Disney cruise vs Carnival cruise - please help

[footballmouse]

I need to help pushing me to make this decision. I've noticed the prices go up each day. We're looking to go next September (beginning). Here are my choices:

3 day Disney cruise & 4 days at an All-Star Resort w/4 park days or 3 park days & 1 pool day (even though the value resort's pools are about the same as our swim club pool just a little bigger).

3 day Carnival cruise & 4 days at Beach Club or Contemporary w/3 park days & 1 pool day (definately since they have awesome pools).

Price difference is about $1500 at least.

We've been to Disney many times although our last trip was 4 yrs ago, always staying at a value resort or off-site. We'll most likely never take a trip like this again so I want to make sure I'm choosing the best one.

Thanks for any advice or help you can give.

 

[Brian Noble]

I would get cruise comparisons at someplace like cruisecritic.com's discussion board. When it comes to cruising, my wife is an Only Disney Will Do sort of person, so I have limited experience outside that line.

Which option costs more? The DCL+Value one, or the Carnival+Deluxe one?

My gut says do the thing that feels "most splurgy". If you've never cruised before, either cruise will be great. (Heck, even if you are experienced cruisers, either might be great---I just don't know). But, staying at a Deluxe when you never have before, that will be pretty cool.

 

[shalom]

My thought is that the Disney cruise and value resort are a "Disney-Disney" sort of thing -- the cruises have characters and are definitely Disney. If you go on the Carnival one, you'll get to experience something different, a more classic cruise experience if you will, AND you get full-immersion Disney Deluxe to follow up. So in that sense, you're getting more with the Carnival to Deluxe Disney choice, because you're getting both a new cruise experience, and the beloved Disney experience in a new and more glorious form.

I'm guessing that the Carnival choice would be "more" for you because it's been four years since you've done Disney, and if you were all-Disney, all-the-time, you wouldn't even be asking this question. I also like Brian's advice to do what's "most splurgy" -- we don't splurge on every vacation, but once in a while, it's so worth doing.

 

[jdb in AZ]

I need to help pushing me to make this decision. I've noticed the prices go up each day. We're looking to go next September (beginning). Here are my choices:

3 day Disney cruise & 4 days at an All-Star Resort w/4 park days or 3 park days & 1 pool day (even though the value resort's pools are about the same as our swim club pool just a little bigger).

3 day Carnival cruise & 4 days at Beach Club or Contemporary w/3 park days & 1 pool day (definately since they have awesome pools).

Price difference is about $1500 at least.

We've been to Disney many times although our last trip was 4 yrs ago, always staying at a value resort or off-site. We'll most likely never take a trip like this again so I want to make sure I'm choosing the best one.

Thanks for any advice or help you can give.

A 3-day Disney cruise would take you to Disney's private island Castaway Cay (weather permitting) but you really need a longer cruise to get a real feel for cruising. The shorter cruises are go-go-go to try to do everything instead of relaxing.

I assume you're looking at Carnival because of the price. Comparing Carnival to DCL is like comparing Six Flags or another amusement park to WDW. Each has its own niche. It just depends on what you want on your vacation.

Disney cruise lines are expected (rumored) to release their 2013 itineraries in October, and the prices are the lowest as soon as the booking window opens.

 

[Brian Noble]

Comparing Carnival to DCL is like comparing Six Flags or another amusement park to WDW.

Word on the CruiseCritic street is that Carnival has improved their game significantly in the past few years. I suspect that they are less different than the SFI/WDW comparison suggests.

 

[jdb in AZ]

Word on the CruiseCritic street is that Carnival has improved their game significantly in the past few years. I suspect that they are less different than the SFI/WDW comparison suggests.

I wasn't slamming Six Flags or Carnival either. Each amusement park/cruise line has its niche, but only Disney has the mouse. And you have to pay the mouse's salary. Each family has to determine if the mouse is worth it.

 

[nkereina]

My BF and I cruised Carnival out of Port Canaveral on a 4 day cruise to the Bahamas last April on the Sensation. The ship was old and we don't drink much or like the broadway-style shows, so we found ourselves bored sometimes and spending way more money in the casino than we wanted to. While in Port Canaveral, we were docked next to a DCL ship, which I have never cruised on before, and it looked far nicer with more going on. If you have kids, I think the DCL ship would be more enjoyable for them.. I didn't pay much attention to what our Carnival ship had for kids because we don't have any, but they did have a huge slide, mini golf and a kids club area. We still had fun on the Carnival cruise, but I'd choose a different line next time if it were a longer cruise.

One thing to keep in mind that I always forget about on cruises are the excursions. Depending on your itinerary, sometimes it's necessary to book an excursion or you will be bored in the port. We found this to be the case at all of our stops in the Bahamas. Between the two of us, we booked 3 excursions and spent another $500 on those. If you've already budgeted for that, then disregard, but if you haven't, I would go the cheaper option and book some good excursions.

Between your options, I would probably choose the Carnival cruise and the 4 days at BC. BC pool is awesome, and you are spending more time at WDW so I'd rather have a nicer hotel at WDW. I could certainly tolerate Carnival on a 3 day cruise, and would if the price was right. If I was doing a 7 day cruise, I would choose DCL over Carnival.

 

[Brian Noble]

Each amusement park/cruise line has its niche, but only Disney has the mouse.

Sure, but there's something else to consider too---Disney does some things "more differently" than others.

For example, when it comes to theme parks, Disney does things very differently. Only a few other places come even close to replicating that experience. The parks are nearly unique in being able to do what they do.

On the other hand, when it comes to water parks, well....Disney's are fine. But, they are not so spectacularly different from the better water parks elsewhere in the US that it really matters if you go to Disney's water parks, or Schlitterbahn, or Noah's Ark, or Water Country USA, or... Yes, there are a few unique experiences at Disney's parks (e.g. Shark Reef), but overall they are pretty standard, albeit with a thin veneer of "Disney" over the top of it all.

The question for the cruise line is: is it "theme park different", or "water park different." I get the sense (admittedly without a lot of direct experience) that the cruise line is closer to "water park different".

 

[Brian Noble]

One more thought for the OP: the other reason to check cruise critic carefully is that ships can vary *significantly* within a single cruise line. That's less true of DCL's, because they really only have two variations, all built within about 10-12 years of one another. But, with most other lines, there is much more spread between the new ships in the line and the older ones. Some older ships can be very nice if they have been refurbished recently, but it really pays to do your homework on the *specific* ship you are considering.

 

[footballmouse]

Thanks so much for everyone's input.

One of the posters was right when they said we are not all-Disney-all-the-time. I really hope we wouldn't be sick of Disney after the cruise + the parks.

My kids will be 11, 13 & 18 at the time of the cruise (Sept, 2012). They like to swim, love the slides, the 13 yr old would go from the pool to a basketball court if there is one. My dh & I just like to hang out & relax, not big drinkers, not totally against seeing some shows, hopefully the kids will like them. Wouldn't mind having the option of the casino at night while the kids are off on there own but it's not a necessity.

Never even gave excursions a thought. Figured we would roam around where we docked. Is this not a good idea? Is Castaway Bay enough to sell the cruise? I was looking into the interior rooms, 2 definately on Carnival. Would 1 be enough for 5 of us on DCL?

I like the idea of having Disney transport from the plane to the cruise, back to the parks and then back to the airport, ,this would save us on transportation for the first part of the trip. But I like the Carnival price & the idea of staying in a Delux, don't know why b/c we would have more room at the value w/getting 2 rooms. I'm just afraid to splurge too much.

 

[Macprincess]

I’ve done two Carnival Cruises one 3 day Mexican voyage out of CA & 5 day out of Tampa. I’ve also done 3 Disney Cruises one 7 day western (Magic), 4 day (Wonder) and a 4 day (Dream) all out of Port Canaveral. We’re going back on the Disney Dream in May. I’ve also stayed at both The Beach Club and all of the value resorts.

You don’t mention if you have children or not or their ages. Personally, I’m not a big lover of taking kids and teens on the Carnival ships. While Carnival is getting much better at reaching families our experience has been that the ships have more of a party atmosphere. I have been told this is particularly true on the shorter cruises with Carnival. I’m just not comfortable with this especially with pre-teen and teen children along. I also was not impressed at all with their kids clubs. Two of my three children hated them and would not return. The limited kid’s activities felt like a huge afterthought on the Carnival ships. On the contrary I have tons of trouble getting my three kids to leave the Kids club and Edge on the Disney ships. This allows my husband and I much more time to relax and enjoy our cruise. Disney is miles ahead in this area. Over all the ship has more of a family feel with Disney.

After two Carnival cruises I won’t go on one again even if it were free. I wasn’t thrilled on the 1st but gave it a second chance. Now I feel like I’ve been there done that. Honestly, I wish I could get those wasted days and funds back. I would rather have to save longer and wait to go on another Disney Cruise. I just feel the service and attention to detail is so much better on a Disney ship then the other two lines I have cruised with.

Before anyone jumps to the conclusion that I’m an all Disney despite the cost time type of girl. I want to point out that we often stay offsite when we go to WDW. We’re a family of 5 so onsite is often a huge hassle and expense for us. We love onsite but have great memories and vacation staying in offsite resorts and condos as well. I can’t say the same for our Carnival cruises.

The Beach Club is amazing but a Disney Cruise far out shines this resort in my opinion especially when you factor in a trip to Castaway Cay. Besides I would imagine a future stay at The Beach Club (even if far up the road) is a much easier possibility for most families then a Disney Cruise. It tends to be much easier to score discounted, off season rates and promotions like free dining on land then on sea.

If you do decide to try a Disney cruise my advice is to book early. Those rates do climb as the ship fills. Just fair warning they are contagious once you go odds are you will be trying to figure out how to book again soon.

 

[Macprincess]

Sorry OP I was typing when you posted about your kids ages.

 

[Brian Noble]

On the contrary I have tons of trouble getting my three kids to leave the Kids club and Edge on the Disney ships.

Semi-OT, but we (well, technically I) found this to be both a blessing and a curse. It was hard to get my son, in particular, to join us for "family" activities. He was told in advance that dinner was non-negotiable, but he literally wanted to spend every other waking moment with the other tween alpha males in the Edge, and getting him to do anything else (including watching the glacier in Tracy Arm) was pulling teeth.

I get the sense that I'm definitely in the minority, but given Disney's usual focus on things the family does *together*, I found the "separateness" of a DCL cruise to be odd. Not always bad---we did enjoy a few adult-only activities---but odd given the way the parks go out of their way to create attractions that everyone can enjoy. I suspect other cruises are similar, so this isn't a knock against Disney, but it wasn't what I was expecting.

 

[jdb in AZ]

Thanks so much for everyone's input.

One of the posters was right when they said we are not all-Disney-all-the-time. I really hope we wouldn't be sick of Disney after the cruise + the parks.

My kids will be 11, 13 & 18 at the time of the cruise (Sept, 2012). They like to swim, love the slides, the 13 yr old would go from the pool to a basketball court if there is one. My dh & I just like to hang out & relax, not big drinkers, not totally against seeing some shows, hopefully the kids will like them. Wouldn't mind having the option of the casino at night while the kids are off on there own but it's not a necessity.

Never even gave excursions a thought. Figured we would roam around where we docked. Is this not a good idea? Is Castaway Bay enough to sell the cruise? I was looking into the interior rooms, 2 definately on Carnival. Would 1 be enough for 5 of us on DCL? You'd need a suite, which is more expensive than two inside rooms.

I like the idea of having Disney transport from the plane to the cruise, back to the parks and then back to the airport, ,this would save us on transportation for the first part of the trip. DCL charges $35 per person each way to get from the airport to the cruise and/or from the cruise to the parks. Magical Express is free but it only runs between the airport and the resort.[COLOR="blue"]/COLOR]But I like the Carnival price & the idea of staying in a Delux, don't know why b/c we would have more room at the value w/getting 2 rooms. I'm just afraid to splurge too much. I wouldn't enjoy a trip if I had to worry about breaking the bank to pay for it.

And yes, Castaway Cay is amazing.

 

[nkereina]

Never even gave excursions a thought. Figured we would roam around where we docked. Is this not a good idea? Is Castaway Bay enough to sell the cruise?

I haven't done Castaway Cay but I do believe it's a private island. For ports that are not private islands, really research each port to determine where it docks and what there is to do, and have a plan. I've been to some ports that are in the middle of nowhere - for instance, Grand Bahama Island's port was in the middle of a shipping yard. If you weren't headed for an excursion bus when getting off the ship, you'd most definitely need a cab and have an idea of where you are going to get anywhere. It was very industrial and there was nothing around. We had a snorkeling excursion booked here but it got rained out, so we switched to a bus tour of the city which included some shopping. $80 per person for snorkeling, $50 per person bus tour.

In Nassau, there was more to see in the port area but it was mostly shopping so we would have been bored after an hour or two. We didn't know of any "free" public beaches in Nassau, as most of the beach is owned by the resorts that line the beach. We ended up buying a day pass to Atlantis which allowed us to use all the amenitites at Atlantis for the day - including beach and pool, at $120 per person. There are cheaper beach options at different hotels, but of course Atlantis is something to see in Nassau. I wouldn't be surprised if it was difficult to find a free beach to hang out at on other islands as well, since a lot of them are built up with resorts and touristy.

We've also been to some ports (DR, Jamaica) that we didn't feel 100% safe walking around at. There are tourists all around, sure, but we were approached more than once by beggars, drug peddlers, etc. I'd be scared of pick pockets, etc. in some locations.

You can always go back on the ship and hang out there when you want. It's probably pretty empty when in port. But we got a little bored on the ship and knew at the end we'd have a day at sea, so we wanted to do as much as we could at the ports. You can also buy excursions at any time, doesn't have to be ahead of time. You also can wait until you get off and see what kind of excursions the locals are pushing right outside the ship. Just some ideas!

 

[cammie810]

My family has cruised on both Carnival and Disney and enjoy both. That said they are two completely different things! Disney has characters available to the kids (and adults) constantly. They are outside of the dining rooms each night, on deck for parties, etc. This is a huge bonus if your children are little and enjoy meeting the characters w/out standing in line for hours. The food is good and because there are so many children the waiters go out of their way to ensure that you enjoy your dinner while they keep the kids happy. My children are older now and so those things are not important any longer so I dont need to spend the extra $$$ cruising on Disney. They love the food courts, free room service and the pools on Carnival and we like the casinos which Disney doesnt have so the choice is easier now! I agree with a previous poster that there are alot of different Carnival ships and some of them are getting a little dated and shabby. Remember, you get what you pay for. The older ships are much less expensive than the newer ones.

 

[QuickRewardsBecky]

My kids are 10 and 14 and are seasoned Carnival cruisers and they LOVE it! I guess different kids are different but mine love their kids' club, the teen dances, the game rooms, the food (the 24 hour pizza and ice cream in particular), being able to eat supper and see shows with their friends, and all those late night PJ parties (which gives me and the DH a chance to hit the casino and do the formal dining). I'd go with the cheaper cruise on Carnival and enjoy that deluxe room at Disney! I'm so jealous...

 

[shalom]

given Disney's usual focus on things the family does *together*, I found the "separateness" of a DCL cruise to be odd.

I haven't gone on the cruise, but I noticed the same thing with the Disney Cruise video we watched. The only organized family time they showed was the party at the very beginning of the cruise and meals. Everything else (even some of the pool stuff) was pretty clearly segregated by age. I thought it was weird, as well.

 

[MinnieGi]

Hands down I'd much rather stay at Beach Club than a value!! So I'd pick your second itinerary! We just had our first value resort experience at Disney this June for DD's dance studio trip and all of us gave it a thumbs down. The kids were not happy with their pools, the long walk to mug refills and cs, the small room. It just did give us our normal "Disney" special feeling we get when we stay deluxe.

As far as the cruise, I'm sure DCL is awesome, but I think it would be such a let down to go from a DCL cruise to value resort. I'd much rather cruise Carnival and then end the vacation at Beach Club! We have cruised Carnival and my kids enjoyed it a bunch! They loved the "waterworks" slides on the ship, fun kid activities, shows, mini-golf, and just being on the ship.

 

[smb6]

We cruised both Carnival and Disney for the first time this summer....

We cruised Disney the last week of May and cruised with Carnival the last week of July.... so very close together to make good comparison....

Hands down; we overall liked Disney better..... but that is not to say we didn't enjoy Carnival by any means and had we not recently cruised Disney we simply would not have known any different....

If money is a factor (and it almost always is); I would not hesitate to cruise Carnival again....

And for reference; I did cruise with both young children and teens....