Only my Disneyland peeps would understand my delima..

[katyringo]

I know now one can make this decision for us, but.I'm just curious- also once I read your responses if I find myself disagreeing I'll know where my heart really is.

We have a Disney cruise booked for March 2025. Pay in full date is late November so we can still cancel. We have never done a Disney cruise. I am most excited about the Disney vibe and seeing the private islands. Our cruise goes to both and is on the original ship- the Magic. As a Disney adult it's a bucket list item. I am sure that we will love it. Though a couple of hesitations have been about if our son will enjoy it- he's 12. Our daughter is 8 and she was a princess's princess until recently she seems to be veering away and more into marvel, Star Wars, etc. based on what I've been observing we got a really good price on our cruise for 4 people for 7 nights ($4600). Inside room. This is important to factor in.

Well then Disneyland had to go and tease PTN. Our first Disney trip of any kind was December 2017 at Disneyland where I fell in love with all things Disney and PTN is one of those things that Disney lovers talk about and I said if it ever came back I wouldn't miss it.

But budgets are budgets- single income higher middle class family still only has so much extra to go towards trips- tho I will acknowledge we are blessed.

So now we are debating- is this cruise really what we want to do? Should we do a big Disneyland family trip?

Here is where price comes into play- what we paid for the cruise- which includes food, is not comparable to what we would have to spend to do a big Disneyland trip and stay on site. If we did disneyland instead I would have a hard time trading the cruise for a harbor hotel and less than 5 days of tickets.


We are still debating on if my hubby and I just sneak away to Disneyland ourselves while PTN is going- but I also had this vision of seeing it with my kids. And just hubby and I going isn't cheap either..

Anyway! Dang Disney. They know what they are doing...

What would you do?

 

[Pluto468]

Personally, I'd do the Disneyland trip but that's because I can never get enough of it.

But I really like your original plan of going to Disneyland with your husband, you two would have a great time. Plus if you stick to that plan you get to have the best of both worlds. Since price is an issue maybe you could stay on Harbor for a trip with just the 2 of you. There are some good resort hotel sales going on right now, too.

I guess if I was making this decision I'd take into consideration when you can next go to Disneyland and/or the cruise. Will taking a big Disneyland trip mean no other Disney things for a few years?

Maybe write down what you can do on either trip to give yourself an idea of which would be more enjoyable for everyone. If your dream has always been to take the cruise you might like that better since it's a new adventure. Such a hard choice!

 

[gsdweller]

Go on the cruise. The kids will love it way more than PTN. Our kids talk about cruises we have been on all the time. Even though they enjoyed them, not once have they ever talked about a show or parade they saw at DL.

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

I honestly wouldn't trade an entire experience such as a cruise or any other major planned vacation just to see or experience one particular thing at Disneyland.

 

[gottalovepluto]

Cruise.

PTN should stick around for awhile, especially since WDW is going to get it's own nighttime parade instead of stealing ours.

 

[DonnerB]

Another vote for the cruise.

I just took the 10/5 Fantasy 7 night western. Listen, we had a few hiccups (didn't dock at Grand Cayman, back and forth over whether we would make Castaway due to Hurricane Milton), but my mom and I discussed more than once how much more value the cruises are starting to hold compared to the parks.

We cruised with a large group, but met up with one extended family for 2 nights prior to our cruise and did a day at the Magic Kingdom while staying at Copper Creek/Wilderness Lodge. Mom and I are DVC and have Sorcerer's passes this year, so those 2 nights were pretty much prepaid if you will. The rest of them paid cash for two hotel rooms, and paid $169 plus tax before we added LLMP to get into an MK that was closing at 6 for a Halloween party. Did we have a blast? We did! But the discussion the final night of the cruise was "where are we cruising next?" and "wow I can't believe I paid that much for a hotel, doesn't feel like I got my money's worth."

I'm biased as a DL local with a Key who can pop down whenever (and who didn't grow up as a fireworks or parade person save Illuminations), but you're going to get 3 spectacular stage shows on the Magic. The entertainment value in that alone outweighs one parade for me.

 

[DisneylandFan22]

I do think your kids are at good ages to love the cruise. I think 7 days might be too long for your first time though. We went last year for the first time and did 4 and it was perfect. It allows you to experience each of the restaurants without repeating and see all of the shows. That might be something you might want to consider.

I understand the budget. We are looking at a trip to DLR and want to stay onsite and with just the price of the hotel I am thinking about all of the other things we could do. But we messed up and stayed at GCH one time and it was so magical it makes not staying there hard.

Could you change to a shorter cruise and a shorter Disneyland trip? Go to Disneyland and experience PTN and then drive down to San Diego and take a shorter cruise from there? The big downside would be no island leaving from that location.

I don’t think I made it any easier but hopefully I gave you some more things to think about.

 

[emmybee]

One or the other? I'd do both with 3 day park hoppers/LL & a stay at the Westin. I've been and am going on a DCL w/out my kid, but I couldn't do DL w/out her.

 

[lilsonicfan]

I absolutely love cruising, I also love Disneyland, albeit not enough to schedule a trip for one particular event or show or ride. Disney cruising is the best. The service is really attentive and top notch, there is quite a bit to entertain the kids - your son might enjoy the teens club (Edge, I think?) and I bet your daughter will find a lot she enjoys in the clubs too. There's a lot to do on board but it's also just such a relaxing vacation. It's an entirely different vibe than Disneyland - you aren't rushing around to get to a ride, you are just relaxing. For people who need to be busy 24/7, maybe a cruise isn't quite right but otherwise - it's amazing!

 

[Mommb]

On a cruise, everyone in the family can choose what they want to do, and there will be activities for the kids that don't require (or in many cases permit) parental involvement. If someone wants to chill in the room and the others want to go to a show, that's easy to accommodate. Your kids will have the ability to interact with other kids/tweens, or not, as they choose.

In the parks, you would probably want to stay together most of the time, especially when going to or from the hotel.

On a cruise, you will know almost all of the costs in advance, especially on the ship. There are beverages, snacks, souvenirs, and activities with an additional cost, but you can have a great cruise without any of them.

In the parks, each meal and every beverage is a separate cost (and a separate decision about where to go to get it). Instead of just a few shops that sell souvenirs, there are many, each with different appealing options. If your family is good at planning and resisting temptation, this may not be an issue.

 

[scrappinginontario]

Cruise. A week's experience traded for a 20 min parade? Nope! You will love the Disney Cruise and so will your kids! They may or may not enjoy the actual clubs that are offered for their age groups but there is so much additional to do on the cruise!!

 

[irlandaise]

I honestly wouldn't trade an entire experience such as a cruise or any other major planned vacation just to see or experience one particular thing at Disneyland.

Ditto. I vote for the OP taking the whole family on the cruise, and then seeing if perhaps later she and hubby can do a short trip to DL to see PTN.

 

[katyringo]

Okay! You guys convinced me to keep the cruise! You know that Disneyland heart is just a strong thing..

To the comment about a shorter cruise and doing both with the kids..

One would think a shorter cruise would cost less.. but the timing of us booking right when it opened, it being a one way cruise, and who knows what else- our 7 night with stops at both islands is cheaper than what I am seeing for 4 night cruises.

 

[DizMe]

I'm a little late to the conversation, but I'm going to agree with the cruise. I think that's a good choice, for sure. I heard from my SIL that Disney cruises were super fun, the kids had a blast, and Mom and Dad got lots of opportunities to do their own things. But my DH did not want to go on a Disney cruise. He liked having them with us all the time (while I looked forward to time off since I quit my job to be a stay-home mom, chaperone, teacher's helper, etc). Now, my 3 little princesses are grown up (21, 21, and 24) and the Disney cruise never happened, and though we had many fantastic Disneyland trips together, I wish we'd gone on that Disney cruise.

 

[DonnerB]

One would think a shorter cruise would cost less.. but the timing of us booking right when it opened, it being a one way cruise, and who knows what else- our 7 night with stops at both islands is cheaper than what I am seeing for 4 night cruises.

The prices on the Magic next year still seem really good to me. Everyone's focus is on the Treasure. Another great reason to stick with the cruise!

 

[Iceman93]

Are the four of you really going to be okay in a tiny little inside cabin for a week? I know some people do it; my family could not. Just based on that, I'd say a DL trip would be more fun and relaxing.

 

[crystal1313]

Oh, this would be a hard decision for my family. I understand why you are having a difficult time deciding. We would too! We are kinda in the same boat, where we would most likely enjoy the cruise but aren’t sure our kids would. They’re older now (16&15). And it’s hard to spend a lot of money on a trip and not know for sure that you all will have a fantastic trip. And you pretty much know you will have a fantastic trip at Disneyland. We go through that a lot too! It’s hard to decide!! It sounds like you made your decision and I’m sure you’ll have a great time! I always second guess our non Disney parks trips, but we end up having a good trip. I think you guys will too!

 

[DizMe]

Are the four of you really going to be okay in a tiny little inside cabin for a week? I know some people do it; my family could not. Just based on that, I'd say a DL trip would be more fun and relaxing.

We went on a booze cruise to Ensenada last summer for my SIL's 70th birthday. There were 5 of us in a relatively small cabin--double (queen?) for DH and me, pull out for one dd, and bunk beds for the other 2. Very narrow room, small bathroom. Luckily, we weren't all together in the room that much, but it really wasn't that bad. Of course, we used to pack all of us in one small tent at Yosemite. The girls and dh all had a blast, but for me it was just everything I hate--constant migraine triggers and a hearty celebration of hedonism. I think I'd really enjoy a Disney cruise, but OMG I hope I never step foot on another Carnival ship.

Oops...sorry for the rant! The one thing I didn't mind about the cruise was our cabin. It was fun to be together!

 

[katyringo]

We went on a booze cruise to Ensenada last summer for my SIL's 70th birthday. There were 5 of us in a relatively small cabin--double (queen?) for DH and me, pull out for one dd, and bunk beds for the other 2. Very narrow room, small bathroom. Luckily, we weren't all together in the room that much, but it really wasn't that bad. Of course, we used to pack all of us in one small tent at Yosemite. The girls and dh all had a blast, but for me it was just everything I hate--constant migraine triggers and a hearty celebration of hedonism. I think I'd really enjoy a Disney cruise, but OMG I hope I never step foot on another Carnival ship.

Oops...sorry for the rant! The one thing I didn't mind about the cruise was our cabin. It was fun to be together!

My parents are avid carnival cruisers. They want to do a family one in 2026- I've request we port in San Diego or Florida so that I can cleanse myself with Disney afterwards... just kidding. We've been on a carnival cruise several years ago and had a fine time.

I do really think we will like the cruise a lot. The other thing is that my hubby and I are both sober and no really into that scene.. so the Disneyesque type activities and vibe I think will appeal to us adults too.