Big Red Boat Spotted on DCL!!!

[dbond]

We took our family of 5 on the Big Red Boat in 1997, our first family cruise together and the only thing we could afford at the time. The older kids had a great time with the organized kids activities, the older elementary & young teenage areas were well organized, and obviously not as many kids as there might be on DCL, they were able to do a lot more around the ship than I think Disney does. The ship was so tiny though, it was a little scary when the sea was rough and it made so much noise at night. I thought the rooms for 5 were cleverly designed, we actually had more walking around room and more storage for luggage than the family suite on DCL. I don't think it was bigger, just laid out a little better in order to accommodate beds. More beds came from the ceiling creating loft type beds instead of beds taking up floor space. We really enjoyed the bedtime tuck in by Bugs Bunny. That was a really nice touch. We thought the food was marginal and the dining room crowded. The pool area was slippery and a little on the dangerous side. Our 3 yo slipped on the tile and gashed his face open on the metal pool steps. He had a huge cut and bruise on his face for the entire cruise. Our little guy did NOT like the kids club for his age. We didn't really blame him, it was just a small room with only painted pictures on the wall and lots of screaming kids. He mostly refused to go in. The showrooms were very small and the ceilings very low. It made us feel claustrophibic. The shows were limited in what they could do in those conditions. The entertainment was good, just not very elaborate like the larger lines. We took the kids on the Magic in 1998, needless to say they were blown away by the difference. We also parked next to the Big Red Boat in Nassau and the looks on our kids faces when they looked out their balcony window and saw that little tug boat below was priceless. I think they appreciated where they were a lot more after that. We have also been lucky enough to do a family 7-day Magic cruise in 2001. It just keeps getting better!

 

[eeyoredisneynurse]

My husband and I spent part of our honeymoon on one of the Big Red Boats back in 1989. We had a 7-day cruise/WDW package. We had a wonderful time. We also took a Disney cruise last year with our 2 daughters and my parents. I have to say that the Disney Cruise Line ship was much nicer, and our girls LOVED all of the Disney "magic". But considering that Disney Cruise Line wasn't around 13 years ago, the Big Red Boats were as close to a Disney Cruise that you could get.

 

[inkkognito]

Although we never did the Big Red Boat, we did have an interesting experience on a smaller ship. It was RCCL's Viking Serenade, which they no longer have. At the time, it sailed to Baja, and we took it for the heck of it. What an experience! It was mainly local people from CA, rather than tourists from all over. Since the cabins were broom closet size, the people would just prop their doors open and yell across the halls to their friends. Many would be laying around in their underwear and shouting about some very private subjects for all the world to hear. Our dinner table was a very interesting group...there was one couple in which the husband was literally over seven feet tall, and the others were twin sisters who knew a lot of the crew quite...uh, intimately, as they travelled regularly on the ship. It was a fun cruise in a very Twin Peaks surreal sort of way. The food was up to RCCL standards, and they did a super job with the shows considering that the main theater stage was about like Wavebands in size. Definitely not comparable to DCL, but an interesting experience in its own way.
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[albiats]

I live in NE Florida and there is an Ad in our newspaper's travel section for the Imperial Majesty Cruise Line and the SS OceanBreeze.

It says it departs from Ft Lauderdale and sails to Nassua every other day and the 'from' price is $179 per person. In the corner of the ad, it says to 'call for our fall special' so the price might be even lower.

hth

 

[Hans Solo]

This a great trip down memory lane! My DW and I did the 7 day WDW/BRB for our honeymoon back in 1986. It was my first cruise but my DW was a vetern cruiser. We were on the Oceanic and had a oceanview room with two portholes and a bathtub. We had a great time.

Three years later we won a PCL cruise and went on the Magestic to the Abacos. It was a smaller ship than the Oceanic but it had a cozy feel.

That was the last cruise we took until last December. We did the 3 day with the Wonder. We had so much fun with our children that we rebook the 7 day for next Easter.

What a difference between Disney and Premier. Disney took the best ideas from all the cruise lines, threw in some pixie dust, and came out with the Magic and Wonder.

Lucky for us, Disney is striving to improve the Disney Cruise experience.