Thinking of booking Transatlantic...any feedback?

[Violet Parr]

We have never done a Disney Cruise but feel like the time is coming. We are considering a transatlantic. I need to look over the dates again, but I think we would be doing a cruise to Europe, then 2 weeks in Europe, then flights back to the US. (But it could be reversed.)

I guess the only thing I'm concerned about is the length of the cruise. I know Disney cruises have so many things to do but I wonder if we will get antsy with so many days at sea.

We are 2 adults, three kids ages (next year) 15, 12, and 7.

Thanks for any tips you might offer!

VP

 

[jenpink]

I love the transatlantic because of the extra days, at sea. Everyone is different, but I very easily filled those days with the extra activities they had on board. My daughter was 13 on our transatlantic in May, and she had a great time. She made great friends that she is still in contact with. We enjoyed it so much that we have booked another transatlantic for next September.

 

[Gilland18]

The longer cruises seem to usually have a very active pre-cruise community. I would suggest joining the group and look for kids near your children's ages. Let them communicate and make friends before the cruise. You do the same and join in on some of the extras the group may be planning. We love the longer cruises.

 

[jdb in AZ]

If you do the westbound cruise through the time zones, you'll have some 25-hour days instead of 23-hour days.

 

[dclcruise2012]

Two weeks vacation in Europe is a lot of travelling and I think it's gonna be though on you and the kids.
What's more relaxing than to do the Westbound after that . Eleven days luxurious vacation on The Magic, some days with 25 hours (extra sleep!), sea days (brunch at Palo). Don't think about being bored, Disney is organising many things to do, even the baby crawl is hilarious.
We are on the Westbound to next year.

 

[Pygmypuff07]

We haven't done the eastbound transatlantic yet but decided to book it for 2016. I just wanted to say though that since the EBTA goes into Dover, you can do so much by just staying in London if you want to make a European vacation relatively easy. From London you can plan day trips to Paris and many places such as Oxford or Bath. Also, Heathrow isn't too far from central London and you can take the tube back to the airport if you are traveling light. If not, then you can get a car transfer that is not too expensive. I called the concierge for the EBTA yesterday as I had the same concern you had about getting bored with so many sea days. They said that on those itineraries, they usually schedule more activities for those days.

 

[GoofyNewfie]

We did the 2013 EBTA. Loved it. Hooked us into the longer cruises so we did WBPC this year. There's lots to do.

The longer cruises seem to usually have a very active pre-cruise community. I would suggest joining the group and look for kids near your children's ages. Let them communicate and make friends before the cruise. You do the same and join in on some of the extras the group may be planning. We love the longer cruises.

I second that. I made some great travel buddies and have re-cruised with some of them. Getting into the extra activities the group arranges is great.

 

[dclpluto]

You will love the transatlantic. Did it back in 07. Really great cruise. They had Jim bricman give a show. Susan Egan gave a show. Plenty of things to do. Of course Jim and Susan probably won't be on your cruise. But they will probably have someone special on. Susan is schedule to be on dec 28 to Jan 4 on a Disney cruise I'm guessing fantasy. My mistake looks like she is going to be on the wonder from Galveston. Only cruise that fits that time.

 

[Little Doe]

I have seen your post three or four times as I scan through the list. Each time I quickly read TransAtlantic as Titanic -- too funny. Do go TransAtlantic not Titanic!!

 

[darnheather]

I love the transatlantic because of the extra days, at sea. Everyone is different, but I very easily filled those days with the extra activities they had on board. My daughter was 13 on our transatlantic in May, and she had a great time. She made great friends that she is still in contact with. We enjoyed it so much that we have booked another transatlantic for next September.

Would love to see a trip report from you. Sounds fantastic.

 

[Simba One]

This will be our second transatlantic. Remember you lose time on the way over, could be hard on the kids. It was hard on me! There are not many kids on board, may be an advantage or disadvantage. Overall it's a fabulous cruise!

 

[Allabouthemouse]

Transatlantic is a lovely cruise - the kids (who were 10 and 7 at the time) did a bit of school work and journaling each day then got to explore everything that they never had enough time to do on previous cruises. DH and I enjoyed spa time, tasting events, pool time and movies. There is so much going on that you really won't be at a loss for activities. Agree with previous posters that eastbound daily loss of an hour was not fun for anyone. I would definitely cruise the other way next time.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Agree with previous posters that eastbound daily loss of an hour was not fun for anyone. I would definitely cruise the other way next time.

That's the one thing that I'm dreading. We've done the westbound TA and it was great gaining that 5 hours (one each sea day), but losing those 5 hours is going to be a mess, IMO.

 

[Allabouthemouse]

That's the one thing that I'm dreading. We've done the westbound TA and it was great gaining that 5 hours (one each sea day), but losing those 5 hours is going to be a mess, IMO.

So that's the craziest thing- losing 5 hours at one time is not as bad as over 14 days. That wrecked havoc on our circadian rhythm and DH and I are used to crazy schedules. Poor kids were sleeping in until noon by the end of the cruise.

 

[GatorMomInNC]

GO FOR IT! Our first DCL a was the WBTA, in 2011. My kids were 4 and 7 then It was 14 nights and Fantastic! Also did 14 night 2013 EBPC and WBTA again in 2014 and are booked for this year, although still not for sure we can swing it. Disappointed it is only 11 nights this year. Like PP, I would do the cruise afterwards to relax...

Lots to do and lots of time to relax and unwind. Really cool to look at map and see you are in the Atlantic halfway between Europe and USA

 

[Ofinn]

I think a WBTA would be awesome. The EBTA not so much. I prefer warmer weather and gaining a hour every day. I'm a morning person. I think waking up some mornings at 10am due to the time changes would drive me crazy. I would much rather tour Europe, and then relax on a cruise back to the states. Not being jet lagged when I have to return to work would be a added bonus.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I think a WBTA would be awesome. The EBTA not so much. I prefer warmer weather and gaining a hour every day. I'm a morning person. I think waking up some mornings at 10am due to the time changes would drive me crazy. I would much rather tour Europe, and then relax on a cruise back to the states. Not being jet lagged when I have to return to work would be a added bonus.

Yeah, that's how we did it the first time. A Med cruise first, and then the WBTA. Unfortunately, the eastbound one works out better for us this year. I'm sure we'll adjust (somehow), but it's going to be harder.

 

[Saamh]

We did the 2015 EBTA with our daughters, 10 and 7 and it was great. Since it was prior to most schools getting out, there were fewer kids (and quite a few homeschooled kids). It was much more relaxing than a 3 or 4 day cruise since everyone wasn't frantically trying to cram everything into a short amount of time. Plus, many of the cruisers are repeat, seasoned cruisers so the lines for characters, etc. were much shorter than most cruises. We loved the 15 night transatlantic and had a great time. I would highly recommend it.

 

[clten]

So that's the craziest thing- losing 5 hours at one time is not as bad as over 14 days. That wrecked havoc on our circadian rhythm and DH and I are used to crazy schedules. Poor kids were sleeping in until noon by the end of the cruise.

Losing the hour a day for several days straight is the worst thing about the EBTA (but I find their itineraries to be much more interesting than the WBTA). We've done both and would recommend either way for the experience.

We do wish that DCL would just have you lose all those hours in one day (either have the 1st day at sea programming end very early and the shows run in the afternoon with 1st and 2nd seating lunch. Then everyone goes to bed 5 hours early -- could have "late night buffet" from 6-9pm for those that can't sleep that early and want their meal before adjusting. The team that works the "late night buffet" wouldn't work the breakfast shift the next morning so they could get their time adjustment in too. Think something along those lines would make losing those hours easier than adjusting your body clock every night!

 

[jenpink]

I actually didn't mind the time change on the EBTA at all. I thought it was great to have the gradual change instead of all at once. We arrived in Europe with no jet lag and were ready to go. I would do the EBTA again with no worries.