Adventure Ocean & Camp Carnival vs. Club HAL

[Terpnut]

We know Adventure Ocean and Camp Carnival pretty well and our kids have loved them both! However, for next summer, we're considering sailing msNoordam in the Mediterranean and don't know anything about Club HAL. Can anyone with experience with these kids programs please comment on your experience and insights? Thanks!

[6rugrats]

We sailed on the Zuiderdam last December with a 13 year old boy and eight year old girl. The 13 year old could use the teenager's area, The Loft. The Loft consists of a room with video game systems, etc. They had a list of organized activities each day which were placed outside our cabin at night. However, there were only 32 children on our sailing and no organized teen activities were ever held, that we noticed. He was able to participate in the younger kid's program, but they did not allow kids to move up if they weren't old enough.

 

My eight year old also had a great time at Club HAL. She got lots of individual attention from the counselors. They did lots of art projects, played games, went to a show, went to the sport court, had a free afternoon at the video arcade, made ice cream sundaes, etc.

 

There are not a lot of fancy bells and whistles on HAL. That said, my kids LOVED Club HAL and this was the best vacation they ever had. Keep in mind though that it is was a treat for our kids to be able to play unlimited video games, play on the computer, etc., as we are pretty strict about that at home.

 

If you are in the Med, you will have a pretty port intensive cruise, so I'm really not sure just how important the kid's club will be to you anyway.

[Terpnut]

We sailed on the Zuiderdam last December with a 13 year old boy and eight year old girl. The 13 year old could use the teenager's area, The Loft. The Loft consists of a room with video game systems, etc. They had a list of organized activities each day which were placed outside our cabin at night. However, there were only 32 children on our sailing and no organized teen activities were ever held, that we noticed. He was able to participate in the younger kid's program, but they did not allow kids to move up if they weren't old enough.

 

My eight year old also had a great time at Club HAL. She got lots of individual attention from the counselors. They did lots of art projects, played games, went to a show, went to the sport court, had a free afternoon at the video arcade, made ice cream sundaes, etc.

 

There are not a lot of fancy bells and whistles on HAL. That said, my kids LOVED Club HAL and this was the best vacation they ever had. Keep in mind though that it is was a treat for our kids to be able to play unlimited video games, play on the computer, etc., as we are pretty strict about that at home.

 

If you are in the Med, you will have a pretty port intensive cruise, so I'm really not sure just how important the kid's club will be to you anyway.

You are absolutely right that, because it's the Med, the kids' programs are not as important. This is why we're considering msNoordam. We were just trying to better understand HAL's programs and limitations so we know what to expect. Thanks for the feedback! :)

[crusinmama06]

mmcruise just got back from a HAL cruise - so I will have Club Hal pages soon. I will post when they are uploaded and ready to go. :D

[Turtle Girls]

We sailed the Zuiderdam last October and this was my kids favorite line so far (Celebrity, Carnival,HAL and Princess). My DDs are 4/6/8. The attention that they received in Club Hal and throughtout the ship was amazing! Also, because of the more limited number of kids on board, they were able to make friends with the others and it wasn't so overwelming with hundreds of kids onboard. I agree that other ships may offer more amenities such as waterslides, etc but I wouldn't be concerned that the Club Hal experience will be lacking.

[78232]

Do the club hal staff take the kids swimming or is that a family responsibility?

[6rugrats]

Do the club hal staff take the kids swimming or is that a family responsibility?

 

No swimming with Club Hal.

[mmcruise]

That would make me sick nervous and DS is an ok swimmer for his age.

[Terpnut]

Do the club hal staff take the kids swimming or is that a family responsibility?

I'm not aware of the children's programs taking the kids swimming. I think the risks are way too high.

[Terpnut]

mmcruise just got back from a HAL cruise - so I will have Club Hal pages soon. I will post when they are uploaded and ready to go. :D

I'm looking forward to seeing it Michele! Thanks in advance! :)

[crusinmama06]

That would make me sick nervous and DS is an ok swimmer for his age.

 

Yes, there is one cruise line that I can think of that does take the kids swimming...that would be Carnival. They do it for their older age groups, starting at age 9. They call it a pool party.

 

We haven't had to deal with that yet so I don't know how comfortable I would be. ;)

 

Isn't there another one that has a small pool at the kids club? Is that a NCL ship? Or Celebrity? Not sure how that works.

[brazilgirl]

NCL has a small kid´s pool.

 

Celebrity doesn´t....

 

However , I doubt that they woul take the little ones in the pool as a club activity. As mentioned above , way too scary.

 

Kim

[CeleBrat]

Costa also takes the kids swimming. They did clear that specific pool to ensure that it was ONLY the kids club in the pool at the time. And, it wasn't free swim. Rather, they were doing a relay race game.

 

CeleBrat