Best cruise for young teens?

We just got back from a week on the liberty of the seas. For a ship full of kids it seemed liked none of them came to the teen activities. My son showed up a few times to have activities like capture the flag, scavenger hunt etc cancelled due to lack of interest. What's the best cruise line for teen activities. Or is it just that once they hit teen level they just want to chill and hang in the teen lounge? My son is 13 and still likes the planned things. We had a great experience on ncl breakaway. And two semi lackluster teen experiences on royal. Any suggestions or is it most likely going to be the same on all the cruise lines now that he has aged out of the kids clubs?

Once they're 14 or so, none of them are interested in "organized" activities...at least, not most teens!

Your 13 year old is at that "in-between" stage. Next time you cruise, he will NOT be interested in those things...he'll be interested in the girls, the pool, and sports deck!

We found with our children that once they hit a certain age they and other there age just wanted to be together but not in a formal program.

Keith

We just got back from a week on the liberty of the seas. For a ship full of kids it seemed liked none of them came to the teen activities. My son showed up a few times to have activities like capture the flag, scavenger hunt etc cancelled due to lack of interest. What's the best cruise line for teen activities. Or is it just that once they hit teen level they just want to chill and hang in the teen lounge? My son is 13 and still likes the planned things. We had a great experience on ncl breakaway. And two semi lackluster teen experiences on royal. Any suggestions or is it most likely going to be the same on all the cruise lines now that he has aged out of the kids clubs?

:( Oh darn! I really dislike reading things like this.... Yes, I booked LOS for our next cruise. We came back to Royal specifically because of the teen club. My son enjoyed FOS's clubs a lot 12-17 age group. I wonder if it widely varies from ship to ship.

My son stopped liking Royal at age 12 because the teen program is shared with kids as old as 17 and the older kids weren't very nice or inclusive with the 12 year olds. That's just his take on it. He no longer attends the youth program with vigor. He'll occasionally check it out. On our last two cruises he never went to the youth program- preferring to hang out with me. He's 14 now and I suspect he'll hang out with the family on our upcoming cruise, but I'll tell him to at least check it out. My son is reserved and doesn't like horseplay and silly behavior- like drinking (watch out for this on your cruise. I saw a drunken young teen on one of our cruises and I'm sure the parents were clueless) So to a certain extent- I don't want to push him if he doesn't mesh with the teens. 12-15 is a tough age.

My teens loved NCL. My oldest was 14 on the Jewel, very pessimistic about the teen club. Saw her again when we disembarked. Sailed on the Breakaway when she was 17, and ds was 15. On the last night, ds insisted we give a big tip to the head counselor. They spent a lot if time with new friends outside the club, but inside, as well.

We love NCL's newer ships. On any line, it is vital that teens go to the "meet and greet" the first night. They will make friends and have a great time!

My daughter was 13 and 15 on our last two cruises. Took her to Remix (the teen club) the first night and signed her up. She found a few other girls her age and they ended up hanging out together, especially by the pool, watching movies. Sometimes the teens would have little discussions (or play teen games perhaps) in the pool area at night. They had a Facebook page that many would continue to talk on long after the cruise. My girl said the organized activities were "lame."

Two years later we did the same cruise at the same time and the girl found out that one of her friends from the previous cruise (they remained FB friends) was going too. So they made plans to meet up. They formed a group with another girl and three boys their age and hanged out much of the time. Our daughter did actually ask to come to some of the shows with us so maybe her friends weren't into the production shows. (she told me later that they planned ping pong tournaments, and we did hear her voice early in the cruise -- she and her friends were in the art gallery checking out the art)

my son loved the teen area on oasis of the seas. the teens actually have a teen lounge and a teen disco, they also have thier own deck area to hang out side. the teen lounge has computers, video games. a large tv where they watch movies and play guitar hero. there is a round thing full of bean bags if the just want to hang around and chat. they have dj scratch academy where you kid goes 3 or 4 times and learns how to dj. every night they have a themed dance, thats why having 2 rooms is great, if you kid doesnt like dances he can still hang in the other room. the most important thing is to have your kid go to the meet and great on the first night. that is when they form groups. if he doesnt go then he might be left out. they do have group events like a rock wall contest, taking over one of the surf simulators and teen iceskating. There were alot of kids for these activities.