Cruising with Tweens/ Teens

[momofcandj]

We took a cruise about 10 yrs ago just hubby & I but this time we would like to take the boys with us. We are still deciding between cruise lines so any help there is appreciated. They will be 12 and 14 or 13 and 15 depending if we got summer 2013 and summer 2014. They are already 5 ft 7 and 5 ft 7 1/2 so in terms of space they need adult space. We want to go least expensive we can get away with so we have money for excursions and whatever. Last time we had an oceanview on Carnival & it was great, but it was just the 2 of us and we werent in the room a ton, we would get up & go out, come back, nap and go out again, no kids so no worries about keeping a schedule.

 

This time we can not decide if a balcony is neccessary, we want to do Alaska probably early to mid Aug. We have heard it is the way to go but then we also heard its very cold to be out there. Since the kids will be older they would be able to go to the tween/ teen clubs and possibly back to the room if they are bored if we want to stand on the decks to see the sights.

[cb at sea]

With 4 "adult-sized" people, I'd try for 2 rooms, if possible. You already know how much smaller than hotel rooms a cabin is....I certainly wouldn't want to spend a week on top of each other. And, having 2 bathrooms seems preferable, too!

 

If you have a choice between a balcony and 2 cabins, go for the 2 cabins! There are PLENTY of open, outside decks to see the sights!

[sherryf]

With 4 "adult-sized" people, I'd try for 2 rooms, if possible. You already know how much smaller than hotel rooms a cabin is....I certainly wouldn't want to spend a week on top of each other. And, having 2 bathrooms seems preferable, too!

 

If you have a choice between a balcony and 2 cabins, go for the 2 cabins! There are PLENTY of open, outside decks to see the sights!

 

I agree. We went to Alaska with my 3 t(w)eens so we didn't have a choice but to get 2 cabins. They were on totally different schedules than us, so I can't imagine sharing a room with them.

 

It's not necessarily too cold to be out on a balcony, esp. the time of year you are considering, but it might be. You can't count on the weather in Alaska. We usually get inside cabins and just spend a lot of time on deck. We spend our money on other things, like excursions, which can be quite pricey in AK.

 

If you have any other questions about taking teens to Alaska, feel free to ask. Also check out the Alaska Ports of Call board for lots of great info on cruising in Alaska.

[rebeccalouiseagain]

My suggestion would be to get a balcony stateroom for the adults and an inside across the hall for the tween/teens. Most teens actually love to sleep in late and the dark inside will work well for them.

 

My then 11 year old and I did Alaska last summer and he said it was his most favorite cruise ever (he has been on 20+ cruises already).

[momofcandj]

Thanks, I dont know if I would be comfy with them across the hall, maybe something connecting, but I was toying with the 2 cabin idea. My boys love to get up early, even on summer vacation when they are up til 10 or 11, they will be up by 7 am. Hubby likes to sleep in when he can since he is up by 5 am most days.

 

Thank you again for the help.

[SportsMomof4]

We are going with our 14 yo twins & they have a adjoining balcony room. Just the extra bathroom is a plus :)!

[Jridou]

And went on the Coral Princess. There's a category called mini suite without balcony. We got 2 of those for a very decent price. We went in June and would have had no use for a balcony (It snowed one day!) but loved the windows.

[sjb.illinois]

We took a cruise about 10 yrs ago just hubby & I but this time we would like to take the boys with us. We are still deciding between cruise lines so any help there is appreciated. They will be 12 and 14 or 13 and 15 depending if we got summer 2013 and summer 2014. They are already 5 ft 7 and 5 ft 7 1/2 so in terms of space they need adult space. We want to go least expensive we can get away with so we have money for excursions and whatever. Last time we had an oceanview on Carnival & it was great, but it was just the 2 of us and we werent in the room a ton, we would get up & go out, come back, nap and go out again, no kids so no worries about keeping a schedule.

 

This time we can not decide if a balcony is neccessary, we want to do Alaska probably early to mid Aug. We have heard it is the way to go but then we also heard its very cold to be out there. Since the kids will be older they would be able to go to the tween/ teen clubs and possibly back to the room if they are bored if we want to stand on the decks to see the sights.

We are taking our kids on their first cruise Sunday. My daughter is 10 and 5'3", so I get the 'adult-size' space needs. We are in an inside on Carnival, and the kids will be in Pullman bunks. We know it will be crowded, but this was the only way we could afford to take a cruise at this point. Our thought is that we'll be out of the room the majority of the time. I would love to be able to be in a balcony or suite, or even have two connecting rooms, but right now that is simply not an option. So we'll see how it goes; we've prepared the kids that it will be super cramped, and I'm planning ahead to minimize clutter in the room (I'm bringing the over-the-door shoe holder, for example).

I'll report back if we survive unscathed, or if we go insane and swear never again ( =

[Gunner22aa]

Many ships offer Family Suites. Typically two bedrooms with a common living room area and two bathrooms and a balcony. There are not normally a lot of them so they go quickly. The average Princess ship has two (Diamond, Golden etc). I have never booked one so don't know how the cost compairs to the two cabin option but it is another alternative to look at.

[oakville99]

Our boys are about the same size/age as yours are. We just sailed the Celebrity Silhouette with two adjoining balcony rooms and are very thankful we did. The extra space meant everyone got a good night's sleep, made getting ready each day quick and stress free and meant we could go out late in the evening without disturbing our boys.

 

Before sailing I did a lot of research with respect to adjoining rooms vs suites. I found that adjoining rooms were always more economical than suites. Not only is this arrangement less expensive, but we got the all important second bathroom that you only get in the largest (expensive) suites. Sometimes you can get balcony cabins adjoining oceanview cabins and that should save a little more or get two interior cabins. You'll get that extra bathroom and more storage which you'll need for two big sons and the separate sleeping arrangements means adults and kids can follow their own schedules. One other criteria my sons had was that they would not share a queen bed or a pullout.

 

We chose a cabin that adjoined both on the interior and exterior (balcony). This meant that no one was sneaking out in the late evenings. There is one added benefit to getting two cabins and that is when travel agents or cruise lines offer onboard credits on a per cabin basis. We qualified for a $200 onboard credit through a promotion Celebrity ran and received that for EACH cabin. That helped take the 'sting' out of the additional cost.

 

Good Luck and enjoy your cruise!

[ABQmom]

We sailed on Carnival last fall with our 14, 12, and 7 year old sons and we booked connecting oceanview rooms and it was perfect. We are booked for another family cruise in January and have booked two cabins right next to each other because this ship does not have connecting rooms. My opinion is that you will enjoy your cruise so much more if you have the extra space and bathroom.

 

Another poster mentioned that you all will be on totally different schedules and they were right. At home my boys are in bed by 9:00- 9:30, but on the cruise many of their activities didn't not even start until 10:30 or 11:00 and many nights they had activities until 2:00am for the 12-14 year olds. To say the least that is not the schedule we were on.

 

Another thing to consider is that with most of the newer Carnival ships, the floor space is actually larger in an oceanview than a balcony. They are both 220 square feet, but with the ocean view that is all inside space, the balcony itself is counted in the 220 square feet and so your cabin ends up being only 185 square feet. We actually liked the oceanview cabins better than we did our balcony cabins from past cruises, but that is just us. We are not smokers and everytime we stepped out on our balcony we were surrounded by smoke from people below and next door smoking on their balcony.

 

Michelle