Non smoking and Non children ..........

[SantaAna,CA]

Hi all, interesting question and I'd certainly jump on a cruise with no smoking and no children. I had a Silversea cruise booked to the Seychelles November of 2007 but decided to cancel it. A little too expensive for me...and airfare was going to kill me! Too bad; I would have loved that itinerary, and trying out Silversea, too.

 

Sailed on Seabourn's Legend in April of this year for two weeks to the Caribbean, smokers never bothered me (except the clinging odor in my cabin, you could smell it....I had actually brought along several stick air fresheners and they worked great!). There were a few children on board, and I got a little tired of the kids in the pool. The pool is so small anyway...and they were in it, it seemed, almost every time I went out there. Also on movie night (on deck), a couple of them were running around and around, as kids are wont to do, not even watching the movie. Seabourn is so NOT a ship for small children, I couldn't figure it.

 

P.S. I'm chagrined you think American children are the worst behaved. I have no children, but I cringe at the truth of that statement!

 

Jane from California :)

[Arteest]

Jane,

 

Thx for the idea! I am going get a few fresheners or infusers myself! My nose is pretty sensitive, so it's great idea. It's not as if this is going to be a one night stay!

As for the kids, I can't imagine how bored they'd be anyway. When the Freedom was on the Today show this past month, my kids said that was the only type of cruise they's want to take...who'd blame them!

[Sarahjb001]

This makes perfect sense to me. Some would be turned off by "no children" but certain cruises which did not allow children is a great idea. I love children, have two of my own, but truly enjoy a night out, or a vacation without them. The worst, is when we go without them, then have to listen to, and put up with others' children instead. :)

[mistrtj]

...right from the SS info desk:

 

"Thank you for your e-mail!

Yes, cigar smoking is allowed on the balcony, but not in the suites.

Best Regards

Information Desk at Silversea"

:D :D :D :D :D

 

 

[Jim Avery]

I certainly agree that there needs to be a ship line with the fortitude to offer a number of kid free cruises. After all, if ship lines can offer "Gay/Lesbian" cruises which must certainly cause some prospective passengers to pass up those cruises, how bad could a kid free cruise now and then hurt things? In my opinion, the line that starts certain kid free sailings will see a positive response. Those who must take precious everywhere will still be able to book that line and the rest of us will be able to count on at least that one amenity, no kids.

All the best.

Jim.

[Legal Cruiser]

I have resisted reading this thread for months as I knew it would only irritate me.

 

My wife and I (Brits) are Silversea regulars having also sailed on Seabourn, Seadream and others at the small luxury end of the cruise market.

 

Our children love Silversea and Silversea loves them (as do every single passenger we have ever spoken to and believe me on (for example) a Transatlantic crossing (2 with the children) there is no possibility that we would not have heard negative feedback)). Also through Silversea contacts we have made over the years we know that independent feedback has also been 100% positive about our children.

 

Our children are now 13 (boy) and 10 (girl) but have been on the line for years. They are well on their way to free laundry, and love every minute of each cruise. They are the backbone of Team Trivia - and major on the Harry Potter questions and the like. They are much in demand to join a team (not always our own) and have even been on the stage, and helped out entertain.

 

They do what all (good) Silversea cruisers do - relaxe, enjoy the atmosphere, talk to other passengers (when spoken to) otherwise keep themselves to themselves (shuffleboard, DVDs, dinner in the restaurant on their own or with us - attend the Venetian Society party etc).

 

Children are not a problem on Silversea. On almost every cruise our children have been the only children, and children do not behave like (badly behaved) children unless on mass. There are families on board at Christmas and New Year - but is that not all part of the experience? You have to be pretty sad to suggest that families should be split up at such times of the year. This Easter the crew laid on an Easter Egg hunt for our children, and the adults joined in and enjoyed it tremendously.

 

Also the crew react very positively to having a small number of children on board and are all the happier and more attentive to other passengers as a result.

 

Our children have their own suite, and few people are going to pay for (effectively) two holidays (ie two suites) unless their children are sensible and are going to enjoy the small ship experience.

 

So please do not be put off by the thought that there might be the odd well behaved child on Silversea on your cruise. You might well be pleasantly surprised.

 

And as we only have a few days to go until we are back on board with the children, we look forward to meeting new friends for us and for our children, as we always have, and hope we always will.

 

Legal Cruiser

[goeurope]

Nice post, Legal Cruiser. I'd also like to comment on something that another poster said earlier:

 

>>After all, if ship lines can offer "Gay/Lesbian" cruises which must certainly cause some prospective passengers to pass up those cruises, how bad could a kid free cruise now and then hurt things?<<

 

Gay/lesbian cruises may be promoted to one segment of the population, but they don't exclude other sements, unless the cruises are charters. The proposed "kid-free" cruises, on the other hand, would exclude a whole segment of the population.

 

Still, who knows? Maybe there's a market for exclusionary cruises. How about a "no Republicans" or "no Democrats" cruise? Or a "nobody under 60" or a "nobody over 50" cruise? Or a "no sports talk" cruise during the Super Bowl for people who are sick of hearing about football? Or a "no alcohol" cruise for people who are on the wagon, don't like drunks, or want to be saved the embarrassment of having to look knowledgeable when the sommelier presents the evening's wines?

[tennisbunny]

I must admit that one selling feature for me was that SS is known for having passengers who are perhaps more likely to be at a stage in their lives when they've already raised their children (as is the case for us). This doesn't mean no kids, but perhaps fewer kids will be on board.

 

It's just my opinion, but it seems that the SS itineraries (number of days when you've got kids in school) and price point may make it difficult for many families to be able to enjoy a SS cruise. This being the case, the number of children on board would naturally be fewer.

[goeurope]

As Tennisbunny suggests, there usually aren't a lot of children on board, so the "kids or no kids" question is academic most of the time.

 

Here's something else to consider: Turning one kid away can result in a significant loss of business. My wife and I were on a Silversea cruise that had two family reunions aboard. The total number of children in those families was small, but if the kids hadn't been there, a couple of dozen adults wouldn't have been there, either.

[CASHIPman]

Or a "nobody under 60" ....

 

Saga Cruises?

[simonv]

The children I've encountered on Silversea cruises have been all well- mannered. I had no problem with any of them. I can't say the same for the kids on mass market lines.

[bgop]

I would definitely book a cruise line that had a no children policy. We cruise 2x a year. On one of the cruises we take the children (usually Celebrity). I would not take them on the more upscale lines. The second is for us. Unfortunately hubby smokes so I have to go with cruise lines/hotels that allow it. bgop

[Verystormy]

Two of P&O's ships are permanently no children. For those who dont know the line, they are british and cater more for british tastes, but the ships are very elegant, smaller than those of lines such as RC and Princess and have a reputation for offering very high standards of service.

[beechwood]

We are thinking of a Silverseas cruise this year which will include Thanksgiving (cruise is 12 nights from 16 November). As we are from the UK, could someone please advise whether schools in the US are on vacation over this holiday. We want to minimise the chance of children on board!

[cruisinsince75]

Thanksgiving is on November 23rd. Most schools will be out from 11/18 until 11/26.

[Set2Sail]

OK, so I have stayed away from the boards since my trip in April on the Whisper. Got my Venetian Society membership card yesterday, immediately thanked Mr. Peters or whatever and declined, only to find my mail bounced back from some young chippie on sabbatical till 2007. What?

The whole reason for my distaste with SS was the 48 or whatever children onboard. A few well behaved children, as some of you describe, sound great. That was not the Whisper in San Juan to San Juan.

Anyway...I missed all of you colorful writers and am glad that at least my Venetian letter caused me to get back to the boards and read about all of your wonderful experiences. Especially UK1!

Love,

Jen and Manu

[uk1]

OK, so I have stayed away from the boards since my trip in April on the Whisper. Got my Venetian Society membership card yesterday, immediately thanked Mr. Peters or whatever and declined, only to find my mail bounced back from some young chippie on sabbatical till 2007. What?

The whole reason for my distaste with SS was the 48 or whatever children onboard. A few well behaved children, as some of you describe, sound great. That was not the Whisper in San Juan to San Juan.

Anyway...I missed all of you colorful writers and am glad that at least my Venetian letter caused me to get back to the boards and read about all of your wonderful experiences. Especially UK1!

Love,

Jen and Manu

 

How nice to hear ..... well the last bit anyway.

 

A great shame that a cruise that seems intended for adults is overtaken by what must have felt like a school outing. I would have thought when they named the ship Whisper there might have been some intelligent thought about the impression they might give about what could be expected?!

 

Albert Peters generally delegates answering the customer e-mails and the response has therefore been variable. Why don't you write directly to the owner / chairman? He has a Silversea e-mail address that it would be inappropriate to post but can be guessed if you try. Whilst I don't think he'd welcome being overwhelmed by new pen-pals I promise you for a fact that he is very interested in customer satisfaction - and answers e-mails. He will at least read it even if he passes it on.

 

I predict that if they ban children they would - to what some people might seem perverse - sell more cruises. If you agree - tell him.

[WesW]

Jeff, we were on the same Whisper cruise as Set2Sail and following the advice of our T/A--she wrote on our behalf to SS concerning the poor control of children on the part of the Whisper Crew/CD staff (you may recall this in an earlier post) within two weeks we got a page and half reply, thanking us for our feedback, but SS was not yet ready to ban children...they did give us a $1500 cruise certificate to show us our next sailing would meet SS standards..r/Wes

[uk1]

Jeff, we were on the same Whisper cruise as Set2Sail and following the advice of our T/A--she wrote on our behalf to SS concerning the poor control of children on the part of the Whisper Crew/CD staff (you may recall this in an earlier post) within two weeks we got a page and half reply, thanking us for our feedback, but SS was not yet ready to ban children...they did give us a $1500 cruise certificate to show us our next sailing would meet SS standards..r/Wes

 

I guess the discount certificate is some consolation, but sadly SS have yet to establish in their psyche that many or indeed most of the people that really care about SS aren't after the refund - but genuinely love the heart of the product and want to help it along.

 

There was a post a page or so back with someone clearly irritated about the suggestion that they and their Johny should have the right to go anywhere they choose and if my memory is correct took umbrage at the suggestion that there should be a choice for all people - not just parents. I think - again from recollection there was a belief that all children were well behaved and that people who wanted a cruise without them were somehow horrible. As you saw - I posted the OP but didn't respond.

 

There's cruises for pensioners, singles, gays, Germans, etc etc. There's loads of cruises for people with kids - in fact 99% of cruises and I have no objection to well behaved children. But I'm an experienced parent - and now I've done my time - I don't want to share in the joy of other peoples brats. I want a quiet pool. I want a quiet restaurant. I don't want the same kid dashing through the same slamming door completing the 29th circuit of the ship and screaming into his walky talky. I don't want the screaming. I don't want the arguments about broccoli. In essence I want a child free cruise. If I don't get it - then they won't get me - I'll simply do something else.

 

That's my personal opinion of course. Not surprisingly - my profession brings me into intimate contact with customer feedback and requirements including now those who travel on cruise lines. There is a place for fine people that cannot face another cruise ruined by a single or a group of brats including their horrible parents who think that we are all obligated to accept that "kids will be kids" and "we all have to smile at their antics".

 

The chairman of SS has a young family and he indulges them when they are taken on SS cruises. They have staff to insulate him to an extent from them. I guess the battle is therefore lost on SS. However the requirement isn't lost on others and I'm pleased to say that "others" are seriously considering an up-market child-free small ship experience.

 

Jeff

[Jim Avery]

Hi Jeff:

I know you have seen similar posts on Seabourn and SeaDream boards covering this same subject. This does not come up on the mass market boards as one expects families with their rug rats on those ships. We, like you, exactly want the marketed product of the high end lines. That product is inconsistent with children and the kiddie experience. We also want a child free holiday, having raised our own, and are willing to pay for it.

One common thread in all the various posts covering the kids on board issue is that if you count the responses, by far the majority do not want to be on a kiddie cruise. Another common thread of all the child centered threads is that the no kids posters always use reasoning and give examples in a calm discussion. The pro kiddies, on the other hand, usually attack the opponents sanity, intellect, morals, or some other rant. Usually ending something like "I will take my children anywhere I please". Very mature. We too have changed our holiday plans when other peoples ill mannered brats are around. Somewhere, some cruise line is going to "get it" and will, in my opinion, prosper.

All the best,

Jim.

[Signor John]

>>One common thread in all the various posts covering the kids on board issue is that if you count the responses, by far the majority do not want to be on a kiddie cruise.<<

 

Stands to reason. On forums (as at public meetings), people who have complaints are more likely to give their opinions than people who are happy with the status quo.

 

>> Another common thread of all the child centered threads is that the no kids posters always use reasoning and give examples in a calm discussion. The pro kiddies, on the other hand, usually attack the opponents sanity, intellect, morals, or some other rant.<<

 

Hmmm....Sounds like you're pretty comfortable with the ad hominem approach yourself. :-)

[uk1]

>>One common thread in all the various posts covering the kids on board issue is that if you count the responses, by far the majority do not want to be on a kiddie cruise.<<

 

Stands to reason. On forums (as at public meetings), people who have complaints are more likely to give their opinions than people who are happy with the status quo.

 

>> Another common thread of all the child centered threads is that the no kids posters always use reasoning and give examples in a calm discussion. The pro kiddies, on the other hand, usually attack the opponents sanity, intellect, morals, or some other rant.<<

 

Hmmm....Sounds like you're pretty comfortable with the ad hominem approach yourself. :-)

 

Father,

 

A contrario.

 

The bit of logic you missed which naturally flows from your opinion - was that when the quiet majority normally hear what you see as an unpopular minority view (ie child free cruises) they normally chorus in a very loud response ie louder than the minority view and drown them out - becuase of their greater numbers.

 

Didn't happen here though! This might indicate that the view isn't such a minority view as you think.

 

Sunt pueri pueri, puerilia tractant

 

Jeff

[tennisbunny]

We are most definitely hoping there will be no more than a few children on board when we set sail from Barbados on October 29th.

 

We did take the time of year into consideration when booking so that it coincided with school being in session.

 

That said, I'm confident that the number of children on board will not negatively influence our vacation! I do believe that attitude has a lot to do with what our experience will be.

[Iamseasick]

It certainly seems that there would be a market for child-free cruising at the high -end. Maybe a compromise of sorts that would allow numerous cruises during the year to be child-free. I think there would be less interest in a totally smoke-free ship.

 

As for allowing children to smoke onboard--I am firmly against it.

[uk1]

It certainly seems that there would be a market for child-free cruising at the high -end. Maybe a compromise of sorts that would allow numerous cruises during the year to be child-free. I think there would be less interest in a totally smoke-free ship.

 

As for allowing children to smoke onboard--I am firmly against it.

 

I'm against children smoking - or even smouldering. I prefer a nice healthy flame.