Panama Canal Celebrity with kids - anyone been there?

[nyccouple]

We're thinking of taking a full-transit (15-night) Panama Canal cruise with Celebrity in Sept. We'll have our daughters (1.5 yrs and 4 yrs) with us. They both travel quite well and love exploring, so we thought this could be fun. We've been on cruises before and took our older daughter (then 2 yrs) on a Mediterranean cruise, which she loved. We've never cruised with both kids, though, so we're a bit nervous.

 

Anyone else been there, done that? Any advice would be appreciated!

[cb at sea]

This will be no different than your Med. trip....just different places! Do bring PLENTY of sunscreen....it's a VERY, VERY hot sun that far south! Other than that, do some research on your stops, so you'll know what you want to do! The canal is pretty interesting for adults...kids as young as yours probably won't be too impressed, but they will love the big ships they see up close!

[nyccouple]

Thanks so much, cb at sea. The sunscreen will definitely come in handy! It sounds like a fascinating trip, and I'd have no hesitation about going if it were just my husband and me, but with kids...well...that's always a slightly different story. I'm glad to hear that someone else thinks it's manageable, though!

[rebeccalouiseagain]

I think that a Panama Canal cruise is something that could wait until they are a bit older. I'd say go when they are 3.5 and 6 and you can actually enjoy the cruise. I think it would be limiting in a hot climate with a gleaming swimming pool that only one of your kids can use.

[kitty9]

I've done 4 Canal cruises on Celebrity, and to be honest, there were less than 5 kids older than infants on each cruise. No real kids program at all except for maybe a couple of hours a day. The average age on those cruises is well above 65. If you don't mind being their entertainment all the time, then go for it. The PC is a great cruise. Very hot, humid and rainy, but a great cruise.

[Keith1010]

There won't be many children on board because of the time of the year or the length of the cruise so just keep that in mind.

 

I think these type of cruises are very easy and relaxing so I would still recommend it as long as you are fine with very few kids if any on board.

 

Keith

[BeagleOne]

My family and I did a transit years ago when I was 16 and my brother 15. My dad and I spent the entire transit on the upper deck as far forward as we could get, with "The Path Between The Seas" for reference...great book!

 

My brother and my mom spent the entire transit on the back deck by the pool. It was a great day for all of us but very, VERY hot and humid with no sea breeze (obviously) and a LOT of flies. I'm really grateful that my parents took us along but I wonder how much bro and I would have enjoyed it had we been pre-school age.

 

I'm not sure young kids would enjoy it much...especially since the younger one won't be able to go in the pool to cool off. How do you think she'll react if she sees older sis and a parent in the pool and she can't go in, and she's too young to understand why?

 

And if either or both girls don't want to be out on deck, at least one of you will have to be inside with them. Something to consider if either or both of you are history buffs, especially since the younger girl won't remember the trip and the older one is too young yet to appreciate the Canal's significance.

 

That's only one day out of your cruise, of course, but I wonder if a more kid-friendly itinerary and cruise line might work out better at least at this time.

 

Geez, I just realized that I am NOW slightly older than my parents were when we took that trip. Oh dear!

[rebeccalouiseagain]

Personally- having done it all....

 

I would never travel with a child between the ages of 6 months- 3 on a cruise. You don't have an enjoyable time. I had a sitter on the first one (a $1400 added expense) and on the second cruise when he was 13 months- all I did was run after him. It was exhausting.

 

I waited until he was nearly 4 to cruise again and it was fantastic! Just wait. It is so expensive and you just don't get use out of all the shipboard amenities. At meal times its really difficult if you want to do the MDR etc. You are (or should be) on pins and needles wondering if they'll fuss.

[nyccouple]

Many thanks to all of you for your helpful replies! We're definitely more on the brave (crazy?) side, but I do see that activities for them might be pretty limited, especially on sea days. We'll have to think this through carefully and see what other ideas we might be able to come up with. We're looking for an adventure we can ALL enjoy!