Thinking of going on Carnival Breeze with kids 9 & 11

[bbrme]

I have done 3 family cruises over the last 3 years - NCL Jewel, Carnival Valor, and NCL Sun. Both lines have their pluses and minuses however we really like the freestyle idea. The eat whenever you want to is a big piece for us since we normally feed the kids (now 9&11) at the buffet and send them to the kids club so we can have some time alone in the evenings. Our biggest issue on the Valor was that it seemed that the ship wasnt really set up for anytime dining and we had a hard time finding things to do at night because our timing was off - we also were in bed by 10 so we felt like we missed most of the entertainment. Has this changed since 2010?

 

We are really impressed with the new design of the Breeze (love the promenade deck - missed that on the Valor) and the water area and the sports area. Will we like the Breeze?

[navygator]

We are booked on the Breeze this summer and we have an 8 and almost 10 year old. The last time we took a Carnival cruise (Freedom July 08) they had "dinner with your friends". Our kids met up with the other Camp Carnival kids at 6pm in a sectioned off part of the buffet dining room. The counselors helped them eat dinner and then they went immediately up to Camp Carnival for the evening session (7-10pm). After dropping the kids off at 6pm my husband and I were free to have a nice romantic dinner by ourselves each evening. It was the highlight of our cruise! The only night they didn't have this was the first night. Each night we would give the kids a choice of eating with us or with their "friends". The friends won every time. After DH and I ate dinner we would go to the early show (8pm???) which ended just in time for us to get the kids at 10pm. We used the babysitting from 10-11pm one night b/c the kids were excited about some toilet paper decorating party they were going to do and wanted to stay later. We were pretty much in our cabin by 10:30 everynight and didn't feel like we missed much. Then again, we got our late night clubbing/bar hopping out of our system when we were in college!

 

I am eagerly awaiting the first sailing of the Breeze and hoping someone will post the daily sheets and Camp Carnival sheets so we can see the schedule. I am crossing my fingers for "dinner with your friends"!

[sjb.illinois]

We have just booked the Breeze for December '13. it will be our first cruise with the kids (7 and 10), and it seemed like a perfect fit. Even though my husband and I might prefer a different line if it's just the two of us, it seems like Carnival is the right choice to keep everyone happy, and at the right price. The videos of the ship being built (CCL website) have my kids super excited, and I'm crossing my fingers they'll love the kids club. I also will be curious to hear others' early reviews.

[sjb.illinois]

sorry, meant to say December 2012.

[Smuckyjo]

We have just booked the Breeze for March 2013. If it is similar to the Dream your kids will love it. It looks like it has even more fun with the Sports Square area. The Dream was amazing and the Breeze looks even better!:D

[#1TravelMom]

We are on the first US sailing in November. It looks like there will be lots of fun things for our 8 year old. So far, the Epic is her favorite. I think the Breeze has some unique things - I'm contemplating the rope course. I'm just soooo afraid of heights. My older daughter convinced me to go skydiving for her college graduation, so surely I should be able to master the rope course. The "4D" movie theater also sounds interesting. I'm very prone to motion sickness, so not sure how that will go. My little one just loves mini golf, I'm sure she'll want to spend lots of time there.

 

Since we are on the first US sailing, I will really try to post a nice review asap when we return. I'm such a planner, so relying on info from the European sailings will be limiting for me. Just hoping for no glitches.