Family Cruise on MSC

[jimmy twotimes]

Hiya

 

Just had some advice on the MSC boards but thought would check in this area too. Booked only our second ever cruise, myself, wife and two boys who will be 3 and 8 when we go to the Norwegian Fjords on 19th August 2010 on the MSC Opera.

 

Just wondered if anyone here has sailed with MSC with kids in similar age range and how it went?

 

We will have a great time regardless but always nice to here others experiences whether good or bad. We did the Baltics with NCL last year and everyone bloomin loved it!

 

Thanks.

[sbhdmh]

We did MSC to the Baltic with 4 year old DD last summer. She had a great time but is very social so anywhere there are kids and shows she is happy. The kids club brought them to the show each evening and then dancing in the disco. Perfect for my dd but not sure about an 8 year old boy - hopefully others will comment. My dd is a really good eater. The dinners are long, though, and there is no casual alternative so even she had a hard time after awhile. About half way through the cruise the Kids Club started having dinner "parties" which worked well. She would start dinner with us and I would try to get some healthy food into her before bringing her up to the "hot dog party", "pasta party" or whatever they were having that night. Not sure if that is a permanent thing or something they did on our sailing in response to a group of children who were very disruptive in the dining room. We sailed from Dover so about half the ship and all the crew spoke English. This may not be the case on your sailing. MSC changes things depending on who they think will be on each sailing so I would keep an eye on the MSC board and look for posts from people doing your particular sailing. All staff in Kids Club spoke English but one pretended not to if a parent was unhappy about something. Some people coming back from the Med reported their child being the only English speaker in kids club. Again it wouldn't have been an issue for my DD - she is VERY social and tag is the same in all languages. A more reserved child could possible have an issue, though.

 

So as long as you relax, go with the flow and prepare the older child to expect to do some things differently you'll have a great time. Hope this helps some. Let me know if I can answer anything more specifically.

[CeleBrat]

We sailed MSC earlier this year, in the Caribbean. I understand the MSC Caribbean cruises are totally different than the European cruises, as the Caribbean is geared more toward the "American" market, whereas the European trips are geared toward the European cruiser.

 

Does that make a difference for you Where are you from? Will your child be able to integrate in the kids club where many different languages are spoken?

 

Review to the Caribbean cruise below, in my signature.

 

CeleBrat

[jimmy twotimes]

Well we are sailing out of Dover so hopefully there will an english emphasis. We are of Italian descent (not that my kids speak any Italian) so hopefully for me and my wife at least there wont be anyone pretending that they cant speak either English or Italian.

 

I think my 3 year old may struggle at the dinner table if its very slow service so will need to think about that one.

 

The kids are both pretty good mixers so I'm hoping it will be plain sailing (sorry!) for them both.

 

Would you be able to answer whether food was available throughout the day? I mean as you know with kids their bellies rumble as and when, not when the clock says it should!?

 

Thanks again

[sbhdmh]

If you are sailing from Dover you should be fine. They try very hard to accomodate whoever they think their primary market will be on each sailing. Last summer they had "Sunday Dinner" buffets where they tried their hand at things like Yorkshire pudding and roasts. They also tried doing Fish and Chips and traditional High Tea. Some British passengers appreciated the effort, others were just upset that the efforts didn't produce a good result. From your posts I am assuming you will fall into the first category and have a nice time...

 

There was pizza and a grill with things like hot dogs, hamburgers, etc open from about 11-7. Other than that it was traditional dining only and tea at about 4. There was also a bowl of fresh fruit in the cabin my dd snacked on. The wait staff was great with my DD, but as I've said she is extremely social. Your kids may or may not get the same response from the wait staff. My dd's favorite band on board played in the lounge right outside the restaurant in the evening. Before the dinner parties started I would take her out there to dance between courses. They were great with her too. I told them one night that her "Theme Song" was "Sweet Caroline" so they played it each night for her and she would go up and sing and dance with them.

 

Let me know if you have any more questions. I'm sure you'll have a great time.