Too old for teen programs??

[derry-o]

My grndson has enjoyed the teen program on Freedom of the seas and can't wait for his next cruise. By that time he will have turned 18 and so will be overage for the programs. Anyone travelled with an18 year old, and how did you/they enjoy the trip?

 

Thanks for any suggestions.

 

Mderry

[stressdmum]

Last year we took our kids on their first cruise. They were 14, 17 & 19. The younger two LOVED the teen club. They met lots of new friends there and hung out with them for the rest of the cruise. The 19 yo had a harder time meeting people, but he still had fun. He is not terribly outgoing, and was happy to sit on the deck reading a book. I have booked the Liberty (RCI) for next summer. My soon to be 18yo is bummed that he won't get to participate in the teen clubs, but happy that he gets to go to the casino and the adult dance clubs! He is a LOT more outgoing then his older brother, so I'm hoping that the two of them stick together and "Mr. Personality" will attract some new friends for them both! I also plan on getting invoved in the Meet & Mingle list for our sailing. I'm hoping that if I can find other young adults who will be sailing, some of them can get to know each other via e-mail before the trip.

[derry-o]

Thanks stressdmom the meet and mingle sounds like a great idea. Maybe he will make some contacts beforehand.

 

mderry

[kitkath]

did the 14 year old feel too old for that 12-14 year age group? That is the one thing that is holding me back. I have 14 and 16 year old girls. Last year when my youngest was just 13 she felt too old for that age bracket. (She's tall and looks a couple years older.)

 

We traveled Carnival last Spring Break and I'm looking at a Royal Caribbean cruise this time. My youngest was sick for the first few days anyway so it wasn't so much of a factor but I don't want it to hamper her fun this time around.

 

edited to add - or does RCI do a lot of things where both age groups are together?

[stressdmum]

My kids went to the teen mixer the first night (very important - make them go the first night!) and they made friends there that they hung around with for the rest of the cruise. My daughters friends were all 14. I asked my daughter, and she said that not a lot of teens showed up for the activities so they would combine her group and the older group a lot. They didn't do a lot of the structured activities, they mostly just hung out together, swam, and played games in the teen room. In the evenings during the dances, the 12 - 14 and the 15 - 17 would all be together in the dance, then the younger group would be kicked out at about 11am. My daughter and her friends always stayed late with the older kids. I think, because they didn't look or act really young, they just let them stay. The teen counselors were pretty loose about that. My daughter was almost 15, and was there with her older brother, so I had no problem with her staying. She was really good about making it back to their cabin by curfew.

 

I think, other than the dances, the teens really just used the area to hang out, not really participate in the activities. My daughter said that there weren't many teens at the activities, but at the dances, it would start small, then the older teens who were kicked out of the adult clubs would all show up! We cruised in June and there were TONS of teens on board, but only a handful actually went to the teen club, other than to the dances. I saw groups of them sitting with their parents, looking bored, so MAKE your kids go to the mixer! It made a huge difference in my kids enjoyment of our cruise.

[ILuvCruisin']

My son has been cruising since he was about 9...he really enjoyed it at that age...once he hit 18 though it got harder for him to find things to do and people to hang out with...he's very personable and makes friends easily but he was too old for the activities planned for the teens and too young (or just wasn't interested) for the adult activities...it got so he wouldn't even want to get off the ship at the ports and if it was one we had already visited I didn't force him, after all it was his vacation too...

 

I'm mostly a sit by the pool and watch (or participate) in the pool games and take part in the various activities onboard

 

I was glad when he went away to college and I could cruise without him...I love traveling with him so it wasn't that it was because he was really getting bored the last couple of cruises...

 

Now his career interferes with the times I'm crusing so we've done some land vacations but he hasn't been cruising with me in a few years... I hope with the Freedom class and now the Oasis he will find more exciting things to do if his schedules allows him to go with me one day soon...

 

I agree with the cruiser who said the Teen mixer is very important...

 

I hope it works out for your teens...

[stressdmum]

he was really getting bored the last couple of cruises<<<<

 

 

It is harder when they outgrow the teen clubs. My boys will be 20 & 18 on our next cruise. We'll be on a Freedom Class (the Liberty) so I'm hoping that the multitude of things to do on board keeps them busy. They will have each other to hang out with, which should help.

[FionaMG]

I think this is something the cruise lines could address better. I've travelled with an older teen (not mine, but he was travelling with our party) and he was just plain bored, especially since it wasn't the sort of cruise that attracted many younger people. It seems to me that that particular age group (18-21) is largely ignored by the cruise lines and left pretty much to sink or swim. I don't mean there should be rigorously regimented activities (I'm sure that's the last thing they'd be interested in) but surely some sort of mix and mingle type events could be arranged to help them meet up with each other and make friends.

[nybumpkin]

Our 17 YO has had a great time with Club O2 - and he's already told us he doesn't think he wants to cruise with us once he turns 18. However, if his college plans work out, he'll be sailing without us - he want to attend a maritime college to get his Coast Guard mate's license and have a career in either the Navy or the Merchant Marine. Of course, the accommodations and food probably won't be as good.:D

[kitkath]

Thanks for the info. I'm really close to booking now. I think I have DH talked into it. He's not that hard to convince! my girls are going to be so excited. I just need to decide if we'll spring for two cabins or one. We did okay with one last year but it sure would be nice to not have to share one bathroom and have a little more privacy for everyone.:)

[stressdmum]

Thanks for the info. I'm really close to booking now. I think I have DH talked into it. He's not that hard to convince! my girls are going to be so excited. I just need to decide if we'll spring for two cabins or one. We did okay with one last year but it sure would be nice to not have to share one bathroom and have a little more privacy for everyone.:)

Get two cabins! You will love the extra bathroom! Last year I booked late, and we ended up with an oceanview for us and an inside down the hall for the teens. It worked great letting the kids have their own room, even though it was a bit far from us. The younger two would get back to the room for curfew, then order room service and watch tv until the wee hours of the morning. They had a blast! Wouldn't not have worked it we shared a room - I am not a night person. This year I planned ahead and have booked two adjacent balcony rooms. I'm hoping we can open the partition on the balcony so everyone still has some privacy, but its easy to get to each others rooms, and we can hang out together on the balcony.