Bo1953 wrote:
>On Nov 2, 8:13 pm, Bill wrote:
>> On 11/2/2009 12:22 PM, Carol Eskra wrote:
>>
>> > Forgot to mention the nursery caregivers do Not Change diapers, and if
>> > your child or baby starts to cry you will be summoned back to the ship.
>>
>> Hopefully that will not be a problem with the 9-10 year olds the
>> OP asked about.
>>
>> Bill
>
>Hello all...
>
>There have been many things to think about for sure. I had not
>considered Disney as I thought there would be too many children for my
>taste. Having a few diversions for them would be great, yet I wonder
>if this is like "Camp at Sea"? If so, then not so sure. As for the
>question about out of school for a week, the first week in November,
>here in NJ, there is election day on which schools are out often times
>and then the two following days is a major teachers conference. Then
>that leaves one day on each side, for which I can take their lessons
>and school them while we are away, so no loss there in my opine.
Unless a lot of people in NJ are of a similar opinion though, you
won't find many other kids on most ships. I don't know if the kids
programs are like "Camp at Sea". Many kids really like the programs.
Some do not. You know your kids best. Of course if they are the only
ones there, the programs can be tailored to them.
Incidentally I only looked at 7 day cruises, and originally I looked
at November 2010. However I found that most of those cruises started
Nov 6, so probably you should look at October 30 or 31 for the start
date. That might make a small difference as to what was available.
>
>I have gone to several of sites mentioned here, and did find some
>valuable info to help in my decision process. I really would like to
>stay away from the mega ships if possible, even if there are no
>specific programs for children. I find that being on vessels that
>large, in general, is just overwhelming. Reminds me of my first voyage
>of the QE2, the only saving grace was the fact that my dining room was
>the Princess Grill a small intimate one seating and phenomenal
>service, as I recollect. Not that we are looking to recreate that
>experience, yet looking for something not overwhelmingly formal and
>not too crowded either.
>
>In my mind, 1,500 people are just too many to try an navigate, then
>having to choose a dinner time... I needed to have brought that up
>earlier, we do prefer single seating, that way we can go to the dining
>room when we want and not have to worry about 'alternative' dining
>because we were late or some such.... does this make sense or Am I off
>base with this preference?
>
The very small ships, like the river cruises seem to have something
like that. I'm not sure about the semi-small ones like Azamara. Most
of the other lines have two seatings - early which is around 6 pm and
late which is roughly around 8 plus a cafeteria/buffet. Most of them
also have formal nights where if you don't want to dress up, you have
to default to the buffet.
Norwegian is the only one that has multiple alternate dining venues
with completely free times to go and also no formal nights. This
leads to another kind of hassle. The other lines either have two
set seatings for dinner (Royal Caribbean and Celebrity) or two set
seatings with freestyle/any time options (Holland American and I think
Princess)
>I tried looking up a TA on the CLIA website and nothing came about, I
>was perplexed and will try again maybe something with the site. It was
>odd there were no agents found in the Trenton, NJ area... no big
>shakes, will get it sorted out.
>
Most of the time I think the cruise ship TAs do their business by
phone and internet. IMHO you want someone who is comfortable with
that because so much of travel now relies on internet.
>I would like to be a bit educated when talking to someone about our
>desires and needs and requirements, regardless of who or what it is
>(TA or Website or Direct although TA is where I will go regardless).
>
>Some of my friends brought up the midnight buffets and seafood... as I
>looked at them like a deer in headlights, I forgot to mention that I
>Am a vegan and will make sure my agent advises the cruise line in
>advance that I do not expect side dishes and tons of salad for my
>meals... ;-)
>
>I really want to thank each and every one who posted to my questions
>and thoughts. I found something valuable in each. We appreciate your
>thoughts and input and know I will be back with further questions and
>thoughts for input and design...
>
>Warmest regards...
This has been an interesting discussion. I wish I knew what to tell
you about a vegan diet. Some of our fellow pax have been diabetic or
needed a gluten free diet and that has been satisfactory to them, but
I'm not sure about a vegan diet. |