Travelling With Our 18 and 21 Year Old Boys (men??? lol)

[as41shots]

We're looking at two cruises for this December - the Oceania Riviera for 10 days r/t out of Miami on December 10th, or the Celebrity Eclipse for 14 days out of Ft. Lauderdale on December 15th.

 

We've never been on Oceania, although we know we will at some point. The kids are old enough now that O is now an option for us. The question, though, is whether or not there will be enough other young adults for them to hang with, or should we stick with Celebrity, which we have cruised on before and it has worked out well for them.

 

Anyone have experience with their young adults on an O cruise?

[LHT28]

It will depend on what your Men like to do

There is no guarantee there will be others their age onboard

I would check out the activities onboard & see if your MEN would be ok with these on a sea day...port days I am sure they will be ashore

[Paulchili]

I think X is a better match for you at this point.

Save the Oceania when you travel without your sons. There is not enough other young people or much activity for them on Oceania, IMO.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

I would imagine it depends on what your sons are like--how mature are they, are they quiet and studious, or party animals? What do the excursions look like on the two itineraries? I would imagine the trip with the most possibilities for ziplining, ATV's on the beach, etc., might be the winner.

[as41shots]

Thanks for the comments so far. No decision yet, so keep 'em coming! :)

[cbb]

What Paul said!

 

Having said that I took a look at both itineraries and if I'm correct the O cruise is for the Western Carib and the X cruise is for the Southern Carib. Seems like we're looking at lemons and oranges here (appreciate the "tropical" fruit reference?)

 

I think at the holidays you're going to find far more college age people on the Southern Carib and on X than you will O on the west.

[sola7]

We were on the Riviera in the Mediterranean a few weeks ago and were surprised how many older teens/young adults there were. I would think that would be true during the Holiday season as well. There are absolutely no activities geared specifically to them, but there were a sufficient number of unattached young people that they could hang out together at the pool, etc. That being said, they were all very well-behaved and quiet, and it certainly was not a raucous party atmosphere.

[TKS]

We were aboard Regatta in December last year (Panama Canal cruise) and there was only one young man on board with his mom and grandmother. He was well behaved, but he looked fairly miserable most of the time, because there was absolutely no one for him to "hang" with. I would guess he was about 16, so somewhat younger than your family members. Please take this for information only. Only you can decide what is best for your family. Either way, enjoy the cruise.

[LuAnn]

I think X is a better match for you at this point.

Save the Oceania when you travel without your sons. There is not enough other young people or much activity for them on Oceania, IMO.

 

We like both lines but I think your men would find many more young adults to hang out with on X...there are usually lots of young people on holiday cruises on X with their famlies...as mentioned I'd save O for just the two of you! LuAnn

[kimanjo]

My now, 22 year old Daughter, has cruised both Celebrity AND Azamara many times (similar to O), I would not think the young men would be happy on "O".

 

My daughter, is I think an exception. She likes going to ports, and after dinner, or on sea days, reads... No bars, no nightclubs and she is quite content.

 

Last year we (she, her boyfriend and I) went on Celebirty Equinox Med out of Rome... It was end of May and not really busy with a LOT of young people, but too many for her taste. After dinner we would play cards, or Trivial Pursuit.

 

I wouldn't call her/them anti social, we just like quiet!

 

I think 9 out of 10 people their age would much prefer Celebrity.

[hondorner]

Is there no kids... or just few kids?...

Pretty much no kids before the Christmas holidays. There may be just a few on the December 20 voyage of Riviera (14 days over the holidays), but the Dec 10 cruise should be pretty quiet.I've got over 120 days on Oceania and have seen a total of maybe 5 or 6 kids in that 18-21 age range. We did see about 8 kids on Insignia over a Christmas and New Years holiday, but they were mostly from one South American family. There are more teenagers on the Alaska cruises when school is out, but even there 2 or 3 kids per cruise would be a lot. Oceania has never outlawed kids but generally offer no programs for them. They are talking about a small kids program in 2013 on some of the Alaska cruises. The target demographic for Oceania is 50 to 70.

[Silver Sweethearts]

(As per RayLin87): Dec. 20, 2012 - children

We sailed on Marina last Christmas and there were over 90 children of all ages on board. The staff had to "create" things for them to do. We expect Riviera this year to be the same.

 

90 children is "...just a few"?

[caribbeansun]

X would most likely be a better fit. They'd be bored at night and if there were sea days it could get painful for them beyond playing games on whatever electronic devices they bring along.

[Kissing Seahorses]

If it were me, I think I would involve them in the decision making, encourage them to investigate all the options you are willing to entertain and come up with their pick, then if they aren't happy with the reality, it wasn't you "forcing" them to do something, they helped choose and they will probably know more about what is offered and the general make-up of the itinerary and ship before they get there.

[Kissing Seahorses]

Double Post

[as41shots]

If it were me, I think I would involve them in the decision making, encourage them to investigate all the options you are willing to entertain and come up with their pick, then if they aren't happy with the reality, it wasn't you "forcing" them to do something, they helped choose and they will probably know more about what is offered and the general make-up of the itinerary and ship before they get there.

 

Funny you should say that.... you should see the e-mail chain between all of us discussing the pros and cons of our options. All of your collective thoughts have been weighed carefully, and I think at this point we are going to go on Celebrity, not the Eclipse, but rather the Equinox. The timing works as well as the Riviera, primarily a Western Carib itinerary (been a while since we've been to that end), and the likelihood of more young adults.

 

Thanks for all for your thoughts and opinions. Much appreciated.

[candbgirl]

Have you been on the Equinox? It is just spectacular and there are so many activities your sons will be very happy. Good choice.

[dorisis]

I think X is a better match for you at this point.

Save the Oceania when you travel without your sons. There is not enough other young people or much activity for them on Oceania, IMO.

 

I agree unless your sons enjoy an "older" group.

 

~Doris~

[wripro]

And their first names are Frasier and Niles!

[Rprbp24]

I think you made a good choice. My husband and I are in our early 50"s, sailing on Riveria Feb 2013 and we are not sure if we will bored! We are not party goers or drinkers, but we are not retired, nor do we care for reading and cooking!! So...should be interesting!!

[LHT28]

I think you made a good choice. My husband and I are in our early 50"s, sailing on Riveria Feb 2013 and we are not sure if we will bored! We are not party goers or drinkers, but we are not retired, nor do we care for reading and cooking!! So...should be interesting!!

Is this your first cruise??

 

Do you like chatting to new people? watching movies? see the entertainment ..low key as it is? a walk around the deck together after dinner? listening to music? casino?

If none of these appeal you may be bored :D

[JimandStan]

Is this your first cruise??

 

Do you like chatting to new people? watching movies? see the entertainment ..low key as it is? a walk around the deck together after dinner? listening to music? casino?

If none of these appeal you may be bored :D

 

What kind of people don't care for reading? :eek:

[LHT28]

What kind of people don't care for reading? :eek:

Not sure

I read 8 books on a Panama cruise ;) all from the library onboard

[cbb]

Our 1st stop after we've dumped our carry on stuff in the cabin is the library. Books before drinks, food, milkshakes, or pool and we've also added to the paperback collection. Love the library.

[Rprbp24]

LOL!!! No this will be our 5th cruise, not our first. Sadly, we are not avid readers, if I read one book a year that's a lot! My husband read car magazines, never seen him with a book! We both work full time and have 3 boys 16, 19 and 22 all still home. We keep very busy. On other cruises we enjoyed Bingo, the daily contests, the games that were played, the music out by the pool, etc. My husband has always longed for a smaller ship, so since it is out 25th wedding anniversary and I love the itinerary, I gave in..:D I am fine with all the relaxation, but he is always going, so not sure if he will be happy giving into relaxation! We are both looking forward to it, as it is something different and the first time since our honeymoon, that we have cruised without the boys!