Disney Fantasy review by Princess cruiser

Our family of 8 just returned from a 7-night voyage on theDisney Fantasy. Our group included 2 sets of grandparents, 1 set of parents and2 little girls ages 7 and almost 5. It was a thrill for my DH and I to see ourgranddaughters enjoy the wonder of Disney. We are Elite on Princess, but this was our first Disney cruise. I will focus my thoughts on what thedifferences between the 2 lines were to me.

Embarkation

We arrived at our scheduled port arrival time of 11 a.m. I am used to long lines of adults at thisearly arrival time, but it is even crazier with hundreds of little ones waitingin the lounge area to board the ship. Next time I would come after 12:30 p.m. to avoid this.

Dining

At night our party of 8 enjoyed our dinner at the assigned dining room. I foundthe food to be very good and the choices plentiful, similar to Princess. The waiters make every effort to accommodatethe children. There were crayons and alittle booklet to color and puzzles to solve for them. Their food arrived quickly (almostimmediately if you requested it). Keeping in mind Disney is a family cruise line, the noise level in thedining room makes it a totally different experience than a dinner in a Princessdining room (we generally do longer cruises that have very few children). One evening my DH and I went alone to thetable-service dinner at Cabanas. Thiswas much quieter and we found it quite enjoyable.

Breakfast and lunch offerings were plentiful on each cruiseline. I give a thumbs up to Disney foroffering fresh shrimp and mussels each day at the buffet. I must give Princess the edge on hours foodis available without calling room service or going to an outdoor grill/foodcourt.

Stateroom

We stayed in stateroom 8677 which is an inside cabin. The room was much nicerthan the Princess inside rooms we have had. The bed was far away from the door and had a curtain that could be usedto close it off from the sitting area with a full couch. The room stewards on both lines are veryefficient and pleasant. On Disney youget a towel animal each night, while on Princess your ice bucket is filled eachday.

Entertainment

The Princess production shows can’t hold a candle to the Disney productionshows of Aladdin, Wishes and Believe. Wecouldn’t believe the Broadway quality of these shows. After seeing these shows I began tounderstand why the price of this cruise was about double what we usually pay onPrincess.

We also enjoyed a juggler/comedy act, a game called the Quest andfamily karaoke. I will say that the nights we didn’t go to the Walt DisneyTheatre were not as much fun. We areused to going to several adult activities each night such as a 50’s sock hop,then a short comedy show then a lounge for some music.

Characters

The characters are everywhere! On StarWars day I was at the pool when a group of storm troopers arrived! My granddaughters loved posing for pictureswith their favorite princesses and other characters. We took many of our own pictures, but did purchasea package of 10 digital professional photos for $149, splitting the cost 3ways.

Pools

The family pools and hot tubs along with the pool deck were jammed. The kids didn’t seem to mind, but it was fartoo crowded for any adults except those supervising children to want to get inthe water. The adult only Cove Pool wasquite nice when we had a chance to get over there.

Oceaneers Club and Oceaneers Lab

I’ve never really looked at the Princess kids club, but I can tell you theOceaneers Club and Lab are really extensive with tons of fun things to see anddo. Our little ones had lots of fun thetimes they attended.

In conclusion I would saythe Disney line is fantastic for a family cruise, but for a couples vacation myDH and I will definitely return to Princess Cruises.

We basically went the opposite direction--after 30 cruises on DCL, we began to explore other lines. The biggest reason for our exploration was that Princess had almost exactly the same cruise we'd booked on DCL for 1/4 the price! And I could get a balcony on Princess for 1/2 the cost of an inside on DCL.

I basically agree with your analysis. Each line has things to recommend them. On DCL, the cabins are nicer and the entertainment is much better. However, Princess does have a live orchestra, while DCL uses recorded music. I'd love to see some of the new (and upcoming) DCL shows, but not at the current prices! For that, I can go on a truly premium line.

I just got back from a short Princess cruise. Only cruised Disney prior. I have a comparison going on the Princess forum. Disney definitely has a better look/feel and the staterooms are overall nicer. However, the pools, food, adult only offerings are quite a bit better on Princess - at least it was on my cruise.

I think Disney is great for families with children. I am a big Disney fan, but I get tired of the piped in Disney music everywhere. The shows are only Disney shows. It gets to be too much for me. Maybe I'd feel differently if I didn't go to Disneyland so often.

I think Princess is better for adults. I will continue to sail both.

We have explored most of the family friendly cruise lines. DCL, NCL, CCL, Royal, Princess, and tomorrow we set sail on our first Celebrity cruise. We have enjoyed all of them in their own ways. They all market themselves towards a particular experience and clientele. So far, our favorites are DCL and Princess for the same reasons you state and more.

The entertainment production DCL has outshines all of them, even a bingo game is entertaining! Princess is sneaking up slowly with the new Stephen Schwartz productions. Magic To Do is fabulous. The CD you get can also increase the entertainment factor on Princess. Some royal ships have a full Broadway show, that is also nice. We also enjoy the more adult entertainment offered on all the cruise lines, which does seem lacking on DCL.

We also feel the food is pretty equal between DCL and Princess. We do enjoy the flexibility in dining on the other cruise lines. We are almost exclusively "any time" diners and enjoy eating lite at the buffet or grill on occasion. On DCL I feel like I'm missing out if we don't go to the MDR.

Princess has the second best inside staterooms, with DCL being the best. The size increase is very nice and the sleeper couch is much nicer than banging you head on a Pullman. I do like the closet arrangement more on Princess. The closet is walkin style, feels more open and you can store more stuff.

Our daughter was to young for the kids clubs when we sailed DCL, but we did open house activities with her. I know she'd love it now. She has also enjoyed the clubs on Royal and Princess very much. NCL was so-so to her, but it was spring break and jammed full of kids. I expect she will enjoy the Celebrity club as well.

And of course, price. If you wait for the right sale on almost any cruise line, you can get a great rate. If you wait on DCL, you'll see a large price increase. And lately they have gone way up in starting prices. Even the FL rates are high, to me. They should have put an order for ships a lot sooner.

Last thing, we love Princess for their range of destinations. On DCL you are mostly stuck with the same ports all year long. But I guess they do make up for that with the ship being part of the destination.

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And of course, price. If you wait for the right sale on almost any cruise line, you can get a great rate. If you wait on DCL, you'll see a large price increase. And lately they have gone way up in starting prices. Even the FL rates are high, to me. They should have put an order for ships a lot sooner.

 

 

 

 

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Good point! On Princess I often book a year or more in advance and keep watching to take advantage if the price gets better. We booked the Disney cruise more than a year in advance and the price kept going up, up and up!

Good point! On Princess I often book a year or more in advance and keep watching to take advantage if the price gets better. We booked the Disney cruise more than a year in advance and the price kept going up, up and up!

There is no question that DCL raises prices as the ship fills. On the other hand, we've been on cruises where the cost on embarkation day was the same as the cost on day 1. Even when DCL has special rates, they are usually about the same as the day 1 rate. If you are looking for a bargain, it won't be on DCL. The last time I recall good sale prices on DCL was 2009!

No question, other lines offer better prices and more varied cruises. DCL offers better entertainment, more commitment to "fun" from the CMs, and characters as well as overall better cabins and decor. Tough call, and one that we make individually on each cruise.

Thanks for that review!

I have sailed both lines as well. Honestly I haven't had a cruise that I didn't like, but yes each line has some things to keep me coming.

I agree the food was similar. Disney entertainment was stars and moons over what I have seen on Princess.

I know Disney is high...very high, but it calls back to me all the time. I have done several adult cruises and cruises with my family. I enjoy both for different reasons.