DCL Alternative For Family W/ 6 Year Old

[Rigby]

Hi! We've taken two Disney cruises on The Fantasy but sadly think we're getting priced out and have to look for an alternative cruise line that would be great with kids. Our son just turned 5 and would be 6 by the time we sail again. Appreciate any suggestions. We'd be looking at something in October of 2018 so probably not announced yet but figured the dates will be coming up soon. We're looking for a 6 or 7 night Caribbean run and we love the category 5E staterooms on the Fantasy with the extended verandahs. Thanks for any tips!

 

[Bear3412]

You are not alone.

Search threads here.

Consensuses is RCCL or NCL.

RCCL has better outside lido deck space/pools, NCL is somewhat tight on the lido deck.

Rccl Flowrider, ice rink.

NCL better water slides. Although check height requirements.

NCL better up-charge dinning.

NCL better late night crowds and party.

RCCL has water included in the beverage plans. NCL does not.

Rccl, better adult spaces.

It's a tough call. If you are young, or a group, book NCL.
If a family book Rccl. JMO.

Rccl has calmer, and more amiable folk on the cruise line boards.
NCL folks are a bit ... brutal and abrasive. Although they do have great heart and intentions.
Although misguided at times.

New NCL ships have dining on the promenade deck. It is also open for relaxing/strolling.

Some Rccl vessels lack a promenade outside deck.

Having said my rant.

You have a 6 y/o.

Many praise NCL's kids clubs.
They are closed for lunch and dinner for and hour, unless you pay for prior arrangements.

Not sure of Rccl's kids club hours.

Kid Clubs;
My kids liked all kids clubs about the same. Not much. DCL least, Rccl medium, NCL best, ;
If I / they had to rate them. But my kids are weird, introverts like me, so...
DCL is always a free for all. Rccl a bit tighter. Ironically NCL has really tightened it up lately. And impressed many families.

Although a 6 y/o will not be able to slide on all those visually imposing slides On NCL.

My thoughts for the night.

 

[mevelandry]

We are planning to book the Carnival Vista (brand new ship) soon. I suggest you take a look at it. Our second choice would have been the Carnival Magic (in good shape). Both ship look like they have so much fun stuff for the kids! And it costs half the price of a DCL cruise...

 

[PrincessTrisha]

Carnival Sunshine, Dream, Magic, Breeze or Vista (these are their newest or most updated ships). They offer a variety of dining options (mostly no additional fee) as well as water works (water slides and water play areas) and more current club offerings.

Carnival has partnered with both Hasbro and Dr. Seuss. I think that you'll find those to be right up a 6 year old's alley.

For the adults, you may want to consider a Spa cabin so you have a little extra adult activities to enjoy while the kiddo is at the club. Or you may want a 9C aft wrap balcony.

Carnival kids clubs do close for lunch but they offer that your child can have dinner with the club if you choose (they actually block off a portion of the buffet seating for the kids and bring the food family style to the table). There is a fee for late night (10pm - 1am) but your kid will also come back with enough swag that you'll feel you got your monies worth.

 

[amberwc]

Any experience on Princess?

 

[wilkeliza]

Any experience on Princess?

From my understanding based on someone I know who works for them Princess is great but skews towards couples and older people not families with smaller children. Sure they have activities and a kid's club but the pool may not be as "fun" as other lines.

 

[drb116]

We have experience with a 6 year old on both NCL and RCCL (as well as his brother on Disney and Carnival when he was 6). For what it is worth, our kids LOVE the kids club on NCL, much more so than Disney. The counselors are so much more engaging and the activities are non-stop fun. NCL is the only cruise line where our kids ask to go.

Kids club aside, I think a boat like the Breakaway/Getaway or Escape is best for a 6 year old. He should be big enough to use most of the slides and may be big enough to use the ropes course. On the RCCL boats, he will not be big enough for things like the flowrider or zip line. The ropes course will be an option on both cruise lines.

If you do consider RCCL, I would stick with the Oasis class ships, as they have more family friendly activities (like carnival games on the boardwalk, carousel, family dive show, etc). We did not have a great experience on the Freedom class, but our kids were younger then.

 

[DLgal]

You are not alone.

Search threads here.

Consensuses is RCCL or NCL.

RCCL has better outside lido deck space/pools, NCL is somewhat tight on the lido deck.

Rccl Flowrider, ice rink.

NCL better water slides. Although check height requirements.

NCL better up-charge dinning.

NCL better late night crowds and party.

RCCL has water included in the beverage plans. NCL does not.

Rccl, better adult spaces.

It's a tough call. If you are young, or a group, book NCL.
If a family book Rccl. JMO.

Rccl has calmer, and more amiable folk on the cruise line boards.
NCL folks are a bit ... brutal and abrasive. Although they do have great heart and intentions.
Although misguided at times.

New NCL ships have dining on the promenade deck. It is also open for relaxing/strolling.

Some Rccl vessels lack a promenade outside deck.

Having said my rant.

You have a 6 y/o.

Many praise NCL's kids clubs.
They are closed for lunch and dinner for and hour, unless you pay for prior arrangements.

Not sure of Rccl's kids club hours.

Kid Clubs;
My kids liked all kids clubs about the same. Not much. DCL least, Rccl medium, NCL best, ;
If I / they had to rate them. But my kids are weird, introverts like me, so...
DCL is always a free for all. Rccl a bit tighter. Ironically NCL has really tightened it up lately. And impressed many families.

Although a 6 y/o will not be able to slide on all those visually imposing slides On NCL.

My thoughts for the night.

My kids are weird introverts too and did not like the DCL club. What NCL ship (s) have your kids liked the clubs on?

 

[aggiedog]

We're sailing MSC this summer on the Med. They're prices are fabulous. They are predominantly in Europe, but have one ship here that does the Caribbean, and I keep hearing how good the kids clubs are there. I can't give you first hand info, but you might want to look at them. FWIW, 3/4 of my kids didn't love the DCL clubs. The only one that did just liked beating the boys at video games in Edge.

 

[cruiser21]

My kids like DCL, Carnival and NCL in that order. NCL has some weird rules about 10- 12 checking themselves in and out that's why my son did not like it. We only sailed DCL when my kids were under 10 so I'm not sure how they are for young kids.

 

[wanderlust7]

We're sailing MSC this summer on the Med. They're prices are fabulous.

Would love to hear about it when you get back. We're doing MSC Seaview for the Med next summer. Their Super Family cabins were an especially good deal for 6 people.

 

[Vijoge]

We're sailing MSC this summer on the Med. They're prices are fabulous. They are predominantly in Europe, but have one ship here that does the Caribbean, and I keep hearing how good the kids clubs are there. I can't give you first hand info, but you might want to look at them. FWIW, 3/4 of my kids didn't love the DCL clubs. The only one that did just liked beating the boys at video games in Edge.

We took two of our granddaughters on an MSC cruise when they were 10 and 12. We couldn't get them out of the kid's club. Other parents were having the same problem. Kids disn't even want to go to dinner. The only thing my DGD loved more than kid's club was gelato. AND the kids sailed free!

 

[aggiedog]

That's good to know! Older dds are self sufficient, but ds11 would be happier with club activities if possible.

 

[Bear3412]

My kids are weird introverts too and did not like the DCL club. What NCL ship (s) have your kids liked the clubs on?

Breakaway, Getaway, Escape. .... in varying degrees.

NCL Escape the best, BA next, GA last. I was surprised at the ratings too.
Of course, it could be kid attitude, club counselors, crew rotation, kid count aboard, weather, seas, etc. There is so many variables that may affect the kids satisfaction.
It's best not to go there. Well my kids had all those on DCL, and they lean toward others. So ...

Although as the kids move up, and they age , things change too, as always and expected.
They move up in clubs, they experience different spaces, they may be confused, the could be looking for solace. Or looking for better cruise ship slides. And don't give a squat about parent considerations.

NCL has adapted. Unlike Rccl according to my kids.

DCL; 1-15
NCL; 4 -15
Rccl; 4-18
Over 18; Rccl, NCL, not DCL (under 23)

HTH and JMT's

 

[KashasMom]

I'd go with one of the newer/bigger ships. We've been on the NCL Breakaway and Getaway and RCI Allure and Oasis. It really depends on what your son likes to do. My daughter loves to swim so for that hands-down no comparison to ANY ship - Allure and Oasis. If you want slides check out the Harmony (we're booked for next year). Another area that RCI has it over NCL are the shows. There were at least 6 family friendly shows on our Allure cruise last month. There was little to do with kids on NCL at night. On RCI there's also the rock-climbing wall, ice skating, daily kids' movies, and the carousel on RCI. Your son would probably not be tall enough for the flow-rider or zip line. I thought the food was much better on RCI than on NCL and the specialty restaurants on RCI were excellent. My daughter who is 7 was welcomed in all of the restaurants and enjoyed the food. We also had fun at the Madagascar breakfast. I liked our NCL cruises but as a family we've found that the Oasis class ships are perfect.

 

[egesicki]

I can't say from personal experience yet, but all my research seems to me carnival Vista is a great option. I'm waiting for DCL to release fall 2018 to compare prices, we are very strongly considering Vista out of Galveston in Oct 2018. The family harbor has two types of cabins with split baths and a family lounge. Water park, ropes course, and the sky ride bikes look super fun. Don't get me wrong, we'd love to do DCL again, but if our budget doesn't allow I think we'll have a great time on Vista.

 

[cruiser21]

I can't say from personal experience yet, but all my research seems to me carnival Vista is a great option. I'm waiting for DCL to release fall 2018 to compare prices, we are very strongly considering Vista out of Galveston in Oct 2018. The family harbor has two types of cabins with split baths and a family lounge. Water park, ropes course, and the sky ride bikes look super fun. Don't get me wrong, we'd love to do DCL again, but if our budget doesn't allow I think we'll have a great time on Vista.

We're sailing on this ship this Fall. We are currently booked in the Family Harbor area, but I am considering moving dates to get a Havana Cabana. It almost doubles the price, but it after 20+ cruises this would definitely spice it up it little. I'm feeling a little bored with cruising and this would offer us a different experience.
The ship looks fun for a 6 year old. Camp Ocean I believe has the Dr Seuss theme. My kids would have liked that, but they are teens know. I can almost guarantee you DCL will be double the price next Fall. The Vista comes down in price when it moves to Galveston.

 

[Rigby]

So we've decided Norwegian Cruise Line with a Norway itinerary. Watched the Amazing Race last week and we're sold! Does anyone know when NCL summer 2019 itineraries will be released? Thanks for all the help!!