HAL Westerdam to Alaska with 4 and 8 year old?

[nt13]

We are considering the HAL Westerdam Alaskan cruise in July. My husband and I are mid 30s with a 4 year old and 8 year old. In reading reviews I am worried about this possibly not being a good cruise for young children and there being enough activities on sea days. The review seems to say the HAL ships are quieter and the activities cater to the older crowd. I know there is Club HAL, but we would like to be able to do things together with the kids and also if they do not like Club HAL I am hoping there will be ways to stay entertained. I'm not looking for non-stop entertainment, just ways to keep busy. Other options were NCL and Princess, but the prices are better on HAL and it seems that the room is larger.

 

And I read several complaints about service in the dining rooms being slow and so too long for children. My children do fairly well at long and more formal meals, but 2 hours might be pushing it a bit. Was this a concern for anyone? On our last cruise our dining room meals were about an hour or so.

 

Has anyone done this cruise with young children? Thank you for any information!

Edited December 3, 2014 by nt13

[cb at sea]

Here's the thing...an Alaskan cruise is so different from a Caribbean....it's all about Alaska,and the ports and scenery, and not so much about the ship.

 

There will be plenty for the kids to do, especially in your age range (under 10)...yes...HAL won't have the belly-flop contest (if it's even pool weather!!!) or incessant announcements, but there ARE activities during sea days.

 

Dinner seldom takes 2 hours...and if you do their version of "anytime" dining, you can get in and out much faster.

 

No worries...if it's Alaska you're after, then HAL will do the job!!

[nt13]

Makes sense to me cb. Thanks for the input. I am definitely going to see Alaska. I've dreamed about it since I was a child!

[Halomama]

We took our 10 year old to Alaska last summer on HAL ship and he had a blast. He made some friends at the kids club, but also enjoyed the swimming pool with us (they have a retractable roof over the pool area so stays toasty warm even in Alaska). Dinner never took longer than an hour, but we usually showed up around 5:30pm. The buffet was also very good, so we ate there one night.

 

 

Michele

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[boulders]

There are lots of ways to keep busy in Alaska. The shore excursions are great for kids. Both HAL and Princess kids clubs are very good. DS6 cried when it was time to leave the Princess kids club after 2 weeks in Alaska. I personally like HAL better. My fellow passengers seem to be more friendly on HAL.

[cruising_rocket_scientist]

We took our young toddler on the Westerdam to Alaska, and we loved it. The ship was great, and we never ran out of things to do. She was too young for club HAL, but they did let us borrow games and puzzles. The front desk has tons of movies. We ate in the dining room every night for dinner, and most breakfasts. She did great. The dining room staff knew when we were coming and what she would like and had something ready for her when we got there. (We had set early dining). We love HAL and we love Alaska. You will have a great time.

[Queen of Oakville]

We haven't sailed Alaska yet.

 

Our kids were 3 1/2 and almost 5 when we sailed HAL.

 

My kids loved it. I cant say enough about how awesome Club HAL is. They have the best counsellors. There activities are AGE APPROPRIATE - whereas I find other lines to be quite juvenile.

 

My kids really loved our recent cruise on X but prior to that HAL was their favourite.

 

I think what sets HAL apart is the smaller number of kids, so the counseller:child ratio is better giving children more personalized attention. My kids really like this.

 

YMMV. If your kids are happy in an environment where there is lots to do, but fewer kids to do it with, then they will love HAL. If they are happier in an environment with more kids, then they may not enjoy it as much.

[A&Jfamily]

We are considering the HAL Westerdam Alaskan cruise in July. My husband and I are mid 30s with a 4 year old and 8 year old. In reading reviews I am worried about this possibly not being a good cruise for young children and there being enough activities on sea days. The review seems to say the HAL ships are quieter and the activities cater to the older crowd. I know there is Club HAL, but we would like to be able to do things together with the kids and also if they do not like Club HAL I am hoping there will be ways to stay entertained. I'm not looking for non-stop entertainment, just ways to keep busy. Other options were NCL and Princess, but the prices are better on HAL and it seems that the room is larger.

 

And I read several complaints about service in the dining rooms being slow and so too long for children. My children do fairly well at long and more formal meals, but 2 hours might be pushing it a bit. Was this a concern for anyone? On our last cruise our dining room meals were about an hour or so.

 

Has anyone done this cruise with young children? Thank you for any information!

 

We did Princess to Alaska this past May and my 10 year old and 16 yo found plenty to do. The cruise to Alaska is definitely has an older more sedate crowd but at least on Princess there were plenty of kids to play with, but less than normal. I have not taken HAL, but can vouch for the fact that Princess was great for Alaska with kids.

[travelsuz]

We did a HAL Caribbean Cruise last year with our 5 and 10 year old. They loved HAL Kids Club. They still ask to go back to "Club Hal! Club Hal!" There weren't a lot of kids in the kids club, so my kids got a lot of personal attention and they loved that. The girls in the Kids Club were FANTASTIC with my kids. They had been on a Disney Cruise before and liked both kids clubs equally.