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Comparison: Princess vs. DCL


moki'smommy
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Background:

We were 2 guests, myself and my 24 year old daughter with a mobility impairment. For this reason, we were in and HA cabin. We chose a balcony. We each have about 30 cruises on DCL in all cabin types, mostly long cruises with over 350 days on board. This was our first Princess cruise. We have cruised on 2 other lines in addition to Princess and DCL.

 

The motivation was simple. We are currently booked on B2B DCL cruises next spring. I learned that Princess had a cruise which was essentially the same ports but we could get a balcony cabin for half the cost (per diem) of an inside on DCL. However, we didn't want to get "stuck" on a ship that we didn't like, so opted for a week on Princess as a sort of try out cruise.

 

We chose the Caribbean Princess because it is the same ship doing the spring cruise we are interested in. It is about the same size as the Magic/Wonder (2700 max passengers on DCL, 3000 on Caribbean Princess), about 6 years newer than the Magic, and made in the same shipyard.

 

We did a Western Caribbean out of Houston. The ports were familiar to us--scheduled for Grand Cayman, Cozumel, and Costa Maya.

 

There are more similarities than differences between the lines; this actually applies to all the lines we've cruised.

 

General Appearance--DCL wins, hands down. The exterior of the Princess ships are the big white hulks. The interior was done in browns and beiges; daughter said it looked like the 70s. It was well done, but wasn't pretty. The Princess ship was VERY well maintained. I looked for areas of rust or dirt and couldn't find any. Interestingly, on DCL we see continuous maintenance and cleaning. It wasn't nearly as obvious on Princess but had to be happening.

 

Cabin--Appearance again goes to DCL. There was nothing WRONG with the Princess cabin. It was just all beige and light wood. Our cabin was about the same size as a DCL HA cabin with a very nice bathroom set up (single bath as in all HAs, but large shower area, good bars, drains, etc.) Good storage in bathroom. The standard Princess cabins are smaller than DCL. Princess had better storage spaces than DCL--in addition to the drawers by the desk and the closet, we had 2 low dressers which doubled as end tables, each with 4 drawers. The cabin was clean. DCL toiletries are nicer. Princess had shower dispensers for shampoo/conditioner combo and shower gel. There was a tube of a spa quality lotion and a bar of soap at the sink.

 

Princess beds can all be split into 2 twins or joined as a queen. The third and 4th beds are ceiling bunks. There is no couch until you get to a mini suite, but there is a nice chair as well as a desk chair.

 

Balcony of cabin--very similar. Same sort of locking mechanism to be largely kid safe and heavy door.

 

Temp control--easier on Princess. Hair dryer--normal sort for a hotel room or health club was on Princess. 2 outlets at the desk area.

 

Food--Princess wins. The lobster was GOOD lobster like DCL served 15 years ago. Princess has a buffet available for all meals/essentially all day. In addition, the "International Cafe" serves various items throughout the day and is open 24/7 INCLUDING the last morning. Breakfast offerings are donuts and pastries, lunch had 4 types of salads, various hot and cold sandwiches, and another display area of desserts. Pizza on the pool deck is made from scratch and was the best pizza I've had on any ship. Each day had cheese and pepperoni in addition to one "specialty" for that day. The 4 cheese (different from the daily cheese) was amazing. The others were all good. Yes, you are charged for a "soda card" ($5 per night) or a "soda and more" card ($8 per night). These prices include gratuity. Soda and more includes milkshakes, "mocktails," and canned rootbeer. All of these are obtained from any bar except shakes which come from the ice cream place. Soda card includes fountain serve Coke products. There are several beverage stations where guests can get their own cold or hot tea, regular coffee, etc. or your server is happy to bring these items in the buffet. There is also a "fast food" outlet on the pool deck with burgers, chicken sandwiches, fries, etc. Quality there is about the same as DCL. Tea was served every day at 3:30--sweets, sandwiches, scones, etc. with white gloved waiters. It wasn't quite as fancy as the now discontinued Palo tea, but it was FREE and the scones and clotted cream were good. Also, popcorn is free during movie times.

 

Dining room menu--there is a list of items that are available every day as well as a page that changes daily. Good selection, good quality. I had one fish dish at lunch that I didn't care for; it was promptly replaced by another selection.

 

Dining room service--DCL is more fun. In terms of quality, our team was OK but nothing special. In fairness, I've had "just OK" teams and "totally fantastic" teams on DCL. Nothing was lacking, it just wasn't amazing. Our servers did have 3 tables in our "area" as well as tables on the other side of a wall...so that might have been part of the issue.

 

Physical set up of dining room--Princess had lower ceilings which might have contributed to the much quieter environment than on DCL. Tables tend to be close together. This worked well for us as we had requested a table for 2. We met and liked the people at the next table, so for all practical purposes became a table for 4 (space between the tables remained). The serving stations are more "out of the way" than on DCL. We were in the Palm dining room; next time I'll request any other. Palm is at the far aft and not all decks have walkways that get you there. I learned it by the end of the cruise.....but there are only 2 elevators that go to the correct level. If I got on an elevator on my stateroom deck, I had to be sure that it was the right one to stop at the dining room. There are 2 other dining rooms that are more mid-ship and easier to get to.

 

Piazza area--This was a nice thing. It is an area at the lower floor of the atrium (deck 5) adjacent to the International Cafe. It has seating where you can eat or just chill out. Entertainment is provided in this area throughout the day--a pianist, 2 violinists, jugglers, a steel drum band group, etc. were some of the featured acts on our cruise. DCL's closest thing is the Cove Cafe area, but that's not really a good comparison. One day the cruise director was enjoying a Coke in the area and welcomed about 6 of us for a conversation for about an hour. Also, the people on the Princess boards had a meet and greet on the first day--both the ship's captain and the cruise director attended!

 

Library/internet cafe area--12-15 computers set up in a room with a person in attendance to assist. One wall of this room was the library which was well stocked with hardbacks supplied by Princess as well as an area of books which had been left by past cruisers and a very few board games. MUCH better collection than the single book case on the Magic and nothing on the Fantasy.

 

Internet--worked well for us in our cabin (wifi) although we did hear grumbling that it could be slow sometimes. Packages are priced by the minute rather than mb, so DCL in general is a better value. Princess did offer a 15 minute package for $9 on the last full day of the cruise so you could print boarding passes, do on line check in, or whatever. Princess also includes a FREE internet package when you achieve platinum level in their loyalty program; the size of the package depends on the length of the cruise.

 

Kid programs--while I didn't personally use this, I spoke to 2 families who did. Princess is totally strict that NO kid can move up in the programming. If a family wants to keep siblings together, the older child can be moved to the younger level. There are reasonably divided age groups. The kids said it was fun.

 

Age mix on the ship--we liked this. ALL ages were well represented. There were about 400 kids on board, but we were told that the week before there had been 800 (Thanksgiving vacation week). EVERY child I saw was supervised; there seemed to be no kids running around on their own as one often sees on DCL. The kids I encountered were polite and well behaved. There were many multi-generational families on board.

 

Entertainment--DCL wins on the "main stage" entertainment. Princess had a live orchestra which was nice but their stage shows were basically song and dance revues rather than DCL's more musical theatre style. The casting seemed stronger than DCL's; soloists were cast because they could sing and were not expected to be doing complex choreography. Dancers were cast because they could dance; those who were decent did back up vocals. It really was the shows I didn't care for, not the performers. The "around the ship" entertainment was something that DCL really doesn't have. The variety acts on Princess were AWFUL. We walked out both nights. In fairness to all the above, Princess is in the process of introducing 4 new shows over the next 2 years which are being done by the guy who wrote the songs for Wicked; none of these is on the Caribbean Princess yet. We've seen the DCL shows MANY times...don't really need to see them again (yes, I know there is the new Rapunzel show.)

 

Movies under the stars (think Dumbotron) is set up with reserved seating just for the movies in the evenings. You can also watch from other deck areas, but there is an area of DRY loungers not for "pool" use. Popcorn is free.

 

Spa is run by an outside agency on both ships...totally similar. DCL is prettier. Princess does have a complimentary sauna and steam room in their women's locker room while DCL has only the sauna. Photography--same on both ships

 

Adult only areas--strictly enforced on Princess. There were 2 adult only pools (one far forward, one far aft). The "middle of the ship" pools are family pools. None seemed very crowded. There is a designated "lap pool." No life guards that I noticed.

 

Skywalker Lounge--one of my favorite areas. This is on the top deck, far aft. It is a nightclub in the evening, but during the day has lots of different things happening. One of my favorites was "quiet hours." This was a time to come up, enjoy a beverage (or not), sit with your book, enjoy the view, etc. Conversation was to be kept at a level that could not be heard by those at the next seating area. It felt like a private get away. There were lots of other lounges and places to hang out, but this one was really nice.

 

Both ships have the typical trivia contests, etc. throughout the cruise. Both have sports decks with equipment available.

 

Casino--it was there, but was not an area that you had to walk thru if you didn't choose to. Bingo...I guess similar on both ships. The lady next to us at dinner shared the grand jackpot, so she was happy.

 

Adult groups/get togethers--MUCH more plentiful on Princess. It is noted in the "Princess Patter" (think Navigator) whether these are monitored by a CM or "on your own," but there were lots of special interest groups given spaces and times. Some that I saw on the program included "Knitters and Knackers" each morning, a Bible study group, space for religious services on your own (several different faiths), LGBT, book club (Princess has multiple copies of the club selection available in the library, meet with a CM for discussion), a coin and stamp collector's group, etc. There was even a "pop choir" which rehearsed daily and did a performance on the last evening. And of course the "Friends of Bill W." This is not intended as an all inclusive list, just some that I noted.

 

There were also lectures, educational activities, etc. There were dance lessons daily (I've seen this on longer DCL cruises, but not on 7 nights). Princess has partnered with the Discovery Channel to present various educational programs; on our cruise the topic was "Star Gazing." Obviously there were the port talks, shopping talks, etc.

 

Similar to DCL, I never felt pressured to buy a beverage. In the lounges, the bar tender would approach once and then not bother us again.

 

Availability of senior staff--while relatively few formal interactions (Yes, Captain's reception on Formal night), there was a lot of informal time with officers "out and about" having no obvious purpose other than to meet guests. There was a problem with our cruise (see below) and the captain was very forthcoming with regular announcements as well as letters in the cabin advising us of arrangements, etc.

 

Guest Services--efficient. We only had one issue. I had pre-purchased a soda and more card for my daughter and the sticker was not on her card at check in. Guest services suggested that I purchase it again and that they would refund the second purchase as soon as they verified with shoreside. The staff at the desk has individual business cards with their names and invite you to follow up personally if it isn't resolved. No problem--by the next day, everything was taken care of. They also have kiosks where you can print out your bill; no need to stand in line for this. And there is a separate line for their "Elite" loyalty group (their highest level).

 

Atrium--prettiest area on Princess. 3 levels with functions at each level.

 

Cost--Princess wins. Our 7 night regular priced cruise in a mid range balcony cabin (not the cheapest, not the deluxe balcony) + air, transfers, and insurance was cheaper than any VGT I could find offered by DCL. If I considered just the cruise fare, it was less than half of the VGTs that DCL had available at the time we booked.

 

"cost extra" items--the only things not included on Princess that is included on DCL are the soda package and the $3 charge for pizza from room service. I don't understand the "pizza from room service" charge--other room service is "free," and you can get pizza upstairs from 11 am to 10 pm. But whatever.

 

Terminal--The Bayport (Houston) terminal was not pretty...but then, it isn't limited to Princess. It is basically like the terminals that DCL uses outside of Port Canaveral. There were bathrooms, vending machines, and LOTS of seating. Boarding was much the same as any DCL ship with the exception that a wheelchair assist team of about 10 guys came to the HA seating area when boarding was about to start and helped those who needed it. We've always had to ASK for assistance on DCL

 

Terminal staff--honestly, I can't say enough good about these people. We were supposed to depart on Sunday. When we got to the airport, we were informed that the terminal was "fogged in" and the ship hadn't come in from the previous cruise. We were held at the airport briefly and then transported to the cruise terminal. There, we were informed that it would take at least 3 hours from the time the ship entered the channel till it arrived at the terminal and would be another 3 hours for disembarkation and check in before we could board. We were provided with all pre-boarding paperwork, health form, etc. so that as soon as check in was possible, it would go quickly. Shuttle bus service was provided to a boardwalk area with sit down restaurants, but given the need to take your carry on luggage with you and the mobility problem, we stayed at the terminal. We had honest answers (even when the answer was "We don't know anything yet.") Eventually we were informed that there was a high level conference call in process and we could expect some answers soon...and ultimately we were sent by bus to a hotel paid for by Princess. Transportation for the next morning was available (lobby at 10:30, bus to depart at 11). The hotel had done a "Pre-check in" so keys were ready, etc. We went to a special desk, showed ID, and were handed a key.

 

Thru it all, the terminal staff stayed smiling and pleasant. They were helpful to the end. One lady even came over and introduced herself as "the one who had arranged the accessible transport" for us. She later came by and said that she would be off the next day but provided the name of the supervisor on duty and told us that if we needed anything, to ask for him. It probably didn't hurt that my daughter made a point of thanking the staff and saying that she wanted to apologize for those people who were griping and yelling at the staff; they didn't deserve that treatment and we knew they weren't responsible for the weather issues. Special award--when we checked in the next morning, the clerk (Linda) asked my daughter if she had lost anything. Daughter replied "It's a blue and white phone charger." Linda said that she'd found it in the terminal and tried to remember who was sitting in that area..she came back with it in a few seconds. We'd already been thru a huge luggage search at the hotel and decided it was just "gone." Great job, Linda...and of course we gave special recognition on our evaluation.

 

Overall: Bedtime on the first night, my daughter's comment was, "Mom, I hate to say it, but I like this ship. I came on intending to not like it but everything is good." Our family decision is that we might cruise DCL again--there are things and people we like about it. But there is NOTHING about DCL that makes it worth twice the cost of Princess. That could be because we've seen the Princesses and furries many times, played in Marvel academy already, etc. But for a very good basic cruise, Princess does it right.

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We sailed Ruby Princess in 2013 and loved it. She is a beautiful ship, and a sister ship to Caribbean Princess. Everything about the cruise was wonderful, and I cannot understand why no other cruise line has been able to match Princess' standard with the buffet concept!

 

So glad you enjoyed your cruise!

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Thanks for your comprehensive review. We have cruised many times on Princess and one time on the Disney Fantasy. We have a 2nd cruise on the Fantasy (sailing with kids and grandkids again) booked for January. I agree with most of your observations. Both were great experiences but overall we like Princess better. The one thing that stood out as a definite positive was our cabin on the Fantasy. It was a stern balcony with a huge balcony, dual bathrooms, and the couch. Much better than a Princess cabin until getting to a mini suite. We found both the dining room service and food to be better on Princess than the Fantasy. Especially now with the new alcohol policy on Disney, it is definitely not worth the additional cost.

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Crazy question. Was the iced tea at the beverage station brewed?

 

The iced tea at the beverage station was made from some concentrate. The first time I had some, it seemed good (but this tea freak had been without her witches brew for 24+ hours at that time). After that, it was rather...blah. But I had that problem solved. I brought a 32 ounce styrofoam cup along. I would make brewed tea, cover it and store it in my refrigerator. Fill my beverage mug with ice, add brewed tea, and I was good to go!

 

Yes, this did involve a minimal amount of effort, but I'm picky about my tea.

 

The iced tea on Princess was better than what they have at the beverage station on DCL....but not up to my standards.

 

A Tervis mug is a nice thing to have. The soda people had no problem with filling my daughter's for her (they use a gun so the mug never touches the serving parts). It also worked great for my tea. Stays cold for a long time at the pool, doesn't sweat on the furniture, etc. They were expensive, but we hit BB&B with coupons before the cruise.

Edited by moki'smommy
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Thanks! We ordered room service on the Dream and got two lovely glasses of beautifully brewed iced tea. Same in the dining rooms. So we have a hoarding situation going on in our room with the room service. I was curious to see if the beverage stations anywhere else started to offer brewed iced tea like they do in those tea brewer things at Subway or Saladworks.

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Thanks! We ordered room service on the Dream and got two lovely glasses of beautifully brewed iced tea. Same in the dining rooms. So we have a hoarding situation going on in our room with the room service. I was curious to see if the beverage stations anywhere else started to offer brewed iced tea like they do in those tea brewer things at Subway or Saladworks.

 

Yes, on DCL the dining rooms and room service have brewed tea; the beverage stations have instant. I always leave the dining room carrying an extra glass of tea! The stuff at the DCL beverage stations is NASTY. Princess is half decent.

 

One other item I should have mentioned--Princess EZ Air. We do not book air thru DCL because it is such a pain. We have no control over anything, and if we make any request (non-stop only, departure after X time, or whatever) it is an "air deviation" and costs extra.

 

On Princess, WE get to choose the flights! The lowest rate is shown, along with all other available flights. Some of the choices incur an extra charge, but they are the actual cost change for the airline, not an arbitrary upcharge. The rate is the same or LESS than what I could book on my own thru the airline.

Edited by moki'smommy
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One of my important differences.... Internet....

 

DCL $89 for 1gig that I can pace myself for the entire cruise.

Princess sells it by 120, 240, 460, or 680 minutes. You loose so much time just logging in because it's so slow.

 

Another is pictures..... if you like pictures.... I like AYCE photo packages on DCL. Princess has me paying so much because it's by the picture.

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One of my important differences.... Internet....

 

DCL $89 for 1gig that I can pace myself for the entire cruise.

Princess sells it by 120, 240, 460, or 680 minutes. You loose so much time just logging in because it's so slow.

 

Another is pictures..... if you like pictures.... I like AYCE photo packages on DCL. Princess has me paying so much because it's by the picture.

 

I agree that I'd rather pay for internet by the mb than by the minute. In fact, I noted this on my comment sheet for Princess. We have heard rumors that the wifi is being totally overhauled and that they will/might offer a "per day" package where you can choose which day(s) you wish to buy. Some other lines owned by the company that owns Princess have done this with a $15 per day charge. That's not bad, especially if you aren't locked into paying for the entire cruise but I'd still rather pay by the mb. However, my 24 year old's experience was that the wifi in our Princess cabin was faster than on DCL. No time delay with log on or download. We were pleasantly surprised.

 

We didn't buy photos, so no comment there.

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That was a great review and comparison. I have a couple random questions. Do they serve chicken strips in anything (quick service, room service, MDRs)?

 

Is the all day buffet comprehensive enough that people could totally skip out MDRs and still have varied choices?

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Bevvies is another difference. Princess charges $15 a bottle if you bring your own.... DCL allows for 2 bottles and unlimited water in your carry-on. In the old days DCL allows for whatever bevvies will fit in your carry-on.

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The buffet is totally comprehensive enough that you could never go to the MDRs. They have it divided into 5 types of servings each day with hours posted, but something is available from early morning till late at night. They serve breakfast, brunch, lunch, mid-afternoon, and dinner. There is a second, smaller buffet behind the large one with fewer selections--for example, continental breakfast. We didn't eat any chicken strips, so I can't say whether they existed or not. I did get a chicken sandwich at the fast food outlet. I think I saw chicken "nuggets" on the buffet at least once.

 

Here's the alcohol on board policy. The corkage fee is charged only when the wine is brought to the dining room for the first bottle.

 

From the Princess web site:

 

inging Booze Onboard

 

Bringing liquor onboard at embarkation: It's not allowed. It will be confiscated and discarded.

 

Bringing wine or Champagne onboard: Two-part rule: Each passenger of drinking age can bring one bottle of wine or Champagne (no larger than 750 ml) per voyage, which will not be subject to a corkage fee if consumed in the cabin. When brought to restaurants, a $15 corkage fee applies. Bringing additional wine or Champagne bottles aboard is allowed, but each bottle will incur a $15 corkage fee, irrespective of where they are intended to be consumed.

 

Purchasing liquor in port: It will be retained until the end of the cruise.

 

As you can see, it is a little more restrictive than DCL, with a one bottle limit rather than 2 at no charge and no port replenishment (although that isn't clear from their web site's statement...it says liquor will be held, not wine.) However, for $15 per bottle, you can bring on an unlimited amount of wine (which you can't do on DCL).

 

True, they were showing, decent, desirable movies including many fairly recent ones...but not new releases. But in reality, how often does a new Star Wars (or similar) film get released? It's great when you are on board for a new Disney affiliated release, but it isn't a reason to book a cruise (lots cheaper to see it in the theatre!) We've had a couple release dates during our cruises. We see that as a bonus when we luck into it.

Edited by moki'smommy
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Just an FYI - the pizza charged was introduced because people were ordering stacks of whole pies (mostly teens who would end up eating 2 slices of each) and there was a ton of waste (saw it myself)...

 

As a second FYI, the Carribean Princess has the lowest passenger space ratio of all the Princess ships, so if you consider them again in the future, look at the Coral (love that ship!). I would say also their gem ships are good designs.

 

Finally, if you liked the IC, wait till you get on a ship that has Alfredos!

 

All of that said, my opinions are similar to yours. We love Disney but have a very very hard time justifying the price differential. I think I have pointed it out before, we are sailing the same itinerary (except Castaway of course - which is a big Disney plus) on NCL in a Haven Spa Suite (included thermal spa, private dining and pool areas, butler service, in room Jacuzzi, beverage package, wifi, excursion credits, specialty dining credits and suite perks) for less than a standard concierge balcony on Disney.

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I keep reading about Alfredo's and the fact that other ships in the Princess line have more space per guest...but we wanted to "try out" the same ship that would be doing the European cruises that we were considering for the spring. I'd love to try out the other ships at some point.

 

It was a disappointment to have read of the gelato and crepe outlet and then find that it doesn't exist on the ship we chose! Ah well, something to look forward to another time.

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Thanks for the very thorough review and comparison between Princess and Disney. We have done many DCL cruises, all 7-15 day cruises, and really enjoy sailing with them (we did four this year alone). Like you, we have seen the pricing continue to go higher and higher, so we starting shopping around for an alternative cruise line, and, with input from another couple who frequently cruise on DCL, chose Princess as our next option. We will also be sailing on the Caribbean Princess on a Canada/New England cruise next fall, and on the Crown Princess for a back to back Baltic/Norwegian Cruise itinerary in 2017. We will likely book on DCL for 2017 as well and reevaluate depending on how well our fall 2016 cruise goes. From a pricing perspective, we were able to book an aft suite on the Princess Cruises for about the same price as a regular stateroom on a DCL ship, and we could have saved around 30% had we just gone with a mini suite (which seems comparable to a veranda stateroom on DCL).

 

I really appreciate the review you wrote. We have had great experiences on DCL, we love the ships (especially Magic and Wonder), and the crew. DCL has been a special place for us as our kids grew up and we have had many wonderful family vacations at sea with DCL. As empty nesters, DCL continues to be a great option, pricing aside. We will do more DCL cruises, but a10 day cruise in Europe on the Magic is about the same price as 21 days on Princess, in a suite (it's actually about $3k to $4k more, but we get 11 more days and a suite). We used to do concierge suites on DCL, and were priced out, plus we don't need one anyway.

 

I am a bit anxious as to whether we will like Princess v. our experiences on DCL, so your review is especially helpful. I can only hope we reach the same conclusion your daughter reached and find we like Princess more than expected.

Edited by STHCruising
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Thanks STH Cruising and Techie,

 

I have no ax to grind with DCL. They have provided many memories and great family vacations, and I would happily cruise them again. There are things that are "better" on each of the lines from my perspective.

 

However, our current bookings are 24 nights on DCL (12+12 B2B) in an inside stateroom for $13,900 NOT including transfers or insurance. These cruises were exempted from the rebooking on board benefits, so no discounts or onboard credits. We would get a dinner in Palo on each leg.

 

On Princess we have 33 nights in a DELUXE balcony cabin (larger than the standard balcony cabin), prepaid gratuities, one specialty dining, transfers, and insurance for just under $10,000. In addition, Princess will give me a $250 on board credit. Costed out on a per diem basis, it is almost exactly half of the DCL booking. I think that when I did the calculations, I included the tips on DCL and the Soda and More package for my daughter on Princess to make things as similar as possible. That $4K difference will cover our excursions and perhaps part of our air as well. If I were a higher loyalty level on Princess, there would be more perks.

 

Currently there are no balcony cabins available for the DCL cruises. When they were available, the cost was double that of the inside cabin that I booked.

 

Bottom line--the finances of doing the spring cruise on DCL just don't make sense to me. There was nothing WRONG with Princess or so RIGHT with DCL that it justifies the price difference.

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Thanks STH Cruising and Techie' date='

 

I have no ax to grind with DCL. They have provided many memories and great family vacations, and I would happily cruise them again. There are things that are "better" on each of the lines from my perspective.

 

However, our current bookings are 24 nights on DCL (12+12 B2B) in an inside stateroom for $13,900 NOT including transfers or insurance. These cruises were exempted from the rebooking on board benefits, so no discounts or onboard credits. We would get a dinner in Palo on each leg.

 

On Princess we have 33 nights in a DELUXE balcony cabin (larger than the standard balcony cabin), prepaid gratuities, one specialty dining, transfers, and insurance for just under $10,000. In addition, Princess will give me a $250 on board credit. Costed out on a per diem basis, it is almost exactly half of the DCL booking. I think that when I did the calculations, I included the tips on DCL and the Soda and More package for my daughter on Princess to make things as similar as possible. That $4K difference will cover our excursions and perhaps part of our air as well. If I were a higher loyalty level on Princess, there would be more perks.

 

Currently there are no balcony cabins available for the DCL cruises. When they were available, the cost was double that of the inside cabin that I booked.

 

Bottom line--the finances of doing the spring cruise on DCL just don't make sense to me. There was nothing WRONG with Princess or so RIGHT with DCL that it justifies the price difference.[/quote']

 

GULP!

 

$28k for 24 nights in a standard balcony Stateroom?!? :eek:

How can anyone justify paying $1,160 a night in a standard balcony for two people on a mass cruise line? :confused:

 

 

ex techie

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GULP!

 

$28k for 24 nights in a standard balcony Stateroom?!? :eek:

How can anyone justify paying $1,160 a night in a standard balcony for two people on a mass cruise line? :confused:

 

 

ex techie

 

That's why we're not in a balcony on DCL. And $600 per night is why we're not going in an inside cabin on DCL.

 

At this point, the ship is filling. It seems some people are dropping out though as there are now balcony cabins available--a Navigator's Verandah for $13 K for 12 nights/2 persons and cat 5s for $15K for 12 nights. For a while there were no balcony cabins at all showing as available!

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Wow, that $13.9k figure was for each LEG of the b2b? :eek:

 

That is the current price for a single leg from the DCL site last evening, balcony cabin. That's why we're not cruising DCL.

 

The reservation we will be canceling is for an inside cabin at 7K for ONE leg.

Edited by moki'smommy
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$28k for 24 nights in a standard balcony Stateroom?!? :eek:

How can anyone justify paying $1,160 a night in a standard balcony for two people on a mass cruise line? :confused:

 

For a point of reference: Silversea 29-night cruise from Cape Town to Barcelona in March 2016 in a "standard" verandah cabin is around $13k per person (probably excluding taxes and port fees).

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We have 7 day Western Caribbean cruise on the Disney Fantasy in January followed immediately by a 6 day Western Caribbean cruise on the Coral Princess. We have a balcony cabin on both cruises. The cost per person on the Fantasy is $1,676 including taxes, fees, etc. which comes to $239 per day per person. The cost on the Coral Princess is $839 per person which comes to $140 per day. We are also getting $175 on board credit per person which comes to $29 per day with a net cost per person day of $111. This is less than half the cost of the Disney Fantasy. Other than the cabin and the fireworks on Disney, we prefer the on board experience on Princess. Certainly there is nothing on Disney to justify the additional cost other than the name. The only reason we are sailing on the Fantasy is to be with the grandsons who love Disney.

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