Go in with eyes wide open

[jef102563]

Back from our first cruise ever on Disney Wonder. Beautiful ship, wonderful crew but thats about as far as my praise will go. I spend much time reading these boards before going and thought I knew what to expect more or less. Don't get me wrong I love Disney..but..lets be honest here...the kids pool is swamped all day long. My son couldnt walk a foot without bumping into someone, the pool is tiny and it is jammed from morning to night. There are not enough places for adults to sit to watch your child for their safety in the pool as the chairs are drapped with towels and are "hogged" most of the day by the same people. For those kids who dont get into the scene of the kids club (and they are not at all cracked up to be what they are portrayed..lots of sitting time) there really is not a whole lot else for them to do. Yes, there are basketball courts (that are used by the older kids) and a few ping pong tables, as well as a very expensive small arcade, but that wears out fast. The food was ok..same repetitive kids meal at dinner, portions small for the adults, although you could order more plates if you wished. The buffet for breakfast and lunch far outdid any of the dinners. The activities that were offered for adults were limited and repetitive, except for the nightly shows which were high quality, dont expect anything all that amazing. But my biggest gripe was the constant pushing of alcoholic (and to tempt the little ones nonalcoholic) drinks. You couldnt sit on deck for more than 10 minutes without someone constantly coming up and asking if you wanted a drink. This included the nightly shows...for a family cruise I find this appalling. I do drink and I did have a drink but to be constantly bombarded is inexcusable. I am not anti cruise, I just want people to be informed and aware before they venture out.

 

[mmouse37]

I agree that people should go in with eyes wide open and everyone's experience will be different.

I did not find that DCL pushed drinks at all (sailed DCL 13 times). Yes, waiters would come around and ask but I never felt bombarded and even though it is a family cruise people do drink and DCL knows that. I don't fault them at all that they are trying to sell drinks.

We have always found the food to be wonderful and you are right on the money about the Mickey pool and the chair hogs....hopefully, if and when DCL builds a third ship they will improve this area...(not sure what you can do about the idiots that hog chairs, though)!!

Thanks for your honest post!!

 

[depomas]

Sorry to hear all the poor things on your cruise.

I agree with you 100% on the pool issue... The Mickey Pool is far too small, and not enough room at all around it. THanks goodness mine have now graduated to the "not much better" Goofy Pool. But wow, our meals were nothing less than perfect on each of our three cruises. Yes the children's were a tad repetitive, but kids only eat so many things anyway that this was never a problem for ours....


My kids loved the clubs so much that we had to force them to dinner with us on several occasions...

Well different strokes for different folks....

 

[aprilgail2]

I have always said the pools were the worst part of the cruise. I could do without them totally. But on 2 cruises so far I have yet to be asked if I wanted a drink on board....on CC I flagged someone down to get me a drink but I never found them pushing drinks anywhere on the cruise, even dinner. The portions were actually to large for my family, we never finished the meals. My daughter loved the kids clubs and said they were kept busy the whole time. Different strokes for different folks!

 

[logan1_2000]

I'm a fan of the cruises, but at the same time I can relate to many if not all of the OP's comments. A posting like that helps provide balance and perspective for those who have never cruised DCL yet and are seeking commnetary from just a collection of positives. Curious about the age and gender of children for the OP--my DS will be 9 when we cruise next month, and we made the observation during our second DCL cruise that the programming was not geared toward more active children.

You don't say if you enjoyed anything on shore, but I hope that in spite of your obsrvations, you did find the cruise to be an enjoyable vacation anyway, even if not all you might have hoped for.

 

[musicgirl]

Sorry to hear that it wasn't what you expected.

On 3 cruises, the food was nothing but awesome. I was always to full to enjoy more of it. That is always my complaint!!!

I have never had anyone bug me about drinks. I was offered one, and I didn't take it because it was not something I particularly cared for. It was during the Capt. greeting gala and it was free. Silly me.

I agree about the pools 100%. Luckily mine is now 13. He never even went in the pool this past June. He was too busy hanging out with his new friends.

DCL is not perfect. There will be things people do not like or agree with. No one can please everyone all of the time.

Just my 2 cents!

 

[WDWLVR]

I agree that everyone should do as much research as possible before going on a cruise.


We have done 6 DCL cruises now and have #7 & #8 booked.

We find the portions to be filling but no overbearing like many resturants do these days.

We are not drinkers and have never had drinks pushed on us. On Castaway Cay there seemed to be plenty of servers and if you nodded to them they would come over so my DH could get his Konk Kooler but they weren't pushy.

We don't have kids so never worried about the pool situation, but then being a veteran of over 25 years of cruising the pools are the last things I go for anyway.

A cruise vacation isn't for everyone and it is nice to have a place like the DIS for people to share thier experiences.

 

[brack]

I couldn't agree more about the situation at the Mickey pool but that is the nature of a ship (limited space) the pool could be twice the size and still not be adequate. It is still a great place and I bet it is better than any other ship lines.

I couldn't agree at all with anything else that was said. The meals are great. I have never been bugged by any CM about drinks. We like it so much we have booked our 6th Magic cruise and hope to do many more!

 

[lbgraves]

I have to wonder if the CMs on the Wonder handle these things differently from those on the Magic. Your experience was on the Wonder & we saw nothing like that on the Magic & I see from the sigs of those who have also posted that have sailed on the Magic. IDK why there would be such great differences but your post makes me not want to try out the shorter cruises.

Sorry you didn't enjoy yourself, but it is true that not everyone is going to have the same opinion about everything. I am thinking the reason why we didn't have the huge crowd at the Mickey pool was the longer length of the cruise so the kids weren't trying to squeeze in as much time as possible in a few days? We went after breakfast & there weren't many kids. We stayed until after lunch a couple days then left for other activities. The days we were in port the three kids with us were practically the only ones in the Mickey pool until 2 or 3 when people started returning to the ship.

 

[inkkognito]

I enjoy hearing both sides of the love cruising/hate cruising opinion. Obviously, with 42 Disney cruises under my belt, I love it. I have met people who are the same as me and some who would never do a cruise again. To a great extent, the pool problems are not an issue for us because we don't have kids; the adult pool is rarely crowded. That (and the other adult areas) is one thing I love about Disney. Compared to RCCL, they don't seem to push the drinks. We don't sit out much, but if we did and the "chair hogs" were out, I would have no problem moving their items and taking the chair if I didn't see anyone for a reasonable amount of time. We love cruising, but it's not for everyone. Thanks for sharing your opinion.
Barb

 

[soccercruiser87]

hmm..well the pools cant be any much bigger because its on a cruise ship and my last 7 day cruise i was on i didnt go in the pool once. I thought the food was great, best food i have ever had...if you didnt like the small portions, just order two and with the drink situation i was never bugged and ive been on 3 cruises.

 

[hogie1]

I would think it could be quite annoying if you didn't want a drink but they kept pestering you for one. Kinda like how I hate it when I want a drink and there's no one around asking me if I want another. I usually tell the guy/girl to keep em' coming when you see my glass half full!!! I guess that's how they make their tips or what ever, but there's a right & wrong way to do it. As for the kids in the pool, we don't have kids, but trying to keep an eye on them in a sea of other children (no pun intended) could drive you crazy, when you're there to relax. But we just booked our 2nd cruise on DCL yesterday and we're excited to go back. You are right, it is best to do your research before you book so know what you're getting into. It's pretty tough to leave the ship once you leave for the open seas if you don't like it!!

 

[jrabbit]

Two constraints on the size of the pools. 1) the size of the ship and allowing for seating around the pool AND walkways and 2) DCL's pools are fresh water and the ships make their own fresh water for all uses onboard. Filling 2 larger pools (Mickey and Goofy) might max out the system.

 

[BABYJOSIE98]

I never experienced that on DCL,but my last cruise on RCL...While sitting at the pool every few minutes they came by trying to get me to buy a drink. I guess it is just their job,but I figure if I want one I will flag them over!

We have always sailed in Oct & Nov on DCL and we never had a problem with over crowding in the Mickey Pool. I mean it was busy,but not unbearable. I always found a chair and relaxed while DD was playing. Sometimes our family would go to the Goofy pool and there were always chairs available. So I wonder if the time of year affects the pools...More kids on some sailings.

I absolutely love cruising DCL,but My Uncle who went with us the first time did not and won't go again. So you just never know???

My DD loved the clubs and I always made sure their was something going on at the times I put her in. They went to make flubber the night we went to Palo and on a whale bone dig at CC when I wanted to spend some time at Serentiy Bay. DCL trips can be a lot of planning,but I love that part.

Did you enjoy CC?? We just loved it!

 

[jennat]

I think that is a common feeling (I say that, because it was my reaction, too. How egocentric ). You have so much built up in your head it is hard to live up to. That being said, that is what I like most about cruising. Once you know what to expect, you are never disappointed (if that makes any sense?). I think our first cruise was the worst (don't get me wrong it was great, but just like the poster above) (and we kikn't know about tips . After our expectations were aligned with what was realistic, we can't get enough of it.
The pool situation is hard, though. Don't know what to do about that. My kids LOVED the kids club...we will see what they think this time (I hope, I hope). Something funny (sad) about the waiters constantly asking to get you something from the bar...on the Caribbean Princess last year it was the same but if you ordered a (free) coke, they would roll their eyes at you . Such GREAT service! Not!
My advice, try cruising again. It is like a fine wine, just gets better with time!

 

[jennat]

Not to be arguementative (especially when I can't even spell it!) but the pools can be bigger (RCL VOS has 2 pools side by side on a cruise ship, albiet big cruise ship) and Princess' has all fresh water pools (4 good sized ones...although unless you are 6 foot you can't touch the bottom ) It is always something (tongue in cheek ). Maybe if they build a third ship, they will expand. Until then, Let's hear it for the free ice cream all day long!!!!!

 

[rejobako]

I realize this is not what was intended, but jef's post leaves me looking forward to our cruise. My family isn't much for public swimming pools; so we're not to concerned with the atmosphere at the kid's pool anyway. And I'm glad to hear that there's always someone around to bring me a drink if I want one. I missed half a stage production on another cruise line when my wife asked me to get her a glass of wine, neither of us realizing that the bar set up outside the doors was woefully slow and inadequate. As far as "entertainment" is concerned, I'm glad to hear the stage shows are entertaining, because that's what our little girl is most looking forward to. I suspect she won't have any problems in the kid's clubs, because she's about as gregarious and easy to entertain a child as there is. We're not gourmands: if the food is of reasonable quality, we'll enjoy it. Sounds to me like we're going to have a great time as a family with the shows and with all the food and drink we want to consume readily available. And I confess what I'm most looking forward to is after my family goes to bed, I'm planning on going out on the verandah with one of those readily available cocktails and watching the Caribbean slide by. And with everyone else crowded by the kids pool during the day, the rest of the ship will be easily accessible.

 

[crisi]

We had a different experience. No pushing of drinks (we also had to flag somone down on CC - we did have an attentive waitperson when we were in the adult hottub, but since we were there to tub and drink, it didn't seem pushy). We found the buffet food to be barely adequate, the dinners to be pretty good (although not up to "fine restaurant" quality).

The pools can be a problem. Kids love to swim and when the weather is nice, those pools are packed. I've amended my "you should really cruise" advice to include the whole "they have pools, this isn't a swimming vacation - if your kids want to spend a week in the water, go to a land resort with a good pool" disclaimer.

There is a "management of expectations" that this board isn't very good at (and it isn't just the cruise boards either). Its better than it was, but for a while it was difficult to get anything approaching a balanced perspective. Everything was perfect, or everything was horrible.