Disney Concierge v NCL Haven v Celebrity Retreat for family with teens

[ngl]

I have seen posts regarding the other cruise lines but wanted to know if anyone has comparisons of these specific areas on these lines? We love DCL and are about to go on #5. We have only cruised concierge level for Disney. Our kids are now 15 and 13 and we are a Disney family so still love it all but just looking for different itineraries and options for 2025.

We love the Disney service and also like being in the concierge area away from the busy areas so that is why concierge has worked for us. From what I have researched, it seems NCL Haven or Celebrity Retreat area would be something we are interested in (looking at the newer ships for those lines). Our kids are not really into the teen clubs so that is not a big draw (when they were young it was!) but I am just trying to figure out if Haven and Retreat are mainly filed with adults or do you see families (esp with teens)?

Any comparisons/comments between these three areas specifically on these lines would be greatly appreciated! Thank you in advance.

 

[Mango7100]

We did a Haven week long cruise with our 10 year old summer 2022 and loved it. There were definitely kids and teens(we went in summer). At least on our cruise, the kids were pretty quiet. No large groups or running around. Our 10 year old loved just getting virgin pina coladas and reading her books on the loungers. The upper sun decks are for 16 and older only, but the hot tubs, plunge pool, and lower decks are open for kids. The Haven pools are more for just cooling off and having a drink in them, but there were several times she was the only one in it. We would go out for water slides for about 45 minutes, see the craziness of the main pool and go back to the Haven where the loungers were at most 30% full and it was so relaxing. Loved the bigger suites with more space, she loved the butler bringing treats every afternoon to the room (chocolate covered strawberries, cookies, fruit plates, etc), loved the restaurant. It is a very relaxed, no hurries, pampered vibe. If your kids like just chilling out you never have to leave the Haven. If they want more the bells and whistles, then they may spend more time in the rest of the ship but still will get the benefits of the better restaurant, butler, Haven pool, Haven bar (they will make great mocktails for kids), etc.

 

[HyperspaceMountainPilot]

We haven’t been on the newest class of Celebrity ships, but I do think the retreat area on the Solstice Class ships have been mainly or entirely adults (we tended to do longer less family-friendly cruises on X though). What we love (and frankly, miss) about Celebrity is Luminae (the retreat specific dining room)— a big step up from Celebrity MDR, which itself is a step up from Disney’s average MDR experience (though not quite as extravagant as Remy, I’d say comparable/better than Palo, depending on your tastes).

 

[OKW Lover]

We have sailed Concierge on several of the Disney ships and we have sailed concierge/suite on Celebrity in differing class ships. My answer is a qualified maybe.

First I should say that on DCL, there is a big difference in concierge between the different class ships. The Magic/Wonder class are basically concierge-lite. The Dream/Fantasy class are good concierge. The Wish class is really, really good.

On Celebrity, we were on the Apex in a retreat class ship and their offering is significantly better than all but the Disney Wish class of ships.

 

[ngl]

Thank you all for this feedback. I should have mentioned we have only done Concierge on Dream and Wish and understand that on the older ships it is a bit different. We love Disney and while I understand in many instances you get more for the price on the other lines, in general many people comment regarding the service aspect on Disney v. others. My kids definitely do not run around crazy but I also do not want people "unhappy" that two teens are in those areas (Haven & Retreat) which of course is never something that happens with Disney. Really wish Disney would mix up the itineraries!

 

[mjkacmom]

Thank you all for this feedback. I should have mentioned we have only done Concierge on Dream and Wish and understand that on the older ships it is a bit different. We love Disney and while I understand in many instances you get more for the price on the other lines, in general many people comment regarding the service aspect on Disney v. others. My kids definitely do not run around crazy but I also do not want people "unhappy" that two teens are in those areas (Haven & Retreat) which of course is never something that happens with Disney. Really wish Disney would mix up the itineraries!

I’ve sailed on NCL several times, not in the haven, but I can’t imagine any issue with teens being in there, I’ve never heard any complaints. All of my 5 kids were teens on the ships at dime point, they absolutely loved the teen club and meeting others who became their bff’s for a week (and still kept in touch after the cruises).

 

[Mango7100]

Thank you all for this feedback. I should have mentioned we have only done Concierge on Dream and Wish and understand that on the older ships it is a bit different. We love Disney and while I understand in many instances you get more for the price on the other lines, in general many people comment regarding the service aspect on Disney v. others. My kids definitely do not run around crazy but I also do not want people "unhappy" that two teens are in those areas (Haven & Retreat) which of course is never something that happens with Disney. Really wish Disney would mix up the itineraries!

Dont worry about people complaining about teens in those areas. Tons of families go in Haven since they have a lot of 2 bedroom larger rooms. The only time I have heard people on cruise boards complain about kids in those areas is kids under 16 going in the adults only sun deck or when some kids were unruly and running round/throwing food/ acting a fool.