Can Disney cruise be for adults only?

[mom2boyz]

My DH and I are going on our first cruise and are considering Disney and RCCL. We are going away for the first time in 4 years by ourselves and are concerned that we'll either wish we had taken our boys with us on Disney or we'll wish we had a more romantic venue for vacation. I'd appreciate any thoughts from those who have gone on the Disney cruise without their kids.

Are there enough places on board to feel romantic besides your stateroom? Are there just kids everywhere you go? If we choose the late seating for dinner - will there still be a lot of little kids?

We are looking at the 4 night cruise and wanted a more relaxed, casual cruise which is why we are looking at Disney. We are also worried about seasickness - any thoughts on this?

Looking forward to your responses-

Mom2boyz

 

[Favorite Auntie]

I went as an adult with my parents and had a great time. I did however wish that I had taken one of my nieces/nephews because they would have had a great time. There are plenty of quiet places on the ship where the kiddies are not allowed. You will have a great time!

 

[Hygiene99]

i think u would be finbe Jen and i have done 6 cruises with no kids... late seating we have not sat with children have been put at table with couples...

 

[Nesnboy]

If you are really into Disney, go for it.

 

[CRSNDSNY]

My husband and I do not have children. We have been on one 7-day Eastern and one 4-day together. I have also taken my Mom on a 4-day. We absolutely love Disney Cruise Line and have a really difficult time thinking about cruising elsewhere (believe me, we've researched so many others, but none look at interesting). There is so much to do for adults on DCL. I've heard stories from others that have gone on other cruiselines about Disney being the only line that strictly enforces the adult-only areas. That is so important to us. We are not big drinkers or gamblers, so DCL in that respect is perfect for us.

Some highlights for us 1 - Excursions and Ports; 2 - Vista Spa; 3 - Quiet Cove Pool; 4 - Night-time entertainment; 5 - Castaway Cay and Serenity Bay; 6 - Promenade Lounge; 7 - Palo; etc. etc. I could go on and on listing all of the things we love about DCL, but....you get the picture!

Good luck with your decision!

 

[Miss Eeyore]

I actually like DCL for adults only more than most of the other lines we have been on. Disney is no dummy, and knew they would have to have areas and programming for those wishing to escape the shrieks and cannonballs of the pool. So they have actually set aside more areas for adults than the other lines. Adults have a big pool, the spa and the entertainment district as adult-only. It is lovely, and if you love the Disney atmosphere, you will feel romantically at home on DCL.

Marilee

 

[feenie]

DH and I loved the DCL! there are kids around, but we never really noticed them except when they were being cute, or we went to an activity that was FOR familys!! There are plenty of adult only activitys as well.
We were on the 4 night and loved it, but it was just a little too short for us!!!

 

[Dodie]

My husband and I are planning our second Disney Cruise. We have no children. (We are Disney fans.)

Our spring 2002 7-night Magic cruise was one of the best vacations we've ever had.

If you're interested in detail (although you're thinking of a shorter cruise), I dug up the link to my almost two year old trip report:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=196785

 

[MO Disney cruiser]

Check out the castawayclub.com website. Barb and Tony have taken 35+ DCL cruises without children.

 

[figment52]

The SPA can be very romantic but beware - you may come homewith "a little souvenier" as the commercial says....

I still can't believe they did that commercial - it is the best yet but so not something I expected from Disney

I have cruised solo and did not find the ship too over-run with kids - but then I went when most kids should be in school.

 

[mmouse37]

Add me to the list....we have cruised 9 times on DCL... 2 times without the teens and we are going again this Saturday on the Magic without the kids to celebrate our 25th Wedding Anniversary!!! We celebrated our 20th anniversary onboard without kids back in October of '99 on the Wonder.

Although I wish my teens could come us as we always have fun as a family....two are in college and one in H.S. and can't take the time off.

There are plenty of places for romance other than your stateroom...walks up on Deck 10, the spa, Palo (adult only rest.), the adult only pool, the adult only hot tubs, the night clubs, the lounges, adult only beach at Castaway Cay, your private veranda if chose to have one, etc.

Romance is a state of mind...and with Disney you can be in that state all the time!!!

MJ

 

[CamColt]

I think there is plenty for adults only. We went on our first Disney cruise with our kids and my whole family. DH & I felt we missed out on so much with our kids, that we went back alone to experience the adult aspect of the cruise. It was like a whole different trip. We dined in Palo 1 night, parasailed and went to the adult beach on CC, enjoyed all the nightlife in the clubs, and just relaxed...something we dont do much with our kids.

 

[inkkognito]

Actually, it's a little known fact that on DCL you MUST cruise with kids, and if you don't have any, they are issued to you at the port
Just kidding...hubby and I leave for childless Disney cruise #36 on Wednesday night. We are just big kids stuck in grown-up bodies ourselves, so we always have a blast. I have lots of details in my trip reports, and I'll be posting the latest when we get back.
But beware...I know of at least two couples who have ended up with a little souvenir. That was my favorite commercial!
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[myfourkitties]

My DH and I do not have any children yet and this New Year's will be our fourth DCL cruise. We absolutely love it! Yes there are kids around, but I found that I really didn't notice them all that much (only when they were being bad ). I don't think you can really go on a DCL cruise without you yourself feeling like a kid, but at the same time, there are so many adult things to do (or not to do) that you are never lacking for, well, anything! I would definitely consider making it a 7-day though. Our first DCL cruise was the 4 day land/3 day sea for our honeymoon and it was MUCH too short.

Oh, and about the seasickness...I myself found that the first 7-daty cruise I got terribly sick. But that was most likely because we skirted Hurricane Michelle! I used the regular (drowsy) dramamine and it worked like a charm (the Bonine actually did not help). It actually perked me up and made me feel like doing something. The second time, I didn't need it at all. The experts say that, believe it or not, keeping a little something in your stomach most of the time will actually keep the sickness at bay. Sam's Club carries the econo-pak non-drowsy dramamine. If you have had motion sickness before, it might be a good thing to think about.

Have an awesome cruise!

myfourkitties

 

[twhipple]

DH and I are childless but have gone on two DCL 7 day cruises and have 2 more booked! We love the service and quality we've come to expect from Disney. I went on RCCL with my mom and sister and it was nothing compared to DCL.

Our first cruise we found the kids to be scarce on the ship. The second cruise was New Jersey week, the ship was full and yes, there were a lot of kids, but we just stayed primarily in the adult only areas and still had a great time.

Funny thing happened last time. I was in the laundry room with a bunch of other women. Two older ladies had just left and one of the women said "I can't understand why anyone would take a Disney cruise without children". I confronted her and said I did. She was surprised. Later I thought I should have said "What do you do when your kids are at the clubs?". I'm sure they don't go to the kids and family events all the time when the kids are in the clubs. So I do all the time what they do then! Also some DISers we met seemed a bit jealous that we could go and do whatever we wanted without having to drag along the kids!

As for seasickness, I get queazy very easy and took Dramamine the first time. The second time I didn't and boy was I sorry. We had high seas and I along with many other cruisers got sick. I figure from now on I will take the Dramamine at least the first day until I get my sea legs!

 

[Gupsmom]

I think DCL is perfect for adults without kids as well as for families. BUT..I have to say, I couldn't go without my kids. I'd spend the entire cruise thinking about how much they would have loved this or watching other people's kids have fun.

Sorry to be the stick in the mud, but if I were leaving my kids home I'd probably go non-disney. I'd miss them too much on a Disney vacation (cruise or land).

Jess

 

[jkovick]

DH and I are in our early 30's, have no children and loved our cruise. We actually loved it so much we have booked the Western 1/15/05 sailing for our 10th anniversary. You would never know that there are often 500+ children on the ship cause Disney does a great job of having activities for everyone. I also really like that DCL doesn't have the same old-same old tacky casinos that all the other cruise lines have. For dinner we were seated with two other couples, each that had a 5 yr old daughter. We enjoyed the girls and their stories of what they did in the kids clubs. You'll have a great time.

 

[dtheboys]

WE went w/ out our kids!!!

Let's just say..." What happens on DCL, stays on DCL"


It was fantastic....and no kids...we loved it!!!

Ok, this year we are taking the kids.....I guess we bragged it up sp much, now the kids want to see what they missed.......Oh! If they only knew!

Have Fun!!!

 

[skylynx]

Hello

My sweetie and I have been twice on the Wonder without our kids and found it incredibly romantic (especially when you have a private verandah ;-) We did the wine tasting and went to Palo twice (double-dipping dinners) and got insanely dressed up every night, wandered around the teak deck and did our best imitation of Love Boat moments! On Castaway Cay we swung in a hammock for about two hours staring over our toes at the multicolor ocean hues. We shared huge cocktails at the adult beach bar. We drank wine on our verandah (much cheaper than drinking anywhere else on board ;-) We kept a shared journal. We made adult friends.

In fact, we're traveling for the first time on the Magic in October with some people we met on our very first cruise. So, do not think for a minute this cruise caters primarily to children. It caters to everyone, but is just particularly masterful at making kids happy (and keeping them occupied).

HOWEVER, in five days we ARE taking the kids for the first time...as well as my eightysomething mom and dad. I am so looking forward to this being a completely different kind of cruise experience. We'll see and do different things than we did as a couple--and that's a good thing! I admit, on both earlier kidless cruises I'd have moments of sadness and guilt when I saw some adorable children posing with characters (usually just ahead of us in the queue) and realizing my kids were probably home shoveling snow out of the driveway. But the feelings always went away ;-) Still, I am shivering with delight at what it will be like when my two (DS8 and DD11) first see the ship, and our verandah, and all the fantastic things we know are coming that they will be seeing and experiencing for the first time.

I guess I am happy to say there is just nothing like this cruise experience, and with or without kids...it will be as magical, and romantic, and memorable as you allow it to be!

 

[Nick@ VB+OKW]

Originally posted by skylynx
My sweetie and I have been twice on the Wonder without our kids and found it incredibly romantic (especially when you have a private verandah.....

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