Best Choice for kids

[McCoolers4]

My hubby and I are wanting to book a cruise. I'm wanting Disney and dh is just wanting something cheaper. Our kids will be 3 and 4 at the time of sailing. Besides disney who has the most for kids and families to do? I've been on carnival once and I got more of a party adult ship vibe from them. Do they have a lot for kids and families to do?

[Queen of Oakville]

Different ships for different kids.

 

First of all, do your kids like Disney? Disney is for kids who LOVE toy story, Monsters Inc, TInkerbell, Fairies, and Princess. My kids LOVE all things Disney, so Disney was a no brainer for them. There are tons of character meets (my kids love this) and the shows are awesome! But there are also a lot of kids on Disney (my kids don't love this). The kids clubs are CROWDED and there is not a lot of 1:1 interactions with the kid's club counsellors. Book Disney if your kids will enjoy the characters. At 3/4 - this is the perfect age for them to ENJOY Disney Magic.

 

Do your kids like Water Slides and bright, shiny, sparkly things? Then go for one of the newer ships from Carnival, Royal or NCL or Disney.

 

My kids (not the norm) while they loved our two Disney Cruises, and also loved Freedom of the Seas and Oasis, were not big fans of Carnival. THey hated Camp Carnival. They also were not fans of service on Carnival (yes Kids notice these things!).

 

My kids love Celebrity and Holland America. They like dressing for dinner, listening to music, going to some shows. They like the kid's clubs with fewer kids and more adult interaction. For example, when we sailed HAL, there were 40 kids in the kid's clubs. THey met the counsellors at the open house, and when they showed up at 7PM on the first night - they were greeted by name. That rarely happens on Disney, Royal, or NCL. I'm not saying it NEVER happens, as your kids may be the standout that gets attention, but it's not common. It just can't be when there are hundreds of kids on board.

 

 

My kids really like the service aspect of cruising. For example, some nights my daughter just wants an apple for dessert.

 

Carnival: I'm sorry we don't have apples on the menu

Royal: Let me run someone up to the Windjammer and get an apple for you.

Celebrity: Let me run someone up to the Oceanview Café to get you an apple, and let me have it cut and placed on a plate and make to look all pretty for you.

 

My son has nut allergies.

 

Carnival: No that doesn't contain nuts (when it clearly does).

Royal: You better not order that, just in case it might contain nuts.

Celebrity: Let me get you something that was prepared nut-free in a nut-free environment.

 

 

 

 

If this is the one and only cruise for your kids (and money is no issue) = go with Disney, and make memories that your kids will remember forever.

 

If you are going to take many cruises, within this year or the next, take them them on a DCL cruise, and then after that find other cruises that your whole family can enjoy. For us, it is Celebrity.

Edited April 6, 2015 by Queen of Oakville

[McCoolers4]

We booked a disney cruise :)

[cb at sea]

In reality, all of the "mainstream" cruise lines will have plenty for your young kids. Not all ships have the "bells and whistles", but your kids are too young for things like flow riders, rock walls, zip lines, etc.....

 

All of the lines have a kid's club...and your kids, being so close in age, will be in the same group.

 

I think you should choose by which ship will give you the most space (in the cabin) for the money....the rest will be more similar than different.

 

Short cruises on ANY ship will have more of the "party" atmosphere....trips 7 days or longer, not so much!

[Queen of Oakville]

We booked a disney cruise :)

 

Yay! Enjoy!

[Friend100]

We booked a disney cruise :)

 

Wow that's fast. Enjoy your Disney cruise. I'd say the overall atmosphere on a Disney ship is more geared towards family with young kids. Having said that, many families with young kids also enjoy Carnival, Royal Caribbean or Norwegian. My children also like Holland America. At the same time, adults without kids can also enjoy a Disney cruise.

[Friend100]

First of all, do your kids like Disney? Disney is for kids who LOVE toy story, Monsters Inc, TInkerbell, Fairies, and Princess.

 

.... add The Avengers and Star Wars to the list here :D

[flhokie]

We've sailed RCCL, MSC and Disney with DD (4). While she loved the character interactions on Disney, she really disliked the children's program. On RCCL she loved the nursery & begged to go back and on MSC she enjoyed her time with the children's program (she was 3).

 

On Disney it was a free for all of 3-12 year olds. The specific programs were ok, but much of the time kids were running wild. DD who is in pre-school and very social was afraid and didn't want to go because of the "big kids." We tried open houses with her and addressing the issue with staff (they brushed it off that the bigger kids only stay in the lab which definitely was not the case). After 3 drop offs for programs, we finally gave up as it took as long to get her in the door than she would be there for (1 time we got her in by pairing her up with another 4 year old who was crying at the entrance) and she made it clear she wanted no part of the program with the big kids. Luckily she was tall enough for the AquaDuck and loved the Mickey Slide so we spent a lot of time there.

 

Based on our experiences, except for possibly a great deal on a short Disney cruise where we would not have any need for the children's program, we will be sticking with RCCL (or maybe Princess). Having a pre-school/early elementary child with middle school children with no direction just is not for us.

 

RCCL doesn't have water slides, but the Oasis Class ships have so much to do! The kids water area is great--a large splash area, shallow pool, etc. Overall there is a lot of good pool space too. There is the Boardwalk with the carousel. The promenade has the Rising Tide Bar with water fountain show underneath when it goes up, parades and more. There are free character breakfasts with the Dreamworks Characters. The shows were great--DD loved the Aqua shows & ice skating shows. She even loved ice skating for the first time. The miniature golf corse was great. Central Park was nice for a calm, relaxing time. The other thing we like about RCCL (& other lines) is anytime dining (Disney foes not have this option).

Edited April 7, 2015 by flhokie

[LisaT91403]

We've sailed RCCL, MSC and Disney with DD (4). While she loved the character interactions on Disney, she really disliked the children's program. On RCCL she loved the nursery & begged to go back and on MSC she enjoyed her time with the children's program (she was 3).

 

On Disney it was a free for all of 3-12 year olds. The specific programs were ok, but much of the time kids were running wild. DD who is in pre-school and very social was afraid and didn't want to go because of the "big kids." We tried open houses with her and addressing the issue with staff (they brushed it off that the bigger kids only stay in the lab which definitely was not the case). After 3 drop offs for programs, we finally gave up as it took as long to get her in the door than she would be there for (1 time we got her in by pairing her up with another 4 year old who was crying at the entrance) and she made it clear she wanted no part of the program with the big kids. Luckily she was tall enough for the AquaDuck and loved the Mickey Slide so we spent a lot of time there.

 

Based on our experiences, except for possibly a great deal on a short Disney cruise where we would not have any need for the children's program, we will be sticking with RCCL (or maybe Princess). Having a pre-school/early elementary child with middle school children with no direction just is not for us.

 

RCCL doesn't have water slides, but the Oasis Class ships have so much to do! The kids water area is great--a large splash area, shallow pool, etc. Overall there is a lot of good pool space too. There is the Boardwalk with the carousel. The promenade has the Rising Tide Bar with water fountain show underneath when it goes up, parades and more. There are free character breakfasts with the Dreamworks Characters. The shows were great--DD loved the Aqua shows & ice skating shows. She even loved ice skating for the first time. The miniature golf corse was great. Central Park was nice for a calm, relaxing time. The other thing we like about RCCL (& other lines) is anytime dining (Disney foes not have this option).

 

I agree with your summary. DS has sailed on RCCL three times (at ages 1, 3, and 5), and just recently on Disney (at age almost 7). DS loved the character meets on Disney, and also enjoyed 3 out of the 4 production shows. He enjoyed the Aqua Duck a few times, but didn't like the rest of the pool deck at all. He definitely enjoyed the Midship Detective Agency. However, he strongly disliked the kid's club on Disney. He tried it a few times, and by mid-week, he said he'd rather sit through an extra hour at dinner than go to the club. On the night we went to a specialty restaurant, he asked if he could have a babysitter (something you can do on RCCL) and just stay in the cabin instead of going to the club. That's how much he disliked the Disney club.

 

Overall, our entire family preferred RCCL. The entertainment was much more plentiful and varied, the pool deck was a ton better, and there was more to see and do on the ship itself.

[Queen of Oakville]

.... add The Avengers and Star Wars to the list here :D

 

 

Did not know that! Didn't have it when we sailed. Sssssshhh, don't tell my son about the Star Wars characters ..... we're done with Disney :D

 

We've sailed RCCL, MSC and Disney with DD (4). While she loved the character interactions on Disney, she really disliked the children's program. On RCCL she loved the nursery & begged to go back and on MSC she enjoyed her time with the children's program (she was 3).

 

On Disney it was a free for all of 3-12 year olds. The specific programs were ok, but much of the time kids were running wild. DD who is in pre-school and very social was afraid and didn't want to go because of the "big kids." We tried open houses with her and addressing the issue with staff (they brushed it off that the bigger kids only stay in the lab which definitely was not the case). After 3 drop offs for programs, we finally gave up as it took as long to get her in the door than she would be there for (1 time we got her in by pairing her up with another 4 year old who was crying at the entrance) and she made it clear she wanted no part of the program with the big kids. Luckily she was tall enough for the AquaDuck and loved the Mickey Slide so we spent a lot of time there.

 

Based on our experiences, except for possibly a great deal on a short Disney cruise where we would not have any need for the children's program, we will be sticking with RCCL (or maybe Princess). Having a pre-school/early elementary child with middle school children with no direction just is not for us.

 

RCCL doesn't have water slides, but the Oasis Class ships have so much to do! The kids water area is great--a large splash area, shallow pool, etc. Overall there is a lot of good pool space too. There is the Boardwalk with the carousel. The promenade has the Rising Tide Bar with water fountain show underneath when it goes up, parades and more. There are free character breakfasts with the Dreamworks Characters. The shows were great--DD loved the Aqua shows & ice skating shows. She even loved ice skating for the first time. The miniature golf corse was great. Central Park was nice for a calm, relaxing time. The other thing we like about RCCL (& other lines) is anytime dining (Disney foes not have this option).

 

 

That was our experience to with Disney. We had lots of great family time (as we do on any cruise) but the kid's club was just not an attraction for my kids. I think a lot depends on the individual child but also on what their school environment is. My kids are in a Grade 1/2/3 class with a total of 40 kids and 6 teachers. They work hard in school and learn/listen. They do a lot of independent work and they listen to authority. Then on a DCL/Royal ship, they go into an environment where kids are running/screaming and the "Adults" just don't care. My kid's don't like it. The kid's club on HAL/X are much more to their liking because of the smaller numbers and the fact that the counsellors are highly interactive.

 

We do like the Royal Ships, but if we sail Royal again, it will either be so we make the next status level and get reciprocal Elite on X or to have another delicious kummelweck sandwich from Central Park Café : )

[chipmaster]

We booked a disney cruise :)

Will be hard to go back, you will have a great experience!

 

We sailed Disney once when our kids were young and always looked at Disney first, but between price/value/timing never got around and now our kids have passed that magical age.

 

Make sure to enjoy the characters, the movies, that special attention the kids get in the dining rooms, the shows were also wonderful. Don't know if they still do it, but they offered evening movies at the kids club... all were magical Disney...

[Queen of Oakville]

And if your kids are the kind to dress up ....bring their costumes.

 

My daughter had a princess dress for each day (she wore it to dinner). Tinkerbell, was casual, so that was for the first night. Cinderella and Belle were for the formal nights. The others were Tiana, Aurora, and Jasmine.

 

My son has a Mr. Incredible costume and Pirate costume. For pirate night/day - My daughter wore a Izzy t-shirt for the day (my son wore a Jake shirt). At night, she was a pirate princess, composed of a pink tully skirt and a pink pirate t-shirt from children's place. My son were his full pirate costume at night.

 

My kid's had Woody and Jessie jammies, so they wore those for the meet with Jessie and Woody. They also had Candace/Phineas/Ferb shirts for the Phineas and Ferb meet.

 

 

 

Do you think your kids would like a countdown chain? I have a countdown chain with all the characters. I'm happy to email it to you if you want to post your email address. You just have to print, cut and make up the chain.

[McCoolers4]

And if your kids are the kind to dress up ....bring their costumes.

 

My daughter had a princess dress for each day (she wore it to dinner). Tinkerbell, was casual, so that was for the first night. Cinderella and Belle were for the formal nights. The others were Tiana, Aurora, and Jasmine.

 

My son has a Mr. Incredible costume and Pirate costume. For pirate night/day - My daughter wore a Izzy t-shirt for the day (my son wore a Jake shirt). At night, she was a pirate princess, composed of a pink tully skirt and a pink pirate t-shirt from children's place. My son were his full pirate costume at night.

 

My kid's had Woody and Jessie jammies, so they wore those for the meet with Jessie and Woody. They also had Candace/Phineas/Ferb shirts for the Phineas and Ferb meet.

 

 

 

Do you think your kids would like a countdown chain? I have a countdown chain with all the characters. I'm happy to email it to you if you want to post your email address. You just have to print, cut and make up the chain.

Thanks Queen! I'm already planning outfits lol. You can email it to tilly311@gmail.com Thanka!

[Queen of Oakville]

done! I typed "from Queen of Oakville" in the subject line. enjoy!