As I was reading this thread, it struck me as odd that some parents choose to distance themselves from their children, particularly teenagers. I would like to offer a suggestion to all parents who choose to leave a teenager "on their own" while aboard ship: don't. If you cannot accept responsibility for your children while on vacation then either leave them unattended at your home (if they are sooooooooo well-behaved) or insist they stay with supervised activities on the ship (if you happen to know that they are not sooooooooo well-behaved). Too many unsupervised teens who are "angels" when in the company of their parents happen to be obnoxious, loud, destructive, inconsiderate, rude punks in need of a spanking and personality overhaul when away from dear Mom and Dad. I noticed this inappropriate behavior increased during the later hours all week and it became particularly intolerable on the last night of our cruise.
For those parents who don't know better (and probably don't care), your "Master or Miss Sunshine" walked on furniture, pushed past elderly passengers without any consideration, threw food indiscriminately around elevator waiting areas, cursed profusely (something they never learn at home, I'm sure), spit, yes spit, on the carpeting, turned over chairs - everything indicative of "no, not my child" children.
This is not all of the teenagers. Thank goodness. However, those kids whose actions are exemplary tend to spend more time with their families, report in to Mom and Dad whenever they leave one ship's venue for another, abide by a curfew and the parents themselves check on their kids every so often.
When you don't know what time your "darling" will return to the cabin, when you don't know where your child is or who he/she is with, when you provide your children with no limits or guidelines because "you're on vacation," then accept any and all consequences without argument. Your lack of responsibility can be readily ascertained by the degree of your child's lack of respect for fellow cruisers and the personal property of
DCL.
This may not be a very humble opinion, however, it is accurate...
