The Best Cruise Lines for Kids

If you’re a parent, going on a vacation is tricky business. If you want to leave your child behind and have a brief time to yourself, you have to go through the worry of finding a sitter and making sure that you feel safe with them taking care of your kid. If you want to bring them along, well, there’s a whole host of other considerations that go along with that. The biggest issue, though, is making sure that they’re having fun. If they’re not having fun, you definitely won’t be either. With that in mind, here are some of the best cruise lines for kids out there.

Disney Cruise Line

If there was ever a cruise line that was an obvious candidate for kid’s choice just by name alone, it’s Disney. Are their ships filled with references to classic cartoons and magical environments? Of course! But, beyond that, the whole experience is geared towards young kids. There’s a lot of activities meant for young-uns, including clubs that have different themes depending on the ship (you can bet that they’ll be based around Disney characters, though). They even have different areas for kids of different age groups, including an area specifically for teens. So, feel free to drop your kid off so you can both have the time of your life, or explore the ship together if the whole family are Disney fanatics.

Carnival

Carnival, if you didn’t guess by their name, is endless fun for the kiddos. One of the biggest draws on their ships are their massive water parks. They’re decked out with all kinds of amenities, including giant slides and pools. There’s also an IMAX theater on Vista class ships, which is definitely an exciting draw for children (and, let’s be real, us adults love a good IMAX feature too). There are also different clubs for different aged kids, just like on Disney ships. Finally, Vista class vessels offer even more draws for families: huge staterooms that fit up to five travelers, free meals for kids, and more.

Royal Caribbean

Royal Caribbean is often considered the best family cruise line, and for good reason. Their ships are stacked with a huge selection of activities that are fun for the whole family. You can expect rock climbing, wake boarding, ice skating, parades, and more… and yes, we’re still talking about stuff available on a cruise ship! The kids clubs here are very in-depth, and feature a lot of hands-on activities that are both entertaining and educational. Really, we could go on and on about how great Royal is for kids, but you should probably just check out their website and see for yourself.

While traveling with a child isn’t the easiest way to go, these cruise lines definitely make your life a whole lot easier. They give you the option to bond with your child or let them have their own experiences, which is a really nice choice to have while on vacation. If you want to hit the seven seas with the fam, these three companies are great choices.