If you couldnt afford a disney cruise , what would be your second choice cruise line

[NancyIL]

Sorry if I wasn't clear. The prices they show for the room categories (without taxes) are all you see until you select one. And if you don't happen to know that the summary is there OR notice that the price in the right is different than the price on the left side of the screen, the total can be a little shocking. At least for me.
I like that Disney only ever shows one price. It makes pricing at a glance easier. Again, at least for me

It wasn't that long ago that DCL's web site showed a total price that included transfers and insurance - in addition to the taxes! You had to decline the transfers and insurance to see the total cruise price! When I look at other cruise lines' web sites, I know that the taxes are in addition to the cruise fare.

I usually sail on cruise lines other than Disney, and the one I choose depends on where I want to go. My next non-Disney cruises are on Royal Caribbean in 2013 and Celebrity in 2014. I also paid future cruise deposits on Princess and Holland America.

P.S. I can afford a Disney cruise, but usually prefer to pay less for ships with better itineraries.

 

[Bonniec]

Well, if you pick RCCL's newest and most expensive ships, that's going to happen some times. But RCCL has 20 other ships, and those are much more reasonably priced. The Voyager class ships are gorgeous, and you can find some extremely reasonable cruises on those ships.

That's probably true. But I was trying to compare the same class of ships so only looked at Oasis and Allure of the Seas. Disney has always been cheaper.

I wouldn't be opposed to trying a smaller cruise, but then I wonder what they have for kids and families. I've never really looked.

 

[tajz90]

I love Disney and will only cruise Disney.....BUT.... If I couldn't, I'd go with Royal. My kids call it Royal Boribbean, but it's nicer than Carnival and so much more everything compared to NCL.

 

[jdb in AZ]

OP, where are you planning to cruise? If it's Alaska, a good choice for newbies, I would choose a ship that sails to Glacier Bay. First choice for that would probably be Princess.

Otherwise, I would go with Celebrity or RCCL.

 

[sayhello]

That's probably true. But I was trying to compare the same class of ships so only looked at Oasis and Allure of the Seas. Disney has always been cheaper.

I wouldn't be opposed to trying a smaller cruise, but then I wonder what they have for kids and families. I've never really looked.

Oasis & Allure are not the same class as the Dream & Fantasy. They're of a similar age, but that's about it. Oasis & Allure have a gross tonnage of 220,000 tons, whereas Dream & Fantasy are 128,000. Oasis and Allure carry 5400 passengers, Dream & Fantasy 4,000. Oasis & Allure have a crew of 2100, Dream & Fantasy 945. If you're going to compare ships in the same class, compare ships in the same class.

Sayhello

 

[Scrapnana]

Celebrity

 

[samily]

That's probably true. But I was trying to compare the same class of ships so only looked at Oasis and Allure of the Seas. Disney has always been cheaper.

I wouldn't be opposed to trying a smaller cruise, but then I wonder what they have for kids and families. I've never really looked.

I think if you want to compare same class ships, RCCL's Freedom class ships (Freedom, Liberty and Independance of the Seas) are much closer to the Dream and Fantasy than the Oasis class ships, and even then the Freedom class ships are larger than the Dream and Fantasy.

We got great pricing on the Liberty a couple of years ago and had a great cruise but we still prefer DCL

 

[woody73]

. . . I can afford a Disney cruise, but usually prefer to pay less for ships with better itineraries.

I know what you mean.

We are booked on the May 2013 Magic EBTA. It only goes to two European ports (Madeira and Gibraltar), which are repeats of two ports we've been to twice already on our two prior Magic Transatlantic cruises. It's too bad DCL repeats the same ports over and over! The total cost (cruise fare, tax and fees) for two adults in an ocean view cabin is $3,020.

This fall, we are booked on a RCI Freedom Class ship for a WBTA. It goes to some interesting ports, including some we haven't been to yet: Cartegena (Spain), Malaga (Spain), Cadiz (Spain), Tenerife (Canary Islands), and La Palma (Canary Islands). The total cost of that cruise is $1,724 -- for two adults in a veranda cabin.

Like you, "I can afford a Disney cruise, but usually prefer to pay less for ships with better itineraries."

Woody

 

[NancyIL]

I know what you mean.

We are booked on the May 2013 Magic EBTA. It only goes to two European ports (Madeira and Gibraltar), which are repeats of two ports we've been to twice already on our two prior Magic Transatlantic cruises. It's too bad DCL repeats the same ports over and over! The total cost (cruise fare, tax and fees) for two adults in an ocean view cabin is $3,020.

This fall, we are booked on a RCI Freedom Class ship for a WBTA. It goes to some interesting ports, including some we haven't been to yet: Cartegena (Spain), Malaga (Spain), Cadiz (Spain), Tenerife (Canary Islands), and La Palma (Canary Islands). The total cost of that cruise is $1,724 -- for two adults in a veranda cabin.

Like you, "I can afford a Disney cruise, but usually prefer to pay less for ships with better itineraries."

Woody

You got a great deal on the RCI Transatlantic!

Like you, I am booked on the same DCL Transatlantic cruise next May. However, I will move it to something else or cancel it, because 2 European ports plus Castaway Cay aren't enough for me on such a long cruise.

Some people said they would rather wait for a good deal on DCL than go on another cruise line. I would rather wait for a great itinerary on another cruise line than go on a cruise that really doesn't interest me.

 

[holden]

I find this thread very interesting. We did the Magic NYC this summer and were disappointed. We have more than 15 cruises with Royal Caribbean (can't remember the exact #) and will continue to sail with them. I guess we have become used to the "extras" that RCCL offers - H2O Zone (large water play area), ice skating rink, mini golf, rock climbing wall, Promenade shops/food, etc. The Magic was lacking magic for us - main pool is the size of our pool at home, Mickey pool frequently closed for cleaning because of unpotty trained kids, disorganized staff for games/events (we waited about 40 min. past the time our animation class was supoosed to start because the cast member was still clearing dinner place settings from the tables to accomodate people who were way late for the class - just one example), etc.

We are Disney lovers and have come to expect the best from Disney, so maybe we were expecting too much. We also should have realized that the ship was older and lacking the "bells and whistles" we have come to enjoy. The service was great, but it is on RCCL too.

Maybe the Fantasy and Dream are better....but for now we'll stick with RCCL.

 

[caribear]

Royal Caribbean.....but with that being said...if you are looking at Oasis or Allure then pricing will be comparable with Disney. My family and I had the the best cruise thus far on Oasis.....so much to see and do.....didn't get to do many things we wanted to....so we need to go back and do it all over again! I have also been on Navigator and Adventure of the Seas....both are great ships too! My cousins just got back from the Explorer to Bermuda and had an incredible time!

I am not loyal to any particular cruise line, but I do favor Royal Caribbean and Disney......but would also not hesitate to do Princess again. I do like the newer and bigger ships though.

 

[tajz90]

Royal Caribbean.....but with that being said...if you are looking at Oasis or Allure then pricing will be comparable with Disney. My family and I had the the best cruise thus far on Oasis.....so much to see and do.....didn't get to do many things we wanted to....so we need to go back and do it all over again! I have also been on Navigator and Adventure of the Seas....both are great ships too! My cousins just got back from the Explorer to Bermuda and had an incredible time!

I am not loyal to any particular cruise line, but I do favor Royal Caribbean and Disney......but would also not hesitate to do Princess again. I do like the newer and bigger ships though.

Love your contact pic

 

[cyclenut]

Everytime I price out Royal Carribean, it ends up costing more than Disney once I factor in all the costs like tax, fees, beverage packages, etc. Then again, I have only looked at Oasis and Allure.

Oasis and Allure are the newest and largest ships in the fleet. They offer a completely different cruise experience than anything Disney can offer, primarily due to the sheer size of the ship. For a closer comparison try the Freedom or her sister ships. Even then, those ships are much larger and offer more, but they are cheaper.

We sailed the freedom I June and our total out of pocket cost, including excursions and on board expenses, was less than the DCL cruise fare alone.

 

[disneyholic family]

I also thought I was the only one. I have seen countless posts over the years about how sailing on RCI was half the price of Disney. And yes, I did see the post above about the older ships. But for the past few months, I have also been pricing RCI Oasis and Allure, even way out into 2014 and don't see any less expensive rates for the categories I am looking at. I also see the size of the staterooms compared to Disney and don't feel that Disney is a bad value at all now that I've priced for myself. I will still try one of those ships in 2014, but still have 3 Disney cruises before then to look forward to!

the Oasis Dis cruise has very reasonable pricing.

have you checked that cruise?

here's the link:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2960864

 

[disneyholic family]

DD just sailed on RCCL's Radiance of the Seas a few weeks ago - it was her first non-DCL cruise and she said it was FANTASTIC!
the most fun she's had on a cruise ship ever.

i haven't tried RCCL yet, but i'm booked on the first non-DCL dis cruise next august on the oasis of the seas. I'm very much looking forwards to it!!

 

[JeanfromBNA]

We just got off a Celebrity cruise, and thought that service was disorganized and sub-par to Disney. Not only was the customer not always right, we had to figure it out/get it/do it for ourselves. I could tell horror stories about sorting out billing errors and rudeness at "guest services." DH said that he was glad that Celebrity wasn't his first cruise, or he wouldn't have gone on another.

So if we're doing a mass market cruise again, it will be Disney or we won't go. Our vacation time and dollars are just too precious to blow on a bad experience.

 

[NancyIL]

We just got off a Celebrity cruise, and thought that service was disorganized and sub-par to Disney. Not only was the customer not always right, we had to figure it out/get it/do it for ourselves. I could tell horror stories about sorting out billing errors and rudeness at "guest services." DH said that he was glad that Celebrity wasn't his first cruise, or he wouldn't have gone on another.

So if we're doing a mass market cruise again, it will be Disney or we won't go. Our vacation time and dollars are just too precious to blow on a bad experience.

Which Celebrity ship?

 

[tajz90]

our vacation time and dollars are just too precious to blow on a bad experience.

amen!!!!

 

[declansdad]

We have only cruised twice so far and both times have been with Carnival. We had a great time and wouldn't hesitate to cruise with them again.

 

[sandiegosusie]

Everytime I price out Royal Carribean, it ends up costing more than Disney once I factor in all the costs like tax, fees, beverage packages, etc. Then again, I have only looked at Oasis and Allure.

We are finding the same...not interested in one of their smaller ships.