Should I jump ship to "X"

[xcell]

Hi

 

I'm looking for a holiday cruise - specifically has to be from the Dec 20th - 27th and going out of Miami (maybe FLL) as I have already booked the flights just not the cruise.

 

Royal on the Oasis for a balcony is asking $8K

 

NCL Getaway is asking $6-7K (thought I did miss the $4k one day special that I doubt is coming back)

 

X -Refelection is asking for $4k for a Concierge Class <--- is this a good room like a Jr Suite on RCL??

 

Do you think this is a good ship for me, DW, DD11 and DD8 and the grandparents. Doesn't look like there is a lot for the kids to do (no skating, rock climbing wall, etc...) any ideas what they do?

[Champagne Cruiser]

The Sky Suite is the equivalent of the Junior Suite on RCL. The Concierge Class is the same size as the balcony rooms on the S class, and a bit bigger than balcony on M class. Concierge gets you a few more amenities. There is a kids club, but having grown children I really can't comment on it.

[xcell]

thanks that helps me figure a few things out

 

 

should i bother to get a suite if im a elite with x=diamond with rccl?

[Algebralovr]

There will likely be a lot of children on the cruise, since it is the week of Christmas. I don't have any that young, though. So I cannot say for certain what they will do with them. I have read that the children the ages of yours always have a good time.

 

I did see a bunch of them on the basketball court over the summer that looked around 10-14 or so. They seemed to be having fun. Celebrity also has some electronic game systems in the kids club/ teen rooms. X-box I believe. But the other things that are on the Royal Caribbean ships are not present.

 

The last couple of years, I have seen prices drop just after final payment, which means right about now. If you need more space, you might see if there are any of the family veranda rooms left. They reserve them for families of 5 until about now.

[xcell]

So sounds like really nothing for kids. No rock climbing? Ice skating? slides? Too bad not port intensive ... maybe (no offense celeb cruisers) ncl will go down....

[Lois R]

So sounds like really nothing for kids. No rock climbing? Ice skating? slides? Too bad not port intensive ... maybe (no offense celeb cruisers) ncl will go down....

 

Hi....None of Celebrity's ships have the activities you are intererested

in......no offense taken. That is why there are different cruiselines

out there for everyone.

 

Actually, holiday cruises always have more families on board so there

will likely be other kids the same age as yours but again, if you are only

interested in Rock Climbing, skating, etc.....? Then you should probably

stick to Royal and/or NCL.

[monicajay]

Wow! you think a rock-climbing wall and a skating rink are worth the $2000 difference?

 

I'm sure your kids will find fun on an X ship. Put the savings in a college savings account. The service and food on X is fabulous and they do have organized kids activities.

[xcell]

No I dont think it's worth the $2000 but curious as what's on board for them to do...

[bighairtexan]

Well OTOH, I think it's hard to put a price on a memorable cruise for your kids. Celebrity is my line of choice when I cruise now that my kids are grown. If I had younger kids going on a cruise w/ me, I'd select RCI b/c I prefer that line to NCL, and there are scads of things for kids to do.

[Cruise a holic]

Hi

 

I'm looking for a holiday cruise - specifically has to be from the Dec 20th - 27th and going out of Miami (maybe FLL) as I have already booked the flights just not the cruise.

 

Royal on the Oasis for a balcony is asking $8K

 

NCL Getaway is asking $6-7K (thought I did miss the $4k one day special that I doubt is coming back)

 

X -Refelection is asking for $4k for a Concierge Class <--- is this a good room like a Jr Suite on RCL??

 

Do you think this is a good ship for me, DW, DD11 and DD8 and the grandparents. Doesn't look like there is a lot for the kids to do (no skating, rock climbing wall, etc...) any ideas what they do?

 

i love Celebrity and Royal But for kids, the Allure and Oasis win hands down. Since you have purchased air, perhaps try a freedom class. I think the Independence of the Seas might be a good option for your family. You will find that families with people of all ages will love the ship.

 

CC class is a regular sized balcony cabin, with increased amenities which may or may not matter to your group. During holiday periods, kids are on all ships, but the children will be much happier on RCI.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[wallie5446]

Ok let's think a second, how long does it take to climb the wall? 7-9 minutes.

Then the time per person on the Flow Rider is about the same 10-12 minutes.

The Arcade games are out of date and cost.

 

So what are they going to do the rest of the day? Oh, I forgot, ride the evelators:eek: ok, just playing on that one.

 

Our kids are grown, but we took them on Celebrity the first time in 1994, and our DD worked on ship for RCCL. Celebrity was their first choice when we looked for a cruise then out of the 5 diff lines they had sailed.

 

Time to introduce them to a more elegant cruise, and expand their experiences. Everything else for them to do will be the same as you have done on RCCL.

Edited September 26, 2014 by wallie5446

[Cruise a holic]

Ok let's think a second, how long does it take to climb the wall? 7-9 minutes.

Then the time per person on the Flow Rider is about the same 10-12 minutes.

The Arcade games are out of date and cost.

 

So what are they going to do the rest of the day? Oh, I forgot, ride the evelators:eek: ok, just playing on that one.

 

Our kids are grown, but we took them on Celebrity the first time in 1994, and our DD worked on ship for RCCL. Celebrity was their first choice when we looked for a cruise then out of the 5 diff lines they had sailed.

 

Time to introduce them to a more elegant cruise, and expand their experiences. Everything else for them to do will be the same as you have done on RCCL.

 

 

Perhaps you haven't been on the Oasis or Allure, they also have Ice skating, In addition to the surfing pools, rock climbing walls, zipline, they also have an excellent kids water park, camp is really wonderful,, a merry go round, Teen and tween lounge and wipeout cafe, board walk area that is filled with events for families, Johnny Rockets and many more amenities and facilities geared to "kids of all ages". The promenade also hosts parades and other lively functions throughout the cruise!

 

I am a Celebrity fan, but honestly, RC's new ships knock Celebrity off the charts in terms of activities for families of all ages. While I agree, if the kids are 16 plus they might appreciate Celebrity.

Edited September 26, 2014 by Cruise a holic

[FireEater]

You really need to hear from parents with 8-12 year olds who have been on the Reflection.

 

If you, the parents, want to try something different, then go with X. If you as parents want to make it all for the kids at Christmas, I would go with RCCL.

 

As for the grandparents, I can hear them now.......yea, what ever......:)

Edited September 26, 2014 by FireEater

[2theship]

Our daughters fell in love with Celebrity when they were 5 & 6. Okay, that was a long time ago and the super-ships weren't around then. What Celebrity did have, and continued to have as they entered their teen years, was a great program with a good child to staff ratio. During the holiday period there will be plenty of kids on board but not so many that your kids will feel lost. In their teen years we sailed on the Voyager of the Seas and they were very intimidated by the climbing wall. Both girls are fit, active dancers and found the staff pushy and not helpful.

 

The dining room staff was always wonderful with kids. Because they had a chance to try a wide variety of foods as children, they have grown up to be adventurous eaters.

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

[cynbar]

OP, you have a long list of cruises in your signature, most on RCI with some NCL and a Disney mixed in. If your kids have been with you on those cruises, and if they enjoy the activities like ice shows and rock climbing, I'm afraid they would be let down by Celebrity. All reports are that the children's activities are very good, but there isn't a lot else to interest them. Celebrity is elegant, dignified, sedate ---- it does not have the lively, energetic, exciting feel of the other lines you sail. I think the food and service are better on Celebrity, but I'll bet your kids don't care about that. Celebrity does have families who cruise happily with them, but that is NOT their focus. Personally, I would stick with NCL or RCI for your holiday cruise --- it's not worth saving money if the kids are unhappy and disappointed.

[ladylemondrop]

Its only for a week, and if you find stuff to do in port that is 'kid' fun orientated, they should be fine whilst on board, the Reflection has a sports deck, a teen club and younger club, as well as the Lawn Club Grill, where they can have fun making their own flatbread pizzas - check out my blog link below, there is a short video of Reflection cruise we took with our kids. We had no complaints, she is a really beautiful ship! The advice about the Family cabin is great advice - ask if they have one, it has a seperate master bedroom, a huge living area, with dining table, sofa, and then a very small double bunk room. Its size equivalent to a Royal Suite (575sqft) and we find its perfect as long as you do not mind being far forward on the ship (we didnt find that to be a negative at all)

Edited September 26, 2014 by louise1809

[worldtrekker]

This is very individual and depends on your children. We were on Solstice (S class like Reflection) to Alaska July last year, when my kids were 9 (son) and 12 (daughter). There were over 300 kids their ages during the cruise and they were never bored. Granted, this is a more activity oriented cruise in terms of shore activities, and a bit chilly for slides and deck water sports, but they were constantly asking to go back to the activity center to meet up with new friends when on board. Our daughter met a group of kids that would hang out together at the pool or in the library as well. They still talk about what an amazing time they had.

 

I suppose I think any cruise is a luxury for kids that age, however, and would have freaked out if they complained :D

[xcell]

Flow rider - less than a few seconds for DD11....lol

 

The Celebrity ships looks very nice...

 

With NCL they spent a very long time doing the water slides...

 

ON RCCl they love the ice skating rink (30 mins of skating BTW)

 

And as long as there is a pool...

 

DD* can do any kids club - just thinking about what DD11 can do.

 

I wouldnt mind trying a different line...plus I like San Juan, so would like to stop there or a private island...just trying to convince DW to jump ship.

 

Kids have always been with us - starting from the liberty...pretty much grew up on the ship

 

 

Side note/questions: How's Celebrity with Peanut allergies - both kids are allergic to peanuts. Disney was the best for that...

Edited September 26, 2014 by xcell

[wallie5446]

Flow rider - less than a few seconds for DD11....lol

 

The Celebrity ships looks very nice...

 

With NCL they spent a very long time doing the water slides...

 

ON RCCl they love the ice skating rink (30 mins of skating BTW)

 

And as long as there is a pool...

 

DD* can do any kids club - just thinking about what DD11 can do.

 

I wouldnt mind trying a different line...plus I like San Juan, so would like to stop there or a private island...just trying to convince DW to jump ship.

 

Kids have always been with us - starting from the liberty...pretty much grew up on the ship

 

 

Side note/questions: How's Celebrity with Peanut allergies - both kids are allergic to peanuts. Disney was the best for that...

 

My wife is stage 4 Celiac, anything that even gets close to gluton or wheat will make her sick. We thought the staff on the Freedom in 2011 was wonderful, till we had the best dinning week on a cruise last year on the Reflection. The staff IOHO went way above and beyond, simply put it was amazzzzing! There is a special needs form to fill out and fax in so they will know in advance of the DD's needs.

 

From the looks of things it is time for the whole family to go and try Celebrity. You wont be sorry, well, at least IMHO.:)

[xcell]

another question - does celebrity give balcony discounts like rccl???

[Algebralovr]

No balcony discounts on Celebrity.

 

They did just fine with food allergies - as long as you remind them every night when you place your order for the next day.

 

My DD (age 20) is allergic to a lot of foods, including peanut, rice, soy, melon (including eggplant) apples and oranges. After the first couple of days, we didn't remind the Asst Matre'D of her allergies as she had them written down and there is such a long list. The second to last night, she placed her order as usual. The next evening, they brought out her dish and it had eggplant on it. It was diced and part of the entree. We were reprimanded for not telling the Asst Matre'D, to which I countered, "it is on the list you read off the first couple of nights. It is not my fault that the entree included a vegetable that was not listed in the menu." She did whisk it away and bring out a fresh entree after a few minutes that was without eggplant. We are lucky that we've never needed the epi-pen, and that DD carries liquid Benedryl everywhere and responds to it well, plus she is old enough to know what she can and cannot have, and can tell by just a touch most of the time.

 

We had taken cards where the allergens were translated into Italian, Greek and Turkish with us, since we were visiting those countries, so that we could just hand them over. It worked well. If peanut is the only allergy, it should be easy.

[xcell]

Thanks for your responses but not a lot of celebrity cruisers with kids???

[maggie.1008]

I think the only time you will see a lot of kids on X is holiday and spring break times. The most I have seen was August in Alaska, but we don`t cruise a holiday times.

[blindrid]

Hi

 

I'm looking for a holiday cruise - specifically has to be from the Dec 20th - 27th and going out of Miami (maybe FLL) as I have already booked the flights just not the cruise.

 

Royal on the Oasis for a balcony is asking $8K

 

NCL Getaway is asking $6-7K (thought I did miss the $4k one day special that I doubt is coming back)

 

X -Refelection is asking for $4k for a Concierge Class <--- is this a good room like a Jr Suite on RCL??

 

Do you think this is a good ship for me, DW, DD11 and DD8 and the grandparents. Doesn't look like there is a lot for the kids to do (no skating, rock climbing wall, etc...) any ideas what they do?

 

I don't think there's a doubt. Go NCL. I've had great luck with them.

[Cruise Raider]

I really haven't seen a lot of children on Celebrity. Earlier this year, we went on spring break and there were a few kids between the ages of 7-12 I would say. They were bored to tears. I remember one of them in the sky lounge where we were whale watching. The kids stated "you mean it is like I cannot turn my cell phone on for 2 straight days? This is intolerable!" It was like they were being tortured -- funny to me as I couldn't believe they were finding no joy in all those large mammals jumping out of the water right in front of them. I usually don't sail during the times when kids are out of school but this was the exception. It is my only experience so cannot say if it is the norm or not but never really thought Celebrity set the scene for kid cruising. I surely did get a laugh about not being able to use their cell phone for two days in a row as intolerable....her word, not mine. Still makes me laugh out loud. :D