Viva Italia with children

[jmkmom]

Has anyone done the Viva Italia trip with children? We have 4 children, ages 11, 13,15, and 16, and I wondered if they are old enough to appreciate all there is to see on the daily tours. Do the tour guides make it entertaining or captivating for them? What can they do during down time? The last thing I want to do is bring them all this way only to have them complain that this isn't fun. Any input from those who have brought children would be appreciated!

 

[SLK1]

I'm taking my soon to be 15 year old in June. I thought it would be great, especially since he is taking Latin. However, I'm also concerned because I read about how much shopping people do on their down time, and the last thing he ever wants to do is shop. It's certainly not going to stop us from going because I think the experience will be excellent, and with Disney, I think you just can't go wrong, but I too share your concern.

 

[redzinner]

I'm taking my soon to be 15 year old in June. I thought it would be great, especially since he is taking Latin. However, I'm also concerned because I read about how much shopping people do on their down time, and the last thing he ever wants to do is shop. It's certainly not going to stop us from going because I think the experience will be excellent, and with Disney, I think you just can't go wrong, but I too share your concern.

Hi there,
I've only been on an adult only Viva Italia tour so I can't really speak for what other children, teens have done in the afternoons we have free. I do want to let you know that shopping is definitely not the only option. There are so many museums, gardens, churches, fountains, ruins, in Rome to investigate. Villa Borghese Park is at the the top of the Spanish Steps and it was not included in our tour. There is also the bus tour which a lot of people rode. Disney gives you complimentary ticket for this.
They only place that was 'isolated' was Tuscany. The 'down time' is minimal
Pasta making day you have 3:30-6:15 on your own but there is a big grassy area and swimming pool.
In Venice you do have the afternoon after mask making on your own 12 - 6:15 but they offer boat trips over to the Murano Glass Factory.

Seriously I think your children will be happy for the 'down time' when it rolls around. Who knows they may end up making buddies with another child and plan the afternoons themselves!

I can't begin to explain how well Disney prepares for these tours. It's just wonderful. You seriously don't need to worry about a thing.

3pirates Mother of 3 teenage boys Viva Italia trip reflections

 

[nicolepdonnelly]

Hi! We took our 2 kids- girl 12 boy 9 on this trip! It was great- they loved it- it was a lot of walking and they were tired every night. But they had a lot of neat things for the kids- we also studied up on the places we were going to before hand. i had them do a reading project on Da Vinci, Renaissance, Ancient Rome etc. They really learned a bunch and were proud to understand what they were seeing on the tour. Hope that helps- worth every cent!

 

[mwebsite]

We haven't taken the trip yet, plan to in 2009, but I've already looked into what we would do on our downtime. Not much shopping planned for us, either. It includes Villa Borghese, for bike, scooter, and/or paddle boat rental, short train trip to the seaside from Rome, climbing the Duomo tower in Florence, swimming and/or biking in Tuscany, and a boat trip to Lido beach in Venice.

 

[glassslipper2004]

We took our 8 and 9 year old daughters on Viva this summer and it was amazing! There were 8 kids under 12, all of whom seemed to have a very good time. The guides took particularly good care of the kids, entertaining them when they got bored, organizing special touches and little events, singing songs and playing games. My girls loved the trip, and can't wait to do another one. I loved the entire experience and am so happy to realize that we can do a fantastic trip like this as a family.

I'm happy to write more and give you details - what would you like to know? A few of the daily tour trips were tiring, but I think the adults were a lot more tired than the kids. And when the kids' eyes glazed over during one museum talk, one of the guides pulled them off to the side and played a game with them - in fact, this happened several times.

Some of the planned activities - especially mask making and pasta making - are particularly fun for the kids, and the young at heart in general. You wouldn't believe the works of art we all produced at the mask making studio, kids and adults alike.

I definitely recommend this trip with kids - you won't regret it, and you will have fantastic memories.

 

[3pirates]

Hi...I see RedZinner linked to my post of thoughts after having just returned, but I wanted to directly answer the question on my part.

I agree with GlassSlipper that the fun for the young at heart activities (pasta making, masks) really were just that. Even the ones that didn't think they would enjoy them did.

To me, you have two ages....your tweens and your teens. It was great that our surly teens just understood that they didn't have a choice, they HAD to get out of bed and be ready on time. Did they mind? Maybe a little, but they got a lot out of it. We didn't do much shopping in our spare time, I'm very outnumbered on that agenda. Your tweens will probably want to separate out with the kids group the few times they do that. They make the Coliseum more enjoyable for everyone.

Did they get plenty out of it? I'll answer with an example. My fifteen year old is bright but gets bored with school....not the studious type. He came home one day and said the Italy trip helped him....when in the Vatican he remembered being told about the difference between Greek and Roman architecture. Not only did the guide make it come to life for him, but remembered it and was able to score points with his teacher in an AP World History Class! The only kids I saw on the trip that maybe didn't get much out of it were the very young.