Family Cruising

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All right now. I remember when cruising meant:

- You had to dress for dinner. Jackets and ties, cocktail dresses for women and formal nights;

- There were only two seatings for meals. Early or late, and one main restaurant;

- Room service? Not available on the ships I cruised on; and

- Cruising with small children was inconceivable.

There still are some cruise lines that follow these rules but not the majority. There are children’s clubs, children-only pools, climbing walls, entertainment, teen discos and behemoth ships with enough to occupy a family 24-hours a day.

We chose the NCL (Norwegian Cruise Line) for our intergenerational cruise strictly because of the free-style dining that gives the flexibility and freedom to:

- Eat whenever you want.

- Eat with whomever you want.

- Eat in one of the many restaurants (some do come with extra charges and reservations).

- Eat as many times a day as your stomach can expand. Early breakfast, normal breakfast, snack between breakfast, lunch buffets inside, barbecues by the pool, afternoon snacks, dinners, midnight buffets…and if you are still hungry…order from room service…FREE!

Again, the same theory as an all-inclusive. The darling “rug-rats” don’t like what’s on their plate? Try another food. There has to be something you and they will adore. Some ships even have a kiddy buffet with only food items that they love.

Some money-saving suggestions that you can free free to ignore are:

- Choose one of the less expensive cabins on a lower deck towards the middle and/or an inside cabin. (The lower you go, the more stable part it is.) It doesn’t make any differenceto me where I sleep. It may be very important to you. Remember, you are only in the cabin (or should only be in the cabin) at night.

- Check the prices of all land excursions. There are very few “must sees” on most cruise stops (I’m thinking Caribbean here) and the kids will be happy on a beach or walking through town stocking up on souvenirs. It’s usually a lot less to arrange a taxi to wherever you want to go. If the ship actually docks rather than tendering in, it’s usually walking distance to town for ” tchatchke” shopping.

- When you look at cruise prices, factor in the gas surcharges and port taxes that are very costly. Don’t fall for the $450 for one-week cruise ad. There are probably only two cabins at that price and it doesn’t include hundreds of dollars for those taxes.

- Your ship will add a gratuity for each person for every day. No choice on that either. The gratuity is less for children and I don’t begrudge the staff gratuity. Just know before you go.

- Take pills for motion sickness (the ship also usually supplies free motion sickness pills) and take one before you leave the port. Adults and children. You never know who is going to be more susceptible and once you’re sick, it’s too late.

- Think about what specialty restaurants you want to eat in and make reservations as soon as you board.

- TAKE OUT INSURANCE! You never know…

And wait until you see the wondrous look on your children’s faces when they come face-to-face with one of these gigantic ships…. I’m even awed. Remember, the family that hot tubs together, stays together…(or something like that!) Happy cruising….