Disney "Rules" irrelevant

[Ex techie]

I see my kids a lot since they are homeschooled, but I also work Fri- Sun. I barely see my husband since he travels for work. Don't be so quick to judge other people when you don't know their situation.

 

Touche!

It sounds like the kids being away from you, and you and your husband spending lots of time together that you've missed whilst apart works for your situation. Some others just want child care.

Some want real family time.

 

You cannot tar everyone with the same brush. And no one has said you are right or wrong. So who has judged you?

 

ex techie

[moki'smommy]

I barely see my kids on a cruise, and that's ok. We have lots of family time at home. I am their mother, and teacher. I feel sorry for families that don't get to spend time at home together and feel they need to make up for on vacation. I think you have to understand that not all families are the same. I see my kids a lot since they are homeschooled, but I also work Fri- Sun. I barely see my husband since he travels for work. Don't be so quick to judge other people when you don't know their situation.

 

I don't see that I was judging you in any way. I commented that a poster's attitude mirrored mine. I didn't mention you at all.

 

FWIW, I educated my daughter until she reached 8th grade. I actually quit my job years before that in order to be a mother--the 24/7 on call situation was not conducive to family life. So no, we do not cruise in order to have time together. But we do enjoy our time together while cruising.

[Ex techie]

From an outside perspective at least, sm3ds's post seem to have an element of joy that the kids are happy to be away from her so she may spend time with her husband who she doesn't see very often.

But tainted with a little guilt that they are not spending time with one and another as a family, hence the aggression to anyone even mentioning spending time as a whole family unit.

One would think their kids would want to see their father as well?

 

ex techie

[sm3ds]

From an outside perspective at least, sm3ds's post seem to have an element of joy that the kids are happy to be away from her so she may spend time with her husband who she doesn't see very often.

But tainted with a little guilt that they are not spending time with one and another as a family, hence the aggression to anyone even mentioning spending time as a whole family unit.

One would think their kids would want to see their father as well?

 

ex techie

We work opposite shifts so my kids see their father a lot. We cruise 4 or more times a year. You dont know me so you, but you like to make a lot of assumptions. No guilt here we have a wonderful family. 23 years married and going strong. Very presumptuous of you to assume otherwise. Im happy my kids are having fun with other kids. Im happy we get to spend dinner as a family, and go on cool excursions. Im happy I can afford to this 4 times a year. Im happy I get to spend time with husband. Im not happy I posted on these boards. I find you rather irritating to say the least, and Im not sure why youre singling me out to be rude too. I have a feeling thats just you just being you a rude person.I think Il just stick to the dis boards where people are a little friendlier. I hope you, and everyone else on these boards enjoys thier upcoming cruises.I will not be back on these boards.

Edited January 5, 2016 by sm3ds

[sm3ds]

I don't see that I was judging you in any way. I commented that a poster's attitude mirrored mine. I didn't mention you at all.

 

FWIW' date=' I educated my daughter until she reached 8th grade. I actually quit my job years before that in order to be a mother--the 24/7 on call situation was not conducive to family life. So no, we do not cruise in order to have time together. But we do enjoy our time together while cruising.[/quote']

Sorry, I probably misintrepreted your post.

[Ex techie]

We work opposite shifts so my kids see their father a lot. We cruise 4 or more times a year. You dont know me so you, but you like to make a lot of assumptions. No guilt here we have a wonderful family. 23 years married and going strong. Very presumptuous of you to assume otherwise. Im happy my kids are having fun with other kids. Im happy we get to spend dinner as a family, and go on cool excursions. Im happy I can afford to this 4 times a year. Im happy I get to spend time with husband. Im not happy I posted on these boards. I find you rather irritating to say the least, and Im not sure why youre singling me out to be rude too. I have a feeling thats just you just being you a rude person.I think Il just stick to the dis boards where people are a little friendlier. I hope you, and everyone else on these boards enjoys thier upcoming cruises.

 

I've not singled you out at all!

I've replied to your posts as you have to mine?

 

You said

I barely see my husband since he travels for work.

So is it really an assumption the kids don't see their father?

 

If i've been rude to you, I'm sorry.

But I've not said anything offensive. And maybe you prefer fluffy answers and comments.

 

Enjoy your future cruises too.

 

ex techie

Edited January 5, 2016 by Ex techie

[TDND4]

Originally Posted by Ex techie View Post

From an outside perspective at least, sm3ds's post seem to have an element of joy that the kids are happy to be away from her so she may spend time with her husband who she doesn't see very often.

But tainted with a little guilt that they are not spending time with one and another as a family, hence the aggression to anyone even mentioning spending time as a whole family unit.

One would think their kids would want to see their father as well?

 

ex techie

 

 

From an outside perspective it would appear that you are a belligerent, uptight and judgemental person who feels entitled to address strangers on a message board as to their motivations and reasonings for having a different opinion than you.

Perhaps you have plenty of time to respond to strangers on message boards because you are a bored and lonely former CM who has no outside interests.

 

It is rather pathetic that you are so nasty to strangers when your experiences as a former CM with knowledge of the cruise industry might be worth reading and learning from. But then being rude to others and attempting to trample on their opinions (which differ from yours) in such a vehement and negative manner throws off the possible helpful side of your personality traits.

 

Obviously, I am new here but as this is one of the first threads I read, it has definitely made an impression.

[Loonbeam]

Having sailed on all 3 (everything but Carnival and HAL at this point), happy to..

 

RCCL to me is a fine alternative to Disney, especially for teens on the newer ships. So many more options (example, the Anthem has the North Star, flow rider, rock climbing, bumper cars!, skydiving...) and their club facilities for that age are comparable (Disney kicks everyone's tail in terms of facility design for the <12 age group - not necessarily program)

 

RCCLs focus in the last few years is the gee-wow factor on their ships (see above) and entertainment. Their shows are Disney quality, but more adult oriented - the anthem show is based on Queen, and there's a little less variety in terms of main show productions.

 

Their food is probably par with Disney on most ships (subjective of course), on the newer ships there is no traditional dining option. It's a reservation based system where you select from many restaurants (and they have more options complimentary than NCL), there are also more for fee options. Buffets are generally on a par with Disney (pluses and minuses), I think Disney has better poolside options in terms of variety (see below for notes on ship choice). And of course, soda is extra.

 

 

Service is probably the weakest point compared to the other two. Not that it's bad, but it's a focus for Princess and Disney has their usual obsequiousness. They make up for it a bit by using technology better than almost any other line to help manage things.

 

Much like NCL, the RCCL ship you choose will make a big difference. The newer ships (Freedom class and up) are light years ahead of the older ones, with the newest ones being quantum leaps (pun intended).

 

Of course, there are no Disney characters but many ships have Dreamworks characters and even some special events.

 

All in all, especially given Disney's current pricing, I'd say RCCL is a very tempting alternative.

 

Disclaimer - last RCCL cruise was in 2012 - we are on the Anthem this year for a short cruise so I can update then.

 

 

Anyone care to compare Royal Caribbean to Disney and/or Princess?

 

My experience with Princess is generally in line with what's been posted above. I generally like how Princess does things, which is why I keep ending up sailing with them. It's been quite some time since I last paid attention, but the only real battle I remember was saving deck chairs. Since I don't really use the things, I kinda just watched the arguments from afar and with amusement.

 

If I'm paying Disney prices though for a family vacation, I'm getting as much family time as my kids will put up with. Luckily, they're still at the age where they don't mind hanging with their parents all the time. Still, a lot of people in my neighborhood will make offhand comments about being excited to get away from the kids for whatever reason so I can totally see how some people's idea of a "family" vacation is for everyone to do what they want and not necessarily together. A lot of Disney's ads even seem to encourage this, hinting that they'll be the parent so the parents don't have to be.

[moki'smommy]

Both DCL and Royal are much more "kid oriented" than Princess. Princess has the kid programming, but in terms of being out and about around the ship, there is not a lot that really seems geared to kids. Yes, there are pools, hot tubs, a sports deck, shuffleboard, ice cream, etc. But outside of the dedicated kid space, I saw relatively little that would interest kids, especially teens other than the standard ship amenities.

[paluni]

Loonbeam,

 

What is your own experience of Guests on Princess that do not follow the dress code rules for the MDR's on a regular night, or those in disdain on a formal night that refuse to eat at the buffet?

Are they refused service, or does Princess allow them to eat.

 

ex techie

On a New Year's Caribbean cruise last year, the maitre'd did turn away some young men in shorts from the main dining room, on a formal night. I think it was actually New Year's Eve they were turned away. That cruise was very dressy, particularly at night, with many people who appeared to be from South America and/or Mexico.

[sm3ds]

I've not singled you out at all!

I've replied to your posts as you have to mine?

 

You said

So is it really an assumption the kids don't see their father?

 

If i've been rude to you, I'm sorry.

But I've not said anything offensive. And maybe you prefer fluffy answers and comments.

 

Enjoy your future cruises too.

 

ex techie

 

Yes I guess I should have said my husband is home 4 days a week while I'm working. The point of this thread was about Disney rules which has seem to got derailed. I disagreed with OP about people breaking rules when there really are no rules. I don't know how I let myself get off track onto family life. Totally my bad.

 

The way you respond and address people is unsettling to say the least. The whole tone of your posts is just something I'm not used to seeing on a message board. It's hard for me to believe you were ever a DCL CM. No you don't have to be"fluffy", but you could try not to be so snarky. Anyway I'm not going to let you chase me off the boards I have some questions I'm going to need to ask about a future cruise. I shouldn't not have let you bring out my snarky side in my previous post that is not the way I want to respond to people. I'll just try to ignore you in the future.

[sm3ds]

Haha! Regarding hanging our on message boards all day! Very funny!

You managed to answer the other points in my post just fine though!

 

So your kids wouldn't mind their age appropriate space being invaded by younger kids and that wouldn't diminish their experience of that space?

And if it did, you could care less about it as long as they don't tell you or complain. Sorry, that is sad for them.

 

I do understand your view on them complaining unnecessarily though, but if they wanted to just hand with you instead, maybe you would feel different?

 

Each to their own.

 

ex techie

 

My kids would never want to hang out with me and watch me read a book. LOL If they ever complained about being bored on a cruise or complaining about a 10 year old in the Edge they can stay home with Grandma and find out what boring is really like.Ha. My kids are privileged to get to travel as much as they, but if they ever start acting like privledged spoiled brats complaining about trivial things on a Disney cruise than I have failed as a parent. I do not indulge that kind of behavior. If you find that sad Im sorry.

[Ex techie]

The dress code should be easier to enforce if DCL was more public about what is okay to wear and then give people a list of options if they are not wearing the right clothing. Our first 2 cruises, we didn't bring any formal clothes and we just went to the buffet on that night, but if we didn't know about that, someone telling us at the restaurant entrance would have been fine with us. FTR, our main servers both times told us the next day that we didn't have to dress up and we could have come to the MDR without formal clothes. So, I wouldn't necessarily blame it on the guests if they are being told by servers that it is okay.

 

I absolutely agree DCL have been very inconsistent with their enforcement of their suggested or recommended attire.

That along with their don't hurt anyones feelings attitude left their managerial desire shall we say, walked all over by those that chose to ignore them and cause a fuss and drama.

 

ex techie

[Ex techie]

On a New Year's Caribbean cruise last year, the maitre'd did turn away some young men in shorts from the main dining room, on a formal night. I think it was actually New Year's Eve they were turned away. That cruise was very dressy, particularly at night, with many people who appeared to be from South America and/or Mexico.

 

Thats great to hear that Princess will stand by their principals and dress code policies and politely ask Guests to change or dine elsewhere if they are not dressed appropriately for that environment.

 

ex techie

[ducklite]

People complain about rule breaking about dress codes etc. on every line.

 

 

Nope. Not every line. I have never seen a complaint about the dress code or people not following the stated dress code on Wind Star.

[Ex techie]

Nope. Not every line. I have never seen a complaint about the dress code or people not following the stated dress code on Wind Star.

 

I think TheGaDawgFan was referring to mass market lines, not high end exclusive luxury lines.

 

ex techie