Cruise Veterans - Would you cruise DCL again or choose another cruise line?

[4cruisin]

Here is my problem.

I want to book another DCL cruise while we are sailing in January. This will be our 2nd DCL cruise; we had our first ever cruise last December on the Wonder. I am an avid reader of this board and from what I can tell, there is no decision to make; DCL is the only choice. I know it is "high end" but I believe it is worth the price.

DH wants to try another cruise line after our trip in January. He feels that the food and entertainment would be better on another line. He did enjoy DCL but feels they should change their shows at least yearly and has heard about the superior food on other ships...midnight buffets, lobster, prime rib etc.

I have to admit that I wish DCL would upgrade their shows every so often and I was not impressed with the food but I felt that the ship, stateroom size, cast members and overall service outweight any minuses. By the way, children are not a factor as we do not have any. All the children we saw on board were well behaved and seemed to be having a great time and we did not have any instances of children in the adult areas.

So, here is my question. If you have cruised on DCL and other lines, which do you prefer and why?

 

[peagreenid]

But,
1. They definately need to make changes to their shows. I don't think that I will be able to get DH to see HERCULES again.

2. Last years Category 5 for the 4 of us was $3600 total with Fall Fantasy discounts. This years Cat 9 for the 4 of us would be $4995. if I weren't getting Travel agent discounts. Disney is no longer going to offer discounts. They are also doing away with the Disney Club. It is difficult to spend $7000-$8000 a year on vacations.

3. Off season the other cruise lines are cheaper. I don't think that 3rd and 4th passengers (children over the age of 12) should be paying $950 each. My neighbor paid $325 on Royal Caribbeans Voyager for her children the same age. Their balcony stateroom cost the 4 of them $2675.00

There are a lot of people happy with other cruise lines. I'd like to try others and see how they are.

smiles Patty

 

[pal2pluto]

Looks like you ought to compare for yourselves. If you're sure you like cruising, try another cruise line (it will likely be cheaper than DCL).

If $ were no barrier, I would cruise only DCL, but I'm still curious about some of the ships with the climbing walls.

 

[Lizziemom]

We (DH nd DS 15 yrs old) have cruised Royal Caribbean 4 times and Disney once. We are going on Disney again for the week of Thanksgiving.

We like both cruise lines, they each have their strong points, below is what we found.

1. Formal nights - RCI more formal on Thanksgiving two year ago than Disney last year. Husband likes Disney for the less formal nights, I like RCI and getting dressed up every once in a while.

2. Food - We both like RCI better, but Disney was not bad, give RCI a B+ and Disney a B. (We are not picky eaters and can usually find something we like)

3. Ship - RCI just as clean as Disney.

4. Crew - RCI just as friendly as Disney.

5. Adult pool - no kids at the quiet pool on Disney, strictly enforced. Not as strict on RCI.

6. Private Island - Disney wins - hands down, Disney gets an A+, RCI a C.

7. - Shows - RCI wins hands down, can't believe we will be seeing the same two shows, Dreams and Hercules a year later.

8. Cabin Size - RCI balcony cabin felt as large as Disney, but split bath is a plus on Disney with the three of us getting ready all at once.

9. Teen Program - Disney wins, they know how to entertain kids, even teens!

We will cruise both in the future, we are just happy to be cruising!!

Lizzie

 

[Gillian]

You didn't have an option for us - cruised DCL & others & will do both in the future!

We have cruised on royal caribbean, on one of the older ships & loved it! But DCL is great too. It's just a little different. We found the RCCL food to be a bit better. There was more of it (4 courses vs 3). Our servers were a little better, but I think that's a random thing.

we didn't think we'd like cruising, especially after spending time on quiet caribbean islands & going on a windjammer barefoot cruise (where you go to dinner in shorts, t-shirts & for me, socks!) but we had a blast! And we're not huge partiers.

we have a 7 day DCL booked for 2004, but I would also like to try one of the newer RCCL ships. They look fantastic! Full price for verandah cabins are comparable, but you can get better last minute deals on non-Disney ships.

We find that the more we travel, the more we want to travel! There is so much to see & do, so little time, and rarely enough money.

 

[bemily]

HI!

I have cruised Norwegian (Norway), Carnival (two times), and Celebrity (two times), and this is my first Disney Cruise. On previous cruises except for the last one, a Carnival), we were without children. I would say of those three lines, Celebrity (who is own by RCCL) wins hands down. Seemed more formal, food was unbelievable, great crew, great food servers. Rooms were decent compared to Carnival and Norwegian.

If i were you, i would go for celebrity or rccl, and try one fo those mega-ships with the ice-rinks, etc )

Sherry

 

[TChrist05]

Hey all.....We cruised about 12 years ago on the Big Red boat...when it was affiliated with Disney at the time...had a good time but did not cruise again until 2 years ago on the Wonder...did the 7 day last year on the Magic and rebooked on the ship for our cruise on 11/30 this year. My problem is that I am afraid that if I book on another line....I will go and compare everything to Disney...and I feel that they are as close to perfect as it can be...now I do know that I don't have much to compare it to...but everytime we cruise on DCL we are treated great and we all have a super time....my wife would kill me if for a whole week I keep saying...this wouldn't be like this on Disney...this wouldn't be like that on Dsiney....so I guess I must just pay a little more and stick with Disney...now I know that they are eliminating the Disney club discount...but are they also doing away with the onboard booking deals and the Castaway club credit? Also, I wish Disney would from time to time offer people who have cruised numerous times with them upgrades when the cabins are vacant....and I realize that most times they are pretty full....it would not cost them anything since you would not eat or drink more in a different cabin category. Anyone have any feedback?
Thanks...Tom

 

[MelissaE1]

Originally posted by peagreenid
Disney is no longer going to offer discounts.

Hi peagreenid,

Don't scare me here... do you mean they are doing away with all discounts? Even the ones for return bookings on the ship and resident rates? Or just the ones for the Disney Club?

There are already so few breaks available on DCL, although apparently they are worth it! (I guess I'll know that in January. )

 

[peagreenid]

The on-ship re-booking and Early booking discounts are the only discounts that they are going to offer in the future, hopefully they will continue with Florida Resident Rates. They used to have Fall Fantasy, Fall Fantasy Plus, SpringTime Magic etc. That they offered for offseason cruising.

smiles Patty

 

[WDWLVR]

I would have liked to seen a 4th option saying I prefer Disney, but would cruise on others as well. I've been on a number of different lines and really do prefer Disney, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't rule out others to try.

 

[imgoingtodisney]

I cruised 4 nights Western Carib on Norwegian last Dec.
In 29.5 days DS10, DH and I are leaving for the Eastern Caribb cruise on the Magic
In the future, when DVC is paid off, DH wants to go on a different cruise line. I only got him to go on the Magic because I told him it is the only way we can cruise while paying off DVC.

 

[TxJasmine]

DH and I have cruised on Carnival 3 times (Fantasy class ships), Princess, Norwegian, Celebrity, RCCL (Voyager class), Radisson, and Disney (3 times - with kids). For young children, I think Disney is the best by far. However, we've now done Disney 3 times and the kids are ready to move on. RCCL - Voyager class will most probably be our next cruise. The Carnival Spirit also looks like a beautiful ship.

For adults, I think Celebrity wins hands down. Their food and service are outstanding. The food on Disney is really mediocre compared to Celebrity. My biggest complaint about Disney (other than the same old shows), is that the ship feels crowded because the average number of passengers per cabin is higher than on other ships.

There are a lot of other cruise lines other than Disney that are also very good. If you don't try - you'll never know what you're missing!

 

[Mjasp]

Interesting to read all your opinions. Keep them coming.

 

[d'Isigny]

we've cruised other lines...still believe DCL to be the best. No other line is as organized in getting you on and off the boat. Only way we will go to another is is DCL does not offer an Alaska or west coast cruise....cant wait till jan for our next...k

 

[tecdavidt]

In our opinion DCL is the best line to cruise on with children. We have been on DCL 4 times with no. 5 this next spring break '03. Sadly our three boys will not be joining us, they are in college. Last year was the last cruise for the "twins" who were 18 at the time. They have been on Carnival as teens and preferred Disney.

Now for my husband and myself we love Disney but Carnival gives you a lot for you money and their food is great. Celebrity is wonderful, very quiet, no ship's horn, no daily announcements over a PA system, the food is great. I would never put my children on Celebrity because they would be bored. They were bored on Carnival but that was a Fantasy class ship. Their new ships are suppose to have a lot nicer children's program.

So yes we would continue to cruise DCL and as a couple only we do cruise other lines. Kathy

 

[Buschfan]

The other lines offer a much better value. We have cruised NCL and Celebrity and would never book Disney again. Disney just can't match the attention that our children got on NCL and Celebrity. It was like our children were a number on Disney. Celebrity had a special table set up before we boarded that welcomed any families with children. The personal touch this created was something special. The other lines also had a better ratio of counselors to children . They were made to feel special on NCL and Celebrity, while Disney creates an environment that they are just another child they have to deal with.