacious ocean view. If you stay away from holidays and summer vacation, the prices are better and you can utilize kids sail free. My parents are also going and we are only paying 400.00 more than  they are for two of them in an oceanview. The ultra spacious have a separate little area with bunk beds. My kids are under the age of ten so we have no problem with one bathroom (teenagers would be a different story). Even though there are no water slides there are still family centered activities like scavenger hunts and dancing plus adventure ocean.  Also we cruise for the ports and we have five ports so the kids will be very entertained. If you do a mock booking for four people, you can look for the rooms that hold five. I just happened to come across ours one evening and I put a curtesy hold on it (so I could discuss with spouse) and when I called I added the fifth person. 

[LobsterStalker]

11 hours ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

This is incorrect.  RCL allows kids to be directly across the hall from the parents.  

 

When we travelled as 5 (kids were 16, 10, & 7 I believe), on Freedom, we did connecting balconies.  I agree with the two rooms.  We've done 5 in hotel rooms for a couple of nights for weekend trips, and while doable, it's a pain.  Cruise cabins are generally going to be smaller than hotel rooms.  

 

One thing I remember from the connecting rooms, we couldn't latch/lock the connecting door.  So "private time" had to be selected carefully to avoid the chance of kids barging in. 

This makes no sense as these cabins are sold to people who are not together and therefore not using the connecting feature.

[My3Daughters]

39 minutes ago, Marie2 said:

Newer ships have a lot of activities but are also bigger and more expensive. Newer ships also seem to have more options for families of five. We have only been on Anthem and Adventure and while I want to try a newer ship,  we got a much better deal on a twelve day from a local port but on a ship that does not have water slides. We paid 3500 (not counting gratuities)  for my family of five in an ultra spacious ocean view. If you stay away from holidays and summer vacation, the prices are better and you can utilize kids sail free. My parents are also going and we are only paying 400.00 more than  they are for two of them in an oceanview. The ultra spacious have a separate little area with bunk beds. My kids are under the age of ten so we have no problem with one bathroom (teenagers would be a different story). Even though there are no water slides there are still family centered activities like scavenger hunts and dancing plus adventure ocean.  Also we cruise for the ports and we have five ports so the kids will be very entertained. If you do a mock booking for four people, you can look for the rooms that hold five. I just happened to come across ours one evening and I put a curtesy hold on it (so I could discuss with spouse) and when I called I added the fifth person. 

This is helpful. How do you look for rooms that hold 5 when doing a mock booking?

[Marie2]

I just look for rooms for four people. Under the categories it tells you how many people the room holds. The ultra spacious oceanview came up for me for four people but since it can hold five I was able to add my daughter. I choose my own room and on the grid where it shows you available rooms it will also have a 5 symbol if it holds five people. 

Edited January 18 by Marie2

[elaine5]

4 hours ago, My3Daughters said:

November or around thanksgiving or early December; but I’m guessing prices are high. Is January or February a good time to do the Caribbean?

Thanksgiving is a bit higher, but not much. You can still get a bit of tropical weather in mid-late Nov, esp. in W. Carib. Early Dec weather tends to be calmer and pricing tends to be fairly low, as it's between holidays and most kids are in school, followed by Jan, with Feb getting higher. We love March (usually good weather), but pricing can be a higher due to spring breaks. Water tends to be warmer in early Dec than Jan/Feb. 

The "older, with good stuff" ships on RCCL that I'd look at are Freedom/Liberty/Indy and Voyager/Adventure/Explorer/Navigator. I think all have ice skating shows/sessions, flow riders, climbing walls, putt-putt, sports courts, water slides, fun indoor promenade/cafe area. Most (all) have been renovated.

As it's your 1st cruise, I think you'll be wowed by any of those ships. And, personally, I'd save the "bigger/better/newer" ships for another cruise. We've done both newer and older ships. When we got off Explorer this summer and DH said, "I really like that class of ships, it's a great size and layout, and the slide/flow rider are fun."

Edited January 18 by elaine5

[S.A.M.J.R.]

1 hour ago, LobsterStalker said:

This makes no sense as these cabins are sold to people who are not together and therefore not using the connecting feature.

Read carefully... *WE* couldn't latch the doors.  The cabin attendant had to unlock the door (which they wouldn't do with two separate parties).  I'm sure the attendant would latch it back if we asked, but is that something you really want to do? 😉

[LobsterStalker]

20 hours ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

Read carefully... *WE* couldn't latch the doors.  The cabin attendant had to unlock the door (which they wouldn't do with two separate parties).  I'm sure the attendant would latch it back if we asked, but is that something you really want to do? 😉

Ahhh.... Understood

 

Cheers

[moesyk4]

On 1/17/2024 at 8:19 PM, Illbcruzn4life said:

how close were the cabins they assigned you?

Not bad. One floor apart and close to the stairs so really just a couple of cabins down on separate floors. 

[Illbcruzn4life]

1 hour ago, moesyk4 said:

Not bad. One floor apart and close to the stairs so really just a couple of cabins down on separate floors. 

cool thanks for the quick reply!

[BK79]

On 1/17/2024 at 10:16 AM, elaine5 said:

From a family of 5-tip. Some of the older ships (Liberty, for ex), have lots of cool tween-teen things to do and come in at a much lower price point. They have family Oceanview cabins (ultra spacious Oceanview) that can be a really good deal. There are some configured like a suite (usually front corner rooms, below) with a separate small bunk bed room. We have done both 5 person cabins and 2 rooms depending on the pricing. 

This is the best cabin for family of 5 with young kids for the price

[BK79]

Google 7730 Harmony

[SquishTheWhale]

I agree with everyone else on the connecting rooms. However I'm not sure if anyone else has pointed out that contrary to something you said in your original post you can definitely book cabins for 5 online. If you can't see any when you search then they are probably sold out. They will come up when you expand the cabin category. You dont need to search with 5 people to see them.

 

Excluding suites, you can fit 5 in an ultra spacious interior, ultra spacious ocean view and ultra spacious balcony on Oasis class ships. There's only a handful of each so they sell out and you may find connecting cabins better value.

We booked our ultra spacious interior online so you must certainly can you don't need an agent.

Edited January 19 by SquishTheWhale

[jean87510]

On 1/17/2024 at 9:13 AM, S.A.M.J.R. said:

This is incorrect.  RCL allows kids to be directly across the hall from the parents.  

 

When we travelled as 5 (kids were 16, 10, & 7 I believe), on Freedom, we did connecting balconies.  I agree with the two rooms.  We've done 5 in hotel rooms for a couple of nights for weekend trips, and while doable, it's a pain.  Cruise cabins are generally going to be smaller than hotel rooms.  

 

One thing I remember from the connecting rooms, we couldn't latch/lock the connecting door.  So "private time" had to be selected carefully to avoid the chance of kids barging in. 

Hang a cowboy hat on the door like Meet the Fockers.

[TeeRick]

Agree with two bathrooms in some configuration.  When our kids were younger we always did a Junior Suite (more spacious) and an interior cabin across the hall.  If all of you hang out together on the balcony or in your cabin, a junior suite is a nice choice.  Or two adjacent balconies - on some ships you can remove the balcony partitions and have one large connecting balcony with access to both cabins.

[LobsterStalker]

9 hours ago, moesyk4 said:

Not bad. One floor apart and close to the stairs so really just a couple of cabins down on separate floors. 

You are much more trusting than I ... Having kids that young , a floor apart from you

[Mum2Mercury]

On 1/17/2024 at 2:38 PM, My3Daughters said:

2. Those who’ve mentioned smaller ships with plenty to do for teens.. can you tell me more? Which ships do you recommend and what did they have for teens and kids?

The mid-sized ships are our favorites:  Freedom, Independence, Mariner, and others in those classes.  Ships in that category will have teens' clubs with lots of activities.  You should stay away from the older, smaller ships; for example, we just sailed Grandeur (and enjoyed it) but they didn't have nearly as much for teens.  So stay away from Grandeur, Jewel, Briliance.  

On 1/17/2024 at 2:38 PM, My3Daughters said:

3. Time of year- I was initially looking at November or around thanksgiving or early December; but I’m guessing prices are high. Is January or February a good time to do the Caribbean? I want to avoid hurricane season as much as I can which I think is more sep-Nov. but still want good weather!

We only sail in the fall, as we love the low prices and moderate weather.  The weeks before Thanksgiving and the first week of December are usually good choices.  Anything in late September or October is good.  January and February are okay, but not our favorites.  

On 1/17/2024 at 2:55 PM, Billy Baltic said:

There is a serious fixation with 2 bathrooms on CC. 

Agree, but not without reason.  

I'll say again, if you're going with a one-bathroom option, consider choosing a room near the gym (which has showers) or a public rest room. 

9 hours ago, moesyk4 said:

Not bad. One floor apart and close to the stairs so really just a couple of cabins down on separate floors. 

Doesn't matter where anyone else was assigned.  Your own guarantee assignment could be anywhere on the ship -- no way to know what will /won't sell on your particular sailing.  Personally, I would only go with connecting rooms, if I were putting kids in the other room.  Too much can happen.  Too much risk for me.  

While I love guarantees for myself and my husband, I don't think they're the right choice for you.  

[mjkacmom]

On 1/17/2024 at 8:19 PM, Illbcruzn4life said:

how close were the cabins they assigned you?

Guarantee cabins can be at opposite ends of the ship, on different decks. If you want 2 cabins near each other, don’t book guarantee.

[S.A.M.J.R.]

7 hours ago, jean87510 said:

Hang a cowboy hat on the door like Meet the Fockers.

I thought they used a captain's hat (like Skipper wore in Gilligan's Island).  It would be appropriate on a cruise, but I don't know if kids would get the meaning.

 

I do remember in college, I had saved some "Do Not Disturb" signs from hotels I had travelled to and my roommate and I would use those when we... ahem... didn't want to be disturbed. 😉  😄