Cruise Dining With Kids

One of the most frequent questions I get about cruising with kids is "Which dining time is best?" The answer really depends on what your family expects to get out of their cruise vacation.

If you're looking forward to having a family dinner together each night to reflect on the days activities, book early dining. You'll start your meal at 6 pm and the children's activities in the kid's club start around 7. Most of the options on the children's menu are single plated, so they can eat their dinner, take a quick trip up to the club (with a parent, if they're young) and then the adults can enjoy dessert and coffee at their leisure.

If your kids are always on the go and you are looking forward to some "adult time", book late seating. They can grab dinner at either the buffet, pizza counter or from room service and head to the kids club at 7 pm. You'll still have time to get ready for dinner or have a cocktail before your 8 or 8:30 seating. This is the best option for parents who are worried that their children won't have the patience for an hour and a half or two hour meal.

Whichever seating you select, keep in mind that there are plenty of dining options to choose from onboard. You can skip the dining room altogether and just enjoy the more casual buffet each evening. Or, for a special treat, book Portofino's (Italian) or Chop's (Steakhouse) for a 5 star meal at sea.

I can assure you that whatever you decide, you won't go hungry!

Royal Caribbean Europe 2008 is now on sale!

Royal Caribbean has some exciting stuff available for 2008 in Europe! Back in the old days (20 years ago...man, I am getting old!), all of the cruiselines would send their oldest, smallest ships over to Europe for the summer. That's why I was so excited to see that Royal Caribbean's newest, biggest ship, Independence of the Seas, will be sailing a variety of itineraries throughout Europe in 2008! Another interesting move on their part is sending Navigator of the Seas out on 5/5/4 night sailings from Barcelona, Spain and Rome, Italy. I don't know about you, but I can't usually get away for the 10-14 nights that a traditional CruiseTour takes, so this is a great way to combine a short cruise with a few nights in either Spain or Italy. I'm ready to get out there! The Europe sailings are available to book now and it looks like Caribbean, Panama Canal and Canada/New England will go on sale 4/2/07.

Thanks for visiting my blog!

I love to cruise and have over 20 years of experience in the travel industry, so I'm excited to have this forum to share information, tips and tricks about cruising on Royal Caribbean! Visit my website anytime at www.askourcruiseagents.com