Just Back...and I really wanted to drink the DCL Kool-Aid

[Ofinn]

After 13 cruises in five years with multiple cruises on each ship I can say Ive had great and mediocre cruises on all the ships. I wouldnt avoid any of the ships because of one bad cruise. I will say I dont think the Magic warrants being triple or quadruble the price of other ships in Europe when you consider the age of the ship. It comes down to price for me Im happy to sail on any of them if the price is right.

 

[Kenny1113]

I love DCL! I love the service, I love the look of the ships, I love hearing the subtle Disney music in the hallways. I thought the food was much better than the food on RCCL.
I will say that myDS hated the lab - the kids were too young and he hated the baby talk to him- I got him to go to edge with his brother which he Thought was a little better.

However with my kids being older and DCLs new policy on bringing alcohol onboard I can no longer justify the increased price.

 

[Madame]

There were calm seas, but MAJOR vibration all night and MAJOR noise from the cabinetry in the room. There were points when I thought the ceiling was going to fall in.

Just got off the Fantasy today. We were in 8668 & yeah the vibration is bad & the creaking cabinetry. My kids sleep like logs, but DH & I were up often during the night. Next time I'll Google the room # before booking.

 

[jack87891]

We're still drinking the kool aid. We just got off our first trip on the dream. Our only complaint was that it was too short. since all our previous cruises were either 5 or 7 nights we weren't t quite ready to be done after 4 nights!! We booked the magic for a 6 night from San Juan to Orlando next May so that will feel more "normal"

 

[Cagenovese]

I still never get that some people think the food is just so so. Heck, I am not shopping for it, prepping it, serving it or cleaning it up. It would have to be really bad for me not to enjoy it. This last cruise on the Fantasy had one menu I did not care for but the rest was great. We dine in very nice
places at home but I don't see the food being mediocre onboard. Everyone is different I guess.

I also go to the main stage show all the time. Have seen them all numerous times and still enjoy them!!

This trip ws a sandwich...We did 3 days in the parks and I couldn't wait to get on the ship. We did 3 days in the parks after the ship and wished I was still onboard. I love WDW but think the cruise is much more fun. I hate all the prep work it takes to enjoy WDW now. And again I will never go to WDW in August. It was just too dang hot!

MJ

Going on the Fantasy in October. Missed the Beef Wellington last time as we went to Palo. Not sure that meal was all that good for the price. Hoping to try the Beef Wellington this time if it's still on the menu?

 

[mmouse37]

Going on the Fantasy in October. Missed the Beef Wellington last time as we went to Palo. Not sure that meal was all that good for the price. Hoping to try the Beef Wellington this time if it's still on the menu?

It was offered on the Fantasy on our cruise (August 2016) and was delicious!!

MJ

 

[disneyholic family]

DD and DSIL are on the magic in the med right now (tomorrow is their last sea day and then back to barcelona)..
the two of them must be drinking the koolaid something fierce as they can't stop ooohing and aaahing about everything!!
this was DD's 4th dcl cruise and DSIL's first (they've been on royal together 4 times since they married)..

DSIL said he now has a new favorite cruise line (guess he's not that loyal to royal anymore hahah)

they said the service, food and entertainment on the magic have been outstanding ..

they skipped dinner last night so they could see tangled twice and gave standing ovations both times...clearly they loved it!!

yup they're drinking the koolaid for sure..

 

[steves100]

Carnival and RCL. More fun, better food, better handicap accessible areas, better prices, friendlier staff on Carnival and larger/better layout of cabins on Carnival. Maybe we just hit a bad cruise on DCL, but unless there is some great sale, never again.

You are by FAR in the minority, including MAJOR awards for cruise lines. I have NEVER heard anyone say Carnival food was better, nor friendlier staff

 

[PrincessTrisha]

You are by FAR in the minority, including MAJOR awards for cruise lines. I have NEVER heard anyone say Carnival food was better, nor friendlier staff

Carnival's food is better than DCL.

You've now heard 2 people say it.

Guys Burger, Blue Iguana Cantina, thin crust - made for you pizza, deli with made to order sandwiches, and the new American Table menus are better than what DCL serves in their MDR (at least in my opinion). Oh, and much better MDR desserts.

 

[Ofinn]

I've actually heard several people on these boards say Carnival food is better. My kids are so excited for good Burgers, Pizza, deli sandwhiches, and the milk shake bar. My kids can't stand the pool food on DCL. As far as the MDR I've heard it's about equal, with Carnival having better desserts. DCL may win for the buffet. At least the five or so reviews I've read on here all seem to be pretty consistent. There are many great things about DCL, but the food is not one of them. Everytime I gain a pound or two I tell my husband I need to go back on a DCL ship so I can lose it. I'm a runner and I don't generally put on weight quickly so if I come back and report I gained a couple of pounds then you'll know the food was good.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I have to weigh in on the Carnival/DCL food comparison

While the best hamburgers I've ever had on a ship were on our Carnival cruise (not Guy's burgers, just the regular burgers), the food in the dining room left a lot to be desired.

We were on a cruise when the "new" American Table menu was being introduced, so things may have changed, but I really didn't like having to make up my own selections to be served. I much prefer the chef to set up a meal with what he/she deems to be items that "go together" the best. I also found the food quite bland, and very heavy on the sauces. Everything was swimming in some sort of gravy/sauce at every dinner. Sad to say, they even messed up the chocolate melting cake one night. It was under cooked, and cold.

Not to mention the service - or lack of service. We had 3 servers for our table, and trying to flag one of them down was next to impossible. We saw each one once at the beginning of the meal (one for serving drinks, one for taking the order, and the third for serving the food). Then we didn't see them again.

We wound up going to the buffet for dinner most nights. At least there the food tended to be hot and flavorful.

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

You are by FAR in the minority, including MAJOR awards for cruise lines. I have NEVER heard anyone say Carnival food was better, nor friendlier staff

I have to say MDR food was definitely better on DCL, except desserts, I have to give the nod to Carnival on that one. I also think the quick service places on the Carnival are far superior to the pizza, burgers etc on the Disney ships.

As far as service goes I think DCL is overall better, but if my only DCL cruise had been the only time we've been on the Wonder, I would have to give the nod to Carnival. They were extremely friendly without trying to be kiss ups.

I enjoy both lines in different ways and with Carnivals prices I can afford multiple cruises every year now.

 

[TXDCLfan]

You are by FAR in the minority, including MAJOR awards for cruise lines. I have NEVER heard anyone say Carnival food was better, nor friendlier staff

We have always found Carnivals food way better than Disney's

 

[TXDCLfan]

Carnival's food is better than DCL.

You've now heard 2 people say it.

Guys Burger, Blue Iguana Cantina, thin crust - made for you pizza, deli with made to order sandwiches, and the new American Table menus are better than what DCL serves in their MDR (at least in my opinion). Oh, and much better MDR desserts.

Make that 3 now!!!

 

[steves100]

I have to say MDR food was definitely better on DCL, except desserts, I have to give the nod to Carnival on that one. I also think the quick service places on the Carnival are far superior to the pizza, burgers etc on the Disney ships.

As far as service goes I think DCL is overall better, but if my only DCL cruise had been the only time we've been on the Wonder, I would have to give the nod to Carnival. They were extremely friendly without trying to be kiss ups.

I enjoy both lines in different ways and with Carnivals prices I can afford multiple cruises every year now.

I wasnt talking quick service, and that seems to be where people are going. I am not defending Disney prices, I too am getting sick of them. But, I have never heard anyone say Disney MDR is worse than any other cruise line. And if someone tells me Carival has something better than Palo I will laugh

 

[PrincessTrisha]

I wasnt talking quick service, and that seems to be where people are going. I am not defending Disney prices, I too am getting sick of them. But, I have never heard anyone say Disney MDR is worse than any other cruise line. And if someone tells me Carival has something better than Palo I will laugh

IMO, both Celebrity and Carnival's MDRs serve better food than DCL.

I prefer the steakhouse on Carnival to Palo.

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

I wasnt talking quick service, and that seems to be where people are going. I am not defending Disney prices, I too am getting sick of them. But, I have never heard anyone say Disney MDR is worse than any other cruise line. And if someone tells me Carival has something better than Palo I will laugh

I've never dined at Palo so can't compare to anything. One of these days we'll get there but until then I'll just continue reading about the great soufflé!

 

[suedon70]

IMO, both Celebrity and Carnival's MDRs serve better food than DCL.

And we just recently sailed Princess for the first time (July 7-night Scandinavia, which was $7k cheaper than the comparable Disney cruise!) and the MDR food IMO was vastly superior to DCL. However, I thought DCL's buffet was much better than what we had on the Emerald Princess.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

Sounds like the OP would just actually prefer another cruise line. Not everyone loves DCL and if you don't love it, it's not worth paying extra for.

19 DCL cruises and 1 RCL and for the most part, RCL's regular dining room food was better than DCL's.

Fast food pretty lousy on both, with the exception of the schwarma counter on the Magic, if it's still there.

 

[Ofinn]

I've eaten at Palo several times. It's good. Mostly it's just a nice night out without the kids. The mdr food on DCL is good. It just gets redundant I'm usually tired of it by night 4. It's extremely hard to eat it for 12 nights. On Dcl there are no other options. Other cruiselines have options, yes at a price, but there are options. DCl wants everyone in the MDR.

On our last cruise there was no food out in the sports bar they used to put out wings, vegetables, and chips etc. No chips, sour cream, and salsa in the promenade lounge, and no palo apps in the cove cafe. You could get it if you asked. They said it was for hygiene purposes, I personally think it was cut backs. If it was for hygiene why didn't they put out a sign saying that you could ask. Nobody asked because nobody knew accept the handful of cruisers that had cruised before. Kind of like the H20 products. People that haven't cruised before wouldn't know that they used to replace these daily. Now you have to chase down your room host to get a replacement, and this was on a cruise that for most family's of four the lowest priced room would have been a 11k.
I'm not trying to bash DCL, but when you've cruised 13 times in 4 years and 8 months you notice things like that. Also the food and service varies from cruise to cruise and ship to ship.

Another problem I find with the MDR's , and this may be true of all cruiselines, is there is not a lot of options for kids that are stuck between a kids menu and an adult menu. The kids menus are designed for kids under 8 or 9 and the adult menu is very rich with a lot of sauces. Not a lot in between.

I have read the steak house on Carnival is very good. I wasn't planning on eating there, but I may have to now so I can compare.