lizzystitch Posted May 22, 2007 #1 Share Posted May 22, 2007 we will be cruising for the 1st time and have a 13yo dtr. A friend who used to work on cruise ships said that we need to make sure that our dtr is never alone on the ship or in the cabin as there is a high incidence of "problems" occuring between young teens and cruise staff. How worried should we be? We also have a 16yo son, but we weren't planning on insisting that they always stay together. Any advice would be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catnip Posted May 22, 2007 #2 Share Posted May 22, 2007 I think you need to be very safety conscious (sp?) on a ship, just like you would be on land. I don't think cruise ships are any more dangerous that a huge, land-based resort or vacation in a big city. Keep a close eye on your children and make them check in with you periodically and give them a curfew. There are many dark & deserted places on a cruise ship, and kids/teens shouldn't be out alone late at night...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrdood Posted May 22, 2007 #3 Share Posted May 22, 2007 we will be cruising for the 1st time and have a 13yo dtr. A friend who used to work on cruise ships said that we need to make sure that our dtr is never alone on the ship or in the cabin as there is a high incidence of "problems" occuring between young teens and cruise staff. How worried should we be? We also have a 16yo son, but we weren't planning on insisting that they always stay together. Any advice would be appreciated. Welcome to Cruise Critic!!! The claim of "high incidence" is an exaggeration of galaxian proportions - and if were true you would not find anyone that would take a teenage girl on board. With that said, normal precautions are always good, no matter where you are, hotel, Disneyworld, etc. You can't lock them away and permanently protect them forever either. Have set check in times, lay down the rules, it is more important to teach them to not go with anyone to THEIR cabin alone, remember 3,000 other passengers are not all angellic - a ship is a small city, you will have good and bad, just like at home, take normal precautions. There is a family cruising forum that would be a great place to post for additional ideas or concerns since this is not really a Princess specific issue... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lizzystitch Posted May 22, 2007 Author #4 Share Posted May 22, 2007 thanks, that's what we were planning on, but she made it sound rather ominous. we live in a city and the kids are used to checking in and clear parameters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlp20 Posted May 22, 2007 #5 Share Posted May 22, 2007 I think you need to be very safety conscious (sp?) on a ship, just like you would be on land. I don't think cruise ships are any more dangerous that a huge, land-based resort or vacation in a big city.......QUOTE] I think the reverse is true. Not 100% safe, but in a closed enviroment, someone has to be really stupid to do something knowing there's nowhere to hide. I would be more worried about fellow passengers over the crew any day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dforeigner Posted May 22, 2007 #6 Share Posted May 22, 2007 thanks, that's what we were planning on, but she made it sound rather ominous. we live in a city and the kids are used to checking in and clear parameters. You have the basis covered. Set the rooms. She should not be alone, travel to or from a room or venue alone. She should not go to anyone's room. At the same time, she should not invite anyone to her room without one of her parents present. The old saying: Safety in numbers. Get to meet the people she is hanging around with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spongerob Posted May 22, 2007 #7 Share Posted May 22, 2007 I think cruise ships are probably less risky than most big cities, but you still have to be a parent and your daughter needs to be conscious of her surroundings. Use a little street smarts, and you should be okay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catnip Posted May 22, 2007 #8 Share Posted May 22, 2007 I would be more worried about fellow passengers over the crew any day. I agree with you there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kafitty Posted May 22, 2007 #9 Share Posted May 22, 2007 my brother and i went on our first cruise when we were 14 and 15, respectively, and we had the same rules as most have said above. And i think we were expected to stick together most of the time, which didn't bother us too much cause we're best friends...really! We made lots of friends on the cruise to hang out with too, and there's definitely safety in numbers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BonnieSte Posted May 22, 2007 #10 Share Posted May 22, 2007 we will be cruising for the 1st time and have a 13yo dtr. A friend who used to work on cruise ships said that we need to make sure that our dtr is never alone on the ship or in the cabin as there is a high incidence of "problems" occuring between young teens and cruise staff. How worried should we be? We also have a 16yo son, but we weren't planning on insisting that they always stay together. Any advice would be appreciated. What exactly does "problems" mean? Does she not know not to go with strangers promising treats? Give her a password in case they tell her that a parent is hurt and wants her to go to them. A ship isn't any more dangerous than a vacation anywhere else. Personally I wouldn't let my 14 year old daughter wander "alone" anywhere, a ship or on land in a strange surrounding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toto2Kansas Posted May 22, 2007 #11 Share Posted May 22, 2007 Just think of a ship as a small city. I would not allow my children/grandchildren to roam free in a strange city anymore than I would onboard a cruise ship. Passengers, crew, you never know who is onboard. Definitely keep in touch with any children allowed to roam the ship unsupervised. I still remember a cruise where a woman had a 7 or 8 year old onboard and no other children, just this one so he was alone. She would come to dinner each evening laughing because she had not set eyes on him since 7 AM that morning, and this was 9:00 at night. I was absolutely shocked when she laughed and said she "heard" the crew was taking very good care of him and when least seen, he was dining in the Horizon Court in his swimsuit. I couldn't help but just shake my head and wonder what kind of a mother this woman was. :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willysgrandma Posted May 22, 2007 #12 Share Posted May 22, 2007 You may want to consider buying those wireless walkie talkies and giving one each to the kids and you keep one. Then you can check up on them a bit easier and she'll have one inc ase she has any problems an dneeds to get in touch with you quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willysgrandma Posted May 22, 2007 #13 Share Posted May 22, 2007 You may want to consider buying those wireless walkie talkies and giving one each to the kids and you keep one. Then you can check up on them a bit easier and she'll have one in case she has any problems and needs to get in touch with you quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nomars_girl Posted May 22, 2007 #14 Share Posted May 22, 2007 We had our 12 year old daughter with us on our recent cruise. It was a port-intensive itinerary so we would all have breakfast and spend the whole day in port together. When we returned to the ship, she usually wanted to go to the pool, so I would sit in a deck chair with my book and keep an eye on her while she swam with her friends. She didn't care much for the long dinners in the dining room, so either my husband or I would sit with her at the Horizon Court while she got something to eat and then escort her to the kids club where they had organized activities from 7-10. While she was at kids club, we would have a pleasant dinner in the dining room. At 10 pm, we would pick her up from kid's club (we did not give permission for her to sign herself out) and escort her back to the room. Once she was settled in, we would put out the "Privacy Please" sign so no one would go in, and she knew not to let anyone in. Then my DH and I would usually go out for a while to give her a chance to fall asleep before DH started snoring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petefoss Posted May 22, 2007 #15 Share Posted May 22, 2007 Maybe we were silly, but my 14 year old daughter felt safe by herself on her first cruise. She often went back to the room in the evening while we stayed out. Admittedly that was at 9-10 in the eveing not 3 in the morning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rgastin Posted May 23, 2007 #16 Share Posted May 23, 2007 Listen to the staff. They know more than any of the rest of us what goes on! And use common sense. You sound like a great parent. Just don't let your guard down. You don't want your daughter to be a statistic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kendon Posted May 23, 2007 #17 Share Posted May 23, 2007 Some nights, teen activities run until 2-3 in the morning! I think that's too late. There are phones all over the ship, so have her leave periodic messages on the stateroom phone. I make my son wear a watch on a cruise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruisin' Chick Posted May 23, 2007 #18 Share Posted May 23, 2007 We had our 12 year old daughter with us on our recent cruise. It was a port-intensive itinerary so we would all have breakfast and spend the whole day in port together. When we returned to the ship, she usually wanted to go to the pool, so I would sit in a deck chair with my book and keep an eye on her while she swam with her friends. She didn't care much for the long dinners in the dining room, so either my husband or I would sit with her at the Horizon Court while she got something to eat and then escort her to the kids club where they had organized activities from 7-10. While she was at kids club, we would have a pleasant dinner in the dining room. At 10 pm, we would pick her up from kid's club (we did not give permission for her to sign herself out) and escort her back to the room. Once she was settled in, we would put out the "Privacy Please" sign so no one would go in, and she knew not to let anyone in. Then my DH and I would usually go out for a while to give her a chance to fall asleep before DH started snoring. We kept our 8-yr-old (at that time) with us or in the kids area all the time too. She also didn't want to eat in the dining room so we would take her to the Horizon or get her a pizza before the pizzaria closed. Then she would go for the evening's kids activities unless she wanted to see one of the shows. But if we came back to the cabin, that was it for the night for all of us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruisin' Chick Posted May 23, 2007 #19 Share Posted May 23, 2007 Just think of a ship as a small city. I would not allow my children/grandchildren to roam free in a strange city anymore than I would onboard a cruise ship. Passengers, crew, you never know who is onboard. Definitely keep in touch with any children allowed to roam the ship unsupervised. I still remember a cruise where a woman had a 7 or 8 year old onboard and no other children, just this one so he was alone. She would come to dinner each evening laughing because she had not set eyes on him since 7 AM that morning, and this was 9:00 at night. I was absolutely shocked when she laughed and said she "heard" the crew was taking very good care of him and when least seen, he was dining in the Horizon Court in his swimsuit. I couldn't help but just shake my head and wonder what kind of a mother this woman was. :( :eek: :eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g35 Posted May 23, 2007 #20 Share Posted May 23, 2007 After reading some articles regarding crimes at see, I too am becoming a bit concerned about my 11yr daughter and 16 yr son on the CB this summer. I would like them to stick together as much as possible, especially in the evening. Do you know if they would allow them to be in the same kid's program even though the teen program is geared towards 13 and older? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nomars_girl Posted May 23, 2007 #21 Share Posted May 23, 2007 After reading some articles regarding crimes at see, I too am becoming a bit concerned about my 11yr daughter and 16 yr son on the CB this summer. I would like them to stick together as much as possible, especially in the evening. Do you know if they would allow them to be in the same kid's program even though the teen program is geared towards 13 and older? No, that would not be allowed. And I don't think you would want it anyway. I know I would not want my 11 year old in the same group with older teens even if she did have a big brother to look out for her. I wouldn't worry while she is at the kids club. You just don't want her wandering around the ship alone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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