Is cruising now worth it? Vs. DVC

[perchy]

There was a similar thread in the DVC section. Curious what cruise fans are saying.

We have been planning our first Disney cruise since January 2019. Obviously, it didn’t happen in summer 2020 or 2021 as planned. Now we are scheduled for April 2022.

In August 2021(!), we went to WDW instead, and we had so much fun, it prompted me to look into DVC resale. I now have 95 points across two resorts. Not much, but I wanted in.

If I’m being honest, I’m not as excited as I was about our cruise. Last summer, I was prepared to wear masks and all. But jumping through hoops to show vaccination status and proof of a negative COVID test is making me rethink.

Is it worth it? Or am I better off taking the money and buying more DVC points?

Especially if you’ve cruised recently and cruised in the past, are Disney cruises still worth the premium? Or might we consider RCL in a year?

We are a grandma in her 70, parents in our 50s, and kids 14 and 9.

ETA: fixed all my typos!

 

[Cheburashka]

We have been planning our first Disney cruise since January 2019. Obviously, it didn’t happen in summer 2020 or 2021 as planned. Now we are scheduled for April 2022.

In August 2022, we went to WDW instead, and we had so much fun, it prompted me to look into DVC resale. I now have 95 points across two resorts. Not much, but I wanted in.

If I’m being honest, I’m not as excited as I was. Last summer, I was prepared to wear masks and all. But jumping through hoops to show vaccination status and proof of a negative COVID test is making me rethink.

Is it worth it? Or am I better off taking the money and buying more DVC points?

You share a picture of your vaccine card with Disney via the "Safe Passage" website a couple of weeks before the cruise. On embarkation day, you take a rapid test at the port. That is the sum and total of Covid-related "hoops" you have to jump through to be able to cruise DCL, if everyone is vaccinated. Masks are required indoors, but they're also required indoors at Disney World. The required vaccination card and rapid test also mean that the cruises are safer than the parks right now- you're less likely to get sick.

A relatively small number of things, such as bon voyage deck party (replaced by an atrium character welcome immediately upon boarding), pin trading, character hugs (replaced by character sightings and appearances at some meals), Fish Extender exchanges, etc. are not happening at the moment. Cabanas has a much more limited menu. Kids clubs have more limited availability per child due to the need for distancing.

But pretty much everything else that the Disney cruises are known for is continuing: theater shows, dining room meals & specialty meals are the same as before, pool deck food is the same as before, room service, twice daily stateroom attendant service, atrium live entertainment, game shows, Bingo (though it's paper cards only), Midship Detective Agency, waterslides, Castaway Cay, fireworks, stateroom door decorations, etc. It still very much feels like a Disney cruise.

A couple of things are positively improved: all traveling parties automatically get a private dining table in the MDRs, and the muster drill experience no longer requires everyone to line up and wait for everyone at your station to also line up and listen to a long spiel. It's a much more streamlined and less intrusive experience now.

Disney World is reported to be very crowded right now. When did you go, August of '21 or '20? (Your post says '22, which is clearly a typo.) If it was '20, you went to WDW when there were very low crowds and the experience this spring will be nothing like that. I went in July '20, and enjoyed the low crowds but not the short hours and many closures. I went back in December '20 and March '21, and enjoyed both trips but was also still unhappy about the high prices combined with shorter hours, need for park reservations, and continuing closures (particularly shows & restaurants).

There are a lot of reports out now about overcrowding and sub-par conditions in the parks and resorts from the past several months. And there's the new paid "Genie Plus" queue-jumping system at the parks to pay for and adapt to. Personally, I would much rather cruise than go back to WDW right now. I did cruise the Magic last month, and after that I quickly booked a Dream cruise for January. Both of those cruises I booked via discounted GT rates, relatively low-priced for DCL. If you want to cruise but think it might not be worth paying top dollar, find the cheapest cruise that you can. The winter months offer relatively low prices, and are a very nice time to cruise: winter is the dry season in the Bahamas/Caribbean, and you get away from the cold weather at home.

 

[bethy]

We truly love both and have done both during Covid. But right now prefer DCL for two reasons: It does feel "safer" from a Covid perspective than the parks.

And for our family right now we love feeling cozy and pampered and DCL does that better for us. We are also beach people and DCL takes us to beaches.

We've been DVC members for 12plus years on both coasts and always will be.

P.S. Do not do RCL - do the parks instead of RCL. Your family is at the perfect Disney ages!

 

[peabody58]

DVC for the WIN! But then it's normally just DW & myself. We like to go at our own pace, do what we want, and eat when/where we want. Still so much to see and do at WDW and surrounding area.

We've given up the Big Cruise boats in favor of the more intimate River Cruises overseas. I usually gain 5 lbs every cruise, and I have yet to lose anything that I've gained - since our first cruise back in 1992!

Hoping to do the Great Rivers of Europe in year or so.

 

[cvjw]

We are selling DVC points. The parks are just so crowded and expensive now. Plus all the genie + and LL. No thanks. We would much rather cruise on DCL. No crowds, no planning. Just 100% relaxation.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Mid 70’s couple who own DVC as well.

We have two DCL cruises coming up, Dec 3 and Jan 3. December for the Christmas decorations, and January, 5 nights with friends who have never sailed DVC, they are early 80’s.

We also have two upcoming DVC stays pre cruises.

We sailed a 4 night Dream cruise in September.

I am torn at what to tell you. I understand addonitis, have added on more than 20 times to our DVC points.

Still, I would do the cruise since it’s your first, and DM is 70 And the kids are the ages THEY are.

We have been on RCCL many times, and enjoyed the Perfect Day at Coco Cay. Since you are Disney lovers, I just think every Disney lover who wants to try cruising, should try DCL. There’s nothing on RCCL that compares with the top notch shows on DCL IMO.

 

[Cruising Engineer]

We are DVC and DCL CC Platinum and enjoy both. Our plan, when sailing on DCL, is to spend 2 days at WDW before the cruise (we fly in from NM and have come this close (-) to missing the ship because of airline problems even with one full day flying in ahead of schedule). We haven't sailed RCCL but the mega-ships don't excite us.

 

[MomOTwins]

We are DVC and DCL CC Platinum and enjoy both. Our plan, when sailing on DCL, is to spend 2 days at WDW before the cruise (we fly in from NM and have come this close (-) to missing the ship because of airline problems even with one full day flying in ahead of schedule). We haven't sailed RCCL but the mega-ships don't excite us.

This is close to what we do. We use our dvc points for a day or two before the cruise to enjoy the DVC resort pool and sometimes a day after. Or if it is a short cruise we sometimes fo 3/4 days in the parks together with the cruise. When we just started going to disney parks, everything was super exciting and new to us, so we didn’t mind walking all day on tired feet and repeating rides, but now a whole week in the parks is too exhausting and repetitive. We’d rather just relax on the ship and castaway cay.

 

[Kwami]

But pretty much everything else that the Disney cruises are known for is continuing: theater shows, dining room meals & specialty meals are the same as before, pool deck food is the same as before, room service, twice daily stateroom attendant service, atrium live entertainment, game shows, Bingo (though it's paper cards only), Midship Detective Agency, waterslides, Castaway Cay, fireworks, stateroom door decorations, etc. It still very much feels like a Disney cruise.

Yes, but...

The theater shows are more limited. Some shows repeat on multiple nights to ensure that everyone gets to see them since the seating is so spaced out. So, fewer variety acts and fewer Disney shows, too. The atrium live entertainment is severely limited and almost non-existent. At least when I went in September, there was basically nothing in the atrium except for solo musicians and some characters. No diaper dash, no story about the pumpkin tree, no Halloween games, no Mousequerade Party (though there was a Mousequerade Party on the pool deck). The Midship Detective Agency only had the Mickey cases (no Muppets!), the fireworks were shorter than usual (~2 minutes), and the dance party was also very short and required staying in your blue circles.

All of that said, we still had a really great time and I would definitely do it again. In fact, I probably will. I had a fun time at WDW in September and early October, too, but that was before the Genie+/LL madness and the rush of guests coming for the 50th anniversary and the holidays. We did venture into Magic Kingdom once on October 4 and it was madness. I'd stay clear of that place for a while.

 

[Cheburashka]

Yes, but...

The theater shows are more limited. Some shows repeat on multiple nights to ensure that everyone gets to see them since the seating is so spaced out. So, fewer variety acts and fewer Disney shows, too. The atrium live entertainment is severely limited and almost non-existent. At least when I went in September, there was basically nothing in the atrium except for solo musicians and some characters.

The Magic currently has all three theater shows playing, and there was good atrium entertainment when I sailed her in late October.

Your issues with less holiday-specific programming don't apply to the OP, who isn't considering cruising during Halloween on the High Seas or Very Merrytime.

 

[Kwami]

The Magic currently has all three theater shows playing, and there was good atrium entertainment when I sailed her in late October.

Your issues with less holiday-specific programming don't apply to the OP, who isn't considering cruising during Halloween on the High Seas or Very Merrytime.

Well, non-holiday stuff wasn't happening in the atrium, either. No See Ya Real Soon party at the end, for instance. Unlike previous cruises, we all spent very little time in the atrium. I'm sure that was intentional, though. They don't want people congregating indoors.

The Dream still isn't showing The Golden Mickeys on 3/4-night sailings and they aren't showing Believe on some 3-night sailings, either. That leaves just Beauty and the Beast. We had a variety act show on our 4-night cruise, but some others in September didn't, so I don't know how common those are now.

 

[Intr3pid]

Buy Disney shares instead of DVC points. Not gonna lie, the way Disney sells everything it touches - including a timeshare - makes us their shareholders in perpetuity.

For vacationing, no comparison between cruising and parks. We head to the parks only to check out the new rides or experiences. If. But our true vacation starts the moment we step aboard the ships. They don't have to change a thing to get us to come back - well, maybe the itineraries but that's OK. Our kids will still need their annual CC fix.

 

[squirk]

As a CC Gold and a DVC owner:

I am not super-interested in cruising with the mask mandate in place. That said, I understand why it’s in place, so I’m not mad about it. It’s not a money-grab, and I know it’s temporary, so I can just wait until a more opportune time to sail.

As for the parks, I really, really don’t like all of the pricing changes of late. Genie+ at $15/person/day is off-putting, but pay-per-ride FastPass makes my blood boil. And don’t even get me started on swapping out Not So Scary with Boo Bash, and then trying to gaslight us into thinking it’s not a price hike just because the events have different names.

So while I am not “boycotting” the parks per se, I am not super-eager to go back until I see how this pricing nonsense plays out. I am actively rooting for ILL to fail - miserably - and for the park-going public to send a clear message to Disney that the price the company is asking exceeds the value it is offering.

(Of course, DVC is not “the parks,” but access to the parks is intrinsic to the DVC value proposition)

All that is to say that I’m leaning toward DCL, if only because it doesn’t p**s me off nearly as much as the Parks do right now.

 

[Kwami]

As a CC Gold and a DVC owner:

I am not super-interested in cruising with the mask mandate in place. That said, I understand why it’s in place, so I’m not mad about it. It’s not a money-grab, and I know it’s temporary, so I can just wait until a more opportune time to sail.

I thought that I would be annoyed by the masks on the ship, but I wasn't. Since you only have to wear them indoors and only when you can't distance from others, it's not so bad. You basically wear them while walking in the hallways and when in the theater. If you're at a meal or having a drink or a snack in one of the lounges, then you don't wear the mask. And of course you don't wear them in your room, either. So it's not that bad. And Disney still lets you wear the more comfortable (though substantially less effective) cloth masks, so that helps, too.

As for the parks, I really, really don’t like all of the pricing changes of late. Genie+ at $15/person/day is off-putting, but pay-per-ride FastPass makes my blood boil. And don’t even get me started on swapping out Not So Scary with Boo Bash, and then trying to gaslight us into thinking it’s not a price hike just because the events have different names.

So while I am not “boycotting” the parks per se, I am not super-eager to go back until I see how this pricing nonsense plays out. I am actively rooting for ILL to fail - miserably - and for the park-going public to send a clear message to Disney that the price the company is asking exceeds the value it is offering.

(Of course, DVC is not “the parks,” but access to the parks is intrinsic to the DVC value proposition)

All that is to say that I’m leaning toward DCL, if only because it doesn’t p**s me off nearly as much as the Parks do right now.

+1 from me! Boo Bash wasn't even just a new name and a price hike. It was all of that, plus a dramatic scaling back of content. No fireworks, no parade, no show, limited trick or treating, limited characters, and substantially less time to do everything.

 

[Karin1984]

There are pros and cons to do your first cruise during covid. 1. You do not know what you are missing. 2. As there is less offered you might feel "is this it".

It really depends what you are looking for in your holiday. Do you want just relax, watch the ocean go by, play some trivia, watch a movie or a show?
Or do you want to go go go and have an active vacation?

 

[squirk]

+1 from me! Boo Bash wasn't even just a new name and a price hike. It was all of that, plus a dramatic scaling back of content. No fireworks, no parade, no show, limited trick or treating, limited characters, and substantially less time to do everything.

Right? What made it worse was people (including some of The DIS’ editorial staff) trying to justify/defend by saying “It’s not the same thing as Not So Scary because it’s an After Hours.”

Play the Name Game all you want. They removed the cheaper MK Halloween party, and simultaneously introduced a different MK Halloween party that cost more and offered less.

 

[nancipants]

As a CC Gold and a DVC owner:

I am not super-interested in cruising with the mask mandate in place. That said, I understand why it’s in place, so I’m not mad about it. It’s not a money-grab, and I know it’s temporary, so I can just wait until a more opportune time to sail.

As for the parks, I really, really don’t like all of the pricing changes of late. Genie+ at $15/person/day is off-putting, but pay-per-ride FastPass makes my blood boil. And don’t even get me started on swapping out Not So Scary with Boo Bash, and then trying to gaslight us into thinking it’s not a price hike just because the events have different names.

So while I am not “boycotting” the parks per se, I am not super-eager to go back until I see how this pricing nonsense plays out. I am actively rooting for ILL to fail - miserably - and for the park-going public to send a clear message to Disney that the price the company is asking exceeds the value it is offering.

(Of course, DVC is not “the parks,” but access to the parks is intrinsic to the DVC value proposition)

All that is to say that I’m leaning toward DCL, if only because it doesn’t p**s me off nearly as much as the Parks do right now.

I agree with this wholeheartedly. We are locals so we will probably never stop going to Disney World, but we have not been going nearly as much as we used to, Covid notwithstanding. It was nice having three set Fast Passes per day; it is very hard to wait in lines with a toddler and, since we're locals, no way we're buying Genie every visit!

We love cruising but haven't gone since Covid, mostly due to timing but also because I'm not comfortable sailing until our toddler can be vaccinated. If it was just my husband and I, we would have sailed already.