Disney Cruise vs. Royal Caribbean??

[NorthernON_MOM]

We are having a very hard time deciding between a 3 or 4 day Disney Cruise and a 4 or 5 day Royal Caribbean cruise. Is there anyone who has cruised both companies and can give me advice on which would be better. BTW it is for 2 adults, no children and it is to celebrate our 10th Anniversary

 

[staceymerrill]

none of the 4 or 5 day RCCL ships can begin to compare to the Wonder from an aesthetic, entertainment, and overall service perspective...On the other hand, the Voyager class ships, particularly Navigator and Mariner, are IMO the closest to DCL ...However, they only complete 7-day itineraries....

 

[awatt]

I disagree. Our first cruise was on Sovereign,an older ship even then,and it was wonderful. In some ways better than the Magic. Each ship/line has its plusses and minuses.

I would recommend RCCL for the following reasons: We found dining room service was more upscale on RCCL, equivalent to the service we got in Palo. Evening entertainment was more varied for adults on RCCL. Overall feel of the cruise a little more upscale with RCCL: DCL is more casual. Lastly,the shear number of kids on DCL makes it different- for an adults only cruise would prefer not quite as many kids all over the place ( and I love kids so I'm not one of those who doesn't think kids should be on cruise ships).

Before you start the flames,you will see from the trip reports board that I have alot of positive things to say about DCL. We had a great time last month. They cater to kids and families and do a good job. But for an adult-only cruise I would unquestionably choose RCCL.

Finally,check out the RCCL boards on cruisecritic.com,and ask some questions from those who have just returned from the ships you're considering.

 

[NorthernON_MOM]

As a first time cruiser would you then recommend the RCCL Enchantment of the seas 4 night cruise or the DCL 3 night cruise? thanks.

 

[awatt]

I have not been on Enchantment,so cannot speak specifically about her. That said,I would still recommend RCCL for a first-time cruiser travelling without kids.

Go to cruisecritic.com and post questions to those who have been on Enchantment and you should get specifics. Good luck.

 

[awatt]

There's a decent thread fromrecent enchantment cruisers on cruisecritic. I'm not sure how to do a hyperlink but will give it a try:

http://messages.cruisecritic.com/2/OpenTopic?a=tpc&s=927093444&f=408097554&m=8443027867

Well,not exactly a hyperlink but you can cut and paste it into your browser.

 

[mcgrawfan]

NorthernOn Mom--- There is a thread on this board about DCL for adults. You should check it out.

Overall feel of the cruise a little more upscale with RCCL: DCL is more casual.

We enjoyed the more casual atmosphere. Also there may be many children on the DCL ship, but we hardly noticed them. Disney keeps the kids entertained in the kid's clubs. There is a lot of adult only entertainment on the ship as well.

 

[cindysteve]

We have sailed on both the Wonder and the Voyager of the Seas. Both were wonderful times. Disney's Castaway Cay is nicer than Labadee. Rooms were bigger on the Wonder. Kids clubs were both surprisingly high quality. More sporting activities on RCCL Voyager class ships (ice skating, roller blading , mini golf, rock climbing wall, basketball) but you stay pretty busy on Wonder as well. RCCL was cheaper. It all depends on the experience that you are looking for.
-Cindy

 

[awatt]

On teh 1/17 Magic,there were nearly 1000 kids on board. No exaggeration,this was per one of the counselors. And they were everywhere,not just in the kids clubs. So maybe it depends on when you are sailing.

 

[disneybride96]

We are 2 adults...no Kids....just came back from the 1/25 Wonder. We were worried about the "overrun with other people's kids" issues.

Let me tell you, the only time we noticed kids was when they were being cute! We did wake up one morning to noise from neighboring cabin, "MOM, DAD....Wake up! Get Dressed! We are missing everything!" How cute...just cracked us up!

I would admit, I don't think I would want to do DCL during the summer months, as I would not do WDW during the summer. Most of the kids on our cruise were preschool age. We saw alot of adult only parties....but I would think the summer would be more families.

There are a ton of adult activites. Route 66... the Spa...Serenity Beach...Wine tasting...Palo's. It is the first cruise I have been on where I felt there was more that I still wanted to do. Of course, we are just big kids at heart so the Disney atmosphere is perfect for us. I personally prefer the more casual approach.

 

[alexandrew]

do you really think the Sovereign of Seas is comparable to the Wonder????.....Isnt this ship old, with much smaller staterooms? How is the entertainment? I always thought non -Voyager class ships offer only Vegas style cabaret entertainment????

 

[awatt]

My point re Sovereign was in response to the statement that the 4 or 5 day ships cannot compare. Recall I said it was better in some ways,that doesn't translate into comparable,please don't put words in my mouth. But when I think about it was just as happy on Sovereign as teh Magic. So maybe they are comparable in some ways.

Depending on what you are comparing- yes it is comparable,in some ways better. On Sovereign,our waiters knew how to take a cocktail order,and had memorized it on the second night. Not so on the Magic,they screwed it up for the first 3 nights,then we gave up. On Sovereign,our waiters gave us clean utensils after each course,not so on the Magic. On Sovereign,unsolicited, we saw our head waiter nightly and he was fastidious in making sure we were happy. Only saw our head waiter the first night on the Magic and was not seen again. Dining room service on Sovereign(and Radiance too) was similar to Palo on the Magic,but you didn't have to get a reservation every night. Also we did not get the nightly "excellent" speech etc,it was only mentioned the last night that to fill out the cards is very important.

The adult lounges were larger and had a better variety of musicians. Shows were not just cabaret shows. I remember one very funny comedian. Also the adult lounges had some great views.

Rooms are definitely smaller as it is an older ship. Also no characters or Disney shows. Movie selection was less.

With less kids on board (though there were kids)I did not see the little boys having spitting contests off the deck next to me, nor the nightly tantrum the little girl at the table next to ours would have- and her parents would just sit there. Noise levels in the dining rooms was significantly less.I don't think these things are romantic,LOL.

So I guess my point is twofold. First,do not dismiss the older ships as you can have a very memorable cruise. Ours was excellent. And in some ways better than the Wonder. Looking back on our cruises we had a great time on all -for different reasons. I actually liked Radiance and Dawn better than the Magic.,Sovereign about the same- for different reasons. Second,if I were to do an adult-only cruise and looking for romance as the OP stated,I would choose another line over DCL,and yes maybe even Sovereign an older ship.

 

[NCRedding]

We did the Radiance of the Seas to Alaska last summer. We really wanted to like RCCL because of the expense, but RCCl just doesn't do it for me. I found the food on the Radiance to be of poorer quality than DCL-most meals were lukewarm; I found the wait staff less capable than on DCL. I had 5 negative encounters with staff on RCCL. I've never had a single one on DCL . There were many times that I was bored on RCCL--when I had circled 2 things all day I wanted to do--on DCL, I ususally circle 2 things an hour. There were only 120 kids under 12 on our cruise, but it seemed "overrun" with kids, something I've never felt on DCL. I'm not a gambler or a bingo person so I didn't feel that there was much adult entertainment. As to the shows, they had the Osmonds (the 3 older brothers) perform one night. The RCCL productions had excellent talent, but sophomoric staging and correography. The shows were after late seating dinner (which dragged until 10:20 or so) and being eastcoasters, that was hard to enjoy.

On our last Wonder cruise, I remember looking over at the Sovereign docked next to us in Nassau, and there were easily 60 people leaning on the rail of the deck watching the deck party we were having on the Wonder.

It's DCL for me, even if I were just traveling with DH.