Kids Programs - HAL vs. Princess

[Aruba]

We may be traveling with our 7 year old nephew; first time for us to cruise with a child. I've never paid any attention to the kids programs but for those of you who have, can you compare the kids programs on HAL and Princess? It's likely we will do HAL because of the dates. In our (limited) experience, we have seen fewer kids on HAL ships than on Princess so I'm wondering if that would be an issue and how the two programs compare. This would be a school vacation week by the way. Thanks for any insights.

[Aruba]

ps - I had to correct the spelling because I first wrote "Kid's Pograms". I assume both HAL and Princess frown upon that...:o

[RuthC]

You don't need a great many kids on board for your nephew to have a good time. You only need a few compatible ones. If it's a school vacation period, HAL should have at least that many.

[iceman93]

I can't give a direct comparison, but will say that my almost seven year-old daughter has loved Club HAL on every cruise. There haven't been many children, but we do longer sailings that are not during school vacation times. The Club HAL staff has been universally excellent--people who really seem to love being around children and helping them have fun.

 

I have a coworker who sails both HAL and Princess, and she has daughters aged 10 and 8. They just got back from a Princess cruise where the older one wouldn't stay at the kids' club because (in her words) it was just a day care and they didn't really organize or do anything. Then again, the younger girl was happy to entertain herself with all the toys and games they had available.

[Hlitner]

We love both lines (Elite on Princess and 3 Stars on HA) and think the answer to the OPs question really depends on a few factors. There is no question that the facilities for kids are better are the larger Princess ships and they do tend to attract more families with kids. But, so much of a kids enjoyment depends on the actual staff for the children's program and on the children being able to make friends. With a 7 year old you will always find more kids during the summer or major holidays. If given your situation we would opt for a larger (Grand Class) Princess ship.

 

Hank