Top 3 Reasons to Sail Norwegian with your Family
I just returned from my first cruise with Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) and I must admit I was a little skeptical at first about whether or not this cruise line would be a good fit for my family. I had heard NCL was mostly geared towards adults and we have two young, very active boys! We decided to give it a try and I’m so glad we did because we had an amazing trip and found the cruise to be very family friendly. I’m excited to share my top 3 reasons why cruising with Norwegian as a family is a great choice.
Outdoor activities – Whether you’re enjoying the splash pad, pools, water slide, ropes course or sports courts, there’s something for everyone to do outside. My youngest was up and down the 5 slides more times than I could count while my oldest really enjoyed playing basketball and doing the ropes obstacle course at the top of the ship over and over. There were 2 pools for the kids to enjoy: one standard pool and one wading pool with some little slides and splash pad type features. The lifeguards were great and made us feel comfortable relaxing in our loungers a little while the kids played.
Indoor activities – Two words here, kids club! We took advantage of this complimentary service each night so the adults could enjoy dinner and drinks. Which made it feel like a relaxing vacation for all of us. It was open from 7-11pm each night on our cruise with some daytime hours sprinkled in. My boys begged to go each day so it was a win-win! They had crafts, video games, dodgeball, trivia and so much more that kept the kids excited about going back! In addition to the kids club, there were family activities inside during the day for when we needed a break from the sun. There was mini bowling, Mario Kart tournaments on the big screen, an arcade, family challenges, scavenger hunts and movies. There was pretty much always something we could do. Many of them were already included in our cruise fare, too. (*Arcade and bowling were additional charges).
Family friendly destinations – We stopped in 4 different ports and had excellent experiences. Our first stop was Costa Maya, Mexico and we actually opted to stay on the ship here and take advantage of low crowds on board (read: my kids rode the slides until their legs gave out, HA!)
Stop two was one of NCL’s private islands: Harvest Caye, Belize. I highly recommend an itinerary with a stop on a private island. Typically, this means it’s JUST your ship there for the day, giving you the chance to spread out and enjoy everything to the fullest. We spent our time between the beach, splash pad and huge resort style pool in Harvest Caye. It didn’t cost anything extra and we had a blast! (Note: in Harvest Caye, your food and drinks are not included so you’ll want to bring your card or some cash.)
Stop three was Roatan, Honduras and oh my goodness…IT WAS A TREAT! We booked an excursion with Daniel Johnson’s Sloth & Monkey Hangout to visit some animals and had such a fun experience. We held sloths, got pounced on by monkeys and were up close with some beautiful macaws! This was not an excursion booked through the cruise line, but the company was fantastic. We were picked up at the port and transported in a private, air conditioned van to the “hangout”. Our driver spoke great English and told us all about the island on the drive. It was a neat way to see and learn about the island. We opted for the transportation and hangout package which was $30/person. If you’ve looked at excursion prices before, you’ll know this is a steal of a deal. They had other offerings, you could zip line or visit the beach after seeing the animals. I would absolutely use this company again!
Our final port was Cozumel. We booked the Fury Catamaran and Snorkel Adventure (through the cruise line) and it was phenomenal! We were picked up right at the dock where the ship is and taken on about a 20 minute ride to a reef to snorkel. They had a photographer to snap pictures of us in the water. My 9 year old LOVED this. It was a little tough for my 7 year old but he did hop in the water for about 5 minutes to peek at some fish. After 30 minutes of snorkeling, we got back on the boat and were taken to a private beach club full of chairs, inflatables and slides!! This was a blast – the kids and adults enjoyed it so much. I was a little (ok maybe a lot) sore the next day from all of the climbing but it was so worth it. We wish we could’ve spent even more time here. There were complimentary drinks after snorkeling and at the beach club (water, soda, beer and margaritas).
Overall, I felt like this cruise was perfect for my family. There were other kids for them to play with and plenty for us to do as a family. I asked my boys when we got back if they would want to take the same cruise ever again and I got a very quick “YES!!!!” from each of them. If you want to talk about whether this might be a good fit for your family vacation, send me an email! Bon Voyage!