We took a multigenerational cruise in the Mediterranean. It kept family members from 6 to 68 happily entertained.

• I'm the eldest daughter, so every year I plan our family vacation.
• These trips have left us with some success but also trauma because of everyone's different interests.
• A cruise through the Mediterranean appealed to everyone.

Family vacations are one of those things I plan yearly that bring excitement and nausea.

As the eldest daughter of my family with aging parents who, after a lifetime of hustling, now finally have the excess of free time and assets required to go on vacation, I get to play travel agent. The good news is that I have no strict budget other than the desire, long instilled by my Asian parents, to procure a good deal that won't dent my eventual inheritance. The bad news? I have children whose ability to hold it together and not have a total meltdown hinges on secret forces that even I, as both a mother and psychologist, have yet to figure out.

The trick, of course, is to go on a vacation that only leaves behind lifelong memories (plus Instagrammable proof, in case my children are prone to forget and go back to complaining about their lives) but not estrangement or therapy.

To further complicate this 3D puzzle, my mother is an Anglophile who only wants to go to Europe and stroll around cobblestone streets. My younger son is a small child who appears allergic to walking and only likes Asian food, while my older son is a teenager who thinks all of the above would interfere with his rizz (or aura, or whatever Zoomers are calling gravitas these days). My father, meanwhile, has no preferences except that we don't spend more money than necessary.

We all enjoyed a cruise

Historically, this involved traveling — with varying levels of success/trauma — on trains, planes, and cars, but our best multi-generational family trip to date happened during a weeklong Mediterranean cruise last summer.

The Celebrity Edge ship we sailed on started in Barcelona and ended in Rome. Over the course of seven days, it single-handedly sold every single member of my family from age 6 to 68 that cruising was the ideal way to travel when there are both small children and old people involved.

Barcelona enchanted us as a departure port for nearly a week before we stepped onto our ship. Whatever residual jet lag or weariness the elderly or young members of the family had by the time we deposited ourselves at the cruise port evaporated the minute we embarked. Much to everyone's shock and delight, the speed and lack of lines during onboarding made airports and train terminals feel like the DMV in comparison.

Once we got to our rooms, we were ready to sell our souls to become one of those lifelong cruisers who have their own monogrammed badges and dedicated lounges, albeit for different reasons: the adults marveled at the ocean-view windows (complete with a seating area in the larger of our two staterooms) while the kids fought over the collectible necklace (with special colored pendants to be scavenged each day on board) waiting for them on the bed.

We all loved the food

A quick perusal of our dining options turned into Sophie's Choice, albeit in the best way possible because instead of a single main dining venue, we got to pick from four specialty restaurants whose names my parents couldn't exactly pronounce but whose vibes screamed European with a hint of Vegas: Tuscany, Cyprus, Normandie, cosmopolitan.

We spent the rest of the week trying every single one. By our last day at sea, we couldn't exactly tell them apart, but no matter — between the lobster night and endless iterations of surf-meets-turf, no grownup left the dining room unhappy, and what my children could not consume in burgers or chicken tenders, they made up for with post-dinner trips to the Oceanview Cafe's buffet. Even my parents — whose aging appetites seem to have shrunk year by year — couldn't resist a second helping of dessert at the ice cream counter or in the form of a fruit plate.

There were activities for everyone

When we weren't eating, our multigenerational group was busy doing what we each liked to do best: my 6-year-old spent his evenings and most of his sea days playing at Camp at Sea, while my 13-year-old quickly found his own multinational crew at Teen Camp. I took my mother to a watercolor art workshop and my father to the nighttime entertainment at the theater aspirationally deemed The Club.

When we docked, we meandered off the gangway at our own pace to explore the markets and museums of Valencia before spending long days near the water in Ibiza and Corsica. Portofino and Cinque Terre necessitated shore excursions, but disembarking in Rome allowed us to explore another timeless city the old-fashioned way, on foot.

When we boarded our plane to return home, we all swore to do another cruise again as soon as possible. Considering that this was last year, and we've gone on two more cruises since then, I think the evidence speaks for itself: cruising just might be our favorite multi-generational way to travel.