What to do for vacation this year?

[rob_jen]

Let me start by saying we love Disney cruising. We have been on the magic twice and the Fantasy 3 times (3 years in a row).

This year we are debating on what to do. We prefer the 7 day cruises as well. We have also sailed on other cruise lines prior to Disney (and kids) and they were OK for some things but can not compare to Disney.

While the Fantasy is a great ship and the kids love it. If the one of the other ships were 7 day cruises we would try them instead. Since we have been on the Fantasy 3 years in a row and we have seen the shows already and we enjoy it we are looking for something possibly different.

We have been to the parks as well.

Thought about the Dream back to back but Nassau is not worth it IMHO.

Any ideas on a vacation that can compete with a Disney cruise?

 

[Saamh]

Have you looked into Aulani? We really enjoyed our 2 trips there. The only drawback for us was having to pay for meals (we love not having to pull out our credit card out over and over again on a cruise)! We had a rental car and visited the North Shore, Pearl Harbor and Dole Plantation. We are hooked on cruising but really enjoyed Aualani (and are not DVC members).

 

[ZephyrHawk]

Have you considered a Disney cruise that is not in the Caribbean? Yes, it's gonna be a heck of a lot more expensive, but totally worth it.

 

[MUN]

Let me start by saying we love Disney cruising. We have been on the magic twice and the Fantasy 3 times (3 years in a row).

This year we are debating on what to do. We prefer the 7 day cruises as well. We have also sailed on other cruise lines prior to Disney (and kids) and they were OK for some things but can not compare to Disney.

While the Fantasy is a great ship and the kids love it. If the one of the other ships were 7 day cruises we would try them instead. Since we have been on the Fantasy 3 years in a row and we have seen the shows already and we enjoy it we are looking for something possibly different.

We have been to the parks as well.

Thought about the Dream back to back but Nassau is not worth it IMHO.

Any ideas on a vacation that can compete with a Disney cruise?

Have you thought about doing something that isn't Disney related? It's a great big world out there.

MUN

 

[MissDaisyofTexas]

How about a Disney cruise to Alaska? Or Aulani in Hawaii?

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

What about a Beaches All Inclusive Resort. Those look pretty great and get great reviews

 

[KBinCO]

I'm debating between booking another cruise and booking Aulani.

 

[vinotinto]

What about a cruise, but going to more interesting ports of call? We really enjoyed the Southern Caribbean itineraries.

 

[dsnydaddy]

Definitely look into the Alaska cruise, you'll love it. If you can take the kids out of school for an educational experience that is not to be missed then do the Panama Canal. The PC cruises are actually pretty reasonable in price. You could do the Mexican Riviera but the prices on those were fairly high compared to a 7 night Caribbean (I could book a 7 night Caribbean for cheaper than a 5 night Mexican)

And as others have suggested, the Aulani is a great alternative. You can almost spend an entire week at the one resort and not tire of it.

 

[KashasMom]

I'm having the same dilemma. We love the Fantasy - have done 2 cruises on her within 14 months - but even my 5 1/2 year old remembered the shows from the previous cruise! And honestly, the itineraries are just not that exciting. I've considered a B2B on the dream but am leaning towards Europe in the summer of 2016, but they'll have to have an itinerary that will blow me away otherwise.... ??

 

[KalamityJane]

Definitely look into the Alaska cruise, you'll love it. If you can take the kids out of school for an educational experience that is not to be missed then do the Panama Canal. The PC cruises are actually pretty reasonable in price. You could do the Mexican Riviera but the prices on those were fairly high compared to a 7 night Caribbean (I could book a 7 night Caribbean for cheaper than a 5 night Mexican)

And as others have suggested, the Aulani is a great alternative. You can almost spend an entire week at the one resort and not tire of it.

Actually, the 5 night Mexican was reasonable if you got in on the first day. It was ~$3300 for 2A, 3K in a 4E. That being said, the PC is super reasonable!

 

[gigi1313]

I echo the recommendations of DCL Alaska... I know it is on my bucket list!

 

[KalamityJane]

The Alaska ones look SUPER cool! How old are your kids?

 

[Luvzmy3boys]

Alaska is great for school aged kids and adults alike! 4 yr old loves it too.

 

[rob_jen]

We would love to go to Aulani but that is out of the question (for now at least). We are in NY - 11+ hours on a flight - insanity.

Kids at 10 and 7.

When we go away we like to go to warm places. Not sure how the kids would like Alaska. They would rather swim in the pools/ocean. But they do like exploring. Again Alaska is a far plane ride.

We thought about an all inclusive resort like Beaches (Very expensive - can almost go on the Fantasy twice for the same cost as 7 days there). We looked into other destinations like Riviera Maya and Punta Cana but dont know how that would be. We went to a Sandals for a day trip once (pre kids) and was not impressed at all.

We were going to do the Magic Southern Caribbean last fall but we changed it (Dumb on our part). I also agree the Fantasy ports are not that great once you have been there many times.

Trying to find a place where the kids would enjoy. Even for a summer trip we are looking to go somewhere. We would take a place somewhere for a week. Not driving in a car (kids will destroy the car). We usually go to a beach for a few days in the summer but would like to look elsewhere now.

 

[KingRichard]

B2B on the Magic instead of the Fantasy. That is what we are doing!

 

[ksucats]

Let me start by saying we love Disney cruising. We have been on the magic twice and the Fantasy 3 times (3 years in a row).

This year we are debating on what to do. We prefer the 7 day cruises as well. We have also sailed on other cruise lines prior to Disney (and kids) and they were OK for some things but can not compare to Disney.

While the Fantasy is a great ship and the kids love it. If the one of the other ships were 7 day cruises we would try them instead. Since we have been on the Fantasy 3 years in a row and we have seen the shows already and we enjoy it we are looking for something possibly different.

We have been to the parks as well.

Thought about the Dream back to back but Nassau is not worth it IMHO.

Any ideas on a vacation that can compete with a Disney cruise?

We have started alternating our tropical vacations between cruises and family friendly all-inclusives. We are doing the Dream in May, but last year went to Sunscape in Curacao and absolutely loved it. We want to go back there, but will more than likely choose Aruba next year to see some place different.

 

[ForMyBoys]

This past summer my co-worker went to the All inclusive hard rock hotel in punta cana. She took her 4 year old and 2 year old and said it was a fantastic trip, and she travels a lot. She loved the food, service and atmosphere. She booked some sort of deal where she had over $1000 in credits so she also did spa services and they did a few excursions. She highly recommended it.

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

What about flying or cruising RCCL to Bermuda?

 

[rob_jen]

We thought about RCCL. We have been on them pre kids. I dont think our kids would enjoy the shows like they do on the Disney cruise.

The kids are now asking to go to Cozumel again to go to paradise beach and to the Magic Kingdom.

Oh what to do.