They are REALLY pushing Kids Sail Free. Too Bad.

[dkjretired]

2 hours ago, carlmm said:

Reading the topic of this thread "pushing Kids Sail Free. Too Bad" I thought it would have a different content than discussing the pro and cons of cruises with/without children/adult only ...

 

Actually I like a balanced mixture of well behaved travellers of all ages, children, young adults to very mature guests,

but what I do regard as totally wrong is the "Kids Sail FREE" part. Basically, given Celebrity's overall pricing, this means that a single traveller has to pay the same price as a family of four. Certainly I do not eat for four, use four loungers at the pool, take four seats in the theatre ...

 

Great, if Celebrity makes families welcome on board, but let them just pay for.

 

Keep in mind the kids fly free is for third and fourth in room. Just passing that on.

[justcrusn]

11 hours ago, Bo1953 said:

j - has your dw encountered such behaviour on a X sailing to any great degree?

 

If so, I would be surprized. Is there some running? Is there some splashing? Of course there is, yet not to the degree, even remotely, as that on one of the super mass market ships which cater specifically to children/teens.

 

We have always felt that 'Adult time' was in tact and not disrupted during our sailing.

 

I do understand how children/teens and others can disrupt ones sailing, no question about it, yet to say that they are major distruptors on a X sailing, has not been our experience at all, if they were then we would jump ship for sure...

 

IMO and MO only, all parents who bring their children/teens on X go to great lengths to provide their fellow passengers with peace of mind that their children/teens will respect others, most times.

 

Have there been incidents of child/teen mis-behaviour? Of course, yet how many have been encountered?

 

As I stated before, personally I have encountered more 'adult' mis-behaviours than children/teens and that could be attributable to the ship having more adults on-board too.  LOL

 

bon voyage

No sir, we have not encountered poorly behaved children on celebrity.

I guess the wife hopes to keep that up.

like i said she LOVES kids, just likes some adult time too.

Actually the MOST annoying thing ever on a cruise was a pomeranian in a stroller, not a child at all.

[cgolf1]

I guess I really don’t mind if kids sail Celebrity more, but then again we are only one X cruise in with a second booked in 2021. We are mid 40’s with a college aged daughter. 

 

What I can say having sailed the king of kids cruise line, Disney, 12 times, kids bad behavior is a lot better than most forums give them credit for. Of course kids will be kids at times, but we encountered very few issues with kids being rude or running in the halls late at night etc. Honestly on our X cruise we encountered more rude people than other lines, not a lot by any means but noticeable, hoping that was an anomaly. 

 

Are the dining rooms a bit louder, sure, but generally we noticed that the worst behaved kids had the worst behaved parents. Meltdowns are a whole different issue, having lived through them a long time ago, the just happen regardless of how good of a parent you are and the harder you try and stop them the worse they get. 

 

One thing I am guessing is that the E class will ultimately sail with less kids since they don’t have the sports court. 

 

 

Edited March 13, 2019 by cgolf1

[K12Guy]

6 hours ago, Bo1953 said:

I refer to that as learning curve, too fast too late!

 

Apparently, they did not know or did not want their children to participate in the Camp...

 

bon voyage

Boot Camp, instead? Perhaps? Something my parents would have registered me for. Go figure.

[DingoMom]

Great thoughts. Most of the time, we have not had issues on X with kids. But we sure did on one cruise. We also sailed on Celebrity on a 'holiday' cruise in South America. X had advertised heavily in the SA market: they permitted 2 adults to pay 'full fare' and then they could bring as many kids that would fit in the cabin for $100 each. IT WAS A DISASTER, but nobody responded when many of us wrote letters after the cruise. I have never seen the 'pack' mentality of the kids that I saw on that cruise, and the Total lack of parenting. Kids running laps around the OVC (dodging adults on walkers and servers with heavy trays). Kids in the casino (doing cartwheels in the aisle) and sitting on their parents' laps while the parent was gambling. Kids in lounges at all hours -- yelling at full volume. Elevators out of service because packs of kids repeatedly smeared food (and worse) all over the walls. Kids congregating/sitting on the stairs, making it impossible to pass by. I could go on, but suffice it to say it was awful. For what it's worth, this was a 16-or so night cruise, starting on Dec 24, so most families from the United States don't have that much vacation time off immediately after Christmas. And the four times I tried to talk to parents when their kid was doing something Very dangerous, they pretended they didn't speak English. When we asked some of the managers for assistance, they couldn't help. Several crew members told us this happened every holiday cruise in South America.

Edited March 14, 2019 by DingoMom

[hcat]

We had the same language pretense from the kids on our cruise ...from Miami USA...Here's where it pays to speak more than just one language!

 

  The  Royal C ship staff in our case tried to stem the tide,,,they were just overwhelmed by the chaos and  gen lack of parental control,.,  The well behaved kids  on our roll call suffered ..many activities were cancelled.    We learned a lesson to  check dates,

 

Hoping the kids sail free attracts  family cruisers with  well supervised children  and that our Lord of the Flies experience was a one off!

[cmp702]

I have chosen to sail on celebrity for a couple different reasons.  One of them is that there does tend to be less children onboard.  During certain vacations, my husband and I are just looking for a more "adult" experience.  I'm not sure why so many find this offensive.  We both love children and do look forward to cruising with the children in our family and our friend's children in the future (royal caribbean).  I don't have any expectation that there won't be any kids on celebrity, just that since the cruiseline doesn't have water sides, skating rinks, etc. there does tend to be less.  I don't think this makes me a horrible person.  I'm certainly not intolerant as one poster called another.  Celebrity just tends to be a different atmosphere that I sometimes prefer.  Our next cruise is a weekend one on Rc's Navigator.  We are going with about 12 of our friends and as such, we picked this cruise for the more upbeat and fun atmosphere.  We are traveling with all adults but are really looking forward to laser tag and escape room!  Since this is a cruise over a weekend, I expect there will be a good amount of children on board.  The more the merrier!  I'm sure there is enough fun to be had by all.  The way some of you posters lash out at people who prefer a more adult vacation kind of makes me rethink wanting to be on a ship with a bunch of a-hole adults though LOL 

Edited March 14, 2019 by cmp702

[DrBunsenHoneydew]

Not sure I have much more constructive to add to this topic.  But I'll weigh in regardless...

We started cruising X on our honeymoon cruise.  Now 7 years and two kids later, having experienced HAL, Princess, and NCL, mainly due to price considerations, really have decided that X best matches our taste and cruising style.  We're fortunately willing and able to pay more for the privilege, but have been thrilled to see the most recent Kids Sail Free promotion which has been a rarity for X in the past. 

 

We've also taken our kids on previous cruises and had nothing but positive experiences, both with fellow cruises and the crew.  I know we've all had bad experiences with "other people's kids", whether on a cruise or a plane or in the local grocery store.  Frankly, I've found just as many rude non-parents as rude oblivious parents who don't seem to keep their kids under control.    Rude, discourteous people everywhere you go, and it's admittedly hard not to let them ruin your vacation.  

 

I'll also provide some reassurance:  even with X's KSF promotion, it's still WAY more expensive than your Carnival or NCL party barges.  I'll selfishly believe that the type of parents who prefer Celebrity also have the type of kids you won't mind having on your vacation.  You'll be fine.  And come say hi to my kids when you see them.  We're on 3 cruises booked in the next 12 months.  If they're out of line, you have every right to come tell us and we'll ensure they don't ruin your vacation. :)  

 

Happy Cruising! 

[lovey1103]

Sis and I cruised in January with very few children aboard.  There was a small child around 1 year old who was very tolerant of dinner.  Just as soon as he started to squack the parents would immediately remove him an come back after they satisfied his issue.  Not a problem at all.

I do prefer cruising with few children, however, anytime there have been kids on past cruises they have been well behaved and darling.

It all starts with the parents, setting expectations for those that understand and taking responsibility for your kids.  I think Celebrity passengers submit to this.

[wytygr8]

Children are great so long as they have been taught to be neither seen nor heard.

[DebInAntigua]

On 3/12/2019 at 8:52 PM, jaapie said:

We are not children haters, we have children who are now adults. I have plenty of patience with teenagers doing stuff like pushing all the elevator buttons, etc. (I have sons and remember what they got up to when they were that age). What we can't stand is when we are trying to have a nice meal in the evening and a baby or 2 or 3 year old is having a hissy fit and screaming and spoiling the evening for dozens of people while the parents often just let the children carry on crying and whining, the parents should have the consideration to leave the dining room and take the children to the buffet or put them to bed (the kids are probably tired anyway) and then getting room service for themselves in the cabin. 

 

Exactly this. My husband and I sailed on Equinox last year and saw very few children. Yet several times at lunch and even one specialty dinner we were subjected to very noisy little ones. The parents didn’t seem to care. Got so bad one time that we asked the waiter to move mid-meal so we could finish our lunch. I was ready to walk out that day if we couldn’t be moved because the children were so disruptive. 

[Bo1953]

8 hours ago, cmp702 said:

I have chosen to sail on celebrity for a couple different reasons.  ------------------------

 

 The way some of you posters lash out at people who prefer a more adult vacation kind of makes me rethink wanting to be on a ship with a bunch of a-hole adults though LOL 

I really want to inject that you are really under the mistaken thought that CC represents the universe of passengers on X, as such your last sentence is really out of line, here.

 

As well, like myself and others who choose to sail X can research beforehand to find out the demographics of ANY ship/line we choose sail.

 

If it is an 'all ages' welcome, nix it and move on!

 

I accept ones desire(s) on how to sail, as one needs to accept how others sail. If it is not acceptable, then ..... I guess, complain.

 

As for not wanting to sail with 'Us' bunch from CC, just let us know or better yet, we can let you know when and where we are sailing and you can move your sailing. Sounds fair and save you the agita?

 

I do not consider X ships to be floating Cloisters, yet.

 

bon voyage

Edited March 14, 2019 by Bo1953

[mfs2k]

Suggestion. If you really don’t like dining around young children eat dinner as late as possible. Most parents of young kids prefer to eat early. 

[bajathree]

24 minutes ago, mfs2k said:

Suggestion. If you really don’t like dining around young children eat dinner as late as possible. Most parents of young kids prefer to eat early. 

While that is generally true I have found a few exceptions to this theory over different lines.  Sailings with lots Europeans tend to dine late with families....suite and specialty dining rooms also often seem to be another that are somewhat exempt to this. The most annoying honestly I have found are family lines like Royal in suite dining....seems like most (not stereotyping) parents in big suites paying big money seem to think they and their kids can do whatever they want....feeling of entitlement.

[DebInAntigua]

1 hour ago, mfs2k said:

Suggestion. If you really don’t like dining around young children eat dinner as late as possible. Most parents of young kids prefer to eat early. 

 

Unfortunately that doesn’t work well for us physically. Both husband and I need to eat early whenever possible. Crossing fingers there are no loud, screaming kids this November on our two cruises. 

[cmp702]

1 hour ago, Bo1953 said:

I really want to inject that you are really under the mistaken thought that CC represents the universe of passengers on X, as such your last sentence is really out of line, here.

 

As well, like myself and others who choose to sail X can research beforehand to find out the demographics of ANY ship/line we choose sail.

 

If it is an 'all ages' welcome, nix it and move on!

 

I accept ones desire(s) on how to sail, as one needs to accept how others sail. If it is not acceptable, then ..... I guess, complain.

 

As for not wanting to sail with 'Us' bunch from CC, just let us know or better yet, we can let you know when and where we are sailing and you can move your sailing. Sounds fair and save you the agita?

 

I do not consider X ships to be floating Cloisters, yet.

 

bon voyage

I was out of line?? I was kidding, hence the LOL.  But you kinda proved my point about people getting so offended......I understand that it is all ages welcome.  But there is simply less children.  Where am I going wrong here?? I am not complaining about anything.  You have very much seemed to miss my point.  Sigh. 

[cgolf1]

42 minutes ago, bajathree said:

While that is generally true I have found a few exceptions to this theory over different lines.  Sailings with lots Europeans tend to dine late with families....suite and specialty dining rooms also often seem to be another that are somewhat exempt to this. The most annoying honestly I have found are family lines like Royal in suite dining....seems like most (not stereotyping) parents in big suites paying big money seem to think they and their kids can do whatever they want....feeling of entitlement.

Its funny I was chatting about this topic on a Disney Cruise forum this morning. What we observed on Disney was that it seemed that early seating was busier, but there were many families that liked the late seating. We are from the Midwest and prefer early seating, eat between 5 and 6 at home. Have noticed the few times we visited the northeast that they seemed to run on a later time schedule for everything including food. The funny thing we noticed noticed when we walked past the late seating on Disney was how many kids were falling asleep during the meal;)

 

Being new to X and sailing their first ship aimed at a different target audience, it will be interesting to see where it all goes. The Edge and the revolution has definitely brought out strong opinions in a lot of folks it seems, makes for interesting reading;)

[deliver42]

Just because they have a kids sail free promotion, it doesn't mean the ships will be loaded with kids. Celebrity just doesn't offer what Royal, Carnival, NCL, or Disney do for kids to enjoy, and most patents are looking to keep the kids happy. 

[Bo1953]

11 minutes ago, cmp702 said:

I was out of line?? I was kidding, hence the LOL.  But you kinda proved my point about people getting so offended......I understand that it is all ages welcome.  But there is simply less children.  Where am I going wrong here?? I am not complaining about anything.  You have very much seemed to miss my point.  Sigh. 

My profound apologies for the mis-que...

 

I was wrong to respond as I did.

 

I have no valid reason for missing it.

 

bon voyage

Edited March 14, 2019 by Bo1953

[TeeRick]

19 hours ago, Bo1953 said:

Actually, they are American who happen to live in PR...

 

Like I happen to live in NJ, currently.. LOL

 

Thank you and bon voyage

Bo this has turned into one of those all over the place threads.  Is NJ part of the US? LOL!!

[Bo1953]

Just now, TeeRick said:

Bo this has turned into one of those all over the place threads.  Is NJ part of the US? LOL!!

t - sometimes I wonder... sometimes I really really wonder!

 

bon voyage

[bajathree]

11 minutes ago, deliver42 said:

Just because they have a kids sail free promotion, it doesn't mean the ships will be loaded with kids. Celebrity just doesn't offer what Royal, Carnival, NCL, or Disney do for kids to enjoy, and most patents are looking to keep the kids happy. 

Absolutely agree 😉

Unless they start adding waterslides...rockfalls and the bells and whistles that cater to families with kids and teens I don't think there is anything to worry about...very little to attract kids to Celebrity..my kids hated celebrity when they were young...lol

Edited March 14, 2019 by bajathree

[TeeRick]

The next thing that somebody will post is that the strange sewerage smell on Edge is from small children with dirty diapers!

[mafig]

Well I am so glad I'm reading this thread.  I was thinking of a cruise around New Year's for DH's birthday.  I totally forgot about these holiday sailings having a lot of children.  I will remind myself to do more research.  

 

One year we cruised Celebrity during Easter week.  We booked Aqua even though DH doesn't really like Blu because we thought it would shield us, somewhat, from a lot of children.  Turned out the whole ship had less than 30 kids!

 

 

[Kellerb]

It's interesting how some posters (perhaps kidding, perhaps not) are commenting as if even the sight of a child will ruin their experience - whether well behaved or not.

 

My children travel quite a bit and will be well behaved.  We also are getting them their own room (connecting balcony rooms) as we don't want to cram 4 in a room, so we aren't getting the kids travel free benefits.  That being said we are paying a lot of money and they have the same right to have fun as any adult.   They will be playing basketball on the open court and likely making noise doing so, spending time in the hot tubs, enjoying themselves, etc.