travel
Can you ever 'go back' to a favourite holiday destination and improve on the experience? Maureen Delaney and her family gave it a go.
the time for the magazine and finished the piece with 'Would I recommend a cruise? Yes! Have I booked again? Not yet, but watch this space. Te way I look at holidays is that each one is special in itself and each creates its own fabulous memories' ...which was why I was a little unsure
when our two younger kids asked earlier this year if we could go on the same cruise again... Every other year, we always try - as a
family - to have a holiday that's new and different for us. Tis was the first time we'd ever returned to a holiday destination - albeit that, as a cruise, there were quite a few destinations, and that's what was making me
Paradise revisited? F
our years ago, my husband Brendan and I took our three kids on a cruise around the Mediterranean. I wrote about it at
uncertain about the trip. We all had such great memories of our time spent on the Royal Caribbean Independence of the Seas - mainly because it had satisfied the needs of each family member in different ways - that I was worried that we'd come back thinking 'it wasn't as good as the first time'. I think the reason we had such a good
time again is because the cruise fulfils people's expectations in so many different ways. On a sad note - for Brendan and me - our older son, Jordan, had opted to stay at home for the first time, so this was our first sojourn as a family of four rather than five. Tat's life though, isn't it? Time moves on.... When we had our first outing on the
Independence of the Seas, our kids were fourteen and eleven-year-old boys and a seven-year-old girl. At the time, Brendan and I were concerned as to whether a cruise could provide something for such a wide range of ages and interests. I wrote, in 2012, how we needn't have worried - there was literally something for everyone, and even though we were now returning with a fiſteen-year-old boy and an eleven-year-old girl, once again everybody was enthralled by what the ship had to offer. I needn't have worried! Once again, we
returned with fantastic and new memories that we'll all treasure. Te cruise wasn't exactly the same as in
2012. Although we were on the same ship - the Independence of the Seas - and were still in the Mediterranean - this time we opted for Barcelona, Villefranche (Nice) in France, Rome, Valencia and Cadiz in Spain, before returning to Southampton. While the trips into the various cities were lovely - and very well organised - I still maintain that the enjoyment of a cruise is the onboard life.
On our first trip, the kids tended to spend
their days in the Kids' Club, pursuing their own interests in the different activities, which were all well supervised. Tis time, however, my son Scott tended to spend more time in the sports facilities, particularly the H2O Zone, which is a watery paradise that comes complete with water cannons and wacky sculptures, and on the fast-paced surf simulator, where he was able to body board or ride the waves - right in the middle of the ship! My daughter, Savannah, meanwhile,
switched from the Kids' Club to the sports facilities to the rock climbing wall at alarming speed! As I said on the first occasion, over the course of the cruise I again watched my children develop - simply because each was allowed the time and space to indulge their own interests. With the kids fully occupied, Brendan
and I were able to not only get some quality 'us time', but were also able to follow our own interests too. While Brendan enjoyed the Casino Royale, the Vegas-style venue, where he played Blackjack and Roulette, I took advantage of the Vitality Fitness Centre & Spa where I had some fantastic beauty treatments. In the evenings, Brendan and I enjoyed
some great meals - both with and without the kids - mainly because we couldn't drag them away from their new-found friends and activities! But we also spent quality family time in the organised activities such as the nightly performance of Grease - which was just amazing! 'Summer Nights' was one of the hits from
the musical and when you spend yours on a Royal Caribbean cruise, they're sure to be an even bigger hit! A fantastic experience - even the second time around! „
MODERNMUM 73
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