Summer European Cruise

[loan_girl]

Trying to figure out which cruiseline would be best for a summer (prefer June or July) cruise to Europe.

Thinking Med Cruise but up for suggestions.

I have 3 kids:

9,5,& 2. 2 year old is potty trained if that makes a difference.

Kids are used to going places but would also appreciate a "kid friendly" but still nice for adults cruise.

Thanks in advance for ideas...

[lmg1230]

We were on a Princess Baltic cruise last summer with our two daughters who were 12 and 6 at the time. We have also sailed Princess in Alaska and Holland America and Disney in the Caribbean. We find that Princess provides the right mix of fun for the kids and a nice experience for us as well. Our girls loved both of their Princess cruises and are anxious to sail on them again. We are considering a Mediterranean cruise for summer 2011 and I'm waiting for the Princess itineraries to be released to see if they suit us. We also quite liked the Holland America Eurodam but the sleeping arrangements on the Princess suited us better. On Holland America we had a suite with a double sofabed so my daughters had to sleep together. On Princess we had a minisuite which had a sofabed as well as a pull-down bunk - everyone was happier with that arrangement. As well, I think there tend to be more kids on Princess on the European cruises than on HAL.

 

Lisa

[loan_girl]

so additionally I would think

Disney Magic 7 or 11 night options

Princess 15 European Adventurer or Just one of their Classic

or

Norwegian 10-14 day options

Maybe rcl?

I would say the Princess European Adventurer has the itinerary I could most easily sell my husband on but how would Princess be for the kids? In summer could I expect more on board?

THx for your thoughts~!

[loan_girl]

We were on a Princess Baltic cruise last summer with our two daughters who were 12 and 6 at the time. We have also sailed Princess in Alaska and Holland America and Disney in the Caribbean. We find that Princess provides the right mix of fun for the kids and a nice experience for us as well. Our girls loved both of their Princess cruises and are anxious to sail on them again. We are considering a Mediterranean cruise for summer 2011 and I'm waiting for the Princess itineraries to be released to see if they suit us. We also quite liked the Holland America Eurodam but the sleeping arrangements on the Princess suited us better. On Holland America we had a suite with a double sofabed so my daughters had to sleep together. On Princess we had a minisuite which had a sofabed as well as a pull-down bunk - everyone was happier with that arrangement. As well, I think there tend to be more kids on Princess on the European cruises than on HAL.

 

Lisa

Thanks Lisa sounds like a great sleeping set-up!

[CeleBrat]

We sailed the NCL Gem to the in the summer of 2008. The kids were 5 and 7 then. Lots of fun! We chose NCL specifically for their Freestyle DIning, so that we could maximize our time spent in port without having to rush back for dinner, and so we wouldn't have to pack formal attire. The bowling alley onboard was a plus too.

 

Link to a really-long reveiw of the trip is in my signature.

 

Enjoy!--CeleBrat

[Essiesmom]

Med cruises are pretty port intensive, so ship activities should be a minor consideration, although if you want to have the 2y/o use the kids club, you will need one that takes two year olds. Also, you need to consider sleeping arrangements for five. Not many ships have cabins for five...you can't just take a quad cabin and put a fifth person in it. I would think at those ages, you would not feel comfortable with side by side cabins, they would need a connecting door, and you might have to book early to get them. EM

[Kerry's Girls]

With a 2 year old my choices would only be between NCL and Carnival since the 2 year old could participate in the kids club. I just did the Med with twin 5 year olds and, much as I prefer traditional cruising, the freestyle system on NCL works well for a port intensive cruise since you can show up at the dining room whenever you want and dressed pretty much however you want. Their prices are also lower overall, so you may be able to get a suite for the 5 of you for the same price as regular rooms on another ship (which is what we did). The suites come with tons of perks, including a butler, full room service menus (which also helps for port days), etc.

 

NCL isn't usually my cup of tea, but for a Med cruise with kids, I thought it was perfect and plan to do it again within the next few years.

 

Best,

Mia

[Lizushkin]

We were on Med cruise for 14 days on Summit last october. My 2.5yrs daugther loved Fun Factory on board! There was plenty of things to do! Children 3 and up were left with special staff by themselfs. They did great job!

We had balcony cabin: 2 beds,with sofa bed+1 upper bed. It was ok.

 

If you can-book 2 cabins ,you can leave the door between them open!))

 

And in july it is too hot in Italy(even I love when it's warm,but not in july)

 

My little one loved every place we went! In Venice-you can get on board little ships(her words), Rome-there are many fountans, Florence - Carusel!!!beautiful one!

 

So, have a nice trip to Europe!

[SelectSys]

Trying to figure out which cruiseline would be best for a summer (prefer June or July) cruise to Europe.

Thinking Med Cruise but up for suggestions.

I have 3 kids:

9,5,& 2. 2 year old is potty trained if that makes a difference.

Kids are used to going places but would also appreciate a "kid friendly" but still nice for adults cruise.

Thanks in advance for ideas...

 

I think your idea for a med cruise is right on. We have done both the med and the Baltic with our kids and hands down they preferred the med. The kids liked the weather better and were able to hang out by the pool as well as go to the beach.

 

Try and mix in one or two shore excursions for the kids in addition to museums. For example, your kids are the perfect age for the Tibidabo amusement park in Barcelona. Even better if you can spend an extra few days at your port of embarkation. This lets the kids relax and acclimate.

 

We always cruise as a family and have always been happy with RCCL. We liked Disney as well but the cost is significantly higher. RCCL's Independence of the Seas out of Southampton in the UK is a good cruise with kids. Also, starting out of the UK makes it easy as so many flights from the US go directly to London without stops.

 

Good luck!

[CeleBrat]

I just did the Med with twin 5 year olds and' date=' much as I prefer traditional cruising, the freestyle system on NCL works well for a port intensive cruise since you can show up at the dining room whenever you want and dressed pretty much however you want.

 

NCL isn't usually my cup of tea, but for a Med cruise with kids, I thought it was perfect and plan to do it again within the next few years.

 

Best,

Mia[/quote']

 

Exactly how we feel! Great minds think alike!--CeleBrat

[Onessa]

My little one loved every place we went! In Venice-you can get on board little ships(her words), Rome-there are many fountans, Florence - Carusel!!!beautiful one!

Not to mention that the little old Italian ladies absolutely LOVE little kids!

[chipmaster]

Europe IMHO is all about the history, cultural, ruins and far less kid exicting. We took princess two years ago with our kids at the time 7, 11, and 13. Beyond the excitment of the boat and travel my 7 year old found few things memorable. Probably the most exciting was running around the ruins climbing the rocks/stairs and the tower of pisa. Once she got a taste of the kids club after Istanbul all she wanted to do was spend every port day on the ship. The two year old could be a challenge giving the port traveling/touring.

 

We found there is a rather large % of the population that is European even on Princess with a good 1/2 of the cruise being Europeans in the kids clubs.

 

Disney is a pricey option with a less than best line up of ports but maybe more kid oriented.

 

 

Not discouraging you as I'd do it again without a second thought but Europe is really about giving the kids a taste of europe, not beach not scenic but cultural and history :D

 

One last thing July will be hot, not unbearable but not confiy either.

 

 

Trying to figure out which cruiseline would be best for a summer (prefer June or July) cruise to Europe.

Thinking Med Cruise but up for suggestions.

I have 3 kids:

9,5,& 2. 2 year old is potty trained if that makes a difference.

Kids are used to going places but would also appreciate a "kid friendly" but still nice for adults cruise.

Thanks in advance for ideas...

[lmg1230]

There are a lot of kids from around the world in the kids clubs on Princess - and that is one of the things that my daughters loved about it! They loved making new friends from different countries and nearly all of the kids spoke multiple languages, including English. It also made my daughters realize the importance of learning languages as a practical matter rather than just something you do in school and my older daughter, in particular, has applied herself much more diligently to her French studies and is now at the top of her class. She is looking forward to studying both French and Spanish in high school next year. I attribute this increased interest in French and other languages to her European travels last summer.

 

Lisa

[Ula]

We are doing the Med on Princess this August, so far our Roll Call although not very active has lots of families. Will say their children are older. Mostly teens around age 15. It is a very port intensive trip.

On Princess your child does have to be three to use the kids club. But if potty trained can use the pools. Princess also has anytime dinning. I do think a lot of the families for Italy are booking private tours. One may who is bringing his three kids gave me a heads up on a good tour company to use.

[GoofingOff]

Sounds like you're thinking Med, but keep in mind that in the Baltic, the ship docks right into almost all the cities. In many cities, you can see the sites completely on foot (e.g., Copenhagen, Tallinn). So, no 2 hour bus rides to put the kids through.

 

Also, on most Baltic itineraries, there tends to be more sea days to rest up between cities and the weather is surprisingly warm. At least for us in August. Tons of people swam in the ship's pool.

[RoadTripFanatic]

I would go with either Carnival or NCL. The reason being is that those two cruise lines offer child care for 2 year olds! I know that Princess doesn't allow kids until they are 3 years old no matter if they are potty trained or not.

We just took (last month) an 11 day Med. cruise with our 9 year old daughter. She loved it!! One thing that was a blessing was the fact she was into the Percy Jackson and the Lightening Thief books. She knew all about greek mythology when we arrived it Greece. It made sight seeing so much more fun for her! She knew who we were talking about and she could tell us all about who was who!

I would definately prepare your children that not everyone will speak English on the ship. DD was one of 4 children in the children's center who spoke English on our trip. We were thankful that at least 3 others spoke English! Two were from Taiwan and the other was from California.