Was Disney your first cruise? Did you cruise others? Do you only cruise Disney now??

[mmouse37]

DCL was our first cruise ever and it was the MV of the Magic...we also put our money down about 18 months in advance and did not even know what the final itinerary was!!! We were hooked and have been on 22 DCL cruises total...but we also have cruised Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Princess, NCL and we have enjoyed them all but DCL has a special place in my heart.

MJ

 

[edk35]

Thanks everyone... I love reading all of your replies. Sounds like you all LOVE DCL.

 

[kevinsmom]

my family just booked the Dream which will be our cruise #8. It will be #2 on DCL. We have done RCCL and Carnival. We havent had a bad cruise yet. All different and all wonderful.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

Thanks everyone... I love reading all of your replies. Sounds like you all LOVE DCL.

Did you really read all the replies? I did and while MOST of them LOVE DCL there were some that were either just OK or tied with others.

 

[Alexander]

1996 Our first cruise was to be on the Big Red Boat with the WDW package. But...the Big Red Boat went out of business and Carnival picked up the packages. So we sailed with Carnival--it was okay.

Since then we've sailed 3 times with DCL and have 2 more booked (working on another 2 as I type). I have looked at other itineraries when DCL is full or out of my price range, but have not ever booked anything.

 

[DL1957]

Our first cruise was DCL and we have not looked back! You say you were DVC members. There is a lot discussion about using points for DCL I must say DH and have taken several cruises we would not have been able to afford by using our DVC points! We have completed 6 cruises and 3 more booked this year.
DS and BIL went on 3 other cruise lines and enjoyed them however after doing the Baltic on DCL with us last year they are hooked and sailing for their second time in the Med. in July.
By the way we were not blessed with children and still love DCL!

 

[Gigi22]

DH and I have been cruising on HAL since 1989. We got brave and tried a 4 day DCL cruise a few years ago, just to try it out and make sure that we could handle the hundreds of children and children's activities we expected to find on a Disney ship. Much to our relief, we discovered that DCL also caters to adults! Currently we cruise alternate years on HAL and DCL.

 

[MinnesotaMouseketeers]

but only DCL since.

Despite some negative posts that are showing up on this board; we have had nothing but "Wonder"ful service and "Magic"al memories of our Disney Cruise Line vacations.

As long as we keep getting top notch entertainment, service, food, and quality time getting to know so many interesting Cast Members I see no reason to try another cruise line. It may take a little longer to save up for a DCL vacation but for us it's worth the wait.

Looking forward to our next cruise on the Fantasy, the western itinerary. Booked while on board the Wonder's Panama Canal crossing.

 

[Alexander]

Our first cruise was DCL and we have not looked back! You say you were DVC members. There is a lot discussion about using points for DCL I must say DH and have taken several cruises we would not have been able to afford by using our DVC points! We have completed 6 cruises and 3 more booked this year.
DS and BIL went on 3 other cruise lines and enjoyed them however after doing the Baltic on DCL with us last year they are hooked and sailing for their second time in the Med. in July.
By the way we were not blessed with children and still love DCL!

We were part of that crowd that insists using DVC points for cruises is a bad way to use your points. However, we have really grown tired of WDW and the other trades are essentially a pain in the butt, so we have booked our last 2 cruises and 1 for my parents on points, and who would have thought I could book 3 cruises for $95 (the CM only charged me once to book all 3 cruises)!

 

[jodifla]

I started cruising in 1983 or '84. It was on the Emerald Seas, now long gone.
Then I went on two ships from the Dolphin Line (now defunct). Like that line...it was French and they had wine on the tables each night!

Then we moved to NCL, back when it was really great. We went on the Norway and the Seaward. Loved the Norway's first class smoking lounge!! Also tried RCCL's Sovereign of the Seas when it was pretty new.

We've done 3 DCL cruises, one on the Wonder and two on the Magic.

I've done about 6 Carnival weekend cruises with friends.

I've never had a bad cruise vacation. Disney has elegant boats, with lots of great touches for kids. So that's nice. Food is hit or miss. Some of the best food I've had has been on Carnival. I think Disney's adult areas are lacking. We found little to do after 10 p.m.

I've had great service on most of the boats.

 

[disneyholic family]

DH and I have been cruising on HAL since 1989. We got brave and tried a 4 day DCL cruise a few years ago, just to try it out and make sure that we could handle the hundreds of children and children's activities we expected to find on a Disney ship. Much to our relief, we discovered that DCL also caters to adults! Currently we cruise alternate years on HAL and DCL.

i think DCL is pretty weak on specifically adult activities...especially on the Dream....have you looked at the Dream navigators.....there's really nothing to do later in the evening.....sitting in a bar is not my idea of entertainment....

as i said, DCL is great for families with kids, but there are other lines that serve adults and young adults better...

 

[DisneyCruiser83]

DH and I took our first cruise with DCL. It was a trip his extended family was planning, and they invited us along. We did not even have cruising on our radar, but really enjoyed it. We have taken 10 DCL cruises total and have the first two Fantasy cruises booked. But, our experience on the WBPC/2-day cruise was not up to the classic DCL standards and the Dream Navigators leave a lot to be desired for adult activities. I have heard some really great things about the NCL Courtyard Villas lately, and have looked into it. We can do a Western cruise from Tampa in a Penthouse for the same price we are paying to do the Fantasy MV in an oceanview. While we have had great experiences in the past, for us, it is time to branch out a little.

 

[DisneyMomforLife]

I am a Disney fanatic ... I have always loved everything Disney since I was a kid. I have been to WDW about 20 times ... we've sailed 2 times on the Wonder, 1 time on the Magic and are getting ready to drop the hammer on a 7 night Western on the Fantasy for 2012.

I get goosebumps and tear up just from hearing the 7 notes of that horn even just on a you tube video. I can say that we may try another cruise line at some point in the future but I'm not quite ready for it yet.

Kat

 

[firstime discruiser]

Cruise #1- Celebrity Infinity
Cruise #2- RCCL Voyager of the Seas
Cruise #3- DCL Magic, April 2nd!!

DH and I liked Celebrity and RCCL, however both were very different. Celebrity definitely more geared toward adults (I don't think I'd be comfortable taking my 4&6 yo boys) and much more "sedate"- no loud announcements about hairy chest contests at the pools, etc. RCCL- more active, younger crowd.

Now that we have kids, we can't wait to try DCL. We're so excited we're counting down the last days until we leave!

 

[dovbniak]

Our first cruise of any kind was on the MV of the Dream in January.

Loved it. Not even interested in other cruise lines at this point. Our goal is to become platinum members as soon as we can

 

[stingfancb]

Took overnight cruises out of West Palm Beach - YUCHHH.... Then... a 3 night DCL in 2/02. I was hooked! This Thursday will be my 9th Disney cruise. There have been a few 4 nights, 7 nights, 14 night Christmas, and 15 night PC. I don't want to cruise anything else. This past August, I introduced my DBF to DCL. I know he initially agreed because he loves me ; but, even I wasn't ready for his reaction. As we were sitting on the verandah on the last evening, he told me that he had the best cruise experience ever (and he has been on several different lines). Whenever anyone mentions cruising - they better watch out, he might as well become a DCL agent.
By the way.... we're both in our 50's and sail w/out children. Plenty for us to do - and we don't just mean sitting in the bars at night. I have sailed with my children in the past. Over the years the ages ran from 14 - 22. Never, were they bored. Both are VERY jealous of my upcoming cruise.

 

[edk35]

Thanks.. just finished reading the rest of the replies.

 

[NancyIL]

Last week I booked a Royal Caribbean cruise, and last night I booked a Princess cruise. Those plus HAL this summer will get me through the next 15 months.

 

[RedSox68]

Our first cruise was on the Wonder with a land/sea package in November 2000. My husband had sailed on tall ships (as a re-enacter) but I had never been out to sea. I was terrified I would get sea sick. Took my Bonine and had a BLAST. As soon as we walked off the ship, we booked a 7-day on the Magic for 2002 and have done a total of 8 Disney cruises over the past decade, with a diversion in 2008 to do NCL in Hawaii (to renew our wedding vows).

Our only non-Disney experience was the NCL Pride of America and I cannot say anything good about them except for the port stops and tour excursions were great. Otherwise, after that one experience, we would never cruise NCL again.

We have another DCL on the Dream in May and another on the Fantasy next year (which will make us platinum).

We feel like Disney is home because it was our first and we always feel comfortable there. However, we are willing to try other lines as there are many ports we want to see that Disney doesn't do (yet), and many cruise packages that are cheaper than Disney's. Next year we are booked on a Holland America cruise and land tour in Alaska and am looking forward to venturing out on our second non-Disney cruise (and sure hope it's a better experience than our first non-Disney cruise ).

But all in all, we totally trust Disney for service, care, attention to detail and customer service, and will always consider it our first choice if itinerary and pricing are what we want.

 

[jjgarv]

I have always heard that Disney are the absolute best cruises. I know I LOVE DISNEY. We are DVC members and you can tell my signature we are obsessed with WDW and yet we have never cruised on a Disney ship or any ship for that matter. I am just curious if others on here ONLY cruise Disney or do you do others too?? THANKS

Disney was our first cruise ever for our honeymoon and we were hooked on cruising! Since then, we have continued to cruise Disney, but have also cruised Royal Caribbean, Princess, and the Queen Mary 2. We will continue to cruise Disney, but will also continue to cruise with others primarily for the itineraries... We had a great trip (note that I said 'trip' and not 'cruise') to some of the southern Caribbean islands on Princess. We were not thrilled with the 'cruise' portion of that trip (other than the awesome pizza, anytime dining, and movies under the stars on comfy padded lounge chairs), but we were at a different island for 5 of the 6 days (St. John, Grenada, Dominica, Bonaire, and Aruba), so it wasn't that big a deal.