Carnival Cruise: Best Family Friendly Cruise

Taking your family on a vacation can be a hassle. Car rides, plane rides, packing and the constant headache of keeping them out of trouble can make anyone crazy. If you have been following along with my Instagram posts then you know we just took a family vacation to Florida and on a 7 day Eastern Caribbean Cruise with Carnival Cruise Lines on the Carnival Breeze. The cruise was everything that I hoped it would be for our family vacation and is the perfect cruise choice for your family friendly cruise for your vacation. Here’s why.

Kid’s Activities

There are so many kid activities that it is hard to keep up with them all. For Hayden; they had Carnival Water Works which is basically like a small water park at the top of the ship. There were water slides, water sprays, things to climb and a giant bucket that dumps water on unsuspecting kids playing. He also was able to go to Camp Ocean which is basically a kid’s camp at sea. You can drop your children off (2 and over) throughout the day and they are kept busy with multiple activities. Make sure you grab a copy of their schedule at the beginning of the cruise to know when you can drop your child or children off. To learn more about Carnival’s kid camp check out their website HERE.

There were also activities for Avery to enjoy even though she was just under 2 at the time of our trip. She got to Build a Bear at the Build A Bear Workshop at Sea and participate in the Dr. Suess Parade and read along. Not to mention all the fun towel animals left in the room and then one morning on the Lido deck that both Avery and Hayden loved!

Family Activities

Another thing that makes Carnival the best family friendly cruise are the multiple family activities available on the ship. There is a small mini golf area as well as a ropes course, basketball court and ping pong tables that families can use at their leisure. Multiple different shows including family friendly comedy, kid’s version of lip sync battle and movie nights on the Lido deck added to the family friendly atmosphere.

Another fun activity that we went to as a family was the Dr. Suess breakfast where we got to try green eggs and ham (Avery was not a fan) and meet the characters from the Dr. Suess books!

Port Activities

One thing that made me nervous when taking the cruise was the unpredictability of what the cruise ports would have for activities. Carnival offers multiple shore excursions at each port which can be done with or without children. But for those that are not into doing excursions at every stop, many of the ports have family friendly activities available right upon getting off the boat.

One of our stops was at Amber Cove Dominican Republic which offered a pool, restaurant, bar, shops and zip line right in the enclosed port. This allowed families to spend the day poolside in the safety of the port. Grand Turk was another port that offered Margarittaville right at the port as well as an expanse of beach with free chairs and umbrellas to spend the day at.

Large Rooms

Large balcony rooms are perfect for the bigger family. They offer a king size bed, a couch that can be made up to be a bed and a bunk bed that comes down from the ceiling and then be put away during the day. While I don’t suggest packing these rooms full, since they are pretty small to begin with, you have the option of having adjoining balconies for the larger family cruising together and staying in rooms adjacent to each other.

If your looking for what to pack for your family friendly cruise check HERE.

Friendly Staff

One thing that made Carnival cruise the best family friendly cruise was the friendly staff. Not only did they know my name and my children’s names but would take the extra step to make the day enjoyable.
Many times at the bar they would give Avery orange slices or extra cherries in Hayden’s Shirley temples. The staff were always super friendly and made sure we enjoyed every aspect of our cruise.

Su, our waiter in the dining room, would show Hayden magic tricks, create napkin squirrels, ducks and mice to entertain the kids with during dinner time. He was personable to each and every member of the family and quickly learned what our likes and dislikes were. I will say that our cruise would not have been the same if it had not been for Su at our nightly dinners.

Have you been on a Carnival cruise before? What family friendly qualities did it have that you absolutely love? Let me know in the comments below!

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