Royal Princess with kids?

[kimpatrick]

Hi, We are on the Royal Princess in June from Stockholm to Rome. We will have our 10 and our 13 year old with us. Has anyone been on this ship with kids? How was it? Will anyone be on in June with us with kids?

[Druke I]

I've been on three different R-class ships (Royal Princess is one of the eight in class), and they do not have separate facilities for children like other ships in the Princess fleet.

 

They are lovely ships, but I think children might be bored.

[taxatty]

We were on the ship last summer with then-17 DD. There were two children's counselors on the ship who were pleasant and tried hard to interest the 25 or so teens on board to participate in group activities, but on a port-intensive cruise they'll be spending most of their time with you anyway. The only ship activity she participated in was the late-night disco, but we had only one sea day anyway. The younger kids on our cruise, when we saw them, just seemed to get together for dinner every once in awhile. If you're looking for large scale entertainment with many choices of things to do onboard, babysitting and lots of kids' activities--this isn't the ship. However, we loved everything else about the Royal!

Les

[kimpatrick]

Thanks! We have been on many cruises with the kids but have never been on one of the smaller ships. We are having a hard time finding feedback on the Royal and hardly any feedback from families with kids.(I guess because not many sail her.):) I don't mind the kids being bored at all! I think it will be good for them!:D We are just trying to get an overall picture so we can know what to expect. We are counting the days!!!

[luvnorway]

As previous posters have indicated, RP isn't a typical Princess Ship and isn't geared to kids. Several considerations are:

 

1) it's small size -> kids are more likely to feel 'cooped up' than on larger ships where, not only is there more for them to do (eg MUTS), but also more to explore and find their own areas

 

2) RP tends to attract middle- aged passengers, some of whom like it partly because there are not usually a lot of kids aboard

 

3) your itinerary has at least 5 sea days out of the actual 15 onboard (not counting embarkation and disembarkation days) - or 6 if you count the Kiel Canal day - that's at least a third of your trip that the itinerary won't occupy them on shore - also the sea days on either side of Lisbon are 2 in a row -> boredom can set in

 

4) schools don't finish this early in a lot of areas -> there are less likely to be other kids onboard than in July

 

Don't mean to put a damper on your trip - just thought these factors were worth mentioning and, that if you know ahead that the odds of your kids finding a lot of others on board isn't high, you can plan for the situation.

[DrivesLikeMario]

Those are good points, luvnorway. What I would suggest if the OP is still going to go on this cruise, is that you bring a few things to occupy your kids:

 

1. iPods

2. cell phones

3. a video game system you can plug into the TV with games

4. books

5. favorite toy/action figure/activity from home

6. labels with their friends' addresses on them (buy post cards & let the kids write them - this has been a favorite activity for our younger son)

 

When on the ship, play a lot of board games as a family, play shuffleboard, swim, participate in as many activities as you can to keep them occupied.

[katisdale]

There will be no children's program unless there are 20 or more children aboard for your sailing. First I would call Princess and find out the number of children who are expected to sail. (They have always given me this information but I have only asked twice when sailing with our grandchildren.) Second I would do as Lady Jag suggests and take some child friendly activities with me if there were to be fewer than 20 children on board.

[whale-watcher]

We are planning 14 days on the Tahitian Princess (Alaska) this summer, and and possibly 12 days on the Royal (Holy Land) for next year. Our kids rarely take part in the organized childrens program, but we will miss having the sports deck with the basketball court. We are planning to bring books and games (including some video games for the sea days) but really are not all that worried...

We live in a remote location, and our kids were homeschooled, so are used to creating their own entertainment.

[nelsencec]

Hi, We are on the Royal Princess in June from Stockholm to Rome. We will have our 10 and our 13 year old with us. Has anyone been on this ship with kids? How was it? Will anyone be on in June with us with kids?

 

We have sailed on the Royal and loved it. But, it would undoubtedly be a bore for younger people since the on board activities are very limited in terms of being designed for those under 15. (Maybe even those under 35!)

 

Have fun.. The Royal is a classy vessel!