Teenage Daughter

[jaxhappy]

We will be going on our third cruise and want this one to be about our daughter. The past cruises she was not a teenager and she will be 16 on our next. What line/ship would you recommend for the Western Caribbean with her in mind?

 

Thanks

 

Jaxhappy

[L2J]

We will be going on our third cruise and want this one to be about our daughter. The past cruises she was not a teenager and she will be 16 on our next. What line/ship would you recommend for the Western Caribbean with her in mind?

 

Thanks

 

Jaxhappy

HUH? Why don't you broach this subject with her? Does she even want to do a Western itinerary and has she even looked at other lines? NCL has a good western with Cozumel, GC and Ocho.

[bombero]

I suggest the same.. Why don't you let her explore the Carnival, Holland America, and Princess web sites and let her choose, if you want this one to be her's... Bombero :)

 

Happy Sailing.....

[LadySpoilt]

We will be going on our third cruise and want this one to be about our daughter. The past cruises she was not a teenager and she will be 16 on our next. What line/ship would you recommend for the Western Caribbean with her in mind?

 

Thanks

 

Jaxhappy

Jaxhappy,

As a parent of 2 sons (slightly passed teenagers now) I would definately suggest Carnival. My sons prefer Carnival to RCL. I'd suggest any of the bigger Carnival ships that go Western.

Spoilt

[mikkire]

I'm having a bit of the same problem, my husband and I have cruised three times before, but for my daughter's graduation (June 2005) this will be our first "family" cruise. My 15 year old and my 7 year old will have plenty of things to do, but my 18 year old is afraid that she'll be bored. Any suggestions?

[selucrey]

I'm having a bit of the same problem, my husband and I have cruised three times before, but for my daughter's graduation (June 2005) this will be our first "family" cruise. My 15 year old and my 7 year old will have plenty of things to do, but my 18 year old is afraid that she'll be bored. Any suggestions?

 

Do Carnival,your daughter(s) will have a great time!

[basketsiam]

I would recommend choosing a ship that has a separate teen disco. The Conquest class ships on Carnival are an example. Many of the ships (including the Triumph and Victory) use the adult disco earlier in the evening for the teenagers, then make them leave at 11:00 or so for the adults. Kids over 18 are allowed in the adult disco and the casino, but the teenagers 17 and under are left to roam the ship. The ships with separate teen discos have dance parties for the teens until later in the evening..... Gives them something to do. :)

[serene56]

I'm having a bit of the same problem, my husband and I have cruised three times before, but for my daughter's graduation (June 2005) this will be our first "family" cruise. My 15 year old and my 7 year old will have plenty of things to do, but my 18 year old is afraid that she'll be bored. Any suggestions?

 

 

I dont think your daughter will be bored. My kids sailed at that age for their first cruise. Today there will be no other kinds of vacation as crusing is the only way they want to travel now. They had a great time. Slept in very late in the morning-except port days and were out all hours of the night-1-2am.

[Snowball]

I agree - the Conquest Class ships seem to be the Carnival ships that have the most to offer for teens. When we sailed on the Miracle in May, my daughter was somewhat disappointed because they didn't have a teen club on that ship (she still had a great time), and she is really looking forward to utilizing the teen club during our cruise on the Valor next year.

 

As for your 18 year old, if you sail in June there will probably be plenty of other cruisers her age for her to hang around with - I don't think she'll be bored.

[sea_u_onboard]

The Conquest is a great choice. The teen disco is nice for the younger ones and the 18 and older crowd can enjoy the main disco.

 

She will meet PLENTY of others her own age. You'll be kucky if you she her - although personnally I would recommend that you stick together on the islands. I wouldn't want to worry about her missing the ship. We will be going BACK on the Conquest next July - my son will just have turned 18 and although I'm all for him having fun - I want us to stick together on the islands.

 

I'm not sure if drinking is an issue - Yeah or Nay - and it really isn't anyones business but you and your teenagers. The drinking age on RCL is 18 - while it is 21 on Carnival. I will say that even with a drinking age of 21 the younger ones seemed to be able to get alcohol (I'm talking 18 or so) and with it being 18 on RCL it's even easier (I saw kids as young as 15 drunk). I was very concerned about the fact that the age is 18 on RCL (son was 17 at the time). I anticipated that the accessablity to alcohol would be easier - and it was - we had a LONG talk about this one. On Carnival it is harder for the younger ones to get access. And of course on the islands the drinking age is 18 - but they will serve JUST about anyone. Just something to think about when deciding between the two lines.

 

ANYHOW - the Conquest is great and she will find PLENTY to do and PLENTY of new friends. My son still keeps in contact with friends he met on the last 3 cruises. You may want to make up some "business cards" with her name and email addy (if she has one) so she can give them to all her new friends.

[Snowball]

Another suggestion - if you are worried about possibly being bored on the ship, try to pick an itinerary that is more port intensive, so there will be less days at sea to fill up with activities. My hubby gets bored with too many sea days, so we picked the Western itinerary for the Valor next June because it has 4 port days and 2 sea days, which is perfect for him.

 

If you are interested in maybe sailing on the Valor next June, you should check out the Valor Voyagers group that is sailing on 6/12/05. For details (pricing, itinerary, deposits, etc) just click on the link in my signature, or click on Member Cruises on the toolbar at the top of the page. We have great pricing and amenities for this cruise, especially since it is during peak season.

 

Either way, have fun planning your trip. :)

[cruisekimmy]

Do Carnival!!My daughters Love it!!We did the Elation out of Galveston it was our 3rd cruise!!we went July 18-25!!But we had a prob. in belize it was a transpertation strike there so insted we sailed to Playa del Carmen!!it was beautiful!!So far the Elation is their favorite ship!But now they want to go on a bigger ship..!!Which will prob. be the Conquest out of New Orleans!

 

Carnival is right about"Carnivals got the Fun!!"

[mrsneurotic]

Never thought I'd say this, but, here goes..."bring a friend for you children." We had a WONDERFUL trip together on our cruise in May...but my children and my husband and I agree, next time they will bring guests. My kids are well behaved, as are their friends, and I think we'll have a blast. Their friends are always talking about, "...when we go to Chichen Itza.." with us, or "...when we go cave tubing in Belize...". We are all looking forward to another adventure in the Western Car. Just our family's suggestion, though.

[dmdiver]

we sailed carnival's elation in august with our 11, 16 & 19 year olds. the teens hung out together and met other kids in their age range (about 10 of them). they stayed out till 1-2 am on sea days, turning in a bit earlier when we were going into port. they made a videotape, mostly a ship tour, but also interviewed a few of their buddies that they met. they had a blast.

[jaxhappy]

Well, thanks to everyones input it has been decided, with a lot of input from our daughter, that we will sail on the Valor, June 12. Now the the real problems of my wife and daughter shopping and my not being able to wait begin. Thanks again to all of your help.

 

Jaxhappy, much happier now!

[Snowball]

jaxhappy - What a great decision, so book for the Valor's 6/12/05 sailing!!! :D Are you already booked? Did you book on your own, or through our group? If you booked on your own, you should check out our group prices in case you want to join our group instead, plus every cabin gets a $150 shipboard credit. :cool: Either way, feel free to join in our roll call and group board info - just click on the link in my signature for the roll call. :)

[jaxhappy]

Snowball - If my calculations are correct booking through your group is going to save me over $500, with the credit, on a 8a, that's like a no brainer. I do have one ?. What is the difference in the various 8 catagories? Otherwise, Where do I sign up?

[Snowball]

I agree - our group rate is fantastic, especially with the $150 shipboard credit. :D The only difference between the 8A, 8B, 8C, etc. is what deck they are on - the cabins themselves are all the same. The higher the letter, the higher the deck. So 8A is on deck 6, 8B is on deck 7, etc. The cabins and balcony sizes are all the same, so unless you want to be in a certain location, I would just book an 8A. Who knows, you might end up being upgraded to a higher deck anyway. :)

 

Since you are booking with my group, I will expect your participation in our roll call & group boards. :p Just kidding, but I think it is so much fun having other people going on the same cruise to share in the fun and planning! :D Please make sure you stop by our roll call thread and let us know when you are officially booked - we have been listing our "get to know you" info on there. On our group board we have thread for the different ports of call, hotels, and airfare information.

 

Here is a link to our roll call thread, group board, and where you can find the travel agent info on who to call to book this cruise. Let me know if you have any questions. :)