Plenty of people still think cruising is a holiday for older generations, but it’s actually one of the easiest ways to keep a whole family happy. Your kids get an enriching trip that takes in several countries, each with its own culture, food and character, without a single airport transfer in between. You get a holiday where the childcare, the entertainment and the meals are all sorted before you’ve even unpacked.
MSC Cruises started life as a family-owned company, and it shows. They understand exactly how tricky it is to book a holiday that works for everyone, because what mum and dad fancy doing rarely matches the sort of fun the kids have in mind. So MSC have built their ships around that problem, with dedicated spaces, clubs and activities for every age group from newborns to school leavers.
A lot of the feedback we get here at Cruise Nation from first-time MSC cruisers is simply how impressed they were with the ships themselves. So if you’ve been sticking to the cruise lines you see advertised most often, here’s what you might be missing.
Ship facilities
An MSC ship is a bit like a floating wonderland, and the newer ones are genuinely enormous. Alongside the pools, bars and lounges where you’ll spend your family time, you’ll find things like water parks and splash zones, virtual reality and arcade games, mini bowling, sports courts, cinemas and theatres. Exactly what’s on board depends on which ship you sail, so it’s worth checking your specific ship before you book if there’s something the kids have set their heart on.
A few highlights across the fleet:
- Water parks and splash zones. Every MSC ship has a pool area with dedicated children’s sections, so younger swimmers have somewhere safe and shallow of their own. Most also have a full aqua park with multiple slides, and several have interactive splash zones for toddlers.
- The big thrill rides. MSC Preziosa has Vertigo, a 120 metre waterslide that hangs out over the side of the ship. On the newer World Class ships you’ll find dry slides that drop through multiple decks, along with rides like Robotron on MSC World Europa and the overwater swing on MSC World America.
- Sports and gaming. Full-size sports courts, mini golf, shuffleboard, bowling and arcade areas with the current generation of consoles and VR headsets.
- Cinemas and theatres. Most ships have a cinema, and some have 4D or immersive screens. The evening theatre shows are family-friendly and don’t rely on language, which makes them easy for younger children to enjoy.
The five kids clubs
MSC run five age-banded clubs, so nobody is stuck being the oldest child in a room full of toddlers or the youngest in a room full of teenagers:
| Club | Ages |
|---|---|
| Baby Club | 0 to 3 years |
| Mini Club | 3 to 6 years |
| Junior Club | 7 to 11 years |
| Young Club | 12 to 14 years |
| Teen Club | 15 to 17 years |
Every club is run by qualified staff and gives your kids a bit of independence, plus the chance to make friends from all over the world. It’s a win for everyone, because the parents get some genuine downtime and the kids get a holiday that isn’t just following the grown-ups around.
Opening hours vary by ship and by itinerary, and they’re different on port days and sea days. Your Daily Programme will have the exact times for your sailing, and the clubs generally run in three blocks: morning, late afternoon and evening.
Babies and toddlers
Deciding whether to take a very young child on holiday can be genuinely hard work. You want to spend the time with them, but the thought of lugging all the equipment around is off-putting, and it often turns into tag-teaming with your other half over who gets to lie on a lounger while the other one does nappies, sun cream and feeds. When a cruise line takes most of those jobs off your hands, the decision gets a lot easier.
Baby Club
The Baby Club is designed for little ones under three and is run in partnership with the baby brand Chicco. That partnership means the club is stocked with age-appropriate educational toys, and the nursery staff run a programme of play and activities developed with Chicco’s own research team. There’s a nap area too, so a session at the club doesn’t have to be built around your baby’s sleep routine.
Baby care and babysitting
MSC offer a supervised baby care service at set times during the day and evening, which gives you the chance to have a quiet meal for two or book a spa treatment. It needs to be reserved in advance, spaces are limited, and you’ll be asked to provide feeding and nappy changing equipment. Times and age eligibility vary by ship, so check on board as soon as you’re settled in.
Baby laundry service
Everyone knows how messy babies are, and it won’t take long for your little one to get through half the clothes in their suitcase. MSC offer a dedicated baby laundry service that uses a sanitising programme with gentle detergents designed to clean at lower temperatures. Garments are collected from your cabin and returned the following day.
Bottle warmers and baby essentials
Bottle warmers are available at various points around the ship. Speak to Guest Services when you’re on board and they’ll point you to the nearest one. Cots, high chairs and nappy bins can also be requested, ideally at the time of booking so the cabin is ready when you arrive.
Baby Chef
This one is for two and three year olds, and it encourages them to get properly messy in the kitchen. With help from the MSC chefs, the kids prepare something tasty, often a pizza, for their parents to enjoy afterwards.
Children and juniors
Mini Club and Junior Club
Mini Club is for Sailors aged three to six, and Junior Club is for Pirates aged seven to eleven. Both run a full programme of arts and crafts, sports, dance classes, performances, treasure hunts and console games, all pitched at the right level for the age group. There’s an educational thread running through it too, and kids often pick up a bit of history about the destinations you’re visiting without noticing they’re learning anything.
Playtime with LEGO
MSC have partnered with LEGO to give younger cruisers something to look forward to every day. Children in the Mini and Junior Clubs get access to a treasure trove of LEGO sets, and once per sailing there’s a LEGO Experience event where kids and parents are encouraged to get involved together in challenges built around teamwork and creativity.
Doremi and family
Doremi is MSC’s mascot, and along with his family he fronts pretty much everything fun that happens on board for children. He has a sister called Mila, a brother called Dorebro and a baby brother called Dorebaby. There’s an official Doremi song and dance performed in several languages, so your kids can learn the words and the steps and join in wherever they’re from.
Doremi oversees a whole calendar of activities, including cookery classes, the Doremi Live talent show, the Doremix family disco, fairytale time, pool parades, costume parades and a special production show where the kids perform alongside the ship’s dancers and performers. On the newest ships there are entire themed areas built around the characters, so there’s somewhere for them to go even outside club hours.
Tweens and teens
The last thing a teenager wants is to be treated like a kid, so MSC give them their own space to relax, have fun and meet people their own age. Everyone wins. Parents get time to themselves, and teens get the independence to actually run their own holiday.
Young Club covers 12 to 14 year olds with a Youth Team service, and Teen Club covers 15 to 17 year olds with a dedicated Teen Entertainer. Both open in blocks across the day, with the Teen Club running latest into the evening. Times shift by ship and itinerary, so check the Daily Programme.
Daytime activities
There’s something on throughout the day, whatever your teen is into. Sports competitions and tournaments cover everything from football and basketball to mini golf and shuffleboard, so every activity level is catered for. Add to that dance classes, gaming stations, e-sports style tournaments and, on many ships, hair and beauty treatments designed specifically for teens in the MSC Aurea Spa.
Night time fun
The evening programme is where the teen clubs really come alive, with events built to be fun and safe at the same time. Across a typical week you’ll see the Teens White Party, the MSC Flashmob, Hey Mr DJ, the MSC Generation Awards talent show, a formal Prom night and a Generation Dinner. In between there’s a nightly line-up of karaoke, Radio MSC where they can request songs, movie trivia and dance competitions.
The MSC Teens Card
The Teens Card is a personalised prepaid card that lets you give your teen a bit of freedom without handing over your own credit card. You set the balance, and they can spend it at points around the ship such as the shops, the arcade or the spa. Because everything on board is cashless, it’s also a tidy way of keeping track of what’s being spent. Ask at Guest Services or set it up through MSC’s app before you sail.
Keeping track of them
Cruise ships are unusually safe places for kids to have a bit of freedom, and MSC add a couple of layers on top of that. Children can be given a wearable bracelet linked to the onboard system, which lets you locate them and lets staff identify them, and the same technology handles cashless spending and cabin access. It’s the sort of thing you don’t think about until you need it, and it takes a lot of the low-level worry out of letting them go off to the club on their own.
Dining with kids
We all know kids can be fussy eaters, so it helps that MSC have thought this through properly.
The buffet is open for most of the day and the choice is enormous, which is usually enough to win over even the pickiest eater. Children’s menus are available in each of the ship’s restaurants, and the menus change daily to nudge kids towards new textures and flavours. There’s a decent chance they’ll go home with a new favourite meal.
Beyond the menus, there are a few services worth knowing about:
- Fun Time Dinners. Performers keep the children entertained while they eat in the buffet restaurant, so parents can actually get a few mouthfuls in while the kids are distracted.
- Happy Dinners. Children get a speedy service alongside their parents, then head off to the Mini Club escorted by entertainment staff, leaving the grown-ups to enjoy a leisurely dinner. Possibly the single most considerate thing on the ship.
- Kids around the Clock. Flexible timings and kid-friendly food outside the standard dinner service, for families whose day hasn’t gone to plan.
Fun Time Dinners and Happy Dinners are both free.
Single parent families
Families are more diverse than ever, and with a rising number of single parents taking their children away, MSC make sure families of every shape have their needs looked after. Between the five kids clubs, the baby care and babysitting services and the sheer volume of things to do on board, keeping the children entertained is easier than it would be almost anywhere on land. It’s also worth asking us about cabin options, because the right cabin type can make a real difference to what a single parent holiday costs.
Booking an MSC family cruise
If you’re tempted by a family cruise with MSC, take a look at our MSC Cruise Deals, all of which include flights and a hotel stay as well as your cruise. Here at Cruise Nation we’re one of the biggest MSC Cruises providers, so we secure the lowest rates and pass those savings on to you.
MSC also run family offers throughout the year that can reduce or remove the fare for children sharing with two adults, so it’s always worth checking what’s live before you book. Give us a call and we’ll tell you what’s available on the sailing you’re looking at.