50th Anniversary Celebration

We did an Alaska cruise for my parents 50th Wedding Anniversary on Royal Caribbean in 2014 with kids 13-16 years old. Worked great because during the day everyone could pick the tours they wanted to do then meet back for dinner and evening play together. Worked so well planning a Viking cruise in Portugal to celebrate my parents 60th wedding anniversary for 2024.

What do your family think?

Personally, a cruise would be my idea of hell even before Covid, but even more so now, but I know some people who love cruises. The Cruise Critic website should give you feedback on this actual cruise.

That is a great option. With that many people it provides a lot of different opportunities without everyone having to fit in the same train car. And I am guessing you could get some terrific deals. And the ship allows some separate from one group to another. There will be kids programs. We found we could get back on board in late PM, have a snack or two, kids go to the kids area or the pools and the adults can hit one of the lounges to relax. You are all together but not always.

Don't know about RC but on our last cruise, everyone could stay connected through a phone app. Really handy and worked well. Far better than when we used the small, personal radios to stay connected.

If any kids are still taking PM naps, then book a combination of outside and inside rooms. The inside rooms (obviously) are always dark so naps and sleeping are sometimes easier. We always tried to book a cluster of rooms -- maybe 2 inside and 2 outside and you can get adjoining rooms. Starting working now with a ship's agent for the best set-up and discounts. We have done 10 -- only way to go with a mob.

Sounds like a great trip, and RCCL is good for families, especially the kids clubs. Although, given how port intensive Med cruises are I'm not sure how much the kids would use them. These are usually early to bed/early to rise trips due to so many port stops.

You'll likely want to contact their Group Travel people to see how many people/cabins are needed for a group rate. We always use our own TA for travel, but in this case a RC vacation planner may be of more assistance. One thing about dining- don't even think about doing a single table for that many people. First, the dining room couldn't accommodate that. Second, conversation would be impossible with people at the other end. Better to do 3 tables and rotate the mix each night.

I agree with a PP, that checking out the RCCL forum on cruise Critic would be of great help with specific questions.

CJ raised some good points. Service in the dinning room can be a little slow between taking orders and serving multi courses. You don't have to eat in the dining room. There is always a cafeteria where the kids can pick and choose what they want to eat -- and the quantity. That often works better for the kids. We would have one or two adults go to the cafeteria with the kids and rotate that duty. Remember it is vacation for the kids AND the adults. On our first cruise that include my rather strict mother and younger son -- about six. He ordered a hamburger every night. On the next to last night my mother demand that he not be allowed to order a hamburger. OK, so he ordered pizza. When the boys were younger eating on the ship solved a lot of dinner problems instead of having to deal with unknown foreign dishes.

Cruising is the perfect thing for large families, in our experience! Plenty of opportunities for everyone to enjoy personal time (whatever you enjoy) and then still meet up together. We cruised the Caribbean with 8 including 3 kids. I would check though bc at that time RC had an age limit of 4 for their kids' club, which our daughter LOVED. Under that age was only a short class daily with caregivers. I would hesitate to take a 2 or 3 year old if that rule was still in place.

I think it is a great plan because it allows for togetherness while allowing for people to have their own time as well. With a group that size, a good travel agent should be able to set you up for a "group cruise" with associated discounts and perks. I think that trying to do a land tour or travel with a group that size would be a logistical nightmare.

RCL's teen clubs and kid clubs can also be a great resource.

We have done 21 ocean cruises, some with large groups (up to 13 persons) as well as just the two of us.
Royal Caribbean is a great cruise line with super entertainment. Also, the dining is very good. There is plenty for kids to do. Sorry, but better to leave the toddlers and small kids at home.

Barcelona to Rome, is a cruise we did, I think it was a week and we visited about 5 ports. Lots to see and teens can really enjoy the history in Italy, France and Spain.

My advice is to treat teens like adults, encourage them to read about the places you are going to understand the history.

Most cruise lines offer open dining (dine anytime) others fixed dining, like at 6pm or 8:30pm. If you do the open dining, you might have to wait a bit for a large group (in fact you might not be able to dine as one group. Some cruise lines have a limit of 12 for one table (multiple tables put together).

Plan your tours at the ports with a private company, and same lots of $$$. Do research on the internet and find port excursions from each port.