So disappointed!

[reedprincess]

Mom - If you wait until after the 90 day final payment mark (for holiday cruises), you may even get a better price too; it just depends on how well it's selling. You might even try your husband with the 16 yr. old in one cabin and you and your 10 yr. old in another IF they start limiting the available quad cabins. Good luck and don't give up yet!

 

I'm on the Royal Christmas cruise, and final payment is 75 days out, and hasn't passed yet. Today is 82 days till sailing, so final payment not due till next Wednesday. Not entirely sure where you're getting this 90 day idea for holiday cruises, but it certainly doesn't apply for this one.

[ceilidh1]

The number of child vests makes a little sense but they don't ask for height and weight of any child. So one 6 year old can be the size of a 4 or a size of a 10 year old. Even more sometimes! Kids fluctuate in weights and sizes and if it was truly that would they ask more questions??

 

In a perfect world, yes they would ask the correct questions to determine the correct lifejacket. I have found this is not the reality. I have been given an INFANT (not child) lifejacket for a 4 year old before and an adult lifejacket for a 5 year old. I usually have to ask for the correct size - no one asks what they weigh or how old they are and the lifejackets are certainly not in the room when you arrive (considering they have all the info ahead of time you would think this would be the case).

 

You also have to consider that a computer program is making the assumption that kids (presumably anyone under 18?) will need kid sized lifejackets - even if you speak with a real person and explain that a 16 year old won't need a kid jacket, there may not be a way for them to override this program. Who knows? That's the explanation I was given and it makes far more sense than "too many kids for the club" as I have been on Princess cruises where there were way too many kids for the club to handle and we were turned away or added to a waitlist while onboard (as were many other families).

 

Maybe they just want more adults as they are the ones that spend more onboard? :p

[ceilidh1]

We have encountered this before on holiday sailings. The explanation given to us was that it was based on the number of kids that can be catered for in kids club in each group, which makes sense to me, although clearly not to others here hahahah.

on a sailing that works for your family

 

This doesn't make sense to me simply because we have sailed several times with Princess during school holidays and there were WAY too many kids to be catered for in the clubs. Once the capacity was reached families were turned away (and this is onboard, not being refused booking). It was strictly first come, first served. I, personally, would LOVE if Princess only allowed the number of kids it could cater to at the club!

Edited September 29, 2016 by ceilidh1
mistake

[Coral]

Princess used to have much stricter restrictions on numbers of kids as it used to come up all the time on these boards. They seem to have relaxed them quite a bit in the last 10 years or so. It rarely comes up on this board except for Christmas and one or two weeks of spring break.

 

Princess also used to have Christmas sailings due 90 days out. It appears they no longer do that as I know others on Christmas sailings and their final payment is not due yet either.

Edited September 29, 2016 by Coral

[Kineticoh20]

I just tried to book a Christmas cruise for our family of 4. I got as far as the payment page when an error message popped up, saying no children aged 13-17 allowed. I called Princess to find that indeed, the cruise had reached its limit of teenagers. The rep. told me that Princess tries to keep an older demographic and they could not allow me to book my 16 year old son, although my 10 year old was fine. I guess we will try another line. My kids were so excited to sail the Royal. Merry Christmas Princess!

 

Hmmm that seems odd to me. We have been on several Easter cruises and one had 900 youth so I wonder what the cutoff was.

[Cruise Raider]

Wow never heard of such a thing.

 

That's exactly what I was thinking but it sure does make sense when you think about it. I have not been on a cruise that was overrun with kids but it just didn't dawn on me that the reason I have not seen this is because they are limited to a specific number. I learned something new today.

[FlorenceItaly]

Princess also used to have Christmas sailings due 90 days out. It appears they no longer do that as I know others on Christmas sailings and their final payment is not due yet either.

 

I am on the December 18 Regal Christmas Cruise(11 nights) and my final payment is due October 4.

 

 

 

Marie

[Ando]

This doesn't make sense to me simply because we have sailed several times with Princess during school holidays and there were WAY too many kids to be catered for in the clubs. Once the capacity was reached families were turned away (and this is onboard, not being refused booking). It was strictly first come, first served. I, personally, would LOVE if Princess only allowed the number of kids it could cater to at the club!

 

Wow that's no good at all. As we have never personally experienced that (elite with Princess) I wasn't aware that it could happen. That could really ruin a family holiday :eek: We are fortunate in that we mostly cruise outside of the holiday periods and have had as few as 8 kids on the whole ship on a Diamond NZ sailing, and rarely over 100 in total. Sure sounds like we were lucky on the Xmas/New Year sailings that we have done!

[Cruisin' Chick]

It might make sense superficially but it is not the real reason. As others above have replied the age ranges for the under-18 booking categories, and the maximums for each age range, do not line up with the age groups for Pelicans, Shockwaves and Remix nor with the "maximum capacity" of the physical kid's club facilities. Princess, like the other lines mooted to have no limits on children, has the capability to add extra staff for one or all of the three groups on a sailing-by-sailing basis--and to use other venues on the ship for them. The capacity controls have nothing to do with keeping kids entertained with activities but everything to do with keeping them and their families safely and healthily accommodated throughout the cruise.

 

I suspect this is the case. Princess will hire more space for the holiday cruises (often teachers wanting to make some extra money -- we talked with some of the kids' staff a few years ago and this was a case for at least a few of them).

 

I doubt if there is a true limit on teens because if Princess really was on top of things (from checking the number of teens on board most cruises and how many actually participated in the Remix program), it would know that many teens do not take part in the organized activities. My daughter was 15 on her last cruise, which was in late December, and she was in a group of six her age...and they did things on their own (one time we heard a familiar voice on Plaza deck and realized she and her friends were checking out the art in the gallery -- and not in a snarky way, but more analytical).

 

But total capacity is one aspect that might keep from being able to book three or more in a cabin that can accommodate that number...and that is when the ship is nearing total capacity. Not every berth on board can be filled.

 

I suspect if that was the real reason why that family couldn't book was not because there was space for the ten year old and not the teen, but because the ship had to stop allowing booking of four-passenger parties. If that's the case, the CSR or booking agent didn't explain things right.

 

We are past the 90 day mark for Christmas cruises.

 

We have taken three holiday cruises on Princess. the first time we booked some eleven months ahead. the second time, we decided to book in late October...and were lucky to get a cabin as long as we weren't picky about category (fortunately we liked the location). Of course, payment was required right away.

 

the last time I called in September and got waitlisted for several categories. finally we got a cabin for the three of us (that was the stumbling point, the extra person), but the final payment was around October 5 for a 12/19 sailing.

[Coral]

I suspect if that was the real reason why that family couldn't book was not because there was space for the ten year old and not the teen' date=' but because the ship had to stop allowing booking of four-passenger parties. If that's the case, the CSR or booking agent didn't explain things right.

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Princess has in the past restricted how many in certain age groups who can sail. So one child can clear but not the other. It has nothing to do with 3 or 4 people in a cabin.

 

I also recommend that they waitlist as final payment is coming up and people may cancel.

Edited September 29, 2016 by Coral

[Thrak]

Princess has in the past restricted how many in certain age groups who can sail. So one child can clear but not the other. It has nothing to do with 3 or 4 people in a cabin.

 

I also recommend that they waitlist as final payment is coming up and people may cancel.

 

I guess we were just "lucky" that we were way too poor to cruise when our kids were young. :rolleyes:

[GUT2407]

I guess we were just "lucky" that we were way too poor to cruise when our kids were young. :rolleyes:

 

We still are too poor to cruise, doesn't stop us though.

[ceilidh1]

Wow that's no good at all. As we have never personally experienced that (elite with Princess) I wasn't aware that it could happen. That could really ruin a family holiday :eek: We are fortunate in that we mostly cruise outside of the holiday periods and have had as few as 8 kids on the whole ship on a Diamond NZ sailing, and rarely over 100 in total. Sure sounds like we were lucky on the Xmas/New Year sailings that we have done!

 

One was a 15 day Hawaii over spring break. Believe me, that's a LOT of sea days to have to put up with bored kids when the club is at capacity! I was NOT a happy camper (and neither were my kids)!!! I vowed that would be the last time I sailed on Princess...but of course it wasn't! LOL :o

[jennybenny]

We have done the 15 day to Hawaii during Christmas and it's been fine.

I think spring break, Easter and Thanksgiving have more kids because many families are not willing to miss Christmas with their family or want to avoid crowds.

 

I could not imagine bored kids on a cruise. Trapped. Scary! [emoji5]

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Thrak]

I guess we were just "lucky" that we were way too poor to cruise when our kids were young. :rolleyes:

 

We still are too poor to cruise, doesn't stop us though.

 

I know that feeling but, like you, we do it anyway. When our kids were young though we were much poorer than we are now. It's the little things - like not having a house payment - that really help. :)

[elliair]

I just tried to book a Christmas cruise for our family of 4. I got as far as the payment page when an error message popped up, saying no children aged 13-17 allowed. I called Princess to find that indeed, the cruise had reached its limit of teenagers. The rep. told me that Princess tries to keep an older demographic and they could not allow me to book my 16 year old son, although my 10 year old was fine. I guess we will try another line. My kids were so excited to sail the Royal. Merry Christmas Princess!

 

Try Carnival, they take anyone and everyone. This is why we like Princess, the less children on board the better for us.

[back2tampa]

We did Royal Caribbean Freedom of the seas right before Christmas a few years back and my daughter absolutely loved it with lots of stuff for the teens to do. We do Princess because it is a older crowd. Our daughter(19 now) wouldn't have liked our last cruise but we loved it so much that we booked another cruise before we got off the ship!

Edited October 2, 2016 by back2tampa

[docd]

Try Disney, Royal, Norwegian or Carnival. Your kids will have a great time on those ships I am sure. I wouldn't bother waiting since it's not that far off.