firstfamilycruise Posted June 28, 2018 Report Share Posted June 28, 2018 Hi everyone. My name is Sarah, and I'm new here. Hoping you all can help me narrow down our choice for a first family cruise together. It will be me (42), my husband (43), our daughter (16), and our son (14). We're considering Caribbean/Bahamas/Bermuda cruises for Spring Break 2019 or Summer 2019. Never cruised before, as we usually visit Disney World for our big family vacations. Here's the catch. My husband is not excited at all about cruising. He's a huge introvert, so anything communal or overly social is out for him. I'm also more introverted but am open to meeting new people and enjoying different experiences. We're mostly doing this for our kids' sake, however. Our daughter's been dying to go on a cruise since she was little, and we heard RC is the best for kids, without breaking the bank like Disney does. Port Canaveral and Ft. Lauderdale are ideal departure ports, though Cape Liberty and Miami are possibilities, too. We're looking for something in the 4-7 night range. 4 would be ideal for my husband, but the rest of us are open to a full week. I have a slight preference for Eastern Caribbean cruises, but it's not a dealbreaker. I think, as a whole, since this is our first time cruising, we would be fine with a less port-intensive itinerary. Not looking to spend a lot of money on excursions and such. We'll definitely be booking an ocean view balcony room. 6 other factors: 1. We are strictly casual diners. 2. The kids love any and all activities, so the Oasis ships naturally appeal to them. I can see them spending lots of time at the pools and teen club. 3. VOOM streaming capability is important to my husband. Not sure if some of the ships are better than others with their connectivity. 4. The less crowding/lines at meals the better. 5. My husband and I are big fans of art, jazz, small-scale entertainment and enrichment. Not as big on splashy shows, gambling or bar-hopping. 6. Cost is important, but we can swing the Oasis-class ships if the added value is worth it. WITH ALL THAT SAID (phew!), these are the ships/itineraries I'm currently considering: 1. Mariner of the Seas: 4 day Bahamas with Perfect Day itinerary, from Port Canaveral 2. Independence of the Seas: 5 day Western Caribbean itinerary from Ft. Lauderdale 3. Anthem of the Seas: 5 day Bermuda itinerary from Cape Liberty 4. Adventure of the Seas: 6 day Western Caribbean itinerary from Ft. Lauderdale 5. Allure of the Seas: 7 day Eastern Caribbean from Ft. Lauderdale 6. Harmony of the Seas: 7 day Western Caribbean from Ft. Lauderdale 7. Oasis of the Seas: 7 night Eastern Caribbean from Port Canaveral Any thoughts? I'm really looking to figure out the best way to please the kids, while still holding out hope that my husband will enjoy this experience more than he thinks! If the Oasis-class ships are the way to go, is there one (or two) from my list that stands out as a better choice for teens and a potentially crabby cruiser? Thank you so much for reading this far, and for any advice you're willing to share! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keeves Posted June 28, 2018 Report Share Posted June 28, 2018 Show this page to your husband: Photos of Library & Card Room When I saw it, I told my wife, "Look! This is great! They have boring stuff too!!!" firstfamilycruise, accio7 and JLMoran 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawn T. Posted June 28, 2018 Report Share Posted June 28, 2018 Hi, Sarah! I will try to help a little. Cruising is an awesome way to vacation. It is affordable, they take you places, and you can do as much or as little as you want! You can be casual diners and still eat in the main dining room. You can also eat in the WIndjammer (the buffet) at your leisure. I have never eaten dinner in the Windjammer, but have ventured up there during dinner hours. It is never busy. I would think the VOOM would be good on all ships you are considering, especially on Harmony, as it is newer. IMO the added value of the Oasis class is worth it. I have sailed on Oasis and Allure, but my first trip on Harmony is this September. I don't think you can make a bad choice between these three. Harmony has the most bells and whistles because it is the newest. I guess it would come down to price, itinerary and proximity to the departure port if I were choosing. If you choose Oasis class, be sure to book your shows in advance. No matter what you choose, I'm sure you will have a fabulous time! firstfamilycruise 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pooch Posted June 28, 2018 Report Share Posted June 28, 2018 If it helps, my husband was the uber introvert, not dressing up for dinner type but he did want to cruise. I, on the other hand, am an extrovert but did not want to take a cruise. Well we both loved it. Our first (and only so far - life interfered) was a 7 day to Bermuda. It was not the best weather-wise but the cruise was terrific. He didn't care for the Dining room and a large table so we ate in the Windjammer every night and that was terrific too. firstfamilycruise 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scatmanjack Posted June 28, 2018 Report Share Posted June 28, 2018 (edited) I would vote for Independence of the Seas. Recently had a dry dock with many new features. Teens will love Flowrider, Water Slide, Rock Climbing, Basketball Court, Mini Golf, Escape Room, Laser Tag, Trampoline Park, etc... The ~4200 passenger size doesn't feel that large and getting on/off ship flows smoother than 6000+ passenger ships. The 5 night itinerary is a selling point- not trapped for 7 nights if unhappy after 2 days... Smaller Bars with nice live music combos. Food is Food. Windjammer works and Pizza/Sandwiches available in Central Promenade. We've been on two Freedom Class ships and loved them. Independence is on our 'to do' list.... You can certainly request, and receive, a private table in the main dining room. We are a party of 3 and get our own table >80% of the time... Edited June 28, 2018 by Scatmanjack MDR coneyraven and firstfamilycruise 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted June 28, 2018 Report Share Posted June 28, 2018 26 minutes ago, Scatmanjack said: I would vote for Independence of the Seas. Recently had a dry dock with many new features. Teens will love Flowrider, Water Slide, Rock Climbing, Basketball Court, Mini Golf, Escape Room, Laser Tag, Trampoline Park, etc... The ~4200 passenger size doesn't feel that large and getting on/off ship flows smoother than 6000+ passenger ships. The 5 night itinerary is a selling point- not trapped for 7 nights if unhappy after 2 days... Smaller Bars with nice live music combos. Food is Food. Windjammer works and Pizza/Sandwiches available in Central Promenade. We've been on two Freedom Class ships and loved them. Independence is on our 'to do' list.... You can certainly request, and receive, a private table in the main dining room. We are a party of 3 and get our own table >80% of the time... I think this is an excellent recommendation ! firstfamilycruise 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted June 28, 2018 Report Share Posted June 28, 2018 Two words....Oasis Class! And welcome to the boards. There is something for everyone on that class of ships. I know that some swear by Freedom class (Indy from above) but with your kids as teens, and your husband enjoying jazz and alone time, the Oasis class offers all of that and more. You cannot beat the quietness open air in Central Park, or the amazing entertainment in the Aqua Theater. And as big as those ships are, there are many hidden and quiet areas to retreat to. Believe it or not, I am also a huge introvert. I hate crowds. I need my alone time. I have never once felt crowded on an Oasis class ship (and I've cruise all except Symphony in the busy seasons). Those ships do move crowds through really well. Anthem, depending on the time of year, you might lose outdoor days due to weather. Also, having done both, I still feel like Oasis class is better suited for kids and teens. Entertainment wise and activity wise. There really are no bad choices from your choices above. And like @Dawn T. mentioned, on any ship, you can eat in the Windjammer and be a casual as you want. I would say because of your teens (if they are like my kids) the slides are the way to go. So Harmony would be best. She is leaving PE for PC in May 2019. My second pick would be Indy. If you do Oasis class, make sure you do your research. Those ships are amazing. Many first time cruisers who come back not liking them are also those who have not done their research. But you have found a wonderful community, full of knowledge and always willing to help. Let us know if other questions pop up. firstfamilycruise 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Todd W Posted June 28, 2018 Report Share Posted June 28, 2018 From the kids perspective, they're are going to have a blast on any of the ships you choose. Independence and Mariner both just got updates they would love but obviously there will be more for everyone to do on an Oasis class. When we took our kids on their first cruise they were 12 and 14 and absolutely loved it. We started them out with tight restrictions (requiring them to check in with us every couple of hours or leaving notes on the mirror in the cabin as to where they were). as they proved their level of responsibility, we loosened up their reigns. We just set the expectation that if at any point they broke a rule (within reason) or missed a check in time, they would be glued to our hip for the next day. Happy to say we never had any incidents. It was a real pleasure to see them in their own element on the ship enjoying everything with other kids their age. Surprisingly they checked in with us more frequently than either of us expected which was great! Lots of tears from both of them at the end of the cruise but many of their friends they stil keep in contact 2 years later. firstfamilycruise and Skid 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melski94 Posted June 28, 2018 Report Share Posted June 28, 2018 We started cruising about 4 years ago and started off on a 5 day Brilliance cruise and after wished we had done 7 days. We are mostly introverts and we don't do the social things like Bingo, trivia, etc. We hang out mostly as a family with my kids (not 18, 15, 11 and 7) going to the teen/AO clubs every once in a while and in the evening. We enjoy the balance of family time and couple time that cruising offers. We like My Time Dining for semi-casual dining but if you want true casual dining the Windjammer would be your best bet. However, every ship the Windjammer gets crowded during peak hours and I never eat there as it is too crowded to me for breakfast and lunch. It isn't very crowded during dinner. With My Time Dining you can get a table just for your family easily too. My vote is Oasis class (Harmony especially) if in the budget but if not in the budget then go with Freedom class (Independence). Both will have good activities for you and the kids. We are trying Independence and Adventure for our next cruises in 2018 and 2019 but will go back to Oasis class (Oasis or Harmony) for spring break 2020. Just an FYI, OV balcony staterooms are very tight for 4 and especially tight on Oasis class. If there is any way to do 2 connecting rooms (even interior) that is so much better to have an extra bathroom and extra space. If you go out of Cape Liberty, don't go during Spring Break as it may not be very warm then! I'd also avoid the Mariner Perfect Day because you will be taking a chance if construction will be done by your cruise plus Nassau is really expensive. Final thing, if you decide to go out of Miami or Fort Lauderdale, you can fly in to either airport. It is about a 35-45 minute drive between the 2 cities. firstfamilycruise and accio7 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted June 28, 2018 Report Share Posted June 28, 2018 56 minutes ago, melski94 said: Just an FYI, OV balcony staterooms are very tight for 4 and especially tight on Oasis class. If there is any way to do 2 connecting rooms (even interior) that is so much better to have an extra bathroom and extra space. Great point here. firstfamilycruise 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firstfamilycruise Posted June 28, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2018 This is all immensely helpful. I'm overwhelmed by your willingness to help out a newbie! Very grateful to everyone who's chimed in thus far. Still weighing our options, but I definitely feel more confident that my husband may find more to appreciate on these ships than he thinks. Independence is SO much cheaper than Harmony that cost could tip the balance in the end. I love its new improvements, too. If we sail w/ Harmony, we'd probably do Spring Break to save money and be able to afford a balcony room (my one must-do!). Harmony is definitely the costliest of the bunch (though Anthem/Bermuda is costliest per night). Is it generally considered the best of the Oasis ships? Thanks again to all of you!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melski94 Posted June 28, 2018 Report Share Posted June 28, 2018 27 minutes ago, firstfamilycruise said: This is all immensely helpful. I'm overwhelmed by your willingness to help out a newbie! Very grateful to everyone who's chimed in thus far. Still weighing our options, but I definitely feel more confident that my husband may find more to appreciate on these ships than he thinks. Independence is SO much cheaper than Harmony that cost could tip the balance in the end. I love its new improvements, too. If we sail w/ Harmony, we'd probably do Spring Break to save money and be able to afford a balcony room (my one must-do!). Harmony is definitely the costliest of the bunch (though Anthem/Bermuda is costliest per night). Is it generally considered the best of the Oasis ships? Thanks again to all of you!! We did Harmony last spring break and it was the most expensive cruise we have taken. It was even more than in 2 JR suites on Liberty! So I get where you are coming from as that is why Independence and Adventure are our next 2. Harmony is expensive because it is newer. Symphony is actually the newest and a bit more than Harmony. Both have all the newest features including waterslides. Oasis is going to be refurbished in 2019 and will probably have slides put in then. firstfamilycruise 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted June 28, 2018 Report Share Posted June 28, 2018 1 hour ago, firstfamilycruise said: Still weighing our options, but I definitely feel more confident that my husband may find more to appreciate on these ships than he thinks. We never thought cruising was for us either. We ended up on our first cruise as a Plan B because our Plan A was too expensive. We completely fell in love with it and haven't looked back at land vacations since (other than Disney World). 1 hour ago, firstfamilycruise said: Independence is SO much cheaper than Harmony that cost could tip the balance in the end. I love its new improvements, too. If we sail w/ Harmony, we'd probably do Spring Break to save money and be able to afford a balcony room (my one must-do!). Harmony is definitely the costliest of the bunch (though Anthem/Bermuda is costliest per night). Is it generally considered the best of the Oasis ships? We booked Indy for next March (2019) and then we cancelled it and changed it to Harmony. I agree with @melski94 in that 5 days is short, especially if you end up liking it. If you have to fly to a port, you might as well make it more worth your while and do 7. But, with less to do on Indy, 5 days might be sufficient. Full disclosure, I completely love Oasis class ships so my view is biased. All of the Oasis class ships are great and the "best" one depends on what you are looking for. If slides & escape rooms are your thing then Harmony/Symphony wins out over the other two. If that doesn't matter to you, then Oasis and Allure are good too. I have read some accounts that Oasis has a superb crew, if that is important to you. At the moment, Harmony is my personal favourite, because (this is going to sound superficial) I actually prefer the more modern decor. I would still gladly sail the other ones but with my kids, the slides are the deal breaker. firstfamilycruise 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawn T. Posted June 29, 2018 Report Share Posted June 29, 2018 14 hours ago, melski94 said: Just an FYI, OV balcony staterooms are very tight for 4 and especially tight on Oasis class. If there is any way to do 2 connecting rooms (even interior) that is so much better to have an extra bathroom and extra space. 14 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said: Great point here. This is a great idea, no matter which ship you choose! On our first Royal cruise with our kids, who were 12 and 16 at the time, we sailed on the Freedom in July 2010. Rob and I had an ocean view balcony, and we put the kids in an inside room across the hall. It was $100 cheaper than having all of us in the balcony. It is wonderful to have the extra space, two closets and two bathrooms with 4 people. We have also taken the kids on two Oasis cruises. On the first one in June 2012, we had the last ocean view balcony aft and the kids had the boardwalk balcony across the hall. That was about $800 more (I think) than having all of us in the OV balcony. It was so nice having the extra space before, I decided it was worth it. Plus I got to experience the boardwalk balcony myself. On the second Oasis trip, our youngest son graduated high school and took 2 friends, so that one was a little different. We had an ocean view balcony, a Central Park balcony and a boardwalk balcony. I don't think you even need actual connecting rooms to do this. The kids just have to be "near" you. Our kids were directly across the hall on the two trips with just the 4 of us. My suggestion is that you consider this when pricing your trip. You might even be able to get a better deal with 2 cabins if you book a balcony and an inside (but not necessarily on the Harmony). firstfamilycruise 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melski94 Posted June 29, 2018 Report Share Posted June 29, 2018 Here's the rule on kids in their own room: Stateroom must be next to or directly across the parent's stateroom. If next to the room may be connecting (with a door in the middle to connect the 2 rooms) or adjoining (no connecting door) but if in a balcony you can ask the room attendant to open the balcony divider between the 2 rooms. You can't book this configuration online but need to call or ask a travel agent for help. Many of us use MEI Travel, a sponsor of this blog, You can ask the TA if there are any special connecting rooms. For example, I have an OV balcony connecting to an interior room on Adventure which was really inexpensive. 13 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said: We booked Indy for next March (2019) and then we cancelled it and changed it to Harmony. I agree with @melski94 in that 5 days is short, especially if you end up liking it. If you have to fly to a port, you might as well make it more worth your while and do 7. But, with less to do on Indy, 5 days might be sufficient. I agree with the 7 days if you can swing it considering flying is a huge part of the cost. One of the reasons we are doing a 5 day is that it is over Thanksgiving week. All of my kids have off that week but I have a soon to be college student who wants to be home part of the week to see friends. For us its a compromise as I'm hoping the college kid will keep wanting to travel with us when possible! This will be our first cruise during Thanksgiving as we normally would go to WDW, however, a cruise is so much more relaxing. Having done 7 fun days on Liberty, I think there will be plenty for us to do! firstfamilycruise 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firstfamilycruise Posted June 29, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2018 Great advice on booking two connecting/across rooms. I never even considered this, but it makes a ton of sense! I'll contact MEI to ask for some quotes on various scenarios. I'm sure it's a good idea to have a pro in my corner, anyway. Thank you so much!! You've all been so helpful, and I'm really looking forward to this now. WAAAYTOOO and coneyraven 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2mybugs Posted June 30, 2018 Report Share Posted June 30, 2018 Just a late chime in.... Because of scheduling, I took my first 2 cruises without my husband (just my kids). I knew I loved cruising even though it takes away from my Disney obsession but my husband was really not thrilled. He is a total introvert and not a last in the sun guy. Well 2 cruises later I know have us booked on a River cruise this summer and a cruise on vision next summer in Europe. I found making sure we had a good number of ports (and not too many sea days) and that he had a couple of really good books made the trip truly work. He is definitely a itinerary traveler, which will present a problem eventually when we've done the Caribbean to death, but he found enough to do that he can humor my love of spending a 12 hour sea day in the sun. Also, my now 15 year old has been on 3 cruises and though she loves Disney, she happily will cruise anytime! All of your ships and choices look great...you can't go wrong with total. Welcome to the boards! Jane firstfamilycruise 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted July 2, 2018 Report Share Posted July 2, 2018 Great advice in this thread. I'll add one other planning blog post I think you will find helpful: Royal Caribbean itinerary recommendations for first-time cruisers firstfamilycruise 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.