Sailing with 5 - best options?

[MrsSmalls]

We have 3 kids, 7, 10 and 11. I think the best bang for our buck is going to be the family deluxe room. Booking 2 staterooms seems to be more expensive.

If you sail with 5, I'm interested in hearing how you do it.

edited add on - we sailed the Magic last week in the family deluxe veranda and it was great, like op said, tight, but great. I am wondering about other ways to do it.

Thanks,
Denise

 

[JMommyof3]

We've only cruised once but have a second booked. Our kids are 4, 7, 9. We booked 2 connecting inside staterooms. I think it was cheaper for our Alaskan cruise and this way, we get 2 bathrooms.

 

[wilkeliza]

5 in a family deluxe room will be cheaper then 2 verandahs or 2 ocean room but it is tight. I had 3 adults in one and felt claustrophobic to be honest. It isn't so bad during the day time especially if you use the big bed for naps etc but when the murphey bed is down you'll have very little space.

 

[Cackyschmackers]

Yes, the family deluxe veramdah is awesome! Especially with your kids' ages. We sailed three times in that category stateroom. But honestly now that my kids are older we are getting two adjoining staterooms. On one cruise we have connecting insides (only three nights ), and on the other, we have one regular verandah room and an inside across the hall. Those options give you two full bathrooms if that's important to you. But i think at your kids' ages, maybe not yet. Good luck!

 

[WildEyed]

We are a family of 5. Our first cruise we had the family verandah room on Deck 8.
The next cruise we priced out we found that 2 connecting oceanview rooms (Deck 2) actually worked out cheaper.
Same thing for our Alaska cruise this coming August - priced out both and 2 connecting on Deck 2 was a lower cost. We are trying inside rooms this time.
I'm not sure if this cost difference is variable between different cruises.

The extra space was really a bonus for us and I don't think we'd go back to a single room for 5, even if we never have a verandah.
We could put the kids to bed and not be stuck hanging out in a dark room - that was a plus! Might not be as much of an issue for you with the age of your kids.
We had access to two split bathrooms, so potentially 4 people could get ready at once.
In the verandah room I didn't like how the murphy bed partially blocked access to the verandah. There was very little room to move around once the beds had been made up.
With two rooms it was easier for us to keep our things organized and not create a mess.
We have a few introverts in the family and having that extra space just kept everyone happier.
Also we got two Castaway gifts! Still use those beach bags.
For us the verandah isn't really a big deal - we hardly used it on our first cruise. For other people I know a verandah is something they would use a lot.
Similarly we thought we'd prefer a higher deck but found that Deck 2 was actually awesome as well.

Good luck with your choices!

 

[KalamityJane]

We have 5. On the Magic/Wonder, 2 connecting insides are cheaper. On the Dream/Fantasy, the Family Oceanview is the cheapest.

 

[Miggee]

i also had to decide between a deluxe family with Verandah or 2 OV connecting room, we decided to go with the 2 OV connecting room, having 2 bathrooms and more room for spread out is what ultimately made us decide, but i think you will be happy with either one!

 

[New England Mickey]

I travel with a party of 6. We book 2 connecting staterooms and it works out fine. It doesn't feel claustrophobic at all tbh but it's just an opinion. Hope you have a great trip!

 

[Madame]

On the classics connecting 10Cs are cheapest. On the Dream class an 8D family oceanview is cheapest.

 

[undertheradar]

We do a minimum of a Cat T. Prefer Royals on the classics.