Which shore ex. did you take the kids on?

[river7]

Any comments re. shore ex. that were fun for your family?

[GayleR]

Which ports are you interested in and how old are your kids?

[01Sweetpea]

Which ports?

[crusinmama06]

Which ports are you interested in and how old are your kids?

 

Yeah that....it makes a huge difference in what we suggest. :D

[catlady1971]

I took my then 14 yr old son snorkeling in Cozumel. There were barely any fish :( , his first time snorkeling. The boat barely took you far enough from the ship. That's just my experience. Never took away any fun, though. I just love to see my son's expression and to have time with him. Took him to Tulum in Playa Del Carmen in 2004, also. Then to town and beach. We did some shopping in Cozumel, also. ;)

[nursing student]

Hi. I need suggestions too. I've just canceled a disney cruise, instead we will cruise on spirit in 11/22/2007 to mexican riveria. My boys are 10, 7,7 and girl is 3 years old. What kind of fun can they join in? thanks

 

stacee

[njs]

Hi. I need suggestions too. I've just canceled a disney cruise, instead we will cruise on spirit in 11/22/2007 to mexican riveria. My boys are 10, 7,7 and girl is 3 years old. What kind of fun can they join in? thanks

 

stacee

 

Probably beach breaks and snorkeling are the easiest excursions for young kids - they dont usually care about shopping and touring

[truecruiser]

we mostly go to beaches and/or resorts, some on our own, some on "beach-break" excursions booked through CCL. have done independent things (like the pirate museum in nassau), aquarium in st. thomas.

 

we have also done some sponsered non-beach things too like stingray city and hell in grand cayman. all depends on what you like and what the excursion age requirements are. there are some things we wld have liked to have done but cldn't due to age restrictions.

[01Sweetpea]

In 2005 my kids were 12, 9 & 9. We did:

 

Grand Cayman - Sting Ray & snorkeling with Capt Bryan - had a great time, although it took the 9yos a little time to "warm-up" to the sting rays. Storms off the coast so the swimming & snorkeling was a little rough.

Belize - Altun Ha & River Wallace tour thru Carnival. Long & Hot day, but well worth it.

Costa Maya - went to port, lasted 1 hour and went back to the ship.

Cozumel - FAVORITE port by far. Went snorkeling with ERD, saw they most amazing fish! Then spent the afternnon at Paradise Beach, my kids didn't want to leave.

[njs]

Our boys (teenagers) loved stingray city but my daughter (13 at the time) was scared stiff

Boys loved mayan ruins - daughter quite hot and disinterested (she'd rather shop so preferred eastern route)

Did atlantis submarine in cozumel - ok but really didnt see too much of interest, but the kids loved saying they've ridden on a sub ~ Coz and key west great for shopping:)

Dunns River Falls in Jamaica great for all ages

I guess it's hard to make suggestions without knowing the kids likes/dislikes/fears and ages

[cruisinbuddy]

We took ours on a catamaran snorkling tour, they had a blast, even my son in a removable walking cast. Snorkling, chilling on a private beach, partying on the Cat. dancing, it was great. BTW I still can't do the Macarena.:D

[pe4all]

In Costa Rica, river rafting (thru CCL)

In Panama, rain forest tram ride (thru CCL)

In St. Thomas, jeep tour (thru CCL)

In Dominica, river tubing (thru CCL)

In Barbados, did the Boatyard (on our own)

In Costa Maya, did Mahajual (on our own)

 

These are some of the excursions our kids really enjoyed - it all depends upon the child, the weather, etc. Hope this helps :)

[nybumpkin]

My kids like boat and beach trips. Paradise Beach and Cozumel Mini-Golf were particular favorites in Cozumel in 2005. They also liked the "Black River Safari" in Jamaica in '05 as well. Lots of crocodiles. Last month in Panama, they were satisfied with seeing the Gatun Locks for 1/2 hour with the rest of the excursion at the beach.

 

Cozumel - FAVORITE port by far. Went snorkeling with ERD, saw they most amazing fish! Then spent the afternnon at Paradise Beach, my kids didn't want to leave.

Sweetpea - Slightly off topic, but I've finally figured out how to post photos in my posts - here's some pics of Miracle at Cozumel on your '05 cruise:

[CruiseinNJ]

we have 2 girls, were aged 7 and 12 on our last cruise.

Both girls loved cave tubing in Belize the best (had to book through independent, not cruiseline due to age restrictions. I gotta say they took care of us MUCH better than the Carnival tour took care of the people on their excursion!)

also enjoyed submarine in Cozumel

stingray city/turtle farm in Grand Cayman -- took a while for everyone to warm up to the stingrays, but the initial fear disappeared quickly and they truly enjoyed it

[DebP]

Our favorites with boys ages 11 through 16

 

Stingray City in Grand Cayman

Dolphin Swim through Dolphindiscovery.com in Cozumel

Cave Tubing in Belize (a lot of work for those with short arms if water is shallow)

Mayan ruins in Costa Maya (private tour something like "mayanexperience")

[briankinley2004]

I took my then 14 yr old son snorkeling in Cozumel. There were barely any fish :( , his first time snorkeling. The boat barely took you far enough from the ship. That's just my experience. Never took away any fun, though. I just love to see my son's expression and to have time with him. Took him to Tulum in Playa Del Carmen in 2004, also. Then to town and beach. We did some shopping in Cozumel, also. ;)

 

We took our boys (14/11? at the time) to Cozumel snorkeling also on catamaran and it was awful. Tons of people, no fish. More of a party atmosphere and had a beach break but the snorkeling was bad. We went to Xcaret with them on the same cruise in Playa del Carmen/Calica and had a blast. Something for everyone of all ages there..you can kick back on the beach or tube through an underwater river, see animals, dolphin swim, etc...We really enjoyed that alot and booked it on our own.

[grandprincess2005]

We have two boys 7 and 4. On our past cruise on the Sensation my oldest went fishing with his dad. They loved the fishing guides and he had a great time. In Nassau we went to the beach, the pirate museum (they loved it) We did the queens stairs and the fort on our own walking tour. The kids have a good time and go with the flow with us. There favorite is always playing in the sand. They would do this all day. On the Grand Princesses the kids had a ball in Costa Maya playing in the sand and eating at the little restaurant. In Grand Cayman they loved the turtle farm and got a kick out of hell. We did our own tour there. In Cozumel we did the ruins the small ones. They were really bored at the ruins, they didn't want to listen to the tour guide, and just wanted to run around. They had more fun on the bus. In belize we left them on the boat. We heard it was a little scary so we just walked around and they stayed on the boat and had a ball. We were very glad we left them on the boat.