Cruising With Kids Noordam 2/17/07??

[mommybunny21]

Is anyone cruising with their children on the Noordam 2/17/07. NY schools are out that week and I should think the ship would be full of families??I'm about to book it myself bc the port is so convenient but I'm nervous about HAL's reputation for not being child friendly.

[the2ofus]

I wouldn't hesitate to book the Noordam. As HAL's latest/newest ship, built to attract the family market, it has all the HAL bells and whistles re: child facilities and children's programs. Since this is likely to be a week with many children aboard, Club HAL staffing should be at their best ratios.

 

Why do you believe that HAL is not child-friendly?

[FoxyTerrier]

Check the HAL roll call boards for that date. You'll get more information over there regarding who is cruising that week.

[Old As Dirt Mom]

Is anyone cruising with their children on the Noordam 2/17/07. NY schools are out that week and I should think the ship would be full of families??I'm about to book it myself bc the port is so convenient but I'm nervous about HAL's reputation for not being child friendly.

 

 

Mommy Bunny:

 

I can't address your concerns about travelling on HAL from New York, as I live on the west coast. However, I can tell you that once you have booked a HAL cruise, you can call their Ship's Services at 1-800-541-1576 and ask them to provide you with the numbers of children on your cruise. They will break down the categories by age: 3-7, 8-12, 13-17, as this is the age breakdown of their Club HAL program. Of course, the closer you are to your departure date, the more accurate the count will be.

 

We are taking our two daughters on two HAL cruises this year. Our daughters' ages are 7 and 17 for the first cruise, and then 8 and 17 for the second cruise. The first cruise is a 7-day round trip to Alaska from Seattle during the second half of August. As of one month ago, we had 128 children booked onboard ages 3-17 for that cruise. The second cruise is a Holiday 14-day Caribbean/Partial Panama Canal transit in December. So far, there are almost 50 youngsters between the ages of 8-17 booked onboard. (I didn't ask about the 3-7 age group for that cruise,as my children won't be in that group).

 

Bottom line, you won't find the large numbers of young people on HAL that you might on some other lines. But you will find an organized program available to you and your children. It's called Club HAL, and there are dedicated spaces and staff on Noordam for both children and teens. Good luck, and I hope you find a good fit for you and your family.:)