Disney or Royal Caribbean

[Garyjames220]

Hey

 

anyone that has sailed with both lines. Who do you like better and why 

 

it won’t be long and we will be planning a trip with a one year old and was wondering who u think is best to go with. I no royal would be a lot lot cheaper and a longer cruise probably. Would pick a Caribbean cruise. What line would u choose 

 

 

[James Baird]

I have done both.  Personally I would do Royal Caribbean (Allure) over Disney (Dream) even with a one year old.  My son was 4 when we did the RC cruise and he loved the Aquanauts program. In my opinion the pools on Disney were ridiculously packed. I also enjoy RC having a casino on board.  Both were great trips but RC has more for adults and i believe they are just as good with the kids. 

[Grandma Dazzles]

With a 1-year-old I don’t think it’s going to make a difference. They are not going to know that they are on a cruise.  Some toddlers do not react well to characters so keep that in mind.

 

Disney is definitely more expensive.  If you choose RC the specific ship can make a huge difference.  RC has different classes of ships and each class is a different size with different amenities.

 

 

 

[tallnthensome]

Ask yourself if you want to pay 40% more to see people in costumes .... or just for a one year old at that. You’ll be surrounded by kids your whole cruise. Don’t waste your money on Disney. 

[Garyjames220]

18 minutes ago, James Baird said:

I have done both.  Personally I would do Royal Caribbean (Allure) over Disney (Dream) even with a one year old.  My son was 4 when we did the RC cruise and he loved the Aquanauts program. In my opinion the pools on Disney were ridiculously packed. I also enjoy RC having a casino on board.  Both were great trips but RC has more for adults and i believe they are just as good with the kids. 

 

Thats good there also a lot better on your bank balance for sure lol

[Garyjames220]

17 minutes ago, Grandma Dazzles said:

With a 1-year-old I don’t think it’s going to make a difference. They are not going to know that they are on a cruise.  Some toddlers do not react well to characters so keep that in mind.

 

Disney is definitely more expensive.  If you choose RC the specific ship can make a huge difference.  RC has different classes of ships and each class is a different size with different amenities.

 

 

 

 

We would go on one of there bigger ships for sure 

 

is the nusary good, is there a set amount of hours your aloud per a sailing at it 

[Garyjames220]

13 minutes ago, tallnthensome said:

Ask yourself if you want to pay 40% more to see people in costumes .... or just for a one year old at that. You’ll be surrounded by kids your whole cruise. Don’t waste your money on Disney. 

 

Yeah you have a point, I think I seen that royal do some characters on some of there ships 

[Crazy planning mom]

Check out this link for Royal's program for tots

https://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/articles.cfm?ID=3231

[Clarea]

42 minutes ago, Garyjames220 said:

Hey

 

anyone that has sailed with both lines. Who do you like better and why 

 

it won’t be long and we will be planning a trip with a one year old and was wondering who u think is best to go with. I no royal would be a lot lot cheaper and a longer cruise probably. Would pick a Caribbean cruise. What line would u choose 

 

 

 

Other similar threads:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2623819-disney-or-rccl/?do=findComment&comment=56556315

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2578169-new-to-royal-always-cruised-disney-booked-cl-suite-on-symphony-lots-of-questions/?do=findComment&comment=55584436

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2489975-hamony-of-the-seas-dec-20-2018-or-disney-dream-july-2017/?do=findComment&comment=53649580

 

 

 

[Sitzmark]

19 minutes ago, tallnthensome said:

Ask yourself if you want to pay 40% more to see people in costumes .... or just for a one year old at that. You’ll be surrounded by kids your whole cruise. Don’t waste your money on Disney. 

We've been on Disney, RCI and Carnival.  Royal Caribbean was the only one where we actually saw people dressed as characters.  We also found the kids easier to escape on Disney, they have very nice adult only areas and they maintain them.  The food was better although the rotational dining was annoying.  It was definitely the cleanest ship we have been on.  It was also more expensive than the Royal Caribbean cruise we took.  The Carnival cruise we took was the cheapest but it was cheap. 

The standard rooms on the Disney Fantasy were larger than the standard rooms on the Oasis.  The standard room also had a split bathroom on the Fantasy.  The shows were nice and they had an extensive selection of VOD movies in the room if you spent any time there.

[detroitavant]

I think that it depends on the age of your kids.  We've done Disney Dream and Fantasy when our kids were younger and I think it was perfect.  Now that they're older, all of the physical activities that Royal offers are more their speed - they spent a ton of time on the rock wall and flowrider on the Allure.  I preferred the shows and food on Disney but not enough to pay more anymore (and I've got a 10% placeholder we're probably not going to use).  We have the Indy lined up next.  I'd love to get on the Harmony or Symphony but I think Royal is pricing them on the high side.

[Garyjames220]

Sounds like royal may be best

 

 

[breezy_carol]

Check the age requirements on the childrens' activity area.  I have not looked into it but DD told me a child has to be 3 years old to go there on RC.  It may depend on the ship.

[Garyjames220]

18 minutes ago, breezy_carol said:

Check the age requirements on the childrens' activity area.  I have not looked into it but DD told me a child has to be 3 years old to go there on RC.  It may depend on the ship.

 

I think the nursery is 1 year and up. Am wondering is there a set amount of hours your aloud there. Can’t find that info on there website 

[gerif]

6 minutes ago, Garyjames220 said:

 

I think the nursery is 1 year and up. Am wondering is there a set amount of hours your aloud there. Can’t find that info on there website 

You’re allowed to sign up for ten hours initially. After that, it depends on how many people are using the service. Many have reported that they were able to get as much time as they wanted. 

[gerif]

28 minutes ago, breezy_carol said:

Check the age requirements on the childrens' activity area.  I have not looked into it but DD told me a child has to be 3 years old to go there on RC.  It may depend on the ship.

You’re talking about the adventure ocean program, not the nursery. No cruise line will take a one year old into their kids program. 

[Garyjames220]

Sounds like royal might be best and save the extra $$$$$. And more to do

[poncho1973]

2 hours ago, tallnthensome said:

Ask yourself if you want to pay 40% more to see people in costumes .... or just for a one year old at that. You’ll be surrounded by kids your whole cruise. Don’t waste your money on Disney. 

 

I would strongly disagree with this.  We're Diamond on Royal and Platinum on DCL.  We cruise more with Royal, but I'll scream from the treetops that we actually see FEWER children surrounding us on the DCL ships.  There are more of them, but they seem (I have none) to be much more interested in staying in the kid's only areas.  The kid's dinner parade being a big exception, but that is like 5 minutes of your trip.

 

DCL does a stunning job of keeping the two groups just that, TWO groups.

[Grandma Dazzles]

Not totally - pools on Disney are packed and tiny and you are still eating with many more families and kids. 

12 minutes ago, poncho1973 said:

 

I would strongly disagree with this.  We're Diamond on Royal and Platinum on DCL.  We cruise more with Royal, but I'll scream from the treetops that we actually see FEWER children surrounding us on the DCL ships.  There are more of them, but they seem (I have none) to be much more interested in staying in the kid's only areas.  The kid's dinner parade being a big exception, but that is like 5 minutes of your trip.

 

DCL does a stunning job of keeping the two groups just that, TWO groups.

 

[LisaD2164]

We have sailed both. I do think Disney has better quality in many things - food, room size, kids programs.... however, not 40% better.  We now sail RCI as we find there is better value especially as we have to sail high season due to kids' schedules.

[chiguypaul]

I haven't been on Disney, but I did a tremendous amount of research. I just couldn't justify the premium for Disney. Everything I heard about it seemed great when my kids were younger, but just way too much. I really think that unless you are in love Disney, RCL is the right way to go. Our first ship with our young children were on the Enchantment and they had a great time. We thought being on a "smaller" ship wouldn't be as fun, but it worked out great.

[time4u2go]

9 hours ago, poncho1973 said:

 

I would strongly disagree with this.  We're Diamond on Royal and Platinum on DCL.  We cruise more with Royal, but I'll scream from the treetops that we actually see FEWER children surrounding us on the DCL ships.  There are more of them, but they seem (I have none) to be much more interested in staying in the kid's only areas.  The kid's dinner parade being a big exception, but that is like 5 minutes of your trip.

 

DCL does a stunning job of keeping the two groups just that, TWO groups.

Agreed.  I'd pick Disney.  

 

Obviously you should ask this question on the Disney board also if you haven't already done so.

Edited January 25, 2019 by time4u2go

[Grenouille21]

12 hours ago, Garyjames220 said:

 

Yeah you have a point, I think I seen that royal do some characters on some of there ships 

 

Royal Caribbean is ending their partnership with Dreamworks as of April 2019.  No more costumed characters.  Well, except on Oasis, in the theater.  Meow.  

 

We have sailed on DCL twice, Holland America once, and have 2 Royal cruises planned.  DCL was too many kids for me.  I spent most of my time in the "Adult" area where kids were constantly being paraded through by their parents, since the adult area is next to the main deck/buffet area.  I also did not appreciate being awakened every morning by the sound of children running and screaming down the hallways.  My kids really didn't like the kids club or tween club, because there was nothing there to do but play video games.  They had a few games or activities but didn't really make the kids participate.  Aside from the clubs, there really wasn't much to do on DCL unless you enjoy things like Family Bingo, or Family Karaoke, or Family Dance Party.  Not really our thing.

 

Holland was my kids' favorite ship because there were far fewer kids on board, so they had smaller groups in the club.  They got to know the counselors and other kids really well.  They were only allowed to play video games during one hour of the day.  The rest of the time was structured activities or games, or just hanging out playing cards, or talking, or inventing crazy games with the materials in the club.  Good old-fashioned fun.

 

I will be curious to see what happens on Royal.  I know there will be more kids, but maybe they will be more spread out on the ship?  It will be interesting to see how my kids like or dislike the Teen Club.  At least there will be plenty to do if they don't enjoy it.  

[brookmill18]

With a one year old, you probably won't have much time to be in any adult only areas anyway.  I'd choose one of the larger RCL ships--be sure it has a splash area for babies in diapers.  The Oasis Class in particular has lots of areas that you could walk through and enjoy while pushing a stroller with a sleeping baby.  DCL is a great product and has lots of pros, but I think the pricing has become ridiculous.  We have only done the 3/4 night ones on DCL because there isn't that much to do on the ships--and the pools are not much bigger than the Oasis Class hot tubs!  I'd go with RCCL now and then think about doing a shorter DCL cruise when kids are in the 6-10yr old range.

[zdad59]

14 hours ago, Garyjames220 said:

Hey

 

anyone that has sailed with both lines. Who do you like better and why 

 

it won’t be long and we will be planning a trip with a one year old and was wondering who u think is best to go with. I no royal would be a lot lot cheaper and a longer cruise probably. Would pick a Caribbean cruise. What line would u choose 

 

 

 

We LOVE Disney.   Used to live in the Orlando burbs and were annual pass holders then.    Since we moved away, we used this philosophy for selecting a WDW hotel when we planned park visits, and I think it applies here.

 

When selecting the right hotel (or cruise ship in this case), choose one the kids will appreciate.    By that I mean, when they were very young and couldn't appreciate the higher end hotels, stay in a budget hotel, like the All Star Movies.     As they become tweens, move up to a moderate hotel, like Caribbean Beach.    Once they became high schoolers, and could appreciate the deluxe hotels, we started staying at Wilderness Lodge or the Contemporary.

 

So in this case, with a one year old, I'd definitely pick RCL...Allure, Harmony or Symphony.   TONS to do with the youngin' and they'll love it and not realize the difference.    When they get to the 5-8 year old range, then they'll really appreciate a Disney cruise, and at that time it'll be worth the extra money.