If you think youth programs at sea are nothing more than glorified
baby-sitting services, think again. The major cruise lines that carry
children are constantly rethinking and upgrading their programs and
facilities, making the cruise experience better for families with children of
any age, from infants through teens. A number of lines are adding
educational programs related to the ship's destinations, making family
cruising not only relaxing and fun but enriching.
Here are the details on some of the latest developments in family cruising.
Princess is making significant innovations in its onboard kids' programming.
While Royal Caribbean was among the first to introduce fun-but-educational
programming with its "Adventure Science" activities, this January Princess un
veiled an exclusive partnership with the California Science Center and the
National Wildlife Federation.
The California Science Center will provide educators to lead entertaining
activities for children such as stargazing, squid dissection and coral reef
habitat studies. The program will debut on the Sea and Star Princess' Mexican
Riviera itineraries. Meanwhile, the National Wildlife Federation will develop
'NatureLink' activities to engage kids in learning about wildlife and their
habitats. Children will receive activity books to take home and continue
their education. The updated Princess Kids program will also feature special
events such as drawing with a famous animator or stargazing with an
astronomer.
Educational programming is not entirely new to Princess. In 1999, the line
introduced its Junior Ranger program in Alaska to educate youngsters about
Glacier Bay. The line recently received an Excellence Award in the Pathways
to Learning category from the Alaska Region of the National Park Service.
Next summer, the program will be expanded with an Explorer program for teens.
In other developments, Princess has lowered the minimum acceptable age of
children to six months. This applies for all itineraries except the exotics
(Asia, Africa, India, and South America), where little ones must be at least
a year old.
The new Princess Kids program now offers a full schedule of activities on
port days too, free of charge. In the past, there was limited programming on
port days, and parents had to pay a fee for baby-sitting.
Princess has also just introduced a Teen Spa program, the first of its kind
in the cruise industry. The ships' spas now feature spa packages especially
developed for teenagers, such as body and hair glitter and removable henna
tattoos.
CARNIVAL CRUISE LINES
Carnival is also enhancing its youth programs by adding educational
activities fleet-wide. Besides its "just for kids" port lectures, Camp
Carnival now features fun geography classes where kids can learn about the
destinations their ship visits.
Other new features include family-oriented beach activities, such as
sandcastle contests and water games for those ships calling at Half Moon Cay
or Salt Cay. In the past, Carnival had teens-only shore excursions in Alaska,
but now it offers them in the Caribbean as well. Teenagers in the program get
together and select their favorite shore excursion, then visit the
destination as a group, accompanied by a member of the youth staff. Teen
discos are slowly being added to the older ships; at present, the Fantasy and
Ecstasy each have a dedicated teen room.
DISNEY CRUISE LINE
This year, Disney Cruise Line is getting in on the Walt Disney 100th
anniversary celebrations. Through the end of the year, Disney Cruise Line
guests get to see the movie, "Walt: The Man Behind the Myth," which features
interviews with the company founder's friends and family and
never-before-seen home videos.
In other news, on May 11, the Disney Magic sets sail on its first Western
Caribbean itinerary; it will offer alternating Eastern and Western Caribbean
itineraries year-round. The line is also featuring "Springtime Magic" rates
on itineraries between April 6 and May 26, with seven-night cruises or
land/sea packages starting at $799 and three- and four-night cruises starting
at $419.
Disney is one of the few lines to offer a nursery for infants and toddlers.
Recently, Flounder's Reef Nursery was expanded to include a new reception
area, Little Mermaid murals, and enhanced lighting to make it look as if the
room is under the sea. The nursery area has all new toys from Hasbro and an
increased capacity for infants. The main toddler area has doubled in size,
and features a porthole that parents can use to check on their little ones
without being seen. In addition, extended nursery hours are now offered on
seven-night cruises.
ROYAL CARIBBEAN INTERNATIONAL
Royal Caribbean's Adventure Ocean program has a number of enhancements. On
port days, the program accepts children starting 30 minutes before departure
of the first shore excursion, in case parents want to leave their children in
Adventure Ocean while ashore. From noon until sailing time on port days, the
$4 charge per hour for child services has been eliminated. Other changes in
hours include an extension of the teen program past 2 a.m.
Additionally, all new Voyager and Radiance-class ships will have an Adventure
Ocean Computer Center, with age-appropriate software and staff-guided
tutorials.
To tailor youth activities to age-appropriate groups, Adventure Ocean now
offers five different groupings, so that pre-teens are not mixed with younger
children. Generally, the more age groups there are, the better your child
will enjoy the experience.
NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE
Norwegian Cruise Line's minimum age for participation in youth programs has been lowered from three to two years. However, staff members do not change diapers. If your little one is not potty-trained, you will be given a beeper
so the staff can notify you when you need to change your child's diaper.
Parents with non-potty-trained youngsters in the youth program will not be
allowed off the ship in port. (Youth counselors alert security each day as to
which parents must remain on board.) With this lowered age, NCL no longer
offers private baby-sitting. Like many lines, NCL only offers group
baby-sitting starting at 10 p.m. for a fee.
The line's newest ships, the Norwegian Sun and Star, have expanded youth
facilities including a kid-sized buffet in the Lido cafe. The buffet service
is low enough that children can reach the kid-friendly food themselves. The
Norwegian Star has impressive indoor and outdoor youth facilities, including
an extensive water play area outside, which will be the prototype for future
kids' facilities on new NCL ships.
