If not DCL, what cruise line for Europe?

[cedricandsophie]

We have done lots of European cruises. With kids though always on Disney. Without kids, crystal, silver sea. I love cruising Europe but have you considered alternatives to cruising. Like the adventures by Disney tours. Or perhaps just renting a house somewhere in Italy or France and doing day trips? Or just a nice driving trip where yiu can stop and look at interesting thngs along the way, like castles, vineyards, cute little villages, lakes with boat rides, etc. one of our best driving trips with our daughter, who is older but disabled so mentally about 10 or 11, was flying to Palermo Sicily, driving around Sicily for a few days looking at a few ruins and the Volcano, driving up Italy to Amalfi coast stopping along the way, taking boat to Capri and staying there for a few days and then leaving from Naples. The trip thru France from Paris down to nice is equally wonderful. Just suggesting that if you want to do Europe, don't be afraid of doing it on your own. It's a wonderful experience and a way for your kids to get up close and personal with wonderful Europeans who absolutely adore children. We didn't go any place where our daughter was not admired, smiled at and treated like royalty.

 

[tidefan]

That's a pretty old ship. RCCL says that it was recently refurbed. I would look for a newer ship. Nola gets the older ships. Sometimes Galveston too. I don't know what they are doing for Europe though.

The poster above mentioned that the ship was the Serenade. That ship just didn't flow well. We will try RCCL again, but on one of their larger ships.

 

[mrsp1030]

I don't think Royal does the fjords, that's we why did NCL. It seems like NCL is cheaper across the board than Royal. We did do a RCCL cruise out of San Juan at the same time as the Magic. We were originally booked on the Magic and jumped ship to Royal to save some money.

We actually flew to London and spent a couple of nights there, then took the Eurostar to Paris for a couple of nights, and then flew to Copenhagen. I was trying to get to Europe with our frequent flyer miles on United. So our 7 night cruise turned into a 15 night vacation.

To the original OP - We did the Europe trip for my 40th too. About a year ahead of time we both got United credit cards so we could amass enough miles to get our tickets covered. We're planning a Med cruise for next year and are looking at both NCL and RCCL. Right now we're leaning toward a 10 night on NCL that is unbelievably cheap. Only problem is it's in March and the kiddo would have to miss a week of school.

OP: We are fortunate enough to have a mass amount of United miles saved up thanks to my DH flying cross country weekly trips for a year as well as monthly flights to Dubai. One reason why we plan to add on some land time before we cruise. I am also looking at the NCL line as they have the 2 bedroom villas that are actually cheaper than DCL right now for next summer pricing comparison so that would be an awesome amount of space too. I will not do Carnival or one of its sisters companies after many bad experiences in the past few years by myself and other friends.

 

[mrsp1030]

We have done lots of European cruises. With kids though always on Disney. Without kids, crystal, silver sea. I love cruising Europe but have you considered alternatives to cruising. Like the adventures by Disney tours. Or perhaps just renting a house somewhere in Italy or France and doing day trips? Or just a nice driving trip where yiu can stop and look at interesting thngs along the way, like castles, vineyards, cute little villages, lakes with boat rides, etc. one of our best driving trips with our daughter, who is older but disabled so mentally about 10 or 11, was flying to Palermo Sicily, driving around Sicily for a few days looking at a few ruins and the Volcano, driving up Italy to Amalfi coast stopping along the way, taking boat to Capri and staying there for a few days and then leaving from Naples. The trip thru France from Paris down to nice is equally wonderful. Just suggesting that if you want to do Europe, don't be afraid of doing it on your own. It's a wonderful experience and a way for your kids to get up close and personal with wonderful Europeans who absolutely adore children. We didn't go any place where our daughter was not admired, smiled at and treated like royalty.

Yes, we have considered a variety of options. I have been fortunate enough to spend quite a good amount of time in Europe as has my DH throughout college, grad school and beyond. We also use to live in England and took our oldest DH on multiple trips throughout Europe as well. We just have not been back in almost 10 years due to moving around the country so much for my DH job and this has always been an ideal trip for me. I am exploring many options so another reason starting to plan ahead.

 

[deanimal]

We went on an Eastern Med on MSC in 2014 and are booked for a Baltic in 2017. With their kids sail free promotions the prices just can't be beat. We have 2 adults and 2 kids in a balcony cabin for under $4000 US for seven days in August. The price of the Med cruise was about the same. For the same price as the other North American lines we can add at least a week on land and for the price of Disney we could probably add two!

MSC is definitely not Disney, though. They mainly market to Europeans and you have to accept that as a North American you'll be in the minority on the ship. All the announcements are in five languages and you just have to get used to the majority of cruisers don't speak English. On the flip side, it's intriguing to watch the cruise director scrolling through five different languages in rapid fire up on stage. I'd maybe consider them the European equivalent to Carnival; flashy ships, party vibe, lots of families, okay food. We really liked our room and thought it was just as good as on Disney and the service we received was generally good too (although I'd read mixed reviews). The Main dining room food is unapologetically Italian, which was a bit tedious for us after spending the previous two weeks in Italy, but would be fine for a week. The evening shows were really lame; the performers were talented but they felt really thrown together. Our ship, the Presiosa, was nice in a flamboyent way. Reminded me a bit of the "modern flashy" look of newer Vegas hotels like the Cosmopolitan or the Vdara. Tastefully gaudy, maybe?
My kids were four and five and they didn't really take to the kids clubs. The counsellors were great, but not many kids spoke English and aside from a small Lego area they were kind of plain. The leaders did lots of crafts and games, but with so many languages going on it's a bit overwhelming.

Overall, MSC is a far cry from Disney, but if you're mainly interested in ports and itineraries they can be a great option. I'm budgeting about $8000 for our upcoming Scandinavian trip (without flights) and for that we'll be getting a week on the ship PLUS 10 days in Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm. That's more than worth it for us!

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

We are pretty loyal to the mouse for cruises right now simply because they work for our kids ages (9,7,4) but are strongly considering a 2018 summer cruise in Europe as a 40th birthday celebration. I know, long term thinking but considering in about a year, I will need to make some decisions and am trying to plan accordingly after seeing the prices for 2017 released. So, in reality, what ships other than DCL would one consider family friendly in Europe? Hoping to first fly into London for a few days and show our kids where we use to call home when they were wee ones. Just want to compare features and cost to DCL before starting the savings route.

I believe RCCL will have an Oasis class ship in the Mediterranean in 2018 and I think it will be their newest one. Harmony of the Seas, (newest Oasis class), maiden voyage is next month and she's spending the summer there. Then the new one (Oasis IV for now), launches in 2018. Harmony is adding 3 water slides that Oasis and Allure don't have and a 10 story dry slide that starts on deck 14 or 15 and finishes on 4 or 5!!!

The new Carnival Vista launches next month in the Mediterranean as well. We are on her 4th sailing, (6/3/16), and paid only $4000 for an 8 day Mediterranean for 4 people in 2 connecting insides. Her sister will be launching in the Mediterranean in summer 2018.

Now before you poo poo Carnival, check out the Vista on their website, she has some amazing features and some really cool Havana Cabana cabins and Family suites.

We booked our upcoming cruise in February 2015, at the time Harmony would have been about $2000 more than the Vista. With that in mind, my advice would be to start logging on to cruise critic in June/July to start reading reviews on both ships. I've been pleasantly surprised on what I've been reading about the newer carnival ships on the longer itineraries. Because of the reviews we just booked an 8 night southern Caribbean on the Vista for June 2017, only $5200 for the 4 of us. BTW, the prices I'm quoting include prepaid gratuities and insurance.

Just my $.02

 

[phinz]

If I had a desire to cruise Europe, I'd probably be working with my TA on a P&O cruise on one of their all-adult ships. It would be nice to step out of the USA-centric nature of most companies while still having a ship full of people who speak the Mother Tongue.

 

[phinz]

Because of the reviews we just booked an 8 night southern Caribbean on the Vista for June 2017, only $5200 for the 4 of us. BTW, the prices I'm quoting include prepaid gratuities and insurance.

I'm considering the exact same itinerary. The Vista looks like a lot of fun and the price is absolutely phenomenal. I'll be all about the Havana suites. Hammock chair on the verandah and a private rum bar? I'm in.