Best line for cruising with parents

[rin1]

DH and I enjoyed our recent cruise on the Victory and thought it might be even more fun with company. My parents have been on two HAL cruises, one to the Panama Canal and one to the Med.. I was wondering if anyone in baby boomer bracket had "jumped ship" as it were to Carnival and had a great time. My mom likes the sound of some of the Western Caribbean itineraries offered by Carnival. Things that my mom really likes about Holland:

 

1) Everyone knows your name

2) Multiple course meals (big on fancy food)

3) Towel animals (she was shocked when I showed her pictures of ours)

 

If Carnival isn't the best option for our family, is there some line in between, in which my folks will be happy and DH and I (in our late 20s) won't be bored? One more note - this will be Spring Break, as I teach and lack other options.

[PINEVIEW01]

Based on the above, even though this is a Carnival board, is Princess. A little more refined than Carnival but, still good for you. I would guess I''m about their age as my DD's are in their 20's. I love Carnival but, I don't think I would like HAL. So, I'm not sure about them and Carnival. It is a cruise line for all ages that like to have a good time too.

[rin1]

Hey, even if it is a Carnival board, I'm happy to get an honest non-Carnival opinion. I would just hate to see my mom disappointed. Carnival is great for us, but I want my parents to have a satisfying experience, regardless of which line we end up sailing on.

 

Before anyone throws us this option, NCL is out because my mom *loves* formal night (forgot to mention that in my OP).

[rockwood84]

I went on a Carnival cruise this past March on the Celebration with my mother and my mother-in-law. Both of them are in their mid-60s, and they both had a wonderful time. They enjoyed the shows, the activities, and (most of all) the casino!

[kiwicruiser83]

The best line....okay try this one:

"I don't cruise with my parents because they pay, I cruise with them because I want to spend time with them." That's a good line for parents!

Just kidding, I know what you meant.

[rin1]

The best line....okay try this one:

"I don't cruise with my parents because they pay, I cruise with them because I want to spend time with them." That's a good line for parents!

Just kidding, I know what you meant.

 

Ok, that's awesome. :) I only wish they were paying. *grumblegrumble* Being a grown-up *grumblegrumble* ;)

 

My parents are not big gamblers, but I think they'd be pleasantly surprised by the shows and activities, for sure! Totally taking mom to the towel animal workshop!

[jessemon]

I would check Celebrity. Not HAL...not Carnival...But at night there will be things to do. Princess isn't bad either for a mix.

I would avoid Carnival at spring break.

By the way...I like Carnival...so no busting my figs over my last comment.

Also...if you do a cruise longer than 7 days you will be OK also.

[henepup]

Hey, even if it is a Carnival board, I'm happy to get an honest non-Carnival opinion. I would just hate to see my mom disappointed. Carnival is great for us, but I want my parents to have a satisfying experience, regardless of which line we end up sailing on.

 

Before anyone throws us this option, NCL is out because my mom *loves* formal night (forgot to mention that in my OP).

NCL does have formal nights, they are just optional. But you don't get the personalized service, because of freestlye dinning. We loved NCL.

Celebrity sounds like the right one for you.

Angie

[silky_mommy]

I cruise with my parents and DH every year and they like Royal Carribean the best ......... have tried to get the group to try Princess but DH is in the travel industry and has not got positive views ( it is hit and miss ). I would not do Carnival with parents during spring break (might be too much college partiers)

[TennisLover]

We have been on a number of family cruises with my parents (around 70 yo) on Carnival. I guess my parents like it because they keep coming back. They were on RCI (once without us, then with us this year) - I know my mother was not so happy with the Navigator. I'm pretty sure they have been on other lines as well.

 

All ages can have fun on Carnival -- my parents did't go for the same activities as we did -- they mostly liked the quieter places at night, but they did stop in the piano bar at night. They also found interesting excursions in the ports.

 

They took us on our first cruise (Victory) then went with us on Valor and Liberty. (and, we always travel on school vacations)

 

I don't see why they wouldn't like Carnival -- it has something for everyone.

[patandal]

I can't give you an answer because I don't have one yet lol....We are taking my parents on the western itinerary in August for their 60th wedding anniversary on the Valor ,they are 82 and 78. My parents however love to party , they have more energy than my DH and I :)) I think Carnival will be good for us because we have a diversity of ages ; 21-82 (although my Mom said yesterday she would have liked to try rock climbing LOL) Food was very important as was itinerary with us, so we choose Carnival. We had too many people complain about NCL and their food and RCCL was priced too high for the rooms we needed on this cruise. My brother in law however loves Princess. Hope you have a great time, I am keeping my fingers crossed that mine do:)):)

[Mysticks1]

We went on a family cruise with my MIL and FIL last Thanksgiving week. My MIL's sister also sailed with us. They normally sail on Princess line. They had a great time on Carnival. The ship was full and a fair number of kids. We ate in the dining room every night and our servers knew us well and everyone had a ball at dinner.

[RosieRoo]

I did a family cruise with 20 other members of my family on the Carnival Miracle. The ages ranged from 6 to 80 and every single person had a great time. I like the Spirit class ships because they are a little smaller and in my opinion have a little more quiet, refined feeling. Don't get me wrong, I have also sailed on larger Carnival ships and had a great time, just that the Spirit class is my favorite.

[Skywench]

My mother and I have taken cruises together and she loves Carnival. We just cruised on the Victory April 29th and her sister and brother in law came as well. They all really enjoyed it. I never cruise at a time when the kids are out of school, like spring break or summer vacation. There were all ages on the ship on my last cruise and a lot of older cruisers.

[makeda]

i sail often with my mom (80 years old) {and she don't pay, either!}

she has sailed with Princess, RCCL, and HAL and perfers CARNIVAL!!!!

 

she loves the night life, even if it's just handing around the quarter slots in the casino...she EXPECTS me to now provide a yearly cruise...next year, alaska!

[rin1]

Thanks for the feedback! My concern with Celebrity is price. Princess and RCI are towards the top of our range, at the moment. I really want a balcony, too. ;)

 

I'm glad to hear that many people enjoyed Carnival with their parents (or that people my parents' age have enjoyed cruising with that line). I guess we can't go wrong! :D

[grandma bev]

Thanks for the feedback! My concern with Celebrity is price. Princess and RCI are towards the top of our range, at the moment. I really want a balcony, too. ;)

 

I'm glad to hear that many people enjoyed Carnival with their parents (or that people my parents' age have enjoyed cruising with that line). I guess we can't go wrong! :D

We are now ages 72 and 82, and have traveled with the "children", who are now ages 50 + for years and loved every single cruise line (from old, cheap cruise lines to the better ones), every single cabin (from cheapest inside to Penthouse and Owner's suites) and every single couples resort, etc. If you all enjoy being together, there's no way you can make a mistake, as long as you bring along your sense of humor. Look forward to our first time with Carnival on a Christmas cruise.

Bev

[SandyW]

It really depends on what your folks are like. How active they are...what kinds of activities they like. Carnival doesn't have some of the classes I hear other lines offer....if that makes a difference to your folks then perhaps you should check out another line. As far as age is concerned...I'm in my 50s my husband is 60 and we still love Carnival. :)

[BillnBobbi]

DH and I enjoyed our recent cruise on the Victory and thought it might be even more fun with company. My parents have been on two HAL cruises, one to the Panama Canal and one to the Med.. I was wondering if anyone in baby boomer bracket had "jumped ship" as it were to Carnival and had a great time. My mom likes the sound of some of the Western Caribbean itineraries offered by Carnival. Things that my mom really likes about Holland:

 

1) Everyone knows your name

2) Multiple course meals (big on fancy food)

3) Towel animals (she was shocked when I showed her pictures of ours)

 

If Carnival isn't the best option for our family, is there some line in between, in which my folks will be happy and DH and I (in our late 20s) won't be bored? One more note - this will be Spring Break, as I teach and lack other options.

 

Since you are in your late 20s, I will guess that your parents are somewhere in their 50s, which puts them in the BnB bracket. Our younger son and daughter-in-law went with us and her mom and her grandma on a cruise on the Glory - Everyone had a great time. Everyone also went off on their own with the proviso that everyone met for dinner.

Since we are early birds and early to bed, my son and dl are late sleepers and night owls, and the mom and grandma also liked staying in late, the arrangements worked splendidly.

Moreover, they all love the casino and we are indifferent to it. They liked the karaoke lounge, we liked the piano bar.

There was something for everyone, and everyone had a great time doing what they liked to do,without having to drag anyone along to something they didn't want to do.

The same thing went for the excursions. We all picked what we wanted.

In fact, in St. Maarten, DW, Son and DL went to a beach, while I went on the America's Cup regatta for half a day. When I described how great that was, they were a bit dissappointed they didn't go as well. the DLs Mom and Grandma took a bus tour of the island.

 

I really don't care if the wait staff knows my name or not, as far as food goes - you can get as many courses as you like with Carnival as well.

The towel animals are certainly cute and amusing, but frankly if it wasnn't part of the "package" I'd never miss it.

All of the popular lines are really similar in what they do, with minor variations. Depending on your own preferences and needs re. itineraries, dining times, entertainment etc. other lines that are family friendly are NCL, Royal Carib, Princess.

If you are looking for a bit more elegant, AND YOUR PARENTS ARE PAYING

(we always greatfully get "stuck" with the tab :-) ), why not try Radisson, Crystal, Seaborn, or Cunard.

 

BnB

[cali-croozer]

Don't count out Carnival:) . My parents, in their 80's, sailed with us on the 7 day Mexican Riviera (Elation) and a 7 day western caribbean out of Tampa (Inspiration) with us. They had previously sailed HAL, Crystal and American Hawaii Cruises (?). Anyway, they really enjoyed their Carnival cruises, from the food to the entertainment. My Dad just loves the music by the pool, while my Mom enjoys afternoon tea and the classical music. Although we sailed as a family, we didn't spend our port days together, as we enjoy beach activites, while they enjoy land tours (booked through the ship). After those 2 cruises, they sailed Princess, and, although they enjoyed that cruise too, they said the food, size of the cabins and entertainment were better on Carnival. They didn't stay up too late, but mentioned that on Princess, there wasn't much to do after dinner (late dinner).

[llachance]

on Disney twice and she loved it both times. She has also sailed on Carnival (Paradise when it was smoke free) and NCLA and likes them all! She and I are doing a catamaran cruise aroun Tahiti in October which she has done 2x before and I am really looking forward to that as well. We are also booked on Disney next year (sans kids) Mom is 70+, I am about to be 50. I have sailed Cunard, Disney, HAL, RCCL, Carnival and in a couple of weeks will be on Princess. They all have their plusses and since I loved cruises I can say I have forgotten the minus'

 

Happy Cruising

[simkoreb]

Since you're sailing spring break, it it very likely you will have a younger crowd with more kids and teens than usual. If you do a line a little more expensive you may avoid some of that, if that's a concern of yours.....I am a teacher and could not cruise spring break for that reason alone. Need my time away from kids on vacation.

[CorbinCatFan]

What do you mean that I have to stay in my room until it's cleaned up?:D

 

(Sorry, it's the foo foo drinks talking.)

[tecumsehcruiser]

Hi!

 

Take it from these baby boomers, DH and me, we love Carnival, we get a balcony and it fits our budget. We enjoy the ships and the diversity of the passengers.

 

Brenda

[rin1]

Talked with my dad tonight, and tentatively decided on the Grand Princess. I'm a bit worried, after reading the reviews. I understand that a lot of it is people complaining, but I'm wondering...

 

1) Is the food really that boring/bland?

2) Is the coffee really that bad?

3) Are the beds really that uncomfortable?

 

After talking further, we've all decided that we need:

-quiet areas on deck to read

-good food, consistent dining times

-available lounge chairs

 

Ideally, I would like dance classes for me and my DH, and bridge classes for my mom.

 

Can my needs be met on this ship (during Spring Break)? Or do I say "forget it" and book a balcony on Carnival Glory or Legend (can't afford one on Princess)? I understand that the answer on this board might be a little biased... ;-)