What would YOU say, having sailed on DCL.....

[JanBlessed]

My MIL just told me that neither ️her, nor my FIL are really into joining us on the Dream. They've never been on a cruise, and feel that us "young ones" should go ahead and enjoy it. I was really looking fwd to all of us (3 generations) sailing together. IMO, there is no age limit for cruising.

I'm hoping to get a good compilation of comments to read to them, from experienced cruisers, letting them see that they SHOULD sail with us on DCL.

Please leave your comment below. Thanks!

(and no, it's not about us...we vacation together regularly - at their request)

 

[michellekcm]

My mum, a little reluctantly, came on a DCL cruise to Alaska with us, as she wanted to do Alaska and this was the only way she thought she could do it with us. She has since been on 2 more DCL cruises and is booked on a 4th with us. She loves how you can have as much or as little Disney as you want - she was surprised at how she could avoid Disney overload. She was also very pleasantly surprised that she wasn't overwhelmed with children - she loved Cove Cafe, enjoyed the adult animation classes, the Anyone Can Cook demonstrations, the adult pool area, etc. She was happy spending time with her grandkids and us, but enjoyed relaxing time by herself as well.

 

[Bear3412]

My MIL just told me that neither ️her, nor my FIL are really into joining us on the Dream. They've never been on a cruise, and feel that us "young ones" should go ahead and enjoy it. ...

I think you should follow their instructions.... Are they not wise? ..... Perhaps they will be more comfortable at home. JMO.

 

[Dug720]

Honestly cruising is NOT for everyone. Add in if they go into it with the attitude that they aren't going to like it, they probably won't. And if they are miserable and demonstrative about being miserable, YOU are going to end up miserable.

That said, my parents are in their 70s and LOVE cruising on Disney - so I agree that there is no age limit.

 

[Marc D]

Being a regular cruiser, I'm often surprised by my friends' and coworkers' fears about cruising : fear of enclosed spaces, fear of being "stuck in the middle of the ocean", fear of motion sickness, etc. They often pass them off as a lack of interest in that type of vacation. Those fears are not rational, as fear of flying is (safest mode of transportation btw), but they are nearly impossible to overcome, especially in older people.

I agree with others posts that you should just let them be. It's never fun traveling with someone going in reluctantly. And there certainly is no age limit to cruising : at 40, I'm usually one of the youngest guests on non-DCL cruises when sailing outside the Caribbean.

 

[jeepnjudy]

Hmmm...are they opposed to cruising all together or just cruising on DCL? If opposed to cruising, as others have mentioned, try to find out why and see if there is anyway you can alleviate any of their fears or apprehensions. If opposed to DCL, highlight many of the adult only areas and the SPA!

 

[lbus42]

My wife and I are both around 60. We cruised in April with our daughter and our grandchildren. I was worried that there would be too many kids on the ship and I would not have a relaxing vacation. I was very wrong.

1. My wife and I did have plenty of activities with our extended family. We also had a lot of alone time.
2. Disney provided so many activities for the children, that I can honestly say that we did not come in contact with kids all that much unless we chose to do so.
3. Some of the best experiences we had were watching the faces of the children during character and princess meets.

Besides this, this was one of the best vacations I ever had. We could do as much as we wanted and as LITTLE as we wanted. We spent a lot of time in the stateroom, just relaxing and watching the sea go by. We walked the decks and explored the ship (the Fantasy is very beautiful). Every cast member we came into contact with did whatever they could to make our vacation magical.

I had thought that we would be in Disney overload. This was also a pleasant surprise. Even though there is no doubt that you are on a Disney ship, it is nothing like being in one of the theme parks. Much of the Disney elements in the decoration of the ship is subtle and very tasteful. You will see characters, but they are definitely not everywhere and in MHO there could have been more. You will feel like you are on a very classy ship.

Another point is that much of the time you will not feel like you are on a ship. It does rock some, but we got used to it quickly. Much of the time, I could not tell that I was on a ship. We also did not feel closed in at all. The ship is huge. Most of the areas felt no different from being in a mall or an airport. At times there are crowds, but I never felt like they were overbearing. About the crowds, there are so many activities going on at any time. Rarely will there be huge masses of people congested in the same area (the exceptions being sail away, pirate, and see you real soon parties).

We loved the cruise so much that we re-booked on board. I hope that you can persuade your in-laws, but as other posters have said, don't push it too hard. If they go just to concede to you, they will probably have a terrible time and you will too (I saw this as well on board).

 

[cheermom2four]

We are kind of in the same boat and are trying to get my parents to go. They love cruising but definitely not on Disney as they put it. so I left it at that as I agree with a PP that if they go into the cruise with a negative attitude they will get out of it negativity IMO.

On another note though, we ran into so many grandparent ages (ok I'm old fashioned and think 65 on up is grandparent age even though I know younger ones can be also) that were sailing without their grandkids or kids and even some have never had kids that were in their 70s and loving the cruise. It felt so nice to see even them having the "kid" in them come out on the Disney cruise.

 

[Quellman]

We have 3 generation sailed twice in the past. We have a 4 generation planned for next year. Though to be fair, my inlaws were totally into going on the Disney boat anyway. I think there are some good responses already mentioned about what they might expect while on board, and also trying to figure out the why. itinerary? cost? length of the trip? or maybe concerns about health, mobility, and planning.

Good luck!

 

[Expatriat]

My MIL just told me that neither ️her, nor my FIL are really into joining us on the Dream. They've never been on a cruise, and feel that us "young ones" should go ahead and enjoy it. I was really looking fwd to all of us (3 generations) sailing together. IMO, there is no age limit for cruising.

I'm hoping to get a good compilation of comments to read to them, from experienced cruisers, letting them see that they SHOULD sail with us on DCL.

Please leave your comment below. Thanks!

(and no, it's not about us...we vacation together regularly - at their request)

Would your in-laws be in their own cabin, so have their own space and privacy? Are there any young children or a baby and would they be expected to babysit?

As has been mentioned, since they have never sailed, they may very well be worried about seasickness.

While a short cruise can be an enjoyable getaway, it usually does not have the more relaxed atmosphere of a 7-night cruise. The environment can be high-energy as everyone rushes around trying to do everything there is to do, which is not really possible. If your in-laws would not be comfortable in that situation, they may be making the right decision for themselves.

 

[sayhello]

If it's Disney they're not enthusiastic about, ask them if they'd be willing to go on another cruise line. If it's cruising in general, I agree with others that forcing the issue might spoil everyone's vacation.

Sayhello

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

My MIL just told me that neither ️her, nor my FIL are really into joining us on the Dream. They've never been on a cruise, and feel that us "young ones" should go ahead and enjoy it. I was really looking fwd to all of us (3 generations) sailing together. IMO, there is no age limit for cruising.

I'm hoping to get a good compilation of comments to read to them, from experienced cruisers, letting them see that they SHOULD sail with us on DCL.

Please leave your comment below. Thanks!

(and no, it's not about us...we vacation together regularly - at their request)

My parents joined us for a cruise this past June, I thought it was going to be a fabulous time! Even though the cruise was great, beautiful ship, great ports etc. I was so worried making sure my parents enjoyed themselves, I didn't enjoy it as much as I should have.

If you want to book it for your family do it, if your in laws decide to join you great, if not oh well, it won't be life changing for either group.

 

[Markonefive]

Dear grandparents,
Time, once past, cannot be recaptured. One day you will regret not spending every second you could have being with your grandchildren. Imagine a vacation where you get to see the excitement on your grandchild's face the first time they see a favorite Disney character walking down the hall of the ship. Or the wonder on her or his face during the nightly show when Elsa or Woody or Peter Pan take the stage in the Walt Disney Theatre. Relax and watch them splashing in the pool or the yells of "watch me, watch me" before they go down the waterslide. Imagine a vacation where you get to sit and enjoy the meal hearing about all the exciting things they did in the kids club or teen club, instead of having to be in the kitchen preparing the meal yourself. Best of all, being able to take a quiet break and just relax in a deck chair, watching the ocean, napping, or playing bingo, or seeing a band, or checking out the sports bar, or the piano bar, or a spa break . . . . the cruise is about the shared family experience, as well as your own relaxation time, in a stress free environment, instead of driving, or finding restaurants, or checking into hotels, or battling crowds and fast pass planning in the theme parks. Take lots of pictures, and live a life of making memories, not regrets of "I wish I had . . . ."

Word of advice: order the Disney cruise DVD, let them watch it at their leisure. It might help convince them of just how great a cruise is, for adults as much as kids.

 

[Lunarias]

I haven't sailed DCL yet but have been on other lines (we aim for family friendly lines) and I had the exact opposite fear, I was interested in cruising Alaska, but worried it would be nothing but retirees (we were 24 at the time) but found when we went it was a pretty good mix of ages. Not many kids the time of year we cruise, and we were 2 of the 8 that were under 28 that cruise, (on our second cruise we were a little less scarce) but we still found plenty to do, programing was planned well to appeal to multiple age groups. And we are planning a 3 generation trip right now (cruising is a less stressful form of travel for the grandparents) the ship is only so big(mobility issues), nice dinner every night. And if a cheaper line can do a good job appealing to multiple generations I'm sure Disney will blow them away.

 

[MUN]

My MIL just told me that neither ️her, nor my FIL are really into joining us on the Dream. They've never been on a cruise, and feel that us "young ones" should go ahead and enjoy it. I was really looking fwd to all of us (3 generations) sailing together. IMO, there is no age limit for cruising.

I'm hoping to get a good compilation of comments to read to them, from experienced cruisers, letting them see that they SHOULD sail with us on DCL.

Please leave your comment below. Thanks!

(and no, it's not about us...we vacation together regularly - at their request)

If they don't want to go, they should stay home. I would think it would be miserable for everyone involved, if you dragged them onto the cruise and they had a lousy time. That being said, my MIL joined us on our first DCL cruise and she had a lovely time. My FIL stayed home, but he's more of a stick in the mud.

MUN

 

[wide awake]

Maybe it seems too expensive and they don't want to say that?

 

[Tasmen]

I would think it depends on their reasons for not wanting to go. If their reason is something such as cost and apprehension about sailing in general, I would say let it go and go on your vacation without them. You don't want to force someone to go on a vacation they don't want to. They won't have fun and neither will you. If they fear there will be nothing to do on a disney ship, you could point out all the adult things on board including the spa and adult only area. You could also mention how much fun the kids are going to have and you'd be sad if they missed out on that.

 

[squirk]

Not to tell you how to interact with your in-laws, but maybe you should just take them at their word and leave it at that. These are pricey vacations, obviously, and it seems silly for someone to pay the fare and sail begrudgingly.

 

[disneymagicgirl]

My inlaws join us on lots of trips but haven't come on any of our Disney land or sea adventures. They just have other places they prefer to spend their vacation dollars on.
That said we all want to Alaska and the Mediterranean and have told them we will only be sailing DCL. They plan to join us even though they would prefer another line. I have the littles and my priority is childcare for the baby and great clubs for the others. If they want to do another line they could and I wouldn't be offended.

I'd leavehe invitation open and not worry about whether they come or not.

 

[CM Dad]

On another note though, we ran into so many grandparent ages (ok I'm old fashioned and think 65 on up is grandparent age even though I know younger ones can be also) that were sailing without their grandkids or kids and even some have never had kids that were in their 70s and loving the cruise. It felt so nice to see even them having the "kid" in them come out on the Disney cruise.

Grandparent age certainly starts before 65 . My wife and I are both "only" 62 and have 7 grandkids from ages 7 down to 1. Our first cruise, back in 2007, was with our kids (ages 18 - 28 back then) plus my parents and my mother-in-law. Had a great time. We've been on 10 DCL cruises since then (OK, I've been on 10, my wife only on 9 of those). Mostly with just the 2 of us. We did the one in Jan 2015 with all of our kids and grandkids, and have another one with everyone coming in July 2017.