700 Children on Sapphire over Thanksgiving???

[RBCal]

One of the reviewers of the Sapphire states that there were 700 children (out of 2600 people) on their cruise over Thanksgiving. Will there actually be this many? If so, is there anyway to avoid them?

[jpancake]

One of the reviewers of the Sapphire states that there were 700 children (out of 2600 people) on their cruise over Thanksgiving. Will there actually be this many? If so, is there anyway to avoid them?

 

It wouldn't surprise me at all. Thanksgiving is a very popular time for family cruising. We did it last year on the CB and wouldn't do it again if we had the choice. I wouldn't worry about it too much. You'll still have a fantastic time. Get to know the Lotus and the Aft pools. They are supposed to be adult-only pools. The Skywalkers night club at night is also adult only.

[Baxter]

There were over 900 in March last year on the Grand. I won't do that again. It's not the masses that are the problem...it's the small handful, which you can run into any time.

 

Enjoy the adult pools...avoid the elevators (because they seem to push all the buttons)...watch the stairs (because they seem to sit on them a lot). And I, personally, stayed away from the buffet. Way too many kids wiping their nose and grabbing food with their hands (and yes, adults do it too but I was hypersensitive)

[Toto2Kansas]

Some holiday cruises are better than others some seem to be much worse. It has always been the 'bands' of groups that seemed to cause problems when we have sailed during school holidays. Indeed, elevator buttons are all pushed, kids laying on the elevator floors and across the stair cases and roaming groups of them late into the night yelling in the hallways is what got to us the most. I decided next time I sail on a holiday, I will always carry my camera and then pretend to take their picture when they are doing something they shouldn't and just tell them I am turning the pics over to the security staff so they can aprehend them. :D

But I don't think I will plan another cruise during that time frame anytime soon. At least not until the Cruise Lines start enforcing the rules when it comes to minors. ARGH!

[DrivesLikeMario]

I wouldn't be surprised. We had about 500+ on our Spring Break Coral Princess 10 night cruise and it was the pits. Even our own kids were shocked at what some of those kids were doing! Finally, on the last night Princess brought out the security officers and suddenly, everything calmed down. ;)

[jbrambach]

If you call Princess, they should be able to tell you how many children and teens (under 18) are on your sailing. Good luck

[tutak]

I thought that Princes controlled the number of children allowed on a given cruise.

[tutak]

I thought that Princes controlled the number of children allowed on a given cruise.

[momthecruisedirector]

If you go in knowing what to expect you should be okay. We took a Carnival ship during the week of Thanksgiving in 2000 and it was pretty nightmarish. I let things get under my skin and so was frustrated a good part of the vacation. There are a lot of multi-generational families that go during a holiday week, which I think is wonderful, HOWEVER it seemed to me that the parents thought the grandparents would discipline and the grandparents assumed the parents would, leaving no one to keep the kids from running up and down the hallways, banging on doors, tying up the elevators, smoking...We had our kids so surely didn't expect it to be an adults only vacation but it was out of hand. Had I known ahead of time what to expect I think I would have been okay, I was just so surprised and couldn't get past it for almost the entire cruise.

[sueandkent]

You would NEVER find me on a ship with 700 children. That's why we travel during school time only. You asked how to avoid them - don't travel during holidays.

We've not had problems with kids on cruises because they have been few and far between when we sail. I like kids, even have one however not in the masses on a cruise ship.

[yancycruiser]

It is definitely a cruise to avoid if at all possible. You definitely don't want to take a 7-day cruise during spring break, summer, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

[imsulin2]

It is definitely a cruise to avoid if at all possible. You definitely don't want to take a 7-day cruise during spring break, summer, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

 

Exactly!! These are times I choose not to cruise! (Although, I did have a very nice Christmas cruise on the Zaandam a few years ago! Very few kids! It must have been my lucky year!)

[RBCal]

To me the children are not the problem but the parents. If they supervise their children and watch that they don't run wild all over the ship, then it should not be a problem. If they expect the ship staff to babysit while they sit in the bar then it will not be an enjoyable experience.

[cruznliz]

Just curious why the OP does not have any posts and no way to see his/her history. :rolleyes:

 

In any event, I just called 1(800)PRINCESS and they said there will "only" be 613 children. I've heard that Princess is learning from the number of "out of control" angels on holiday cruises and have instituted "Youth Security". Supposedly they are making a difference. Personally I pick long cruises with unusual itineraries and rarely see a child. :D

[bplazo]

I would never cruise during holidays or summer.

[Lynda90]

I will be on the Sapphire following Thanksgiving - 11/26. Do you think there will still be a lot of children on board?

[imsulin2]

I don't think you'll see many at all, lyndabaker! I think they'll all be back in school with their pre-assigned written reports about the "geography/history/culture" they encountered at ports on their Thanksgiving cruise! I also think it's a great time of year to cruise!

[daisee]

We looked into this cruise, and Princess told us they limit the kids to 700 (for this ship). We decided to go a couple weeks before. They apparently have adequate programs for up to 700. Remember, many will be in the kid areas, and they are strict about serving alcohol. (although there are exceptions I'm sure!).

 

I'd rather have 700 kids than 700 big bodies anyway! 100 of them are probably little tykes who will be in bed by 8p.m.!

[Lynda90]

I don't think you'll see many at all, lyndabaker! I think they'll all be back in school with their pre-assigned written reports about the "geography/history/culture" they encountered at ports on their Thanksgiving cruise! I also think it's a great time of year to cruise!

Whew! Thanks for the info. Believe me, I love children--but not 700 of them on a cruise with me.:D :D

[RBCal]

Just curious why the OP does not have any posts and no way to see his/her history. :rolleyes:

 

In any event, I just called 1(800)PRINCESS and they said there will "only" be 613 children. I've heard that Princess is learning from the number of "out of control" angels on holiday cruises and have instituted "Youth Security". Supposedly they are making a difference. Personally I pick long cruises with unusual itineraries and rarely see a child. :D

 

So the "Youth Security" are the baby sitters for parents that abdicate their responsibility? I guess this is better than nothing. The advantage to cruising over a holiday is that I won't have to take as much vacation. I guess I'll hang out on my balcony and not the public areas.

[CruiseAholic]

How to avoid them? Don't go on a cruise over a Holiday !

 

Now, what do you think? it is a holiday, families travel.. dah

[JLC@SD]

I would never cruise during holidays or summer.

 

We prefer to travel when school is in session, on longer itineraries, to farther shores and prefer late sitting. Those are the times least likley to have kids :) . Also, when school is in session, air fares tend to be cheaper :) .

 

I love children, but not at my cruise ship's dinning table :( , and not jumping on the bed and banging on the walls in the stateroom next door :eek: .

[jnc411]

Just curious why the OP does not have any posts and no way to see his/her history. :rolleyes:

 

In any event, I just called 1(800)PRINCESS and they said there will "only" be 613 children. I've heard that Princess is learning from the number of "out of control" angels on holiday cruises and have instituted "Youth Security". Supposedly they are making a difference. Personally I pick long cruises with unusual itineraries and rarely see a child. :D

 

 

cruznliz: Can you call 1-800 princess to ask about how many children on a particular date ? I didn't know that, That is very interesting, think I am going to give that a try , we are on spring break time cruise 3-11 , so I am a little concerned as to how many kids on board. But we didn't have a choice as to when we could go , so this is the time frame that would work. It is a two week cruise so I was hoping that the kid count might be a little lower for that reason. I like kids , but just not in large groups,,,, AAAACCCCKKKK,,,,,

Cori

[Cruisin' Chick]

"I love children, but not at my cruise ship's dinning table :( , and not jumping on the bed and banging on the walls in the stateroom next door :eek: ."

 

At least most of us parents keep our kids from being nuisances. My kid never bangs on the walls or jumps on the bed. And on our last cruise, she didn't go to the dining room with us (her choice to eat earlier and then go to the kids' area while we went to the dr).

 

BTW, I was wondering about the OP too. Is this a new CC thing for those who are afraid of being flamed? If so, why draw attention to oneself that way. Why not just create a new screenname for these kinds of posts?

[cruznliz]

Cori: Yes you can call and ask about the number of kids on a particular cruise. The number they give you may not be that accurate until maybe 60 days before the cruise, but if you call earlier you'd get a ballpark figure. ;)