MIAMI - Golly gee, I wish I was a kid again – a kid whose family is planning a cruise holiday, that is.
The cruise industry, once the stodgy domain of grandma and grandpa, long ago shed its tuxedo and ball gown image in favour of tank tops and rock climbing walls when it realized the young and young at heart were its future.
And the first to take advantage of the cruise industry’s youth movement were grandma and grandpa, who began bringing their kids and grandkids along on their voyages.
But the cruise lines didn’t just stop with the addition of rock climbing walls and batting cages on their ships – most vessels now offer full-fledged youth programs designed to keep tiny tykes to teens amused and entertained throughout a voyage with well-supervised activities.
“We went on a cruise and we only saw our kids at meals – the rest of the time they were too busy doing ship-board activities to spend time with us,” a good friend told me after she spent a week cruising the Caribbean with her family last winter.
“The kids wanted us to book another cruise for next winter as soon as we returned,” she told me.
Left: There is plenty of space on board that is for kids only. Right: Cruise staff engage kids in lots of on board programs.
And while most cruise lines offer youth programs, some are better than others. Here’s our top kids-friendly cruise line picks:
1- Disney (Disney Wonder and Disney Magic)
Since Disney is in the kid business, you had to know their ships would be at the top of the kids’ class list. The Disney ships have often been called the biggest playrooms in the world. They even offer wading pools for diaper-wearing toddlers and supervised activities are offered free until midnight. Disney is a great introduction to cruising for young families (with kids in the 4 to pre-teen range) but anything older might be a problem.
2- Royal Caribbean (Voyager-class ships)
Kids get a Royal welcome aboard these ships with lots of fun activities like rock-climbing; ice skating, miniature golf, basketball courts and roller blading. The space dedicated to kid’s activities on these ships is the biggest in the industry and that’s why Royal Caribbean always ranks highly in the family-fun category of cruising. Some other nifty features are fun-type restaurants like Johnny Rockets and programs designed with the help of child-oriented companies like Fisher Price and Crayola.
3- Carnival (Conquest and Splendor ships)
Just the name of this cruise line evokes images of fun under and Carnival atmosphere. Carnival has a program which divides into five ago groups with strong “edu-tainment” offerings – which means kids actually have fun while learning. Lots of space on Carnival ships have been dedicated to kids – both above and below decks and one nifty offering Carnival makes to kids are that they allow them into spas – a very popular feature with young females.
4- Princess Cruises (Caribbean, Crown and Emerald ships)
This cruise line really caters to families and kids are treated like princesses and princes while they are at sea. Princess has established a 10,000 square-foot- “Fun Zone” aboard its ships. Princess offers family suites and pools dedicated just to kids. Kids also get “Movies under the Stars Nights” and Princess’s “Shipboard Olympics” is always a winner with families, young and old.
5- Crystal Cruises (Symphony and Serenity)
This high-end cruise line makes sure their youngest passengers and well entertained with personalized itineraries like designing their own pastries while on a tour of the galley area or diving for pennies in the ship’s pool. Crystal also packs a lot of electronic gadgets aboard their vessels, like Sony PlayStations just to make sure no one gets bored. Another Crystal feature is their “Junior Cruisers” menu that offers lots of fun but healthy food.
6- Cunard (Queen Mary 2)
You may never have associated this Grand Duchess of the sea with children but Cunard’s elegant flagship really rolls out the welcome mat to families with kid-friendly programs that rival anything the “fun ships” have to offer. The playroom aboard the QM2 is bright and cheery and the ball pit and climbing gym won’t just keep your kids happy but it will also keep them fit. The QM2 offers supervised activities for ages 1 to 17, kids menus and have a separate nursery with cribs and cots.
7- Norwegian (Dawn, Star and Spirit)
NCL is one of the most trusted names on the sea and it caters to multigenerational guests with a variety of kid-friendly spaces and activities like a cool kids’ pool, located at the stern of their vessels where wading pools and sliding boards await. The playrooms aboard these vessels have all been well planned out. The dining rooms even come with pint-sized tables for the youngest crew.
8- Holland America (Vista Class ships)
Like Disney, Holland America has its own island in the Caribbean where young passengers get a chance to play in the warm salty sea and sand, which always makes a nice break during a long cruise. A kids’ aqua park on the beach at Half Moon Cay and the chance to go horseback riding and snorkeling for stingrays is always a hits with the younger set. Holland also offers private in-cabin babysitting services so mom and dad can enjoy a romantic evening alone and supervised activities are offered for kids 3 to 17.
9- Celebrity Cruises (Millennium Class ships)
The indoor/outdoor playrooms aboard Celebrity ships rank among the best in the cruise business and the fenced in soft surface jungle gym and wading pool keep kids fit and entertained all at the same time. Group babysitting services and private in-cabin sitting are also offered to Celebrity guests and the menus aboard these vessels have all been designed around families.
10- Ocean Cruises (Village and Village II)
With well thought out kid’s programs like “how to be a TV presenter workshop” and a “Girls Night In” pampering package to go along with its exciting shore excursions like quad biking, you know Ocean has done its homework regarding family travel. This European-based cruise line will even arrange outings for older kids with their parents to soccer games. The much-loved British cartoon character Paddington Bear entertains younger kids at the ships’ Base Camp and PlayStations are everywhere on these ships.