I cancelled Disney for a Carnival Cruise? Am I crazy?

[CaliforniaDreamin]

We have never been on a cruise before, and I had already booked a room for Pop for next year, with plans to upgrade to the package with the CS Dining Plan. I don't know where this cruise idea came from, but I know my DH is Disney'd out. So Friday, I called Disney and cancelled. When I get back my deposit, I am booking a Carnival Cruise to Cozumel. Ok, I have called Disney a gazillion times while planning trips and the hold music has always been regular Disney happy music. This time, it was the theme from Soarin! I almost hung up...that is my favorite attraction of all time. We have ridden the one in CA and FLA and I LOVE the music. So I thought it was a sign. Anyway, before I could hang up, a CSR came on and I cancelled.
I was bummed out. But I am excited about a cruise. So tell, me...is a cruise all it's cracked up to be? This a bit cheaper than Disney. And I didn't book a Disney cruise because they are so expensive, for our budget, anyway. I need some opinions. Family of 4, 2 DD's 14 and 15.

 

[Sparx]

carnival cruises are really nice and a really fun experience. they have a great atmosphere, too. there's a lot of stuff for kids and teens to do (and grownups too.)

cozumel is a really nice area, but be careful about what you buy from people because you can get ripped off if you're not really careful. the cruise people will give you a guide of where to shop.

 

[WDWBarb]

Cruises can be a blast and it's an excellent way to see and do lots of stuff in a short period of time. The food is usually delish and there is just about any kind of activity available that you can imagine.

I hope you have a wonderful time!

 

[mrsmom]

We go to disney every year and last year i took all four of my kids on a cruise over thanksgiving on carnival to the eastern caribbean , they are 22,16,14,11 at the time , let me say we are disney people all the way, But my kids LOVED the cruise and can't wait to go again. there was so much to do on the ship and they made some great friends who they still talk to. So now we will do disney and cruise. I think your kids will have a great time.
Kim

 

[crz4mm2]

We just took a cruise on Carnival for our 30th anniversary. Both kids, DDIL, and my BFF and her DH went too.
It was GREAT.
WE ALL loved it.
I have been on 4 cruises, this one was very good. We visited Key West and Nassau.
It was supposed to go to Mexico, but swine flu hit and we were re-routed. It didn't matter though, it was fantastic!

I LOVE Disney too, but I LOVE cruising!

 

[of the seas]

Last month we did Disney and a Royal Caribbean(we like Royal Caribbean because they have their own private island, like the DCL) cruise. My kids would rather cruise than go to Disney over and over. We love cruising!! Maybe you'll decide to go to Disney a few days before you cruise. It's a perfect place to relax from the hussle of Disney!

Cruises are addicting-like Disney! You'll love it!

 

[of the seas]

Ok, I have called Disney a gazillion times while planning trips and the hold music has always been regular Disney happy music. This time, it was the theme from Soarin! I almost hung up...that is my favorite attraction of all time. We have ridden the one in CA and FLA and I LOVE the music. So I thought it was a sign.

It is so funny you said that! Because when we decided to cruise, we were going to cancel Disney and just cruise on a 7 day. When I called to cancel Disney, they were playing the theme to Splash Mountain which we rode about 10 times last year at night while Wishes was going on. It was so magical for us! When I heard the song playing, I hung up!!!!!!!!!!!! We went on a 4 night cruise and took Disney down to 5 nights instead of 7.

 

[CaliforniaDreamin]

It is so funny you said that! Because when we decided to cruise, we were going to cancel Disney and just cruise on a 7 day. When I called to cancel Disney, they were playing the theme to Splash Mountain which we rode about 10 times last year at night while Wishes was going on. It was so magical for us! When I heard the song playing, I hung up!!!!!!!!!!!! We went on a 4 night cruise and took Disney down to 5 nights instead of 7.

I think Walt knows when we are planning to cancel and sends down "hold music fairies" do play our favorite song so we will change our minds!
I love the music to Splash Mtn too. It's my second favorite...you can't help but sing along!!!

Thank you for everyone who gave me positive reviews on cruising. I am looking forward to it...I just miss Disney already!

 

[CaliforniaDreamin]

Last month we did Disney and a Royal Caribbean(we like Royal Caribbean because they have their own private island, like the DCL) cruise. My kids would rather cruise than go to Disney over and over. We love cruising!! Maybe you'll decide to go to Disney a few days before you cruise. It's a perfect place to relax from the hussle of Disney!

Cruises are addicting-like Disney! You'll love it!

I wish we could do Disney too. But with the drive to Tampa, and the 5 day cruise, thats about our limit as far as time we can be away from work at one time. I can't convince my DH to fly this time.
I really, really am looking forward to having a relaxing vacation rather than hustle and bustle!

 

[of the seas]

I think Walt knows when we are planning to cancel and sends down "hold music fairies" do play our favorite song so we will change our minds!
I love the music to Splash Mtn too. It's my second favorite...you can't help but sing along!!!

Thank you for everyone who gave me positive reviews on cruising. I am looking forward to it...I just miss Disney already!

 

[MichelleVW]

I think you're crazy, but I'm sure you'll have fun. We went on a 3 night Disney cruise and while we all had fun, none of us were sure if we wanted to do another one.

I would go to an all inclusive resort before I went on another cruise...they just seem to nickel and dime you for everything. Dang near everything is free at an all inclusive and my family loves those.

 

[Micca]

Cruises are fun, you'll enjoy WDW even more next time you visit.

 

[LoraJ]

I love cruising. I have been on 7 Carnival cruises. You'll have a great time.

Which ship did you book?

Make sure you check out cruisecritic.com

 

[NancyK]

I've been to WDW about 25 times. This past March we went on a Carnival cruise to celebrate our 30th anniversary. Guess what our next trip is - another cruise! I don't think you'll be disappointed. And as much as I would love to do a Disney cruise, Carnival is almost 50% cheaper. I'm thinking that our 2011 vacation might be a DisneyLAND trip and a cruise out of L.A.
Have fun!

 

[WeLuvWDWx5]

I guess I am going against the majority here. I have been to Disney at least 25 times, and also have been on the Disney 3 and 4 day cruises several times. Last month, I was on my first Carnival Cruise to Cozumel and the Grand Cayman Islands for my father in laws wedding with my husband and three children (7, 13, & 15).

We thought the food on Carnival was terrible, and we would only rate the food on the Disney cruises as a little above mediocre. But, there were many entre's and and desserts that I just couldn't eat at all on our Carnival cruise (at least I didn't gain weight on this cruise). The kids camps' were a joke as they were closed many hours thoughout the day, and other times required a family member to be present. We are not ones to actually send our kids to camps for long periods of time, but when they asked to go, we could barely find things on the schedule that they would have the slightest interest in attending. Also, the actual facilities were a complete joke in that they were small with very little to do. Some of the "organized" teen activities actually indicated "no supervision" which I don't consider something I would want my teenagers to attend.

The evening entertainment was not something that a family would enjoy together (as much of it was not family oriented). We struggled to find things to do together as a family and the entertainment we did attend together was average at best, while entertainment on a Disney Cruise was always their best asset.

Honestly, I will absolutely never do a Carnival Cruise again, but to each his own. I can't compare it to other Cruise Lines other than Disney, and while it is less expensive, you certainly notice the difference in quality big time. Even the rooms are different in size and quality. There is just no comparison.

I am going to stop here. I feel fortunate that my father-in-law paid for this cruise for us to be there for his wedding, because I would be highly disappointed if I had paid for this cruise myself. Although, he even mentioned the lack of quality in many areas himself. We definitely managed to have a good time considering what we were there to celebrate! We had a much better time, though, when we got off the boat and checked into the Grand Floridain for a short stay afterwards.

Just my two cents... It appears many others have had a better experience.

 

[DisneyBlonde]

Disney is the best, but cruising is very cool too. I don't like Carnival, but you have no basis for comparison, so as a cruise virgin I bet you'll like it.

 

[pppiglet]

You'll have a great time and you won't feel bad for spending all that money on a Disney cruise. We have done DCL twice, Carnival once, and RCCL once. Over all, our DCL was the best, but Carnival's came in real close. We really liked the food on Carnival too. RCCL is our least favorite and the food was not the best.

 

[clgwli]

We absolutely love Carnival. I am sure you will have a blast on your cruise

They are totally different types of vacations but we love doing both. And I am with you on DCL. I just cannot justify paying that much to see Mickey on a ship

 

[shortbun]

At first I thought you cancelled a Disney cruise to go on a Carnival Cruise. That might have been a mistake but a land vacation for a cruise isn't. Cruising can be a blast!!!I think a lot of the cruise experience depends on the ship. I love the mega ships because there is so much to do on board. I love the smaller ships because of the intimacy. What I don't like is an old ship that is in a state of disrepair and it happens. Find a reliable site that focuses on the ships and the food in it's comments or ask those questions. I'm also very picky about my cabin. A lot of people don't care where or what size their cabin. I care a lot. I try to find a special on an outside with a balcony. I got sick once-virus-on a cruise and I was so grateful about that balcony because I was in the cabin for almost three days and it would have been very confining had it been inside-no windows. Having daylight in your cabin is a good thing imho. Midship cabins have more stability in rough seas btw so if you have a choice in that regard-choose mid ship.

 

[ctinct]

I second a previous poster's suggestion to check out CruiseCritic.

A cruise can end up costing you a chunk of money at the end, but you can do it very frugally. A big expense is the drinks. We just don't do them, or maybe have one ot two throughout the entire cruise. I drink water and tea, and get soda in port. Also, don't be afraid to do shore excursions on your own. The cruise lines try to scare you into booking through them , saying that if their excursion is late, they will wait for you, whereas they will not wait for a private vendor. The thing is, the private vendors know that missing the boat would be the kiss of death for their business, especially since the internet spreads news of good/bad things so fast. They will do everything in their power to get you back in time. Also, when you go with private vendors, you will normally get to where you want to go much faster and have a much smaller tour group. We have hired a private driver for the day in some places for less than the cruise lines charge for a few hours on a huge bus.

Tips do add up, which is why I like Norwegian--they are automatically charged to your account, so you don't have to worry about who/how much to tip. I also like their Freestyle Dining. You can dine whenever you want, rather than at a fixed time. I find this much easier, especially if you have children. Nothing worse than having to wake an exhausted kid up because it is time to eat.

Have fun. Where do you plan to go?