Appropriate age to bring our son on Antarctica cruise

We just saw the AWE special on the dream cruise to Antarctica, and now my wife wants to go. Our son is way too young now, but was wondering what ages past cruisers have seen. I was thinking between 8 and 10, but maybe that's still too young. Also, we loved the Pontant ship that was shown in the show, but are there other lines we should consider?

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We just saw the AWE special

AWE?

Our son is way too young now, but was wondering what ages past cruisers have seen. I was thinking between 8 and 10, but maybe that's still too young.

We have seen a six year old on one of our trips who was well behaved at first but, by the end of the trip, was becoming more 'restless'.

I think it would be a case of you knowing your son and how he might react.

Also, we loved the Pontant ship that was shown in the show, but are there other lines we should consider?

Have a look at Hurtigruten and 'Fram'. We have been to Antarctica on her twice and also Svalbard. We're booked on her for Greenland later this year and Antarctica, again, next year. Consider including South Georgia and the Falkland Islands to any trip to Antarctica: you won't regret it (though it does lengthen the trip and so might not suit your son)!

AWE - A Wealth of Entertainment. It is cable TV station. They are running a series called Dream Cruises, and the Pontant L'Austral was featured.

I was actually researching Lindblad Expiditions, but will look at Hurtigruten too. At this stage, I think he would get a bit antsy, so we would definitely wait till he gets a bit older. My wife and I were talking about it, and we were thinking of maybe trying Lindblad or one of the other expedition-type cruises to Alaska when he gets 7-8, and see how he does on one of these types of vacations before committing to Antarctic.

I did have a question - it looks like most of the cabins a double occupancy only, so if you have three people, does this mean two cabins? I noticed that Pontant and Lindblad have cabins that can be turned in triples, but they looked very small. So, while he is younger, this could be doable, but if we wait till he is 10 or older, it might be too tight...lol.

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I did have a question - it looks like most of the cabins a double occupancy only, so if you have three people, does this mean two cabins? I noticed that Pontant and Lindblad have cabins that can be turned in triples, but they looked very small. So, while he is younger, this could be doable, but if we wait till he is 10 or older, it might be too tight...lol.

I know that Fram has triples and the website shows quads. On our first Antarctic trip three ladies were sharing a triple on deck three and we were amazed to discover that they lived just three miles away from us! I have, though, never had sight inside one so cannot comment on size.

I know that Fram has triples and the website shows quads. On our first Antarctic trip three ladies were sharing a triple on deck three and we were amazed to discover that they lived just three miles away from us! I have, though, never had sight inside one so cannot comment on size.

Just was looking at pictures of Fram - what a beautiful ship. It looks like the Suite F2 has a sofa couch. That would definitely work right now - just have to hope my son does not get too tall too quickly...lol. Thanks for recommending this ship. I will have to show it to my wife.

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It's a lovely ship with an excellent crew and an amazing Expedition Team. All are extremely well qualified and are very customer focussed.

There are many more ships and companies going to Antarctica. Check out this link:

http://www.tripadvisor.com.au/ShowTopic-g1-i12337-k7979316-Trip_research_website-Antarctic_Adventures.html

Thanks. I need to try this link from my laptop, when I try to look at in my iPad it shows Trip Advisor site for a few seconds and then it disappears. But thanks for the link. It is weird how for some things, CC has a wealth of information, and for other TA is better.

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There are many more ships and companies going to Antarctica. Check out this link:

http://www.tripadvisor.com.au/ShowTopic-g1-i12337-k7979316-Trip_research_website-Antarctic_Adventures.html

RSL,

MaryAnn suggested an excellent link. A few things need to be updated but overall, it is great.

To make the spreadsheet easier to read (as the chart tended to run off of the page unless viewing on a regular notebook/computer screen) I copy and pasted the "ship list" into a document and then manipulated the info to suit my purposes. As a result, I wound up selecting Quark Ocean Endeavor, Crossing the Circle in 2016.

Since "crossing the circle" is a primary interest for me, I found this link/list to be helpful: http://www.polarcruises.com/antarctica/destinations/crossing-antarctic-circle

I think the vast majority (if not all) of the major expedition companies allow you to book direct. Unless you have a very knowledgeable Artic/Antarctic-specialized travel agent, it may be best to book directly. After my research, selection and commitment, I then turned the reservation over to my travel agent for various reasons. :D

Have fun with the planning!

Thanks. I need to try this link from my laptop, when I try to look at in my iPad it shows Trip Advisor site for a few seconds and then it disappears. But thanks for the link. It is weird how for some things, CC has a wealth of information, and for other TA is better.

RSL,

Here is the direct link gleaned from the TA link: http://traveltothepoles.wix.com/home

RSL,

 

 

 

Here is the direct link gleaned from the TA link: http://traveltothepoles.wix.com/home

Thanks for the advice and both links.

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Back to the question about when children can handle this trip, as mentioned previously, you are

the best judge of how your child will handle this type of adventure. I'd always err on the side of waiting, if in doubt. It works best for a child who doesn't have a tremendous need for physical activity, as there are many "down" hours and rough seas can limit the ability to even walk about the ship. As well, can a child handle having not a lot of activity? Long meals, lectures, etc. can be boring for a child and internet and tv service can be unpredictable. Consider, also,

the child's tendency to get seasick, if that is known.

I didn't see anybody under 25 on our cruise and, frankly, some of the adults were getting

stir crazy. There is a lot of coming and going to earn those amazing days in Antarctica.

I'd guess that a child who loves nature and wildlife, and can entertain him/herself with

books, games, etc. might be fine at 10 or so. Otherwise, I'd wait....

Back to the question about when children can handle this trip, as mentioned previously, you are

 

the best judge of how your child will handle this type of adventure. I'd always err on the side of waiting, if in doubt. It works best for a child who doesn't have a tremendous need for physical activity, as there are many "down" hours and rough seas can limit the ability to even walk about the ship. As well, can a child handle having not a lot of activity? Long meals, lectures, etc. can be boring for a child and internet and tv service can be unpredictable. Consider, also,

 

the child's tendency to get seasick, if that is known.

 

 

 

I didn't see anybody under 25 on our cruise and, frankly, some of the adults were getting

 

stir crazy. There is a lot of coming and going to earn those amazing days in Antarctica.

 

I'd guess that a child who loves nature and wildlife, and can entertain him/herself with

 

books, games, etc. might be fine at 10 or so. Otherwise, I'd wait....

Yes. I agree completely. We are thinking of trying Lindblad to Alaska or some other shorter trip first - to see how he does on the smaller ship.

Yes. I agree completely. We are thinking of trying Lindblad to Alaska or some other shorter trip first - to see how he does on the smaller ship.

That is a perfect way to approach this.

We did an Antarctic trip which included South Georgia when my son was 14. He loved it and I know it will be a trip he will always remember, but he has traveled a lot. We did have one boy about 5 or 6 and that was definitely too young. I would wait at least until they are 10 and maybe even longer. Of course you know best on how your children might enjoy such a cruise. When we were on the ship, one of the members of the cruise told us stories about some kids never leaving their cabin for any of the excursions, just playing games. Can you image spending all that money for a once in a lifetime trip only to have them never leave the room!

We did an Antarctic trip which included South Georgia when my son was 14. He loved it and I know it will be a trip he will always remember, but he has traveled a lot. We did have one boy about 5 or 6 and that was definitely too young. I would wait at least until they are 10 and maybe even longer. Of course you know best on how your children might enjoy such a cruise. When we were on the ship, one of the members of the cruise told us stories about some kids never leaving their cabin for any of the excursions, just playing games. Can you image spending all that money for a once in a lifetime trip only to have them never leave the room!

Thanks for your advice. I cannot imagine spending all that money, and not having my child experience it. I only hope that if and when we do take such a trip, our son will enjoy it :). And from what comments I have read here and CC, I know that we are a few years away from undertaking this trip ;). But I can say, everyone's comments has opened my eyes to some amazing trips that I had never considered. We were debating when to take our son to London, and now we are looking at land tours in Costa Rica, Lindblad cruise to Alaska, and a cruise to Antarctic. And, I am sure as we take some of these trips, we will meet people who will recommend other, more amazing trips.

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I just got back from a Quark trip to Antarctica, and there was an 8yo on our trip, and he did great. He was the only kid (no teenagers even), but he had a great attitude about all of it and did many of the hikes on land and even participated in the polar plunge.

I have just got home from a 30 day voyage that had two kids around 8-12 ish (I am terrible at guessing ages and they didnt speak english so I didnt actually ask them).

Some points to consider - based on observations of these two and discussions with various expedition teams over the years re kids on these trips.

- what is the kids passion ? If the kid has a passion for geography, history, animals etc and has showed an interest in polar stuff - then yes it is the trip for them. If they prefer to sit playing computer games all day (as these two did) - this is not the trip for them.

- length of trip and amount of sea days. Our trip was 30 days long with many sea days. Adults kept occupied with lectures and photo sorting & editing etc. The two kids were bored out of their skulls and actually ended up annoying other passengers with some of their behaviour. So consider the length of the trip and whether your child can occupy themselves adequately on non landing days.

The expedition team members said they have had quite a few kids over the years - a 4 year old who sat thru every single lecture and sat with adults discussing the days events every night in the bar was clearly a favourite. They all said these two were the least interactive they had ever met and clearly didnt want to be there. I can only imagine the 30 days felt like 100 to them.

I am 100% in favour of travelling with kids of all ages as that is how I grew up - I had seen all of my own country and a fair bit of the world before age 12 (in an era before electronic handheld entertainment!!!). But only a parent can know what their kids interests are and what kind of length trip they can cope with etc. So do try a few small trips elsewhere first as a test run.

And maybe let the kiddie watch things like Happy Feet and Frozen Planet to get an idea of whether the region interests them.

Look for the more budget trips of 12-14 days - unless you want to include SGI/FI which are generally a minimum of 18-23 days and go for a triple cabin. Pricewise they all vary - Ponant would be in the higher luxury level.

You also need to clearly read the terms and conditions of each expedition company as some have rules re age limits - ie several do not permit under 16s at all. Some/most have very strict rules re the care of the child during the trip - such as "the child must always have one parent with them at all time". So both parents cannot head out on a zodiac cruise leaving kid on board to occupy themselves. The T&C's on the various websites do spell this out clearly but you can also email each company to get more definitive explanations.

The problem to me is that an Antarctica cruise is very expensive. If you take him when he is too young to appreciate what he is seeing, it will be a big waste of money. Perhaps you can wait until he will get something about it. Also, if you do a tour that involves zodiac lands, will you want to take him on the zodiacs? Will the cruise company let you take him on the zodiacs.

DON