In need of serious advice...

[cruisered2007]

We are headed on our first cruise Dec. 14th, 9 night Eastern Car., Explorer of the Seas.:p We are stopping in San Juan, Dominican Rep., St. Thomas & Labadee. There's 10 of us all together, but my immediate family is myself & hubby, 3 kids age 7, 5 & 3. What, if any, excursions would you all recommend? Or are our kids basically too young & we should just plan on sitting on the beach soaking up the sun?:cool: I'd love to have EVERYONE & ANYONE's suggestions on ANYTHING: packing, on ship, on land, excursions...etc. I'm determined to plan this like a general so I can enjoy myself once there! Thanks in advance for everything!:)

[eandj]

Welcome to Cruise Critic. You will learn so much here pre cruise!

As for your itinerary. Go back to the main page and you'll find boards for every port of call you will visit. Read those threads, and you'll find a wealth of info re highlites on each island.

Also there is a board for Family Cruising. You'll find out all kinds of tips from parents. Your kids are not too young...especially the 7 year old to enjoy a walk around a fort in San Juan. You can take a cab and avoid the high price of ship excursions. Labadee is easy as it is the private island and will be a beach day for everyone.

St Thomas , if you stay downtown for the shopping will be crowded and not too kid friendly. If you like to shop, you might want to hit the shopping district with the other shoppers in your group and let your DH stay on board with the kids. They have an excellent kids program on RCCL and I know my daughter and her cousins found that meeting alll the other kids and doing the kids activities on the ship was the greatest.

But...Check out all the boards I mentioned. You can also go to the Royal Carib cruiseline board and ask/read about your specific ship.

There is just so much to learn here!! Have fun and don't worry too much. The best laid plans often get turned upside down once on board. And you'll still have a great time.

[newmexicoNita]

You have come to the right place for opinions and recommendations: yes, try the family section, you will get lots of good ideas. No, you kids are not too young to enjoy some of the tours, but keep them short and interesting to them. I would suggest you consintrate on things that include the beach, animals or busy activities. Riding around in a bus all day isn't for kids, nor is too much walking.

 

Of course all the kids are great ages for the kids programs, which is something they should enjoy while on ship. Shopping in St Thomas is a must for adults, just don't expect the kids to have a ball and keep an eye on them at all times. EandJ suggests the fort in San Juan, that should be a great tour for the kids.

 

I don't know where you are going in D.Republic thus can't recommend anything there. Check out the ports a call section as well. That should give you ideas as to what is best to do with kids.

 

I am sure you have planned early dining; late dining can be a drag on little ones. Remember dinner will take a good hour.

 

I don't know what else to suggest. Just have a great cruise experience.

 

Nita

[Bonnie J.]

In St. Thomas you can take a cab to the aquarium which just about adjoins Coki Beach. You can go to the aqarium then walk over to Coki Beach. Kids might also like the tram ride to a very high point ovrelooking the harbor. You can see it on the right at the Haversight (?) port. Not too far to walk to . But when you get off the cable car walk farther up for an even better view.

[trish1c]

In San Juan head up to the fort & go kite flying. You'll have to buy a cheap kite or bring one from home but the kids should love it.

 

There's a tram / cable car ride in St. Thomas with a picturesque view near Havensight.

[newmexicoNita]

In St. Thomas you can take a cab to the aquarium which just about adjoins Coki Beach. You can go to the aqarium then walk over to Coki Beach. Kids might also like the tram ride to a very high point ovrelooking the harbor. You can see it on the right at the Haversight (?) port. Not too far to walk to . But when you get off the cable car walk farther up for an even better view.

the Aquarium is a great idea. That is the type of tour I would take with young kids.

 

Nita

[cb at sea]

If a beach day is what you want, you really don't need to buy excursions--just get in a cab and go! Do some research on your ports, so you'll know where the beaches that will suit you are!

Labadee is a ship's beach day--no excursions are needed there, either! Yes, they offer waverunners, slides, etc... but you don't HAVE to do that to have a great day!

[kitty9]

Check for excursions on the cruise line's website and see what they offer. They give a pretty detailed description of each tour, and they will also tell you the age requirements. Many tours have a minimum age of 8 or 12, so look out for those. If you want to book independent tours, at least if you look at the ship's tours, you have some idea of the best things to do and see.

[johno95]

once aboard. dump the kids in the Adventure Ocean program. it's "free." then enjoy yourself. :)

 

utilize the Royal Caribbean section of CC for RCL-specific queries.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=83

maybe someone mentioned this already.

 

check out various bars and stuff on the Promenade. we love it.

[Fredr]

We are headed on our first cruise Dec. 14th, 9 night Eastern Car., Explorer of the Seas.:p We are stopping in San Juan, Dominican Rep., St. Thomas & Labadee. There's 10 of us all together, but my immediate family is myself & hubby, 3 kids age 7, 5 & 3. What, if any, excursions would you all recommend? Or are our kids basically too young & we should just plan on sitting on the beach soaking up the sun?:cool: I'd love to have EVERYONE & ANYONE's suggestions on ANYTHING: packing, on ship, on land, excursions...etc. I'm determined to plan this like a general so I can enjoy myself once there! Thanks in advance for everything!:)

 

Hello,

 

Your kids are too young to really enjoy an excursion, so I would look at going to the beach. Most excursions involve a bus ride, and restrooms are not readily available, and lunch is usually served later than regular meal times. And most likely the kids are going to be in a climate that they are not used to. I am not being anti ship excursion, but rather to tell you that there are many reasons why you should not take your kids on an excursion at their ages.

 

Make sure that all of you have some type of beach shoes that you can wear in the water, to protect your feet from coral and whatever. Ask the cruise staff which beaches they go to, and how much a cab ride should cost. Do not get in the cab until you agree on a price. Also, allow enough time to get back to the ship.

 

If you see an excursion that looks very interesting, you go and let your Dh watch the kids at the ship's pool. This will give you a nice break, to see some interesting sites. The same advice is applicable to your DH. The excursion will have lots of people on it so you will not be alone.

 

You are being very wise to take your kids on a cruise because it seems to me that if kids learn to travel early on, they are a joy to travel with throughout their childhood.

 

Hope that this helps.

 

Fred

[gizmo]

once aboard. dump the kids in the Adventure Ocean program. it's "free." then enjoy yourself. :)

 

utilize the Royal Caribbean section of CC for RCL-specific queries.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=83

maybe someone mentioned this already.

 

check out various bars and stuff on the Promenade. we love it.

 

Did you ever think the OP wants to spend time with the children? Isn't that what a family vacation is ?

 

I feel very sorry for kids that are "dumped" by their parents.

[Happy ks]

Keep it simple, kids like simple. They are happy just getting wet, either in a pool or the ocean. If there is a zoo they would like that. Just avoid adult tours or boring (to them) museums. I know you are looking to plan this out, but just be aware that too much planning can backfire on you. Travelling with kids can present challenges you don't anticipate, they can react differently than they do at home to being in strange places. Let the experience unfold on its own, be flexible with your plans. I know our first vacation I had an itinerary.....until we got there and no one wanted to do what was on the list. So, I threw it out along with my high expectations and we had a great time with a few surprises.

 

One piece of advice is to not even make a single attempt to try to keep the group of 10 together. Go your separate ways during the day and have more to talk about at dinner. Four is the max we try to keep as a group unless we have a van and a tour guide. You can't do that unless you want to give up a kid :p

 

You may also have to realize that no matter what you are doing, you may have to head back to the ship for nap time. Naps in strollers don't count.

Cranky kids make for an unhappy vacation for everyone within ear shot, so do allow for a nice afternoon nap. While pleasant children are a delight, no one wants to be around a whiney kid.

 

Personally, I think it would be very relaxing to visit beaches, head back to the ship early, the little ones nap with one parent, the older one goes to play at the kids club and one parent gets some alone time on a deck chair of their choice. Take turns with this scenario and everyone will be happy.

 

We didn't cruise with our kids until they were older, we just took them to motels with pools, they were in heaven. But with extended family or friends a cruise ship can be a perfect way to travel together.

 

Have a great time!

[Grandpaul]

I fyou're looking for a beach day I would recommend going to St. John's when you get to St. Thomas. It's right next door and easy to get to. Some of the most beautiful beaches are there, especially Trunk Bay.

[tomko2]

Bring your kites from home (we got ours at Walmart) and go to El Morro Fort in San Juan -- take trolley there. It is so much fun and it will give the children a chance to burn off some energy. Pics of our kite flying at San Juan are in the link below.

Kathy:)

[serene56]

In San Juan the forts close at 5pm - there is an awesome walking tour if you google: Frommers walking tour in San Juan. Might be a bit much for your kids though.

 

Labadee.. let them play in the water but when they get bored the cruiselines have an enclosed play area which counselors have control over.

There when you get off the ship-- turn left and walk all the way to the end-- look right- -especially for kids. Its called Dragons Breath and it really looks like the dragon is breathing smoke because of the way the water hits the rocks.

 

St thomas-- there is a semi sub ride that might be interesting for them.

 

May I offer you the suggestion NOT to overly plan-- regiment style especially when crusiing with kids. You need to stay on their schedule or you will have major meltdowns. Please factor in naps etc when needed.

 

Planning like a general-- you might be very disappointed with the way things turn out.

 

Use the camps at some point every day for some adult time. (hopefully your child is 3 by the time you sail and is potty trained completly with no accidents)

[nattie]

I fyou're looking for a beach day I would recommend going to St. John's when you get to St. Thomas. It's right next door and easy to get to. Some of the most beautiful beaches are there, especially Trunk Bay.

I have just sailed Explorer, albeit with a different itinerary.

Unless, you go through the ship (buy their excursion/transportation), I would not recommend going to St. John with small kids (7 and 5 probably OK, but not 3 yo). It takes roughly 45 min bus ride to get to ferry pier, then it is 30 min ferry ride (island time, so add another 20 min or so) to St John and then another cab ride to Trunk Bay. Also, leaving later in a day might be hassle, since A LOT of locals are leaving for St Thomas (commuting home) and a boat was crowded and a line to board quite long. Trunk Bay is gourgeous, but next time, I am going to save time and money and just go to Magen's Bay.

Overall, you picked great ship to enjoy your vacation on:)

[cruisered2007]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. Maybe I was a bit misleading in my post...I don't plan AT ALL on scheduling our day(s). I'm trying to do as much research/planning as possible beforehand so I can lay back and relax once onboard. I just wanting to find out if there was anything I absolutely SHOULD NOT miss/forget/ignore. I want this to be fun for our children, but veeeerrrry relaxing--for all involved. Alot of your suggestions were pretty much right in line with what I was already thinking. Our kids are fairly well travelled--up and down the East Coast, from Maine to Florida. But this is our first adventure on the high seas. We're blessed with fairly easy kids, they pretty much roll with the punches. And I'm sure this makes a difference--I neglected to mention that our fellow travelers include Grandmom & Opa, 2 uncles and an aunt--so no worries on alone time for Mommy & Daddy! ;) Thanks again!

[tomko2]

What a great way to create memories for your children! Travelling with extended family (grandparents, etc.) was definitely not done too much when we were kids.

We always map out our trips just so we can maximize our time on shoring doing what we enjoy the most. I already mentioned the kite flying at San Juan but want to also mention Lindbergh Beach in St. Thomas --- absolutely lovely. There is a Best Western there so if you do a search for the hotel you will see what the facilities and beach are like. The only drawback is that it is close to the airport so you hear the planes but it is no big deal. Taxi to beach and back is quite reasonable and since it is on the same side of the island as the port it is a straight forward ride.

Have a great time.

Kathy

[McDebbie]

How funny! I was just thinking of when we took grandboy to Disney for the first time and the things he loved the most were Donalds Boat (where he got soaking wet) and the place in Animal Kingdom with the showers (where he got soaking wet) You didn't say if your children were girls or boys but I guess getting them soaking wet is the way to go.

[spongerob]

Check out the Ports of Call board on this site for information about the places you will visit. You can find loads of advice.

 

As far as planning like a general - you'll have do that to some extent when traveling with a group, but remember that there will be a lot going on and to schedule some relaxation time.

 

As far as "dumping" the children goes...it's people who do that who create so much animosity amongst cruise passengers who don't travel with children and those who do.

[mitzy52]

We have travelled on this ship and its sister ship a couple times. Its my favorite. The kids are going to love it. The kids programs are fantastic. Labadee is great. In St. Thomas, I would recommend going over to St. John. Its gorgeous and the prettiest beaches ever. I loved San Juan for the history so if you can go to the forts, that is a lot of fun.