Mum I’m bored ..

Is this a familiar phrase that you hear ? Having two children myself I certainly have over the years. A couple of years ago we were staying in a beautiful 5* hotel in Fuerteventura, a couple of days in and my youngest looked unhappy , when I asked him what was wrong I was quite shocked with his responce  ‘  I’m bored  ‘ he then went on to  compare it to everything we did on our  cruise holidays. I am always  somewhat amazed when people ask me are cruises really for children ? If I let my children speak to my customers with families they certainly could sell it to them. Let’s have a overview of  what’s on offer on some of the ships with a selection of the cruise companies.

Msc

Have just introduced The first Lego-themed playrooms at sea 

The new Lego Experience on board will include:

• DUPLO Play Pen: Supervised play for children under five, including educational games and challenges
• Classic Lego bricks for free time play
• Lego Vertical Play Wall: A fun game that pits two teams against each other to complete the building of a figure on each side of the wall
• Building Happening: a contest for two teams to create the most impressive construction
• Lego Tech Experience: free play with Lego-branded games on X-Box, Wii and PlayStation

Msc have five age groups for their kids clubs –  Baby (under 3s); Mini (3-6 years); Junior (7-11 years); Young (12-14 years) and Teen (15-17 years).

The range of activities are huge from treasure hunts ,kid’s missions to talent shows,  trivia, crafts, chess and dance contests.There is a  Virtual World Arcade. On deck there is miniature golf, tennis and basketball, shuffleboard, football and designated children’s pools and outdoor play areas, not forgetting some of the ships have waterslides with a water park.

P&O

There are  four age groups for their kids clubs’Splashers’ for 2 – 4 year olds,’Surfers’ for 5 – 8 year olds.‘Scubas’ for 9 – 12 year olds.’h2o’ for 13 – 17 year olds.

All the children’s areas are filled with bright, colorful play areas some have ball pits and computers where kids can learn and play. P&O has also brought children’s characters Noddy and Mr. Bump on board to entertain. In addition to ample space set aside for kids clubs there are also  pools and hot tubs. There  are  sports courts with tennis, cricket, basketball and golf nets. In the evenings children can take also take part in talent shows and there is a teens rock school .On Ventura  you’ll find Cirque Ventura, where all the family  can try a bungee trampoline or join a workshop to learn trapeze and tightrope-walking.

 Royal Caribbean 

Its probably easier to say what they don’t have on board for the family !!

The kids clubs are Aquanauts (ages 3 to 5) Explorers (6 to 8) Voyagers (9 to 11) and a teen club for up to 17 years. They also have Royal babies and tots from 6 to 36 months where parents can take there children and join in with interactive classes.

The facilities on selected ships can keep the children  amused for days without even entering a childrens club !! I know I struggled getting mine  to go a shore.

As well as the fantastic pool, hot tubs and splash zone areas there are  rock-climbing walls, ice-skating rink,  FlowRider which is a surf simulators , zip line ,Bumper cars,sky diving ,carousels .The list just never ends I’m sure  of innovative extras. As well as other companies there are also the video arcades , Dj classes and teenage hangouts.

Royal have a partnerships with Crayola for budding artist’s and Dreamworks  characters enjoy  memorable moments filled with your favourite characters from Madagascar, Shrek, Kung Fu Panda and more. This is just a flavour I really could go on and on …

Norwegian cruise Line

Norwegian’s Splash Academy features separate activities for kids ages 3 to 5, 6 to 9 and 10 to 12.Entourage is  for teens 13 to 17.

There are all kinds of activities going on arts and crafts, sing karaoke and play video games ,jungle gym, high-tech games, a circus school and a small cinema
You will also find rock-climbing and rappelling walls, climbing cages,  bowling alleys  and impressive water-park’s including on the newest of ships a  303-foot-long corkscrew tube and the Drainpipe, a 104-foot tube that empties into a giant funnel.They also feature “Nickelodeon at Sea”program in which kids can meet program in which kids can meet characters like Sponge Bob Square Pants and take part in family game shows.  

This is just a brief overview of what some of the leading cruise companies offer on top of all this the cruise companies offer family cabins special dining and a range of family excursions should you ever get the children to leave these ships. If you want some adult time you can also get babysitters either in your cabin or in a nursey .

What other holiday can really give you all this ?? they are such good value for money . You need to choose your ship wisely as not every ship with every company caters for families but for first hand advise call me on 0330 303 8376 and I can share my experience of family cruising.