Cruising with Teens

[goldgirl2]

I'm taking DD17 on her first cruise. She will be bringing a friend. I'm a little worried they might get bored on the sea days. I know they are not interested in trying out the flow rider. Are there many activities for seventeen year old during the day? DH and I are happy to just relax by the pool.

[sandy toes]

There are many activities that they will find...IMHO set the rules clearly in stone pre-cruise so neither you or the teens will not be upset. There is a curfew on ship(usually 1 AM but that might not be what you want...or they want. IS there any activity you want to make a group activity? Do you want to always have the evening meal or breakfast together? Even though DD is traveling with a friend, there will be lots of other teens on ship and they will be bonding very quickly with others, sharing activities and having teen centered fun. They may want to sleep in after staying awake late each night...TALK with them. Check out some copies of the Compass from a prior sailing for ideas of daily activities. Have fun!!!

[Familygoboston]

Bored?!? On Liberty? Oh, my, I don't think so! I have 2 teen girls, and even if they don't GO on the Flowrider, they will be there, oh yes, they will be there! ;):rolleyes:

 

In addition to the eye candy and hook ups happening at the Flowrider, there is Karoke, ping pong, shopping, windjammer, teen take over night club nights, and hanging by the pool. Bored? mini golf, rock climbing (and if they aren't the sporty types, do they like watching the sporty types? See Flowrider)

 

So Ok, my girls are a bit more bookish and geeky than most teens; and I was expecting them to be bored at times since they aren't super social, but ah, no, we only saw them for shore excursions and dinner:D

 

They are gonna have a blast; and my advice have a conversation about rules and expectations BEFORE you cruise! At a minimum - emphasize the Cruise line rules , and anything additional you are expecting from their behavior. Have fun on your first cruise with DD!

 

(I have a pic of my list of rules for older teens in my Allure Review linked in my signature)

[goldgirl2]

Bored?!? On Liberty? Oh, my, I don't think so! I have 2 teen girls, and even if they don't GO on the Flowrider, they will be there, oh yes, they will be there! ;):rolleyes:

 

In addition to the eye candy and hook ups happening at the Flowrider, there is Karoke, ping pong, shopping, windjammer, teen take over night club nights, and hanging by the pool. Bored? mini golf, rock climbing (and if they aren't the sporty types, do they like watching the sporty types? See Flowrider)

 

So Ok, my girls are a bit more bookish and geeky than most teens; and I was expecting them to be bored at times since they aren't super social, but ah, no, we only saw them for shore excursions and dinner:D

 

They are gonna have a blast; and my advice have a conversation about rules and expectations BEFORE you cruise! At a minimum - emphasize the Cruise line rules , and anything additional you are expecting from their behavior. Have fun on your first cruise with DD!

 

(I have a pic of my list of rules for older teens in my Allure Review linked in my signature)

 

Just read your review! It was great. I love the teen rules and will definitely be using them. I loved the "geek squad". DD is not your average teen. She is a very advanced classical musician. Most of her music on her iPod is classical. Are the teen activities the same on all ships or will the Liberty be entirely different? Thank you for your help:)

Edited January 3, 2014 by goldgirl2

[mominva]

There is teen hour ice skating, rock climbing (as well as flow rider). One day, there is an afternoon ice skating show. There will also be a new (current release) movie offered on one afternoon. Another afternoon, there are demonstrations going on in the Royal Promenade. There always seems to be some competitions going on at the pool. I saw lots of teens playing volleyball. Every night, there are dances for the teens. My kids loved this and met tons of people. They stayed until the dance was over at 1 am. Then, they needed to sleep in the next day. I am sure your teens will be busy!

[HazyDavey]

Bored?!? On Liberty? Oh, my, I don't think so! I have 2 teen girls, and even if they don't GO on the Flowrider, they will be there, oh yes, they will be there! ;):rolleyes:

 

In addition to the eye candy and hook ups happening at the Flowrider, there is Karoke, ping pong, shopping, windjammer, teen take over night club nights, and hanging by the pool. Bored? mini golf, rock climbing (and if they aren't the sporty types, do they like watching the sporty types? See Flowrider)

 

So Ok, my girls are a bit more bookish and geeky than most teens; and I was expecting them to be bored at times since they aren't super social, but ah, no, we only saw them for shore excursions and dinner:D

 

They are gonna have a blast; and my advice have a conversation about rules and expectations BEFORE you cruise! At a minimum - emphasize the Cruise line rules , and anything additional you are expecting from their behavior. Have fun on your first cruise with DD!

 

(I have a pic of my list of rules for older teens in my Allure Review linked in my signature)

 

FamilygoBoston - love how the list of rules started out, but the left margin on some of the paragraphs towards the end were not photographed. Would you be able to provide the list of rules in another manner? Much appreciated. (By the way, what a fabulous, comprehensive review of your Allure cruise.)

[SECdawg]

I recommend they go to the teen meet & mingle on the first night. It is a good chance to meet teens that have similar interests. I can only speak for teen boys but they have never been bored on any of the ships. Liberty is a wonderful ship with a great crew. Enjoy your cruise!

[imlulu]

I recommend they go to the teen meet & mingle on the first night. It is a good chance to meet teens that have similar interests. I can only speak for teen boys but they have never been bored on any of the ships. Liberty is a wonderful ship with a great crew. Enjoy your cruise!

 

I too recommend this. She will be fine particularly as she has a friend. I believe the week you are going is Easter week? There will be tons of families if so. On the last cruise my oldest ds went on(2008..15 yrs old) he made a group of friends that he still corresponds with and actually has visited.

 

My soon to be 21 yr old ds informs me that he will be relaxing and eating on our upcoming cruise. :)

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

The crew are not baby sisters..:):)

[stefanny28]

Dear Familygoboston;

 

Loved your review on Allure. We were on Allure in Jan 2012 so it brings back a lot of memories.

 

I looked for your post with the list of rules ( DD will be 15 when we cruise next July) but can't find it.

Do you remember which post # it was?

BTW, I saw the Compass for the 15-17 Teen Club for the Allure. Do you happen to know if the 7 days Mediterranean Compasses for teens have the same schedule and activities?

 

Thanks

[Oshawapilot]

Your teens will not be bored unless they want to be, or are unwilling to socialize. I agree with others, kick them out of the stateroom and tell them to go to the organized teen events, ESPECIALLY at the beginning of the cruise.

 

We hardly see our teens for the entire duration of our cruises - they make friends on night 1 and have an absolute blast all week.

[Ken Greco]

First, let your DDs find their own friends on board. Some teens will hate you if you push them to hard to join a group as soon as you board. My son who is now 22 has been on 13 cruises with us and always found new friends to hang out with. Be aware that other teens or older 20 somethings will be drinking alcohol even though the age is 21 on the ship. RCCL does enforce the 1 AM limit for teens. If your DDs make good judgement at home you should have nothing to worry about but be aware teens that age love to push the limits at times.

[Oshawapilot]

First, let your DDs find their own friends on board. Some teens will hate you if you push them to hard to join a group as soon as you board.

 

And some teens will mope around and stick to you like glue (especially on a first cruise) if you DON'T push them to go make friends. Ask me how I know, and there's plenty here that will share the same experience. After our first cruise our kids soon figured out it's WAY more fun to make friends within the first 24 hours instead of the last 72, but for the first timers asking questions it's far more beneficial to tell the parents to tell their kids to go entertain themselves versus just leaving them to their own accord.

 

Be aware that other teens or older 20 somethings will be drinking alcohol even though the age is 21 on the ship.

 

Your experience is wildly different than mine. When the seapass shows a passenger as underage there's no booze served, end of story - the till won't even allow the charge. If they're getting it it's smuggled on, not bought.

 

RCCL does enforce the 1 AM limit for teens..

 

Our experience is again to the contrary. Rarely, so long as they are behaving themselves, does security bother the older teen crowd, although they do enforce it for kids or young teens.

Edited January 4, 2014 by Oshawapilot

[Candleonwater]

I agree with the poster that suggested they go to the teen club the first night for the mixer. DD has found this is very important. After that first night though, they don't seem to spend much time in the teen club. Said it was boring. DD has sailed with a friend and solo, and much prefers bringing a friend. She is an elite athlete, so I've worried about her not having much in common with the other teens, but so far that hasn't been a problem. From what I've seen, there's a lot of hitting the hot tubs, sometimes the gym, hanging out in the library (so much a better option than the stairwells!).

 

I worry more for our Thanksgiving cruise - she will have just turned 18 and won't be allowed in the teen club, if I understand correctly... that means she has to meet people in bars? Yikes!!!!

[Candleonwater]

Oh, and I actually found RCL doesn't tend to enforce the curfew! As long as they are behaving themselves! A group of teens hanging in the library at 2am, security would walk through without saying a word.

[cb at sea]

Bored???? Really? If they are, that would be the LAST cruise I'd take them on! No way will they be bored. Elite athlete or not...she won't be bored.

[Familygoboston]

Just read your review! It was great. I love the teen rules and will definitely be using them. I loved the "geek squad". DD is not your average teen. She is a very advanced classical musician. Most of her music on her iPod is classical. Are the teen activities the same on all ships or will the Liberty be entirely different? Thank you for your help:)

 

Oh, thanks! Very welcome! Yes, everyone thinks all teens are alike, and we did see several of those gangs of impossibly blond and fit gals and guys slinking around in their board shorts and bikinis...enough so that as you read day one of our trip, there were tears:rolleyes: But by day 2, they had found their fellow "geeks" and had a ball! I bet it will be the same for your DD and GF! The best thing is they have eachother!

 

As far as the ships, Liberty is the class of ship that came out just before Oasis class, and it has just about all the same amenities as what we experienced except one less Flowrider and no Aquatheater. Also, there are a few more dining options on Oasis class, but Liberty still has the Royal Promenade and the pizza joint - another popular hangout! I promise you, my girls are so shy, and I was shocked, shocked I tell you that we barely saw them...they were absolutely making good choices, but they were also having a good time:D

 

FamilygoBoston - love how the list of rules started out, but the left margin on some of the paragraphs towards the end were not photographed. Would you be able to provide the list of rules in another manner? Much appreciated. (By the way, what a fabulous, comprehensive review of your Allure cruise.)

Yes, sorry about that, let me look for that, I think I can repost it here, since so many have expressed interest and this is a teen thread. Ill also repost it on my Allure review so this doesn't come up again!:D

 

I want to let everyone know I adapted a set of rules I found on CC posted by a mom of much younger kids (like 10 and 12) I re worked it for my girls, with two important caveats- my girls are always together which significantly alleviates a lot of mom concerns! And also, my oldest was 18 and was ready for college- both generally make great choices, so I have a very high degree of trust in them and their choices, so I have to have less "oversight" YMMV;)

[Familygoboston]

Dear Familygoboston;

 

Loved your review on Allure. We were on Allure in Jan 2012 so it brings back a lot of memories.

 

I looked for your post with the list of rules ( DD will be 15 when we cruise next July) but can't find it.

Do you remember which post # it was?

BTW, I saw the Compass for the 15-17 Teen Club for the Allure. Do you happen to know if the 7 days Mediterranean Compasses for teens have the same schedule and activities?

 

Thanks

 

thank you for your kind words! See above about the rules...coming soon ;)

 

As for the Compasses; they will probably be pretty different. The Med cruises are pretty port intensive, with some later days, there may not be quite as much going on, especially during the day. I haven't done the Med yet, but from reading reviews, most families spend a lot of time touring together, so there is obviously less time on board.

[elainemasey]

I can not speak on the Med cruise but on the Jewel Baltic DS had a blast. I would recommend going to the 1st night mixer. He met a great group of kids from all over and still speaks to a few. They had a Prom 1 night and he asked a girl from Spain... even had Prom pictures taken.. They hung out in the teen club but not that often. I would find them in a quiet corner of a lounge playing cards, hanging out in the windjammer and swimming at 10pm in the twilight...too cold for me. He didn't seem to be to impressed with the 1 teen counselor but he still had a blast!!!

[lazeyey]

There are TONS of things for teens to do. They'll have the time of their lives.

[stefanny28]

Thanks.

These are great rules. I'll make sure my DD reads them and signs....

Edited January 5, 2014 by stefanny28

[macruisefan]

IMHO set the rules clearly in stone pre-cruise so neither you or the teens will not be upset. There is a curfew on ship(usually 1 AM but that might not be what you want...or they want. IS there any activity you want to make a group activity? Do you want to always have the evening meal or breakfast together? Even though DD is traveling with a friend, there will be lots of other teens on ship and they will be bonding very quickly with others, sharing activities and having teen centered fun. They may want to sleep in after staying awake late each night...TALK with them.

 

Wait. Did I miss the part where the OP asked for parenting advice?

[goldgirl2]

I feel much better hearing about all the things geared toward teens. I'm certainly not worried that she will be clinging to me as a poster suggested. She spends her entire summer far from home at a music school. I guess my worry was that there may not be activities that will interest her. She loves to work out and she wants to ice skate.

[twinmom2298]

thanks for posting these. We're cruising in June with our 2 16 yr olds and I'm going o print these and have each read and sign

[Familygoboston]

I feel much better hearing about all the things geared toward teens. I'm certainly not worried that she will be clinging to me as a poster suggested. She spends her entire summer far from home at a music school. I guess my worry was that there may not be activities that will interest her. She loves to work out and she wants to ice skate.

 

Here's the thing with cruise ships- in the old days they were designed for adults; you go to the pool (or the bar) then for a pre dinner cocktail in the cocktail lounge, then dinner, then another lounge for an after dinner cocktail, maybe a show, and then a boozy night club. Maybe there was a cabin size kid center and by the 80s a few video games in an arcade. There was nothing in the design of those ships for kids (trust me, I know I was a kid on those ships;))

 

Since the Mariner class, the Royal ships have been designed with kids in mind- thus, the ice rinks, the mini golf, the rock wall, the Flowrider, the arcades and the Royal Promenade, (mall like hangout area)- kids don't need to go to a lounge to find other kids. The whole experience has been designed to include people (especially kids) whose idea of a good time does not revolve around moving from one drinking establishment to another. It's a vast improvement for kids, and frankly, for me too!:D

 

Ill bet they have a great time- when you get home, I hope you'll come back and tell us about it!

 

thanks for posting these. We're cruising in June with our 2 16 yr olds and I'm going o print these and have each read and sign

 

That's a good age for this contract; I'd modify if for younger than 16. My girls hung with a young lady who was only 15 and most of their group was 18-20, except for my younger DD who was 16. Her mom made her check in hourly at night, and this sweet group of kids would troupe all together to wherever mom was to "check her in" and then go off to hang out again! I was proud of my girls for supporting their new friend that way, even though they had more freedom. Also, her mom had an earlier curfew for her than the ship. We've done that too. Especially on nights where we have an excursion the next morning, and we want to get to bed ourselves!