Planning a vacation that keeps the entire family entertained and creates unforgettable memories can be challenging, especially when traveling alone with your kids. However, Royal Caribbean’s Symphony of the Seas is a dream come true for families looking to embark on the ultimate adventure.
This incredible cruise ship offers an array of amenities and activities designed to cater to parents and children alike. Let’s delve into the many pros of cruising with kids on Royal Caribbean’s Symphony of the Seas and discover why I think it’s the perfect choice for your next family getaway.
- World-Class Entertainment: Royal Caribbean is renowned for its unique entertainment options, and Symphony of the Seas takes it to the next level. There’s never a dull moment onboard, from Broadway-style shows to ice-skating extravaganzas and high-flying acrobatic performances.
Kids will be mesmerized by the dazzling performances at the ship’s theater, ensuring evenings are filled with joy, laughter, and awe-inspiring spectacles. Our sailing featured HiRO, Hairspray, and a magician. So our family always had plenty of entertainment on our recent voyage.
Since we aren’t close to any entertainment venues at home, this was a rare and special treat for my family cruising with kids. They were absolutely mesmerized at every turn, and they’re already excited for our next cruise adventure. - Adventure-Filled Thrills: Symphony of the Seas is a paradise for adventurous families cruising with kids. Cruisers can experience the tallest slide at sea, the Ultimate Abyss, where they can embark on a heart-pounding journey from the ship’s top decks to the Boardwalk. This is a dry slide; my oldest must have done this at least 100 times during our week.
The ship also boasts an exhilarating zip line, a FlowRider surf simulator, rock-climbing walls, mini-golf courses, and an ice-skating rink. While they were too small to enjoy the zip line and FlowRider, we enjoyed a mini-golf family game on departure day and climbed the rock walls later on. We also spent a lot of time at the arcade.
I love that Royal Caribbean has various entertainment options that balance physical and mental challenges. We had an escape room attempt, which we failed miserably, and a game of laser tag that we won. As a parent of two very active pre-tween boys, I knew I’d spend much of my time by the kiddy pool. I also appreciated that we could enjoy plenty of other things together. - Amazing Youth Programs: Royal Caribbean understands the importance of catering to children of all ages. Their award-winning Adventure Ocean Youth Program offers age-appropriate activities for children ages 6 months to 17. Qualified and caring staff members ensure children are entertained, engaged, and safe throughout their cruise.
Children will have a blast while making new friends worldwide, from arts and crafts to science experiments, sports tournaments, themed parties, and video game challenges.
While I had read about Adventure Ocean’s Youth Program, I wasn’t exactly sure how comfortable I would be leaving my kids there or how comfortable my children would be going.
My husband’s death circumstances cause us to stick closely together. My youngest was the first to go after realizing I’d accidentally booked a full 10-hour walking tour in Rome for us. He would have been miserable. There was some crying on our way down to dropoff, but he quickly found 3-4 other kids around his age, and off he went.
When we picked him up, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but he had a fantastic time. He told us all about the secret passageways they move the kids through to go to the windjammer for lunch, the projects he made, the games they played, and all about his new friends who were going to go back the next day at 11:00 AM – this kid is very detail oriented 😉
It sounded so amazing that my older child then decided he wanted to go the next day with his brother, and since it was a sailing day and we had nothing else going on, I agreed. They both had a fantastic experience and are looking forward to returning the next time. - Aquatic Delights: One of the highlights of Symphony of the Seas is its magnificent aqua park. Splashaway Bay, the ship’s interactive water park, is a haven for children. Packed with water slides, drench buckets, fountains, and water cannons, this vibrant oasis will keep your little ones happily splashing away for hours. Additionally, the ship boasts multiple swimming pools, including a dedicated children’s pool area, perfect for cooling off under the sun.
If you have water babies like I do, this will surely be a hit with your crew. My kids spent hours in the splash zones, on the slides, and eating ice creams from the ice cream bar beside the pool. It was also the perfect opportunity for Mom to grab a drink and read that book that had been sitting on my nightstand for a year. - Culinary Adventures: Symphony of the Seas offers an extensive range of dining options catering to all taste buds, including picky eaters. The ship features a variety of specialty restaurants, casual eateries, and even a Johnny Rockets diner. With delicious kid-friendly menus, you can rest assured that your little ones will find something delightful to savor. Dining on this ship is an adventure from pizza to hamburgers, ice cream to cupcakes.
One of the lessons I have been trying to teach my children is that you really don’t know how you feel about things until you try them, including food. I don’t have to tell you that kids are notoriously picky eaters, and I also don’t have to tell you that it can be extremely difficult to get kids to behave themselves in fine dining establishments, or really any establishment *sigh*. Cruises the perfect culinary balance.
Our main dining room dinner was at 6 PM every evening, which is close to our normal dining time at home, so no one was particularly cranky or up past their bedtime. Royal Caribbean offers two menus to families, there’s a children’s menu with the classics you would expect – hamburger, grilled cheese, chicken fingers, vegetable sticks, fruit cups, and ice creams for dessert, and then there’s the adult menu.
What’s amazing about cruising with kids on Royal Caribbean is that they will allow kids to mix and match, so if you can get them to be curious about something on the adult menu, they can order that and still also order from the kid’s menu, which entirely eliminates that moment of “I’m angry, this is all adult food, I’m hungry and tired” meltdown.
My oldest tried escargot, ate from the adult menu most nights with an occasional side from the kid’s menu, and my youngest, a consummate snacker, ate a little bit of everything each night.
Furthermore, the dining room staff are incredible with children. I made the fatal error (should have ordered room service or gone to the Windjammer) of making my children attend the MDR on a formal night, and I’d be surprised if I ever see my youngest in a button-up dress shirt and tie again, he was crying.
I was doing that dance that every parent knows too well – trying to quickly turn things around while also on the edge of leaving so that we don’t disrupt other passengers when our head waiter comes over to show us a trick, the jumping mouse.
Not only did it distract my son enough to get him back on track for the night, I now have a jumping mouse napkin tucked away at home in his special box. Those same kindnesses were everywhere on our trip, the specialty restaurant we ate at one night, the Starbucks in the morning, wherever you go, Royal Caribbean’s staff knows kids.
Cruising with kids on Royal Caribbean’s Symphony of the Seas is an experience that will create cherished memories for years to come. With its world-class entertainment, adventure-filled thrills, perfectly designed youth programs, aquatic delights, and culinary adventures, the ship offers a perfect blend of relaxation and excitement for kids and adults and is the perfect option for anyone traveling alone with their kids.
