Going with my teenage daughters 13 & 17 is Holland America a good choice or ?

I have been on 2 cruises previously and they have been with NCL, was trying to see if Holland America would be a good choice since i will be with my 2 daughters 13 & 17 and me and my wife are in their 40's. I am planning to go Thanksgiving week so don't have much time, need your opinions, suggestions etc.

It really depends what you are looking for in a cruise.

Can you share with us what is important for you and your family.

Keith

Good for it. You will have a great time.

It really depends what you are looking for in a cruise.

 

Can you share with us what is important for you and your family.

 

Keith

Well for instance is the crowd younger or older? What kind of activities do they have on board for the teenagers? How is their on ship entertainment? Is their entertainment geared more towards adults or? Do they have rock climbing, surfing etc.?

We were happy with NCL when we cruised with them since they had good entertainment and had stuff to do for teenagers.

The crowd is typically older on HAL although some of this will range based on the itinerary and time of year.

Entertainment is geared more to adults. No rock climbing.

If this was me if you want something geared a little more to the children I would look at RCI.

Keith

HAL will have something organized for teenagers to do, but the overall atmosphere is more adult. Traveling during Thanksgiving week will mean there will be more families with children on the ship.

I have been on 2 cruises previously and they have been with NCL, was trying to see if Holland America would be a good choice since i will be with my 2 daughters 13 & 17 and me and my wife are in their 40's. I am planning to go Thanksgiving week so don't have much time, need your opinions, suggestions etc.

Welcome to Cruise Critic cooljay!

All of the cruises will have more families onboard at Thanksgiving.

HAL has some great prices and itineraries. But overall they cater to an older group and a more formal atmosphere. This does not mean you would not enjoy your cruise.

Try looking into NCL and RCI and see what's available. I think it would be more relaxed experience and more fun for your teens.

HAL tends to be a bit older and sedate for me and I'm on the wrong side of 60. If you can find something on an RCI ship, preferably Freedom class, your daughters will be much happier.

Please do not subject your teens to HAL.It really is a floating nursing home with food to match. Oldest cruisers out there.

I'd go with RCI, with 2 connecting cabins.

Well for instance is the crowd younger or older? What kind of activities do they have on board for the teenagers? How is their on ship entertainment? Is their entertainment geared more towards adults or? Do they have rock climbing, surfing etc.?

We were happy with NCL when we cruised with them since they had good entertainment and had stuff to do for teenagers.

For these kinds of activities, I would also recommend RCI - Freedom or Oasis class. Your daughters will love these ships...

I enjoy HAL, in fact I leave next week on a 10 day Southern Caribbean on them, but I think I would agree with the other posters if you are looking for a line that is primarily for your daughters entertainment, HAL might not be the best fit for your family. If you enjoyed NCL then you can try them again or as others have mentioned RCI might be a good fit for your girls, as they do have the climbing walls and some of their ships have the flo-rider or ice skating rinks. Some of the mega ships with NCL and RCI have a lot of different things available for people that are looking for ship board activities. I would also shy away from Princess and Celebrity as they are probably both more similar to HAL, than they are to RCI or NCL. Good luck and I hope you find a cruise that fits your family.

Honestly, no. Not at all. HAL is generally for older guests and those guests are very loyal.

The above poster is correct. On a whole, the demographics for HAL are a bit older but if you are taking a 7 day cruise Thanksgiving week, I'll bet there are going to be at least 200 10 to 20 yr olds onboard. There are so many things that we think HAL does better than some other lines....I'd book it! However, if you can get a better price on an other line for a comparable cabin and you'd be happy with that itinerary.....I'd do that.

we took a 14 day TA cruise on HAL last fall - there were about 5 teenagers on board.

we had a pool going to see which one would jump overboard first.

we took a 14 day TA cruise on HAL last fall - there were about 5 teenagers on board.

 

we had a pool going to see which one would jump overboard first.

Who won the Pool? Did anyone who brought any of the 5 teens do any research on the cruise line that they picked to take their teens on?

I have been on 2 cruises previously and they have been with NCL, was trying to see if Holland America would be a good choice since i will be with my 2 daughters 13 & 17 and me and my wife are in their 40's. I am planning to go Thanksgiving week so don't have much time, need your opinions, suggestions etc.

If I were you I would pick RCCL. There is just so much more for your teens to do on one of their large ships. I know from experience as I have taken my grandson on a RCCL cruise and he had a blast. I think HAL is too quiet and subdued for teens. Hope you all have a wonderful time.

If you're interested in relaxing by the pool, taking a few excursions at the ports then perhaps you enjoy HAL. You will certainly get a younger crowd over Thanksgiving.

We have cruised with HAL several times and have really enjoyed these beautiful ships. We have met some wonderful people. They attract all ages not just older although that is the knock they get. The one thing the ships wind down early by 10 pm there is not much happening aboard.

The food is delicious, the service top-notch. If you are looking for a traditional line with elegant ships you will love Holland America Line.

If you're look for more planned events then consider Celebrity or Royal Caribbean Line.

Jonathan

Any reviews/opinions on Carnival with teens?

HAL is offering really good rates right now but reading all the posts above i guess will have to take my business somewhere else someone can convince me otherwise.

Any reviews/opinions on Carnival with teens?

HAL is offering really good rates right now but reading all the posts above i guess will have to take my business somewhere else someone can convince me otherwise.

HAL may be too quiet and Carnival too noisy. Take a look at NCL or Royal. I think either of these two lines might be better than either HAL or Carnival for your family.

HAL is my dd15's favourite cruise line. A HAL ship won't have 1000-1200 kids like RCI, but they will have plenty. There's no rock climbing or surfing, but there's also no belly flop or hairy leg contest. The food is better. The cabins may be larger. The pools won't be as crowded or noisy. There's a movie theatre, port talks, and a nice teen club.

Maybe browse through a few threads on the HAL(and other lines) boards to get an idea of what is to be expected.

Also you may want to check out the roll call for the week you are going. Maybe someone else is bringing teens.

Though only you and your family can decide what cruise is right for you, I'd look at any of the other large lines before HAL with teens. RCL, NCL, CCL, Disney, Princess, Celebrity, MSC...I'm probably missing someone in there.

You won't have a bad time on HAL, you'll most likely have a better time elsewhere.

Good luck, and if you do go on HAL could you come back here and post how it goes? A lot of people have concerns about ages on HAL and they post before their trip, but we never hear from them again. It would be nice for others considering HAL with teens to know what to expect.

Although not teenagers, we have sailed with our kids and their spouses/travel partner (ages in the mid-20s) on HAL before and they loved it. Now, they didn't use the teen facilities and are able to entertain themselves, but we saw a good number of youngsters aboard - so many that my kids retreated to the 'adults only' area!!

No, HAL does not have rock climbing walls, slides, ice skating, etc.....but they aren't exclusively for the 'almost dead' group. They do have their share of older folk, but so do many other lines. Longer cruises attract those that can take more time off (ie, retirees). Shorter cruises or those that happen over holidays attract those that can only cruise during those times (ie, families).

We pick a cruise based upon the itinerary first. HAL has always served us well, but we sail on a number of different lines too. Part of deciding what line to cruise on is based upon what you want to get out of a vacation. We like the port intensive cruises and don't care as much about the cruise line's activities. Some people never get off the ship (our neighbors do that).

My suggestion to the OP is to review suggestions with your family's tastes in mind..try several lines and find the one that fits your style.....but overall, relax....you're on vacation!!

If you are talking about USA Thanksgiving this year (Nov. 28, 2013), then your options will be very limited. Actually, I'm surprised there is any thing available on any ship, since this is a very popular time -- that's why the prices higher. HAL might be your only option. I know people are already booking for Thanksgiving, 2014.

Do you have to fly, or can you drive to a port? That makes a difference.

I like the Royal Caribbean ships that have an ice rink (voyager class and higher). Do your teens ice skate? Skating is free (included in the price of the cruise).

RCI also has the rock climbing wall and one or two teen clubs (although I don't see these clubs used that much).

You might look at Thanksgiving next year (2014), maybe the Nov. 23 7-day Freedom of the Seas or the Nov. 24 5-day Explorer of the Seas, both from Port Canaveral, Florida.

You could even see Disneyworld also.

And as I said before, consider 2 connecting cabins. These have the inside door so you can go from one cabin to the other without going into the hallway.

If you think you want to go in 2014, book it now. That way you get better cabin choices.

RCI for USA bookings are fully refundable up to final payment date (about 75 days before sailing).

Monitor the cruise price -- if it goes down before final payment date, you can get the lower fare.

Any reviews/opinions on Carnival with teens?

HAL is offering really good rates right now but reading all the posts above i guess will have to take my business somewhere else someone can convince me otherwise.

Carnival would be great for teens. They don't have rock climbing walls, ice skating rinks..etc (you have to go on Royal for that)...But they do have a teen program, water slides, sports area, arcade...etc....If you have a specific ship in mind, I would look at the amenities/activities for that ship since it may vary slightly depending on the actual ship(s) you are interested in.