Family cruising with 19 and 16 year old boys

[ddbArizona]

My family and I are planning a cruise for July 2009. We have been on Royal Caribbean and Carnival in the past. We enjoyed both. We have always gone to the Caribbean in the past except for one year we went down the Pacific. We didn't like the weather at all on the Pacific side. It wasn't a very good trip.

We are thinking of doing a 4 day trip to the Bahamas. My wife and I are in our mid 40s and we have 19 and 16 year old sons. The biggest problem comes with the 19 year old. On most ships the teenage activities only go up to 17 and the drinking age is 21. So it seems like there is nothing for the 18-20 year old group. I know drinking isn't the only way to have fun but try to tell that to a college student:). By the way, he is a responsible drinker from what I can tell or atleast around me:rolleyes:. I just think it might be a good way for him to meet young adults in his age group.

We are looking at the Norwegian Sky since 18 and up can drink beer and wine with a parent authorization. I would like to hear suggestions from people in a similar situation that have children in the same age groups, especially if you have been on the Norwegian Sky. I know this is the first summer for this ship in the Bahamas but I was wondering if anyone else with teenagers and young adults are planning this trip for the summer. The more kids in their age group, the more fun they will have. The more fun they have, the more fun mom and I have.

Any help on this idea or any other ideas for a great summer vacation would be appreciated.

[cassrebecca]

As far as I know with parents permission 18 - 20 year olds can drink on any NCL ship.....

Also the crew has always been helpful at helping people of those age groups meet and mingle....at least they had with my children ages 16 - 20.

Good Luck...

[thunder_lin]

Just got off the Star with my 19 yr. old daughter. I signed the parental consent form for her to be able to order beer & wine as the drinking age here at home is 19. She ordered Ceasar's and Pina Colada's as well as beer and wine and was never questioned. Most of the time though, I was putting the charges on my card so maybe that's why.

There wasn't much for that age category besides the bar type activities.

[flashdog_1]

There wasn't much for that age category besides the bar type activities.

 

Come on! Bingo, pool games, shuffleboard, ping pong, movie in the theater, sunbathing, spa relaxing, acupuncture, exercise classes or just doing it on your own, walking a mile on the promenade deck, jogging on the jogging deck, casino, shows etc. not to mention finding a corner to read or watch tv in the cabin. There are lots of things that do not have an alcoholic drink connotation. I do not drink much on a cruise, and have never felt pressure to have one if I don't want one. I am always busy.

[pengu1n]

I too signed the consent form for my older teen son when we were on the Wind. I felt he was responsible, I told him how much he could spend without checking with me (as everything is charged to the onboard acct), and told him that if he went over that amount, he would have to pay me back. I did check the acct balance occasionally to see how much he had charged. Not so naive to think that he hadn't been drinking before, and when else would you as the parent ever have so much control, information and the ability to check up on them? Plus, no worries about driving! (We also had the advantage of an older sister who I knew was not much of a drinker hanging out with him.)

 

We have not been on the Sky, but sometimes there are ship-sponsored meet & greets for the 18-21. My kids always seem to hang out with the entertainers/crew like the DJ, dancers, band, which gives them a little of an insider's look at the ship. We have gotten some good tips on excursions this way and my kids feel like they're in the 'in' group. I don't know how they manage to hook up, but they are up very late and hang out in the bars that have the DJs.

 

We always eat dinner together, that way I know I've seen them at least once a day as we are not in the same cabin. Often, we do the same excursions although sometimes we may split up. I don't care how late they stay up, but I tell my son he has to be up & out of the room by noon so the room stewards have a chance to get in there. (My daughter doesn't tend to sleep so late!)

[daring]

We're taking our 18 year old son as a graduation gift. I worry about that too. I was hoping that the teen club would peak his interest but he is shy and I'm thinking that other than the shore excursions, we may need to get the internet and Spa package.:confused:

[Dajbman22]

When I was 19 (I'm 22 now) I went on a cruise with my family (albeit on RCCL) and I have to say that it was still a great time. Like RCCL, according to the policies I have read, NCL allows beer and wine for 18-20 year olds. I had fun going to the bars and clubs. I didn't even go too crazy most nights, usually just wine or beer with diner and one more later on. I also enjoyed more variety of beverages on the islands (where the drinking age was 18). As for activities, I loved the adult comedy show and actually hung out with the comedian after the show and for the next two nights at bars or the club (until he switched to another ship). During excursions and dinner I was with my family, but otherwise I mostly liked to relax on my own (enjoy my last week before a new semester) during sea days, and looked for other people to hang out with mainly at night.

 

A couple times this rag-tag group of 15-17 year olds began following me around and treated me like some kind of sage expert who actually survived high school (gasp!). It was fun, and probably not common for 19 year olds on cruises, but it was nice playing the big brother/mentor role to these kids even though they were really only 2-5 years younger than me. Although after a wile I began hanging out with the older brother of one of those kids who was my age, especially after I felt like doing things like going to the bar.

 

Overall even though there are fewer planned activities for the 18-20 crowd (actually the whole 18-35 crowd), it doesn't mean you can't make your own fun on a ship, especially a bigger one.

[BahamaMama247]

Yes, as it has been said their is a consent form available at the front desk that parents can sign to allow their 18-20 year old to order/drink wine and beer.The only time that I really felt like I had nothing to do was when I was just shy of 18. Too young for the interesting things, and too old for teen discos (I peeked in at it once, since every night there was a letter on my door persuading me to attend and it looked like a middle school dance). During the years of 18-20 I thought there were always plenty of things to do on the ships (during those years I sailed on the Spirit and the Dawn)!

[MSH2007]

I think you can put a daily dollar limit on their sea pass so they can't get too wild. Is this true?

[Fishbait17]

I can't speak from personal experience about the Sky, but we did take 4 18-20 year olds on the Pearl last year. While I have to admit, this is a tough age to cruise - they are too old and too young at the same time - they had a GREAT time. It seems that late in the evening, everyone gathered in the front bar/club (Star Bar? can't remember the name) and the place was rocking until at least 3 am with a DJ and people ranging from very young teens to adults/parents. The two 20 year olds were a bit miffed that they were excluded from Bliss late at night, but they checked it out and found they weren't really missing anything. During the day, they hung out by the pool, and all my girls got a kick out of the casino playing penny slots. They met a lot of people easily, and there were always groups of this age group all over the ship. If your son has a hard time meeting people, take the time on the first night to wander the ship and find out where people are gathering - there should be plenty of others in the same "boat" (yuk yuk yuk). I am sure the 16 year old may appreciate hanging out with his brother anyway rather than spending a lot of time in the teen club.

 

Robin

[CruiserDeb5]

We just got back from sailing on the Dawn with a 20 year old and a 17 year old, as well as a 14, 13 and two 12 year olds. They tended to hang out in a pack although the 3 older kids would break off from the younger ones occasionally. All of the kids were allowed into all of the nightclubs until 11:00, which gave them something to do for part of the time. The 20 year old joined his parents at the casino and at some of the other venues occasionally after that.

 

I highly recommend finding your roll call on this site. We did this and then attended the meet & greet on the first full day of the cruise. It allowed the kids to meet the other kids traveling. By the middle of the trip they all knew each other and were hanging out together. And now, of course, they all stay in touch via facebook. :)

[ohioNCLcruiser]

18, 19 and 20 are hard ages to cruise. My most boring cruises were during those years (I'm 21 now). Check out your roll calls there might be other people cruising with people around that age.

[cruizinwithkids]

My most boring cruises were during those years (I'm 21 now).

 

Hmm, sorry to hear that. We'll be on the Spirit to Bermuda the day you sign off the America. I hope my 19 year old son isn't bored.

[ohioNCLcruiser]

Hmm, sorry to hear that. We'll be on the Spirit to Bermuda the day you sign off the America. I hope my 19 year old son isn't bored.

 

You took that too personal.I'm talking about ship side of things. You know I had fun in Bermuda! Truth of the matter is the ships don't offer much for people that age in terms of interaction with other passengers that age or really fun things to do. As you know the casino and just hanging out were the fun parts of the trip. Wonder if they ever found those $100s I dropped.

[cruisin'bulldog]

On the Pearl last year, the Spinnaker Lounge was set aside every night for people 18-20, who were too old to get into the teen club and too young to get into Bliss. There were quite a few people. Also, some older teens (16-17) were hanging out there, as well as one intoxicated woman who came every night to party with her daughter. They were not carding for entry into this area like they were at Bliss. They were carding for drinks though. This was during spring break, but they might have something similar during the summer.

[Sally Forth]

I can't speak from personal experience about the Sky, but we did take 4 18-20 year olds on the Pearl last year. While I have to admit, this is a tough age to cruise - they are too old and too young at the same time - they had a GREAT time. It seems that late in the evening, everyone gathered in the front bar/club (Star Bar? can't remember the name) and the place was rocking until at least 3 am with a DJ and people ranging from very young teens to adults/parents. The two 20 year olds were a bit miffed that they were excluded from Bliss late at night, but they checked it out and found they weren't really missing anything. During the day, they hung out by the pool, and all my girls got a kick out of the casino playing penny slots. They met a lot of people easily, and there were always groups of this age group all over the ship. If your son has a hard time meeting people, take the time on the first night to wander the ship and find out where people are gathering - there should be plenty of others in the same "boat" (yuk yuk yuk). I am sure the 16 year old may appreciate hanging out with his brother anyway rather than spending a lot of time in the teen club.

 

Robin

 

We just took our 19 and 21 year old sons on a cruise at Christmas, and their experience was similar to what you posted. They are both legal age at home and university students, so the younger one had the wine and beer permission. They said there were a lot of people their age hanging around the casino as the night went on. They also went to the hot tubs at night. They must have had a good time. They were in the cabin next door and I could sometimes hear them coming home around 3 a.m.

 

Viv

[Browezilla]

Come on! Bingo, pool games, shuffleboard, ping pong, movie in the theater, sunbathing, spa relaxing, acupuncture, exercise classes or just doing it on your own, walking a mile on the promenade deck, jogging on the jogging deck, casino, shows etc. not to mention finding a corner to read or watch tv in the cabin. There are lots of things that do not have an alcoholic drink connotation. I do not drink much on a cruise, and have never felt pressure to have one if I don't want one. I am always busy.

Thank you for posting this. I don't understand the mentality that unless you're drinking alcohol that one must work hard to have/find a good time.

[G-Funk]

Thank you for posting this. I don't understand the mentality that unless you're drinking alcohol that one must work hard to have/find a good time.

 

. . . but it is always easier with an ice-cold beer.

[Fishbait17]

On the Pearl last year' date=' the Spinnaker Lounge was set aside every night for people 18-20, who were too old to get into the teen club and too young to get into Bliss. There were quite a few people. Also, some older teens (16-17) were hanging out there, as well as one intoxicated woman who came every night to party with her daughter. They were not carding for entry into this area like they were at Bliss. They were carding for drinks though. This was during spring break, but they might have something similar during the summer.[/quote']

 

Lmao, I think we were on the same cruise because I REMEMBER a drunk woman in there every time we stopped by to check on our daughters... Oh wait, it wasn't ME was it???? ;):D We were on the Pearl in late March. IIRC, there were a LOT of parents in there with their kids, and a lot of younger teens as well. I didn't see much, preferring my casino time to the DJ induced dance atmosphere.

 

Robin

[cruisin'bulldog]

Lmao, I think we were on the same cruise because I REMEMBER a drunk woman in there every time we stopped by to check on our daughters... Oh wait, it wasn't ME was it???? ;):D We were on the Pearl in late March. IIRC, there were a LOT of parents in there with their kids, and a lot of younger teens as well. I didn't see much, preferring my casino time to the DJ induced dance atmosphere.

 

Robin

 

I think we really might have been on the same trip, it was towards the end of march. haha, I don't think it was you though, I remember this woman's name (i won't post it here), she became something of a legend amongst the college students. Suffice it to say I am pretty sure it was not you.

 

It's also possible there could have been more parents in there than I remember, because I was not there for hours and hours each night, but I think it was a primarily college age crowd whenever I went.