Cruising with kids...

Hey Candance,

I just go back off the Carnival Pride on 12/20.  They have lots to do for the kids--the camps are broken into age groups.  They have the younger group and then the teenagers from 13-17 or something along those lines..   They keep them really busy so parents have a chance to enjoy themselves too. 

Have fun.

Hey Sandy...How are you???

I am so glad that they have a cruise out of Baltimore..I hate flying

Cruising with kids has been great for me.  My first time was when my daughter was nine.  We've cruised most years since then (she's 23 now). 

Children's programs keep them all day and baby sitters are available at night.  Older kids can be let loose with walkie talkies or meet up times.  You can spend time with your kids and let them do their own thing.  There are always family friendly activities in port and on board. 

My daughter and friends favored the pool, hot tub, and arcade with people their own age.  They also tried sneaking into the adult venues at night but we spotted them, lol.   The ships are good at keeping kids out of the grown up zones and away from the booze. 

FYI, in international waters on most ships minors over a certain age can buy wine.  They are allowed hard liquor if you sign for it. 

My kid is a spender so as she got older she had her own on board account linked to her checking account.  I deposited and allowance for her before we sailed.  Otherwise all charges would have gone to me.   No maxing out my credit card. 

Enjoy, however you choose to do it.  Feel free to hit me on the b/l with any questions.  I've done Carival Cruse Line alone, with kids, and with 33 family members.

hey candace,
My daughter and I went on a Walt Disney Cruise in November 2008 and we had a ball.  Now of course this cruise was geared towards children but they also had activities for adults as well.  My daughter was 12 yrs old at the time and she hung out at the kids club the majority of the time which I felt totally comfortable with her staying there, they had computers, tv's dvds nintendo, playstation wii everything possibly that you could think of that kids would enjoy and she met tons of friends there as well.  They have a club for pretty much each age group all the way up to 18 yrs of age.   I personally hung out with my cousins during the day at the pool and at night went clubbin at their onboard nightclub - girl they was jammin lol.   We went on the 7 day eastern cruise with stops in Key West, FL, Cozumel Mexico, Grand Cayman and a island in the Bahamas called Castaway Cay (pronounced Key) which is owned by Disney.  Omg it was over the top fun.  Perhaps you may want to consider this type of cruise in the future, I sure plan to either next year or 2011.