Cruising during spring break - what to expect

[Loceng]

When cruising out of Florida during spring brake, can you expect a lot of drunk students partying all day on the cruiseships, or do they stay on the beaches only?

I'm not from USA, so I don't know how this spring break thing works.

[Ourusualbeach]

It depends.

 

On the 3,4and 5 day cruises you will find many college age kids there on their own partying.

 

On the 6 and 7 day cruises it will be a lot of families. Lots of kids but not the party atmosphere.

[champagne123]

It depends.

 

On the 3,4and 5 day cruises you will find many college age kids there on their own partying.

 

On the 6 and 7 day cruises it will be a lot of families. Lots of kids but not the party atmosphere.

 

Agreed....I also think it depends on the ship. Some are more laid back than others.

[riclop]

When cruising out of Florida during spring brake, can you expect a lot of drunk students partying all day on the cruiseships, or do they stay on the beaches only?

I'm not from USA, so I don't know how this spring break thing works.

 

They will be loud drunks and make lots of noise and they will have sex anywhere and everywhere, that is why we stay away.

[Retired LEO]

A bunch of rowdy punks.

[Lady Hudson]

I sailed during Maryland's college spring break last year on Grandeur. The kids I saw were respectful, dressed nicely for dinner, drank but were not drunk. So it all depends. My experience was positive. Katherine

[cb at sea]

It's really no different than any other cruise time....shorter cruises ALWAYS have more than their share of "partiers".....

Week long cruises will be full, but 99% of cruises are full ships....

 

The thing that helps is young adults (on some ships, no one under 25 can sail alone) usually have some sort of "responsible" person onboard....

 

We sail during "spring break"...lovely time of year...and have never witnessed sex in public areas, or "frat house" antics!

 

No worries...it will be fine.

[atnolan94]

I agree longer cruises tend to have less young people really because they are more expensive. I will say I did a 7 day on the Liberty from Galveston from March 13-20, and it was fine. I will also say I am a college kid and I had a drink package. We were always doing our best to be mindful of others, as were all of our peers on the ship. I'm sure there are some people that will get out of control, but I also think the crew/security would take care of anyone who is "disturbing the peace." Speaking of....is cruise jail a real thing?

[Retired LEO]

I agree longer cruises tend to have less young people really because they are more expensive. I will say I did a 7 day on the Liberty from Galveston from March 13-20, and it was fine. I will also say I am a college kid and I had a drink package. We were always doing our best to be mindful of others, as were all of our peers on the ship. I'm sure there are some people that will get out of control, but I also think the crew/security would take care of anyone who is "disturbing the peace." Speaking of....is cruise jail a real thing?

 

Yes...until they put you off the ship.

[atnolan94]

Yes...until they put you off the ship.

 

I'll take your word for it considering your username:p

Edited March 29, 2016 by atnolan94

[Retired LEO]

I'll take your word for it considering your username:p

I tell it like it is. I'm not far from one of the biggest spring break capitols. There were 400 arrests made just last week. The best part is that they take cell phone videos of each other acting stupid.

[Loceng]

Thanks for all the answers guys!

So on a 7 day cruise with a Oasis class ship I should be able to avoid the worst parts?

I've seen clips from spring break, and don't want that on my familycruise.

[Ourusualbeach]

Thanks for all the answers guys!

So on a 7 day cruise with a Oasis class ship I should be able to avoid the worst parts?

I've seen clips from spring break, and don't want that on my familycruise.

 

We were on the Allure 2 weeks ago and yes there were lots of kids but it wasn't what you've seen clips of.

 

Great family cruise.

Edited March 29, 2016 by Ourusualbeach

[dln929]

We're on Oasis right now and there are 2,049 children on board enjoying their Easter /spring break. It's a nice atmosphere. This is a week long cruise. I haven't seen anything that would make me have bad thoughts about booking at this time of year!

[Seandre2]

We're on Oasis right now and there are 2,049 children on board enjoying their Easter /spring break. It's a nice atmosphere. This is a week long cruise. I haven't seen anything that would make me have bad thoughts about booking at this time of year!

 

 

How are the crowds? At meal times and at the pool areas? We will be cruising this week, next year, on Harmony with 4 kids!!

[MattInFLL]

If you've seen Spring Break videos, then I think you're talking about the beach side bars that have drinking contests, encourage drinking shots off body parts, wet t shirt contests etc. Basically, bars and events that exist to bring out the rowdiest side of college age kids. That does not happen on a cruise ship. Even on a 3 day. Yes there will be drinking but there's no beer funnels, Jell-O shots on tummies, or wet t shirt contests. At least not on Royal :)

Edited March 29, 2016 by MattInFLL

[dln929]

This week with 2000+ kids, the pool area is very crowded and the lines for ice cream cones in the afternoons are really really long. Same thing for using the zipline, playing mini golf, etc. We've been coping just fine by thinking outside the box. We've been eating on the late side when going to the Windjammer and haven't had any trouble finding a seat. My husband went on the zipline after 5 pm yesterday, no lines. The thing is, if you don't want to get caught up in a crowd, you have to do things when they're not.

[impatientlywaiting]

Thanks for all the answers guys!

So on a 7 day cruise with a Oasis class ship I should be able to avoid the worst parts?

I've seen clips from spring break, and don't want that on my familycruise.

 

We made the mistake of going on a 7 day Caribbean cruise in March last year - NEVER AGAIN. There were 1,000+ college kids on the cruise and they were the worst examples of entitled college kids I have ever seen. They were drunk all day; they were inconsiderate at the pool (actually kicked out of the pool area after the first full day so they moved up to the walking deck and blocked the walking path and refused to move); they made such a mess that every evening the staff had to hose down the decks because of all the drinks that were spilled; they made little kids cry on a tender ride back from Belize because they wouldn't stop screaming their school's song at the top of their lungs (when the parents asked them to quiet down, they just got louder; when the boat staff told them to quiet down, they cussed them out). The cabin attendants on our deck told me they hated spring break with the college kids because of the way they were treated and how disgusting they treated the cabins.

[melski]

We've cruised on Spring Break twice with my family. A 5 night Caribbean on Brilliance and 7 night Caribbean on Liberty. We've never experienced drunk college kids that were out of control. There are small groups of college age kids but they were never out of control. There are a ton of multi-generational families on both the cruises (lots of school aged kids) and honestly the 10-12 year olds running around on their own could be more of a hassle than the college kids.

 

We hang out at the family pool or Flowrider during the day. I find that eliminates any of the potential drunk adults or college kids. Its just more of a family atmosphere.

 

Also cruising in late March or early April can help. Many colleges (not all) have breaks at the beginning of March.

[TigerLady]

When cruising out of Florida during spring brake, can you expect a lot of drunk students partying all day on the cruiseships, or do they stay on the beaches only?

I'm not from USA, so I don't know how this spring break thing works.

 

From my experience, LOTS of young people, and a majority will have drank TOO MUCH

[PensFan1028]

They will be loud drunks and make lots of noise and they will have sex anywhere and everywhere, that is why we stay away.

 

Not sure if serious? :confused:

[atnolan94]

I think Riclop is being very biased. I did the liberty this month during Oklahoma and Texas Spring break. There were a lot of college students but absolutely none were disruptive in any way.

 

To OP, The stuff you see of college kids at the beach on spring break, a cruise will not be like that. Those kids sleep 20 people to a shack and pay $200 a person to be there. A SB cruise that costs easily over $1000 will not attract the craziness.

[PensFan1028]

I think Riclop is being very biased. I did the liberty this month during Oklahoma and Texas Spring break. There were a lot of college students but absolutely none were disruptive in any way.

 

To OP, The stuff you see of college kids at the beach on spring break, a cruise will not be like that. Those kids sleep 20 people to a shack and pay $200 a person to be there. A SB cruise that costs easily over $1000 will not attract the craziness.

 

I was thinking either sarcasm or just joking... My wife and I began cruising for spring break while she was in grad school... we like to have fun but have never witnessed anything like Riclop has suggested. However, we do usually cruise with Princess, and for 7 nights so I would not have experience on the shorter "party" trips.

 

That being said... We did cruise out of Baltimore once on the Pride and there was a decent "spring break" crowd onboard but the crazy activity was limited to the club for the most part.

[MommaBear55]

There are also several different kinds if school breaks. The college students' breaks are mostly in March and they will be attracted to the shorter, less expensive cruises. The under 18 school breaks are scattered. Some will be in March, others the third week of April and the peak really around Easter.

 

Your best time to avoid either group is the first two weeks if April (unless it is Easter week) and go on a longer cruise, generally more than seven days.

[atnolan94]

There are also several different kinds if school breaks. The college students' breaks are mostly in March and they will be attracted to the shorter, less expensive cruises. The under 18 school breaks are scattered. Some will be in March, others the third week of April and the peak really around Easter.

 

Your best time to avoid either group is the first two weeks if April (unless it is Easter week) and go on a longer cruise, generally more than seven days.

 

If you are concerned, this is the best advice, OP.