If kids are free? I am cancelling:>dcl hear me

[jjupiter]

I agree with OP. I think when people get something free whether it is kids sail free or dining they feel like they are owed something or have to get their "money's worth" and then behavior overall goes down hill. Last year during KSF my husband who is oblivious to most things around him even noticed that people did not dress for dinner and were simply rude when waiting in line on the cruise. Similar experiences during free dining at the parks. As a shareholder I can appreciate what they do to try to make a better overall return and I get the math - I just don't like being there when it is going on - makes the overall experience less enjoyable. Sometimes it is unavoidable.

 

[PrincessTrisha]

If you want to sail without kids, I would cancel for sure. Disney is a "family" oriented cruise line. There are several cruise lines that do NOT cater to children and really provide an upscale atmosphere. Try one of those, because, to be honest, I wouldn't want people like you on my Disney cruise.

Glad to see that "Disney" spirit alive and well

 

[ilovedevin]

Tammyalphabet, I am truely sorry for your loss I have to say that I agree with Tammyalphabet, the only reason I am going on a Disney cruise is because I have a child. I completely disagree with jjupiter, first off I already had reservation's for a verandah room and YES I did take advantage for the KSF offer and my bill dropped a great deal and that make's me very appreciative toward's Disney. I do not feel that they owe me anything nor did I expect them to offer us the KSF deal, but they did and again I am very grateful. Just because I took advantage of the offer does not mean that myself nor my family are a bunch of loser's that do not know how to act. Also I know a lot of people on the DIS-Boards who were already going on the cruise during that time and because of the promotion moved up from cat 11's to cat 5 for very little money.



Julie

 

[clawmachine]

I think I am confused. I have been reading these boards for about 6 months steadily and the way I see it broken down is:

1- sailing during summer could mean a lot of kids
2- sailing during Spring break could mean a lot of kids
3- sailing during President's day holiday could mean a lot of kids
4- sailing at other school times could mean a lot of younger kids who aren't in school yet.
5- sailing at holidays and for inaugural cruises and on new ships could mean sold out ships and more people in general.
6- Kids Sail free offers could mean a lot of kids
7- cruises that sail at optimum times of year for weather could be crowded
8- ANY DCL cruise could sail full, and many do, which means the potential is certainly there for any cruise to sail at full capacity and even full kid capacity.

Just because they offered KSF for Jan and Feb does not necessarily mean they didn't have many kids booked already, it just means they wanted a way to get more cabins booked. By making the discount only for Veranda rooms, they ensure that their most expensive staterooms are more likely to sail full. Still, this does not mean that the cruise will have an inordinant amount of kids on it. Many of the KSF spots will be taken by families like me who just rebooked the same room they've had reserved for months, and then many more will be families who were already on the ship and just moving up rooms. That opens a lot of non-verandah rooms that can be booked by anyone at all, kids or not. Many people are turned off by Jan/Feb weather anyway. We just happen to like cruising that time of year, based on past experiences.

I agree with a pp who said it's all what you make of it. If you go into it worrying that there will be a bunch of people (little or big) who will annoy you, then they certainly will. This can happen on a luxury liner or even just in line at the grocery store! We plan to have a blast and thank you Disney for making that blast $2100 cheaper for us!!

 

[Nikki'sMommy]

I'm sorry that you feel that way...There are plenty of other cruise lines that would love your money... Hope you got trip insurance..

 

[jilljill]

There are only a certain number of children that can booked on any DCL cruise for each age category. Once the limit of kids is reached they will not accept any more bookings for kids of that age group. We've been on many sailings that have had the kids booked to capacity and didn't notice any change in behavior, and this includes a KSF cruise this past January.
Each sailing is going to be different in terms of behavior of the guests and the age make up of the kids. There's going to be guests that annoy someone, for whatever reason, on every sailing - please do not lump all the bad apples into the same category just because they are taking advantage of a KSF offer.

 

[NancyIL]

I'm sorry that you feel that way...There are plenty of other cruise lines that would love your money... Hope you got trip insurance..

The OP won't lose money by cancelling the cruise this far in advance.

 

[ImprovGal]

I'm sorry that you feel that way...There are plenty of other cruise lines that would love your money... Hope you got trip insurance..

Trip insurance?

"Hi, I need a refund because I had to cancel my cruise because when I booked I didn't know I'd be cruising with children."

"Certainly, we'll just need a note from your obstetrician documenting your projected delivery date for the twins."

"Oh, I'm not pregnant. Disney Cruise Line just announced a Kids Sail Free offer for my cruise."

 

[rebeccak971]

Isn't complaining about the number of kids (full ship or not/free kids or not...)
on a DISNEY cruise.................kind of like an oxymoron? I mean, seriously.

I agree. DCL is the most child focused cruise line in the world after all. There are plenty of other cruise lines to choose from that would likely only have a handful of kids sailing.

 

[newbydisney]

Thanks for all the great responses! My fave is "Sweet, we will take your room"... Ha HA there were lots of rooms available on this cruise which I am sure is why the promo.

Thanks for very few really negative comments. We love sailing Disney are afraid to sail another line. We have decided to just bring our 17 grandchildren to ease our suffering. ok JUST KIDDING, we do not have 17 grandchildren.

We will probably still take this cuise..as many of you pointed out its what you make it, where you hang out ..and come on its Disney..we knew there would be kids....betting on mostly little ones with school as so many of you pointed out.

I think this is a good dialog and hop to see more comments tomorrow.

BTW we were booked on the Panama as well which I think will have very few children. We are canceling but may rebook if there is a great offer in the few days...and there may be...rumors..

 

[shaylahc1]

Thanks for all the great responses! My fave is "Sweet, we will take your room"... Ha HA there were lots of rooms available on this cruise which I am sure is why the promo.

Thanks for very few really negative comments. We love sailing Disney are afraid to sail another line. We have decided to just bring our 17 grandchildren to ease our suffering. ok JUST KIDDING, we do not have 17 grandchildren.

We will probably still take this cuise..as many of you pointed out its what you make it, where you hang out ..and come on its Disney..we knew there would be kids....betting on mostly little ones with school as so many of you pointed out.

I think this is a good dialog and hop to see more comments tomorrow.

BTW we were booked on the Panama as well which I think will have very few children. We are canceling but may rebook if there is a great offer in the few days...and there may be...rumors..

Can you share what the rumors are? I have been DYING to book the Panama Canal cruise but cannot afford the hefty price tag. I would love to know what the rumors for any discounts are...you can PM me if you'd rather not post it here. Thank you!!

 

[itutorfortravel]

Trip insurance?

"Hi, I need a refund because I had to cancel my cruise because when I booked I didn't know I'd be cruising with children."

"Certainly, we'll just need a note from your obstetrician documenting your projected delivery date for the twins."

"Oh, I'm not pregnant. Disney Cruise Line just announced a Kids Sail Free offer for my cruise."

 

[WeLuvDCL]

As adults sailing, I would think that more kids onboard the less crowded the adult activities (Quiet Cove, Serenity bay, Spa, adult entertainment) would be? Wouldn't this be a good thing? Cat 12 and FL resident rates would concern me more than KSF becasue there is a greater chance of couples with no children sailing and filling up the adult areas.

If you only want the ship to be half full when you sail, then DCL is loosing money and there is nothing you can say or do to convince them to sail a ship half full. You can cancel but they just made about 10 new booking for your one. Not being rude, just the facts.

Have you ever sailed Carnival? If not, I recommend trying it once. It will give you a whole new respect for DCL.

 

[Luvstocruise]

To IluvDCL and original PP, Having more kids on the ship might be a good thing for the adult areas after all.

I like the idea that when people want to escape the kids, maybe the adult areas will not be as busy (such as the Cove pool). I know I want to try out the adult pool for an hour or two, and my friend coming with us can look after my 12 year old son, and my wife and I can hit the pool for some quiet (er) ? time!

To the original PP, glad that you took the comments well, and just remember to let "the little kid in you" out enough to enjoy the "Wonder" and "Magic" (ugh, I know such cliches!!) of seeing the kids' eyes light up at all the amazing things they will find in cruising. I'm 55, but I still get a kick out watching a kid get excited over something "new to them" I am looking forward to showing my son, some simple things like the stars at night out at sea, where you can see the band of heavy stars that make up a cross section of our Milky Way galaxy...the power of the ocean, the crisp cool air at night - remember, these are firsts for many kids.

oh by...I'm getting all gushy and guys are not supposed to be like that??? LOL

Luvstocruise aka Dan

 

[Scrappy_Tink]

I'm really glad you're getting supportive answers....I feel your pain!! Me and DH are Disney-lovers too and kids are mostly grown. Like you, we plan purposely during times when parks will be less crowded, it must be frustrating when Disney flips the script.

We've scheduled our cruise for 15 May, we figured that most parents won't pull their kids from school within a couple of weeks of school getting out because of exams, etc. Like you, we like children, but if we can plan when there will be less of them, it's a plus!

Good luck with your cruise!!

 

[KSDisneyDad]

Thanks for all the great responses! My fave is "Sweet, we will take your room"... Ha HA there were lots of rooms available on this cruise which I am sure is why the promo.

Thanks for very few really negative comments. We love sailing Disney are afraid to sail another line. We have decided to just bring our 17 grandchildren to ease our suffering. ok JUST KIDDING, we do not have 17 grandchildren.

We will probably still take this cuise..as many of you pointed out its what you make it, where you hang out ..and come on its Disney..we knew there would be kids....betting on mostly little ones with school as so many of you pointed out.

I think this is a good dialog and hop to see more comments tomorrow.

BTW we were booked on the Panama as well which I think will have very few children. We are canceling but may rebook if there is a great offer in the few days...and there may be...rumors..

Great attitude!! You did well handling those posters who think that just because you prefer to cruise with fewer kids means you don't want to cruise with ANY kids. I like the balance of kids and adults on the Disney cruises, but felt like it was tilted a little heavier in the kid department on our March kids-sail-free cruise. That said, for that cruise it was during Spring Break and every cabin other than Cats1-3 were eligible for the promotion. I don't think it will be anywhere that bad on your cruise in January because Disney seems to be limiting the number of cabins for which the promotion is eligible and it is a longer cruise during normal school schedules.

We enjoy DCL so much that this Sunday we leave for our anniversary cruise sans kids. We thought about going to an all-inclusive resort or trying out another cruiseline, etc. However, we really enjoy everything about DCL from the sailaway party to disembarkation breakfast. For us, this was the perfect celebration for us.

My DW cruised on another cruiseline last year with her Mom and Sister. It was a Panama Canal cruise in November. She believes there may have been a dozen kids under age 18 on the cruise. She found that she did not enjoy the cruise nearly as much as Disney. There were so many things she missed including the buzz of activity of lots of families sharing the experience with their kids.

 

[Sibahan]

Im my opinion, this is the best cruise for families.. it isnt often that they offer free kids at all.. infact, i have only ever seen it one other time since DCL has been around... unless it was for the 12 day trips. It still is VERY expensive to go, and people with kids, usually DONT go on the Disney Cruise, or take them to alot of dinners.. and sorry to be BLUNT - but there are PLENTY OF OTHER places you can go, with out kids! Including lots of sandals resorts, etc.

Oh and if you dont like as many kids.. keep in mind, you cant put 20 kids in a room, infact, you cant even get away with the infants to NOT count as kids.. personally, i like to have my kids at the clubs alot of the time, and they LOVE it also!@

I like personally to go with my kids ONLY on the disney cruise, and wouldnt dream of it any other way... there is alot for Adults to do, and plenty of places you can go with out the kids.. but bottom line, if you dont like kids, WHY go on a DCL?

If you choose to cancel, thats your perogative.

 

[Silverfox97]

My DH and I took a Disney cruise in 2005, for our honeymoon, and we didn't have kids. We cruised in mid-June, during summer vacation. The cruise was full. We had a magnificent time. We didn't feel "bothered" by kids at all. And, in fact, we didn't even do most of the adult activities (although to be fair, there wasn't nearly enough time to on a 3-night cruise). We did go to Palo, and visited the Quiet Cove pool/hot tubs as a storm was rolling into CC, so the ship was empty during that short time. We were only 26 years old at the time, and like I said, were not annoyed at all by children.

We spent 2 weeks that month at WDW with a 3-night cruise in between. The other cruisers on the Wonder were 1000x friendlier and less rude that the folks that were in the parks. I think you will truly enjoy your experience.

And, remember, there are people like my family --- we are booked on the Jan 3-8th cruise, before they released KFO. However, for us, it would cost us $1,000 more to upgrade to a verandah room -- and that is with our DD 3 1/2 being free!!

 

[jenga]

i think what you have to remember is that it's only the stateroom with the verandah which is still over $3500. i don't think that's a bargain that's going to attract that many more people. i'm already booked for january and it's still more expensive thn paying for my kids in an inside stateroom. i definitely feel your pain but i wouldn't cancel your trip yet. good luck!

 

[tinkerone]

WOW, opp, you may be handling this thread well but the more i read the more i think your right. if the parents can't be civil on a thread and take an opinion without lashing out how can there children possible hope to behave??
the opp has the right to love disney and want to have a nice quite vacation without being told to go some where else. thanks to all who answereed her with suggestions that were supportive.
i will tell you that normally kids don't bother me, most of us have them, but having read this thread i'm ready to take the first one down who invades my territory. watch out!
and really, you think thats her answer????? find another vacation spot????
k, now i'll go to work so i will not see myself being flamed.