Screaming children on Regent

[carlylecat]

We learned pretty quickly on the cruise to not engage with the parents or grands about their children's behavior - we watched others and it was not a pretty sight - and to clarify the overboard bread did not fall onto our table but on to the adjacent booth which was unoccupied - we were at a two top next to the unoccupied booth

[wripro]

17 hours ago, westmount said:

As we all agree, its up to the parents of any child to make sure they behave, and in 90% of cases, the parents are more worried about their kids creating havoc than enjoying their holidays. 

  We were quite a large group, with one baby and one five year old amongst 13 rooms, everyone else over 25. I figured there were about ten kids under ten years old on the ship, most very well behaved, and yes, a couple of boys did seem to have fun running around the ship, so be it. 

  Since we wanted the best, we booked Regent, and i guess if they told us no one under 18, we would have found another cruise line, but all in all, I think the large families all controlled their kids very well, the babies cried a bit and were wisked away, and for a christmas cruise, not really a bad mix. 

If you have the luxury to go Regent though, I would stay away from Christmas time etc if you want to avoid any children, or go Viking i gather, there are choices. 

And here lies the problem...."We wanted the best so we booked Regent."  You put your own interests and desires ahead of those of your kids and other passengers. If you considered your kids you'd book an appropriate line for them, not for you. Or leave them at home if the luxury is more important to you.

[forgap]

31 minutes ago, carlylecat said:

We learned pretty quickly on the cruise to not engage with the parents or grands about their children's behavior - we watched others and it was not a pretty sight - and to clarify the overboard bread did not fall onto our table but on to the adjacent booth which was unoccupied - we were at a two top next to the unoccupied booth

Still....how could this be construed as acceptable?  Perhaps the maître d’ should have stepped in.  If Regent can enforce dress codes, they can certainly enforce children’s behavior.  This diminished your enjoyment, as it would mine.  
 

We once had an extended family on a cruise who took over one of the large tables in Compass rose much to the consternation of those sitting adjacent, as they talked loud, played music on their mobile devices and conducted video chats with relatives back home.   We made it a point thereafter to steer clear!  

[RJ2002]

On the Regent website, under "Find a Cruise", click on the "Special Offer" tab, and then you can filter for all the cruises which Regent is marketing as "Special Savings for Kids".  For many of us, those would be the cruises to avoid.  😉

[Hambagahle]

Well --my husband is American (dual national...) and he doesn't tolerate bad behaviour from children either...

[tripperva]

So, does Regent want to be luxury all year or just part of the year ?

[orvil]

If a family group wants to travel in luxury, they can book one of the upper levels on any number of cruise lines that have children's programs and are set up for children.  It's not fair to the kids to expect them to act like well behaved adults.  They must be bored out of their minds.  Rather, put them in a situation that has age appropriate children programs, equipment and staff to handle them.  

 

Regent is not one of those lines.  Why not Disney?  It's what they do.  I have friends who sail on Disney for the very reason that there are children's programs.  They have told me what a good time the entire family has because there is something for everyone, even grandma and grandpa.

 

I travel on Cunard upon occasion.  While you don't see a lot of children aboard expect during holidays, they provide a children's section where they are sequestered from most of the ship.  The luxury lines with smaller ships simply cannot provide these services.  

Edited January 13, 2020 by orvil

[westmount]

There's a difference between not wanting kids on the ship that misbehave and not wanting to hear or see anyone under 18 or 21. there were so many delightful kids who came to dinner dressed properly, ate properly, didn't squirm or fuss. Our year old never made it to the dining room and the five year old was generally happy with scampi and fries in the room, as it seems watching movies in her PJs was more fun than dining with the old folks at 730. 

   If I have one suggestion for everyone, they are called AirPods, noise cancelling AirPods, used them every day on the ship at the pool and they were wonderful. 

  I also didn't really get the benefit of free rooms for the kids, as we paid for double occupancy for the mom and five year old and $$ for the one year old, who didn't go on the free excursions, didn't eat any lobster and didn't get to try the chablis. 

Chill out everyone, the ship was packed, it was busy, there were kids, but not really that many, and if allowed to do it again, I would. As I said earlier, there were adults who acted like children, entitlement is not only for the young, but the staff does a great job in trying to keep everyone happy, always an impossible task, 

[ronrick1943]

8 minutes ago, westmount said:

There's a difference between not wanting kids on the ship that misbehave and not wanting to hear or see anyone under 18 or 21. there were so many delightful kids who came to dinner dressed properly, ate properly, didn't squirm or fuss. Our year old never made it to the dining room and the five year old was generally happy with scampi and fries in the room, as it seems watching movies in her PJs was more fun than dining with the old folks at 730. 

   If I have one suggestion for everyone, they are called AirPods, noise cancelling AirPods, used them every day on the ship at the pool and they were wonderful. 

  I also didn't really get the benefit of free rooms for the kids, as we paid for double occupancy for the mom and five year old and $$ for the one year old, who didn't go on the free excursions, didn't eat any lobster and didn't get to try the chablis. 

Chill out everyone, the ship was packed, it was busy, there were kids, but not really that many, and if allowed to do it again, I would. As I said earlier, there were adults who acted like children, entitlement is not only for the young, but the staff does a great job in trying to keep everyone happy, always an impossible task, 

I tend to agree with you, people have choices-including those with kids.  It's really up to the maître d’ to control any bad behavior whether it's a child or adult. 

[rcandkc]

I don’t agree..I don’t use AirPods and don’t want to.  Parents using them and not understanding the chaos being created is a problem. 

Edited January 14, 2020 by rcandkc

[FlyerTalker]

10 hours ago, tripperva said:

So, does Regent want to be luxury all year or just part of the year ?

 

Whenever it suits the bottom line.

 

Next question?

[Mask-1234]

I would never leave a child alone in a suite or put on noise cancelling devices when the child is present.  I believe Regent does offer Babysitting services for a charge.  This is called responsibility.

[Hambagahle]

We were on a Latin American cruise once (Lima to BA).  The only child on board was about 3.  He was a pure delight.  Extremely well behaved.  Came to dinner every night and on formal nights (this was a long time ago!) he had a blazer and bow tie.   We also had a couple of teens on a Panama Canal cruise.  They were just lovely.  Very very interested in what we were doing/seeing.  Attended all the lectures on the canal.  Asked informed questions.

 

Not all children are brats.  But my goodness some can be...

[gnomie1]

As someone who has traveled with children - let me put in my 2 cents. We have taken young children on a number of Regent cruises and never had a problem, but then again they have been taught from a very young age what is and what is not appropriate behavior and that misbehaving is not an option - we expect them to be on their best behavior at all times, no exceptions. It is the responsibility of the parents/grandparents to ensure that children in their care do not disrupt the enjoyment of anyone else on the ship or anywhere else for that matter. I am also realistic and know that boys have LOTS of energy and they were too young to be allowed into the fitness center. So everyday port day, before or after excursions, we made sure to get off the ship to play and run around.

 

That being said - there are always people looking to complain about children on board, as per the following scenarios:

 

1) as a child, one of the boys was a nationally ranked chess player - he would occasionally sit at the chess board on the Mariner and ask anyone who passed by if they would play a game with him - there was one gentlemen who was very upset and annoyed that a kid beat him each and every time and complained (multiple times) that kids were monopolizing the chess board and  cheating

 

2) the boys have been taught that when a lady leaves or returns to the dining room table, out of respect they are to stand up. One night we were having dinner in Sette Mari and was sharing with table with another couple. Each time a lady got up or returned, they both stood up like proper gentlemen - there were three ladies at the table. Later on in the cruise we overheard people talking that the boys were like "Mexican jumping beans" and had "ants in their pants" and couldn't sit still - constantly standing and sitting, standing and sitting. They were intentionally talking loud enough so that we could hear them - I finally piped in and explained what the children were taught proper manners and etiquette and were showing respect - their response was that I was making excuses for their "bad behavior"

 

Go figure

Edited January 14, 2020 by gnomie1

[wripro]

16 hours ago, westmount said:

There's a difference between not wanting kids on the ship that misbehave and not wanting to hear or see anyone under 18 or 21. there were so many delightful kids who came to dinner dressed properly, ate properly, didn't squirm or fuss. Our year old never made it to the dining room and the five year old was generally happy with scampi and fries in the room, as it seems watching movies in her PJs was more fun than dining with the old folks at 730. 

   If I have one suggestion for everyone, they are called AirPods, noise cancelling AirPods, used them every day on the ship at the pool and they were wonderful. 

  I also didn't really get the benefit of free rooms for the kids, as we paid for double occupancy for the mom and five year old and $$ for the one year old, who didn't go on the free excursions, didn't eat any lobster and didn't get to try the chablis. 

Chill out everyone, the ship was packed, it was busy, there were kids, but not really that many, and if allowed to do it again, I would. As I said earlier, there were adults who acted like children, entitlement is not only for the young, but the staff does a great job in trying to keep everyone happy, always an impossible task, 

So your solution is for everyone else on the ship to wear airpods. The other passengers need to make changes to accommodate your loud screaming kids. I have a better idea. CONTROL  your kids so we don't need to do anything different to enjoy our cruise. 

[carlylecat]

Sorry if I fueled this with my stories -  my point was not to complain but just share - if wripro was on our cruise with their children all in all they were great - all of the children were - even Mr. Bread Overboard sat and played with his video device for an hour or so bothering no one after his parents discovered what he was doing - it was a holiday cruise - there more than likely will be family groups with children - we expected it and were overall pleased with sharing the ship with them - not so sure about asking me to wear sound deafening devices to enjoy my cruise -  maybe that is equivalent to me asking that there be an age limit to the specialty restaurants -  but I think my point was that we understood the environment we were headed into - it really did not disturb our holiday that much at all - but some of the behavior may have had more of an impact to others which is why I outlined it so those that may become upset understand what they would have gotten into if they joined Explorer over the holidays   

[westmount]

This has been rather interesting over the past few days. Firstly, the young kids in our group only joined the cruise two weeks before departure, as the 1 year old was only a couple months old when we booked The cruise and 12 days on a ship was the last thing on the moms mind. 
  Secondly, the AirPods were not to block out any kids noises, but if one doesn’t like hearing outside noises and wants to enjoy their own music, they are great to have. 
  Thirdly,, leaving young kids in their room alone was never mentioned, not sure where that came from. 
lastly, noisy kids at a pool is not the same as noisy kids at dinner. My kids happen to be delightful 30 and 34 years old girls, who happened to be unbelievable when they were young and traveling, with my youngest sleeping a record 14 hours in business class from Hong Kong to LA, a miracle by all standards at the age of five. 
 After reading both sides of this issue, one should know that Regent, Crystal amd Seabourn all have kids during the holiday periods, so plan your holidays around those time frames if you don’t want to see or hear kids. 
  If you want to avoid the kids during those time frames, dine  like a European and eat at 8, don’t sit next to the shallow end of the pool, and find some music on your phone and try those headphones, they’re great. 

[FlyerTalker]

19 minutes ago, westmount said:

If you want to avoid the kids during those time frames, dine  like a European and eat at 8, don’t sit next to the shallow end of the pool, and find some music on your phone and try those headphones, they’re great. 

 

Yep....all our responsibility.

 

Please advise us of your next cruise, so that we can properly pack (those AirPods), get our dining timings adjusted in advance (so we can be used to eating later) and not expect to spend time at the pool.

[westmount]

I was just trying to make light from an impossible situation. There are three companies who basically control the entire cruise industry. If you want to go on a cruise that could conceivably have children under the age of ten, huffing and puffing at the kids or the parents isn't going to make your trip better for anyone, especially you guys. There were no kids at the pool on the 5th floor, nor any kids upstairs on the 12th floor deck. There were no kids at lunch inside at the Veranda Restaurant,  and there were no kids at the bars, the coffee shop nor the spa. 

  In any case, The Regent Explorer and soon Spendor are great ship for older conservative people agreed, but if you drop out on Crystal, Seabourn and Regent waiting for them to ban kids Christmas time etc, you might be waiting a long time, so check out those AirPods, and remember who recommended them to you. 

[Hambagahle]

It is not the screaming children who need to be banned.  It is the parents who allow them to scream!

[tripperva]

"nor any kids upstairs on the 12th floor deck"

 

Wrong! Absolutely wrong. Plus the loud noise from deck 11 kiddy camp in card room came up into the rooms on 12. The poster who keeps arguing for children on Regent could make a lot of people happy by going elsewhere. Just look at  the posts.

[Bellaggio Cruisers]

We are part of the RSSC family. Many cruises. We only sail on Regent unless we are with our kids and grandchildren. We would never take them on Regent because there are other cruise lines that better cater to their needs. If we are taking them, it becomes about their fun, not ours. We just enjoy watching them participate in all the activities, especially designed for them. It’s a special vacation for them, not us. 
sheila and Herb

[wripro]

1 minute ago, Bellaggio Cruisers said:

We are part of the RSSC family. Many cruises. We only sail on Regent unless we are with our kids and grandchildren. We would never take them on Regent because there are other cruise lines that better cater to their needs. If we are taking them, it becomes about their fun, not ours. We just enjoy watching them participate in all the activities, especially designed for them. It’s a special vacation for them, not us. 
sheila and Herb

This is how responsible parents decide on a cruise. They consider their children' needs instead of their own. If you want a small ship luxury line leave the kids home with grandma and grandpa. 

[carlylecat]

2 hours ago, tripperva said:

"nor any kids upstairs on the 12th floor deck"

 

Wrong! Absolutely wrong. Plus the loud noise from deck 11 kiddy camp in card room came up into the rooms on 12. The poster who keeps arguing for children on Regent could make a lot of people happy by going elsewhere. Just look at  the posts.

Westmont - most of us are trying to trying to help you here but you keep burying yourself

 

5th floor coffee station become the preferred kids breakfast dining hall on Tuesday to Thursday,  I don't really know how you can explain the 12 year old with the snorkel mask swimming in the AFT spa pool each day when you say there were no kids on the 5th floor.... 

[Hambagahle]

No one under 16 is supposed to be allowed in the spa!   A 12 yr old with or without a mask should have been told to go away.