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#1
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Carnival Victory not for tweenagers
My son (a 13 year old ["tweenage" in marketing terms]) contacted
Carnival for teen related activities. Carnival faxed from another ship a recent teen schedule and roster of activities that included "Playstation 2" game play. When our tweenage boy got on board and found that only $0.25/per play old style (and I do mean "old") arcade games were available (as opposed to "current" generation multi-player "Playstation 2" games he really felt betrayed and "trapped". (Note PS2 was released in March '2000, about the time the ship first launched; the PS1 had been out for several years before then. Who designs these ships?) Though he enjoyed some of the other activities (water slide and on shore excursions, for example) he still spent more than half of the trip holed up in our inside cabin watching the "movie of the day" ... which he could have done at home for a lot less $$$. His take on another "fun" ship cruise .... "you've got to be kidding .... not interested". [BTW, trivia and bingo are NOT tweenage activities ...] Carnival Victory should cut in half their arcade space and replace it with sets of multiplayer networked video games (maybe a couple of sets of Sony Playstations, and two sets of Microsoft xBoxes) They could sell a "fun video game" card for access to that section of the ship to "monetize" the investment and offer prizes for winners (one networked set of players trouncing another network set of players). If Carnnival really wanted to get "in play" they could offer a specialized satellite access to some of the world largest massively multiplayer role play (MMRP) games. For example "World of Warcraft" has 12 million players on line at any time. (Again, is anyone under the age of 30 at Carnival paying attention to tweenager amusement?!!) Shifting gears, my wife and daughter (21) enjoyed the trip considerably though our expectations were quit different. We just want time away from appointments and classes to eat well, relax and read (or in my case to "study" programming as a hobbyist using my laptop). My main frustration. After searching extensively I found only two places on the entire ship with access to 110v electrical receptacles (ship was made in Italy) and with a chair, table and view of the deck (from which to watch the parade of people, ports and ocean views) .... AND NEITHER of them were close enough to the internet cafe to obtain the ship's Wi-Fi network signal. As I progressed though the software tutorial every couple of hours I had to walk back to the internet cafe area before I could go on line to post questions, lookup answers, download sample code, find knowledgebase articles, etc. What a pain. Carnival really needs to place a couple of Wi-Fi repeaters (they're cheap; less than $100 each) near the front and back ends of the Lido/Promenade decks in order to "extend" the reach of the internet cafe. On the plus side the food and related service was fantastic, the cabin was quite serviceable, the steward and the cleaning folks did a sterling job. I as really impressed with their cheery greetings whenever we passed them in the halls. The extras (towel "animals", cookies, etc.) were nice. The selection of on shore excursions was extensive! The Jamaica excursion to the Gardens would have been three times better if the guide was more knowledgeable and brought a BULL HORN. What little he did say we seldom heard. (Thankfully the Reeves Video lady that accompanied us prompted the "guide" to mention numerous very interesting items.) Even so the experience was delightful, especially the bird area. (I snapped a picture of my wife with several parrots perched on her head and arms that is truly memorable). What a beautiful place. Three out of four of us would sail again on the Victory so that's not too bad a batting average. |
#2
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Carnival Victory not for tweenagers
"LeeNY" wrote in message ups.com... wrote: When our tweenage boy got on board and found that only $0.25/per play old style (and I do mean "old") arcade games were available (as opposed to "current" generation multi-player "Playstation 2" games he really felt betrayed and "trapped". I just don't know what to say to this. Is this serious? Your son felt trapped because he couldn't play some specific video games for a week? Is that really what being a tween is all about? That's just really, really sad. The week could have been a great opportunity for him to learn about life, literally, "outside the box". Instead, he chose to stare at a different box, to watch movies. Why didn't he explore the ship, meet the other tweens on board, perhaps even make some friends? I'm not a parent, so maybe I'm just so far removed from the loop as to not even be able to comprehend this whole scenario. All I know is that, if I did have a 13 year old boy, and I did bring him on a cruise, I can guarantee you, his time would not have been spent sitting in an arcade playing games or sitting in the cabin watching movies. You're right...you did waste a lot of money paying for a cruise for hi. Sorry about that. Lee Agreed, Lee. I have an 18 y/o son. I always limited his video game time to 30 minutes a day AT HOME!! There's way too many kids that veg out in front of a video screen. On cruise???My kid would've never considered playing endless video or watching movies on a cruise!!!!!!!! |
#3
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Carnival Victory not for tweenagers
On 21 Mar 2006 10:05:53 -0800, wrote:
he still spent more than half of the trip holed up in our inside cabin watching the "movie of the day" ... Hi Mark, Don't take this as a criticism but where was the rest of the family? I am curious, why did he not take part in family activities? Was this not a family vacation? I think it is a disservice to not involve the family in activities the entire family can enjoy. Best regards, Ray LIGHTHOUSE TRAVEL 800-719-9917 or 805-566-3905 http://www.lighthousetravel.com -- NewsGuy.Com 30Gb $9.95 Carry Forward and On Demand Bandwidth |
#4
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Carnival Victory not for tweenagers
"LeeNY" wrote:
wrote: When our tweenage boy got on board and found that only $0.25/per play old style (and I do mean "old") arcade games were available (as opposed to "current" generation multi-player "Playstation 2" games he really felt betrayed and "trapped". I just don't know what to say to this. Is this serious? Your son felt trapped because he couldn't play some specific video games for a week? Not to answer for the OP, but I think this is more about the lies by omission - the tween called to ask, and was told that they did have video games and then found that they didn't really. If he had been told more specifically, then he could have been better prepared. I have a kid like that (although no longer a tween) and she's still like that. She doesn't like being lied to. I think it would be like being told that you would have cell phone coverage and then finding out that you could only connect if you hung out of the window of the back bedroom. Happens all the time in real life, but a tween isn't as used to it. Is that really what being a tween is all about? That's just really, really sad. The week could have been a great opportunity for him to learn about life, literally, "outside the box". Instead, he chose to stare at a different box, to watch movies. Why didn't he explore the ship, meet the other tweens on board, perhaps even make some friends? I'm not a parent, so maybe I'm just so far removed from the loop as to not even be able to comprehend this whole scenario. All I know is that, if I did have a 13 year old boy, and I did bring him on a cruise, I can guarantee you, his time would not have been spent sitting in an arcade playing games or sitting in the cabin watching movies. You're right...you did waste a lot of money paying for a cruise for him. Sorry about that. I'm sure he did explore the ship, and the OP said he did enjoy some of the activities. But having been on a cruise when I was 12, the making friends thing isn't as easy as all that. Depends quite a bit on whether there are appropriate people on board to make friends with. grandma Rosalie |
#5
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Carnival Victory not for tweenagers
I've been on the Victory and have seen many a tween having fun in that
dark/dank/cave with all of the videogames. Yours must be just too cool to partake. Next time leave the 13-year old at home to fend for himself and save yourself some money. I don't even think he would miss anyone based on what I read. |
#6
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Carnival Victory not for tweenagers
Rosalie B. wrote:
I'm sure he did explore the ship, and the OP said he did enjoy some of the activities. But having been on a cruise when I was 12, the making friends thing isn't as easy as all that. Depends quite a bit on whether there are appropriate people on board to make friends with. That's true. The only experience I have, cruising with a tween, is with my niece. We've cruised together 4 times, starting back in 1997, which would have made her 10 years old on that first cruise. On all four cruises, she's never had a problem meeting kids her age and establishing a circle of "best friends" before cruise's end. No doubt, she's a very outgoing and sociable kid, so making new friends comes easily to her, once the ice is broken (at that first kids meet & greet party that the ship organizes). My niece is the one I think of, when I read about 13 year olds so involved in video games at the exclusion of socializing with people. She's never had a gaming system, has never had any interest in owning or playing with a gaming system, and doesn't understand the appeal of them. She's a freshman in college now (wow, how time flies) and just recently joined her generation and bought an iPod. Go figure. So, admittedly, my experience with this age group is limited. I know making friends is really tough. But, I also know that sitting in a cabin watching movies or sitting in an arcade mesmerized by what's happening on a screen, doesn't make the process any easier. Lee grandma Rosalie |
#7
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Carnival Victory not for tweenagers
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#8
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Carnival Victory not for tweenagers
I don't think this guy posted so his parenting skills could be critiqued.
Just because his son didn't enjoy the video arcade doesnt mean you should critque his social skills either especially since he cant defend himself.. He was disappointed in it but he did enjoy some of the other stuff, Just not enough to do this ship again. I think thats fair. I thought the original post pointed out some problems with the cruise and also some ways to perhaps improve it. Certainly a much more informative post the replies to it. "AWB" wrote in message oups.com... I've been on the Victory and have seen many a tween having fun in that dark/dank/cave with all of the videogames. Yours must be just too cool to partake. Next time leave the 13-year old at home to fend for himself and save yourself some money. I don't even think he would miss anyone based on what I read. |
#9
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Carnival Victory not for tweenagers
We have two teenage daughters who have a little more social skills than to
have their face stuck to 'puter games. If our children were so ungrateful to complain about video games on a cruise, we would not take them on a cruise again. Not to mention they would be removed from all other privileges that would earn them videogame privileges at home. A cruise is a great opportunity to un-plug kids from a tv or a computer and to see the world as it is. Frank wrote in message ups.com... My son (a 13 year old ["tweenage" in marketing terms]) contacted Carnival for teen related activities. Carnival faxed from another ship a recent teen schedule and roster of activities that included "Playstation 2" game play. When our tweenage boy got on board and found that only $0.25/per play old style (and I do mean "old") arcade games were available (as opposed to "current" generation multi-player "Playstation 2" games he really felt betrayed and "trapped". (Note PS2 was released in March '2000, about the time the ship first launched; the PS1 had been out for several years before then. Who designs these ships?) Though he enjoyed some of the other activities (water slide and on shore excursions, for example) he still spent more than half of the trip holed up in our inside cabin watching the "movie of the day" ... which he could have done at home for a lot less $$$. His take on another "fun" ship cruise .... "you've got to be kidding .... not interested". [BTW, trivia and bingo are NOT tweenage activities ...] Carnival Victory should cut in half their arcade space and replace it with sets of multiplayer networked video games (maybe a couple of sets of Sony Playstations, and two sets of Microsoft xBoxes) They could sell a "fun video game" card for access to that section of the ship to "monetize" the investment and offer prizes for winners (one networked set of players trouncing another network set of players). If Carnnival really wanted to get "in play" they could offer a specialized satellite access to some of the world largest massively multiplayer role play (MMRP) games. For example "World of Warcraft" has 12 million players on line at any time. (Again, is anyone under the age of 30 at Carnival paying attention to tweenager amusement?!!) Shifting gears, my wife and daughter (21) enjoyed the trip considerably though our expectations were quit different. We just want time away from appointments and classes to eat well, relax and read (or in my case to "study" programming as a hobbyist using my laptop). My main frustration. After searching extensively I found only two places on the entire ship with access to 110v electrical receptacles (ship was made in Italy) and with a chair, table and view of the deck (from which to watch the parade of people, ports and ocean views) .... AND NEITHER of them were close enough to the internet cafe to obtain the ship's Wi-Fi network signal. As I progressed though the software tutorial every couple of hours I had to walk back to the internet cafe area before I could go on line to post questions, lookup answers, download sample code, find knowledgebase articles, etc. What a pain. Carnival really needs to place a couple of Wi-Fi repeaters (they're cheap; less than $100 each) near the front and back ends of the Lido/Promenade decks in order to "extend" the reach of the internet cafe. On the plus side the food and related service was fantastic, the cabin was quite serviceable, the steward and the cleaning folks did a sterling job. I as really impressed with their cheery greetings whenever we passed them in the halls. The extras (towel "animals", cookies, etc.) were nice. The selection of on shore excursions was extensive! The Jamaica excursion to the Gardens would have been three times better if the guide was more knowledgeable and brought a BULL HORN. What little he did say we seldom heard. (Thankfully the Reeves Video lady that accompanied us prompted the "guide" to mention numerous very interesting items.) Even so the experience was delightful, especially the bird area. (I snapped a picture of my wife with several parrots perched on her head and arms that is truly memorable). What a beautiful place. Three out of four of us would sail again on the Victory so that's not too bad a batting average. |
#10
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Carnival Victory not for tweenagers
"sheree" wrote in message ... our son is also only allowed in a cruise arcade for a bit after dinner, that is it!! there is too much else to do. I'm not sure I agree with that. What's there for a kid to do at night if he doesn't like the shows like his parents do? In fact... what's there for a grown up to do if he doesn't like the shows, bars or casinos? Ships don't really have that much to do at night if you don't go with their "canned entertainment"... which are basically shows, bars, bingo and casinos. I don't gamble very much (I lose $5 and I'm outa there for the week). I don't like shows. I don't drink very much. And I don't do bingo. I tend to be bored at night... so I can see how a kid would be bored as well. At least a ship like Constellation had a computer center... even though they charged exorbitant rates. Plus, being with a group we did things like Texas Holdem in the card room. I don't think there are very many things for kids to do on ships. Some ships have teen discos. But many kids just run around in groups. Unless you find a group to fit in with... there may not be much to do after dinner. --Tom |
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