2011 EUROPE CRUISES: This Is The Year To Take The Kids!

Your heart is set on taking a European cruise this year – but what about the kids? Do you stick them with their grandparents, or take them along?

You have no idea how enriched your children’s lives will be once they’ve visited the world’s most famous cities and landmarks by cruise ship. Whether you decide to go sightseeing via guided excursions or choose to explore Europe on your own, your children are sure to find themselves in awe of the region’s many treasures.

Seeing Europe by cruise ship takes an enormous amount of stress out of your travels, because the difficult parts – moving from one place to another, changing hotels, and making dinner reservations – are all handled by the cruise line. Once you step aboard your ship, you’ll unpack just once. And life onboard includes lots of incredible facilities plus an array of activities that have been planned based on age group.

Cruise lines are also accommodating families by revising scheduled children’s activities so that they commence before shore excursions depart. In certain ports of call, younger children may remain aboard their ship while parents and teens come ashore for the day. Select Mediterranean itineraries, for example, offer opportunities to alternate an intensive day of sightseeing with a relaxing day at beach.

Here are a few things you’ll want to keep in mind if you’re considering a European cruise for the entire family...

Selecting an itinerary. First, you’ll need to settle on a region. Cruise ships sail throughout both the Mediterranean and Scandinavia/Russia. I recommend an Eastern Mediterranean itinerary, since children will generally be more interested in places they’ve probably heard of before (like Athens and Rome). Ancient landmarks like Pompeii and Ephesus are sure to fascinate the entire family.

Selecting a cruise ship. Everybody’s criteria for picking a cruise ship will be different. Cruising in the Caribbean and Mexico is a resort-like experience; in many respects, the real destination is the ship itself. But in Europe, the focus is on what’s ashore. Typically, you’ll visit a port a day and be off your ship from 8:30 A.M. until departure in the late afternoon. Then it’s dinner and an earlier turn-in than normal (which is why you don’t necessarily need to book a big ship that comes loaded with non-stop activities and entertainment).

If you’re cruising with children under the age of 10, it’s a good idea to stick with a cruise line that will allow you to leave your kids aboard the ship while you spend time ashore (all of the kid-friendly cruise lines have European sailings scheduled for 2011 including Carnival Cruise Lines, Disney Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, and Royal Caribbean International). But if you’re cruising with children ages 11 and above, consider all of the cruise lines (including those that fall into the “luxury” category). Princess Cruises, for example, which offers excursions like “A Family Adventure With Boat Trip” in Istanbul. That outing includes a private yacht trip along the Bosphorus featuring a stop at the Blue Mosque, a visit to a Turkish teahouse, and the chance to shop at the Grand Bazaar.

Arranging pre-cruise travel. One of the biggest hurdles to overcome involves reaching your cruise ship’s port of embarkation. After being airborne for up to ten hours, it’s likely that jet lag will affect everyone in the family. So plan on arriving at least one day before your ship departs so that everyone can get caught up on sleep. And remember – almost every European port of embarkation is worth a visit in itself, especially if you’re sailing from Athens, Barcelona, Venice, or Istanbul. All of the cruise lines sell pre- and post-cruise packages that include accommodations and transfers to their ships.

Going ashore. In Europe, sightseeing is generally done in one of two ways – on your own (which can work well in walkable cities like Barcelona and Venice) or via guided excursions (which can involve a lot of time aboard motorcoaches and/or buses). Select independent tours, which include a private car and a driver/guide, are an excellent option in ports of call where the attractions are a good distance from the ship (like Athens, Pompeii, and Rome). If you’re opting for motorcoach transport, be sure the kids have access to iPods or hand-held games that will help keep them occupied during the ride.