michamato Posted December 29, 2007 #1 Share Posted December 29, 2007 I need some advice. I am having a hard time deciding on which cruise to take. I have a 7 night DCL Magic booked, at a pretty good price for two rooms to accomodate my family. We have sailed on DCL before, most recently just two weeks ago on the Wonder. We love Disney cruise line, and had a great time, but I thought maybe we could try a different cruise line. I was leaning toward RCCL, on the Liberty. But I am open to any other suggestions. The price is a bit less money on the Liberty than on DCL, same time of year, and I would have two connecting balconies on the Liberty and a set of connecting inside rooms on the Magic, and the Liberty would still be less. The ports of call are a toss up for me too, except on this DCL cruise it goes to Castaway Cay twice! That is one of the reasons why I booked it. My children will be 7, 6 and 4 at time of sailing. I am mostly afraid that any other cruise line won't be as kid friendly as Disney. I have posted before on the RCCL board and everyone seemed very happy to answer questions and suggested I post here to get some first hand info. Thanks in advance for the help, I need to make up my mind soon....l Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Keith1010 Posted December 29, 2007 #2 Share Posted December 29, 2007 If your children were older I would say try another line such as RCL. But, they are at a wonderful age where they can really enjoy a Disney cruise and since you all had such a wonderful time on your Disney Cruise and since you say you have a good price on the Disney cruise I would go with Disney. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebeccalouise Posted December 29, 2007 #3 Share Posted December 29, 2007 They are going to love Disney. My son was five when we went and he still talks about that one as being his favorite. The cabins are really large and of course there are characters on board and on the private island. My son loved the kids program (but he likes all of them). As for me- I didn't care for Disney- it was very well organized, the staff was friendly and helpful but it was kiddy land for sure. No doubt about it. Kid central. There were quiet places to go on the ship but it was a juvenile experience. I did a three day. I did it for my son. It was great to see his awe and wonder but I'm glad I didn't do a seven day. Too much Disney! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abitaturbodog Posted December 29, 2007 #4 Share Posted December 29, 2007 If your children were older I would say try another line such as RCL. But, they are at a wonderful age where they can really enjoy a Disney cruise and since you all had such a wonderful time on your Disney Cruise and since you say you have a good price on the Disney cruise I would go with Disney. Keith I agree! Your kids are still young enough to enjoy the magic of a Disney cruise. In a few years they'll gag at the idea of Disney and you can take them on RCCL then. Go with Disney and enjoy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DVCcruise Posted December 29, 2007 #5 Share Posted December 29, 2007 I couldn't agree more with the above posts. As you can see from our signature block, we have been on Disney 3 times before and are Disney Vacation Club members (hence, the name DVCcruise). Our kids are now 13 and 11 and the 13 year old was just starting to outgrow DCL. Now, that said...he would have been fine, but having been on that ship 3 times now, he knows it like the back of his hand and the "wonder" and "magic" of the cruise is gone. We are now booked on the Liberty to try and get some of that "wow" factor back. Having said that, Disney is fantastic and a great experience for the kids...especially the little ones. And, with the help of a little beeper, they entertain your kids while you stroll around. If your kids like what they are doing (and ours did), you may not hear from them for hours. It was a great vacation for all of us -- which is why we kept doing it again and again. Best thing about Disney -- in 3 cruises, I never saw a drunk, there is no gambling, and most 20+ year old partiers do not like Mickey...so I always felt safe for my kids (since they were roaming the ship on their own several times). I can't say the same for other ships. Bottom Line: I think DCL is the right choice for the little ones. When the Magic is gone, move on. :cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michamato Posted December 29, 2007 Author #6 Share Posted December 29, 2007 I couldn't agree more with the above posts. As you can see from our signature block, we have been on Disney 3 times before and are Disney Vacation Club members (hence, the name DVCcruise). Our kids are now 13 and 11 and the 13 year old was just starting to outgrow DCL. Now, that said...he would have been fine, but having been on that ship 3 times now, he knows it like the back of his hand and the "wonder" and "magic" of the cruise is gone. We are now booked on the Liberty to try and get some of that "wow" factor back. Having said that, Disney is fantastic and a great experience for the kids...especially the little ones. And, with the help of a little beeper, they entertain your kids while you stroll around. If your kids like what they are doing (and ours did), you may not hear from them for hours. It was a great vacation for all of us -- which is why we kept doing it again and again. Best thing about Disney -- in 3 cruises, I never saw a drunk, there is no gambling, and most 20+ year old partiers do not like Mickey...so I always felt safe for my kids (since they were roaming the ship on their own several times). I can't say the same for other ships. Bottom Line: I think DCL is the right choice for the little ones. When the Magic is gone, move on. :cool: Thanks for all the suggestions from everyone. We are also DVC members and we love Disney!!! I also agree that in our 2 past disney cruises we did not see one person that we thought was drunk or acting crazy, we like that part of it. I guess after doing both of Disney's cruises, I was looking for something more of a ship, I can't wait until they come out with the two new ones!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DVCcruise Posted December 29, 2007 #7 Share Posted December 29, 2007 I guess after doing both of Disney's cruises, I was looking for something more of a ship, I can't wait until they come out with the two new ones!! We can't wait for their new ships either...that's when I think we'll go back to DCL. Even though the kids will be much older, I think it'll be worth it! Best of luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crusinmama06 Posted December 29, 2007 #8 Share Posted December 29, 2007 Well from someone who has done both ;) I can disagree with everyone who said to go on the Magic. My kids prefer the RCCL Freedom Ships over Disney ships. My kids are 3 and 7. There was a recent post from someone who just got off the Magic after doing Freedom (Liberty Sister Ship). He wrote a great comparison post. I will go find it now. (Edited to add link) http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=678024 Once you do a RCCL Freedom ship, it's VERY hard to do anything else. And I have never seen anyone drunk or acting crazy (except when I was on Carnival Sensation...lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DVCcruise Posted December 29, 2007 #9 Share Posted December 29, 2007 Once you do a RCCL Freedom ship, it's VERY hard to do anything else. We're going on the LOS after 3 DCL cruises and that is kind of what we are counting on. Our kids have loved Disney because that is all they knew. Once they started to outgrow it (13 and 11 now), we thought it was time to move on. So, we know it'll be next to impossible to go back now. But, with that said, if the kids have never done a Freedom ship...I still think the DCL Magic is a phenomenal vacation for kids that age. Any kid that still idolizes Mickey and the Princesses and so forth will have whatever fun on the DCL ships magnified many times over. True, there's nothing like the H20 zone or the Flowrider on the Magic or Wonder, but all my daughter needed was a picture with Minnie Mouse that she has kept in her room for the past 5 years. So, we'll have to agree to disagree by agreeing. You are a wealth of knowledge on these sites Michele...thanks for all you do to keep us all informed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abitaturbodog Posted December 29, 2007 #10 Share Posted December 29, 2007 Crusinmama--From everything I've learned on CC you are SOOOO right! That's why we still haven't gone on an RCCL cruise! I know that once we sail on RCCL, my children won't be satisfied with anything else. So for now, we've done Carnival and Costa and they have loved both. One day, when they're older we'll start crusing RCCL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crusinmama06 Posted December 31, 2007 #11 Share Posted December 31, 2007 but all my daughter needed was a picture with Minnie Mouse that she has kept in her room for the past 5 years. Yeah that's why I add in WDW for at least a couple of days before every cruise. ;) My kids are Disney obsessed. Just not Disney cruise obsessed. :D And it looks like for this year we are doing all Disney World (and other land based vacations) and no cruise. My world just may collapse. :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lagbunch8 Posted December 31, 2007 #12 Share Posted December 31, 2007 I think for your kids ages you should stick with DCL. We are taking our kids on their second DCL cruise in May. My kids are ages 13-5 (six of them) and as a family we loved our DCL cruise. When my kids are older we will take them on RCCL. DCL is the only line I have sailed where I actually enjoyed the shows. I have found the service on DCL to be better also. Have fun whatever you decide! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.