Would you cruise on Jan.2 on the Brilliance to Pan. Can with an 18 year old?

[anne13]

Traveling with our 18 year old - first week of Jan. for a 10 day cruise to the Panama Canal, Aruba, etc. We hope to be on the Brilliance

Holland America and Celebrity were fabulous but we want to try something to appeal to our 18 year old.

On average, during early Jan, are there many 18-20ish people on board? Now I'm reading that most cruises above 10 days may not appeal to the younger crowd.

We have cruised to many places, but that is when our child was younger. At 18, we are hoping she will meet some non-rowdy, friends.

 

[Schooner]

Lets put it this way. The kid count (18 and under) is usually around 12 on those ships going through the canal. Since the Brilliance just goes up the first set of locks and turns around and the rest is in the caribbean it should not be as bad. I have done that run a few times on the Splendour. It is a very low teenage count but he should be able to find a few people to hang with.

 

[Schooner]

Lets put it this way. The kid count (18 and under) is usually around 12 on those ships going through the canal. Since the Brilliance just goes up the first set of locks and turns around and the rest is in the caribbean it should not be as bad. I have done that run a few times on the Splendour. It is a very low teenage count but he should be able to find a few people to hang with.
Also from my experiance, starting the first week of january until the middle of Febuary on ships (not Voyager class) it is generally a much older crowd, even on seven day cruises since most of the familys have cruised from thanksgiving to new years and the load of teans start coming at the end of Febuary.

 

[randy]

No, I'd wait until Feb 6 LOL!
Actually, have your teen read "Path Between the Seas," by David McCullough. It is a fascinating, true story of the Panama canal which reads like an adventure novel. It will make the experince more enjoyable for her, or at least give her something to look at while she zones out with the IPod!
I agree that the cruise with more "beach days" in the Caribbean would be a better match, though. Lots of OLD FOLKS (like me) on a typical Panama Canal trip.

 

[Lady Jag]

I would definitely book this! Without a doubt! There is so much for this age group to do on the Brilliance. It's a beautiful class of ship and since many colleges are out of school for the majority of Janurary, I would expect at least 20-150 18-20 year olds at that time.

On our 10 night Panama Canal cruise 3 weeks before Easter, we had over 500 kids onboard. It wasn't even officially a Spring Break cruise. There were many 'kids' in the 18-20 yr. age range too - too many to count!

 

[anne13]

Thank you to everyone who responded to my question. I appreciate your candid responses. Please continue to advise -- thank you.

What shore excursions would you recommend or private tours?

Thank you again.

 

[Libby]

The Brilliance is a beautiful ship with lots to do .... I don't think there will be a problem. Plus as someone else mentioned, this is the time kids are out of college, and there should be more than the average number of kids on the ship at this time.
Shore excursions are so plentiful these days - a lot will depend on your own interests. We have a tendency to much on our own EXCEPT when we're in an area we don't know to much about - and you'll be in some places that may warrent booking the excursions through the cruise line --- so you'll know what all you're seeing and the historical/cultural significance.