Princess v. Disney - My Comparison

[CI66774]

A little background first. I've taken two Princess and two Disney cruises with my DD. Both Princess cruises were on the Royal Princess and the Disney cruises were on the Fantasy and Magic. Comparison as follows:

 

Overall Service: Princess wins. Disney is renowned for great service. I experienced that on the Fantasy but not on my recent trip on the Magic. Guest Services was disinterested and crew members seemed tired and dismissive. Service on the Royal Princess was exceptional both times. I had a rather disturbing incident on my last Royal cruise and Princess rectified it immediately.

 

Cabin Configuration: Disney wins. Disney configures its cabins for families. They think of everything. The drawers slide silently in - unlike the drawers on the Royal. The soundproofing is better on Disney. No comparison here.

 

Food. Princess wins by a mile. Disney's food is mediocre at best. Their equivalent to the Horizon Court is abysmal with food barely edible. I lost weight on Disney. I gained weight on Princess. Princess head and shoulders above Disney.

 

Adult Entertainment. Princess Wins. Never wanting for entertainment. On my Magic cruise, not much for adults to do. I can only take so many princesses before I need a good, stiff drink at an adult bar.

 

Kid's Club. I vote Princess; DD votes Disney by a smidge. Disney clubs are a free-for-all. Lots of different activities, etc. Princess is more focused on crafts and making stuff. I prefer the focus. DD prefers the free-for-all. Both are great, though.

 

In-Room Entertainment. Royal Princess wins over Magic and ties Fantasy. Magic has a few movies that play over and over. Fantasy and Royal have on-demand system.

 

Room Host/Hostess. Princess wins. My Royal stewards were exceptional, always anticipating my needs. Ice was filled, extra chocolates were left, etc. Fantasy steward was good and made DD lots of extra towel animals. Magic steward was mediocre and I had to track him down and ask him for more shampoo, etc.

 

Pools. Disney wins.

 

Elevators. Both Disney and Princess suck. All have those "tiny tubes of terror." None of the ships have elevators large enough to accommodate the number of paxs. I do a lot of stair climbing.

 

Promenade. Disney wins. Royal doesn't have a promenade and I love promenades. 'Nuff said.

 

Ship Layout. Disney wins but Royal isn't bad. Love the Fantasy and Magic layout. Royal takes a little getting used to.

 

Well - there it is. My comparison. Already booked on a 26-day British Isles cruises on Royal Princess next year. I'd be happy to answer any questions.

[TorontoTL]

Thanks for posting your observations. I've never been on Disney but always wondered about how it was.

[Loonbeam]

Having posted a similar review, I concur on all but entertainment, but I understand where you are coming from.

 

The quality of Disney main stage entertainment I have found to be generally superior in terms of performance and staging (the Royal has a much more modern stage than the other ships, you will notice a big drop off in capability if you cruise other Princess ships). That said, from a variety of interest standpoint, Princess has more, as really, Disney has a bunch of Disney shows, which when it comes down to it are fairly similar. I always leave headliners out of the equation, because they change so much.

 

I also think Disney has far better kids facilities, but I see your point where the simpler venues on Princess can lead to a more focused program.

[rpcv77]

Disney was my first cruise. We were on the Wonder. This ignited my love for cruising, but I never had a burning desire to go back Disney. It was great for a large family group with young children and we had a wonderful time. My last two cruises have been on Princess, with another booked and I feel very comfortable with them, not to mention more affordable for me. Nothing bad to say about either line!

[shepp]

Interesting, since Disney always tops Princess in the ratings. (The Travel and Leisure poll, for instance.) Figured I was missing something greatish.

 

I do like theme parks, so the things that have kept me off Disney are the higher fares and the number of kids onboard. (Yeah, there are lots of kids at Disney California Adventure, but there you're on the Cars ride, not a multi-day cruise.) I've often heard good things about Disney food, especially in the upcharge restaurants. But I guess I'll stick to Princess for that cruise around Japan and use the money I save to visit Tokyo DisneySea.

[yoyosma]

I sailed with a (rather large) bunch of friends on the Magic a few years back. Ken are you out there? While I did enjoy the cruise because of my friends I have not returned to Disney. Truthfully, I didn't feel like I had cruised. I liked Castaway Key and the Disney entertainment shows were very good. But if it weren't for my friends I would have found the other evening entertainment non existent. Food was just OK. I really prefer Princess and HAL and Celebrity and maybe even Royal Caribbean to Disney. It is just not for me.

[OCruisers]

Thanks for your comparison -- well written and easy to read!

LuLu

[Mom33]

Thanks for the review and comparison of the two cruise lines. We will probably try a Disney cruise in 3 years because we want to take our grandaughter on one.:D Oh alright, she is a great excuse for going and enjoying it too.;)

But I know we'll always be Princess customers when we want to "escape completely". :D

[Cruisin' Chick]

I've always been glad that my daughter never insisted we try a Disney cruise. I think I would have OD'ed on the characters. I can take a day at Disneyland but that's about it. My daughter actually decided she wasn't into the Disney channel by age 10 or so and was cringing at her 5th grade culimination because the teachers (actually it was her Disney-obsessed one) decided to have the kids sing a song from High School Musical (with many verses written by same teacher) for the parents. She still likes some Disney movies, but hated "Frozen."

[sawtooth]

OP

Am I correct in recalling that you had L108 on the Royal?

How did that stateroom compare with the Disney cruise?

[Lovetocruiseprincess]

I'm curious as to how the movies on demand are listed? Is there a page presented one at a time to look through or do you have to scan through movie by movie?

[CI66774]

OP

Am I correct in recalling that you had L108 on the Royal?

How did that stateroom compare with the Disney cruise?

 

L108 was a great mini-suite. I also stayed in M204 (or something like that). Both were good cabins. On Disney, I stayed in a deluxe family oceanview on the Fantasy and a sideways inside on the Magic. I preferred those because Disney really knows how to make a cabin comfortable for the family. It's how the room is configured. The drawers don't slam. More storage, better soundproofing, etc. The Disney cabins are more attractive, too. Royal cabins are nice and subdued but Disney just has that touch. Overall, however, I prefer Princess due to superior service, better activities for adults, better food, etc.

[CI66774]

I'm curious as to how the movies on demand are listed? Is there a page presented one at a time to look through or do you have to scan through movie by movie?

 

Gosh, I can't really remember on the Fantasy. But it was easy to navigate. On the Royal, the movies are listed on one page (if I remember correctly). When a movie is shown on MUTS or in the theater, it's then added to the on demand tv in the cabin. The Royal and the Fantasy have good on demand features with recent tv shows and recorded ship presentations; the Magic had negligible movie selections. It's not that I spend a lot of time in the cabin, but when I'm there, I like to see a variety of recent movies.

[JimmyVWine]

I have to agree with 90% of what the OP posted, though my comparisons are to the Grand Class ships and not Royal, so the Promenade issue becomes a tie there. Disney food was awful except in Palio. Service was meh. People always associate Disney with great service but they forget that the cruise line is run separately. It's not as if the guides on the Jungle Cruise ride are the employees on the ships. Disney hires from the same pool of foreign workers as every other cruise line and there is nothing special (or worse for that matter) about the crew on board.

 

As far as kid's programs, it's hard not to give Disney the edge, though the sheer number of kids on board can be intimidating if your child is shy. Lots of families travel in groups on Disney ships so cliques and groups may already be bonded and it might be hard for strangers to join those packs. On Princess, everyone pretty much must make new friends and the smaller numbers can actually work as an advantage. But the facilities themselves on DCL are top notch.

[shepp]

It's not as if the guides on the Jungle Cruise ride are the employees on the ships.

 

Thank goodness. I'd hate to have the stewards shooting at hippos.

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks for your comparision, very interesting.

[Kenswing]

I sailed with a (rather large) bunch of friends on the Magic a few years back. Ken are you out there? While I did enjoy the cruise because of my friends I have not returned to Disney. Truthfully, I didn't feel like I had cruised. I liked Castaway Key and the Disney entertainment shows were very good. But if it weren't for my friends I would have found the other evening entertainment non existent. Food was just OK. I really prefer Princess and HAL and Celebrity and maybe even Royal Caribbean to Disney. It is just not for me.

 

I thought it was on the Wonder.. LOL

[donaldsc]

You have missed one significant factor in the comparison that trumps everything. Many of us including me hate anything and everything Disney.

 

DON

[holula]

I just did my first non Disney after 8 Disney. We sailed on Ruby. Generally I agree with you and I love Disney. Howeve, we liked the pools better on Princess and our service has always been amazing on Disney other than on the Dream. Guest services on Ruby were awful. To us, Princess was much better value for money.

 

 

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[Lovetocruiseprincess]

Gosh, I can't really remember on the Fantasy. But it was easy to navigate. On the Royal, the movies are listed on one page (if I remember correctly). When a movie is shown on MUTS or in the theater, it's then added to the on demand tv in the cabin. The Royal and the Fantasy have good on demand features with recent tv shows and recorded ship presentations; the Magic had negligible movie selections. It's not that I spend a lot of time in the cabin, but when I'm there, I like to see a variety of recent movies.

 

Thanks. That's how I thought it might be. At least it's easier to see what's available rather than flipping past movie after movie.

[CI66774]

Thanks. That's how I thought it might be. At least it's easier to see what's available rather than flipping past movie after movie.

 

I also think the Royal had then in categories, too. I remember my DD clicking on "Family" movies to access "Frozen" for the 1 millionth time. It was very easy to navigate. I also liked the fact Princess filmed all port lectures, cooking classes, variety shows, etc. and played them on the in-room tv.

[Lovetocruiseprincess]

I also think the Royal had then in categories, too. I remember my DD clicking on "Family" movies to access "Frozen" for the 1 millionth time. It was very easy to navigate. I also liked the fact Princess filmed all port lectures, cooking classes, variety shows, etc. and played them on the in-room tv.

 

I'm also now assuming that you can fast forward the shows similar to my DVR at home ;) or is that assuming to much of the system.

[CI66774]

I'm also now assuming that you can fast forward the shows similar to my DVR at home ;) or is that assuming to much of the system.

 

Yes. You can fast forward, pause, rewind, etc.