Complaining About Spring Break?

[hazeleyez3]

I think people need to consider the itinerary, ship, and length of a cruise. Not the time of year.

 

 

• A 1 week cruise to the Eastern Caribbean on Oasis.
  
• A 9 night British Isles cruise on the Vision.
  

I don’t think you will find a lot of young American families who want to take a little over a week off of work, buy airfare to Europe so they can take their 5 and 7 year old on a British Isles cruise on an older ship.

 

I do think you will find a lot of young American families who can take 1 week off, fly to Florida with their kids, and take a “beach” oriented cruise on a ship with a ton of bells and whistles.

[Arizona Cruz Chic]

We cruised once during spring break...just once! Never again. :eek:

 

We also use to cruise for our milestone anniversaries (25, 30, 35 etc) which is in July.....now we avoid that at all costs.

 

I feel for some who have no choice but to cruise during this time because of their vacations schedules of school.

 

***

[yj_eugene]

I think people need to consider the itinerary, ship, and length of a cruise. Not the time of year.

 

They're all factors, and while Atty is right that you can't guarantee avoiding kids, you can increase your chances with a bit of planning. For example, DW and I have done two repositionings during the late Apr/early May timeframe, and we could count on one hand the number of kids on each of those cruises. Combined. The longer the cruise, the more sea days, the fewer bells and whistles the ship has, plus judicious scheduling can give you better odds, and nothing more, of having fewer children onboard.

[Atty]

I think people need to consider the itinerary, ship, and length of a cruise. Not the time of year.

 

 

• A 1 week cruise to the Eastern Caribbean on Oasis.
  
• A 9 night British Isles cruise on the Vision.
  

I don’t think you will find a lot of young American families who want to take a little over a week off of work, buy airfare to Europe so they can take their 5 and 7 year old on a British Isles cruise on an older ship.

 

I do think you will find a lot of young American families who can take 1 week off, fly to Florida with their kids, and take a “beach” oriented cruise on a ship with a ton of bells and whistles.

 

That is also a good point. Although with the increase in international guests and the emphasis on the European and Southern hemisphere markets, I think you'll find that over the next few years that becoming less true as those European etc. families start taking those cruises.

[Bazzito]

Lemme get this straight:

 

January-March, March and April, June-Mid August, November, December?

 

That's pretty much the whole year!!!

 

Guess we just can't get away from those infernal kids!

 

And are adults aren't any more likely to be either sober or polite in the months of May, September and October?

 

So, I guess we're just screwed!!

[Atty]

Lemme get this straight:

 

January-March, March and April, June-Mid August, November, December?

 

That's pretty much the whole year!!!

 

Guess we just can't get away from those infernal kids!

 

And are adults aren't any more likely to be either sober or polite in the months of May, September and October?

 

So, I guess we're just screwed!!

 

Hehe

[bajathree]

Around this time of year I always see complaints about spring break cruises and the number of kids. True, there are generally a few more kids on board during "Spring Break" time but if you are trying to plan your cruise around a time when there aren't going to be a lot of kids on a break, you are basically out of luck. This is especially true more in the last few years as the lines start catering more to international as opposed to mainly US guests. Off the top of my head, I can think of the following times when there are likely to be a lot of kids on board:

 

First week of January: Winter Break in US

January-March: Summer Break for Southern Hemisphere (I have personally experienced this recently on Allure when it seemed like all of Brazil and Panama were on board with their kids. Also keep in mind here that, according to Adventure Ocean staff, Central and South American parents are a lot less likely to enroll their kids in AO meaning they are running around more)

March and April: Spring Break US

Late June-Mid August: US Summer Break

November: Thanksgiving

December: Christmas and also the beginning of summer in Southern Hemisphere

 

I'm sure there are times I'm missing. The point being....just relax and go with the flow. Children are all around and getting all hot and bothered because there are a few rowdy ones is going to do nothing but mean you wasted a couple grand because you can't get over a it. In my experience, badly behaving and rude adults is a much deeper problem than a few rowdy kids.

 

This is not correct....I have sailed a lot and at all different times of the year...and it will vary GREATLY how many kids are aboard as to time of year. Oasis alone this year I sailed NYE....HUGE South American week and loaded with family and kids......the first week of Feb and there were less than 500....Second week of March were 1700 under 18...and first week April over 2000. Also the first half of Dec is usually under 500. Jan other than maybe the very first week(which is South American summer vacation time) is usually quiet with kids. June-Aug is summer vaca...many kids. Sept-just the week before Thanksgiving is very few kids......there are defiantly times that have much less kids than others.

[disneyfan68]

My own weren't perfect for sure, but I was in there giving it the old college try rather than turning them loose on a ship, in a store, wherever.

 

lol :D Me too!

[temple1]

I have cruised twice during the summer, once during spring break, and once over Christmas and never have I had a problem with the kids on board. I enjoy seeing the young teens the the tweens - most of them are experiencing a little freedom the first time in their lives.

[Maimou]

Around this time of year I always see complaints about spring break cruises and the number of kids. True, there are generally a few more kids on board during "Spring Break" time but if you are trying to plan your cruise around a time when there aren't going to be a lot of kids on a break, you are basically out of luck. This is especially true more in the last few years as the lines start catering more to international as opposed to mainly US guests. Off the top of my head, I can think of the following times when there are likely to be a lot of kids on board:

 

First week of January: Winter Break in US

January-March: Summer Break for Southern Hemisphere (I have personally experienced this recently on Allure when it seemed like all of Brazil and Panama were on board with their kids. Also keep in mind here that, according to Adventure Ocean staff, Central and South American parents are a lot less likely to enroll their kids in AO meaning they are running around more)

March and April: Spring Break US

Late June-Mid August: US Summer Break

November: Thanksgiving

December: Christmas and also the beginning of summer in Southern Hemisphere

 

I'm sure there are times I'm missing. The point being....just relax and go with the flow. Children are all around and getting all hot and bothered because there are a few rowdy ones is going to do nothing but mean you wasted a couple grand because you can't get over a it. In my experience, badly behaving and rude adults is a much deeper problem than a few rowdy kids.

Excellent thread. My husband is one of those kid loathers (no we did not have any). I'm actually considering Holland America for our first cruise because it seems to have less of an appeal for families with children. (And I don't think my husband was ever a child-he was born old!)