Disney cruises - what do you think?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is the Concierge level worth it, if you've done both? It is crazy expensive.

We've never done it, but I can't imagine that it would be worth the extra money. Even the cheapest cabins are expensive, so concierge is outrageously priced IMHO.

What's the appeal of concierge?

I'm a PP and I agree. I mean, if you are just made of money I guess its worth it. I certainly wouldn't do it because it would eat too much into the rest of my vacation budget.

As it is, our verandah room (not the oversized "family" one) is costing $5100, booked more than 1 year in advance, going during one of the cheapest times of year, late January. Same room, same cruise itinerary during spring break or summer was $9k. These are all non-concierge prices.

How long is your cruise? We are going MLK weekend in an oversized concierge room and we didn't pay that much.

That's cheap because the weather won't be warm (if it's a Bahamian cruise).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They will accommodate pretty much any requests for kids' foods. Because your waiter rotates with you to every restaurant, we usually tell them on the first night what our kids want to eat for the rest of the cruise, and it is ready when we arrive every night.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you don't like crowds that much -- I suggest you avoid Disney cruises. Our rooms were great. Our staffperson was great. The rest of it was -- meh. Food at the evening restaurants -- not good. I'm not looking for 5 stars... I'm looking for freshly made and served (like you'd find at a casual restarant would be fine with me -- Unos, etc.). What we got was just not good. I think they plate about 300 servings and leave them under heat lamps for an hour or so... dried out, lacking sauce. Limited choices for kids (unless your kids eat steak and grilled salmon).

There is only one spot on the ship that makes chicken nuggets -- you would think this would be on every menu or buffet......since this is a kid-centric cruise. Take note... the only place with nuggets is the grill on the pool edge. Also, the only time milk is readily available is breakfast. If you want it for lunch or dinner, you will have to find a staff person and they will have to search high and low in the kitchen to find the milk. I find it really odd that there isn't a gigantic milk spigot in the lunch buffet area. It also was not on the menu at dinner, but they will get it for you.

The pools are T-I-N-Y in relation to the amount of people on the ship. Think about the size of your kitchen. maybe double it.... that is the size of the pool for about 2500 people. To me, it was kind of dangerous b/c there were too many people in the pool and more jumping in. The crowding in the kids club was dangerous in my opinion too. They never turn kids away apparently, so it was sheer madness in there. We decided it wasn't safe (my kids were about 7 and 9 at the time, so they weren't little, little.) No way would I have left smaller kids in there when it was so crowded.

Shows at night were good. The scavenger hunt on the ship was good. Movies were not as kid-friendly as I would have liked. Malificent was the big one when we went and I thought that it would be too scary for my kids at that time. That was mainly what was being played in the theater, so we never went to a movie. I would have expected more options that were not so scary.

They will accommodate pretty much any requests for kids' foods. Because your waiter rotates with you to every restaurant, we usually tell them on the first night what our kids want to eat for the rest of the cruise, and it is ready when we arrive every night.

We enjoyed biking around the island. Again -- CROWDS on the beach of the island. Hope you are ready to fight for some space.

For us, it was a lot of crowds. A lot of money. And it just wasn't worth it. We would have been a lot better off and enjoyed ourselves much more if we had just gone to a resort where we would have had more beach space, more pool space, fresher food, more options for restaurants, etc. It wasn't worth the hype at all.

We needed grilled cheese and were refused at many venues. Only one place by the pool would make it. The waiter was willing to find mac and cheese if it was not on the menu but that was it. They are not as helpful as they used to be. Same with the parks.

Big difference between a need and a want. If all your kid will eat is grilled cheese, then that's a problem that should be addressed.

[Anonymous]

A kids' cruiseline should anticipate typical kid-desired foods and provide them easily.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have been on 5 cruises, 3 with kids (1 was Disney). I would say with your age kids, pick Royal Caribbean over Disney. The markup for Disney is not worth the jacked up price. Pick a ship with the rock wall and surfing thing, and the kids will be happy enough.

OP here. Thanks, that's helpful. My kids don't care too much about Disney characters and they are pretty active so I think things like the pool and rock wall would be more of a draw than Disney specifically.

Is there a way to sort out which cruise lines have the best amenities? Is Royal Caribbean generally considered one of the best ones?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have been on 5 cruises, 3 with kids (1 was Disney). I would say with your age kids, pick Royal Caribbean over Disney. The markup for Disney is not worth the jacked up price. Pick a ship with the rock wall and surfing thing, and the kids will be happy enough.

OP here. Thanks, that's helpful. My kids don't care too much about Disney characters and they are pretty active so I think things like the pool and rock wall would be more of a draw than Disney specifically.

Is there a way to sort out which cruise lines have the best amenities? Is Royal Caribbean generally considered one of the best ones?

Just be careful about evening activities. Make sure there's something age appropriate for your kids to do after dinner. You'll be miserable if you are stuck in your tiny cabin watching tv. Rock walls and other deck activities will likely be closed after dinner.

[Anonymous]

We have been on several Disney cruises (in the Caribbean and in the Mediterranean) and on Royal Caribbean's newest ship, Harmony of the Seas, out of Rome this year. All have been great trips, but for younger kids (say, around 9 and under), Disney wins hands down--nobody does kids better and it is not even close. RC was great this year for my kids aged 15 and 12 (but the 9 year old missed the Disney amenities). DCL had many more family friendly entertainment options in the evening as well--a few were corny, but kids love them (RC had a great comedy club, but it's adults only, with no comedy option for kids). OP, I'd take a 7 day Caribbean cruise on the Disney Fantasy as a starter.

P.S. The pools on Harmony were every bit as crowded as on the Disney ships. Food was about the same.

[Anonymous]

Disney for kids. The most stark contrast to the Disney ships and all the others pulling into the same ports was that all the other ships had college kids and drunk 20-somethings stumbling down the gang plank and puking off the bow and getting sexy in public.

Disney is family friendly. We kept saying, so glad we aren't on THAT ship!

[Anonymous]

no sure why the person ranted about crowds... we have done dusney cruise at christmas and over spring break - so SUPER busy times of they year. sure, sometimes it can get crowded, but really it's only when you have large groups moving/changing up (like between dinner seatings when everyone is out and moving around). my family LOVEs them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They will accommodate pretty much any requests for kids' foods. Because your waiter rotates with you to every restaurant, we usually tell them on the first night what our kids want to eat for the rest of the cruise, and it is ready when we arrive every night.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you don't like crowds that much -- I suggest you avoid Disney cruises. Our rooms were great. Our staffperson was great. The rest of it was -- meh. Food at the evening restaurants -- not good. I'm not looking for 5 stars... I'm looking for freshly made and served (like you'd find at a casual restarant would be fine with me -- Unos, etc.). What we got was just not good. I think they plate about 300 servings and leave them under heat lamps for an hour or so... dried out, lacking sauce. Limited choices for kids (unless your kids eat steak and grilled salmon).

There is only one spot on the ship that makes chicken nuggets -- you would think this would be on every menu or buffet......since this is a kid-centric cruise. Take note... the only place with nuggets is the grill on the pool edge. Also, the only time milk is readily available is breakfast. If you want it for lunch or dinner, you will have to find a staff person and they will have to search high and low in the kitchen to find the milk. I find it really odd that there isn't a gigantic milk spigot in the lunch buffet area. It also was not on the menu at dinner, but they will get it for you.

The pools are T-I-N-Y in relation to the amount of people on the ship. Think about the size of your kitchen. maybe double it.... that is the size of the pool for about 2500 people. To me, it was kind of dangerous b/c there were too many people in the pool and more jumping in. The crowding in the kids club was dangerous in my opinion too. They never turn kids away apparently, so it was sheer madness in there. We decided it wasn't safe (my kids were about 7 and 9 at the time, so they weren't little, little.) No way would I have left smaller kids in there when it was so crowded.

Shows at night were good. The scavenger hunt on the ship was good. Movies were not as kid-friendly as I would have liked. Malificent was the big one when we went and I thought that it would be too scary for my kids at that time. That was mainly what was being played in the theater, so we never went to a movie. I would have expected more options that were not so scary.

They will accommodate pretty much any requests for kids' foods. Because your waiter rotates with you to every restaurant, we usually tell them on the first night what our kids want to eat for the rest of the cruise, and it is ready when we arrive every night.

We enjoyed biking around the island. Again -- CROWDS on the beach of the island. Hope you are ready to fight for some space.

For us, it was a lot of crowds. A lot of money. And it just wasn't worth it. We would have been a lot better off and enjoyed ourselves much more if we had just gone to a resort where we would have had more beach space, more pool space, fresher food, more options for restaurants, etc. It wasn't worth the hype at all.

We needed grilled cheese and were refused at many venues. Only one place by the pool would make it. The waiter was willing to find mac and cheese if it was not on the menu but that was it. They are not as helpful as they used to be. Same with the parks.

Big difference between a need and a want. If all your kid will eat is grilled cheese, then that's a problem that should be addressed.

Since life is that easy for you, come over and give it a try. The reason for going on a Disney vacation is they advertise being willing. Sadly, they aren't always.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A kids' cruiseline should anticipate typical kid-desired foods and provide them easily.

Should and do are different things. Usually we could get mac and cheese but not always. It got frusterating that we could not get simple things like plain pasta, mac and cheese, grilled cheese or even a basic American cheese with white bread sandwich.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is the Concierge level worth it, if you've done both? It is crazy expensive.

We've never done it, but I can't imagine that it would be worth the extra money. Even the cheapest cabins are expensive, so concierge is outrageously priced IMHO.

What's the appeal of concierge?

Lots of things. You don't have to choose a time to board the ship. You don't have to wait in lines to check in and your room is ready immediately when you board. Feee nightly happy hour, free snacks and beverages. Special character meet and greet. We got the best tables in the restaurants.

We certainly aren't made of money, but it was worth the extra cost IMO. We spent no other money on the ship except for the souvenirs we bought.

Most of the Disney food is free but a few fancy restaurants. Room Service is free. Soda is free (well, if you want to call it free). We didn't spend extra money on the ship except a few pictures. We came late to our boarding time and went on right away no issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A kids' cruiseline should anticipate typical kid-desired foods and provide them easily.

Should and do are different things. Usually we could get mac and cheese but not always. It got frusterating that we could not get simple things like plain pasta, mac and cheese, grilled cheese or even a basic American cheese with white bread sandwich.

OI'm very surprised you had such a bad experience. Typically they are fabulous about meeting food requests, so i think you unfortunately may have just had bad luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A kids' cruiseline should anticipate typical kid-desired foods and provide them easily.

Should and do are different things. Usually we could get mac and cheese but not always. It got frusterating that we could not get simple things like plain pasta, mac and cheese, grilled cheese or even a basic American cheese with white bread sandwich.

OI'm very surprised you had such a bad experience. Typically they are fabulous about meeting food requests, so i think you unfortunately may have just had bad luck.

This. We've been on 3 DCL cruises and they've always catered to my kids' food preferences. Even filet mignon for 7 straight nights for my 5 year old carnivore.

[Anonymous]

They had mac n cheese and plain noodles available every night in the restaurants on both Disney cruises I went on. In fact, both were on the actual menu (and didn't require a special request).

Your kids can also opt to order off the adult menu.

And, since the restaurants share a kitchen, you can essentially order off of any of the menus.

[Anonymous]

We've done regular and concierge (we upgraded at the port so didn't pay the full concierge fare). While we enjoyed the perks -- boarding early and having the ship to ourselves for a while, free coffee/drinks, a place to hang out away from the crowds--I wouldn't do it again. It's so much more expensive and you don't get all that much more. Disney's appeal is that they treat everyone on the trip like they're special. Which is why it costs so much.