Cruises???

Question

I have decided to take my girls, 14 yrs and 5 yrs on a cruise. Want it to be a great Mom and Daughter experience for the 3 of us. I need some ideas as I have never been on a cruise before. I live in Humble Texas. Needing to get away for a week or 2.

Answer 1

You all will have a grand time....what a wonderful mom you are.

Answer 2

We went on the Carnival Conquest, it was a 7 day cruise.  It sails out of Gavelston, TX.  They have all types of activities for the children as well as  adults.  I didn't travel with my kids so I don't know about all the features for the kids.

Answer 3

I would suggest a Carnival Cruise, to get good rates go to http://www.vacationsnbeyond.com and request a quote.

Answer 4

if you had two teenagers I'd suggest royal Caribbean. it's a great cruise for teenagers and my brother and i love it. we're 14 and 15. but for the five year old i suggest carnival cruise lines. the teen will still like it and have a lot of fun and the 5 year old will still get to have fun, too. i also suggest that you sign them both up in the camp carnival on the ship. that way when you feel like doing something that sounds boring to them you can still do what you want and not have to skip it for your kids. but the 5  year old will have to be signed in and out, she can't leave one her own. the 14 year old and the 5 year old won't have any activities together because they'll be in their age group but the 5 year old will have other kids her age and the cruise staff with her when she's in the camp carnival and it's perfectly safe. they do activities like scavenger hunt and the teenagers have dances and go to the arcade. and if your kids are allergic to anything you write it down when you enroll them in the program and they will make sure your child doesn't get anything she's allergic to. camp carnival is good because you can spend a lot of time with your kids and also do things the kids don't want to do and not have to miss out.

Answer 5

disney cruise

or carnival are good cruise lines

port days in mexico, especially in cozumel

you cant really go wrong =]

ive been on one and it was a blast

have fun =]

Answer 6

Disney Cruise is great.

Answer 7

I am not sure if you want to cruise from Galveston, Texas or not but there is a port there that may be close to you if you plan to drive to the port rather than fly.  That would save you some money on airfare.  There is safe parking at the port and it will cost about $12 a day.  Then there are also cruise departure ports in New Orleans and Mobile which may be driving distance from you.  Here are links to the ports which will give you an idea of which cruise lines depart from each and there is a calendar showing when cruises depart.

Galveston:

http://www.portofgalveston.com/cruiseinf...

New Orleans:

http://www.portno.com/index.htm

Mobile, Ala:

http://www.shipmobile.com/

While these ports may be close to you and easy to get to, your cruise options from them will be limited vs also considering ports in Florida.  The Florida cruise ports, Miami, Ft Lauderdale, and Port Canaveral have more cruise ships, itineraries, and generally have the newer ships.

Some other things you need to know:

-All of the cruise lines have free programs just for kids; kids are grouped by age ranges, like 3 to 7, 9 to 12, and 13 to 17.  These are supervised by professionally trained staff people who have funs and games for them all day on the ships.  Most ships have special areas on ship just for the kids.  The programs go by different names, like Camp Carnival on Carnival Cruise line, Adventure Ocean on Royal Caribbean, and Navigators on Norwegian cruise line ships.  Most will have a special hangout for teens.  So if your kids want to go to the kids program you can be sure they are safe and you can enjoy the adults only area.

- All cruises are sold based on double occupancy and the cruise lines do not give any discounts for kids.  But, while you will pay full price for you and your 14 year old, your 5 yr old will go at a reduced fare that is about 50% of the price you pay for the first two people.

-  There are a lot of factors that affect the final average cost of a cruise on any cruise line. The bottom line is that cruises generally cost about $125.00 per day per person AND all cruises are priced based on double occupancy (2 people per cabin).  Since cruises can be 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 12, or 14 days or more the price will depend mostly on how many days your cruise is.

-  The cruise lines give the best price for early bookings that are a year or more in advance. Cruise lines also list specials on their web sites so do look for those. The specials can many times save you a couple hundred per person over the price for the exact same cruise on a different date.

- The price you pay for your cruise will depend also on the type cabin/accommodations that you choose.

There are 4 basic types of cabins on ships;

- inside (no window),................................... least expensive

- outside (a window or porthole),

- balcony/veranda, and

- suites and penthouses.......................... most expensive.

The "FROM" prices you see will always be for an inside cabin. There are also some subcategories within each category with cabins on a higher deck, and/or a better location on ship (like midship), and/or that are slightly larger costing more. So as you browse, pay attention to the square footage of the cabins. You may not want to pay more for the same sized cabin on a higher floor; or vice versa do pay less for the same cabin on a lower deck.

-  You can reserve a cruise yourself right on line, or, by calling the cruise line, or through a travel agent.   The minimum deposit which will be between $250 and $350 per person for a 7 day cruise, depending upon the cruise line. The minimum will be more for a longer cruise, for example $450 per person for a 14 day cruise. The balance will be due approximately 60 days before the cruise departure date. But you can make periodic payment on line or with the cruise line. I have reserved on line and made payments many times.

I  have been on Princess, Celebrity, Norwegian, and Royal Caribbean ships and can vouch that they are good cruise lines. However, there are some differences.

- Princess, Celebrity and Holland America have great ships are more classy and reserved.  These cruise lines do have some families but not as many as RC or Carnival.  Holland America has mostly senior citizens cruising on its ships.

-Carnival has more first time cruiser, families, and young people who want to party, party, party. Carnival is the budget cruise line that generally has the lowest prices. The best of their ships are their newer ships so do pay attention to when the ship was launched is you find a really cheap cruise. http://www.carnivalcruiselines.com/cms/f...

-Norwegian cruise line is good and I have been on many of their cruises. Its the line that you want to go on if you want to be informal for pretty much your whole cruise.   They tend to have middle aged people and families, but not the young party people.  They have formal nights like other cruise lines but they do not stress dressing up; the call it "dress up if you want to" night.

-Royal Caribbean caters most to families and has the most and best on-board activities. Many Royal Caribbean ships have things like ice skating ( and a great ice show), roller blade track, rock climbing wall, surfing on ship on the "Flowrider", mini-golf course, pool tables, a full sized basketball courts, and adults only pool and hot tub area called 'Solarium".

My recommendation is to go on a Royal Caribbean cruise on one of their Freedom Class or Voyager Class ships.  :

You can look at the features of these ships on these two web links:

Freedom Class:

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruis...

Voyager Class:

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruis...

The Voyager class ships are a somewhat smaller version of the Freedom class and have a few things that are different.

You can get cruises on these ships out of Port Canaveral, Ft Lauderdale, and Miami, Florida and also out of Puerto Rico.

Answer 8

I personally loved my Alaskan cruise aboard the Princess Dawn but since your girls are still pretty young I suggest Carnival cruise lines, Disney Cruise lines, or Princess Cruise lines...the Caribbean or Mexico would be nice.

Answer 9

Please check www.BrisaTrips.com, there is pretty much any Cruise line and prices you may be looking for.

Click on Cruise packages to find all the destinations and Cruise lines they offer.

I went on the Disney one and we loved it!

Good luck and enjoy your trip with the girls!

Answer 10

I think you would be Happy Doing a Carnival Cruise.  They always Have something to do for the Children. There is Club O2 for the teens up to 17 yrs old.  Then there is kid Carnival for the younger ones.  I have friends that took both a carnival and a Disney and His Kids asked when can they go back on Carnival.  His kids did not want to leave kid carnival when it was time for them to go to bed. Disney is a good cruise line but, Everything is geared for kids. Also Disney cost a little more than Carnival for the same trip.

I hope this helps.

Answer 11

I would recommend looking into a Disney cruise.  The cruise experience on a Disney ship is one you will never forget.  There are activities you can do as a family, as well as things the girls can do on their own if they wish.  They will definitely love the trip and you can share some quality time enjoying your daughters!

Andrew

www.travelsbyandrew.com

Answer 12

I say that all the cruise lines have good children's programs.. and as far as the location goes I would go Caribbean the kiddies are always amazed by the crystal blue waters... where ever  you decide to cruise to have a great time.... and whatever you do don't worry about the "horror" stories you may hear about cruising start it off on a positive note and things will definitely be good!

Answer 13

ooohhhh i have a great suggestion for you.. why not take those family cruises.. not only will your girls enjoy it, you will also.. why not take the Disney Cruise Line, or how about the Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Princess.. These are some of the cruise lines that have family cruises...

Answer 14

Disney.!