Short Disney cruises are great and not booze cruises at all. The only problem is you will wish you were there longer!

Say no to Carnival for short trips.

Luxury and Premium (industry jargon) lines don't offer cruises that length; 7 nights is about as short as you'll find. Some mass market lines do, and each has a target demographic and price point. The lower the cost, typically the younger the demographic and the higher the likelihood that many passengers are there for the alcohol and for the quantity, but not quality, of the food.

Investigate the different cruise lines before deciding, as the industry encompasses everything from the equivalents of Four Seasons hotels to Motel 6; a short cruise on a large Carnival ship in the Caribbean is going tobe a very different experience than a longer cruise on Regent Seven Seas in Norwegian waters.

Those short Caribbean cruises are glorified booze-cruises and not suitable for children (Disney cruises are an exception)

I hate 3-4 travel anywhere, simply because on the 3rd day you're just settling in...I mean, sure, you could be DONE by 3 days on a cruise and stuck with 4 more days, but how likely is that?

Do they still offer "cruise to nowhere"? Maybe that would be fun?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why don't you have it in you to do 7 days? A week cruise is much more relaxed. A lot of activities/shows will be offered multiple times so there's not this crush to get everything done over 3/4 days. You have more time to try all the restaurants and enjoy both the boat and the ports. Remember the first day you only get on board in the afternoon. Then the last day you leave right after breakfast. Especially if you have to fly to where the cruise is leaving from a 3/4 day cruise is just not worth the effort.

Honestly, I don't want to do a cruise. It's just not something I have ever felt the need or want to try. My husband is in the same boat (heh, no pun intended). But, between my kids, this is something that has consistently come up as something they want to do. With finite vacation time and travel budget, I want to strike a balance between doing things they are interested in but also not blowing the budget/vacation time on something my husband and I aren't real thrilled about.

I think if you're going to do it, then do it well. Don't cheap out on it and set yourself up for an experience you won't enjoy. Go for a week and pick one of the nice newer boats that leave out of Florida. Your kids will love it and you might actually enjoy it too.

Anonymous wrote:Why don't you have it in you to do 7 days? A week cruise is much more relaxed. A lot of activities/shows will be offered multiple times so there's not this crush to get everything done over 3/4 days. You have more time to try all the restaurants and enjoy both the boat and the ports. Remember the first day you only get on board in the afternoon. Then the last day you leave right after breakfast. Especially if you have to fly to where the cruise is leaving from a 3/4 day cruise is just not worth the effort.

Honestly, I don't want to do a cruise. It's just not something I have ever felt the need or want to try. My husband is in the same boat (heh, no pun intended). But, between my kids, this is something that has consistently come up as something they want to do. With finite vacation time and travel budget, I want to strike a balance between doing things they are interested in but also not blowing the budget/vacation time on something my husband and I aren't real thrilled about.

Galapagos!

Anonymous wrote:Disney 3-4 days is great. Especially at those ages. But the Caribbean cruises are longer than 3-4 days.

I only think Disney is good for 8 and 11 year-olds if your kids are into Marvel or Star Wars. We went on 3 Disney cruises from when my DD was 3-7. By 7 she was getting over the princess stuff and was not into Marvel or Star Wars so it was loosing its magic and was no longer worth the upcharge compared to other lines.

Why don't you have it in you to do 7 days? A week cruise is much more relaxed. A lot of activities/shows will be offered multiple times so there's not this crush to get everything done over 3/4 days. You have more time to try all the restaurants and enjoy both the boat and the ports. Remember the first day you only get on board in the afternoon. Then the last day you leave right after breakfast. Especially if you have to fly to where the cruise is leaving from a 3/4 day cruise is just not worth the effort.

Good question. I took a 5 night and it was horrible, and "trashy" is a good word for it.

Disney does 3 and 4 days that are very nice. Not a party till you puke crowd.

Disney 3-4 days is great. Especially at those ages. But the Caribbean cruises are longer than 3-4 days.

We did a 3 night on Royal Caribbean and it was great, good weather, not rowdy, in December to the Caribbean. We did a 4 nights on RC again but it was to Mexico in December and we had bad weather, were stuck inside during our day of sea. So I'd say check the best weather times and go have fun.

If not, any recommendations? I've heard the reputation that these short cruises can get a bit rowdy/trashy- we'd like to try a cruise but don't have it in us to do a full weeklong one, but I'd still like a nice experience. Kids are 11 and 8. Interested in Caribbean.