Onessa

Itinerary - exclusively

Thanks for your quick reply. You said that they can come and go which would be nice. I thought I was told that I needed to sign them out. They are both very responsible and mature so I was hoping that they would have some freedom.

 

Have you had kids in there? Do they have fun or is it just a way for parents to have alone time? I have not told my kids about the cruise yet and when I do, I want to be able to describe the Adventure Ocean a little bit better.

Adventure Ocean is the Kids Club for those kids 11YO and younger. At the younger age levels within AO, you will be required to sign the kids in and out. As they age, you can specifically give your child sign-in/out privileges when you initially sign them up for the program at the beginning of your cruise.

 

Ages 12 and up is the Teen Club. There is no sign-in/out for Teen Club program. The Teen program is less structured. While the teen program may have some activities scheduled, most of the teens use the club to meet up and sometimes to hang out. The teen program will schedule scavenger hunts, game tournaments, dances and pool parties

 

Kids these ages prefer less direction and to do their own thing. A lot of the boys will meet up and play video games or hit the sports court. The girls are more likely to watch videos and chat. There are board games and other stuff available both at the teen club and elsewhere on-board.

 

You may want to let your 11YO "try" AO, but ask if she would be allowed to age "up" to the teen program. Realize though that there will be 16 and 17YOs in the teen club area. There are also some of the older kids that will get "turned off" if little kids (11YO) are allowed in their club and then the teens will avoid the club and find other areas in which to congregate. I've seen some people request their 12YOs to be aged "down" to AO group as well. It really depends upon the maturity level and personality of the kids as to whether they are "ready" for teen club or if they would be bored in the AO program.

 

I was concerned when we were scheduled to cruise 1 month after my DD had turned 12YO, would she be able to handle the teen club? She went to the first night mixer party met up with four other 12YO girls and the five were inseperable for the remainder of the cruise. They did the club sponsored rock climbing contest, a few of the scavenger hunts, and dropped into a few of the parties; but mainly entertained themselves -- swimming, mini golfing, dining together, board games in the game room, freebie on-demand movies in one of the cabins (with parental consent only).

On an Alaskan cruise years ago, a pax was complaining to a bartender that the Alaskan cruises were "grossly overrated". His primary evidence for that comment was that there was not enough wildlife and that he should have just gone to SeaWorld instead.

Has no one been to a luxury hotel? You'll find these profit increasing snacks everywhere.

 

To the complainers: the more people that buy the snacks (and everything else), the cheaper your cabin will be.

 

Don't want the snacks, move them. NBD.

Most of us have been to "luxury" hotels - and when even the very NOT luxury Best Western is hawking generic bottles of water for $2.50 each; even those who may not frequent "luxury" hotels can relate.

 

Many of us hope that a company that we would prefer would simply respect us for patronize them, is instead inconveniencing us with yet one more unimaginative, sleazy marketing ploy.

 

If the cruise lines' or hotels' shameless merchandising really was reducing everyone's prices it would be one thing, but these are simply plots to increase their individual profits. While these businesses choose to refer to us as "guests" they view us purely as opportunities to maximize profits -- they are less concerned with providing a superior product and more concerned with squeezing every possible penny out of us.

 

Consumers are reacting to this trend, by speaking out and by "voting with our feet" -- our last three cruises have been on lines other than Celebrity/RCCI lines that charge a bit more "up front" but do not nickle-and-dime us. I want to relax and enjoy myself, not brace myself and my loved ones for "clever" ways for Celebrity to bilk me of a few more $$.

As the kids age, you may want to reconsider the types of vacation you take. less "relax" non-planned time. more time in port doing "stuff". Might be a good time for a Med or Baltic cruise and take in some of the historic and cultural sites and keep everyone "busy"

How old is your DS and/or the other kids who will be joining you? Kids clubs for the under 10 year old set in particular are fairly similar. There may be a few more kids on a similar sized RCCI ship and length cruise than on a Celebrity cruises. (so if you are cruising "off holiday", RCCI may be preferable in that you will be more likely to have kids his age; If you are cruising "on holiday" Celebrity's clubs may be a bit less "over populated")

 

As your kids get a bit older the RCCI cruises tend to have more non-kids club amenities than Celebrity. Larger/more sports courts, climbing walls, and while they vary from ship-to-ship RCCI ships is where you will find kid's water parks, wave pools, zip lines, skating rinks, etc. While Celebrity's amenitites skew more toward adults. Some kids really like the fancy activities while others may not use them.

Draining I could figure out, how do you FILL them? I haven't seen faucets on deck (but they're probably there somewhere)...

You don't need much water, borrow an icebucket or beer "pail" and three maybe four buckets full of schlepping from the nearest bar or restroom and you will be set.

OMG! :eek: Was that your cabin?

I was wondering what happened to the half can of drink I thought I remembered leaving in the fridge:confused:

LOL

 

But I too am a bit confused and also would have either asked the room steward or "waited" to find out what happened -- it was very possibily ver innocent and not any sort of deception involved at all.

While there can always be jerks, the counselors (and most of the other kids) will "look out" for any sort of issues.

 

A few years back (and prior to a lot of the bully-sensitivity training kids get now), we cruised with my DD's best friend's family. DD and BFF were in one age group, her highly-functioning Asperger's brother was in the next group up. The DB does not seek out social interactions -- the counselors were very good about "buddy-ing" up with other boys who seemed open to it and they were also good about letting him stay on with the girls in the younger group when they had mixed the age levels or when the older group was going to do something that DB really couldn't handle.

 

His parents met with head counselor at length on day one - and she went out of her way to introduce them to the counselors who would be working with both age groups. My DD and his DSis of course kept an eye on him as well (as they both had been doing since the girls were in Kindergarten) -- the three had always really gotten along well so it was no big deal. Their elementary school specialized in mainstreaming special needs kids into classrooms whenever practical.

Personally, I do not like people who cannot use their "inside voices" when appropriate. It does not matter if I am on a cruise, in a shopping mall, in a resturant, or even when I am at a ball game (and the people behind me are talking too loudly all the way through the game -- face it NO ONE wants to hear about your gall stones - or whatever!). So that is not a "kids on cruises" issue. And I find adults are more likely to be the culprets anyway!

 

BTW, I disagree that most parents are doing the best they can. Some are just downright lazy and don't care what their kids are doing.

Yup, but those are the same parents who don't care on or off the ship. They are the ones who I will have sitting in the back of my car keeping warm waiting for their parents who are "running late" yet again. I am among those coaches/chaperones/scout leaders who will not leave a kid out waiting for a parent who is running late, or who forgot, or whatever lame excuse they have.

 

My DD graduated high school last May and is off at college, but I still felt compelled to go to the final football game this fall. I was touched when one of the senior football players asked if my DH and I would be his escort since "none" of his parents (he has two sets Mom and StepDad, Dad and StepMom) could make it. So I guess all those times I drove him home, or "casually" waited around to make certain he got picked up, or loaned him a couple of bucks so he could buy dinner at the fast food place we had stopped -- paid off -- I got a rose and a certificate "suitable for framing" :D

 

We had a group of 21 on our last cruise. We had a grown up table and a kids table. The kids table was well mannered every night. They had fun and laughed, but they did not disturb anyone around them. The waitstaff seemed to really enjoy them and played/danced with them as well. They accomplished this mostly on their own, but at times with reminders from the adults. Being a parent is work. You can't just sit at your table and all the kids to be on "auto-pilot" and expect things to go smoothly.

I am the coach/scout leader/chaperone. And I've chaperoned teams of 5 girls all across the region, and groups of 200+ band kids all across the country. And on my last two band trips, I chaperoned the chaperones ("lead" chaperone). Set expectations, communicate those expectations, follow through -- we haven't lost a kid yet (and I've not even seriously had to consider sending even one home). I have had a number of unhappy kids "stuck" with me for the day (as punishment). I have had to have talks with other chaperones to underscore the "expectations" -- and there have been a few times when another chap or I have kind of "doubled up" with a newbie or hopeless chap to keep things better under control.

 

Most kids like reasonable limits and feel more comfortable when they have rules. DD always appreciated being able to say "oh my parents said I couldn't or had to . . . " so she did not have to say "no" herself.

DD just turned 19YO, but has been cruising/travelling with us since she was a newborn. She's been to 37 US states, 5 Canadian provinces, and 23 countries across Europe and Asia. She is a confident, self-suffient young lady and believe her early travels have contributed positively to her life.

 

Traveling with very young ones requires a great deal of flexibility from both parents. Aehusk's suggestions are great. I also agree with the comments that Disney (park) with two toddlers can be very challenging. If you can get a good rate to stay on the WDW grounds and limit you times in the park, it can be fun -- but if you are paying big bucks at WDW assuming that you will be at the parks and on the rides and stuff, it will be disappointing.

The teen clubs are looser in structure than the younger kids clubs. They will have some activities set for one age group and others that are open to all in the teen club.

 

Kids at this age level tend to make friends and "hang out" together without necessarily participating in the formal teen club activities.

 

I would select a cruise that is more likely to have a larger number of kids on board - at a time when kids have time off school and about a week or shorter in duration. I would also select a cruise on a ship that has activities that your kids will enjoy -- it is a lot easier to meet other kids and make friends when your kids are participating in activities that they are excited to do (rock climbing, skating, zip lining, water park activities). Encourage both kids to try activities and they will find "like minded" kids.

 

Also, be certain his older sister is "ok" with him hanging out with her. It is not really fair for her to end up "babysitting" him for her full vacation. I understand some kids are ok that way, others not so much. I know some families where it is just "expected" that one sibling takes on another -- and some resentment built up.

We very occassionally may use the laundry and a few minutes of internet access. Convenient, but I can live without. Fortunately the itineraries we pick have few tender ports -- we've done one X cruise with a stop in Santorini where everyone tenders - so while priority tender is a perk I appreciate, I hve had little experience enjoying it :)

 

We typically cruise for the ports, not the ship experience. We will research and stop at a great local spot for lunch on-shore and if we are enjoying our "fine dining" at lunch, pair a great local wine or beer with that meal. The elite cocktail hour typically is not all that lively so we tend not to go or spend little time.

 

The affinity program as now set up really does not incent me to cruise X or RCCI. Personally, I would prefer that they cut those perks rather than continue to cut corners elsewhere -- less pay-per-visit dining options, better food, swap out the linens on a more frequent basis, more live music, . . . those types of things.

I like to look at requiring pre-pay of gratuities is the same as upping the price of the cruise and making it a "no tips" cruise. I add in the price of the tips when comparing cruises so I would really prefer it if the cruise lines would simply pay their staffs a decent wage and then charge me accordingly. Comparing all of the assorted fees and such is really getting to be irratating!

 

I cruise 90% for the itinerary, 10% for the cruise experience. All I want/need is a clean and comfortable room, a breakfast buffet, and a nice dinner.

 

I've gotten so sick of the high on-board prices and other games the lines play that I have discovered that without even trying, I have had zero on-board charges (for a family of 3) my last four cruises. I had arranged with my TA for "compensation" other than an OBC so I did not have to worry about refunds or the like

 

We save beer purchases for on-shore where the selection is better and prices are too. We typically eat lunch at a local spot and do our wine drinking there. After being held "hostage" one too many times at some schlocky tourist shop, we stopped doing ships excursions -- it is on-our-own or private tours only. I don't need to gamble on-board. I can walk to a casino from my home and never bother going there.

 

I know the cruise lines "hate" me for not beefing up their profits -- but when they keep pushing and pushing and pushing with all of these extra (overpriced) expenses, they hit my breaking point.

Smallish gifts particularly for the little one. Bring gift bags on board and send the family out for somthing so you can "wrap" and after they are sound asleep put them out with a personalized note for each from Santa indicating that he knew that your family couldn't carry bigger stuff home -- if you plan to have a few gifts at home for them from Santa, arrange for friend/family to put them out after you leave and then in the note, explain that there are some goodies waiting for him/her at home.

 

There are a wide variety of inexpensive collapsable trees and other decor help keep things festive.

 

I bought special holiday PJs (a tradition from home) and "wrapped" them in some tissue for Christmas Eve gift.

 

Holiday hat for dad and antler headbands with jinglebells for DD and I.

 

Handmade cards with mini candy canes or holiday pencils to give to new friends made on board

Question asked . . .

Question answered . . .

I am a fifth generation Wisconsinite and I understand where the OP is coming from. The laws surrounding underage drinking vary from state to state - Wisconsin's are among the loosest laws so it pays not to assume anything when you are outside of WI.

 

When my DD started at the "U" (University of Minnesota) the orientation for both parents and the kids went out of their way to point out that in MN, anyone under 21 cannot drink, even with their parents present.

 

(although I am not too sure about any state where making a kid eat lutefisk at Christmas is not criminal, but giving the same kid a sip of beer is! :D -- just a little Midwest humor!)

The line doesn't like to see the prices go down so dramatically either -- it means that they will be losing money.

 

In order to operate a business, you have to take risks and deal with reality.

They take their experience and make educated guesses as to target prices to charge -- sometimes they guess well and prices are pretty stable, sometimes they guess poorly and prices fluctuate.

 

As a pax - I've seen my prices go up, go down and stay pretty much the same. If they go up, I'm happy and I keep my mouth shut. If they go down, I'll make a call and try to work something out -- sometimes you might get full satisfaction, sometimes they might be able to toss you a bone, sometimes there is nothing that they are willing or able to do.

 

Call, be pleasant, and give it a try -- if you cannot upgrade without substantial penalty, try to get something instead, and if they flat out refuse let it roll off your back and if it makes you feel better mention it in your comment card and look elsewhere for your next vacation.

One size never fits all.

 

My DD just started college a few weeks back. She is a math major and lives in a house of all science and engineering women. I was passing through town Sunday morning and offered to take her and her cousin (also a freshman at a different college in the same town) out to brunch. DD and her friends (male and female) had a great Saturday night watching a marathon of some TV show and trying to come up with who could make the most outrageous popcorn flavors -- they are geeks (nerds?). I can only imagine what my niece had done Saturday night. Sunday at 10:30 I meet DD, bright eyed and bushy tailed, and DN, bleary-eyed and dragging. Not saying either's life style is "right" or "wrong" but obviously each is very different.

 

A somewhat nebbish 20 or 30-something might enjoy the ambiance of a Celebrity cruise. While my 70+ YO uncle (who claims to be a 30YO in a 60YO's body - and yes he lives in a dream world, it is a 70YO's body :D) would be bored to tears.

 

Age is simply one factor that makes up a "demographic".

 

I agree that some of Celebrity's marketing does appear to be working to broaden their demographic, but it is not simply about attracting younger cruisers -- it is about attracting younger cruisers whose vacation "goals" mesh with the Celebrity ships.

We were on one Celbrity cruise in the Med, where there was a fairly large group (25-30ish pax) who had managed to dig up the most outrageous conglomeration of late 1970's era formalwear. Brightly colored tuxes, ruffled shirts, matching ties and cumberbunds for the men. Horrible 100% polyester chiffon numbers for the women. They had a great time and were very respectful in the MDR and other public places.

 

They were technically dressed more formally than 80% of the other pax but most displeased the traditionalists on board.

Even if the child may not have specific memories of trips that they took when they were infants, a person is a sum of all of their experiences.

 

If only those things we "remember" are important as to who we become -- we could just deposit infants into robotic pods that would automatically care for their physical needs until they turn 4 (or 6 or 8 or some other "magic" age) at which point they'd get spit out into the world.

 

While DD no longer remembers the trip we took to California when she was bearly 8MO, it floored me that when she was exactly 3YO and we were on the plane to New Mexico - we were talking and her dad mentioned we were going to be in the mountains. He went on to say she had never seen mountains before -- She was indignant and insisted she had seen a mountain and it "had water coming out of it". He and I looked at each other realizing she was telling us about Yosemite. We have no pictures from that trip, and while we may have mentioned the trip a few times, we did not really ever dwell on the trip, let alone spend much time talking about the day we spent at Yosemite, but at that time she remembered.

 

While she may or may not have specific memories from some of the multitude of trips we took over her 19 years contribute greatly to the person she is now. I do not regret any of the trips with her. You go and have a great time on his special day. Happy Birthday!

A more cost friendly internet option would be welcome.

 

I like to be able to backup my pictures, check out weather, checkup on my house, download a new book (if I'm reading too fast, or if one of my trip books turns out to be a dud), etc.

 

I can wait until I am in port, but I cruise primarily for the ports and would rather not waste my time sitting in a cafe somewhere. We all have different priorities, while you may cruise to lounge by the pool and stay up late for the shows -- mine is to maximize my time in port.

 

I've got a lot of "down time" whilst on board when I could enjoy sitting on my balconey or some quiet corner catching up on pins and posts and stuff I do not have time to do at home -- I find that relaxing.

DD (whose now 19YO :eek:) ranked the Kid's Club:

1) NCL

2) RCCI

3) Celbrity

4) Princess

5) Disney

 

Pure cruiseline ("whole" experience)

1) Celebrity

2) RCCI

3) NCL

4) Princess

5) Disney

 

Just talking to her 10YO cousin - and she concurred.

 

Both indicated that while there were some really cool things on-board Disney, the kids program was a bit too chaotic -- the activities are not as structured and the age groups intermix (when they were little, it was a problem because they felt that they got "pick on" by the older kids; when they got older, they did not like having the little kids around). The NCL and RCCI counselors were a lot more "fun". The only feed back I got from each of them (independently) for Princess was that one activity included some sort of a disection of a sea animal and they were both a bit appalled by that (guess neither will pursue a career as a biology teacher!)

Mack's the best! Good info.

 

DD (now 19YO) has had some issues on smaller boats (tenders, ferries, excursion boats), but never had any issue on board a ship (including in some really nasty weather). For her the ginger works well - either just candied ginger (Spice House, Penzy's Spices, baking section of a well stocked grocery), Altoids (I love ginger Altoids -- just bought a box last night at Woodman's), Chimes are good, and look for ginger chews from The Ginger Company -- a well stocked grocery, World Market, even TJ Maxx are good brick-and-mortar sources.

 

Just a warning about any of the OTC's and Benedryl in particular. If you have an opportunity, you may want to try out a lower dose prior to actually "needing" it. All meds can have some unexpected side-effects for some folks. With Benedryl for a very, very small subset of the population, that adverse effect can include hyperactivity and/or even psychosis. My father was being preped for surgery and among the meds administered was Benedryl (it was supposed to keep him relaxed but conscious throughout the procedure) -- seems he is part of the minority (something like "less than .1%") with an adverse reaction -- and it was nasty, they were able to abort the surgery but he had to be restrained and observed for the next 36 hours

A cute t-shirt or onsie that points out that today is my birthday would be nice, then he would get even more attention than a little one normally does.

 

Get a video of your son attacking the cake -- and don't worry about trying to feed it to him or trying to convince him to use a fork or anything. It is his birthday - let loose!

 

DD turns 19YO today (off at college) -- and the video my BIL took of her eating her cake is among my favorites. (my sister admits that in hindsight it may have made more sense to have given her a piece with yellow frosting rather than the royal, but the contrast between the bright blue frosting and her white-blonde hair made for great photography :D!)

Even if this may be a "once in a lifetime" trip -- don't treat it as such. You really want to enjoy yourselves so don't add the pressure of "I've got to see it all".

 

We've ended up doing several Med cruises over the years. I remember thinking "I gotta do it all" the first time we were in Athens. I've got hundreds of pictures and we were herded on and off a bus along with hundreds of other tour participants.

 

I had no intention to return to Athens, but two years later, there I was - in Athens. The second time, we walked to the train station, took the lightrail into town, got thoroughly lost in the shopping district, managed to stumble out of the national gardens three minutes before the changing of the guards at parliment. Finally got to the Acropolis -- between the ship's hords of excursions, so I could actually see the Acropolis (not just tourists). Walked through the entire Acropolis park, spent a few hours looking at the stuff that interested us in the museum (not wearing headsets and following behind some woman waving a pink umbrella). And negotiated a taxi back to port. Lovely!

 

Smaller groups (if need be do private excursions) and well-planned on-your-own. Have fun!