A Family Reunion Cruise
Family reunion vacations are picking up momentum now that cruises have started offering group discounts and rock bottom prices. For instance, one family organized a cruise ship family reunion for 20 people that cost just $500 per cabin! In his book about family reunions — Your Family Reunion: How To Plan It, Organize It and Enjoy It — George G. Morgan writes, “There are low-cost cruises available and you can often save money by booking a cruise in the off-season. Your best bet in organizing a family reunion cruise is to work through a reliable travel agent.” Morgan argues that travel agents have better leverage with cruise line operators than individuals and they can help your planning run so much smoother.
If it’s your first time planning a family reunion cruise, then you might feel a little nervous that someone in the family will have a problem with your plan or you may worry that a cruise may fall beyond time and money budgeting for some family members. To stay flexible, try planning your family reunion vacation 18 months in advance or opting for a shorter 3-4 day cruise instead of the full week. Another good idea for including families with kids is to make arrangements over the Christmas holidays when everyone is out of school. Many families also like spending their holidays on a cruise ship because it cuts down on the hassle of cooking, cleaning, bouncing to several different homes and driving in poor weather conditions.
To get started planning your next family reunion, one person should be elected as the family reunion planner. While this person will suffer most of the stress in planning the details, there are also generous rewards for the plan initiator (like a free cabin aboard the cruise line, for example!) First, the planner must find the preferred mode of communication. (For instance, a young hipster might be a whiz with email, but an older family member may prefer the phone.) Once that’s sorted out, the planner can then work to find a commonly convenient date and secure a head count. Next, the planner can look at family reunion vacation destinations and negotiate with a travel agent for the best deals.
Before you plan your family reunion on a cruise ship, you’ll need to consider the different amenities the various cruise operators offer. For instance, Carnival is one of the best cruise ships for adventurous port stoppers and kids, who can play geography games, visit a teen dance club, hang out at the arcade, sit in the computer lab or hop in one of the many alluring swimming pools. Celebrity also has a number of fun activities for kids — like an actor’s theater and pizza party — while adults enjoy the finer things at formal black-tie events. Holland America is a little more geared toward adults with grown-up entertainment venues, movie lounges and fine dining. These are just a few of the options for family reunion lodging aboard the high seas. Other cruise lines include: Costa, Crystal, Cunard, Disney, Norwegian, Princess, Radisson Seven Seas and Royal Caribbean International.
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