Multigenerational cruising advice please

[Princess Jessie]

Hi, we are looking to treat our 4 adult children + their families on a cruise. We have been on Celebrity once about 8 years ago and for many reasons we were disappointed. Holland America has become our go to having done over 10 cruises with them. So we are experienced cruisers. Holland America is definitely not geared up to young babies / toddlers and we have found 2-3 itineraries with Celebrity that could work.

They are on the Celebrity Reflection and Silhouette which I understand are sister ships - so presumably pretty identical in facilities.

 

I have been trawling the internet, boards and forums and I am not getting any answers.

Can anyone please advise me how suitable they feel these two ships would be for a large family with ages ranging from 1yr - 4yrs /mid 30's & late 50's?

Are their kids clubs good ? and suitable for those age groups? Are they free? 

Do they have a splash pool for babies? 

Are they accommodating in the MDR for a) a large group 10 adults 5 babies?

Any insight that I can be given would be great. I don't want to book this and find it is a disaster. For my children's spouses it will be their first time cruising so I want to get it right and not put them off it for life!

 

Thank you in advance

[chemmo]

No splash pool and children who are not fully toilet trained are not allowed in the pool. No swimming diapers allowed.  I think the youngest age for kids clubs is 3 (fully toilet trained). This is free. Hopefully someone can confirm this. They do have a babysitter service (additional charge) that covers up to 3 children (hopefully someone else will also confirm). I think parents and under threes have some set access time to the children’s club area but a  parent must stay with the children.

 

I am fairly sure the largest MDR table is 10 or 12 so you would need two tables. To be honest a table for 15 would be difficult for anyone to converse at...Two tables for 8 would work better and you could rotate table mates. I also think the tables for 8 are circular so more social.

 

I honestly wonder if you may be better looking at Royal Caribbean...Their Oasis class ships have a great splash zone for children, a carousel, parades, a ‘junior’ crazy golf and much more. It was our preferred line when our son was young. You would need to check on the ages for the children’s club I really cannot remember...

 

They also have several rooms designed for multigenerational/larger groups. As these rooms are classed as suites and receive suite perks you may find you have some sharing options at a similar collective price to separate cabins....Worth browsing...

 

The ambience on RC is more lively, there are more activities and they are more geared up for very young children. Some of the shows are exciting for young children too like the Aqua theatre show and the ice show. On the negative side we find the food less good, O.K. but not as good as Celebrity.

 

If all the children were over 3 and toilet trained I would not hesitate to recommend Celebrity but especially if you are looking at a hot weather cruise I think the little ones would love the splash zone on RC.

 

Reflection and Silhouette are both lovely ships...Lots of dining options and a really relaxing atmosphere...I just wonder if they are the best option with five very young children. I don’t wish to put you off but I do suggest you do some YouTube research before making a booking.

 

Whatever you choose I hope you have a fantastic family holiday!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[gold1953]

Bothe ships are very good. Reflection is newer.

Dining room max for a table is 10 so you will need 2 tables

No splash pools and only children who are 100% toilet trained are allowed in pools . No swim diapers allowed

[oneputt18]

I would seriously consider Royal Caribbean as an alternative. They are geared to accommodate younger children. 

[waterbug123]

Definitely would echo other posters who suggest RC, given the very young ages of the children.  In addition to kids clubs, most (but not all, as I recall) have a splash zone for babies, and some have a nursery for the kids who are too young for the kids club.)

[Georgia_Peaches]

I feel Celebrity may be too subdued for your group.  As others have mentioned, the young children activities are limited, but IMO so are the activities for your 30-somethings.  Night life on Celebrity is pretty quiet after 9 PM.  RCC is a good option.  You also may have some luck with NCL.

[Algebralovr]

I’m in my 50s, my kids are mid-late 20s.    No grands yet.
My rule is that if I’m paying, I choose what I like.

 

My kids are perfectly happy on Celebrity.  They take a book or 3 on their kindle, we take some card games, we have a good time as a family.

 

With kids that young, they will be happy with family attention.  You can bring a little blow up pool and set it up a little away, dip a couple of buckets of water into it, and dump it in one of the pool-side showers when finished playing.  The pool butlers will often help.  

[Jeremiah1212]

Celebrity will be comparable to HAL. If you don’t think your family would enjoy HAL, Celebrity is not your pick. I would definitely consider RCL or NCL. From the sound of your wants and needs, Celebrity isn’t best at offering the mix you are looking for. Royal and Norwegian both have a wider variety of activities for adults and children. Celebrity does have small kids clubs but there is nothing in the way of splash pads or pools geared toward children on any Celebrity ship. 

[bEwAbG]

The toilet training thing is applicable to all cruise lines as it is a health regulation.  No diapers (even "swim diapers") are allowed on splash pads or pools on most ships.  That is definitely true for Royal, Carnival, HAL, and NCL.  I think Disney is one of the few that allow them on some of the splash pads (but not the pools).

 

The age limit for Royal's kids club also starts at 3 years old.  They do have some scheduled activities for kids younger than that, but, like Celebrity, an adult has to be there with them.  I don't know the policy for every cruise line but suspect it's similar.  Just a fact of life that most cruise ships are not really geared to kids younger than 3.  That doesn't mean you cannot go--just that expectations need to be set accordingly.  When you decide on a line or two, read the specifics for their rules.

 

There is also a forum here on Cruise Critic that should have some useful info related to family cruises:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/28-family-cruises/

Edited January 17, 2020 by bEwAbG

[Tulsacoker]

RC or Carnival in my opinion 

[phabric]

Princess is having their Best Ever Sale - perks, Premier Beverage package, tips, WIFI per person until Feb 29, 2020.  Check out their cruises, these perks are a great benefit.

 

Children have to be out of diapers to use the pools and toilet trained in the kid club in all the cruise lines.

 

Dining room tables holds max 10.  When we had 16 on a cruise, we had 2 tables close to each other.

Edited January 17, 2020 by phabric

[fellesferie]

My folks introduced us to Celebrity, and all our cruises have been multi-generational. My parents are 60s/70s, my husband and I are late 30s, and our kids were 5 and 11 on their first Celebrity cruise. 

 

The kids have always enjoyed Celebrity. They LOVE to cruise. But my oldest (15 now) has friends who have cruised on Royal Caribbean, and he thinks they have a better time and the ships are more oriented towards fun stuff for them. Mine have always managed to find a friend or two on the ship.

 

My husband and I aren't the type for bars/clubs/nightlife, so the entertainment and atmosphere on Celebrity is okay. We go to some shows and events, go to the martini bar for a drink, or talk a walk around the ship. We're fine playing a board game or watching Netflix back in the cabin if there is nothing interesting on the schedule. Sometimes it feels a little boring, but we travel for the ports more for the cruise anyway. That's just us, though. 

 

 

[Princess Jessie]

Thank you everyone for all your really helpful comments. 
I did think Celebrity would be an echo of HAL... which although we are well below the average age in the scheme of things we ourselves are not interested in party atmosphere!

However to be fair to my adult kids and most certainly the babies I definitely want something that they will love and want more of!

I knew the situation re pools and diapers.. which is fine as the 3 oldest 2 x3 1x4 are trained.
the 2yr old might be .. not sure.. but the 1yr definitely won’t. 
RC do have on their v large ships a tiny splash zone for babies in nappies/diapers. Probably their ships + Disney the only ones.

i will now focus my efforts on RC and thank you everyone for taking the time to respond.

Much appreciated.

 

 

[Fouremco]

DW and I have done all of our cruising on HAL and Celebrity, except for one family cruise in 2017 with the kids and grandkids, a total of twelve ranging from 19 months to mid-70's. RCI was our immediate choice and we never regretted it, the biggest problem being trying to determine which ship and itinerary. The group decision was the Allure of the Seas, and everyone loved it.

[Princess Jessie]

Thank you .. yes you are confirming my thoughts.

[MEcruzr]

Have you considered Disney? I  know adults who choose it... and love it. I'm sure they are used to large families and small kiddos, too!

[downsmead]

As an aside, I think P&O kids clubs do something for 2years and above.