Kids First Cruise

[MamaGCruise]

I'm looking for advice or tips on cruising with kids for the first time. DS6 and DS8 have never been on a cruise before, but we travel stateside with them often. We'll be on Majesty, Aug. 17th. It's a short cruise, with no sea days, so I'm sure they'll do fine, but would like to hear from some pros. This will be DH and my first experience with the kids club on Royal, and I'm not quite sure how all that works. Also any tips for Nassau, CocoCay, and Key West. :) Thanks!!

[gerif]

You might want to post on the family boards. You'll get a ton of useful information there.

[AussieCruiser2332]

Hi,

We cruised last year for the first time with our kids DS5 and DD8. They had a great time. We went to the Adventure Ocean on the first day and showed them around but made it clear they didn't have to go into the program if they didn't want to. Well after 2 days we had to set different rules - they had to spend some time with us! They loved the program - it was entertaining, suited to their ages, and the staff were excellent. For most sea days they opted to have one session (either morning or afternoon) in the program and one session after tea. When they were with us there was heaps to do on the ship as a family (we sailed on the Radiance). Each day you will get a program for the kids club - it will state what's on the program for the day and highlight a family activity at the end of each session (game, treasure hunt, etc). The kids club is one of the reasons our kids are so excited about our upcoming cruise.

Have a great cruise :)

[MamaGCruise]

Hi,

We cruised last year for the first time with our kids DS5 and DD8. They had a great time. We went to the Adventure Ocean on the first day and showed them around but made it clear they didn't have to go into the program if they didn't want to. Well after 2 days we had to set different rules - they had to spend some time with us! They loved the program - it was entertaining, suited to their ages, and the staff were excellent. For most sea days they opted to have one session (either morning or afternoon) in the program and one session after tea. When they were with us there was heaps to do on the ship as a family (we sailed on the Radiance). Each day you will get a program for the kids club - it will state what's on the program for the day and highlight a family activity at the end of each session (game, treasure hunt, etc). The kids club is one of the reasons our kids are so excited about our upcoming cruise.

Have a great cruise :)

Thanks!! I'm glad to hear that the club seems to be fun to them. My kids are spoiled and have been to Disney/Universal/Sea World throughout every year of their lives. I am excited to see where this new adventure takes us, but since I haven't been on a cruise for 5 yrs, I just want to be sure that I'm covering all my bases, with kids in tow!! :)

[cb at sea]

No sea days....so you'll really have little use of the kid's club...you'll be ashore, most likely for the daytime hours!

 

This is no different than ANY vacation! In the evening, there are lots of "kid" activities! They'll love it!

[Grandma Dazzles]

I am sure that you will all have a wonderful time. Be aware though that the Majesty is one of the oldest and smallest RC ships. It does not have all the extras of the bigger ships that are featured in much of the advertising.

[MamaGCruise]

I am sure that you will all have a wonderful time. Be aware though that the Majesty is one of the oldest and smallest RC ships. It does not have all the extras of the bigger ships that are featured in much of the advertising.

 

That's one of the biggest bummers of this cruise, but we wanted to start small, to see how they'll handle it, before shelling out the big bucks for the bigger ships. I'm sure they'll enjoy it, no matter what, I just obsess and over plan for any trips, and since this one is a new experience, my obsession is greater. :o Thanks for all the responses.

[MamaGCruise]

You might want to post on the family boards. You'll get a ton of useful information there.

 

I'm new to this site and had not yet stumbled upon the family boards. Thanks!!

[Grandma Dazzles]

That's one of the biggest bummers of this cruise, but we wanted to start small, to see how they'll handle it, before shelling out the big bucks for the bigger ships. I'm sure they'll enjoy it, no matter what, I just obsess and over plan for any trips, and since this one is a new experience, my obsession is greater. :o Thanks for all the responses.

 

 

I smiled when I read your original post! Back in the 1990's (boy am I getting old) we took our college-aged kids on the Majesty. All four of us in an interior cabin - the looks on their faces when they saw the cabin was priceless. We had a great time and made wonderful memories. They are both married now with little kids of their own - and we are all still cruising, not necessarily together, but that original cruise sold them! So enjoy the Majesty - sure you will have fun.

[BearsAhoy]

My kids are now 8 and 5, and about to go on their third cruise (in 18 months!). Their first was a transatlantic; oldest had just turned 7, youngest had his 4th birthday on the ship.

 

My oldest *loves* Adventure Ocean! After a few days, he started racing though the evening meal so he could go back to AO!

 

My youngest... He likes it once he settles in, he just has a hard time at drop off (as at preschool and now school). He'd like it more if he and his brother could be in the same age group.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk. Please excuse wacky auto-correct-induced typos.

[MamaGCruise]

I smiled when I read your original post! Back in the 1990's (boy am I getting old) we took our college-aged kids on the Majesty. All four of us in an interior cabin - the looks on their faces when they saw the cabin was priceless. We had a great time and made wonderful memories. They are both married now with little kids of their own - and we are all still cruising, not necessarily together, but that original cruise sold them! So enjoy the Majesty - sure you will have fun.

 

Reading your post made me tear up!! I see how quickly my little guys are growing, and I so want to keep them little!! I am very excited for all the memories we're sure to make on our first cruise as a family. They both inherited their wanderlust from me. :)

[Grandma Dazzles]

Reading your post made me tear up!! I see how quickly my little guys are growing, and I so want to keep them little!! I am very excited for all the memories we're sure to make on our first cruise as a family. They both inherited their wanderlust from me. :)

 

 

Thanks! Truly some great memories! Took a cruise last year with grandkids, ages 11, 8 and 6 - they love to cruise! Wonder why! Best of luck and enjoy.

[griffy116]

I love to see posts from parents and grandparents taking their little ones on their first cruise. We celebrated my parents 50th wedding anniversary on a cruise. Four generations. My Grandson was 3 years old and we all loved it. He's traveled to several countries since then on cruises. He's now 21 and is going on a cruise with a friend and with us in June. You are going to have so much fun and so many memories. Enjoy.

[rstout]

I would check the Ports of Call Boards, too, for advice on excursions.

 

I'm not sure how long you will be in Nassau. If you want to see Atlantis, you can take a taxi and walk around and go to the public beach next door (you cannot go to the pools without purchasing a pass). If you want to do the slides and pool, I recommend checking into the Comfort Inn option - you get a room at the Comfort Inn across the street and check in and out at the same time. This gives you access to the Atlantis pools and slides and is usually cheaper than the day passes sold at Atlantis. You an only get into the waterpark starting at 10, though , so it's not cost effective If you have an early port time. Taxis are always available to get back to the ship. Otherwise, check into Blue Lagoon - it's a nice beach day and they have plenty of beach toys for rental, dolphin swim, and other things to do.

 

For Key West, trolley tours are great for first time visitors. There are a few different companies that offer them. You can purchase your own tickets online - it's an easy walk usually from the dock to the stand. You hop on and off at your leisure all day and can see some of the highlights of the city (pic at southernmost point, shopping on Duval Street, etc.). We've been to the aquarium (small, but the kids liked it) and the butterfly exhibit (pricy, but really nice). Many people also like to rent electric cars and drive around. Personally, I like the trolley option for first visits, especially with kids.

[Cel_cruise]

Thanks!! I'm glad to hear that the club seems to be fun to them. My kids are spoiled and have been to Disney/Universal/Sea World throughout every year of their lives. I am excited to see where this new adventure takes us, but since I haven't been on a cruise for 5 yrs, I just want to be sure that I'm covering all my bases, with kids in tow!! :)

 

 

We took our kids on their first cruise in February. They are 4 and 8. We usually vacation to Disney - we are DVC members and they have been to Florida or California 1-2x per year for vacations so far. The bar was high :)

 

We sailed on NAV and they LOVED it - 2 months later they are still talking about it and trying to plan in our next cruise vacation into the mix. They are still so giddy they joke about skipping out Hawaii/Aulani trip next year for a cruise!

 

The cruise will be what you make of it - but no matter the amenities on board, I am sure you can achieve an amazing family vacation with the right attitude!

[MamaGCruise]

We took our kids on their first cruise in February. They are 4 and 8. We usually vacation to Disney - we are DVC members and they have been to Florida or California 1-2x per year for vacations so far. The bar was high :)

 

We sailed on NAV and they LOVED it - 2 months later they are still talking about it and trying to plan in our next cruise vacation into the mix. They are still so giddy they joke about skipping out Hawaii/Aulani trip next year for a cruise!

 

The cruise will be what you make of it - but no matter the amenities on board, I am sure you can achieve an amazing family vacation with the right attitude!

 

Aulani?! Now I'm jealous! We love Disney, and would love to be DVC members. My son was only 7 months old when we started getting Disney passes, they're getting older now, so we took a break for the bigger coaster theme parks (Universal & Busch/Sea World) We generally make the best of our situations. Thankfully we have great kids that love adventure and enjoy life!

[Apexgal]

We used Cheryl's tours in Nassau to book a private tour that included a fort, hiking, beach and a little shopping. Super friendly, clean, and easy to do w my 2 kids (7/4). Very flexible on the fly to what we wanted to see and very affordable. Very engaging with the kids and answering their questions too.

[Sky616]

My son's first cruise was on Jewel when he was 6. He loved it and still loves cruising now at 14. We stopped in Key West on that cruise. We did the key west trolley where you can hop on and off at any stop. We went to the Heming way House and saw all the cats. He enjoyed it, not too much kid oriented in KW but that was something he enjoyed.

[LadyBeBop]

I love to see posts from parents and grandparents taking their little ones on their first cruise.

 

Can't wait to tell you our cruise experience when we disembark in a week and a half. Actually, yes I can. That will be the cruise will be over.

 

I can't wait to see the expression on my six-year-old granddaughter when she sees the ship for the first time this Sunday. Actually, I think we all will be stunned. The FOS will be the largest ship we've ever sailed on.

Edited April 22, 2015 by LadyBeBop