Oceana - "FAMILY FRIENDLY"????????

[lisabeebee]

We sailed with P&O (Oriana) last August and had a similar experience. On the whole we enjoyed our cruise but it could have been better if our teenage boys had more to do on sea days. We like to spend our time together on holiday, however on board most of the activities are aimed at either adults or children (mostly via organised kids clubs), with little to occupy both. Neither of my children are happy to join in kids clubs, as I think is common with teenagers so they were sometimes lost for something to occupy their time. My eldest son spend more than a few hours watching TV in our cabin as there was nothing else to do. The pool may have been an option but Norway in late August can be a little cool and he wasn't brave enough. The cinema showed one kids film all week, although both my children are old enough for some more adult films, they were not usually shown until 3pm and evening showings sometimes clashed with dinner or shows. We all enjoyed the comedian but felt that some of the shows were not aimed at a family audience (very professional, but some a little staid). I think that P&O do so many things well, but feel that ships that are marketed at families should offer more activities for families to enjoy together. With a bit of luck they will try to address this issue so that all of their passengers have the most enjoyable cruise.

[stopgo]

A adult only jacuzzi is NOT a toddlers splash pool! I think you will find family ships have toddlers splash pools provided, I wouldn't go and sit in their splash pool why should they sit in my jacuzzi?:)

Because they are five year olds, and your an adult.

[LibraLass41]

Because they are five year olds, and your an adult.

 

 

Ah, but there lies the problem, 5 year olds should be watched over by their parents not allowed to roam around going where they shouldn't be.. You may remember this happen to me on Oriana in May, 2 todllers jumping in and out of the jacuzzi while a friend and i were relaxing on there, mum was sunbathing at the other end of the pool deck, dad was at the bar with his back to the children supping lager, if you think thats ok, well, I'll say no more.

[ROSEBASKETS]

Ah, but there lies the problem, 5 year olds should be watched over by their parents not allowed to roam around going where they shouldn't be.. You may remember this happen to me on Oriana in May, 2 todllers jumping in and out of the jacuzzi while a friend and i were relaxing on there, mum was sunbathing at the other end of the pool deck, dad was at the bar with his back to the children supping lager, if you think thats ok, well, I'll say no more.

 

For once Sue I absolutely agree 100% with you. Children of any age, especially at 5 years old should be supervised at all times by their parents. I dare not take my eyes from my 6 and 8 year olds when aboard (unless in the kids club) and while I support the childrens right to participate in on board activities they should be supervised by their parents at all times while doing so. Teenagers are a different matter and usually they can look after themselves, but if they cause distress to other passengers (more than the usual grunting or over exuberence) then their parents should be held responsible for their offsprings actions.

 

The OP's point is well made and I believe that the more family orientated activities like shuffleboard, quoits, chess etc shouldn't be publicised as Adult or child focussed activities. It should be up to individual organisers to say to younger participants that if they wish to join in then their parents shoud be accompanying them while they do so.

 

As far as the jacuzzi's are concerned, the parents responsible letting their prepubecents in the pool should be taken aside and informed of the dangers and given the facts as to why children shouldn't go in the jacuzzi's. They affect the childs physiology and chemistry, which can lead to severe illness and the symptoms of which may not appear for weeks. If they were aware that their children were risking illness they might think again.

 

Sorry for such a long and boring post. I will return to my usual subtle yet slightly antagonistic ways forthwith;)

[KenAndJulie]

I am obviously missing something here .... the issue seems to be about family sctivities. There is nothing wrong families going down and playing quoites, shuffleboard, chess, golf, swimming, table tennis or many of the other freely available activities ... the cruise line doesn't have to arrange any of that, it just requires the family to plan and do something together ... which is what I have seen many families doing.

 

 

I have heard different families on Oceana talking about the childrens karaoke, the childrens discos, the childrens parties etc. which I know some of the parents partake in as well (although often the children don't seem to want the parents there). Listening to others there definitely seems to have been various family activities .. but I suppose it could be those families organising their own activities.

 

It is little different to many land based hotels or resorts that are 'family friendly'.

[K8T]

Hi

 

You have exactly voiced my feelings. P&O whilst great for children with the kids clubs and parties etc., are no good for families who want to do something together. We have done numerous cruises with our daughter who is now 5 years old (and a Sapphire member), but it is always a case of leave her in the kids club and do our own thing - although we do spend time with her playing there too - or have her with us, trying to do 'grown up' things, where we are not welcome.

 

Take a child up to the Shuffleboard, or Deck uoits and you get the dagger looks. The only thing for us to do together, was the Fancy dress, where we spent a lovely morning making a costume together. I must add that the place was heaving with parents doing the same.

 

The same in the evenings, there are no places you can go with a child and have a drink before her bedtime - she stays up a bit later on holiday, but is likely to be in bed by 10.00. So unless we book her into the kids club again and to sleep over - which we do a number of times, we wander around, feeling very 'unwelcome' and end up biting the bullet and going into a bar or lounge.

 

A family friendly bar would be good and then they could put on the karoke or uiz there too at an earlier hour than 9.30pm and the children could dance on the dance floor without being verbally abused (yes it has happened to us one evening after first sitting on an almost empty dance floor!)

 

We too had one childs film on our last cruise (Aurora), which was put on when we were in Venice for the day, however, the did re-schedule it for 4.30 on a Sea day, due to the number of parents who complained that it was a silly time. When you think we were on a 17 nighter, one film wasn't much.

 

Although the Ventura is marketed for families and they do have scalectric, there is nothing more on here either, except they haven't got a cinema and no safe childrens pool.

 

Having said all of this, P&O are probably one of the better lines for children in our experience, because they do have lots of kids things timetabled, but just for the kids so its them and us. I do believe that RCI have upped their game a little bit. Although we are looking at the Disney ship for May, which is in the Med and we loved when we did a four day cruise before. The adults only area was wonderful! The shows absolutely amazing. On P&O the shows are not really suitable for children.

 

We have constantly asked P&O to provide more to do together, but it never happens, so don't hold your breath.

 

Kate

[davedex]

Hi

 

You have exactly voiced my feelings. P&O whilst great for children with the kids clubs and parties etc., are no good for families who want to do something together. We have done numerous cruises with our daughter who is now 5 years old (and a Sapphire member), but it is always a case of leave her in the kids club and do our own thing - although we do spend time with her playing there too - or have her with us, trying to do 'grown up' things, where we are not welcome.

 

 

Kate

 

Forgot to mention that i did get a reply back from P & O who have a perfect ability to actually write lots without actually saying anything!!!( if you know what i mean!) They suggested going on Ventura as there is much more to do. Didn't answer hardly any of my queries though as to why Oceana is marketed as a family friendly ship ( & still is) whenit should be called a ship that accepts families (& encourages them to get rid of their kids whilst the parents go off & spend lots of money!!!!);)

[sillysausage]

i'm absoltly devestated reading this review!

 

We are booked to get married on the oceana in august, and we will be taking our two children (very young children- only one will be in the kids club)

 

Although I would never allow my children in a jacuzzi, there are laws in England against under 12s going in or so it states on a poster in our gym!

 

I only hope you DID complain and make them pull their socks up for other families!!!!

[LibraLass41]

...the children were in all the pools on Oriana, so we went in the Jacuzzi, then the toddlers came in there as well....oh and I forgot to add, where we resting our heads there was a used nappy lying nearby..... nice.:rolleyes: and yes sign above us saying no under 16's in the jacuzzi, but ofcourse toddlers can't read..bless 'um!

[davedex]

i'm absoltly devestated reading this review!

 

We are booked to get married on the oceana in august, and we will be taking our two children (very young children- only one will be in the kids club)

 

Although I would never allow my children in a jacuzzi, there are laws in England against under 12s going in or so it states on a poster in our gym!

 

I only hope you DID complain and make them pull their socks up for other families!!!!

 

yes, as mentioned earlier, i did write to P&O to air my views, basically after denying that they had lost my original letter and were replying to my second letter, said:

"We plan our entertainment programme to provide passengers with a wide range of choiceswhich may appeal to the different tastes & preferences. I am therefore sorry that it was not to your liking and that you would have preferred more family orientated pastimes. in our experience segregating the entertaiment between adults and children has worked very well, with families getting together round teh pools for swimming & pool games"

 

Dont get me wrong, I dont expect EVERY piece of entertainment to be family orientated, but in a 13 night cruise perhaps they could consider allowing one day out of the 13 to try something new which could be a bit of fun for all members of a family to join in together. For example, why not have one day where some of the (laid back) entertainment staff could host a family shuffleboard competition, and then another day have a family quiz in a bar, and another day something else etc. It does not have to be adult..... every day - does it???? After all, this is supposed to be a family friendly ship!!! reading the reply i got from P & O and my comments earlier, in my opinion, it confirms that this ship is not "family friendly" but merely a ship that allows families on board and once they have achieved that, (& got their revenue banked) aim to segregate the two and reunite them at the end of the trip.

Some families may consider this perfect, but my ideal holiday is one that i spend with my family and explore new places & do things that i would not normally do. The letter went on to say that they have taken my comments & passed it onto the senior management for their info & future planning (much like saying "the cheque is in the post??") All I can hope is that my comments will slightly change the ways in which they plan things on board but ony time will tell i guess.

 

Im sure you will have a good time on Oceana & congratulations on your upcoming wedding!!! It will be interesting to read how you see tings in board to see if things have changed at all.

I have not given up on P & O but will go to some other cruise lines to see how differently things are done.:)

[sillysausage]

LOL

toddlers cannot read!!!!

[scrozuk]

Yes do write to HO and complain....

Don't forget though there will be 2000 passengers onboard and at most 200 or so kids, I don't think you can complain about deck quoits being arranged for the other 90% of passengers!

 

If my children were young and I could afford to cruise (i had to be content with a caravan or cottage in Exmouth or Cornwall when mine were small) I would choose Independence of the Seas for a family cruise - looked fab for kids.

 

I think that in our case about the kids club, I would have to disagree with you there, as we were on Ventura last year and our two boys found they enjoyed the childrens club a lot more than they did when we were on Independence of the Seas.

 

Of course this is down to the individual preference, just felt that the kids club staff on Ventura were more in tune with kids than on Indy.

 

Will be interested to see what the boys think of the kids club on Oceana.

 

Scrozuk

[sillysausage]

davedex you are SUPERi only hope they have taken onboard (no pun intended) your comments and act

[davedex]

davedex you are SUPERi only hope they have taken onboard (no pun intended) your comments and act

 

 

me too!!! The sad thing is that a lot of the things which we said about could be easily fixed without hardly any cost and just a bit of thought! Hope you have a great trip when you go ( i am sure you will) and that you come back with fantastic memories:)

[Andyboy]

The ship being overun with OAPs has been my concern ever since booking but I have been assured by many that Oceana is good for kids. However, I will not be giving any of the old moaners an inch. If they dont like my noisy well behaved daughter being too close to them, then believe me, they will move on long before I will! We are away on the 24th July which I think is the start of the English school holidays so hopefully there will be lots and lots of kids to add some atmosphere. This is my first cruise and I really am looking forward to it but the thought of moaning oldies is putting me off a bit.

[Presto2]

The ship being overun with OAPs has been my concern ever since booking but I have been assured by many that Oceana is good for kids. However, I will not be giving any of the old moaners an inch. If they dont like my noisy well behaved daughter being too close to them, then believe me, they will move on long before I will! We are away on the 24th July which I think is the start of the English school holidays so hopefully there will be lots and lots of kids to add some atmosphere. This is my first cruise and I really am looking forward to it but the thought of moaning oldies is putting me off a bit.

 

And as someone who has paid a lot for my cruise and who is looking forward to a much needed holiday I am more than happy to be on the Oceana with lots of families ----------

 

I just jope that other cruisers respect my right to want a relaxing holiday ---- even if I dare to suggest that I don't want to be surrounded by lots of noisy children and want to find a quiet area to chill out.

 

It doesn't make me an OAP either - though I fail to see what is wrong with OAPs ..................... Re moaning oldies ------ the less said the better

[BORDER REIVER]

Maybe someone could define the meanings of "Old Biddies" and also "Kids Running Riot".

 

I think there's a danger of putting all people of certain ages together into the same brackets. Are all people over say...60 "old biddies"? - NO! and do all young children "run riot" - NO!

 

We are all individuals and go cruising for our own reasons and should recognise that there's room on a cruise ship for everyone to do their own thing. A bit of tolerance goes a long way.

 

By the way, I'm probably nearer in age to being a biddy, but get accused almost daily of being a kid.....and I know which is more fun.;)

[ROSEBASKETS]

"Old Biddies" - I'll have a go at a definition!

 

The pax who push their way to the front of the queue at check in because they have reached an age when they shouldn't have to, or haven't the time to wait their turn

 

The Pax who doesn't think children of any age should be allowed in the lifts because they might press all the buttons at once.

 

The Pax who like to remind you of their age within 5 minutes of meeting you (I'm 85 you know!)

 

The Pax who can't remember your name from the previous evening on a table for 4

 

The Pax who thinks it's OK to be racist to the waiters

 

The Pax who remind you that they fought a war for you

 

The Pax who complain they can't understand the staff

 

The Pax who moan that it's too hot outside and too cold inside

 

The Pax who moan about the adults only pool being too cold and swim in the other pool and then complain that it's full of kids

 

The Pax who complain to reception that the ships full of kids in August

 

The Pax who walk with a stick, but they are like a bullet when the courtesy bus stops

 

The Pax who have no manners, spill their tea over you at the drinks station and look at you daft as if you are the one to blame.

 

The Pax who want something for breakfast that isn't on the full breakfast menu

 

The Pax who save 14 seats at the front of the theatre just incase their friends turn up

 

The Pax who ran to claim the quiz prize and played tennis earlier in the day who is unable to use the stairs to go up one floor

 

The Pax who queues for the tender to shore and then have either forgotten their boarding pass or can't find it in their handbag

 

The Pax who MUST use the lift for the muster drill and then run up 6 flights of stairs to get to the sailaway party so they can get a seat

 

The Pax who don't like to hear children singing while on the ship

 

The Pax who don't like the noise of the kids club but must sit directly outside on the deck above or below

 

The Pax who cannot understand why a baby cries and then complains about it for a fortnight

 

The Pax who gets up at 5am bangs about and wakes you up and then complains that you woke then up at 4pm in the afternoon while they are trying to sleep

 

The Pax who has vera lynn on the radio till 3am and then complains about a baby crying next door (because it was woen up by the music)

 

Shall I continue?

[BORDER REIVER]

Thanks for an honest and fun reply, I'm still lauging at some of them.

 

Some good ones there and I've seen most of them, but I'm sure most older people are not like that and would be offended by any suggestion that they are. Just as we cannot say that all kids run riot. There's good and bad passengers in all age groups, but some posters were inferring that all people of certain ages were likely to be the same. I've certainly seen a lot of the behaviour you referred to shown out by people MUCH younger that the "old biddy" stereotypes. I really hope I never, ever act like the passengers on your list, but I cannot make any promises.

My dad is nearly 90 and says and does some things that make me cringe at times, but he's changed since I was a kid, his eyesight is nearly gone, his hearing is very poor and he needs help to walk sometimes, but he's courteous and considerate and lives life to the fullest he can manage - and we all love him to bits. We are aware however, that he probably irritates a few people and is considered to be an old biddy by those people. When he was middle aged, he would have been horrified at the thought of him being as he is now, but for many of us, we will have no say in what will happen to us to change our lives so much.

[johnny tallentire]

Very interesting post,myself missus and my 2 children are sailing transatlantic on oceana in october the holiday is as much for our children as it is for us,god help anyone that moans at my kids for enjoying themselves ;)

[davedex]

Very interesting post,myself missus and my 2 children are sailing transatlantic on oceana in october the holiday is as much for our children as it is for us,god help anyone that moans at my kids for enjoying themselves ;)

 

 

Do i remember correctly that you asked about cabin A735 when you were doing a transatlantic on Oceana? is this the trip that you are referingto?

[CASPALL]

Well written Rosebaskets!!! LOL!!!! All the things that drive me mad are in that list!

 

Caryl

[johnny tallentire]

It is same room same cruise.

[davedex]

It is same room same cruise.

 

I bet you are looking forward to this. Booking a year ahead is good that it gives you something to look forward to but takes so long to come around!!! -I remember you asking about this in Oct 09.

[johnny tallentire]

Ohh yes time is dragging so much lol were all so excited especially my 8 yr old daughter,on the plus side of booking so early we were in the travel agents last weekend so i asked the girl there to price the same cruise up were on in october just out of interest to see the difference,wow i couldnt beleive it,we have saved £4200 by booking a year before,so deffinately worth early booking.ROLL ON OCTOBER