Disney or RCI - kids 13 & 11

[cdnliving]

Hello. We are doing a trip to Disney combined with a 4 day cruise in October. Pricing being almost equal, which do you think might be the best fit for kids our ages? I realize they both have their positives, but just wondering what might be the better fit for our family. WE are going over the Halloween period, and I was hoping there might be a Halloween party/monster mash for the whole family, but I havent' been able to find any info on such, on either cruiseline.

We really like Disney, but not sure if 3 park days and a 4 day cruise might be too much. From all the posts I've read, if I had little ones, I'd go on a Disney cruise in a heartbeat..... but I want my older ones to feel equally special and be stimulated and entertained with age appropriate activites, that aren't Disney focussed. They love the characters, but after 3 full days at Disney they will likely be more interested in scavenger hunts, halloween haunts etc.... Any thoughts/shared experiences would be appreciated. Thanks.

[lindahope]

IMO RCCL... DCL is really for the smaller kids, plus both the Magic and Wonder are pretty old now. They will have a great time on either, but at 11 & 9 my kids were the same size as Mickey & Minnie and weren't that impressed.

[firefly333]

We are doing RCI B2B this fall and next fall have Disney Magic 7 day booked. I am doing the best of both worlds, have 3 days booked in Orlando before the cruising this fall.

 

Most on the dis board suggest booking your disney park separate from the cruise part anyway, so you can do it your way and get the hotel you want. You cant book the free eating plan with your disney stay if you do it as the 4/3 land sea deal for instance.

 

Id do it on your own, even if its a little more trouble to book it that way, or you could do your thing in the Disney park and add a 3 or 4 day Sovereign of the Sea. Iv heard the RCI stuff for teens is very good, even though I dont have children, we are 2 adults cruising.

 

There are some awesome cheap prices on the Sovereign right now, cheaper than what I paid back in April.

[gichicdoc]

We've done two Disney cruises and made the second a 4 day instead of a three because we felt we hadn't experienced everything the ship had to offer on the three day.

Our kids were 12-13 on the cruises and they had a blast. Disney breaks the kids groups down into small divisions and the activties are structured to their age group- for example, they had scavenger hunts, karaoke and Trivia for our children's age group. SSOceanlover posted the daily "Navigators" (daily schedule) on cruisedailies from our trip and so you can get an idea of all of the activities offered.

Also, there are numerous "family" activties on the Disney ships in which you can all participate.

that said, we are doing an RCI cruise in 12 days so if you like i can give you a more accurate comparison when i return.

[Keith1010]

I think either one would be great but I would recommend that you do the Disney. Before you know it the kids will be quite a bit older and at that point you probably won't consider a Disney cruise so I would do it now and I'm sure all will have a great time.

 

Keith

[newmexicoNita]

No choice in my opinion: RCI!!!

 

Nita

[Keith1010]

No choice in my opinion: RCI!!!

 

Nita

 

Why?

 

Keith

[cdnliving]

Wow....what different experiences everyone has had. I am just wondering Nita as well, why RCI. I wonder if doing RCI in October if there will be many/any kids, being that it's off season. With Disney it's kind of a given, I should think. I would love to hear from gichicdoc how you found the RCI compared when you return, if you would. Also, are your kids HUGE Disney fans?

 

For those of you that have done both Disney and RCI - what are the differences in terms of activities for families and children? I will look for the Navigator, that you mentioned - however I had looked for this before and couldn't find it. Thanks for the great replies....keep them coming please, so we can best figure this out!

[klct39lg]

We did the 4 day Disney World and 3 day Disney cruise combo when my 2 sons were 8.5 and 12; both boys said they would have rather been on the cruise for 7 days.

 

This was during winter break and Magic Kingdom was packed, we spent more time waiting in line (with our express pass) than riding rides. My youngest was tired after 3 hours (maybe 3 rides) and was ready to head back to the hotel. By the time we boarded the ship we were very tired from walking around DW. Also, with only a three day cruise we didn't really even get to fully explore the ship.

 

We loved the trip, and would even cruise with Disney again (sons are 16.5 and 13 now) I just don't think we are "theme park" people.

[gichicdoc]

cdnliving-

the cruise dailies for the Disney cruises are at:

 

http://www.cruisedailies.com/portal/CruiseLines/Disney/Wonder/8272006Bahamas/tabid/408/Default.aspx

 

if the whole link doesn't work, try "cruisedailies.com" and then go to disney wonder.

 

if you post a reply to my original post on august 13th or after, I'll let you know how the two lines compare.

 

To answer your other question: one child is an enormous Disney fan the others are not and they still had a great time. IMHO, the features which set Disney above other cruise lines is their customer service (they set the benchmark for everyone else) and the quality of their ships (the comment about the Wonder and Magic's age are irrelevant since Disney is obsessive about ship maintenance).

 

My final suggestion: You should message "SSOceanlover" on these boards who has been on multiple Cruise lines and is clearly not a Disney fanatic. He will give you an unbiased opinion.