To the OP:
I think that lately there has been a lot of discussion here about the Adult Only areas, people who don't abide by the Adult Only rules, etc. I don't think that means this aspect of the cruise is major in reality. Just major in what has been being discussed here lately.
I can see where you're coming from asking the original question, but lots of people who enjoy cruising and Disney don't have an objection to having kids around. And ultimately, everybody has their own reasons to cruise Disney and their own expectations for what makes a good vacation. Disney is just trying to be all things to all people. I applaud this and from what I'm reading, it seems Disney does this better than most other cruise lines out there.
For my part, I am a single Mom and I have two kids, DS, 15 and DD 11 (she'll be 12 when we sail). We are huge Disney fans in general, WDW Annual Passholders and I am a former CM. Disney is a big part of our lives, so when considering a vacation, it is almost always automatically Disney. Do other crusie lines even exist, lol!??
My expectations for our first cruise together as a family, are that we will spend most of our time together. I am a homeschool Mom, so I am fortunate to get to spend lots of time with my kids, but it is never enough for us. We thoroughly enjoy each others company and if given the choice, we prefer to be all together. I also work full-time, so there are blocks of time in our day/week when we cannot be together, so we are looking forward to family time on this cruise.
That being said, I will encourage my kids to at least try out the clubs for a little bit. They are friendly and outgoing kids for the most part, although my son has OCD and an anxiety disorder which sometimes makes him shy. He has worked hard through the years to learn ways to be more outgoing and is doing well. He is in the local HS's Thespian Troupe and goes to "school" several days a week for rehearsals, he is active in local community theater and has lots of friends, so I know he can do it. I will encourage him to go and see and try making some connections with the other teens onboard. My daughter is very outgoing and will have no trouble making friends at all. She will WANT to be with my son and me, though. That's just how my kids are. Nothing wrong with that. And nothing wrong with your kids wanting to be with you guys. Or with you guys actually enjoying and wanting to have your kids be with you.
While they are in the clubs, or if they make new friends and hit it off and want to spend some more time with them, I will go check out the Adult Only areas. I do not expect this to be the majority of the time. And even if they really do fall in love with the clubs or the kids, I know they will want time with me, because this is our family vacation time.
I am also looking forward (as are my kids) to the many family activities offered on the cruise. I have noticed that they aren't discussed as much here as I wish they were. Maybe lots of people are looking forward to splitting up? Or maybe most people aren't like me and want alone time? I don't know.
But it is irrelevent. Disney makes it so you can do what you want. Split up, never see each other, always see each, never separate and all points in between. I learned a long time ago that people have very different ideas about parenting and spending time with their kids. Some Moms cannot wait for summer to be over so they can send their kids back to school. I could never picture being away from my kids long enough for them to go to school, lol! That's just me. Different strokes for different folks and it's all okay. So go. Take your crusie. Do what works best for YOU and YOUR family! I can't imagine not having fun on a
Disney cruise no matter how you choose to approach it!
