Disney v. Royal Caribbean

[bonnielynn]

Just wondering if anyone could compare these for me and let me know which would be the better choice? I have 2 boys that are gonna go with me this year.. we have never cruised, and they are 8 & 16. I love disney, but for the money I would shell out for Disney on an inside room.. I could have a verandah on RC....

Help me decide.

 

[HUFF590]

You will not ever use the verandah if this is your first cruise to busy and the kids? well its Disney nothing more to say.

 

[Minnie&Mickey]

You will not ever use the verandah if this is your first cruise to busy and the kids? well its Disney nothing more to say.

I disagree with part of this...we went on a 3 night Disney Cruise for our very first cruise and we loved having the verandah! We used it all the time. I would get up early in the morning before the rest of my family and I would sit out there and enjoy the beauty of the ocean, and in the evening it was a great place to relax. Our daughters loved it too. However, I would probably go with Disney for the first cruise with children your ages. My kids are a lot older than yours and we are planning on trying Royal Caribbean for our next cruise, but I will never regret that we did Disney for our first voyage.

 

[Mickeyhugger]

I will never regret that we did Disney for our first voyage.

Yes you will, because no cruise will ever be as good after that. I'm speaking from experience.

 

[Jsme]

I have to agree about no cruise being as good as Disney. Once you go Disney you will always compare the other lines. We had a great time on RCCL but it was NOT Disney. We would go on RCCL again but I love Disney. Even my TA tried to talk me out of doing Disney again. She said I need to try another line. LOL I did and I am back to Disney.

Do not get me wrong other lines are nice, but for my family ... there is just something missing....like the magic and wonder of a dream come true. I am not saying I would not go on another line again it's just I know I will compare it to Disney and it just does not add up for me. But remember this is me...not you...

 

[figment795]

DH and I just did our 1st cruise on disney. Every time I look up prices on Royal caribbean I am tempted. However my DH reminds me it is not Disney and knowing me, I would compare during the trip and be disapointed. DH and I are willing to spend the extra cash because we love the Disney experence.

 

[dairyou]

I posted a report 2 months ago here. We had just returned from the Mariner of the Sea.

Here is the report:http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=808144

Good luck,

Deb

 

[tezb]

I have to disagree on this....we cruised DCL 3 times and last year tried the Mariner/RCCL for the first time. We were ready for a change and don't regret it one bit. Disney is a great cruise ship but we have gotten bored with it and our kids are older now and wanted more things to do. I'll always recommend DCL as a great cruise experience but we now like RCCL (for our family's needs) and will probably not cruise Disney again....OR maybe someday if we have grandkids!

 

[Goofy4Disney99]

We are getting ready for our 6th Disney Magic cruise this August (the repositioning cruise from LA back to Florida). We love Disney and we feel at home on the Magic. Two years ago we tried RC becuase they offered a Mexican Riviera cruise from San Diego which meant we could drive to the ship. We had a good time, but were commenting daily that it just wasn't up to what we had come to expect from Disney. The staff was not as attentive, the entertainment was second rate, and the activities only average. The food, however, was very good. Would we go on RC again? Yes, but only because of their itinerary options.

 

[Firegoalie23]

I guess I am in the minority, after the experience we had on the explorer of the seas, disney has alot to live up to when we sail on the wonder. Maybe working for the rat all those years may havesoured me a little, but hey, I will find out in september.

 

[PatsGirl]

If the kids were younger, say both 8 or under I'd say definately Disney. We loved the Wonder but if I had to choose between an upgraded room or Disney, I'd take RCCI. Actually, when I've compared prices, I can literally go on two cruises (same type room) non-Disney to one Disney and I cannot argue with that

The things I liked about Disney better: family-style shows we all enjoyed. It is sometimes difficult to find entertainment on the other lines that all ages will enjoy as much; the dining rooms and rotation system was fantastic. I just loved having dinner in a different themed room each night and the food was as good as the other lines I've been on. Also, we've cruised a couple of times during the holidays -- no one does it better than Disney for decorations and specially themed entertainment. My daughter had story time with Mrs. Clause on the winding stairs in the atrium and a few other things that just made it magical!

The things I liked about other lines better: less kids , better excursions and islands, more activities for adult-only entertainment including casino and pool games. What I like best: the $$$$.

Good luck choosing. I'll never regret going on Disney like I said, we loved it, but I'd take two vacations over one anyday and now that I've had a veranda, I know it's the only way to go.

 

[callahanjulie10]

I agree about the verandah- except usually on RCI a verandah means a larger room which is nice with teens. DCL on the other hand has nice large rooms in all categories!

Which RCI ship are you talking about booking? That will make a huge difference as well. We have cruised DCL 6 times and have gone on the RCI Mariner of the Seas with my DD who was 13 when we last cruised RCI and 12 when we cruised DCL last.

RCI Mariner has a ton of outdoor activities such as a huge/wonderful basketball court that looks like a professional NBA court, putt putt, roller blading track- which is small, a rock climbing wall- which is way up on top of the ship!, and a small ice rink- which my DD LOVED! They have a large arcade- in which my DD spent $250 of her own $$ because as far as programming for the kids- on our cruise it was non-existant for her age group. SHe went to the arcade, putt putt'd, and went ice skating. Everything but the arcade, I went and did with her. I was dissappointed in the programming because she never even met up with other kids. They had a GREAT area but there was no supervision at all, so the few kids that were in there, we running wild playing tag. She is not one for this.
As far as the ship was concerned- it was amazing. We enjoyed the layout. We had a JS suite, which is quite a bit larger than DCL's category 4. It had a closet that was HUGE. We loved the suite but to tell you the truth- we paid more for it for the October 31, 2004 Eastern cruise than we did for our DCL category 4 July 4th Eastern cruise the year before!
We love DCL the best- now that they are putting the movie screen over the pool, have redone the teen area, changed up the shows and menus- we are going to give DCL another try.
One last thing, we really missed rotating dining rooms and having a NEW menu daily in the sit down restaurants for breakfast and lunch. On RCI- in the dining room you got the SAME breakfast and lunch menu everyday.
If you are going on an older RCI ship, I would rethink that-

 

[MaryKatesMom]

We're going on the Navigator of the Seas at the end of July so I'll report back. We chose it because the Magic is on the West Coast.

I spent allot of time researching what cruise line for families, food, ship quality etc at cruisemates dot com. I lurked around on cruise critics forum also before making the decision. Although Disney ranked at the top when I ran searches, RCCI was consistently in second place.

 

[ktink]

I've never sailed on DCL but I have sailed twice w/ RCI. And for me I will leave Disney to the theme parks and RCI to cruising. We had a wonderful time on our cruises and loved it and have no desire to cruise with any other company. RCI goes far beyond the average experience and we were pampered and waited on the entire time. I do have the desire to sail on RCI's many different ships as we've only sailed on Sovereign of the Seas.

RCI also has a private island called Coco Cay and it is true paradise. I just can't say enough about this cruise line. And I'm sure some will say if you think RCI can't be beat then go DCL. And in return I say no thanks, with the $ I can save I'll go to WDW later. And I don't have to worry that I will have less of a cruise by not spending as much $.

 

[GenieDana]

We found a lot more smoking on RCCL. Our cabin was smoked in, and no amount of Febreez can get that out. They also launder the smoking linen/towels with the non-smoking linen/towels - so your towels, pillow case, blankets also also contaminated. Food - about the same. Disney always wins the entertainment comparison.

Even though an out of state cruiser may sail RCCL for less, factor in the up-charges (sodas, Johnny Rockets, etc.) and the price gap closes. We did miss the "Magic" figuratively and literally.


Anyway, since we live in FL and have always sailed during Florida Residents, Disney has been cheaper for us anyway.

 

[floridaminnie]

We found a lot more smoking on RCCL. Our cabin was smoked in, and no amount of Febreez can get that out. They also launder the smoking linen/towels with the non-smoking linen/towels - so your towels, pillow case, blankets also also contaminated. Food - about the same. Disney always wins the entertainment comparison.

Even though an out of state cruiser may sail RCCL for less, factor in the up-charges (sodas, Johnny Rockets, etc.) and the price gap closes. We did miss the "Magic" figuratively and literally.


Anyway, since we live in FL and have always sailed during Florida Residents, Disney has been cheaper for us anyway.

But withthe lack of Florida Resident dicounts lately, I know I've started looking at the other cruise lines. Disney has been getting more and more expensive. I know that darn supply and demand stuff.

 

[jodifla]

RCI is a nice cruise line. Much as I loved my DCL cruise, I don't see endlessly cruising with them once DS gets beyond a certain age.

Research the boats...and try to match the activities to the children's interests.

 

[professorandmom]

I have read so many reports that I decided to do a little RCL checking - I read a post that described a $5k savings (no details given) so I had great expectations. The highest catagory balcony room before the junior suite (which seems the most comparable to the catagory 5/6 but is slightly smaller) was only about $1000 less than my double dip for next July. Wasn't enough to make me change

I would guess time of year makes a difference in the price variation between the two cruiselines.
Barb

 

[Typhoon Guy]

Some have mentioned they "found pardise" on RCCL Coco Cay. I have been their twice and there is no comparison to Castaway Cay. The water was rough to snorkle in, (there was no break wall) There were all these green things floating in the water, very few activities, almost everything you had to pay for. The food was goo but there was no organization as to how the buffet lines were set up on top of that you had to tender to the island. If you are looking for paradise head to Castaway Cay.

Coco Cay -4
Castaway Cay +10

 

[getoutthere]

We have sailed with RCI 4 times and have loved every time we have sailed with them. Our kids have not cruised with us yet and for their first cruise in Sept. we chose to go with DCL. My fear is that I will be disappointed with DCL because I will be comparing them to what I would consider nearly perfect cruises with RCI. However, I am pretty easy going and unless it is a really bad trip I doubt I will be disappointed.