Grand Princess or Adventure of the Seas?

[Laura61]

Thinking about going on a Caribbean cruise in March 2003 and are debating between Grand Princess & Adventure of the Seas. Itinerary is not the issue since we've been to almost every port of call in the Caribbean. My husband & I are experienced cruisers(husband 12/ me 5) but have never been on this size ship but have cruised with both RCCL and Princess. We are bringing our 4 year old daughter (who has been on 1 cruise when she was 8 months old, so in her mind this is her first cruise experience)with us too. We would appreciate any feedback about either ship.

[Donna]

Hi Laura,
Having been on Explorer and Golden Princess, I'd have to recommend Adventures of the Seas, only because you mentioned that you would be cruising with your 4 year old daughter. While both cruiselines have great kids facilities, I think there is just a lot more thats offered on these "Voyager" class ships for families/kids. There is virtually something for everyone, no matter what age.

In fact our Explorer cruise is so far the favorite for both my husband and myself, can't wait to try another one, but first we're doing Radiance and seeing what kind of ship this class is. I love Princess for their food and service, and also the fresh water in the pools, very nice!

Whatever cruise you do decide on, have a wonderful time and let us know what you do finally decide.

My wife and I took the kids on both the Grand and the Explorer of the Seas. Both have great programs but the Explorer won hands down. My sons ran to childrens room. We could not drag them out. The Adventure is pretty much the same ship. The outdoor deck on the EOS with its water slip is a favorite of the kids on board and Johnny Rockets is on the same deck.

I'm the family cruise editor here. We were recently on the Adventure and my nine year old daughter who's been on 12 cruises, deemed it her favorite ship! We literally had to drag her out of the kids' program a few times so that we could do some outdoor family activities! I'm sure your daughter will find the outdoor pool area, mini-golf, and ice skating shows lots of fun. Mine did! She also loved the counselors in the kids' program -- fun and personable.
Make sure you read the article on this section that I recently wrote on the Adventure's youth program.
Smooth sailing,
Luisa Frey Gaynor