Kids club questions for Cruisemama06?

Which line do you like best? I liked Carnival and I am booked on RCL. I was wondering about the differences. I also think I came across something on-line that NCL has later and more included times. I know you had one child get in a little trouble on Carnival but otherwise how do they compare. It bothers me that RCl has limited or no times on the first night. I usually only use it at night so the later time 10:30pm on NCL looks tempting! Just curious what you think. By the way, my kids are 6 and 9. On Carnival, my daughter(5 1/2), did not like it but I think the crying 2 year olds made it harder. My son loved it, so I am hoping that now she is grouped better that it will be easier.

I am wondering if you will obtain an un-bias response, (anyone remember shark attack?).

My child also enjoyed Camp Carnival age 6-8 and 9-11. RCL and NCL has some tempting cruises near my location. NCL seems more tempting as a family member recently sailed and enjoyed it with their child.

I read "shark attack" and found it amusing. Actually, I am more concerned with RCL and NCL. I guess it is the unknown that concerns me! I know that my daughter would like Carnival better now that she is 6 but the others are new so I wanted some opinions!

We've sailed RCL & Celebrity. We prefer Celebrity. There were just enough kids on board that our children made friends & enjoyed themselves...but not so many that they were running all over the place like we found on RCL.

Celebrity gives the best of both worlds. A quiet relaxing vacation for mom & dad, and a fun exciting vacation for the kids. Win win :D

What Celebrity boat did you go on? I have looked at some of thier cruises and couldn't find a boat that would appeal to my kids. They are 6 and 9. They want waterslides, putt-putt and rockclimbing. I have not found a Celebrity boat that has the things they enjoy. I do like some of thier routes so I'd be interested in what your kids liked to do.

We've sailed RCL & Celebrity. We prefer Celebrity. There were just enough kids on board that our children made friends & enjoyed themselves...but not so many that they were running all over the place like we found on RCL.

 

Celebrity gives the best of both worlds. A quiet relaxing vacation for mom & dad, and a fun exciting vacation for the kids. Win win :D

Hahaha shark attack! A classic! Actually we have been on three Carnival ships and shark attack only occurred on one;) My opinion of camp carnival has been shaped based on the overall three average experiences we had in Camp Carnival - verses the tear streaked goodbyes on RCI and NCL. My kids can't fake that stuff ;)

I look at it this way, my kids can NAME counselors from RCI ships and their NCL sailing. They still talk about them. Ask if they can go back and see them again (no because we never repeat ships). But they can't name one from Carnival. So if those counselors made that kind of an impact on my children, one that last years, then we will continue to sail on those lines. :)

My son (5 at the time) much prefers NCL to CCL.

I could barely drag him out of NCL. He would wake up in the morning and beg to go.

On CCL he said it was a lot of free play as opposed to organized activities. He called me frequently to pick him up because he was bored.

The counselors on NCL seemed more friendly and engaged to me...

Just my $.02

And another thing I like about NCL. As a company, they allow their employees to post here at cruise critic. All other cruise lines issue a black out to their employees. But if you see on the NCL board, if you have an issue, NCL actually responds. And even their kids crew counselors log in and respond on their own time. I have been really impressed with how much interaction there is between NCL and their passengers.

And they DO listen. The North East was complaining about how all the new ships go to Florida. RCL kept saying that their passengers were fine with Explorer (blah). And NCL announces their newest ship will leave New York City!!! Bless them!!!!

And to Bermuda! Love Bermuda!!!!

I asked for a Lazy River next - there are pictures showing a "canal" being built on their private island. If this is my Lazy River then NCL will be officially declared my new favorite cruise line! Hahahahahahahaha

I saw the Lazy river pix and now I am looking a Pearl next spring since it goes there. I like all the cool stuff on Epic but I lke the Pearl route. I wish they would look at staying in Port Canaveral. I can actually drive there.

And another thing I like about NCL. As a company, they allow their employees to post here at cruise critic. All other cruise lines issue a black out to their employees. But if you see on the NCL board, if you have an issue, NCL actually responds. And even their kids crew counselors log in and respond on their own time. I have been really impressed with how much interaction there is between NCL and their passengers.

 

And they DO listen. The North East was complaining about how all the new ships go to Florida. RCL kept saying that their passengers were fine with Explorer (blah). And NCL announces their newest ship will leave New York City!!! Bless them!!!!

 

And to Bermuda! Love Bermuda!!!!

 

I asked for a Lazy River next - there are pictures showing a "canal" being built on their private island. If this is my Lazy River then NCL will be officially declared my new favorite cruise line! Hahahahahahahaha

I look at it this way, my kids can NAME counselors from RCI ships and their NCL sailing. They still talk about them. Ask if they can go back and see them again (no because we never repeat ships). But they can't name one from Carnival. So if those counselors made that kind of an impact on my children, one that last years, then we will continue to sail on those lines. :)

No, children, (a kid is a baby goat), cannot fake certain things. My child can name her CCL couselors as well. "Big Mama" was her favorite. Along with the troupe of hispanic counselors who were complaining about my child checking out early.

Looking at NCL for this year. So anyone with serious imput would be appreciated.

No, children, (a kid is a baby goat), cannot fake certain things. My child can name her CCL couselors as well. "Big Mama" was her favorite. Along with the troupe of hispanic counselors who were complaining about my child checking out early.

 

Looking at NCL for this year. So anyone with serious imput would be appreciated.

I can call my children my "kids" just as you can ask for "imput" ;)

Happy cruising!

What Celebrity boat did you go on? I have looked at some of thier cruises and couldn't find a boat that would appeal to my kids. They are 6 and 9. They want waterslides, putt-putt and rockclimbing. I have not found a Celebrity boat that has the things they enjoy. I do like some of thier routes so I'd be interested in what your kids liked to do.

Sorry I missed this.

We have only been on the Summit w/ Celebrity. No there isnt a rock wall or water slides, but there is plenty of other activities for them to do on board. Our destination has been Bermuda which is just perfect for families. Very safe & easy to naviagte on your own.

Looking at NCL for this year. So anyone with serious imput would be appreciated.

What kind of input are you looking for? I can't make comparisons to other children's programs, but mine (at ages 4 and 6) very much enjoyed Baby Goat's Crew on NCL Dawn in 2010.

My son (5 at the time) much prefers NCL to CCL.

 

I could barely drag him out of NCL. He would wake up in the morning and beg to go.

 

On CCL he said it was a lot of free play as opposed to organized activities. He called me frequently to pick him up because he was bored.

 

The counselors on NCL seemed more friendly and engaged to me...

 

 

Just my $.02

I agree with you 100%. My kids loved RCCL kids club and didn't care for CCL said there was too much free play. I just took my first NCL cruise this past year without the kids so, I can't comment on the use of the club. However, I can say that I really enjoyed the line and will hopefully be back on an NCL cruise soon with the kids. :)

 

I look at it this way, my kids can NAME counselors from RCI ships and their NCL sailing. They still talk about them. Ask if they can go back and see them again (no because we never repeat ships).

But even though you don't repeat ships, they might see the counselors on other ships. My daughter graduated to the teen club on our last cruise on the Sun but saw a counselor she remembered from the Jewel two cruises previously in the kids club- and also remembered his sister-in-law and her name.

Barb

But even though you don't repeat ships, they might see the counselors on other ships. My daughter graduated to the teen club on our last cruise on the Sun but saw a counselor she remembered from the Jewel two cruises previously in the kids club- and also remembered his sister-in-law and her name.

 

Barb

Very true! I know there are a few counselors they would love to see again. Evan Almighty from RCI Grandeur was amazing with my "energetic" little one. He kept asking where she was and if I would bring her back to play some more. And all of the counselors from NCL Gem's Kids Crew were great! I assured them that they would WANT me to have a phone. They assured me that I wouldn't need one but they gave me one anyway. By the 3rd day they told me that they were taking my phone away because they didn't need it, my daughter was doing "great". That was music to my ears after some of the problems we had on the CCL ships.

On Gem I noticed there were at least 3 kids with autism in my daughter's age group and the Kids Crew counselors worked so well with them. I was talking to the parents of those kids and they were so pleased.

On Carnival, so many issues could have been prevented. On Triumph, my girls were going to the "kids dinner" and when I dropped the kids off I asked if the little sister wanted to sit with the big sister - would it be a problem. They said "no problem" - I get a call 40 minutes later that my little one was crying because she wanted to sit with the big sister at dinner and had to be pulled away from the table and sat with her own group. I told them "you said she could sit with her so she could be comfortable at dinner". And so I just went and picked her up and took her to dinner at the buffet. The kid was an emotional basket case saying that she saw her big sis (who she idolizes) and they dragged her away from her. :(

All of the kids sit together in one area so it wouldn't have been a problem to allow her to sit at that table.

And of course, there was the "rubber shark abuse" - it just seemed like they had no common sense when dealing with kids in the 2-5 year old range.

We've sailed NCL 6 times with our kids (starting when they were 2 and 7 - now they're 9 and 14). So, I can't compare lines. However, I can tell you that the Kids Crew on NCL is fantastic! DS is now in the Teen Crew and still keeps in touch with a few friends he made on board. DD is 9 and really enjoys seeing some of the same counselors cruise after cruise. We can't keep them out of there!

And of course, there was the "rubber shark abuse" - it just seemed like they had no common sense when dealing with kids in the 2-5 year old range.

:confused: what is this about?

:confused: what is this about?

My daughter abused a rubber shark on Triumph - I don't recommend it.

Read story recap here...

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=30925793&postcount=9

My daughter abused a rubber shark on Triumph - I don't recommend it.

 

Read story recap here...

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=30925793&postcount=9

lol ok I gotcha now!

My daughter abused a rubber shark on Triumph - I don't recommend it.

 

Read story recap here...

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=30925793&postcount=9

OMG I'm killing myself laughing here :p I can't believe that happened? Seriously? I think I would have been asking if any of the kids club (err, children's club? Don't want you to think your offspring are another species :rolleyes:) staff had ever dealt with people under the age of 30 before ;)

(I think that's the worst sentence I've ever constructed. Time for Friday night alcohol!)

OMG I'm killing myself laughing here :p I can't believe that happened? Seriously? I think I would have been asking if any of the kids club (err' date=' children's club? Don't want you to think your offspring are another species :rolleyes:) staff had ever dealt with people under the age of 30 before ;)

(I think that's the worst sentence I've ever constructed. Time for Friday night alcohol!)[/quote']

 

I can't believe you missed that one! Oh yeah - my kid, I mean um young child is legendary. ;)

 

We haven't had a problem in a kids club ever since! I think the crew must get advanced warning now when we get onboard. Hahahahahahahaha

 

Warning! Rubber shark abuser is coming aboard! Please be on the lookout. She is armed and dangerous toward plastic play toys and runs during duck duck goose! :p

We are pre-baby seasoned cruisers. We recently took our first cruise with our children (4 year old twin boys and 2 1/2 year old). At the time of sailing our twins were 3. We sailed a carnival triumph out of Galveston. Don't recommend this cruise to anyone..what a disappointment in every way.

So here's our experience. The staff in the kids club could care less to be there. In fact I heard one of the counselors repeatedly talking to kids in a condescending manner. I witnessed this behavior multiple times. At dinner my 2 year old was crying in camp so they called us. DH and I went up to Lido deck and one of my 3 year old twins saw me and reached across the table for me. The counselor was pulling him from my arms saying that he wasn't allowed to do this...my son was frightened. They called me there and then to behave that way. Meanwhile my 2 year old is still crying and the counselor tells me while rolling her eyes that I needed to have a talk with him...really with a 2 year old?

We didn't leave our kids in camp after that incident. Unfortunately we are booked on the carnival magic in two weeks. We had paid for this cruise way before we booked the triumph. Will keep you posted on how that goes.

We are pre-baby seasoned cruisers. We recently took our first cruise with our children (4 year old twin boys and 2 1/2 year old). At the time of sailing our twins were 3. We sailed a carnival triumph out of Galveston. Don't recommend this cruise to anyone..what a disappointment in every way.

 

So here's our experience. The staff in the kids club could care less to be there. In fact I heard one of the counselors repeatedly talking to kids in a condescending manner. I witnessed this behavior multiple times. At dinner my 2 year old was crying in camp so they called us. DH and I went up to Lido deck and one of my 3 year old twins saw me and reached across the table for me. The counselor was pulling him from my arms saying that he wasn't allowed to do this...my son was frightened. They called me there and then to behave that way. Meanwhile my 2 year old is still crying and the counselor tells me while rolling her eyes that I needed to have a talk with him...really with a 2 year old?

 

We didn't leave our kids in camp after that incident. Unfortunately we are booked on the carnival magic in two weeks. We had paid for this cruise way before we booked the triumph. Will keep you posted on how that goes.

SAME ship as the rubber shark abuse incident!!!! Hahahahahahahaha! I am sorry to laugh but it was the same counselor attitude that I experienced. And this was a few years ago so they had to have been different counselors. They seemed like they hated their jobs and the kids were a MAJOR inconvenience to their lives! They did roll their eyes a lot - look at their watches and use the words "have a talk with your child" Really? About running during duck,duck goose??? I will have to punish her for that ;) She was a preschooler - they RUN during duck duck goose!

I am so hoping Carnival Magic Counselors are better. CruisinMama who knows it may have been the same counselors?..they do rotate...perhaps they made it back around when we sailed.

I had heard such great things about kids camps on cruises. If our experience on the Magic is poor...then Carnival is out for us. We were so disappointed in the level of service we received on the Triumph. Overall the entire ship service was poor. The buffet felt like a cafeteria with limited choices and long lines. Dining service was just poor. The public bathrooms...well I never witnessed this but DH had to take our son..and he said he's seen cleaner gas stations (trust me he has a high tolerance for filth and even he wanted to puke). What a shame! I don't remember cruising on Carnival ever being like this. I hope this is not an industry wide decline in overall service. We shall see. We did the early saver on the Magic...and at this point it's not worth taking the hit in the deposit that we would lose..so we are going!

We have booked the Norwegian Epic for Feb....so will keep you guys posted on their kids club also.