Help! Young kids on grand princess advice please!

[dimiegirl]

Hello everyone! I am traveling on the grand princess with two children, ages 6 and 9.....my question is... Are there enough activities that I can do with my children or is it going to be necessary to enroll them in the kids program ?? If so, how is the program? Were you happy with the program? Any information or advice would be greatly appreciated:) thank you!

[Bogof1]

I haven't sailed with children on the Grand but have sailed on her. Apart from the swimming pools there did not seem much to do with children per se! You can borrow games from the library to play but I would suggest the best thing is to enrol them in the kids program. Sorry not much help

[mariakitty]

We were on the Grand in March with our sons, 9 and 10. They loved cruising (it was their first time) and had plenty to do.

 

We did enroll them in the kids program, and they were both in Shockwaves. Everyday there are different activities, like painting tshirts, video games (ps3 and wii), movies, snacks, etc. there was a pizza night, card night, a pajama party, and ice cream party, and an environmental presentation where they learned about keeping the oceans clean and they "adopted" a whale. They even got a whale plushie. My youngest loved the program and asked to be taken everyday. Our oldest didn't enjoy it as much and preferred being in the cabin on his computer, however he has mild aspergers so he isn't quite as social. He actually talks of the kids program now that we are off the cruise!

 

Outside of the kids club we watched MUTS, swam, used hot tubs and of course a few excursions. In your cabin you will have a kids channel with popular movies that repeat through hype day, which we found helpful when we needed some down time. Some of the movies included Kung fu panda 2, despicable me 2, maybe a wimpy kid movie? They change daily and there were some cartoons too I believe. Also, there is ping pong and board games/puzzles at the indoor pool. We never got to play ping pong as a large family was using almost the entire cruise! My boys also loved shuffle board.

 

If you have more specific questions I would be happy to help :)

Edited May 25, 2014 by mariakitty
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[karatemom2]

You should definitely enroll them in the kids' program. You can do it the first afternoon you board and then they can use the program as much or as little as your family prefers. You will receive a schedule the first day with a full menu of the activities during your cruise, so you can look at it with your kids and decide which things interest them and plan their time in the club accordingly. And there are also things outside the club you can do as a family such as family friendly games like scavenger hunts, pictionary, board games from the library, etc. Often there are family friendly shows and activities going on in the Atrium every day. These are all listed in the Patter. Also in the evening, the production shows and certain lounge shows are appropriate for the entire family. If it is not appropriate, it will be billed as adults only so you know. One of the things we have loved about Princess as our children have grown up cruising with them is that there are plenty of activities for us to do as a family, but also a great program for them to enjoy on their own while we have adult time. Best of both worlds!!

[dimiegirl]

Thanks so much for all of the great advice and information:) I see now that the kids program is probably the way to go for at least some of the time...I am now looking into the security of the program as I am a bit nervous!

[karatemom2]

The program is very secure and the staff has always been wonderful in our experience. You can ask for a pager if it makes you feel more comfortable and you will need to sign your kids in and out. In our experience photo ID has been required when signing our kids out if that makes you feel more secure. We have found the program to be safe and well run on all of our Princess cruises.

[Cruisin' Chick]

The staff members will go through a background check. If you are going during summer or winter breaks, there may actually be teachers hired on (they need extra staff then and some teachers find this a great way to get extra money and a cruise to boot).

 

After some Carnival cruises, our girl was 5, 7, 8, 13 and 15 on her Princess cruises. As stated above, you'll get a packet of info in your cabin for the Pelicans (your 6-yr old) and Shockwaves programs (your 9-yr old). Plenty of age-appropriate activities for each group. Sign up the first day and bring your kids so they can meet the camp counselors and the other kids (often that's when the best relationships form). The kids can read the day-by-day schedules.

 

There should be other activities they can do with the family too. I'm guessing you're talking about an Alaskan cruise (or Hawaiian, Coastal or MR) and you'll be happy to learn that there's a pool that's under a retractable roof so if the weather is iffy, the kids can still enjoy a pool.

 

There's also entertainment (my daughter enjoys the big shows -- even wanted to watch The Motor City with us on our last cruise even though she's a teen:rolleyes:), trivia, and many other fun stuff to do. If you're on a Hawaiian cruise, there's a whole cultural program, including uke and hula classes (lots of kids take part).

 

There will be family-friendly movies on the in-cabin TV and during the day on the MUTS screen by the outside pool, too.

[Julia’s Journey’s]

Thanks so much for all of the great advice and information:) I see now that the kids program is probably the way to go for at least some of the time...I am now looking into the security of the program as I am a bit nervous!

 

 

I suggest signing them up the first day so they can meet when everyone is meeting instead of being 'the new kid' a day or so later.

My kids are older now 16 and 20 but started cruising when they were 3 and 7. Never had a problem with security on any of the lines we cruised, when younger you had to sign them in and out and show if or give a password, some we had beepers. As they got older we allowed them more freedom.

What security problems make you nervous?

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - Oy, excuse the auto correct ;)

[Cruisin' Chick]

If you're concerned about your kids leaving the area on their own, you can set up their access for no sign in/sign out. I did that for my girl even when she was 8.

[24639]

When my son was younger he loved the kids club. All the ships that we have been on have had a wonderful facility and staff. The Grand was no exception. They are pretty rigid with security, too. I remember on the Star passengers who did not have children would want to come in to take photos because it had such a fabulous view and were politely turned away.

Definitely sign up the first day. That does not obligate you to go, but it does assure you of a space.

In case it is of consequence to you, the staff in the kids facility does not share in the tip pool. I did not know this the first time I cruised with my son and I wish I had.

[dimiegirl]

Thank you everyone for helping to put my mind at ease and for all of the useful information. :)