Is Celebrity the right cruise for kids?

We are looking to do a family cruise with several families. Our family is the only one that has children (9 & 12). Looking over the website, it seems to me that Celebrity is more of a adult cruise line?? Any opinions would be helpful.

Celebrity does have a kids club, pool, etc. Some ships have miniature golf and I have seen sports areas with basketball on a Celebrity ship. What they don't have are big things like water slides. The indoor solarium is supposed to be age 16 and up. This may depend on your kids.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Simply no, I would look to RCCL.

J.

While you will find more children on say RCI or Carnival or NCL in the summer months and over holidays you will find a good number of children.

We took our children for many years on Celebrity and that includes when they are the ages of your children and they had a wonderful time.

Remember, it doesn't take 100's of kids for the children to enjoy themselves.

Simply no, I would look to RCCL.

J.

Absolutely untrue, my kids grew up on Celebrity and it was their preferred line. Usually on this board when someone tells you not to sail Celebrity with kids, they have never sailed on Celebrity with kids and used their kids programs. Celebrity has excellent children's programs and you can't go wrong taking them. If you check back you will see many posts where children preferred Celebrity over Royal or even Disney.

Celebrity was absolutely our family's favorite cruise line. The staff to kid ratio was much better in programming and the dining room wait staff was always very accommodating.

Simply no, I would look to RCCL.

J.

Some kids would be happy on X but most active would not. There is limited exercise activities on some ships, the Basketball court on the Eclipse and Equinox is located in the front of the ship, too much wind to play or enjoy a sport there except in port.

Even for me,(75 years)there is just not enough sports orientated activities. On one of our TA cruises on X the most strenuous activity was, PING PONG and it is held in a centrum ares where everyone must pass through to get some where.

Note not a fan of the exercise spa, but do go there, but young kids may not be allowed in??????

I will repeat myself but kids are much more flexible than adults.

I am sure they will be happy whatever you do.

I found Celebrity to be great for the kids and for the parents (us).

Keith

Not sure about teens and older kids, but my kids love Celebrity. They are 7 and 5 and have been on Disney, RCCL, Carnival, Princess and Celebrity, they'll tell you celebrity is their favorite. Agreed there are more gimmicks, slides, rock wall type items on other lines, but they are a minority on the ship and everyone really caters to them, they love the special attention.

Not sure about teens and older kids, but my kids love Celebrity. They are 7 and 5 and have been on Disney, RCCL, Carnival, Princess and Celebrity, they'll tell you celebrity is their favorite. Agreed there are more gimmicks, slides, rock wall type items on other lines, but they are a minority on the ship and everyone really caters to them, they love the special attention.

Totally agree. My kids (6 & 10) absolutely LOVE Celebrity. Granted, I haven't exposed them to the activities on Disney and the others, but they think it's awesome. We feel it's a great family vacation...It's not swarming with kids, but they are happy and have a great time with the children's program and as parents - we get great food, atmosphere, and some time alone while the kids are happy!

I hesitate to tell people how great Celebrity is for kids...I feel like its a great secret! ;)

We are planning a family cruise that would include kids ages 3-11. We showed the parents/kids various X and RCL ships and, hands down, all chose RCL. We don't have children but having sailed both lines, it was what we would have chosen if it was completely up to us. We LOVE X but in terms of activities and dining options, I think RCL offers a better family-oriented vacation.

We think the Oasis class is a little too large for the grandparents and Radiance class doesn't have all the activities, so we are looking at Freedom class- again, it has something for all age gruoups.

Cheers,

We are looking to do a family cruise with several families. Our family is the only one that has children (9 & 12). Looking over the website, it seems to me that Celebrity is more of a adult cruise line?? Any opinions would be helpful.

No it's not adult cruise line it's mass market cruise line with nice kids club and lots of activities for kids. My DD loved kids club and never been bored ,not like us :o I would say it's more bored for adults then for kids. LOL

It is definitely more of an adult cruise line.

Many adults, ourselves included, will be very vigilant that rules are obeyed both by Celebrity and parents that bring children on board. That can be stressful for parents making sure kids are on their best behavior at all times. Kids just want to be kids.

No running anywhere, no splashing in the pool. An attendant will be called immediately. In the MDR if children are noisy or crying, the Maitre'd will be called and the adults displeasure will be noted. Doesnt sound like it would be much fun for a child.

I have also been at guest relations when someone was showing pictures taken of kids on their own, running around, misbehaving and demanding that something be done about it. So parents that think they can just let their kids lose and enjoy themselves will be surprised when they are told that the hotel manager has been made aware of their lack of supervision.

If a baby is crying next door, many will/ and should demand a different cabin.

Cant understand why anyone would bring a baby on a cruise but some do. I feel sorry for anyone who has been up all night because there is a baby somewhere near them.

No adult on a cruise as a couple wants the experience to resemble camp.

Celebrity does have a kids club for a very good reason, to keep kids away from the adult environment and they do a good job at it. It is the kids that stay with their parents that cause issues. Usually because of overindulgent parenting, or very little parenting, just plain boredom for the kids.

Please chose RCL, Carnival, Disney. If I chose to be on one of those there is no issue for me that hundreds of children are aboard as well. It is geared for families.

I think both lines are great for kids. RCCL may have more bells ans whistles but I would not hesitate to take young children on either.

When we move to children at the change to young adults I think RCCL has the edge, especially on the bigger ships. Waiting for turns on flow riders, climbing walls, zip lines gives lots of mixing opportunities. There are so many things, other than organised clubs, not just to entertain but to offer opportunities to mix. i am not saying teens can not enjoy Celebrity, many do, so much depends on the individual young person's confidence, interests and ability to entertain themselves.

So I guess my answer is as a parent is I think you will be fine at the moment but your kids may prefer/get more out of a RCCL cruise in a year or two.

We are now on the other side with our adult son, like us, preferring Celebrity!

Simply no, I would look to RCCL.

J.

Sorry but that is NOT your call to make. I am taking my children aged 19,11,9 and 6 on. celebrity cruise and they are all looking forward to it. They know what there is for them to do and I will take some other bits and bobs for them also. They know how they must behave in the public areas and they know what they cannot do. ie press all the buttons on the lift, or run around the ship scraping and shouting. They are too old for public temper tantrums si that win't be an issue. People need to realise that we as parents need something suitable for everyone. Once thay are older, obviously RCI will.be better...If they.choose it. But no one has a right to tell people with children that no, simply.put it is not a cruise line for children. It is rude!!

Sorry but that is NOT your call to make. I am taking my children aged 19,11,9 and 6 on. celebrity cruise and they are all looking forward to it. They know what there is for them to do and I will take some other bits and bobs for them also. They know how they must behave in the public areas and they know what they cannot do. ie press all the buttons on the lift, or run around the ship scraping and shouting. They are too old for public temper tantrums si that win't be an issue. People need to realise that we as parents need something suitable for everyone. Once thay are older, obviously RCI will.be better...If they.choose it. But no one has a right to tell people with children that no, simply.put it is not a cruise line for children. It is rude!!

The OP asked for opinions and that's what they got -a variety of opinions. Not rude, just their opinion.

We took our three grandchildren on Constellation when they were about 4, 7, 8, they are happy with an ordinary pool as they don't have one at home, only the 4 year old enjoyed the kids club on that occasion, we all had a lovely holiday, the kids sat at dinner as well as any adult as we would expect.

However we have just returned from Allure in May, with all our grandchildren aged from 3- 18 years and they all loved all the activities onboard, especially the flow riders, it amazing how much they achieve in a week if they get a chance to practice every day.

Have a lovely family cruise whatever you decide to do, I know ours has given us lots of lovely memories.

We did a family cruise Disney. The ages of the children were 5, 7, 11, and 14. They were in 4 separate kids clubs because of their ages. The 14year old appreciated hanging out with other teens in an appropriate for age dance venue, and the younger children enjoyed activities related to their age groups. We rarely saw them during the cruise! With that being said, I think one has to consider the personality, hobbies, etc of their own children. Only a parent knows what their children's energy/activity levels are, and types of food they enjoy. Maybe the MDR isn't the right place for all children, and the café is more to their liking. If you know your small child cant sit still for an hour, there are other options. Most kids enjoy spending any time in a pool, but I can see how a ship with slides, bumper cars, rock walls, etc would be more appealing for kids than just an ordinary pool. Most days, you'll probably be out on land anyway. I don't think you can generalize that all kids belong on one ship or the other. As a mom who had two very active boys, they would have preferred Disney, Rccl, or Norwegian at those ages.

I have sailed on many different cruise lines, including Disney, many with my Grandaughter who is now 11 and she much prefers Celebrity or Princess. I will add that she is well behaved. They have great kids programs and she has a wonderful time. I have to totally disagree with the comments that Celebrity is more of an adult cruise line.

In all fairness, anyone who has cruised with children misbehaving and their parents ignoring their bad behavior is an unpleasant experience, however, I have encountered far more adults misbehaving in my years of cruising and unfortunately there is no one to control them. I'm talking about the whiners, and the rude individuals that treat the hard working staff like servants.

Your kids will have a great time!

We did a family cruise Disney. The ages of the children were 5, 7, 11, and 14. They were in 4 separate kids clubs because of their ages. The 14year old appreciated hanging out with other teens in an appropriate for age dance venue, and the younger children enjoyed activities related to their age groups. We rarely saw them during the cruise! With that being said, I think one has to consider the personality, hobbies, etc of their own children. Only a parent knows what their children's energy/activity levels are, and types of food they enjoy. Maybe the MDR isn't the right place for all children, and the café is more to their liking. If you know your small child cant sit still for an hour, there are other options. Most kids enjoy spending any time in a pool, but I can see how a ship with slides, bumper cars, rock walls, etc would be more appealing for kids than just an ordinary pool. Most days, you'll probably be out on land anyway. I don't think you can generalize that all kids belong on one ship or the other. As a mom who had two very active boys, they would have preferred Disney, Rccl, or Norwegian at those ages.

This must have been a while ago because if you sailed today on the Disney cruise with children that age they would only be in two different kids clubs.

We are gold cruisers on Disney and I'm taking my kids on their first celebrity cruise two weeks from today. My younger child seems to have fun no matter what cruise line. My older one keeps saying "I wish it was Disney". We will see how they like Celebrity.

One of the problems I foresee is that I don't think there will probably be more than a dozen kids on board. I'm afraid, however, that celebrity will still enforce the age groups and not allow my boys to hang out together in the same club. My other really big concern is there won't be enough things for us to do as a family. I'm afraid it will be mainly adults activities outside of kids clubs.

It is definitely more of an adult cruise line.

 

Many adults, ourselves included, will be very vigilant that rules are obeyed both by Celebrity and parents that bring children on board. That can be stressful for parents making sure kids are on their best behavior at all times. Kids just want to be kids.

 

No running anywhere, no splashing in the pool. An attendant will be called immediately. In the MDR if children are noisy or crying, the Maitre'd will be called and the adults displeasure will be noted. Doesnt sound like it would be much fun for a child.

 

I have also been at guest relations when someone was showing pictures taken of kids on their own, running around, misbehaving and demanding that something be done about it. So parents that think they can just let their kids lose and enjoy themselves will be surprised when they are told that the hotel manager has been made aware of their lack of supervision.

 

If a baby is crying next door, many will/ and should demand a different cabin.

 

Cant understand why anyone would bring a baby on a cruise but some do. I feel sorry for anyone who has been up all night because there is a baby somewhere near them.

 

No adult on a cruise as a couple wants the experience to resemble camp.

 

Celebrity does have a kids club for a very good reason, to keep kids away from the adult environment and they do a good job at it. It is the kids that stay with their parents that cause issues. Usually because of overindulgent parenting, or very little parenting, just plain boredom for the kids.

 

Please chose RCL, Carnival, Disney. If I chose to be on one of those there is no issue for me that hundreds of children are aboard as well. It is geared for families.

Most of the comments above are untrue, children and parents are the same as other lines. Sounds very much like another person who has never taken children on a Celebrity cruise. After reading this any other comments made would cause the post to be removed. Outrageous

I might have my younger niece and nephew's ages wrong, thinking they might have been a little younger at that time. It was just a better cruise for them, with all of the characters, Disney cartoons and movies, etc.

Your kids will have a great time. There is plenty to do as a family, or they have a wonderful kids program with many fun things to do.

My daughter is 11 and has been on several Celebrity ships including the Xpedition (which we read many a post about children would be bored). Guess what? She had a fabulous time on every one. Her first cruise was on Disney, and she has also sailed Princess. She prefers Celebrity and Princess.

She will not be going on RCL, NCL, or CCL because I don't want to, and I am paying :D

My daughter is also one that does not need to be entertained 24/7 so it is a perfect fit for us.

Please do not worry about taking your kids. As long as they are well behaved, they will be welcomed :)

Most of the comments above are untrue, children and parents are the same as other lines. Sounds very much like another person who has never taken children on a Celebrity cruise. After reading this any other comments made would cause the post to be removed. Outrageous

I agree with you totally. The OP's kids will have a great time.

bosco

Both of our granddaughters loved Celebrity when they were young and still love Celebrity now that they are older teens. :)

Note: They have also been fine with Princess ... but did not like RCCL or NCL.

LuLu