Ships, and Cabins, and Splash Pads, OH MY!

Don’t get overwhelmed by all the options. Let Moms at Sea navigate you to smooth waters.

So- your family wants to go on a Royal Caribbean cruise. Great. Just pick a ship and off you go, right?

Not so fast!

While I fully believe you can go on any Royal Caribbean ship and have an incredible family vacation- you don’t want to book your sailing only to find there is a ship that could have been a better fit for your fam.

I consider myself a matchmaker of sorts- a cruise matchmaker! Whether it’s pairing guests with the best Moms at Sea Travel Advisor to work with their family, or finding the best ship for your family- really, we’re just trying to make the perfect match.

So- where to start?

When I’m working one on one with a guest, the first thing I do is try to understand a little more about their family. How old is everyone? What are the kids ages? Will any kids be in diapers at the time of travel? Do they want to fly or drive to port? Would they be ok in one cabin or would they enjoy the benefits of two? Would a suite, and all the benefits that come along with it, be a good option and make their vacation less stressful? And if you’d like a more customized experience, we’d love to connect!

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Royal Caribbean Ships

Before jumping into Classes of Ships, I want to include which ships have a splash pad for kids in diapers- this will be helpful moving forward.

Royal Caribbean Fleet

Let’s start with a fleet overview.

By the end of 2025, Royal Caribbean will be sailing 29 ships, with Legend of the Seas, the 30th, hitting the water in 2026.

Ships have certainly grown and evolved since Royal Caribbean’s first ship, Song of Norway, set sail on her maiden voyage from Miami in November of 1970. The cruise experience has also gone through a revolution- now including Broadway Shows, extensive dining options, rock climbing, zip lining, carousels on board, and so much more.

But- as this is a building process, let’s start at the beginning.

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Vision Class and Radiance Class (No Diapered Splashpads)

I am going to combine these two as they are similar in size and pro’s/con’s.

These are fantastic ships that offer a classic cruising experience. There will be activities onboard, but you will have to look a little harder to find many activities geared specifically towards children. They are not going to have the updated slides and splash pads like you envision from commercials. While many families still thoroughly enjoy this class of ship- they are often families that enjoy more downtime and calmer quieter environments.

There tends to be less children on these sailings and they can have an “older” crowd.

There are a few reasons for this:

• they are smaller without the waterparks and extensive kids clubs
• they are able to do longer sailings, which can be difficult to coordinate with school calendars.

There are upsides to this, however:

• they can be a fantastic option for a family that doesn’t plan to make much use of kids clubs
• because of their smaller size, they can fit into smaller ports and often offer unique itineraries that allow you to get off the beaten path
• their itineraries can be port heavy allowing you to experience many destinations
• pricing can be lower than newer feature ships

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Voyager Class

This is where things start to get a little bit more interesting! More features, more activities, and you’ll notice that you start to see the word AMPED vs revitalized, as used above. What does it mean if a Royal Caribbean ship has been amped up? It means that the ship has undergone a glow up to bring it more in line with the standards and features of newer ships. One major place this affected families was in the upgrade from the original H2O Zone splashpads that primarily offered water features like spouts and bubblers to the new Splashaway Bay with drench buckets, swirly slides, sprayers, and more. Another change that came with amplification was the use of AO (for Adventure Ocean) and AO Babies instead of Royal Babies and Tots. This is for the most part simply a name change but can affect the age groups in the older kids.

Voyager of the Seas

• Maiden Voyage: Nov 1999
• AMPED 2019
• Does have the Perfect Storm Waterslides

Explorer of the Seas

• Maiden Voyage: Oct 2000
• Does have Perfect Storm Waterslides

Adventure of the Seas

• Maiden Voyage: Nov 2001
• Revitalized: November 2016
• Does have Perfect Storm Waterslides
• Has a Splashaway Bay and Baby Bay
• Has Adventure Ocean Kids Club but DOES NOT have Royal Babies and Tots for babies/toddles not potty trained and/or under 3 years old

Navigator of the Seas

• Maiden Voyage: Dec 2002
• AMPED 2019
• Has a Splashaway Bay and Baby Bay
• Does have Perfect Storm Waterslides

Mariner of the Seas

• Maiden Voyage: Nov 2003
• AMPED 2018
• Does have Perfect Storm Waterslides

HIGHLIGHTS:

• Laser Tag – reservations can be made onboard through the app
• Playmakers℠ Sports Bar & Arcade
• The Perfect Storm℠ Waterslides
• The Bamboo Room
• Royal Escape Room℠
• FlowRider® Surf Simulator
• Ice-Skating Rink
• Outdoor Movie Screen
• Rock Climbing Wall
• Royal Promenade
• Virtual Balcony℠ Staterooms

These are great ships. This is, in my opinion, where you really start to see the consistency of the Royal Caribbean features shining through with Splashaway Bay, Playmakers Sport Bar and Arcade, Ice Skating and more. You are starting to get the Royal Caribbean experience but on a smaller scale- you’re dipping your toe in!

These ships are still often small enough to navigate more exotic ports and will frequently be seen in Europe making their way through the Greek Isles and other desirable itineraries, often with extended options- as in longer than 7 day itineraries.

This size ship, specifically Adventure, was absolutely perfect for my kids at that 3-5 age range where they didn’t need the nursery for infants, but did want a splashpad to get some pool time in. Mariner, Explorer, Voyager can also be great options for that 5-7 age that can get by without the splashpad and may be tall enough to enjoy the slides and other activities! Navigator is a great choice as well with lots of amentities, splashpads, and Adventure Ocean and AO Babies!

I personally really enjoy this class of ship. It’s approachable, laid back, easy to navigate, and simple. I’ll be taking my 5 and 7 year old daughters on Voyager of the Seas in May 2025 for a transatlantic sailing that will end in Barcelona after visiting the Azores, Malaga, Cartagena, and Palma de Mallorca. I can’t wait to share this upcoming adventure!

This post is a work in progress so please check back for updates!