Teri

We are thinking of a Med. Renaissance cruise next August with 3 generations, the youngest being my daughters, age 16 and 19. Are the Renaissance passengers pretty much "55 & older?" Would anyone recommend a different line for a Mediterranean cruise? We are very big on interesting ports of call... Thank you!

Dawn

I'm pretty sure what that means is that your 16 year old will not be permitted to go. The minimum age is 18 years old. I just read that in a brochure yesterday! <BR> <BR>The longer the cruise, the likely it is to have older passengers. It seems like I am always one of the youngest passengers (36) on Board. Never bothers me though...I have a blast. We did "lose" 3 passengers though on our last 16-day cruise...very sad because one was at our table. <BR> <BR>The only way you are for sure going to have a younger crowd is by taking a Carnival cruise. Mainly because they make it so affordable for families to travel. I have heard they are suppose to have excellent programs for preteens and teens alike. <BR> <BR>Read any of these Boards and you will fine people that detest carnival. But then again, there are some very strong supporters too. So, it is all in what you like and it is definately family oriented and a "sure bet" for the younger crowd. <BR> <BR>Happy cruising.... <BR> <BR>Dawn

Teri

Thanks, Dawn. Wow, what a story... Anyway, I appreciate the tip about longer cruises!

Janice

Teri, <BR>Carnival does not do Mediterranean <BR>iteneraries, but you will find alternatives with Costa Cruise <BR>Lines, Norwegian Cruise Lines, <BR>Princess Cruise Lines and Cunard <BR>Cruise Lines. All are well known <BR>and have good reputations. These <BR>lines welcome families and do <BR>have programs-- some only during <BR>holidays and summer, others year <BR>round. Check with your travel <BR>agent, pick up some brochures. <BR>If you are more budget-minded, <BR>Premier Cruise Lines also have <BR>European itineraries but their <BR>reputation has been very inconsistent. Try logging on to this <BR>website: (www.cruiseopinion.com) <BR>for passenger reviews of cruise <BR>ships. <BR>You might also consider Caribbean <BR>ports, Alaska, Norwegian Fjords-- <BR>all have interesting ports. <BR>Hope this helps give you more <BR>options. <BR>Janice <BR>

Mary

We took a Seabourn Mediterranean cruise in '95 and there was a family with two young girls, maybe 11 and 13. They seemed to enjoy themselves. <BR> <BR>Our ports of call were: departed Civitavecchia (port of Rome), Porto Servo, Sardinia; Portoferrio, Elba; Calvi, Corsica; Livorno/Florence, Italy; Portofino, Italy; and finished in Nice. Top shelf. <BR> <BR>Hope this helps.

Mary

Unfortuntely Dawn is correct. Your 16 yr. old would not be allowed. I say unfortunately because we recently cruised the R1 with our 13 yr old (we made reservations before the ban) and she enjoyed it and much as we. In fact she mentioned last night how sorry she was we wouldn't be able to sail Renaissance anymore. I can also say that a lot of the passengers enjoyed her company also -- seeking her out to see if she enjoyed the sights as much as the rest of us did. I'm not sure it's the length of the cruise Renaissance is concerned about as our cruise portion was only 5 days; they just want adults only and don't want to take the chance of having unsupervised teens and children running around the ship and disturbing the other passengers. (We all know some parents let their kids run wild) Sorry Teri - Renaissance really runs an outstanding operation but other cruise ships also do good jobs.