Thinking of canceling cruise...

[cruizers]

I would go on the cruise. Disney can be overwhelming during that time of the year.

Whichever you choose, I hope you and your family have a wonderful time together.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

I would maybe consider:

- Adding a day or two in Orlando at the beginning of your cruise to do Disney then, if you can afford it.

- Switching to a Disney cruise in December. The prices should be much better at the beginning of December for a Disney cruise than in April. Disney cruises can be affordable, if you choose the right time of year and/or are willing to be flexible with the cabins.

- Keeping the Freedom and doing Disney next year. You already have this booked, you were looking forward to it, and the kids can help you plan Disney for next year.

 

I wish I could find a reasonably priced Disney cruise.

 

We have been to Disney over 20 times and been on 3 Disney cruises but none since they built the 2 new ships as the prices just went way up since then.

 

I am flexible and can go any time but there is no way I am paying $1000-$1200pp for the cheapest inside cabin on a Disney ship in the beginning of December.

 

The balcony's on the Oasis and Allure are only in the $800 range for those dates.

 

As much as I love Disney that's just too much of a premium to pay for one of the cheapest weeks of the year to cruise.

 

Bill

[tarheelmjfan]

I'm going to go against many & say I'd go to Disney with your family. Many seem to forget that kids are only young for a short while. DS is now in college, so DH & I have the rest of our lives to do what we want to. However, we can't go on a vacation with DS anytime we feel like it. I never felt the least bit deprived by choosing destinations, attractions or restaurants that he would prefer. As I said, we can now go anywhere we want, but really miss the time spent with DS. All that said, if your family goes to Disney yearly & never takes a cruise, I'd try really hard to talk them into the cruise. OTOH, if you cruise for most of your family vacations, they may just be sick of it. Our DS hated cruising, when he was young. As for WDW, my opinion is the first week in December is the absolute best time to go. The Christmas decorations & festivities are amazing & the weather is usually very nice to all but us wimpy Floridians. ;) This wimp think it's worth bundling up for though.

 

We have taken our 4 DDs on cruises each of the past 5 years or so on March Break. My DW has wanted to take the DDs (12, 10, 6, 6 this past summer) to Disney for the magic while they were young. We did that this summer in July to Disney World and to Universal Studios. Ever day, all we heard by noon was, I'm tired, can we go back to the hotel yet? NO, not after spending over $700 a day to get in the park! You are staying and are going to enjoy it!

 

The kids are over the moon that we will be on the Allure in a couple of months. As for our next Disney experience...nothing planned in the foreseeable future....maybe with the grandkids in 20 years or so, but for now, cruising it shall be.

 

I know this is not everyone's opinion or experience. We have Disneyaholics in the family who own points there and visit a couple times a year. (That said they had never done a cruise with their kids before til last March with us...now their kids keep asking when they are going on their next cruise....)

 

Unfortunately, you chose to visit the parks the absolute worst time possible. :( Your kids were probably tired from the heat. hat would have been a good time to hit the pool at your hotel, then return to the parks in the evening rejuvenated. You would have been much better off going during your March vacation time. Time of year can make a huge difference in how much one enjoys the parks. I hope you'll decide to try it one more time with them, but go at a better time & spend some time on DISboards planning the trip.

 

FWIW, DH & I love cruising, so this isn't coming from a Disney fanatic who thinks you should only vacation there. I just think both types of vacation have merits & can't imagine limiting myself to only one type.

Edited January 16, 2015 by tarheelmjfan

[Robinhill]

aww given the awful year that you have had i wish that the other folks had just come to you and said here is one idea but what do YOU think. I am sorry about your mom and that you were sick this year. Yes i think the carribean cruise is infinitely more relaxing then walking all over Disney with lots and lots of kids during Christmas week! I think you will need to speak up and let others know your thoughts on this. :)

[A2Mich]

Maybe change your reservation to cruise out of Port Canaveral? You could do a stop at Disney before or after the cruise.

 

 

They are already scheduled to cruise out of Port Canaveral. FOS does eastern/western Caribbean from PC

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[time4u2go]

I would go on the cruise. Disney can be overwhelming during that time of the year.

Whichever you choose, I hope you and your family have a wonderful time together.

Actually early December (when they would go) isn't bad at all at Disney.

 

aww given the awful year that you have had i wish that the other folks had just come to you and said here is one idea but what do YOU think. I am sorry about your mom and that you were sick this year. Yes i think the carribean cruise is infinitely more relaxing then walking all over Disney with lots and lots of kids during Christmas week! I think you will need to speak up and let others know your thoughts on this. :)

 

They would go in early December, not during Christmas week. Huge difference.

[Wilda]

Two completely different experiences. Disney is a week of stimulation....even hanging out at the pool has a different energy to it. We went to Disney 3 years in a row the first week of December and yes it is busy but not ridiculous. Disney is not, in my experience, an "unwind and get away from it all" vacation....I usually need a few days to decompress after being in the Mouse House for a week.

 

It's all in what you are looking for....

[LibrarianBecky]

Wow...I came back tonight to lots more responses than I expected. Thank you all for you input, and also for your condolences. I would like to try and answer some questions people have had. The people involved are myself, my husband, and our 8 year old son. My husband and son will (happily) go along with whatever I decide. We have done a week long trip to Disney when my son was 5. We had the most wonderful time. I love Disney--it just makes me happy. I can't really explain it, but it does. We have talked about going when it was decorated for the holidays, which I'm sure we would love. The idea of waiting nearly a year for a vacation, though, is a bit hard to swallow.

 

I like the suggestion to possibly add a few days to our cruise and do some Disney. Flights are a big part of our vacation expenses, so that could be the best of both worlds. Or canceling April cruise and rebooking something in December. Dh and I talked today about a few day trips we could plan for the upcoming months--it may not be the Caribbean, but still something fun to look forward to.

 

I have been in a funk the last few days...some days are better than others. I'm going to look into a few options that people mentioned. Thank you again for the help.

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app