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Travel

2003-09-01 10:08:00

Taking a family-friendly cruise

:  I want to take my family on a cruise. Are there any family-friendly cruises? Can we go ashore without kids? Is childcare on the ships expensive?  

ANSWER: The right cruise is a great idea for family reunions and vacations. Cruises offer so much for everyone. Kids can have pizza or chicken nuggets while you dine on lobster in the dining room. Kids’ activities as well as family and adult entertainment, sandy beaches and unlimited food are included.    There are a number of cruise lines with children's programs on them. Your decision on cruise line and ship will depending on the age and number of children you are taking. Since most of today's cruise lines have many ships, I would recommend a travel consultant to help you decide.   For example, Carnival Cruise Line has 17 ships in service right now. Royal Caribbean has another 17 ships. Disney Cruise Line has 2 ships. Norwegian and Celebrity also have good family ships. With almost 50 ships between these cruise lines, you may have to narrow your search by itinerary, length of stay, or budget. All have great children's programs, but each ship and cruise line is different.   Many ships have huge children's areas, complete with video game rooms and computers. A staff with degrees in education operate all the children's programs. The programs are spilt into different age levels, so 3-year-olds are not underfoot of the 12-year-olds. Disney is the only cruise line that offers a program for infants under 3 years old. All other cruise lines’ programs start at 2 years old and children must be potty-trained. Royal Caribbean has some ships that offer inline skating, ice skating, miniature golf and rock climbing walls. Keep in mind only five of the ships in the whole fleet have all of these attractions on board. The skates, putters, and supervision for the rock-climbing wall are provided free of charge. Carnival Cruise Line is popular for it’s huge slides into the main pool, great fun for kids of all ages.   The ship you choose can make a big difference because of the cabin size. Carnival has the largest standard cabins afloat, and will allow up to 5 passengers in most of the cabins. The extra bed, a roll away, is free of charge and can be arranged easily. Disney and Royal Caribbean do not offer roll aways on their ships. If you are traveling with 3 kids on these cruise lines, you may need another cabin or a suite. Prices for a cruise will vary according to ship and cabin type. Ask your travel consultant for help on deciding. Don't decide on price alone! You get what you pay for, even on cruise ships.   The children's programs are free of an additional charge from 8 am - 10 pm on the ships. There is a small charge for after hours, but usually only $5-8 dollars an hour. I know I am not the night owl I use to be, so it doesn't add up to be much extra. During the day, kids will play board games, have organized scavenger hunts, play pool games, and have pizza parties. Parents need to sign younger children (under 12) in and out. Teens are free to "hang out" in the Teen Club and they can come and go as they like. There is always an adult around in the Teen Club too. You can go off the ship without the kids in most ports without an extra charge on some cruise lines. The best part of a family  vacation is creating memories together. Start planning a family cruise today by calling a travel consultant!