Free kids worth it?

[lesleyswimcoach]

I am looking a cruise next spring and I love this promotion. I could get 7 days for all 4 in our family for less than all of us on a 5 day carnival. The carnival cruise is on an older ship so it will be pretty tacky but it does have a big waterslide. My kids will be 7 and 10, so I was wondering about the kids club and other kids activiyties. I have sailed carnival, rcl and celebrity but never on a newer boat. I guess I want some opinions from other parents and an idea of what to expect as a american who has only been on the major lines.

[camofwilliamsburg]

Only you can decide on this. Check the hours that the kids club are in operation and see if that is good for you and your family. I have heard very good things about the club although they do not operate during dining hours so you will not have the option to dine without your kids.

 

They do wonderful arts and crafts daily ( i think twice daily) and the parents love doing this with the older kids as a bonding experience( no extra charges). they have even done drawing on t shirts and they have given the t shirts to the crafters for free.

 

This is NOT a budget line and I cringe at the comparison to a Carnival Ship.

This is an elegant ship, with beautiful art and statues and beautiful decor all over the ship. There is NOTHING budget once you are onboard. I think the reason for the lower pricing is that MSC IS privately owned by a family and not a corporation. The bottom line is different.

 

Cruising on MSC has always been an experience. You will hear announcements in 5 languages. They keep it to a bare minimum( unlike carnival which has way too many announcements.) The shows are beautiful and have real talent, not a high school production like so many other lines.

 

The staff interact with you and always have time to chat with you. Other cruise lines have a schedule to run from one place to another ... on MSC the staff entertain around the pool area and that leaves time for them to get to know many of the passengers. IN the evenings they are in the lounges hosting many fun activities.

 

Service around the pool is very european...laid back. The drinks are among the best we have had on any other line, especially their mojito from the mojito bar near the pool area.

 

I love MSC as you can tell. I would recommend you getting the larger balcony cabins which are category 9, 10 11.

[AmoMondo]

I am looking a cruise next spring and I love this promotion. I could get 7 days for all 4 in our family for less than all of us on a 5 day carnival. The carnival cruise is on an older ship so it will be pretty tacky but it does have a big waterslide. My kids will be 7 and 10, so I was wondering about the kids club and other kids activiyties. I have sailed carnival, rcl and celebrity but never on a newer boat. I guess I want some opinions from other parents and an idea of what to expect as a american who has only been on the major lines.

Which MSC ship are you considering? The types of facilities differ depending on the ship calss. Where were you thinking of cruising?

[lesleyswimcoach]

I am looking at the Poesia out of Ft Lauderdale. I liked Celebrity but it didn't have alot for my kids. No puttputt or such. Poesia already looks like more fun.

[joybaby]

I am looking at the Poesia out of Ft Lauderdale. I liked Celebrity but it didn't have alot for my kids. No puttputt or such. Poesia already looks like more fun.

I

 

I love MSC but if your kids need things to do, go another line. Don't go bec. is is free for the kids. You want them to be happy.

[itravelalot]

We have been on 2 MSC cruises and our son 7 on first and 8 this year had no problem filling his day. We were on Sinfonia last year..Water slide, mini putt, arcade, kids club activities, basketball.... to name a few.. Fantasia this year, Water slide, arcade, kids club, ping pong, foosball... Your kids will find lots to do....enjoy!:)

[Alex71]

We just returned from an eight night cruise on the MSC Opera and our kids (5 and 7) absolutely loved it. The kids club had a robust kids program from 9 am to 11 pm with a different activity scheduled every half hour. Activities included many games, arts and crafts, bowling, a pyjama party. They even took kids to the evening shows so that parents could injoy a drink after dinner.

 

On sea days, the club briefly closed for lunch and dinner, but on port days it remained open. On some days, they took the kids to the buffet for dinner. We did not take advantage of this though, as we wanted to eat together as a family.

 

 

Our kids enjoyed the club so much that they did not even want to come on shore excursions with us but prefered to stay on the ship. It was not problem at all to keep them in the club while leaving the ship. Nevertheless, we brought them along on some excursions as this was a family vacation and we also wanted them so see a few new places.

 

 

The kids menu was not too fast food heavy (although they did also serve hamburgers, hot dogs, fish sticks, etc), but had many interesting choices such as different pasta dishes, meat and fish.

 

All in all, we had a great time and already booked our next cruise with them for the fall break.

[Alex71]

Forgot to mention: in addition to letting the kids cruise for free, they did not charge a service fee for kids either.

[ejdl4]

We have sailed on MSC Poesia 2 years in a row and going again this February with 2 of our boys who are 14 and 17. They love the ship. i just read that they are starting a new program for kids 3 to 12 for meal times. they can either eat with the friends that they meet in the kids club at the buffet with the staff or eat with the parents in the MD. The way it would work in the MD is that the kids would get there meals faster then someone from the kids club would come and get them while you still can enjoy a relaxing meal while kids are busy. Great concept. They get best of both worlds, eat with mom and dad then go play with the group. Have a great time. Cannot beat kids sail free. We usually take an OV cabin and have plenty of room.

[kkttc]

We are considering the feb eastern carib sailing on poesia for our kids first cruise. They will be 17,14,11. Did you find anytimes they were bored on sea days? I like the price and prefer to spend $$ on excursions not to just be on a ship. We need two cabins, any advice for that? Thx

[hennypenny69]

We have two children aged 14 and 12; they love MSC. Not for the kids clubs or organised activities - they hate things like that - but for the beautiful ships, the different cultures and the ports. They also like the chance to have different drinks and ice creams (we have the all inclusive package), to see shows and the chance to practise the languages they are learning at school. Not all children like "all singing, all dancing ships", the good thing about MSC is that all children with their various likes and dislikes are catered for.

As a parent I like the fact that my children's dietary needs are catered for - for the first time on a holiday my son can enjoy gluten free bread, pasta, cakes etc instead of watching his sister enjoying these items and being told that he cannot have them. He was assigned his own waiter who ensured that my son was well catered for with delicious food - something that has not happened on other cruises.