FAMILIES
Family Cruising Facts
The clubs were well run and well equipped with good indoor and outdoor areas and plenty of fun activities.
Eating is a very important part of life on board and the dining was quite simply excellent. The children’s meals offered a variety of options and those who liked dressing up could join the adults at formal dinner. Adhering to the dress code appealed less to Jack (four), whose once worn wedding outfit became like a uniform. He opted more often for kid’s tea – where dining was more casual with no suit to spill soup on. Molly (nine) also preferred earlier eating with her friends, which left time later for cinema, pool parties and club girls’ nights in the beauty spa!
The Oasis Spa was always busy at sea, but I managed to squeeze in a couple of hot stone massages and my wife – Maria – swore by the OXYjet facials. By the time we arrived at Barcelona we were gorgeous – at least Maria was!
There’s something contagious about the excitement of coming into port, a bustling dockside that promises adventures. We had opted for the water park excursion, which felt a bit like being on a school trip (albeit a more glamorous one) but ticked all the boxes for a hot sunny day.
Our next stop, Monte Carlo, provided the most exciting outing of all, a helicopter trip around the principality and taking in all the sights of Nice and the surrounding coast.
Over the next three days we really got a taste of Italy, stop one Livorno – we saw the Leaning Tower, drove round Pisa in a horse and carriage and spent the afternoon in the very Italian beach resort of Via Reggio. Sunday it was Rome, we opted for the DIY tour, the coach takes you from the port of Civitavecchia an hour or so from Rome and drops
you in the city, picking you up seven hours later. We started at the Colosseum, which all the kids loved despite a drenching in the heavy rain – I overheard one tourist asking why it didn’t have a roof like the superdome – there’s just no answer to that is there!
Then off to the Forum, pizza lunch by the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, a trip on the metro and Kitty even found a Zara to shop herself silly in.
If that wasn’t educational enough, Naples the next day meant Pompeii and Vesuvius. This time a guided tour was really the only option, Pompeii is so huge you need someone to steer the way and point out the best bits. But with the mid-August sun beating down even our most enthusiastic archaeologists were flagging by the end and itching to get back on board for a cooling swim and some hanging out in the clubs.
For me it was back to the balcony, feet up with that cold drink and big book. A balcony is an essential for cruising, although the promenade deck runs a close second – there was nothing like a brisk stroll round the timbers of deck seven (just over three laps of Aurora was a mile) to walk off all the excellent dinners. You could eat well all day and night if you wanted, thank god for the Deck 12 gym.
After brief stops at Majorca (beach) and Gibraltar (dolphin watching) we were on our way home. The return leg saw possibly the pinnacle of the trip (along with the talent show) – the children’s fancy dress competition where Alice and Jack were done up as Posh and Becks by their eldest sibling. Beaten in the under eight’s Pairs category by a couple of Roman soldiers, they were still delighted with the glamour of it all and the consolation toy dolphin prizes.
When I found myself musing about what I would have gone as, I realised I was a cruise convert!
• Look out for the which indicates cruises sailing
in the school holidays, please check with your school to confirm holiday dates. Passengers under the age of 18 must travel with a companion aged 18 or over.
• Azura, Aurora, Oceana and Ventura are all family- friendly ships offering The Reef children’s club. The club’s split into different age groups – Splashers for 2-4 year olds, Surfers for 5-8 year olds, Scubas for 9-12 and H2O for 13-17 year olds – and each offers age appropriate facilities from soft ball pools to gaming rooms. Under two year olds will need to be accompanied by a parent when using the facilities. Children in swimming nappies are able to use the paddling pools (only) under the supervision of their parent or guardian. We are unable to carry babies under the age of six months (one year for Aurora cruises R202, R214, R219 & R221, Azura cruise A224, Oceana cruises E201 and E301 and Ventura cruises N227/A and N305). You can find out exactly what each ship has to offer at
www.pocruises.co.uk/family
• If you decide to go ashore and explore the day’s destination, then your children will need to go with you. If you want to have a night out then the supervised night nursery for children under five years offers the perfect babysitting service (and is free of charge). During the school holiday season we also offer Slumber Time between 10.30pm and midnight for 5-8 year olds. And all the family-friendly ships offer the use of a cabin listening facility via the telephone system.
• There’s a special children’s tea every day. We look after babies too with a selection of baby foods. Children are, of course, welcome in all the other restaurants on board, but we do ensure some of the bars and public rooms on board are exclusive to adults (age 16 and over). To find out about the different types of restaurants on board turn to pages 26-29. You can even buy a soft drinks package for your children at the start of your cruise, just to make life, and budgeting, a little easier.
Eating is a very important part of life on board and the
dining was quite simply excellent. The children’s meals offered a variety of options and those who liked dressing up could join the adults at formal dinner...
• Our Reef Rangers (our name for the team looking after your children in The Reef) all have experience with children aged 2-17 years and all are enhanced CRB checked. You can find out more about the specific qualifications they have at
www.pocruises.co.uk/family
•Occasionally the age groups may be combined to 2-8 and 9-17.
• Turn to page 254 to find out about our Family Savers. 31
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