Which Mediterranean cruise with a 12-year-old?

[kimgoblue]

Hi, I posted this on the "ask a cruise question" thread and thought I'd also try the "family cruises" thread. Many thanks in advance for your help!

 

My husband and I would like to take our son on a Mediterranean cruise next summer when he will be 12. While we've cruised several times on Disney in the Caribbean and enjoyed it, we're certainly willing to consider other lines. Our intinerary is flexible, but our son has a particular interest in Rome and Greece. We like above average food and service (which we feel Disney has) with an opportunity to enjoy more foodie-oriented specialty restaurants. Some version of "anytime dining" would also be a plus. And, even if he doesn't spend much time there, our son would like a kids club where 12 year olds are part of a "tween" group (rather than an 8-12 year old or similar group). (As an only child, he's always looking for the opportunity to meet other kids.) We would be grateful for any suggestions you have on both ship and itinerary. Thank you!

[boulders]

Before I decided to go with Disney for our upcoming Med cruise, I was booked on Celebrity's Equinox. Equinox is a newer ship with very good pricing. They have a very good summer itinerary which starts in Rome and visits several Greek ports. They have anytime dining, called Celebrity Select dining and several specialty restaurants. If you book in Aquaclass, your main dining will be in a specialty restaurant, called Blu.

 

The reasons I eventually chose Disney over Celebrity were 1) Pricing. Disney came out with amazing pricing. They slashed the prices of the May Med sailings. It's unlikely that this will happen for next summer. 2) The excursions on the Equinox sounded rather boring and old-fogeyish. Disney's excursions are much more family-friendly.

[chipmaster]

I would say itinerary itnerary itenerary! Its all about the ports, you'll have maybe 1 or maybe 2 sea days on the longer 10+ day cruise. You'll be in port early and hopefully sail late out of most ports so little time will be spent on the ship. On the ship you'll be having breakfast, dinner and maybe entertainment a few nights and on sea days. Food/amenties are important but for us the number one memory was the tours/shore excursion and sights. Having sailed Disney no question they offer a higher class of service, cabins and experience. From what I've read their shore excursion are equally pricey. IMHO you should consider other lines/ships and based on port/schedule first make your selection. If you have no budget concerns and the upcoming Disney Europe cruise meets your need then a win win. But if one doesn't get their dream line up ports or have to pinch on the the port activities I'd pick a slightly less luxurious line/cabin to make sure I spared no expense on the port activities and port lineup.

 

BTW I think a cruise is a wonderful way to give kids a tastes of so many different cities. You really don't get to really dive in but see so much on just one vacation is a huge attraction!

 

Happy planning!

 

 

Hi, I posted this on the "ask a cruise question" thread and thought I'd also try the "family cruises" thread. Many thanks in advance for your help!

 

My husband and I would like to take our son on a Mediterranean cruise next summer when he will be 12. While we've cruised several times on Disney in the Caribbean and enjoyed it, we're certainly willing to consider other lines. Our intinerary is flexible, but our son has a particular interest in Rome and Greece. We like above average food and service (which we feel Disney has) with an opportunity to enjoy more foodie-oriented specialty restaurants. Some version of "anytime dining" would also be a plus. And, even if he doesn't spend much time there, our son would like a kids club where 12 year olds are part of a "tween" group (rather than an 8-12 year old or similar group). (As an only child, he's always looking for the opportunity to meet other kids.) We would be grateful for any suggestions you have on both ship and itinerary. Thank you!

[Onessa]

Hi, I posted this on the "ask a cruise question" thread and thought I'd also try the "family cruises" thread. Many thanks in advance for your help!

 

My husband and I would like to take our son on a Mediterranean cruise next summer when he will be 12. While we've cruised several times on Disney in the Caribbean and enjoyed it, we're certainly willing to consider other lines. Our intinerary is flexible, but our son has a particular interest in Rome and Greece. We like above average food and service (which we feel Disney has) with an opportunity to enjoy more foodie-oriented specialty restaurants. Some version of "anytime dining" would also be a plus. And, even if he doesn't spend much time there, our son would like a kids club where 12 year olds are part of a "tween" group (rather than an 8-12 year old or similar group). (As an only child, he's always looking for the opportunity to meet other kids.) We would be grateful for any suggestions you have on both ship and itinerary. Thank you!

 

RCCI and X both have good Italian/Greek itineraries -- find a cruise that starts and/or ends in Rome or Athens to maximize that part of the experience.

 

For the history stuff - beyond Rome and Athens we particularly liked Kotokolon (Olympia), Rhodes (more medivial than greek), Kusadasi (Ephesus, Turkey), Naples (for Pompeii), and Sicily (some great Greek and Roman stuff). Mykonos has Delios which is fantastic for Greek stuff, but can be a bit "intensely" historic.

 

We've done three Med cruises with our DD (also an only, now 14YO, when she was 12, 13, and 14YO). She's enjoyed them all. With RCCI and X, 12YO are part of the teen program - which is much less structured that the kids programs. She's generally used the teen program the first couple of nights to meet kids her age and then they've primarily entertained themselves. The Med is rather port intenstive so there is limited time for those activies.

 

The S-class X ships have a great selection of alternative dining options, RCCI less so. I'm not impressed with X's MDR offerings.

 

Take note of the times that the ships are in port. Some lines seem to "cheat" the pax by trying to cram two ports in one day or shortening times in port. Watch that you are not in Athens on a Monday (the new museum at the Acropolis is closed on Mon) or that your times at Mykonos are not too late (Deleos "closes" at 3:00) and stuff like that.

[Ula]

We are doing a Med cruise in August on Ruby Princess. From the roll call alone there are a lot of teens with their families. We are all saving money by booking private tours together. There are only two sea days and the port days are long and busy so the youth groups really are going to be a minor issue.

[RoadTripFanatic]

I agree it's all about the ports! The Med cruises you are only going to have 2 days at sea and be on the go the entire time. I will say if you are particular about food avoid Costa. The food QUALITY is not very good. I know "everyone" complains about Costa's food. To me it wasn't what they served it was honestly the quality of the food is not as high as any of the other cruise lines I have cruised with in the past.

 

As for finding a cruise if your son really wants to see Rome I suggest you take a cruise that goes in and out of Rome. It takes more than one day in port to really get to see the sights in Rome. I recommend you take at least two days minimum.

We did an 11 day Med cruise in Feb. (Costa Pacifica) We flew into Rome and did a little sight seeing before heading over to the ship. We visited Savonna, IT; Rhodes, Katakolon(OLYMPIA) and Athens, Greece; Jerusalem, Israel and Cairo, Egypt. We had a fantastic time. Our 10 year old daughter absolutely loved Athens and Olympia. We then spent an extra 6 days visiting Pisa, Florence and Rome.

[synewton]

I, too, am looking for a Med cruise that is kid-friendly. My son will be 11 next summer. I looked at Disney but it didn't click for us. Recently I've been drawn to the July 24th sailing of the NCL Epic. It gives me the Med itinerary that I'm looking for and the tween kid center that my son is looking for AND it is a Nick Cruise. In addition to the Nick Jr. characters for the little ones, I was under the impression that they are going to have "slime time" for the older kids and some actors from the teen Nick programs. It seems like a win-win.

[Essiesmom]

I, too, am looking for a Med cruise that is kid-friendly. My son will be 11 next summer. I looked at Disney but it didn't click for us. Recently I've been drawn to the July 24th sailing of the NCL Epic. It gives me the Med itinerary that I'm looking for and the tween kid center that my son is looking for AND it is a Nick Cruise. In addition to the Nick Jr. characters for the little ones, I was under the impression that they are going to have "slime time" for the older kids and some actors from the teen Nick programs. It seems like a win-win.

Carnival will have a new ship, Carnival Magic in the Med. starting in May 2011. Take a look at her itineraries, too. EM

[junglejane]

I second the recommendation to consider Celebrity. We are booked on the Celebrity Equinox for June 2011 on a round trip from Rome that goes to Santorini, Athens, Istanbul, Kusadasi, Mykonos and Naples. We have also done the Venice-Barcelona itinerary on the Celebrity Summit when our kids were 7 and 11, and the British Isles on the Crown Princess when they were 8 and 12.

 

We love Princess, too, but be forewarned that your 12 year old will not be allowed in the teen program on Princess. He will be part of the 8-12 year old group. Princess is strict about ages and will not let him move up.

 

We also enjoyed our cruise on the Mariner of the Seas, but found the food to be disappointing.

[kimgoblue]

Thank you all for your suggestions -- we appreciate the help!

[RoadTripFanatic]

Just a random out of the blue thought.... Be sure to remind your child that not everyone in the children's center will speak English. We took an "off season" European cruise and there were only 4 kids on the ship who spoke English. We had warned DD that this would happen in advance so she wouldn't be upset. Since you are cruising during the summer you should have plenty of English speaking kids on the ship.

[helenb]

We sailed on Celebrity Equinox in that part of the world last year and our kids had a fantastic time! I also agree that with a Med cruise, you're going to spend so much time in port that it doesn't matter as much what cruise line you take. However, I will highly recommend the new Celebrity ships for their facilities and also their food. We had a wonderful time! Celebrity also offers a version of 'anytime dining' now.

[Scrapchick]

Hey Helen... Hope you see this! We had the BEST time on the Equinox... It was everything you said it would be and more. One of our best cruises so far. We're looking forward to the Eclipse in July now.

 

To the OP.... I agree on the ports being the highlight of thid part of the Med, and the ship being of secondary importance. We did a 12 day trip on the Ruby Princess last summer from Venice to Rome and it was excellent, so I'd highly recommend that to you. It was 10 days in port out of a 12 day cruise, so very tirning and little down time, but that's pretty much what you can expect on a trip like that. I would recommend some time in the starting and ending port in order to really take advatnage of all there is to offer.

 

I do also agree with the comment above about foreign languages in the kids club... The ship was packed and there were a huge number of European kids on board who did not speak English and my DD found that a bit difficult when trying to make friends, as the foreign speakers tended to flock together, as you would expect. Med cruises are a bit different than other trips because of the amonut of kids on board in the summer and the variety of languages spoken.

[helenb]

Glad you had such a great time, Scrapchick! We recently booked the new Celebrity Silhouette for August next year. We're going to cruise the Holy Land. DD and DS are already so excited that we're going to see the Pyramids in Egypt! Since we were on Celebrity last summer for Western Europe/Med we already know what the ship will be like, and the kids are excited about that too.

 

In less than 2 months, we'll be taking our first HAL cruise to Canada and New England. I'm curious to experience HAL, since I've heard conflicting things about families on their ships.In the meantime, we're watching Anne of Green Gables and learning about the War of 1812 to prepare the kids for this journey. ;)

 

I gather the in-port childcare worked out for you?

[Scrapchick]

Everything worked out great... Wonderful kids club and staff, it ws just a marvelous cruise from start to finish. I am VERY interested in that Silhouette cruise next year.... We'd love to go to the Holy Land on a decent ship during school vacations.... What is the date you are going???? Maybe we'll see you on board!

 

I think HAL will work fine for you, honestly... They're a lot better with kids than their reputation suggests they've really worked hard to appeal to families.

[helenb]

Yes, we loved the Kids Club staff there as well. Did you do the Kids Scavenger Hunt? We did, and both of our kids got nice backpacks filled with kiddie X prizes. They still play with them.

 

We're doing the August 10 cruise in 2011.

 

http://www.celebritycruises.com/search/vacationItinerary.do;jsessionid=0000Wko7WPvmmNLMogWScG-YXfp:12hdebebp?packageCode=SI12M204&backPageName=Itinerary+Search+Results

 

It's the first of the Silhouette's Holy Land run. As you say, we chose that date because we can get back before school starts.

 

I'm looking forward to our HAL cruise. Even if the kids' club doesn't work out so well (not that I have any reason to believe it won't be fine) this is a very port intensive cruise, so we won't be using it much. So either way we're good.

[Scrapchick]

I found the itinerary.... VERY interesting... You might just see us on board with you...

[helenb]

Great! We always love to sail with good trivia partners. ;)

[Scrapchick]

Ditto to that! Though I have to say, X didn't do Trivia nearly as well as Princess...

 

Meant to ask you... Does your Hubby have an iPad yet??? I thought of him and all his Mac magazines... I'm DYING for an iPad....

[helenb]

LOL, nope, no iPad. Honestly, it's not something either one of us would use, especially since he already has a MacBook. It's a gimmicky thing, and he's rather spend the $$$$ elsewhere.

 

That's not to say that he won't bring more Mac magazines on our upcoming cruise, to bribe the crew, though! ;)

 

At least on our cruise, X had music 80s trivia! I clean up at that one... yeah, I just admitted it. I'm ooooold....

[Scrapchick]

I think we might make a booking on that Aug 10 sailing... We are really, really interested in that!! Do you realise it is only the second sailing of that ship??

[helenb]

Yes, but honestly, it's likely to be 'later' than that. Our Equinox cruise last year was supposed to be the inaugural... but the ship (like the Solstice) was completed early and so the inaugural was moved to an earlier date and there were a couple of cruises before ours. I'm guessing there's a good chance the same thing will happen with Silhouette. In any case, I'm just happy to be on it!

 

Seriously, if you want to book, that's awesome! I set up a roll call already. We can trade information about shore excursions.

[Scrapchick]

I think you're right... Hubby booked us on the Eclipse in July, convinved we'd be one of the first to sail on her, and here she is, out to sea in April, three months ahead of schedule!

 

We called X and made an inquiry. I've e-mailed my TA and asked her to look into it for us on Monday, so I think we'll make the booking. We don't have to commit for a year! We are extremely interested in the itinerary and tacking on a week in Italy beforehand. DD will be 10 then, and I'd love to take her to the pyramids...

 

Gosh, we could actually be back on the same ship together again!

[Asil65]

I am interested in cruising the med at some point. I had heard that the summers were terribly hot and to not visit in the summer. What was your take on the weather during the summer months?

[helenb]

Sounds likely that we will be on the same ship again, Scrapchick! ;)

 

Asil65, the weather is like anywhere else: hit or miss. When we were cruising the Med last year, it was close to 100F, but that was an extreme heatwave that was unprecedented. Average July/August temperatures are in the 80s.

 

The good news is, even if it is extremely hot, cruising is the way to go! We would always return to the ship, melting and exhausted after each day in port, only to find Celebrity stewards handing us iced towels (literally... with ice!) and glasses of ice-cold fruit punch or lemonade. Then we'd step back onto the ship and its blast of frigid air... perfect! So if you can deal with a few hours onshore, return for lunch, and then perhaps back out again (many of the Med ports have convenient docking locations that allow this) then it's doable, even in the hottest weather.

 

But (and I want to make this clear) chances are that your weather wouldn't be nearly as hot as ours was last summer. And despite it, we still had a fantastic time!