Second guessing decision to book RCI Jewel Panama Canal Itnerary

[lgazz]

Our first cruise as a family (DH, myself, DS8 & DS10) was a fantastic experience - Southern Caribbean about RCI AOS in 3/08.

 

The boys were so excited about cruising that we booked Freedom for 4/09 (Spring Break) and Liberty for 4/10.

DH and I have already cruised to the Caribbean 4 times and also have these 2 reservations on the books. (I don't think I can go to St. Thomas or St. Maarten one more time!) I have been wanting to see the Panama Canal, so...

 

Last week, I called the TA and booked RCI Jewel of the Seas for 11/17/08. It is an 11-night cruise and we are in a balcony state room.

 

Now, I am second guessing my decision to book this vacation...The boys loved all the activities aboard AOS and made lots of friends. I know the Caribbean itineraries tend to have more kids - especially at Spring Break. I think they are expecting to have a similar experience in November. I don't want them to be disappointed.

 

Does anyone have any comments on whether we can expect a fair number of kids aboard this ship? (This cruise departs ~10 days before Thanksgiving and returns the day after Thanksgiving.) Do you think the itinerary will be interesting for them? (They are very bright and I justified taking extra time off school because it will be a "learning" experience.)

 

Help! I am hoping to get affirmation that my decision to book this vacation was a good one. :confused: I appreciate honest input...even if it's not what I want to hear!

 

TIA!

[kitty9]

It's a great itinerary, but the chances for as many kids as usual will be pretty low. Most prefer to cruise during Thanksgiving week, rather than the week before, so those pre-holiday cruises tend to have a much higher than average age. Any week before a major holiday tends to be your average "grandma/grandpa" cruises. Another factor against kids on board will be the length of the cruise. At that time of year, anything over 7 days tends to bring out the retired/childless passengers. Over on the other boards, whenever anyone asks when to cruise to avoid kids, the general rule of thumb is: cruise before major holidays and take a cruise longer than a week, especially cruises that are longer than 10 days.

[rebeccalouise]

I think going thru the locks might be interesting but the places are poverty striken and I don't know if there are many interesting places to go with the kids on land.

 

As for the time of year. There won't be many kids onboard. I would guess there would be about 30 at most. Many will be pre-school age.

 

From my remarks you may surmise that I am saying not to go. I am not. I have not sailed thru the canal. What I would do is pull up reviews for the cruise you are taking.

[finnegan14]

Did you post on the RCCL board as well? I think I replied to you over there. We did the Panama Canal cruise this past January with our boys (who were 14 mo and 2 1/2 at the time). we had such a great time that we are booked for this upcoming January on Jewel for another Panama Canal trip. The boys could have cared less about the actual trip thru the Canal (too young) but they had a wonderful time on the ship. If you kids are out of diapers they can use the kiddie water slide and kiddie pool. The cruise was mostly older people so my kids had the run of the kids stuff. the adventure ocean was EMPTY and they let my kids run around in there and play with our supervision.

 

Like I said we had such a great time this year, we are going next January again!

[Turtle Girls]

Go for it! The Panama Canal is my fantasy cruise-my family wants to go but my DH work schedule is hard to work around. The kids will have a great time on the cruise no matter what. Last October, my family went on HAL with only 40 kids onboard and my DD's(ages 4/6/8) rate this as their favorite yet out of 4 BECAUSE there were hardly any kids there. They got to know the staff and the other kids well and it wasn't overwelming with hundreds of kids.

Enjoy the locks and the interesting countries with the boys-it's a once in a lifetime experience!

[VikkiGarcia]

We did a transcanal 4 years ago on RC during an "off" time. There were 23 kids aboard. My two had a great time. Adventure Ocean staff did a great job making sure they had fun. My kids were asked all the time what they wanted to do for the next evening activity. They tried to make each evening special so all the kids would want to show up. They also asked permission to take the older kids around the ship. One evening they went to see the show. Another to the Windjammer for desert. They went to a "bar" one evening and made smoothies. They helped one of the guest performers backstage. My daughter really loved all these special "outings" that you never can experience on a regular cruise. Any questions feel free to ask.

[lgazz]

After posting on this forum, I also posted on the RCCL board...I hoped to get input from people with "family" experience and from others who may not have traveled with kids.

 

First, I want to thank you all for your input...I was freaking out a bit last night :eek:! I realize that there won't be the number of kids as a Caribbean or 7-day cruise. And, I also appreciate everyone who has pointed out (on this board and on the RCCL board) that there are lots of reasons to enjoy this itinerary.

 

Yes, it will be different than our Spring Break, Caribbean cruise, but "different" is not bad. My boys are extremely well-behaved and very bright. (I am not at all concerned about interaction with older passengers, and I doubt older passengers would be put-off by my kids.) I am re-energized and excited once again! We are fortunate to be able to take such a wonderful family vacation! We will make lasting memories!

 

We did a transcanal 4 years ago on RC during an "off" time. There were 23 kids aboard. My two had a great time. Adventure Ocean staff did a great job making sure they had fun. My kids were asked all the time what they wanted to do for the next evening activity. They tried to make each evening special so all the kids would want to show up. They also asked permission to take the older kids around the ship. One evening they went to see the show. Another to the Windjammer for desert. They went to a "bar" one evening and made smoothies. They helped one of the guest performers backstage. My daughter really loved all these special "outings" that you never can experience on a regular cruise. Any questions feel free to ask.

 

VickiGarcia - How old were your children? RCI has not posted shore excursions yet. Do you (or anyone else with RCI Panama Canal experience) have any recommendations? My boys are 8 & 10 and energetic...I doubt they would appreciate an all-day trip on tour bus...I definitely want them to get an education about the canal, but I want them to have fun at the same time...Any thoughts?

 

I am also curious about the ports aside from the locs...Someone posted that the ports are poverty-stricken...In my opinion, there are very few ports that are well-to-do by American standards (only Grand Cayman, St. Thomas and St. Maarten come to mind). Do Cartagena, Cristobal Pier and Puerto Limon offer much to do?? (We've already been to Aruba and Grand Cayman, so we kinda know what to expect on those islands.)

 

 

Thanks once again!

Keep the comments coming!

:D

[kitty9]

Grand Cayman and other island ports are resorts when compared to the poverty of Puerto Limon, Cartegena and other areas. It's a real wake up call, especially in Puerto Limon where the poverty is extreme. Now, if you stop in Panama City, there are some very wealthy areas that you'll see on a tour. Cristobal Pier is just that---a pier which is used as a stop to pick up ship's tours. There's really nothing there other than a small building.

 

I wonder if your kids would like the ziplining tours? Those are really great and kids seem to love them. There's also a nice tour via train where you see the canal from a different perspective.

[VikkiGarcia]

Igazz: My kids were 10 and 13 at the time. We did zipline in Costa Rica but had to book it independently because the ship wanted you to be 12. The day we went through the canal the captain joined the kids at Adventure Ocean. My son kept climbing the rock wall and videotaping the locks from the top. Everyone got an Ocean to Ocean certificate that they shared back at school.