How to cruise w/ 4 kids under 10?

My dh and I have 4 children who are 1, 2, 6, and 8 right now. We have never been on a family vacation and I thought a cruise might be economical for our large family. Those kids can eat alot! lol We live in Florida so driving to a FL port saves us on airfare. I would be looking at booking something at least a year out so we have time to make payments on it. I'm just not sure how to even cruise with 4 young kids. What cabin options do we need to look at? Even our oldest kids are too young to be in a cabin by themselves. What line would be the most economical? I'm not even considering Disney because we just can't afford them. DH and I are going on our 1st cruise in a month with Carnival. They have good prices, but I read they charge full price for kids. Do any other lines give you break for the kids? Thanks for any advice. :)

Dawn

Just about all cruiselines including Carnival gives a price break for the 3rd and 4th passengers in a cabin. They don't call them kids prices, they just call them 3rd and 4th passenger prices. Anyway, our kids who are the 3rd and 4th passengers just about always pay half price. :) The most economical way to cruise would probably be to get a 4 person cabin with a 2 person cabin next door. In the 4 person cabin, the 3rd and 4th passengers would be half price. In the 2 person cabin, you'd pay full price. This way, at least 2 of the 6 people would be half price, and if you just get basic inside cabins it should be cheaper. Royal Caribbean has family cabins that could hold all of you, but they aren't that cheap. You could check out their prices on the family cabins for off season times and see what it is. On some of Carnivals older ships there are 5 person cabins at a reasonable price but I don't think they have anything that holds 6 people.:(

Even though it won't sound very cheap at first, if you consider that you get free food for a family of 6 for an entire week, factor in free entertainment, free babysitting during the day, and your kids get to go to exotic ports they would never otherwise see, it's definitely worth it! We tried to do an inexpensive road trip to Destin, Florida over the summer thinking it would be cheaper than cruising. By the time we paid for gas, lodging, food, and entertainment for the week, it ended up costing us much more than our week long cruise we're taking this December. And that was for a road trip with no airfare to pay for.:eek: If you keep researching, you'll find something affordable. With a family of 6, no vacation is going to be cheap, but at least with cruising you'll get a break from the kids. Our kids love the kids center so much that they throw a fit every time we pick them up to go eat lunch or dinner together.:rolleyes:

Sunny - Disney and NCL offer reduced, if not free fares for very young children. I'm not sure of the age cut-off. You may be able to take advantage of that for your youngest. Disney, though is more expensive, so it may not be any savings overall.

Agree that 2 adjoining cabins (2 +4) would probably be the most economical. Also, if you're flexible in your departure date, you may be able to get a deal. If you want to go economical, I'd stay away from spring break.

We are a family of 6 and we have booked 2 adjoining cabins with 3 in each cabin. We leave the door open all the time so we feel like we are all together. With 2 cabins you get more closet and drawer space and 2 bathrooms. This works for us.

Personally-- I would wait til that 1 year old turns 2. then i would book 2 cabins on carnival so all the kids could use the camp services.

Paying full 3rd rate for a 1 year old when I have to take all that stuff because the cruise lines dont give me nothing doesnt seem fair.

Once the kids are all over 2 then you can get the most for your money- you and you DH could get alone time when the kids are all in the camp--for free.

Norweign charges port and taxes for kids under 2..so you may get a break for two of those kids...but port and taxes can stll run up to 200 pp,

Actually Costa has some cruises where kids sail free....just have to pay the port tax so that would give you another option to look into.

Thank you for everyone's replies. I wasn't aware of adjoining cabins. That definitely sounds like the way to go. Do they charge more for cabins that join or is it regular cabin rate times 2? Do they have inside and outside cabins that join? Would I have to call the cruiselines to get special pricing? I like the convenience of shopping around online, especially since we don't know when, where or what cruise line we want to go with. I'm thinking we will go with Carnival or RCCL. BTW, all the kids will be at least 2 before we go. I want to book a year out, so by then the youngest will be 2. :)

You want to make sure that child is already 2.. dont cruise a week before his birthday--- (LOL) camps are strict about ages. Carnival will take them at 2. ----Royal they need to be 3 and potty trained.. zero tolerance for accidents.

booking 2 cabins--even side by side you will pay FULL price for all passengrs. if you put all 4 in the same cabin-- the 3rd and 4th person gets a cheaper deal.

The cabin itself will be the same price as that category.

Thanks Serene. She'll be at least 2 1/2yrs by the time we go. If I understood you correctly, the adjoining cabins are the same price as 2 regular non-adjoining cabins. The 3rd and 4th passenger are discounted, so since there are 6 of us...that works out 4 of us to one cabin (1st and 2nd full price, 3rd and 4th discounted) and 2 of us to the other cabin (both full price). I guess we will look in to Carnival since the little one won't be 3. Thanks again

I guess the Inspiration is just for adults only??

This is how we do six: two adjoining cabins (difficult to find on any ship, so shop early) - inside will be dark (for naps/nighttime) - outside has the daylight - balcony has access to fresh air. Inside is most affordable - best pricing is found by shopping early. be sure to ask if ship will have an on board self serve laundry as that might be beneficial w/4 little ones, as well, be sure to inquire about the kids camp (age? potty trained? etc). We prefer Royal Caribbean, but Carnival is a good choice as well. Most camps open early on "formal" nights so tis not necessary to "dress up" your little ones (unless you really want to) Putting the kids in camp is a great experience for the entire family!:) - all of your questions can be answered when booking. Typically, the 3rd and 4th person sharing a stateroom (no matter the age) pay a reduced fare, but taxes & fees are the same for each person .. another factor is tipping. You want to find out in advance how much is expected per person (reduced for kids? or same as adults?) ... each cruise company is different, so one must ask the questions. Don't forget to budget in the parking at whichever port to which you'll drive. Bon Voyage!

The Inspiration is our first cruise and yes, dh and I are going without the kids. I'm looking at booking the family cruise a year out from now. Thank you everyone for the info.

The Inspiration is our first cruise and yes, dh and I are going without the kids. I'm looking at booking the family cruise a year out from now. Thank you everyone for the info.

We have a group cruise with Kids in April. The Triumph will allow 5 to a cabin not sure about the suites and how many they hold?

On the Spirit class ships-- Miracle, Legend

check out on the deck plans cabins 5108-5106 One is a balcony the other is an inside and both are connecting. These cabins are located right outside the kids camp. (but there are also located on every deck)

The Inspiration is our first cruise and yes, dh and I are going without the kids. I'm looking at booking the family cruise a year out from now. Thank you everyone for the info.

FYI, inside cabins cannot possibly connect to an outside cabin, because one is in the inside of the hallway and the other is on the outside, with a hallway separating the rooms, not a good idea for you to take inside/outside cabins with kids as young as yours---there's no way for you to monitor them. Inside/outside cabins can be near each other, like across the hall, but they do not connect to each other---you always have the hallway in between.

serene, how can you have "connecting" cabins on a ship with one being an inside and one being an outside? That's impossible. Connecting means you have a door in between the cabins, connecting them, basically giving you two rooms together. A hallway separates an inside room and an outside room. Adjoining cabins, on some cruise lines, just means they are next to each other, but without a door inside the rooms that connects each room to the other.

Connecting cabins are very hard to find, and you have to book those at least a year in advance as they go early.

serene, how can you have "connecting" cabins on a ship with one being an inside and one being an outside? That's impossible. Connecting means you have a door in between the cabins, connecting them, basically giving you two rooms together. A hallway separates an inside room and an outside room. Adjoining cabins, on some cruise lines, just means they are next to each other, but without a door inside the rooms that connects each room to the other.

Connecting cabins can be had this way--check the deck plans-- one of those cabins IS a balcony and the other is an inside- they are located forward of the ship- These cabins-- 4 on each deck are very highly sought after by families that need two cabins. They are also only offered on the Spirit class ships. There is also a door inside each cabin to access the other one. Not all inside cabins are towards the middle of the ship-- some are on the same wall as the oceanviews.

http://www.carnival.com/Deck_Plan.aspx?shipCode=MI&deckCode=U

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FYI, inside cabins cannot possibly connect to an outside cabin, because one is in the inside of the hallway and the other is on the outside, with a hallway separating the rooms, not a good idea for you to take inside/outside cabins with kids as young as yours---there's no way for you to monitor them. Inside/outside cabins can be near each other, like across the hall, but they do not connect to each other---you always have the hallway in between.

 

serene, how can you have "connecting" cabins on a ship with one being an inside and one being an outside? That's impossible. Connecting means you have a door in between the cabins, connecting them, basically giving you two rooms together. A hallway separates an inside room and an outside room. Adjoining cabins, on some cruise lines, just means they are next to each other, but without a door inside the rooms that connects each room to the other.

 

Connecting cabins are very hard to find, and you have to book those at least a year in advance as they go early.

Kitty, I wasn't asking if outside and inside cabins connect. I wanted to know if only insides connect or if outsides have connecting cabins as well. Sorry I wasn't more clear on that. Obviously an inside and outside cabin are seperate from each other. I also would never think of putting my children in a cabin seperate from mine. I am fully aware of their ages and the need to be monitored. Thus, the reason for my post to begin with. I have been told adjoining cabins are hard to come by, but again I am looking at cruising at least a year out. Thank you for your post.

Some of the NCL ships also have adjoining outside cabins - for instance, I know the Sun does. But, it does seem that they get booked fast because there aren't many on each deck. Seems like with the push of cruise lines to get families to cruise, they would add more connecting cabins.

If you are researching this online, the ship plans on Travelocity does show the cabins that are available and shows which ones are connections with a little double-ended arrow that spans the wall line between the cabins.

If you do book two cabins (connecting or not), for reservation purposes you must put one adult in each cabin, then split up the kids between the two cabins.

Cruise ships do have cribs and high chairs available, so you don't have to take those with you - though you might want to take your own crib sheets or high chair cover.

We are trying a cruise in October with our 15 month old son, so it should be interesting.