Teen Clubs

[star10]

My son will be 16 when we cruise in Feb. Last year and the year before, he said the teen club was "lame". He said the poor teen club director (or whatever they're called) just sat in the teen club all by herself. He said he felt kind of bad for her.

 

I told my son, that he should've took his group in there and tried to have some fun. He said it was more fun just hanging out.

 

Anyone else experience this? Why are teenagers "too cool" to have fun?

 

Anyone's teens actually use and enjoy the Teen Club?

[hockeyluver]

The last 2 cruises our two daughters (15 & 17) have "hung out" in the teen room and had fun. It took a while for teens to join in. What ship and date are you going star10? The teen director on the last cruise really didnt do much with the teens till the sea days. They had a blast doing the scavenger hunt.

 

But when they were on the Fascination Ari was the O2 director and they had a total blast with him. We strolled by the room a few times(ok yes we were checking up on them) and he always had a game going. One time it was name that tune, of course the one playing dh and I knew but the kids were clueless LOL My oldest still talks to alot of the kids from that group on MSN. :rolleyes:

[star10]

We are sailing on the Liberty 2/17. I had thought that my kids have vacation that week as they always do... Come to find out that the school system changed it this year! They only have Monday off. :eek:

 

Oh well. Last year there were a ton of kids too... my son still keeps in touch with a few. He even met up with kids from our town.

 

We were on the Victory last year and the Valor the year before that. Both beautiful ships.

 

The Liberty sounds awesome.. and the teen club sounds really cool. I hope he uses it this year!!

[caribbean dreams]

Last month on the Valor, i could not get my duaghter out of the teen club and it was packed with kids from morning until it closed at night. I dreaded walking in the door to try and find her because it was like a needle in a hay stack.

[disneypinman]

We just returned for a sailing on the Truimph. First off my daughter tried to visit the Teen area (15 to 17 yrs. old/she is 15) and was told that because her S & S card did not state O2 on it she could not participate. It took almost the entire cruise to resolve that issue. At that point she had already met up with some other teens and had fun doing things with the people she met during the week.

[FrannyK]

I don't understand, what is the "02" on their sail and sign designate? Do you have to request it be put on their card? We have two teens sailing the Liberty in November.

 

FrannyK

 

Costa Riviera 1985

NCL Seaward 1987

CCL Fantasy 1/2000

CCL Sensation 2/2001

CCL Imagination 1/2002

RCI Explorer 6/2002

RCI Monarch 4/2003

CCL Sensation 2/2004

CCL Imagination 2/2006

CCL Liberty Thanksgiving/2006

[Wennfred]

 

Anyone else experience this? Why are teenagers "too cool" to have fun?

 

They don't make Teens like they used to, back in the day Playing Stick Ball was the thing to do back in Brooklyn or even outdoor sports. Nowadays its all about Rated R Video games and no socializing.

 

Fred

[nybumpkin]

We are sailing on the Liberty 2/17. I had thought that my kids have vacation that week as they always do... Come to find out that the school system changed it this year! They only have Monday off. :eek:

Well, my kids do have off that week and will be aboard Liberty! Oldest son (15) has done Club O2 on both Legend and Victory and has had fun both times. Last week on Victory, he spent time in the club playing Xbox games and listening to music. He also did late-night swimming one night. (He also had one night when he ate way too much pizza and drank way too much soda and paid the price around 5 in the morning - but that's another story.:rolleyes:)

 

FrannyK - Son had a red O2 sticker on his S&S card on Legend; it identified him as being registered for the club (did so first night). Apparently there are both under-age And over-age kids that try to get in, and the sticker identifies those who are registered. He didn't have a sticker on Victory.

[LHP]

My oldest son was 17 when we sailed on the Pride in March and he had an O2 sticker on his Sail and Sign. I never really thought about it. There was a huge group of about 25 that ran together on that cruise. He still emails and calls a few of them.

[Scoutcat]

We cruised on the Valor last December with our twins (boy and girl, then just a couple of months shy of 17). They attended the orientation/meet and greet the first night, but did not find many of the activities during the week all that appealing. I think that it has a lot to do with two things:

 

1) The crew member running the program

 

2) The particular mix of kids that week (and how well yours fit in).

 

From what our kids told us, the director was very nice, but seemed to be gearing activities more toward the middle school age----which of course, is not the age group that Club O2 is for. My son had no problem buddying up with a bunch of other guys. As long as they wanted to sit out by the pool, girl watch, play cards and talk sports he was just fine--LOL! Daughter was a different story. She spent some time with a couple of girls she met the first night, but told me that she felt that many of the girls were the sort who liked to run around the ship in large packs--giggling and shrieking while they were at it. Not her style, so she spent a fair amount of time enjoying reading on our balcony or up on one of the decks.....also attended every single art auction with me (which was nice, as hubby wasn't into it). She hit the teen club once in a while during the disco hours just to hang out and enjoy the snacks.

 

"Scout" aka Carol

Dayton, OH

[cls624]

That's good to know about the sticker, on the S & S card.

We will be on the Triumph next June. Our daughter will be 17, and our friends daughter will be 16.

 

We cruised on the Valor May 2005, and our daughter brought a friend.

They never went into the Teen club, because there wasn't anyone in there.

We went Mid May, and most kids were still in school.

 

They did manage to make a few friends, but just hung out outside the club!!

Go figure! KIDS!

[Buffettfan 225]

Liberty Club O2- after cruise please post if need a sticker or to register.

We will sail during Spring break (an almost 16 boy) and just want to know if there is one more thing we need to do after we board. It is hard enough to encourage a teen to attend, and may have only one shot at it.

[Sports Mama]

Maybe I am just tired, but I am a little confused about the sticker for the O2 club. My son will be a few weeks shy of his 15th birthday when we sail in July 07. He is currently a Freshman in High School and will be a going into the 10th grade when he is on the cruise. Do you think we will have a problem with him getting to hang out in the teen club? :eek: We were planning on going to the meet and greet on the first night for the 15 & 17 year olds, since he would be so close to that age group. I know they don't put a birth date on the S & S cards, so who will know? He is really looking forward to this. He has always found a group of friends to hang out with and they usually do some of the structure activities. When and where do you get the stickers for the O2 club? Would you get them at the meet & greet the first night? Thanks for your help with my confusion!!! :confused:?

[nybumpkin]

When and where do you get the stickers for the O2 club? Would you get them at the meet & greet the first night? Thanks for your help with my confusion!!! :confused:?

Son got his sticker on Legend the first night at the first meeting. In our case, we got son to agree to go on the first night just to see what it was like, with no commitment on his part to staying with it. He did, and he stayed. He didn't need any encouragement to try it again on our next cruise.

[hockeyluver]

Maybe I am just tired, but I am a little confused about the sticker for the O2 club. My son will be a few weeks shy of his 15th birthday when we sail in July 07. He is currently a Freshman in High School and will be a going into the 10th grade when he is on the cruise. Do you think we will have a problem with him getting to hang out in the teen club? :eek: We were planning on going to the meet and greet on the first night for the 15 & 17 year olds, since he would be so close to that age group. I know they don't put a birth date on the S & S cards, so who will know? He is really looking forward to this. He has always found a group of friends to hang out with and they usually do some of the structure activities. When and where do you get the stickers for the O2 club? Would you get them at the meet & greet the first night? Thanks for your help with my confusion!!! :confused:?

 

Our younger daughter was about a month short of being 15 and they let her in no problem. We were told as long as her birthday was within a certain time it is fine. The stickers must be new, I asked both my kids about them and they said no. From what I have read on other posts, yes you get them at the meet and greet.

[Sports Mama]

Thank you Kathy and Hockeyluver!!! I feel better now. :) Now, I will be able to sleep in peace tonight.

[Buffettfan 225]

First of all don't worry.

I had the exact same question last April.

Our son was 14yr- 9mo (and a freshman) and had no trouble getting into 15-17 group. We talked him into going to first meeting and he deemed it "lame and for only the desperate" -his words. So he just roamed around, and did go to teen disco. By Wed he had made friends, hung in disco, and did group activities at night. Each night the pack of friends grew larger.

By last night of cruise they were exchanging email addresses and sad they were losing their friends.

 

In fact I asked a teen director on the CC teen board the same question. His reply was generally if within 3mos. of age bracket not a problem.

(They have a passenger manifest so they DO KNOW the kids ages.)

He said the real problem was moving "up a carnival camp group" just because a sibling or cousin were older. Example: moving a 12-13yr old girl up to 15-17 would be a "scary idea" he said.

Hope this helps. I just wish they would make their friendships earlier in cruise to not torture us parents!

[LizaMM]

First of all don't worry.

I had the exact same question last April.

Our son was 14yr- 9mo (and a freshman) and had no trouble getting into 15-17 group. We talked him into going to first meeting and he deemed it "lame and for only the desperate" -his words. So he just roamed around, and did go to teen disco. By Wed he had made friends, hung in disco, and did group activities at night. Each night the pack of friends grew larger.

By last night of cruise they were exchanging email addresses and sad they were losing their friends.

 

In fact I asked a teen director on the CC teen board the same question. His reply was generally if within 3mos. of age bracket not a problem.

(They have a passenger manifest so they DO KNOW the kids ages.)

He said the real problem was moving "up a carnival camp group" just because a sibling or cousin were older. Example: moving a 12-13yr old girl up to 15-17 would be a "scary idea" he said.

Hope this helps. I just wish they would make their friendships earlier in cruise to not torture us parents!

 

 

Thanks for sharing this.

 

I am a little concerned about my 14 y.o. DD and our Thanksgiving cruise. She has a "late" birthday so that puts her at only 14 when we sail yet she is a freshman in H.S. Last time she sailed she was in the 12-14 group and the activities for that age bracket (based on our particular previous sailings) would be "to young" for her at this point. Additionally she has a 16 y.o sister and a 15 y.o cousin who will be sailing with her this time.

 

There is a Teen Roll Call Thread going for our sailing and she has been participating in that and there are 2 other girls who are 14 but based on the thread they will be much closer to 15 (under the 3 month mark) when we sail.

 

This will be my first time sailing with my kids since the Club 02 was put in place and I am not sure what to expect.

[Rangervr6178]

Hey guys,

My name is Dan Polulak and I am a Club O2 Director.

 

I just signed off a contract on the Carnival Miracle last Sunday, and start on the Carnival Liberty on December 9th.

 

Just to clear up a few things:

The stickers are handed out the first night at the welcome aboard meeting. This helps to keep the younger kids from Camp Carnival getting in, and make sure we dont have anyone who is 18 or older getting in, as that can get us in legal trouble. Please, dont have your kid lie about their age, if they are almost 15 it is a lot easier to say yes or no to. If your teen lies, it confuses us because when we check it to the manifest list something comes up wrong, and it holds up the whole line one the first night when we hand out the O2 stickers! Just have them come talk to one of us after the huge group has come in, and depending on when your birthday and how busy it is, we might make some acceptions. However understand if we cant allow your teen in it is just because we are following our company rules, so just try to be respectful, please... You would be surprised on how many parents would yell (yes literally) because their son or daughter who was 13, or just turned 14 wasnt allowed into Club O2. The whole Club O2 is formed because its for older teens, and we try our hardest to keep it at this! :-)

 

Some Directors (we are allowed to make our own call on this) have different rules about ages. I use the 3 month rule, if you teen will be 15 in the next 3 months I will let them in, as long as I can prove it. The reason we are so strict about it is because we dont want Club O2 to become "lame" because young ones are in there.

 

Another thing that I learned is that you cant please every teen. Some teens love Club O2 and come to all the daytime activties, and some just come to the disco. Thats what it is about, doing what you want. Club O2 is in no way shape or form a part of Camp Carnival. We report to the Cruise Director, and our position doubles as a social host, so often you will see Club O2 Directors doubling as social hosts too. I think the concept of structured activties scares teens away sometimes, but I also think a lot of them are too self consious to get out and have a good time on their cruise- and thats also what it is all about! The first few days are always slow, but by the end of each cruise there was never anyone who didnt meet someone!

 

Also, during off season, Club O2 is still around but on a more personal level, we change the activties to accomodate small groups of teens, so while there might not be huge parties, we still have stuff going on!

 

Feel free to ask me more...

[GuitarPlayer]

Dan,

 

Thanks for clearing up some items.

 

I have an upcoming cruise on March 17, 2007 on the Triumph with DW and 5 (yes 5!) DD's. I have one daughter who will be 16 (Oct B-day), and another daughter who will be 15, but not until June 4. Sounds like the younger one (14 yrs 9 mos) "might" be able to get in with her older sister?

 

When you said "wait until the group is gone and then approach the O2 director," does that mean wait until the meet and greet is over, or just wait until the "masses" are taken care of, but BEFORE the meet and greet is over?

 

What is your guess of group size for 02 on a March 17th cruise? Not an exact number, but would you expect it to be a small group, a large group, or what? Is this considered "Spring Break" by the cruiseline(s)?

 

Thanks,

GP

[Rangervr6178]

That is probably the one of the most busy weeks of the whole year. Triumph is also one of the most packed ships for teens, so your teens shouldent have a problem at all.

 

As for the 14 and 9months, if it was me and you came up and talked to me I wouldent have a problem with it under two conditions. As long as they are able to prove that they are at least in high school I would be okay with it. Also have your teen come up and talk to the director, typically when a teen would ask me I would be more likely to make the exception because they were courtious and responsible about it. As a parent you could wait outside and then come in if you have any questions, I am just saying that through a directors point of view.

 

Like I said if it was my O2 I would let the person in, but since it is a very busy week, the O2 Director might say no, so be prepared for that too. The problem is sometimes if we let one in, everyone will come and before we know it, it becomes hard to say no!

 

Hope I helped?!

[ashcruizer]

when i was on the victroy and sensation in 04 i had a blast in the teen clubs i was 15 and all of us had a blast using the facitlites. your son needs to be friendly with everyone. i met my ex boyfriend of 6 months on a cruise and now we still talk almost daily. Actually all the kids i met are still in touch. Let him kno that it is ok to be silly. lots of times the kids were to busy trying to be cool to have a great time with me and the other kids onboard. The rooms are cool to chill in and there is always stuff to do. If you are on the victory and the teen director is kim she is amazing. We actually spent the night in the teen club one night with her....we all had this huge pj party/sleepover. It was amazing. Let you boy have a great time and tell him to remember that this is his vk too!!!;)

[ashcruizer]

when i was on the victroy and sensation in 04 i had a blast in the teen clubs i was 15 and all of us had a blast using the facitlites. your son needs to be friendly with everyone. i met my ex boyfriend of 6 months on a cruise and now we still talk almost daily. Actually all the kids i met are still in touch. Let him kno that it is ok to be silly. lots of times the kids were to busy trying to be cool to have a great time with me and the other kids onboard. The rooms are cool to chill in and there is always stuff to do. If you are on the victory and the teen director is kim she is amazing. We actually spent the night in the teen club one night with her....we all had this huge pj party/sleepover. It was amazing. Let you boy have a great time and tell him to remember that this is his vk too!!!;)

[ashcruizer]

when i was on the victroy and sensation in 04 i had a blast in the teen clubs i was 15 and all of us had a blast using the facitlites. your son needs to be friendly with everyone. i met my ex boyfriend of 6 months on a cruise and now we still talk almost daily. Actually all the kids i met are still in touch. Let him kno that it is ok to be silly. lots of times the kids were to busy trying to be cool to have a great time with me and the other kids onboard. The rooms are cool to chill in and there is always stuff to do. If you are on the victory and the teen director is kim she is amazing. We actually spent the night in the teen club one night with her....we all had this huge pj party/sleepover. It was amazing. Let you boy have a great time and tell him to remember that this is his vk too!!!;)

[Buffettfan 225]

Dan,

Just curious how long were you on the Miracle, we sailed last spring break April 1 week and son Mike enjoyed the program. (Only thing we didn't get to do was go to Costa Maya due to wave swells.) I bet more work for the crew that day short notice planning.

So were you on the Miracle last April 1,06?

Funny, we will be sailing the Liberty this spring break March 31, 2007 and wonder will you be director then??

 

I think my sons favorite thing he did was Simpson's trivia in showroom winning against the adults a "ship on a stick" (last Miracle cruise did not offer :( and he was sure to look in every capers), it was short notice not planned day at sea on Destiny while we out ran hurricaine Emily. - I wonder if more teen events; inlcuding ones in evening could have ship-stick contests. Kids are quite competitive. If they post it in O2 newletter-an event to win a ship on a stick I bet you'd get more at registration :) or first day at sea showing up.

Just a suggestion to add you your events.

buffetfan - Suzy Z carmel, IN