Alaska with Children

[hbor]

We are thinking of taking an Alaskan cruise when our kids are 10 and 12.

 

Will there be many children their own ages on the ship. Do some ships or itiniarys have more kids than others?

 

Thanks

 

Howie

[nrh322]

We did an Alaska cruise the summer before last on the Island Princess. It was our first (and only so far) cruise... and it hooked us! Our kids are 12 and 14 now, so they would have been the same ages as yours then. We didn't bring them because it was a second honeymoon. We were glad that we didn't. They would have been bored to tears. I can't speak for everyone's kids. I can't speak for every ship... but on that particular cruise... OUR kids would have gone completely stir crazy. There were only about a dozen kids (total from infants through late teens) on the whole ship. Most of the onboard activities were geared towards adults (educational - sight seeing). The kids facilities were an afterthought. I'm sure that there are ships that have better kids facilities, but this one didn't. What we LOVED about our cruise was the hours and hours that we spent on our balcony... sipping hot cocoa and watching the beautiful scenery go by. Our kids would have been peeling the wallpaper off the walls! They would, however, have had a blast on the shore excursions we took... dog sledding... gold panning... etc. So, if you find a ship with good kids' facilities AND your kids don't mind sitting and looking for long periods of time, they might have a really good time. If not, you might wait a few more years to bring them.

[paylady]

If you are considering RCL, their ships do have many families on board the AK cruises due to the Adventure Ocean program.

 

Be prepared to pay mega bucks for shore excursions since there will be four of you. Whale watching runs about $110 pp and flightseeing via small plane and helicopter runs about $200 pp or more. It doesn't pay to go all the way to AK without doing shore excursions whether independent or through the ship so you need to factor this into your decision.

 

Alaska is beautiful and I think sometimes wasted on the young. My kids are young adults and still have no desire to see AK. We still treat them to a caribbean cruise, though. There is nothing like cruising as a family!! You also have to factor that into your decision.

[cruise-bunny]

We took our kids 10,12 and 17 on the Sapphire princess last year and they had a blast. They are now as addicted to cruising as me. :cool: Plenty to do on the ship and a fairly large group of other kids. They also loved the land portion.

enjoy!

Sandy

[Happy ks]

We cruised to Alaska in Aug 05 with our kids, they were 13 and 16 at the time. They loved it, I don't think it would be at all boring for younger children.

 

We were on Celebrity Infinity and there were probably 200-300 children ranging from tots all the way through the teen years onboard. There was a group with about 50 kids, probably one reason the number of kids was high.

 

There is more to having fun and learning on a cruise than beaches and pools. Although children can bore of scenery, there is lots of wildlife to see there, bald eagles, whales, bears etc... The port towns are lively and colorful, if you don't want to take an expensive excursion you can always take a nature walk.

 

Alaska can be fun for the family.

[sailor moon]

We took our 12 yr old DS 2 years ago. There were only a few kids on board (June 2005). He basically had a good time but prefferred the Carribbean. The Alaska scenery didn't "blow" him away as it did to his parents :) He would have enjoyed having more kids to hang with.

[Cleocruiser]

We just got back from the Serenade with a 12 and 10 year old. We also had 6 other kids in our group ages from 6 to 14. They all loved it. The kids clubs were great and there is lots to do on the ship, like an indoor pool from 12-4, rock wall and mini golf. Save up for the excursions, our kids loved the dog-sledding, horseback riding, zip lining and whale watching. We saved for a long time, but it was well worth it. The kids will have wonderful memories.

 

Also, there were about 400 kids on board that week---June 23-30.

[ttrmom]

we go to alaska in 2 weeks on VOs- out kids are 3 1/2, 8, and 10- they are really looking forward to it all- esp. room service! we decided on shore excursions togther and they can't wait for the whale watching and panning for gold. we have taken books out about alasksa and they are reading the history of the state which i think makes it more meanigful for them.

 

Mikki

[FreewayFortune]

I went to Alaska last year and I have no kids. But the kids I talked to loved looking for whales and the flying fish. They also enjoyed the shore excursions. And yes from what I've heard RCI has a good children's program.

[benolathe]

Sailed the Serenade in mid-June with our 14 yo daugther and 17 yo son. They both enjoyed the cruise, especially our activities in the different ports:

 

Icy Strait Point - ZipRider, longest zipline in world right now (both kids favorite thing from the trip)

Skagway - Mushers Camp (dd & me); Rock-Climbing & Rappelling (ds & dh); and WPYR Railway (all four of us)

Juneau - TEMSCO "Pilot's Choice" helicopter ride w/ glacier landings

 

On ship, my son kept to himself (that's the way he is) and my daughter met other teenagers and they got together whenever we were on the ship (evenings and sea days). Even though there were not a lot of organized activities for the teens, there is a place for them to meet (Fuel). Really, I don't think teenagers need/appreicate "organized" activities like younger children. The teens just like to "hang out" and visit with each other. There is mini-golf, rock wall, and a basketball court. My son did enjoy visiting the Seaview Cafe late every evening for his favorite chicken strips and nachos.

 

Yes, the scenery did not "awe" them like it did me - I could stand on our balcony for hours!! But, they still got to see lots of different things that they certainly can't see at home in Kansas. :)