Alaska youth explorer program experience

Hi,

I'm considering taking my daughter on the Regatta next year when they do the Alaska youth program. I did a search but I coudn't find any review or description of the activities/hours etc from anyone who had taken a child onboard. Maybe I missed it but can anyone share their experience of how the program worked for you child/grandchild?

Haven't sailed with the grandchildren on Oceania but I inquired about it while in board. Sella(sp) is an onboard sales consultant who happens to be from Anchorage. She said one of the card rooms is turned over to the kid program. They will have organized activities and a play room for kids aged 5 and up. She felt the program was of good quality but geared to elementary aged kids.

We may consider it down the road but for now our little ones are too young for Oceania.

Haven't sailed with the grandchildren on Oceania but I inquired about it while in board. Sella(sp) is an onboard sales consultant who happens to be from Anchorage. She said one of the card rooms is turned over to the kid program. They will have organized activities and a play room for kids aged 5 and up. She felt the program was of good quality but geared to elementary aged kids.

We may consider it down the road but for now our little ones are too young for Oceania.

Thanks for the info.

We took our 10 year old twin grandsons to Alaska last summer. They loved it. There were only 19 children on the cruise and two staff for the children's program. Since some children didn't participate, the kids who were there got a lot of attention. They were in the front of Horizons during the day and in the card room some afternoons and evenings. We were surprised that the program went on until 10:30, apparently so some parents/grandparents could attend the shows. They begged to stay late because they always had some game or competition going on. Worked ok on sea days. They also put on a circus performance, which was mostly some juggling acts, very informal but the kids all seemed to enjoy it.

That said, not all passengers are happy to see children on the cruise. We talked a lot to the boys before the cruise about what we expected in terms of table manners, dress, behavior. It is a good fit for children who can relate well to an adult environment and are respectful of the needs of others.

Mary

Oops! My error. The kids were in the back of Toscana during the daytime on sea days-not Horizons. There was also a sign.

This is an adult free zone. Probably to keep helicopter parents out.

Mary

We were on the Regatta late July for 1-week Alaska cruise with our 9 year old grandson. 2 councilors in card room to look after the kids, but most of the activities geared to the younger ones. Our grandson only participated a bit. Nearly all the kids 9-11 preferred playing miniature golf, shuffleboard and in the pool (yes, in Alaska) and the hot tubs. Didn't see any kids "running wild". Don't expect much of the youth program unless your kids are in the 5-7 age group. But all the kids seemed to be enjoying themselves a lot on the cruise. Ours charmed all the crew, incl the Captain (who gave us a tour of the Bridge and his quarters); and had a boyhood crush on one of the young, cute girl dancers!