Need help

[Mommy to Kayla]

So my husband and I are planning a cruise in the Mediterranean next summer. I'm looking at Royal Caribbean and Celebrity. The price comes out to the same but the ship for RC is their new one that comes out this spring and its huge! 18 decks! It just seems like a ton of people. Too many. Maybe I'm getting old but it kinda freaks me out. I've done plenty of cruises before but none on a ship this gigantic. I start to worry about safety issues and I hate to admit it but terrorism.

What do you all think? How safe are cruise ships these days? Especially in europe?

Lastly, has anyone done a western Mediterranean cruise? All of mine have been to the Caribbean.

 

[moericus]

Admittedly, I'm not a big fan of having toddlers and kindergarteners on the big ships. But there is plenty of people that can manage it and have fun.

I understand the fear of terrorism and it is good to be mindful of your surroundings. But I would not let it interfere with a vacation like this. The cruise ships have metal detectors and require passports for your safety. But mostly, I think any ideological extremist with enough money to take a cruise is not going to be one of the depressed people they send off to die. I sure as heck hope a cruise will lighten their mood.

As far as overall safety goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure right? I'd suggest taking each kid individually (to make sure it sinks in), talking about who to trust, showing them the crew members uniforms, making sure they know your first names and room number. This year we told our daughter that if a strange man ever asks her to come, she is to yell "where's my daddy?". Take all the kids on a quick tour of the ship. If they're old enough give them a location you can meet at if you split up. That kind of thing.

Never been to the Mediterranean, but my understanding is those cruises are more about the destinations than the ship. Expect to come back to the ship every night exhausted.