Is Disney smoking crack or what???

[Justthe8ofus]

Personally we are Italian and family of 5 and, I have been to Europe ( without kids ) and I wouldn't do Europe with kids under 13 at any price..almost..free ???
Why ? Europe is port intensive and requires tons of walking which is not feasible with young kids. Not only that, the beauty of Europe is in their history, the art, the monuments, the architecture. Not exactly buzz words for kids who want to be entertained. ( " I need to go to the bathroom...I'm bored...I'm tired...I'm hungry ..Don't touch that statue "...GET THE PICTURE !! )

IMHO even if you can do a European cruise for thousands less on a different cruiseline, you would be still spending $$$$ of dollars to not FULLY enjoy the beauty and history that is Europe.

And, please before all of you who have done Europe with your young kids flame me, unless you have also done it without kids you cannot possibly compare the enjoyment and/ or fullfillment of both. By the way, we always go on vacation with the kids and until they are older we will not be taking them to Europe even if I have family there.

You sound like my DH. I do tend to agree. DH and I have been to Europe 3xs sans kids. We had a blast but said to each other many times "the kids would hate this" lol.

 

[ga9497]

You sound like my DH. I do tend to agree. DH and I have been to Europe 3xs sans kids. We had a blast but said to each other many times "the kids would hate this" lol.

But it would depend on the child. Each family has to know their children and what would work for them or not. In our family our children love to travel, we have been taking them on vacation since they were little. They especially love Europe, the history, the difference in culture, etc

What is good for one family may not necessarily be right for another and we have to respect each persons outlook on it instead of saying you are right or you are wrong

There are also the people that don't have the luxury of leaving their children with a family member while the parents go away on their own. For those that do count your blessings

 

[crzy4magic]

On the ship we were on only 1/3 of the dining room space was set aside for traditional dining and there was a waiting list 100s of cabins long. From checking Princess boards it appears you have to book really early to be guarenteed traditional dining. Disney's rotation far exceeds NCLs Freestyle and Princess' Anytime Dining

 

[TonytheWop]

You sound like my DH.QUOTE]

Smart man!!
By the way..I have twin 6 year-old boys also and, I don't think Europe can survive a visit from them !

 

[Tink rules]

The flights alone are beyond reach for us. With the economy in the tank these new cruises I suspect are geared mainly at the british pound which is a ever constant flow into the Disney coffers.

That one is going down too... We have lots of friends who came over to do the PC repo and they won't even have to FLY to do the Baltics and they've said it was too much for them (and they did stays at WDW & DL afterwards...)

The good old days are over for now... the bubble has burst.

The Magic just came out of drydock but from what I have read not much was done during the drydock

Most was done to the engines, etc... the rooms got flat screen TV's and new carpets were layed in the hallways... Cove Cafe got new seating... Beat Street got spruced up...

 

[gamomof2]

we were on a 4 night bahamas recently on DCL. The rebooking agent said that this was the first cruise that she had seen the economy affect things. She said normally she rebooks around 40-45 cruises during that week but this time she had done about 20. She thinks this is how things will be for a while. Also she said the 50% off deposit would be a permanent thing for onboard booking.

 

[Justthe8ofus]

You sound like my DH.QUOTE]

Smart man!!
By the way..I have twin 6 year-old boys also and, I don't think Europe can survive a visit from them !

lol I could say the same for my twins. Spending the day at the Louvre would not be their idea of a "good time". I would be a little concerned if it was.

 

[cruisinmama06]

In the end, we can go on a different cruise line and save $$$ but, we decided as a family, that the extra $1300 was worth it
for a chance to cruise with Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto , Pooh......

Which is the reason I did Disney twice, both Magic and Wonder. So I agree, everyone should do Disney..at least once.

But AFTER you do it (and in my case do it again and 8 other cruises ) there comes a time when you have to decide if the $$ is STILL worth it. And when I pay top dollar, I expect top dollar. The older Dis ships just don't have it for me anymore.

But I still LOVE Disney. That's not going to change. We still LOVE to stay at Wilderness Lodge before every cruise out of PC. And we will continue to do WDW every year, no matter the cruise line we sail.

Oh and you're right, NCL is NO comparison. I could have told you that.

 

[Tink rules]

I would still want to sail with Disney... I don't like all these glitzy cruise lines and I'm not into the Vegas style that they have... I don't need the casino and I don't drink alot...

But when they price themselves out of the market it forces people to look elsewhere whether they want to or not.

They had someone on CNBC today from Vail and they were saying that their bookings were off 40% for this year and that they expected to run specials and get people booking and deciding to go much sooner to the date of travel than plan in advance like they have in the past.

 

[Mom2PrincessesLinSy]

Have to say, been watching this thread for awhile now. We have been planning a Baltic cruise for our 10 year anniversary (which will actually be in 2009) but want to postpone it now and do the cruise with Disney.

I have exhaustively researched ALL the Baltic itineraries on ALL the different lines. One would have the ports we want, but not on a date that would work. There are actually limited dates for the Baltic (just like in Alaska) due to the cold weather! Some cruises seem too short, some seem to long.

Our biggest concern is what to expect from different lines. We did HAL for Alaska, and were actually disappointed. The room was much smaller, the shows SUCKED (there is no comparison) and the ship just seemed, well, not Disney! But we had no choice, Disney didn't do the Alaskan itinerary when we went, so we HAD to choose another line!

Up until last week, we had settled on the fact we were probably going to have to again choose another line to do the cruise of our dreams. I still hadn't made a decision on which line to do even after months of research!

Now, here we are, and I don't have to make the decision, its been made! The ports we want, the dates that will work for us, and the fact that I can now take the kids (I wouldn't have considered the Baltic cruise with kids on any other line, personally). We were married in Disney, we honeymooned in WDW and on DCL, and this will be a wonderful "marriage" of the cruise we wanted with the nostalgia of our Honeymoon. Now, do we do a vow renewal on the boat, in a port of my ancestery (Norway, Sweden or Germany) to just top off the perfect cruise? Not sure.

Sorry to be long winded, but I totally understand the frustration of PP. I would completely LOVE it had the cruise been cheaper. Truly, I would. But the Baltic cruises aren't cheap compared to TA or Med cruises on ANY line. Trust me, I've looked. So, what we have set aside for our Baltic cruise will need to be added to, but now I have an extra year to save the money. I think it will be well worth it!

We too, are poeple who have done the carribean multiple times now, and have no interest in doing it again, except when it is Disney. I am really glad Disney has chosen some new and exciting ports. There are only so many times I want to pay to go to the beach, which I can go to in the US, as well as the Carribean.

You can't get the Berlin wall anywhere but a Baltic Cruise. You can't get the old castles in the Carribean. You can't get Russia/St Petersburg ANYWHERE else but in the Baltics (unless you travel there, which I wouldn't ever want to do for an extended period of time! I can't see the Norwegian Fjords anywhere but, well, Norway.

And to do this with my children, with the Magic of Disney, princesses (whose stories come from many of these Baltic ports!), mermaids and a Mouse is something I am willing to save for to experience.

 

[ga9497]

Does anyone think or is it just me that most other ships look so much like a CASINO. I see it a little in Disney too but some of them just have that ugly Casino carpet.

If you are looking at Carnival, yes. If you look at Celebrity, Holland America or Princess you don't get that feel

 

[Furrocious]

I have to agree with those who have said that it is the Disney EXPERIENCE that many of us are after, and that's what we are paying for. Sure, we could go on another line, but for our family that would defeat the point.

We and our two little Princesses feel right at home on the Magic. Coming aboard feels like coming home in some ways.

We recently have expanded to bring the Grandparents with us on our journeys, and they also found the experience of Disney with their grandchildren to be suitably enchanting.

Cruising on the Magic is a comfortable and predictable enough experience for us, combined now with the excitement of new ports. We are so excited to be booking in for the Baltics and the Med. For us the cost is almost irrelevant in terms of the anticipation, excitement, and special family times that we know it will bring for us.

I know that we may not be the norm. We are blessed financially (I wonder for how much longer though....I'm trying not to look at the portfolio), and this is something we are grateful for everyday. We see these new itineraries as a unique opportunity to get a brief taste of Europe that might otherwise not be possible, or at least as enjoyable for us, with our young children.

We are hoping that Disney continues to expand their repertoire so that we can have a vacation that the kids love, and keeps things interesting for the adults, on a regular basis. The Caribbean was getting a bit tiring for us.

Bring on Europe!!!!! Thank-you Disney!!!

 

[goingsouth]

We are planning to book, not a balcony like we had before, but we still want to go. That being said, I am expecting an over-the-top experience for the big money. I don't want to see less of anything. I want it to exceed my expectations. . Hey- I can dream, right?

 

[MaryJPixie]

I have been debating, at first I requested price quotes, but when my TA told me I'm looking at 10g's for a CAT 3 .....5 DAY 2010 special cruise on the Wonder in June with 2 stops at CC, I started having second thoughts....I emailed her back and told her we may want to do a CAT 4, then I emailed her back and told her to forget about booking on Oct 14......It will be our 15th wedding anniversary and I wanted to do something really great.....I may just do a regular Land/Sea instead........I'm sure that these special cruises are sooooo worth it ....but the "investment" is pretty steep. My TA is great too...I have changed my mind so many times, but I just can't see 10g's for a 5 day!!!!! I can only imagine what the prices are for the Europe cruises YIKES!!!
Mary

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Yes.. you are correct but do you realize on the same line a Balcony room is only 185 square feet compared to the Disney Balconies at 268 to 304. I wouldn't stay in a Balcony room on Carnival Liberty with 4 people in 185 square feet. For 2 people it would be fine but a family no way...

Thanks...

sorry to keep beating a dead horse...
your DCL measurements are including the balcony whereas your Liberty measurements are just the cabin itself.
On DCL the Cat 5-7 cabins are the same size at Cat 8-10, any additional sq. footage is the balcony.

just keeping facts straight.

 

[Joan1]

I have to agree with those who have said that it is the Disney EXPERIENCE that many of us are after, and that's what we are paying for. Sure, we could go on another line, but for our family that would defeat the point.

I agree, but for those that cannot afford, or willing to pay, the big price that Disney is asking then their only other option, if they want to cruise Europe in 2010, would be to look at other cruise lines

 

[disneyfreakjackie]

OP ... I think you're right!!! We are SERIOUSLY considering RCCL for our August 2009 cruise ... we currently have the 8/15 Eastern/Tortola booked with Disney, it KILLED me to log on to the RCCL site, but I did and we can get a NINE night cruise right out of NJ at a cheaper rate. We live right in NJ so there would be NO FLIGHTS to purchase (for six) HUGE added bonus.

Now, I'm a die-hard Disney FREAK, but the cruise prices are getting really out of control. People at work RAVE about RCCL ... say we are INSANE to pay DCL prices. I have always said NEVER, DCL ONLY for us ...

LOVE YOU MICKEY!!! Unfortunately we may only being seeing you in WDW!!

 

[OurDogCisco]

sorry to keep beating a dead horse...
your DCL measurements are including the balcony whereas your Liberty measurements are just the cabin itself.
On DCL the Cat 5-7 cabins are the same size at Cat 8-10, any additional sq. footage is the balcony.

just keeping facts straight.

Sorry to beat your dead horse theory but even if you took the square footage out of Disney for balcony. DCL Category rooms 5 to 7 are 214 square feet and then, 54 square feet for the balcony where on CARNIVAL LIBERTY it is 185 square feet for the room and 35 sq feet for the balcony. Also, on CARNIVAL LIBERTY most of the Balcony rooms only sleep 2 which isn't really family friendly. On this particular ship the oceanview rooms are bigger. I was comparing this line because it does go to the Baltics. No point in comparing unless the ship actually sails that internary. Those are my facts. If you want to verify them go to this site:

http://www.cruisesonly.com/c/stateroom.asp?lineid=1&vessel=441&itineraryID=&startdate=&enddate=&dsc=

Good luck..

 

[Joan1]

Sorry to beat your dead horse theory but even if you took the square footage out of Disney for balcony. DCL Category rooms 5 to 7 are 214 square feet and then, 54 square feet for the balcony where on CARNIVAL LIBERTY it is 185 square feet for the room and 35 sq feet for the balcony. Also, on CARNIVAL LIBERTY most of the Balcony rooms only sleep 2 which isn't really family friendly. On this particular ship the oceanview rooms are bigger. I was comparing this line because it does go to the Baltics. No point in comparing unless the ship actually sails that internary. Those are my facts. If you want to verify them go to this site:

http://www.cruisesonly.com/c/stateroom.asp?lineid=1&vessel=441&itineraryID=&startdate=&enddate=&dsc=

Good luck..

Carnival, RCCL, NCL, HAL, Celebrity, Princess, and others all sail the Baltic itineraries, none of them have their 2010 information available as of yet. They are usually out in the spring for the following year

 

[Tink rules]

I have been debating, at first I requested price quotes, but when my TA told me I'm looking at 10g's for a CAT 3 .....5 DAY 2010 special cruise on the Wonder in June with 2 stops at CC, I started having second thoughts....I emailed her back and told her we may want to do a CAT 4, then I emailed her back and told her to forget about booking on Oct 14......It will be our 15th wedding anniversary and I wanted to do something really great.....I may just do a regular Land/Sea instead........I'm sure that these special cruises are sooooo worth it ....but the "investment" is pretty steep. My TA is great too...I have changed my mind so many times, but I just can't see 10g's for a 5 day!!!!! I can only imagine what the prices are for the Europe cruises YIKES!!!
Mary

Make sure you price out the land/sea separately - you tend to save money