Hi all. My husband and I are having a very hard time deciding on which cruise to book. We have narrowed it down to the Disney Fantasy or RCCL Allure of the Seas. Our DS will be 6 and DD 3. We will also probably be traveling with my parents. My DH has never cruised before. I have been on 2 RCCL cruises but the last one was the Voyager of the seas when it first came out 13 years ago. We really wanted to try the Disney cruise but I am concerned that we will get bored or not have enough to do (for the adults). However we also really want our kids to have the best time. Has anyone ever been on both these cruises with kids in our age range and can offer insight in to which will be a better time for our family? Any help would be really appreciated!
I have been to DCL twice and been researching on the RCCL. I personally think that the Allure of the Sea is more suitable for older kids. Your kids will enjoy DCL more at their respective ages. My DD went on her first DCL at 6 and had a blast. She appreciated it more the second time when she was 14, and looking forward to celebrating her sweet 16 on her third DCL. I am planning to book a dummy onboard for her 18th BD to hopefully Alaska. Once you have tried DCL, you will be hooked. Have fun planning!
I am having this same problem since we are deciding between the two for our next cruise. We actually went on the Allure of the Seas in 2011 and had the BEST time. I have been sailing on Royal for many years, and the Allure is in a class of its own - you won't be disappointed if you choose it. My parents went with us so there were 3 generations - plenty of great things for all of us. Our kids were 5 and 8 at the time and loved it (and they are boys so the Dreamworks experience was especially fun for them). We just went on the Disney Magic and although we had a great time and the kids loved it as well, it couldn't compare to the adult entertainment and activity choices on the Allure. The aerial and diving shows are truly spectacular for the entire family and then there's the zipline, flowrider, etc. Of course, the Disney Fantasy is brand new and has a few features that the Magic and Allure do not have, so we are considering giving it a try. It's a tough decision between two great vacations!
Check out a trip report by DISer nenner. It is called something like Shrek vs Mickey. Her kids are a little bit older but it is a great review from someone who has done both DCL and RCCL. Our kids were 2 and 4 when we went on Disney and will be 4 and 6 when we go on Oasis in a few months. LOVED our Disney cruise and I'm thinking it will continue to be our first choice until our kids are a little older. We never felt like we ran out of things to do.
There is a really fantastic DisUnplugged podcast that I listened to this past week. I downloaded it from iTunes, is from April 18, 2012, lasts an hour and half, and is full of reviews of the Oasis class from Royal Caribbean. I found it to be very helpful and informative in shedding some light on what it's like to travel on the ships offered by RCCL. Here's a link to the podcast site: http://www.wdwinfo.com/disney-podcast/ On this page, scroll down to April 18, 2012 and click on the link titled "Royal Caribbean's Oasis Class Ships" http://www.wdwinfo.com/disney-podcast/archives-2012.htm The podcast should start playing. Hope this helps!
