Cruise with 9 & 12 year olds

[nj_rx]

Our kids are 9 & 12. We are considering a Holland America cruise (4 day ) with a land excursion (8 days) for the summer 2010. Is this trip appropriate for kids these ages? Any suggestions of must sees would be appreciated. I wasn't sure if there would be an older group of people on this trip or if is more kid friendly. Any information is appreciated!:o

[Northshorecruisers]

Being the summer and children will be out of school, you will find more families cruising. And with the economy you may find more of them doing a 4 day cruise rather than a 7 day. But, shorter cruises sometimes attract people that just want to party for 4 days - although I've never seen that on HAL. You didn't say where the cruise was going so that would impact on who chooses to take this cruise.
There is Club HAL - since this is a short cruise I would check with HAL and see if they plan to offer this for a 4 day cruise. Also, after final payment you can ask HAL how many children are in the same age group as your own children.
Our first cruise on HAL in Jan 06 there were 12 children in my son's age group. Not many - but he did make some very nice friends. On our Princess cruise there were over 30 in his age group but he didn't really find any buddy's to hang around with. We had also taken a friend of his with us. They did find 2 teenage girls that pretty much stalked them on the ship, wanted formal pictures taken with them etc. They also found us at the Ft Lauderdale & Atlanta airports for the trip home. I was really happy when we got on our plane to MSP and they were on a different plane heading for the east coast.

[RuthC]

Are you looking at an Alaska cruise/tour? If so, then I would recommend that you not take the children on a HAL land tour.
The group on the bus is likely to be all adults, mostly of the much older variety; there won't be any kids for your kids to hang with. Beyond that, the long hours on the bus are likely to be boring to your kids. There will be little opportunity for them to expend any energy.
Rather, I would recommend you do the full 7-day cruise. The cruise portion will have kids, interesting ports, and things to keep them engaged on board.

[Aunty Pat]

I agree with RuthC. I took this tour/cruise combination #2 in Alaska last year. It is up early to get on the bus, then long hours on the bus good if you are use to afternoon naps. Not good for the kids. A 7 day cruise would be much better and combine it with 2 nights in Denali before the cruise. It was cruise tour # 26 this year.

Another thing to keep in mind, because everything has to be shipped in dining choices are limited and expensive. You’ll easily spend at least $200/day for food for a family of 4. More days on the cruise where meals are included are a better value.

Aunty Pat


Barefoot Windjammer - Phantom ‘81
K&D German Rhine Line ‘84
NCL - Norway ’85, Pride of America ’05, Southward ’87, Star ’97 & ‘05, Starward ’92, Sun ’02 & Windward ’93
RCC - Song of America ‘89
American Hawaiian - Independence ‘98
HAL - Volendam ’99, Noordam ’06, Oosterdam ’07 & ‘09, Statendam ’02 & ‘08, Prinsendam ’03 & ’06, & Zuiderdam ’04, ’06 & ’07, Westerdam ‘09
Carnival - Spirit ‘05
Celebrity – Summit ‘05
Cruise West - Yorktown Clipper ‘06
Princess - Golden Princess ‘07
A & K - East Queen ‘07
Cunard - QM2 ’08
Pending Cruises:
Oceania – Insignia, June 17, 2010

[gregdude]

I also agree with a seven day cruise, but would add that the Caribbean would be the best choice. I have cruised with three grandchildren and they all had a blast (4, 8, 10 year olds). They all liked the pool, ports with beaches, and all the great things to do on deck on a large ship. Unfortunately that eliminates HAL as a choice since they do not do summer caribbean cruises. Most of the larger ships in the Caribbean are more family oriented than HAL in Alaska.

[ProfessorMom]

I can't speak from experience yet, but I went through the same decision process just a month ago. In the end, I booked a seven day Alaska cruise for next summer after considering the cruisetour option. My husband and I would enjoy some of the locations included, but we decided that it wouldn't suit our sons. We really wanted to see Alaska and cruise. We'll pass on the land tour for now. That way I won't be keeping them to a schedule, herding them onto buses where I'll need to keep them busy, and unpacking and repacking their things in different hotels. It is also easier in terms of knowing what our accomodations will be (how many rooms, sleeping arrangements, etc.).

I know that a caribbean cruise on a big ship might offer a more kid-friendly focus, but HAL will suit my husband and I. We all need to compromise a tiny bit. I feel confident that my boys will be able to find options onboard to keep busy and for us to have some family acitvities.

[Faithnthyme]

I can't speak from experience yet, but I went through the same decision process just a month ago. In the end, I booked a seven day Alaska cruise for next summer after considering the cruisetour option. My husband and I would enjoy some of the locations included, but we decided that it wouldn't suit our sons. We really wanted to see Alaska and cruise. We'll pass on the land tour for now. That way I won't be keeping them to a schedule, herding them onto buses where I'll need to keep them busy, and unpacking and repacking their things in different hotels. It is also easier in terms of knowing what our accomodations will be (how many rooms, sleeping arrangements, etc.).

I know that a caribbean cruise on a big ship might offer a more kid-friendly focus, but HAL will suit my husband and I. We all need to compromise a tiny bit. I feel confident that my boys will be able to find options onboard to keep busy and for us to have some family acitvities.

Our sons (7 & 5 at the time) loved the Alaskan cruise we did last year. Round trip out of Seattle with a couple of pre-cruise days in Seattle to go to the zoo, Pike Place, Aquarium, etc. I don't think you'll find that it has been much of a compromise for any of you. ;)

[nj_rx]

Thank to all for your suggestions. By the way, this will be our first cruise! We are considering Alaska because we have been to many Carribean vacations in the past. I appreciate the suggestion to consider an "all cruise" rather than and land and cruise to long bus trips and early starts for the kids. Now I need to focus on a specific cruise. I was initially considering HAL because they had the 4 day cruise option, but I want to make sure that the cruise line is also kid friendly. It is so overwhelming with so many different desitations in Alaska to decide on a specific cruise. I appreciate any suggestions.:rolleyes:

[timothy998]

This is based upon a business trip I took to Alaska 3 years ago, where I had the opportunity to explore a bit. One option, depending on your level of adventure, and available time...would be to do the 7-day cruise as many have recommended. THEN, either before or afterwards, rent a recreational vehicle for a few days. The kids would love the "camping" experience, and it is very very comparable to what you'd spend on a rental car, not to mention a hotel...yes, it'd be a bit more interesting, but I bet you'd have some great memories after that trip!

Denali is about halfway between Anchorage & Fairbanks, which is a six or seven hour drive (I never did the drive straight through as got delayed via fires somewhere north of Denali, then on the way back stopped back at Denali for a hike up Mount Healey.

I think I have DW convinced to do the land portion via RV in Alaska. And no, my name isn't Robin Williams, but my family does have some comparable experiences!

[RMLincoln]

In May we did a 7 day to Alaska round trip out of Vancouver on Volendam with our 3 grandchildren, 10, 13, and 15. The younger 2 enjoyed Club HAL and we found things to do in the ports that were not very long; a couple of hours was enough for them, and then it was "Can we go back to the ship and go swimming Grandma?".

Mostly they loved the swimming pool, the scenery, the amazing experience of being on a cruise ship, watching for wildlife, listening to the live music, the evening shows and going to the movies at night.

And the food choices on the Lido were a big hit. The dining room does have a children's menu but it has only 3 or 4 items and doesn't change every night (Spaghetti and meatballs, Chicken Nuggets, Hot dog....). By night 3, the 10 year old decided that she would like to order the Ling Cod! Thank you very much! So they explored foods that were unusual and had a lot of fun with that. BTW: We found Open Dining to be very good for kids, and with the earliest reservations (5:15pm) we always had excellent window seats. They also loved room service breakfasts a couple of days.

The older girl and I went to tea several times and we made that special. They enjoyed the shows and formal nights. There were not a lot of kids on board but that was ok, they each found things to do that suited them, and the middle boy got to do things without his sisters.

I think it was a bit difficult for them, at first, to not be overwhelmed by all the newness of the experience but after a few days they really settled into it. With that said, I think a 4 day cruise followed by the land tour might leave them breathless and you exhausted.

We had a day in Seattle too and had lots of choices there also. Then the excitement of heading to Vancouver (across the border you know!!) was extra special for them.

Our rooms were modest, portholes, which they loved. We needed 2 room, so Grandpa and 13 y/o boy bunked together, me with the 2 girls. It worked great and i'm so glad we got to do it.

I hope you find the right balance.