Is Disney starting to slack compared to other cruises?

[_auroraborealis_]

That was very eloquent and exactly what is happening.

There is a side order of "u no love Disney enough if their niche does not satisfy your every desire!!!" as well.

Some people are upset Disney isn't catering to their every desire, others think that if Disney isn't catering to a particular desire that desire is invalid. And really, it's just that vegans shouldn't go to Brazilian steakhouses and that's okay.

While sure, there are adults without kids who love Disney cruises, the primary Disney audience for the cruise line involves families with children under 12. That is where they have focused the bulk of effort. Others may enjoy the line, but they're a secondary market or incidental (and don't get offended that I called you that, please). The teen offerings have lagged the youth offerings. The core of the adult offering is "no casino, risqué entertainment, and you can park the kids in a safe kids' club and have a cocktail at the no-kid pool!" Which if you have two kids ages 3-12, is a pretty solid offering.

 

[dragynally]

There is a side order of "u no love Disney enough if their niche does not satisfy your every desire!!!" as well.

Some people are upset Disney isn't catering to their every desire, others think that if Disney isn't catering to a particular desire that desire is invalid. And really, it's just that vegans shouldn't go to Brazilian steakhouses and that's okay.

While sure, there are adults without kids who love Disney cruises, the primary Disney audience for the cruise line involves families with children under 12. That is where they have focused the bulk of effort. Others may enjoy the line, but they're a secondary market or incidental (and don't get offended that I called you that, please). The teen offerings have lagged the youth offerings. The core of the adult offering is "no casino, risqué entertainment, and you can park the kids in a safe kids' club and have a cocktail at the no-kid pool!" Which if you have two kids ages 3-12, is a pretty solid offering.

That's not what I was saying at all. I was saying there are options. Especially if people think other cruises are as good as Disney. Which is fine. They probably are. And I am just as much a market as anyone else. Disney goes out of its way to make childless travelers feel special and has special things for us. They wouldn't have wedding and honeymoon stuff if they didn't care. And for the not married the adult only areas aren't just for parents. It's for them too.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

That's not what I was saying at all. I was saying there are options. Especially if people think other cruises are as good as Disney. Which is fine. They probably are. And I am just as much a market as anyone else. Disney goes out of its way to make childless travelers feel special and has special things for us. They wouldn't have wedding and honeymoon stuff if they didn't care. And for the not married the adult only areas aren't just for parents. It's for them too.

It's still a secondary market in terms of their core focus. Not saying it's irrelevant, but they won't introduce anything for adult travelers that is in conflict or damages offerings for the parents of the 3-12 set.

 

[cruiser21]

Almost every cruise I've been on has had over a 1000 kids. I think it's safe to say this is their target. I asked Clayton if they'd ever sail out of New Orleans. His response nope not a kid friendly atmosphere.

 

[Alicatt]

There's actually a third philosophy, improving the DCL offerings while staying true to its current image. A rock wall or smaller zip lines are fun for families. I'm not talking about really scary ones, but ones that are on par with the aqua duck as a waterslide. Disney has always been about excitement and fun. I wouldn't approve of them trying to change who they fundamentally are. You choose disney for a reason.

 

[cruiser21]

When the Dream came with the coaster it was one of a kind. Then other cruiseline started adding thrills. I hope people aren't too disappointed when the new ships have thrill slides and rides. I can't see DCL not having this.

 

[Dug720]

I don't mind things as long as the ships look like SHIPS. Which I hope we can trust Disney to maintain even with the new ones - especially since they wanted the basic look of them to be reminiscent of the classic ocean liners. So many of the mega ships out there are IMHO more reminiscent of barges with partner buildings on them.

I simply do not cruise for "thrills". If I want rides, I will go to an amusement park. There ARE ships that try to be floating amusement parks - and those TO ME do not look like ships.

Cruising is primarily down time for me - the less to do the better. It's nice to disconnect and chill and just be - a lot of people (in general - not referring to anyone specific) are afraid of what will happen if they slow down for a moment. This morning there was some car commercial on during the news where it was about a family getting away and the last thing was something like "And Jeffrey looked away from his phone for three whole minutes." Of course when it panned back to father and son after seeing them against a brilliant starlit sky, Jeffrey had his head in his phone again. It reminded me a little of this thread and how go-go-go we can be even in vacation time.

 

[PrincessTrisha]

When the Dream came with the coaster it was one of a kind. Then other cruiseline started adding thrills. I hope people aren't too disappointed when the new ships have thrill slides and rides. I can't see DCL not having this.

Other cruise lines had thrills long before the AquaDuck. Royal's trampolines, rock climbing, ice skating and flow riders all pre-date the AquaDuck - as do Carnivals multiple waterslides and water parks.

 

[mevelandry]

I don't know that I've really seen defensiveness as you say, as much as just defending gratuitous attacks on DCL. I have read many threads where people sort of come out of nowhere and want to criticize DCL, which is fine if it's fair, but I'm talking about attacks on pricing when the topic was something entirely different than that, and then of course you get defensive responses to that. I mean really, I've read through many many comments at this point and universally the big criticism comes down to $$$. That's at the heart of any criticism.

Critics, yes. Comparisons, yes. I haven't seen any attacks so far.

p.s:Have you tried the brie bacon and tomato sandwich at the pool? It's amazing.

 

[darnheather]

My kids have ZERO interest in rock climbing, zip lining, etc. They LOVE the Disney clubs. I LOVE that they are not exposed to second hand smoke and I feel confident in Disney to properly vet the people that work in the clubs. There are different markets for a reason. If you want all that other stuff don't sail Disney. Don't say Disney is "slacking" because it doesn't have what you personally want. For my family it's perfect.

 

[darnheather]

My kids don't like to sit and watch the ocean go by. On DCL they play video games. Hang out in the clubs. On other cruise lines they are outside more and doing more active stuff. They like them both. I like them both. It's easier to find them on a DCL ship because they're always in the clubs in front of a video game. I find plenty of time to relax on any ship. The nice thing about the ships with all the bells and whistles is their is something for everyone.

So don't cruise DCL. This is a DCL forum and you are going to get pushback. Different markets for different people.

 

[Lumee23]

I think it is fair to say that Disney is starting to fall behind some of the other cruise lines in terms of the extra amusement "rides"/technology on the ship but those lines are pumping out new ships practically on a yearly basis so they are continually trying to compete with each other. Whether it is right or wrong it doesn't seem like Disney considers themselves as directly competing with those other lines as they don't offer similar pricing or sales and do not seem to be in a rush to build up their fleet of ships. I wouldn't mind seeing some fun extras added to the upcoming ships, especially for the teen set.

I have not yet sailed on DCL but we are going this Dec on the Fantasy. We took a trip on the NCL Gem with our 18mo and 4 year old at the time and they did not have a good time on the ship, which meant we did not have a good time on the ship. I can elaborate on details in anybody is interested but overall there was just nothing for them to do. To be fair the Gem is an older ship so there is much less to do than there is are some of the newer NCL ships. We had a blast at the ports but it was bad enough that my husband has banned NCL completely and almost banned cruising as a family altogether. After looking at the daily navigators for the Disney ships I was able to convince him to test out Disney even with the higher price tag. I am crossing my fingers it is worth the hype because I love Disney probably more than my kids lol.

 

[mevelandry]

cruiser21 said: ↑
My kids don't like to sit and watch the ocean go by. On DCL they play video games. Hang out in the clubs. On other cruise lines they are outside more and doing more active stuff. They like them both. I like them both. It's easier to find them on a DCL ship because they're always in the clubs in front of a video game. I find plenty of time to relax on any ship. The nice thing about the ships with all the bells and whistles is their is something for everyone.

So don't cruise DCL. This is a DCL forum and you are going to get pushback. Different markets for different people.

Why tell cruiser21 to not cruise DCL when she says she likes cruising on both?

Also, DCL is the theme of the forum but that doesn't mean we absolutely have to praise them unconditionally. As long as everybody is polite, everybody should have a right to express their opinions. It works both ways.

 

[cruiser21]

So don't cruise DCL. This is a DCL forum and you are going to get pushback. Different markets for different people.

Hmm I guessed you missed the part where I'm about to take my 15th DCL cruise. I think I have enough DCL experience to have an opinion. I've also cruised 6 times on other cruise lines. If you don't like threads comparing the different lines then don't read. I think a lot of people appreciate differing opinions , and objective reviews. There is nothing wrong with liking multiple cruise lines.

 

[Bree]

So don't cruise DCL. This is a DCL forum and you are going to get pushback. Different markets for different people.

Well......

This is a DCL forum, but the owners of this site also sell other cruise lines. Many of us are seasoned cruisers on other lines as well as DCL. Just because a lot of us want DCL to add more stuff beyond what they have now doesn't make it right or wrong. Disney as a company is just very slow when it comes to building and improving. Look at how fast Universal can turn out a product compared to WDW. Other cruise lines plan their ships years out and keep production moving along and usually the ship is more innovative than the last.

I like DCL. I really do, but their pricing has turned me off. Can I afford it? I most certainly can, but I'm reaching the point where the value for what I'm paying vs. what I'm receiving is no longer there for me. I'd rather sail on RCCL for less money and take the money saved and put it towards some other trip. We are taking a DCL cruise in just a few days and it will probably be our last for a long time. I am sad about it since I live and breathe Disney.

 

[darnheather]

You bring up a great point. I forgot about the crowd control. I was surprised when we went on the Carnival Breeze and the Getaway how roomy it was. There were so many places to walk around and enjoy the ocean. This is something Disney definitely needs to improve on. Have you looked at the new MSC Seaside? If you haven't check it out. It looks pretty amazing.

Totally disagree. Except for the sail away party and the pirate night party I never ever felt crowded. More than once I was the only person in the adult pool and able to do laps for 30 minutes. Never waited in lines or felt like there were 3000+ people onboard.

 

[mevelandry]

Totally disagree. Except for the sail away party and the pirate night party I never ever felt crowded. More than once I was the only person in the adult pool and able to do laps for 30 minutes. Never waited in lines or felt like there were 3000+ people onboard.

Adult pools are always more quiet than the family pools though. Both times I sailed on the Dream (sold out), the pools and jacuzzis in the family section were what I call "children soups" (there was more than 1 kid per square meter).

Are you talking about the Wonder/Magic? Because I don't think the Dream pool is long enough to do lapses.

 

[Dug720]

I am not so sure it is Disney "lagging behind" or "slacking" as much as Disney saying "This is who we are."

And I think that is what several of us are saying.

 

[mevelandry]

I am not so sure it is Disney "lagging behind" or "slacking" as much as Disney saying "This is who we are."

And I think that is what several of us are saying.

I guess we'll know for sure when we see the plans for the new ships... But it's gonna take a while.

 

[cruiser21]

Other cruise lines had thrills long before the AquaDuck. Royal's trampolines, rock climbing, ice skating and flow riders all pre-date the AquaDuck - as do Carnivals multiple waterslides and water parks.

Yes true, but it seems like now they are all trying to out do each other. They are making ships this way to appeal to families. I remember when cruising was for old people and kids would have been bored to death. I think DCL really made cruising a family vacation and other cruise lines have followed in their foot steps.

Adult pools are always more quiet than the family pools though. Both times I sailed on the Dream (sold out), the pools and jacuzzis in the family section were what I call "children soups" (there was more than 1 kid per square meter).

Are you talking about the Wonder/Magic? Because I don't think the Dream pool is long enough to do lapses.

Some ships have good crowd control and some don't. One thing I've learned here is that if you say anything positive about another ship it's interpreted as a insult to DCL. It's like your insulting their first born....I'm not even that defensive when it comes to my own kids. Like you said I guess will find out in s couple of years what their plans are I doubt Ill be able to afford it but at least the Fantasy will become cheaper.