Just switched to RCCL

[NYDisneyMom]

Well...after a few days of research and soul searching I just booked a 7 day Western on RCCL's Splendour of the Seas!!

I had booked a 4 day Wonder, but my friend and I decided, what the heck, might as well do a whole week! So..for $40 more than the 4 day Wonder, we can do the 7 day RCCL!! That's just nuts. Not only that...but we have two adjoining aft balcony cabins!! Those balconies are huge!!!

I booked with Costco...I had an absolutely fabulous agent help me...she was so excited that the aft cabins were available for us!

 

[Luckymommyx2]

Congrats!! We did the same thing as you. We were booked on DCL for a back to back 3 & 4 night cruise then started comparing what else we could get for the same money. It ended up we are in a grand suite on a 9 night RCI cruise!!! We could have reserved a junior suite but since we don't have to fly we put that money towards an upgrade. We've never been on anything longer than a 4 night before so this is really going to be a treat.

 

[jjnv]

Congratutions for pulling the plug! I am still sitting on the fence. Hubby wants to do 7 days, but I cannot take that many days off work and kids out of school.

Did you have to wait long to get an agent with Costco? I tried to call them a few times throughout the week. Every time the wait was 10-30 minutes.

 

[Luckymommyx2]

I booked through Costco so I can help with this one. Yes, the typical wait time to get through to a ta is about 20-30 mins. Try to call as the lines are opening in the morning or sometimes a Thursday afternoon is good too. It is a long time to hold but I try to multi-task by carrying the cordless phone around while doing some work. To me it's still a good payoff.

 

[Luckymommyx2]

PS...it is hard to pull the plug because we did really enjoy our last Wonder cruise but it's just so hard for us to justify that cost when we can get so much more for the same amount, or less. Good luck making your decision.

 

[kpgclark]

Try also getting a quote from cruisequick.com. They have awesome prices. Congratulations!

 

[skyhawk]

Our first cruise was last year on RCCL Majesty of the Seas. It was wonderful (excpet for very small cabin)! Looking forward to our Disney Cruise, but RCCL will always have a special place in my heart (and stomach ). Don't feel guilty - enjoy yourself!!

 

[bobbiwoz]

We had a European Cruise on the Splendour of the Seas and we had a wonderful time. We both liked the special dining room up high where we could eat our meals when when we wanted and with new friends that we met on the ship.

Enjoy your cruise. We've been on 4 great RCCL cruises.

Bobbi

 

[tezb]

I don't think you'll be disappointed. We recently cruised w/ RCCL for the first time and had a great time! We saved approx 2000.00 for a family of 5! Would definitely do RCCL again.

 

[NYDisneyMom]

Thanks everyone!! I feel better!! And we did just do DCL in May for the Eastern, and still plan on doing it again May '06. I'm excited about the big balconies!!

The TA agent said once we're on board to check the kids in and request that my 8 1/2 year be placed in the 9-11 group with his 10 year brother and the other 10 year old we're bringing. Has anyone had any experience doing this?? Will it be a problem?? I posted over on cruisecritic, also...waiting to hear their feedback.

 

[Mjasp]

Am contemplating RCCL myself for next year. We are thinking about the 5 day Bermuda out of NJ or the Voyager 9 day out of NJ

Keep your opinions coming

 

[travellady]

We couldn't make up our mind so we have a 5 day RCCL cruise, Voyager of the Seas out of Bayonne NJ to Canada, scheduled for next week, departing 8/8.

And, we have a 3 day DCL cruise and 4 days at WDW scheduled for December.

I"ve sailed neither so can't compare them to each other yet. I suspect they'll be different, both with some really great things and not so great things.

I can't wait !!

 

[the4nitz's]

Our family has been looking at other cruise lines, RCCL and CCL and are having a hard time making up our minds. We are booked on the Jan 29 Magic, but can go on either of the other cruise lines for less though not a whole lot less. 300-500 less for a balcony. The big thing with DCL is that our DD will be 2 weeks shy of her 3rd birthday, so her cruise fare on DCL is only $139.00 and the others her fare is more. I think we will stick with DCL for Jan 2005, but will look at RCCL "Glory" for the next year. I bet there are a lot of other families in the same spot. DCL is GREAT, but is it really woth the extra $$$$$'s?

 

[CRB#33]

I'll tell you, Disney better hope their name can get them full ships in the future.

The industry is so competitive now. I just can't justify going with Disney again. Especially now that the kids are older.

I don't know how they'll be able to keep charging what they are. I won't cruise Disney again unless they become more competitive.

RCI (and many other lines) have nice ships. And the only problem I have heard is slightly smaller cabins and the food isn't as good.

I can be they will fix that food problem.

 

[4nana]

Sounds like a winner and I wish you a fabulous cruise. We love Royal Caribbean! The Wonder and Magic are a class act, but you can't beat $40 more dollars for 3 xtra days!!

Happy sailing!
~ Sandie

 

[NYDisneyMom]

Originally posted by CRB#33
I'll tell you, Disney better hope their name can get them full ships in the future.

The industry is so competitive now. I just can't justify going with Disney again. Especially now that the kids are older.

I don't know how they'll be able to keep charging what they are. I won't cruise Disney again unless they become more competitive.

RCI (and many other lines) have nice ships. And the only problem I have heard is slightly smaller cabins and the food isn't as good.

I can be they will fix that food problem.

You're right...we will probably do one more Disney cruise, though. If we love RCI then I'd definitely go for a suite with them, which would be about the cost of the Cat 4 we had with Disney!
And Disney doesn't have those aft cabins with the big balconies! I can deal with the room being a little smaller if the balcony is bigger!!

 

[CurtS]

We pained over this ourselves and probably drove our TA crazy. It really came down to her advice that for this year, with a 3 and 4 year old, DCL may be a better choice with its childrens programs and on-board characters. She said no one can really outdo DCL for the kids but as they get older, RCCL can be pretty comparable in its programs.

 

[LisaGoeke]

We just booked a cruise with RCI also. I booked with RCI directly, then went to change it over to a TA in hopes of getting a better deal. I tried Costco several times but got fed up with the 30 minute wait, so I went elsewhere. The new agent I went with was able to save us $130 and all six of us are cruising for $3,400 for a week. Can't beat that.

It will definitely be different than DCL but when I was growing up we constantly went on RCCL and the last time I cruised their line was our honeymoon. Looking forward to trying it again.

 

[KYCruiseCrazy]

Originally posted by the4nitz's
Our family has been looking at other cruise lines, RCCL and CCL and are having a hard time making up our minds. We are booked on the Jan 29 Magic, but can go on either of the other cruise lines for less though not a whole lot less. 300-500 less for a balcony. The big thing with DCL is that our DD will be 2 weeks shy of her 3rd birthday, so her cruise fare on DCL is only $139.00 and the others her fare is more. I think we will stick with DCL for Jan 2005, but will look at RCCL "Glory" for the next year. I bet there are a lot of other families in the same spot. DCL is GREAT, but is it really woth the extra $$$$$'s?

let's just say one thing for sure. if you go DCL you can drop off your kids in the kids club/lab on a sea day at 9 am and a port day at 7:30 am and dont have to pick them back up til midnite-1 am unless you want to get them. DCL unlick other cruise lines take your kids to eat lunch amd dinner. and the other cruise lines charge you $5-$7 and hr per kid after 10 pm. and in some cases from what ive seen and read the kids are having soooooo much fun they dont want to leave the club/lab. Also the kids areas on DCL are 15,000 Square feet compared to maybe 5,000 on other cruise lines. my Dmil just went on CCL and said the kids area was small and there looked to be little or no supervision. but just remember this one thing about being on vacation..... if the kids aren't happy you might be just as unhappy as them.

 

[tecdavidt]

Our family has to agree that the prices on DCL our getting expensive for us. We will go over New Year's Eve special 7 day cruise (Tues to Tues.) but it wouldn't surprise me that is our last DCL cruise for a long time. We have cruised on Celebrity, Carnival, Princess and Disney. Our daughter has been on Carnival and Disney and she preferred Disney but as she has gotten older the cruise is old hat to her and she needs something different. Our TA has tried to talk us into trying RCCL but that was back when our teen boys still went with us and because of our daughter we stuck with Disney. Now that she is almost a teen we probably will try RCCL in '05 because of the great reviews we have heard about RCCL and teens and the fact the RCCL is cheaper (according to our TA).

We do love Disney but other lines offer great cruises. Someday we will also bring her on Celebrity, which is our all time favorite line. I doubt DCL will have trouble filling ships because as we leave the line there will be younger families taking our place. I still fell Disney has the best cruise for young children and pre-teens. Our teen boys enjoyed DCL but they would have also enjoyed RCCL if they had the chance. DCL just needs to remember their market, young families--young families don't usually have large amounts of cash to use on elaborate vacations.
A trip to WDW, DL or a DCL cruise can sometimes be a once in a lifetime event for some young families.
Kathy