Suitability for children - Legend med.

[hollyanna]

I was wondering if anyone could tell me how suitable Seabourne Legend would be for 13 and 11 year old boys? They are well travelled, cruised numerous times with RCI, P & O and Disney Cruise line, they well behaved and love fine dining. I am looking at Summer 08 (7 night med cruise). I realise it is not RCI with all the kids facilities but am more concerned they would be accepted with one or two areas to entertain themselves as more time than not we would be on land, hopefully.

 

Thanks in advance for your help. Hollyanna

[lord of the seas]

Ah,You'll be popular. :eek:

[Iamboatman]

I have two children and, obviously, have very good access to Seabourn cruises. However as there are virtually no areas which are areas for kids to relax without adults also present and there are no child-friendly facilities, I do not take my kids on Seabourn...despite their desire to go on Dad's favorite cruise line.

 

My kids can sit through and enjoy long dining experiences (and did so for 2 1/2 hours Saturday night in NYC) so the meals aren't really the issue. And since you probably will be on shore during the day that isn't really the issue. It is the late afternoon and evenings, when the kids need to unwind...and does everyone else.

 

There are some children that do cruise on Seabourn, and some do it well, but there may be some better overall alternatives. They won't be Seabourn, but it might give your entire family a better overall experience.

[MarciAnn]

There were a few children on our last two Seabourn Med cruises some even younger then yours. With a port intensive itinerary, I think they will be fine and they will certainly be accepted by your fellow passengers. They will however, find it very different from the other cruise lines you mentioned since there will be no organized activities geared toward them. Regent does tend to have more kids aboard on summer and school vacations just because it is that much of a bigger ship and by virtue of that there are more activites in general. With that said, when we cruised Regent to the Baltics on the Voyger, there were virtually no children on board. I plan on taking my two kids on the new Odyssey in 2009, although they are much older than yours.

[SantaAna,CA]

Someone mentioned about swimming pools. Be warned, the swimming pools on the Spirit, Legend and Pride are extremely small, and are placed in an odd part of the ship...far aft, and right by the entrance to the Veranda Cafe. It's a small space, and there are not many chairs to sit out near the pool area. Doesn't get much sun, either!

 

Also, I agree with the poster who pointed out there are really no facilities for children on the ship. Frankly, there just won't be much for them to do during the day.

 

If it is a port intensive cruise you're considering, that might be enough to keep them occupied.

 

Jane

[LaPaloma]

I agree that Seabourn is not good for younger children--I was on one cruise where the guys were drawing straws to see who was going to toss the kid over board. Cooler heads prevailed, but the kid was a real pain, and his parents thought he was "darling"! We did take our youngest daughter on two Seabourn cruises-- but she was 35--not bad looking, and a real hit with some of the male cruise staff--she got some great invitations! Don

[wripro]

IMO, they key to answering the OPs query is not how the children will adapt to Seabourn, but how will the parents make sure that they are the ones who entertain, keep busy, and if necessary, discipline their children so that they do not intrude on the vacations of all those other people who made arrangements to leave their children at home.

[Iamboatman]

IMO, they key to answering the OPs query is not how the children will adapt to Seabourn, but how will the parents make sure that they are the ones who entertain, keep busy, and if necessary, discipline their children so that they do not intrude on the vacations of all those other people who made arrangements to leave their children at home.

 

Quite a fair comment. The theory of children adapting well sometimes results in reality that isn't consistent therewith. As long as the parents keep it their issue - in reality - others' vacations can been left interfered with.

[PittsburghJack]

This is how we handled the situation..............

 

Mrs. Jack and I waited until our daughter was 10 before taking her on a cruise..........a Disney Cruise. Her mother and I established ground rules and consequences pre-cruise. We all had a ball.

 

We then waited until she was 17 to take her on an "adult" cruise. In between we scheduled land based vacations or cruised "sans kid." Was she sometimes disappointed........yes, but she got over it. She now cruises with her husband.

 

IMHO.......taking younger children on an "adult" cruise would be like making them sit through one of my lectures on the "Origin and Insertion of Cranio-Facial Muscles". In a word.........................boring.

 

I've seen well behaved children become bored on other lines, even with children's programs, and feel badly for them. They are, after all, children.

 

Jack

[Martita B.]

As for boy's 11 and 13 years of age, there would be little for these young men to do on a Seabourn voyage. As you know, Seabourn is an adult line. There are no "youngster" activities ~~the pool is quite small and they probably wouldn't care for the lecture's or the adult music/entertainment. Plus, I doubt if there will be other young boy's/girl's aboard. As for accommadation's you would need one of the connecting suites.

I'm sure they are wonderful, polite and mannered young men but perhaps you should wait until they are older for these boy's to truly enjoy and appreciate a Seabourn cruise

Martita B..

[Seabourn-nail]

We have taken our children on a couple of cruises while they were teenagers and they loved it at the time. But they had to be able to use the swimming pool for quite some time each day. We were on middle seize ships and that worked out fine. Both of these cruises were 10 to 12 days long.

Now our children are in their early thirties and they love Seabourn. We have taken them on a couple of Seabourn cruises and they also sailed by themselves. Or I cruise for a week with our daughter instead of my husband.

You could say I'm quite experienced when it comes to children on a cruise ship. I've sailed on Seabourn a lot. I would NOT advice people to take younger children on a Seabourn cruise. There is simply not enough to do for them. The few times we have sailed while there were children on board, we saw how parents had to struggle to keep them busy or have grandparents take care of them. The other passengers (including we) were sometimes not amused with the presence of children, while we DO love children and grandchildren.

So MY advice would be, take your children on a cruise, by all means, but not on a Seabourn ship. Wait until they are closer to their twenties!

Marja

[Martita B.]

Marja

When my Mother was living we treated my daughter, her husband and their 4 boy's to a Carnival cruise to the Caribbean. They have triplet boy's and a younger son ~~~we all had a marvelous time. The kiddos were busy from morning till night with ship's activities. At dinner hour each evening they donned their navy jackets, ties and slacks ~~they loved the ship, the food, the activities, ports and the experience of cruising.

Recently they returned from a NY City/NY City Princess cruise ~~it was a perfect match for their family.

I agree as to waiting till young adults are in their twenties before they sail Seabourn. There's so many wonderful cruise lines that are fashioned/geared for kiddos. Seabourn is simply not one of them.

Hope all is well with you and yours,:p

MB

[Jim Avery]

Good Morning All:

Anyone who has read my similar posts over at SeaDream knows my position but I feel I must add that to take a kid on Seabourn/SeaDream is akin to giving a 16 year old a Ferrari as his first car. Doesnt matter you can afford it, is it the right thing to do? What will they have to look forward to in the future? There is something to say for gradient increases in expectations, pleasures, etc. Thats not even considering the impact on other passengers enjoyment of the Seabourn/SeaDream "ambience" of pampered Adult couples.

All the best,

Jim.

[t and e]

Seabourn is really not at all suitable for children.

[MarciAnn]

Why isn't there a true luxury cruise line that accomodates children? The finest hotels in the world do. The Four Seasons, Ritz Carlton, One and Only, as well as the finest hotels in Europe all welcome children and have progarms and facilities for them. We take our kids to these hotels, why shouldn't they (and we) have the benefit of the same services amenities when traveling as a family at sea?? Perhaps because the luxury lines are catering to an older demographic??

[Iamboatman]

The irony, or frustration, is that Regent actually has a wonderful children's program during appropriate times of the year, including a Cousteau Ambassadors of the Environment program in Alaska and French Polynesia, but the quality of its service is not - generally - what it used to be. It is good, but not near the Seabourn level IMO.

 

I say irony because when they changed the line's name from Radisson to Regent...in order to cross-market exactly the feeling you express...they changed the staffing and some policies. It will be interesting to see what Apollo does as its new owner.

 

For now, Regent is the best "almost luxury" option and Celebrity is equal or better in the premium class (more passengers keeps it a notch lower) as my general rule of thumb.

[Jim Avery]

IMO Seabourn and SeaDream are just too small. I have made many transatlantic crossings with Cunard and many children and teens are aboard in the summer months but are not a problem because they have spaces of their own. They have other children/teens. They dont clutter up the bars with formally attired adults. Why would they. Why would you want your child or teen to be on Seabourn with a bunch of oldies? Remember when you were 15? At that time an "oldie" was probably a thirty something. Want to swim in a small pool with a bunch of old people. I know I didnt when I was a kid and I was on the Queen Mary. Take the kids to an appropriate ship. Buy a suite. Have fun. Come back to the small luxury ships when you and your partner want a break. Thats what we are all doing.

Have fun.

Jim.

[PittsburghJack]

I've seen vacation time become perilous, and sometimes dangerous, for many chidren (and some adults).

 

Some individuals seems to pack everything for their trip except common sense. The gaity, freedom and new adventure will occasionally put these individuals into unfamiliar situations and temptations (yes, some adults also), but I've seen it more in the pre-teen set.

 

From your inquiry, I'm sure your children are well mannered and mature for their age..........but so was mine.

 

Once, on a land based vacation my daughter's (12 at the time) traveling companion (11 at the time) devised a plan to elope from our adjoing suite at night to meet boys...................in Mexico. Thank goodness my wife caught wind of this situation (it wasn't a pretty sight).

 

Add to this slippery decks, "nothing to do", boredom and an unforgiving sea is IMHO an opinion for disaster. Jack

[wripro]

One reason hotels accept children and luxury cruise lines discourage them is in a hotel you are not STUCK with them. You can leave the hotel, go to different parts of it etc. On a small ship like SB there is no escaping unruly kids, unless, of course, the parents take the responsibility to keep them in their cabins. IMO one of the definitions of luxury is not having to worry about other peoples' children.

[marazul]

Last Summer we were on the Spirit. An extended family boarded for one of the legs of the cruise. We were quite apprehensive when we watched a lot of kids of different ages showing up for the life boat drill. Fortunately, they were also traveling with nannies who kept them entertained and out of sight for the duration. They went on their own shore excursions and must have eaten in their cabin because they were never around. We did see them at the pool and the BBQ, but no problems. Well behaved and, most importantly, well supervised.

I'm sure that was an unusual exception.

[johnnycruise]

Last Summer we were on the Spirit. An extended family boarded for one of the legs of the cruise. We were quite apprehensive when we watched a lot of kids of different ages showing up for the life boat drill. Fortunately, they were also traveling with nannies who kept them entertained and out of sight for the duration. They went on their own shore excursions and must have eaten in their cabin because they were never around. We did see them at the pool and the BBQ, but no problems. Well behaved and, most importantly, well supervised.

I'm sure that was an unusual exception.

 

I experienced the same thing last year on the Legend. A group of two parents, two young girls (under 8) and a nanny. The parents took care of the kids during lunch and the nanny took them to dinner every night as soon as the Restaurant opened. I only saw them at night twice - once at the barbeque and once right after dinner dancing with their father in the Club. They played in the pool a little bit during the day but that didn't cause any problems since the pool doesn't get much use anyway. For the most part, their mother took them ashore to a beach nearly every day - we only had one sea day - so they appeared worn out by dinner. They were in an owners suite and the adjacent regular suite midship (across the hall from us) which gave them plenty of private space to do their own thing.It worked out fine, mainly because they had constant adult supervision (3:2 ratio!). They were a nice, quiet group.

[Martita B.]

Johnny

Having a Nanny to care for small children would be the only way to cruise Seabourn. A few years ago I was aboard the Pride and there was a couple with a small boy ~~probably a'round 3 yrs old. In the early morning's we could hear him squealing (loud) coming down the coridor. I'm an early riser so it didn't bother me, but I can imagine the other guests trying to sleep. At noon they would "turn him loose" up in the Sky Bar ~~~he would be ALL over the guests seated trying to lunch. He was a darling 'lit boy and the parents were so proud of him, but he did cause distrubances. They should have taken him on a Disney cruise~~

MB

[JaneBP]

>"I was wondering if anyone could tell me how suitable Seabourne Legend would be for 13 and 11 year old boys? They are well travelled, cruised numerous times with RCI, P & O and Disney Cruise line, they well behaved and love fine dining. I am looking at Summer 08 (7 night med cruise)."

 

I think that a port-intensive week cruise would be perfect for you and your family. You will be busy with shore activities and then, perhaps dinner on board. The boys might like room service on the formal nights while you and your husband can meet some of the others at a hosted table. I think that is one drawback, you won't have as much opportunity to meet others. There is not much space for the boys to be by themselves, but the card room on a cruise with lots of ports is not always busy in the daytime. In the evenings, it can be used as a dressing room for the show performers, which ties it up. Since so few use the pool, it might be fine for them.

 

As a person who really dislikes the idea of kids on Seabourn, or really kids in general, I still think it is a good idea for a busy week cruise. I have had experiences with pre-schoolers with and without nannies on Seabourn, and it's been horrendous. But for you, I say go for it.

[hoya68]

>"I was wondering if anyone could tell me how suitable Seabourne Legend would be for 13 and 11 year old boys? They are well travelled, cruised numerous times with RCI, P & O and Disney Cruise line, they well behaved and love fine dining. I am looking at Summer 08 (7 night med cruise)."

 

When we cruised the Panama Canal on the Legend there was a family with two young children. Unlike some of the adults on the ship the kids did not get drunk, were not loud, did not act like they owned the world, and seemed to be enjoying themselves. If your children like fine dining are curious about the world and can respect the desires of others that they behave appropriately, take them and enjoy.

[johnnycruise]

• Having a Nanny to care for small children would be the only way to cruise Seabourn.
  
• They should have taken ... a Disney cruise~~

MB

 

I agree on both points!;) While the parents on our SB cruise last year took care to make it work, after taking a Disney cruise myself I can't help but think their girls would have had much more fun (and made better memories) on a ship that had activities designed specifically for their age group.

 

johnny