Moms Make Great Cruising Companions

More often than not life moves quickly, and everyone is involved in their own daily routine. Moving from activity to activity, little time is left to simply spend time with family and catch up.

Which is why taking a cruise is the ideal way to escape the hustle and bustle of daily life. Holland America Line often welcomes extended families onboard, because cruising is the easiest way to appease the likes and desires of all ages in a group. Generations enjoying cruising together and sharing the special experiences found both onboard and ashore.

The ships also have a lot of mothers and daughters sailing together without the rest of the family to reconnect and spend time “just the girls.” In honor of Mother’s Day this past Sunday in countries around the world, the blog is proud to feature these dynamic duos who sailed onboard and wanted to share their stories.

The best memories made with my Mom are definitely when we are cruising together. She is a cruising addict and she has passed her love of cruising on to me. We took a special cruise, just the two of us, on HAL Maasdam 14-day Southern Caribbean in February 2012. We enjoyed meeting new people, joining in on daily trivia, taking part in the daily cooking seminars, enjoying afternoon tea and much more.

As you can see in the pictures, we took a great bike tour in Bonaire and it was highlight of the trip. It was also a special trip for us, as we surprised my younger sister who was a hairstylist at that time on the Maasdam. I think fondly of our mother/daughter time spent together. Come to think of it, we better start planning another one! — Jennifer Wiseman with my mom, June Ivany.

Jennifer, her sister and mom June enjoying some time together, and Jennifer and June at dinner.

Sailing with mom is a fantastic way to make memories that will last forever, like Wendy Eckler did.

My mother had been ill for a few years, we couldn’t get a diagnosis, and in January of 2011, we finally got a diagnosis. She had a rare brain disorder called Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. She was not going to get better. The disease was taking her mobility and would eventually take her life. As a family, we had always dreamt of going to Alaska, so we decided to take mom on a cruise before she was unable to travel. We booked four rooms and in May of 2011, my mom went on the vacation of a lifetime with her daughter (me) and her family: her son and his wife and her brother and his wife. The crew was AMAZING! They did everything they could to help us disembark at EVERY port. She had a smile on her face EVERY day. She passed away in September of 2012. We will always have this amazing trip with her to cherish. Thank you, HAL! — The Eckert/Eckler/Plouf Family

Clockwise from top: Wendy’s mom with her granddaughter, mom with her son and son-in-law; and Wendy’s mom and dad.

A mother-daughter cruise is the ideal way to reconnect, like Julie and her mom did on Rotterdam.

My mom, Elise, and I have always been close. After college I moved away from home to start my career, and I know this was hard on her. But my career afforded me the opportunity to travel the world, and I brought my mom along with me when I could. Sometimes I was working, other times it was vacation, but mom always enjoyed seeing new places and sharing that time together. I’m still in the travel industry, but now I have my own family with a husband and three young boys. However, mom and I still like to take a trip, just the two of us, every few years to spend time together and see new places. Last year I took her on ms Rotterdam to Norway. She had never been and I knew she’d just love this part of the world. I was right! From kayaking in Geirangerfjord to exploring the market in Bergen, we had a wonderful time. And when we were onboard, it was nice to be able to do our own thing or spend time together. We ate every meal together and spent time ashore doing tours, but during the down time we could each do things that were tailored to our own likes. I can’t wait until our next adventure together! — Julie E.

Clockwise, from top: Julie and mom Elise in Norway, Elise on Rotterdam’s bench, hugging a troll ashore and toasting to a wonderful cruise in Mix.

Sometimes a few generations sail together, like Mary Schimmelman, her mom and daughter.

One of my most memorable celebrations of Mother’s Day was a day spent in Monaco with my mom and daughter during our port call on a Mediterranean cruise aboard ms Eurodam. Although I was working, I managed to plan a relaxing morning at the Greenhouse Spa so the three of us would have chic new hair-dos to sport in this most stylish of ports. The ship pulled in mid-morning and we ventured out to see the sites of this gorgeous Mediterranean gem with the Palace, the Grand Casino and La Cathédrale de Monaco where Princess Grace and Prince Rainier were married at the top of our list. The whole day was made even more exciting because all of Monaco was prepping for the upcoming pinnacle of the Monte Carlo experience — the Grand Prix! The hustle and bustle of staging the race track and stocking store shelves turbo-charged the atmosphere ashore and we all felt the thrill of being involved in something special even though it wasn’t even race day. Having the opportunity to share this rare travel experience across three generations still reminds us all what a wonderful gift the gift of travel really is! — Mary Schimmelman, Holland America Line’s senior manager of social media.

Mary, her mom Anne and daughter Áine enjoying Monte Carlo on Mother’s Day.

Have you sailed with your mom on a Holland America Line cruise? Tell us about your time together below!