On Northern Europe Itineraries in Summer are many kids?

[luv2gonow]

Hi,

I know Disney sails to this area especially with frozen mania.

 

But they are soooo pricey. I am wondering if the other lines have many children in the summer. In my head this might be an "older person" itinerary and I'm worried there won't be many kids onboard.

Thanks

Kerri

[CruiserBruce]

On our HAL Baltic 10 day a few years ago there was probably 50 kids.

[jenf22]

We are on a Norwegian fjord cruise on NCL this June and we've got a (will-be) 8 year old son. As far as our meet up group goes, there are only 2 other kids. We're doing a private excursion of Path of the Trolls in Alesund and we're up to 37 people and our kiddo is the only kid. I don't think it'll bother him any. He's in his own little world when we're on vacation. I'm hoping the older crowds will mean more space in the pools on sea days. I wonder if the pools are heated...

 

We looked at Disney since the itinerary and dates were basically the same (and we love Disney). But it was just over $7000 for the 3 of us in a balcony room on Disney and we got a mini-suite on NCL with the Ultimate Dining Package and Ultimate Beverage Package for $3300. The Disney price I'm quoting is an opening day price, the category we were looking at is $9600 now. Their pricing is insane!

[ljandgb]

Oceania does the same itinerary and then some, as Disney, at a probably half the cost. We are doing Disney this year, because I wanted to take our kids, but we keep getting Oceania brochures and dh and I just sigh...

 

FWIW, we cruised with Oceania as our first and only cruise and it was very nice. I don't have anything to compare to, but I had no complaints. We were in French Polynesia and there were maybe 10 kids on the ship. I would cruise again with them in a heart beat.

[NeesieOnaBoat]

I'm starting to wonder who's going on our Disney cruise in Northern Europe, I started and Roll Call and it's crickets, lol. So I question if the all adult area will be packed. I've seen most forum activity on the Disney cruise's related to people organizing Fish Extenders.

 

And yep, it is crazy crazy expensive, at least double what we could have done on another cruise line, but we were so impressed with the Disney Wonder that we wanted to go with Disney Magic. Oh well, you only live once!

[Dididi]

OP,

 

Most of the major lines not catering to adults only have kid's clubs and heated pools so you don't have to do Disney in the Baltics or the North Sea. In our experience, there might not be as many children as in other routes, but there will be a good number of kids on board. As to what to do ashore, I don't know which ports you are considering, but you can find places to spend a couple of hours here and there for kids to have some fun while you sit down with a coffee or beer to take a break and soak it in. The NEMO Science Museum in Amsterdam is very close to the port. There is a water park in Tallin adjacent to the old town. There are noontime kayak trips in Alesund and a wonderful public library with a puppet theater and books in lots of languages. Plenty of horse riding opportunities in Iceland. Some St Peterburg private tour companies offer tours geared for kids which might be too much for a whole day but you can pick one of the activities to do for a couple of hours. The Olympic Stadium in Helsinki is close to downtown and you can climb the tower to see the whole city. There is a wonderful park in Stockholm of which the Vasa Museum is only a part of it. And there's my parents' method for getting everyone to behave during an intense church and museums full of old things day: a stop at a department store or stationery store for "only in Europe" school supplies. Lots of cool pens and funny erasers to show other kids on the ship and back home.

[luv2gonow]

On our HAL Baltic 10 day a few years ago there was probably 50 kids.

At least that is some, but not too many.

We are on a Norwegian fjord cruise on NCL this June and we've got a (will-be) 8 year old son. As far as our meet up group goes, there are only 2 other kids. We're doing a private excursion of Path of the Trolls in Alesund and we're up to 37 people and our kiddo is the only kid. I don't think it'll bother him any. He's in his own little world when we're on vacation. I'm hoping the older crowds will mean more space in the pools on sea days. I wonder if the pools are heated...

 

We looked at Disney since the itinerary and dates were basically the same (and we love Disney). But it was just over $7000 for the 3 of us in a balcony room on Disney and we got a mini-suite on NCL with the Ultimate Dining Package and Ultimate Beverage Package for $3300. The Disney price I'm quoting is an opening day price, the category we were looking at is $9600 now. Their pricing is insane!

I am curious how your cruise is please post on return.

Yes there pricing is insane. And I feel even crazier entertaining the idea:o

Kerri

[luv2gonow]

Oceania does the same itinerary and then some, as Disney, at a probably half the cost. We are doing Disney this year, because I wanted to take our kids, but we keep getting Oceania brochures and dh and I just sigh...

 

FWIW, we cruised with Oceania as our first and only cruise and it was very nice. I don't have anything to compare to, but I had no complaints. We were in French Polynesia and there were maybe 10 kids on the ship. I would cruise again with them in a heart beat.

I know Disney gets ya with all the kid friendly stuff. Honestly I wish Carnival would go there!!

I'm starting to wonder who's going on our Disney cruise in Northern Europe, I started and Roll Call and it's crickets, lol. So I question if the all adult area will be packed. I've seen most forum activity on the Disney cruise's related to people organizing Fish Extenders.

 

And yep, it is crazy crazy expensive, at least double what we could have done on another cruise line, but we were so impressed with the Disney Wonder that we wanted to go with Disney Magic. Oh well, you only live once!

 

Please post your thoughts on return. Can't wait to hear reviews!!

Did you book excursions through Disney? Were they hard to get?

Kerri

[jenf22]

I'm starting to wonder who's going on our Disney cruise in Northern Europe, I started and Roll Call and it's crickets, lol. So I question if the all adult area will be packed. I've seen most forum activity on the Disney cruise's related to people organizing Fish Extenders.

 

I noticed that too. I'll admit to lurking on the Disney meet up thread (the June 6th one). I was hoping people were talking about excursions and hotels and such, but it's all FE talk and complaining about the Facebook ban.

 

I entered the Starz cruise contest every single day to try and win the Disney Magic version of our cruise, but no luck (it was last year sometime). I would have loved the Frozen theme. But our kiddo is a boy and he's not as into the characters anymore. With the $3700 savings we're planning 4 days in Disney World for fall break. I'm sure if given the choice the kiddo would pick 2 vacations over a Disney cruise.

 

We're super excited. It's our first time in Europe. The fjords look so amazingly beautiful!

[fellesferie]

OP,

 

Most of the major lines not catering to adults only have kid's clubs and heated pools so you don't have to do Disney in the Baltics or the North Sea. In our experience, there might not be as many children as in other routes, but there will be a good number of kids on board. As to what to do ashore, I don't know which ports you are considering, but you can find places to spend a couple of hours here and there for kids to have some fun while you sit down with a coffee or beer to take a break and soak it in. The NEMO Science Museum in Amsterdam is very close to the port. There is a water park in Tallin adjacent to the old town. There are noontime kayak trips in Alesund and a wonderful public library with a puppet theater and books in lots of languages. Plenty of horse riding opportunities in Iceland. Some St Peterburg private tour companies offer tours geared for kids which might be too much for a whole day but you can pick one of the activities to do for a couple of hours. The Olympic Stadium in Helsinki is close to downtown and you can climb the tower to see the whole city. There is a wonderful park in Stockholm of which the Vasa Museum is only a part of it. And there's my parents' method for getting everyone to behave during an intense church and museums full of old things day: a stop at a department store or stationery store for "only in Europe" school supplies. Lots of cool pens and funny erasers to show other kids on the ship and back home.

These are some wonderful suggestions. Thank you!

We will be taking our kids to several of these ports this summer. We're sailing with Celebrity.

[angeleyes27]

We did the NCL Baltic cruise last July. A good deal of families on board and family friendly activities. I would say at least a quarter were families, although a good percentage were kids from 11-19.

[NeesieOnaBoat]

To answer the DCL excursion question... They might be hard to get because of the way DCL allows access 90/75 days in advance to past cruisers. However, I've booked a private tour with SPG tours in St. Petersburg because they are half the cost of DCL private tours and easier to customize. Plus they are rated much higher than the company the cruise lines use. You can't customize the DCL tour until you are on the boat and even then you go through the tour desk instead of speaking to your tour operator directly.

 

All in all, I think that's par for the course on most cruise lines, there tours are more expensive and more limited. They hook you with with the fear of missing the ship!

[luv2gonow]

OP,

 

Most of the major lines not catering to adults only have kid's clubs and heated pools so you don't have to do Disney in the Baltics or the North Sea. In our experience, there might not be as many children as in other routes, but there will be a good number of kids on board. As to what to do ashore, I don't know which ports you are considering, but you can find places to spend a couple of hours here and there for kids to have some fun while you sit down with a coffee or beer to take a break and soak it in. The NEMO Science Museum in Amsterdam is very close to the port. There is a water park in Tallin adjacent to the old town. There are noontime kayak trips in Alesund and a wonderful public library with a puppet theater and books in lots of languages. Plenty of horse riding opportunities in Iceland. Some St Peterburg private tour companies offer tours geared for kids which might be too much for a whole day but you can pick one of the activities to do for a couple of hours. The Olympic Stadium in Helsinki is close to downtown and you can climb the tower to see the whole city. There is a wonderful park in Stockholm of which the Vasa Museum is only a part of it. And there's my parents' method for getting everyone to behave during an intense church and museums full of old things day: a stop at a department store or stationery store for "only in Europe" school supplies. Lots of cool pens and funny erasers to show other kids on the ship and back home.

 

Great ideas!!

I see Royal has some nice itineraries.

Thanks

Kerri

[luv2gonow]

We did the NCL Baltic cruise last July. A good deal of families on board and family friendly activities. I would say at least a quarter were families, although a good percentage were kids from 11-19.

That is great to hear. Seriously looking at Royal and NCL. DCL I think has priced me out. Especially considering such a port intensive cruise. If I do private excursions and DCL dosen't have any special excursions for the kids why bother. probably couldn't get them anyway before being booked.

To answer the DCL excursion question... They might be hard to get because of the way DCL allows access 90/75 days in advance to past cruisers. However, I've booked a private tour with SPG tours in St. Petersburg because they are half the cost of DCL private tours and easier to customize. Plus they are rated much higher than the company the cruise lines use. You can't customize the DCL tour until you are on the boat and even then you go through the tour desk instead of speaking to your tour operator directly.

 

All in all, I think that's par for the course on most cruise lines, there tours are more expensive and more limited. They hook you with with the fear of missing the ship!

 

I think I am gonna step out of my comfort zone and go for private tours.

Thanks

Kerri

[Morgans]

Disney prices this years for the Northern cruises (at the moment) are exorbitant. Anna and Elsa have a lot to answer for !

[kitkat343]

Our three year old son was very happy last August on a NCL Baltic cruise. There were a lot of kids onboard (I'd guess maybe 100 but couldn't be certain). We did a private tour (just our family) in St. Petersburg, and were able to easily navigate the rest of the ports on our own.

[bremenkat]

We are doing the Baltics this August with our daughter who will be 13. We chose Celebrity in the end over the others. We know there are some teens on there but don't think there will be as many children as other lines or a med cruise.

 

That suits her better as she is workng on the basis that she may even get to take part in activities if there is not hundreds of youngsters on board.

 

We have also booked to SPB through a small group thanks to our roll call and are doing our own thing in the rest of the ports. Abba museum here we come :)

[ljandgb]

Disney prices this years for the Northern cruises (at the moment) are exorbitant. Anna and Elsa have a lot to answer for !

 

The 11 night Baltic cruise out of Dover this summer is currently 25K for a verandah with 4 people. I almost spit my coffee on my screen when I saw that last night!

 

I'm willing to pay DCL prices, not so much for the characters, etc, but because Disney does customer service so well. But I draw the line at 25K! Actually, I draw the line well before 25K. :)

[Morgans]

Absolutely!

[NeesieOnaBoat]

The 11 night Baltic cruise out of Dover this summer is currently 25K for a verandah with 4 people. I almost spit my coffee on my screen when I saw that last night!

 

I'm willing to pay DCL prices, not so much for the characters, etc, but because Disney does customer service so well. But I draw the line at 25K! Actually, I draw the line well before 25K. :)

 

LOL, no matter when you look at the cost of a DCL cruise, it's always higher to 'coffee spitting' higher. Clearly the old price vs. demand works for them better than most. Glad I'm not the only one willing to pay for DCL, and we don't have little kids ... but I think everyone has a limit.

 

We booked on the Disney Magic and we booked it in January. It was getting very full then so prices were not the best. But honestly I didn't even look to see how much more I'm paying, but I'm sure I could have saved at least 2K going with someone else. Thing is, I wanted to go with DCL and it wasn't at my draw the line price .... but it was close! Since this is a milestone cruise for us, celebrating hubby's 50th and son's college graduation, a bit of over indulgence seemed acceptable this time, but 25K, that's coffee spitting for sure!

 

Next time I book with DCL I'll plan better to get a better price.

 

However, DCL excursions priced over budget with 4 adults. I have a couple booked, but I did them just as place holders because geez... people book those things like mad and they get sold out! Think I'll use them on the shorter 1/2 day stop just to take away the brain damage and not have to convince 3 others that we will not miss the ship. But boy am I glad to hear others are DIY on the other ports, even with kids. I did notice that DCL has 'adult only' excursions and some are the same as the ones that allow kids, just a adult only departure. The port I'm looking at now is Stockholm. Seems like the biggest hurdle there is figuring out transportation to/from the port. My eyes are crossing trying to figure out whether to trust a taxi or use somewhat confusing public transportation. I don't mind confusing if I'm not on a timeline... but getting back to the ship is what always makes me take notice when I can't just walk.

 

Any advice on Stockholm with 8-9 hours? Tripadvisor isn't showing too many private tour companies and most seem very small independents which you have to prepay. It may become a DIY as well if I can figure out the transportation to/from the port. What say ya'll?

[ljandgb]

We are doing a DCL Stockholm tour, for the reasons you stated. It just seemed easier, and really didn't see a lot of alternative. I have the Rick Steves guide, but honestly I didn't read anything on tours. Helsinki is also DCL, only because we got the last few Reindeer sanctuary spots. Reindeer! (insert gleefully clapping hands and jumping up and down.)

 

Talinn and SPB seem to be easier to book privately, which we are doing.

[kitkat343]

Your options depend on where you are docking. If you are at stadsgarden and will be visiting vasa, I would recommend taking a one stop hoho boat that is available right next to the port. Stromma offers one stop tickets that are affordable and go directly to vassa early before all the other attractions open. You need to get to vasa early, before it gets crowded. The nice thing is that it opens early during the summer season. Public transportation was very simple in stockholm - we went to the information desk or ticket desk at each attraction and asked them how to get to the next one. They gave us directions and we were fine.

 

Please post your ships date and name if you have trouble finding the dock and we can help you.

Edited March 22, 2015 by kitkat343

[NeesieOnaBoat]

Your options depend on where you are docking. If you are at stadsgarden and will be visiting vasa, I would recommend taking a one stop hoho boat that is available right next to the port. Stromma offers one stop tickets that are affordable and go directly to vassa early before all the other attractions open. You need to get to vasa early, before it gets crowded. The nice thing is that it opens early during the summer season. Public transportation was very simple in stockholm - we went to the information desk or ticket desk at each attraction and asked them how to get to the next one. They gave us directions and we were fine.

 

Please post your ships date and name if you have trouble finding the dock and we can help you.

 

Thanks... Disney Magic (June 13th out of Copenhagen) and we'll be docking at Frihamnen on June 18th, 2015. Just found a useful site showing all the vessel calls: http://www.portsofstockholm.com/vessel-calls/

 

It looks like we can either Taxi (being careful to select a valid and will priced one) or Bus. Also sounds like going to the Vassa works best if you are with a tour because you can get it earlier or jump the line? Did you find that to be the case?

[NeesieOnaBoat]

We are doing a DCL Stockholm tour, for the reasons you stated. It just seemed easier, and really didn't see a lot of alternative. I have the Rick Steves guide, but honestly I didn't read anything on tours. Helsinki is also DCL, only because we got the last few Reindeer sanctuary spots. Reindeer! (insert gleefully clapping hands and jumping up and down.)

 

Talinn and SPB seem to be easier to book privately, which we are doing.

 

You are on the June 6th DCL Magic cruise? Kids will LOVE the reindeer, lol.

[ljandgb]

We are on the May 30th cruise. We're adding 2 days in Iceland and 3 in Copenhagen before the cruise. I'm more excited than the kids.