Disney a threat to RCL?

[orville99]

I am a little confused on how that is an innovation. RCI came up with inside rooms that have windows when they designed the Voyager class ships. They are called Promenade cabins and overlook the Royal Promenade.

 

It's a portholes shaped video screen that plays an image of what's outside of the ship

[orville99]

I've sailed on both the Jewel OTS and Disney Magic.

 

The balcony on a Navigator Veranda stateroom on the Magic has a solid steel wall with a large round cutout. It's not nearly as nice as a junior suite's balcony on the Jewel.

 

Woody

 

And the navigator veranda only has one chair, a small table, and a built in bench:eek:

 

Btw, the J's we have on jewel is 1100:cool:

[Ocean Boy]

It's a portholes shaped video screen that plays an image of what's outside of the ship

 

Gotcha. So it's a round TV mounted on the wall that only gets one channel.

[mac_tlc]

Gotcha. So it's a round TV mounted on the wall that only gets one channel.

 

Still gives you a view of the ocean - tough to get that from the Promenade view rooms, whihc are much smaller.

[mac_tlc]

Gotcha. So it's a round TV mounted on the wall that only gets one channel.

 

Still gives you a look at the ocean - tough to get that from the Promenade view rooms, which are much smaller.

[Sonic2012]

We love DCL. We've been on the Magic & Wonder. Our last cruise was November 2010, 7 day Western on the Magic (Key West, Grand Cayman, Cozumel & Castaway Cay). My kids were 6 & 15 at the time. They absolutely loved the kids clubs. There are no extra charges in or out of port during club hours, which could be until midnight or 2am depending on the night and the age group. <Doesn't RCL charge a fee if they are in port?> Also Disney has drink stations which are included in your cruise fare that have soda, cocoa, and coffee instead of soda packages. They charge you for soda if you order from the bar. The only service charge restaurant is the adult one. So maybe the cruise fare up front is more, but there are less extra charges for stuff. My oldest daughter still talks to kids from our cruise.

 

My oldest daughter has sailed on MOS in the past and said honestly she likes Disney better. She called MOS a floating hotel & even though it had some good activities, it just wasn't her favorite. It's been a few years, and she did not try the kids club. We are sailing FOS at the end of this year and being open minded. I love Disney, but I have nothing to compare it to. The kids activities on Disney are going to be hard to beat, I will review honestly after our cruise and include my kids opinions. I am guessing the suite amenities will help RC (:

[FOXTROT]

If you think RCCL is expensive price Disney. You will think Royal is a real bargain. Disney pretty much shuts down at 11:00.

[LittleMissMagic]

If you think RCCL is expensive price Disney. You will think Royal is a real bargain. Disney pretty much shuts down at 11:00.

 

That's what everyone says about every line except Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Norwegian!!!

 

It's actually why we sail Royal Caribbean and haven't tried Celebrity or Princess, yet - we've been told by multiple people who have cruised both lines that they shut down at 11!

[Sylia]

Since DCL attracts so many families with kids, but still boasts "adult only" areas aboard, I wonder how well they enforce the policy. It seems RCI would rather negatively impact dozens of other passengers than to directly confront the few who are violating rules. If DCL turns a blind eye to kids in adult venues, as RCI often does, I wouldn't want any part of that line.

We've cruised both RCCL and Disney, and each has their strong points and weaknesses.

 

In terms of enforcement of Adult spaces, Disney far exceeds RCCL in that regard. I have never run across wayward children in areas designated as Adults only on Disney ships, and any parent/grandparent trying to skirt the rules was polietly, but expediently escorted to the family area. I cannot say the same for RCCL on any of the 6 cruises we've done. Besides, the kids generally are kept engaged by the sheer volume of areas and activites dedicated to them, so you don't really see them outside of dinner times and deck parties.

 

With respect to dining, we found RCCL to have better MDR food. Not having tried Palo or Remy's yet, cannot make a comparison to Chops/Portofino/etc.

 

Public spaces, decor, cleanliness are pretty much a wash.

 

Castaway Cay vs. Labadee- no contest. A restful clean well laid out haven (Castaway) vs dogding hawkers and peddlars of all sorts (Labadee) - if I want to deal with that kind of thing, I'd get off at a port like Ocho Rios or Cozumel, I don't want to deal with it on what is supposed to be an island getaway.

 

Disney doesn't have a Casino, but its not a deal breaker for us. We also noticed that there seems to be far less smoking on a Disney ship, which also suits us just fine.

 

Drink prices seem to be a bit cheaper on DCL, and they actually allow you to bring liquor abord for use in your cabin. Funny, the Mouse Boat treating its passengers like adults, who knew?

 

They also don't charge for softdrinks - actually have a soft drink station on the pool deck near the family pool.

 

I think if you did a comparison, based on what is included, particularly when you cruise in shoulder seasons like we tend to do, and the rates are very comparable. We're booked on Oasis and Fantasy for 7 night Eastern cruises this year. Oasis ran us $3294 and Disney cost $3344. Both cabins are on high decks, ocean view balconies. Can't get much more apples to apples than that.

[Cuizer2]

Just saw the Disney Wonder will be homeported in Miami, Fl for December 2012 through May 2013. With Allure, Oasis, Vision, Independence, Liberty, & Majesty (not to mention those under the Celebrity Brand - Reflection, Constellation, Equinox & Eclipse) I can forsee some issues with the high pricing RCL currently has on their sailings.

 

The very clients that have been gravitating towards the Dreameworks Experience may very well be "allured" more towards Disney because.... Well... It's Disney!!

 

Are lower prices and more competition to come? What do you all think?

 

When people see the Disney prices they will scurry back to Royal Caribbean.

[negc]

If you think RCCL is expensive price Disney. You will think Royal is a real bargain. Disney pretty much shuts down at 11:00.

 

I'm not sure just how accurate that is and it is something that is often said of many cruise ships rightly or wrongly, but the lack of a casino on Disney ships very likely contributes to passengers retiring early.:)

[Friend100]

I think if you did a comparison, based on what is included, particularly when you cruise in shoulder seasons like we tend to do, and the rates are very comparable. We're booked on Oasis and Fantasy for 7 night Eastern cruises this year. Oasis ran us $3294 and Disney cost $3344. Both cabins are on high decks, ocean view balconies. Can't get much more apples to apples than that.

 

After reading all these pages about DCL in the RCI board, my observation is that there are people who either just won't consider DCL because of non-priced related factors (no casino, mickey, disney theme, shutdown at 11, full of kids .... these are all deal breakers), or just can't believe (or don't want to believe) that there are comparable prices in some cases. And then there are a few who'd like both and would be open to either one when price/itinerary/timing is right. I'm sure I'm missing a few more.

 

So going back to OP's question, I think DCL offers a somewhat niche product and charging a generally high price. They are an entertainment company selling their product and experience on a cruise ship. RCI, and all the other mass market cruiselines, are cruise companies that provide entertainment as one of the onboard feature.

 

Different in many ways. No direct threat.

 

By the way, like your analysis.

[bus man]

I'm not sure just how accurate that is and it is something that is often said of many cruise ships rightly or wrongly, but the lack of a casino on Disney ships very likely contributes to passengers retiring early.:)

 

I would say that the fact that parents of young kids are TIRED all the time, due to being worn out by our little dynamos, is a major contributing factor to the night-time quietude on Disney's ships.

[OrdieJ]

If you think RCCL is expensive price Disney. You will think Royal is a real bargain. Disney pretty much shuts down at 11:00.

 

Says who???

 

My wife and I had our honeymoon cruise last April on the Disney Wonder and it was amazing. They had adult activities till 0200! And the kids have their own section of the ship too! We hardly saw kids unless we went to the kid area or family pool!

 

We still love Royal Caribbean. We cant wait to do another cruise with Royal and Disney.

[temple1]

My oldest daughter has sailed on MOS in the past and said honestly she likes Disney better. She called MOS a floating hotel & even though it had some good activities, it just wasn't her favorite. It's been a few years, and she did not try the kids club. We are sailing FOS at the end of this year and being open minded. I love Disney, but I have nothing to compare it to. The kids activities on Disney are going to be hard to beat, I will review honestly after our cruise and include my kids opinions. I am guessing the suite amenities will help RC (:

 

I don't know about the Disney ships but Monarch is the oldest, smallest ship in the RCCL fleet. After your cruise on Freedom, you will have a better feel for the amenities on a RCCL ship.