Just Booked a Disney Cruise!

[iceman93]

So after almost 100 days sailing on HAL, we've decided to try Disney. Since we are huge Disney fans in general, all our friends and family have wondered why we didn't do this sooner. Things finally came together, and even though the cruise is still far off we're pretty excited about it.

To those who avoid Disney cruises thinking they're expensive, I beg to differ. We booked the equivalent of a HAL penthouse suite for about half the price.

Have any of the HAL loyalists here also sailed Disney? If so, what early advice can you give us about what we'll find the same and different?

[Parrot57]

I have sailed Disney twice. I enjoyed it both times. The Magic and Wonder both have several adult only venues on ship including a pool. This makes it nice being able to get away from the children. I have not sailed on the Dream so I do not know what that ship has to offer. Soft drinks are free and I did not feel nickle and dimed. The lack of a casino made for a better atmosphere I thought.

I felt the service was superior to that of HAL. I think they have a better staff to guest ratio, or maybe it just seemed that way. I liked rotating in the three different restaurants. It gave you a change of pace from just one MDR. Also, the Palo specialty restaurant was adults only. This made for a nice quiet relaxing dinner at a reasonable cost. Actually, I felt less overwhelmed by children on Disney than I did on HAL.

One of Disney's strong points is their ability to handle crowdes. This shows from embarkation through debarkation. I actually only went to NCL and HAL because of their itineraries.

[V and S]

I agree with Parrot57. I thought the service was spectacular, as were the shows. The adults only areas are great. The cabin was spacious. Lots of activities. We went without kids, and really, the kids are kept very busy all day on their own deck and in their own pool.

The real downside for us was the food. We eat fresh, organic food, "healthy"ish, most of the time. We love HAL's food. We had a very hard time eating on Disney. I lost 5 pounds. The restaurants were claustrophobic to me; low ceilings and no windows, or if there were some, we were nowhere near them, although I agree the decor in each was creative. Probably we won't sail Disney again--and really only because of the food. Some people really like the food, though.

[slabeaume]

Of the 5 cruiselines I've cruised on so far, I would actually rank Disney as best for adult only places onboard the ship. I loved that there were several areas for adults only and the staff really did a great job keeping it that way. I also really liked Palo---for dinner as well as for high tea. I think the food is better on HAL, but I don't think you'll have to worry about starving! It is also nice having the rotating restaurants. You should be very happy with your Disney cruise.

[Storylady]

Have a great cruise, Iceman. Your daughter is really going to love it. And I believe your whole family is going to enjoy the entertainment aboard. Toy Story the Musical is currently playing aboard the Disney Cruise Ships. I'm hoping to do a TA on one of the Disney Ships since Al and I are DVC members we can use our points for Disney Cruises.

[jhannah]

Our family of 10 sailed the Magic. It was a great experience for everyone, for all the reasons noted above. Disney has a way of doing things right, and their cruise operation is spot on, IMO.

[Sea King]

So after almost 100 days sailing on HAL, we've decided to try Disney. Since we are huge Disney fans in general, all our friends and family have wondered why we didn't do this sooner. Things finally came together, and even though the cruise is still far off we're pretty excited about it.

To those who avoid Disney cruises thinking they're expensive, I beg to differ. We booked the equivalent of a HAL penthouse suite for about half the price.

Have any of the HAL loyalists here also sailed Disney? If so, what early advice can you give us about what we'll find the same and different?

how wonderful to read about an upcoming Disney cruise on the HAL board:rolleyes:

looking forward to seeing your review when you compare the 2 lines

[Crazy Gramps]

I'm a loyal HAL cruiser.
But in 2 years my grand daughter will be 6 and I guess that's about the right time to take her away from her evil parents and let her find out a little more about the world.

From everything I can learn Disney seems to do the best job and provide the best value for a kid friendly cruise.

I don't want kids camps and time away from her. She will be by my side every waking minute.

Gramps

[Jojo's Mama]

I'll look forward to your reviews as well. I'll be sailing on the Veendam for the first time in September and then on the Disney Dream in August of 2011. I'm excited about both.

[Crusing Bob]

My wife and I don't have kids and we are now both in our 60's and we love Disney for both DCL and WDW. We have done 2 or 3 cruises on Disney and all was excellent. Also, I love lobster and theirs are the biggest I have had compared to HAL. They do an excellent job in every aspect of the cruise experience and great for the kids. Sometimes they run a little wild but for the most part adults can enjoy the experience every bit as much as kids.

Palo is fantastic for dinner and the brunch is supreme!

Enjoy your cruise with your family.

We never missed not having a casino but my wife really enjoyed Bingo which is much more lucrative than Holland as to the pots. She won some hundreds of dollars on the very first Disney cruise and we had fun playing it and they have a big crowd which makes the pots much more interesting and worth the cost of the cards.

Bob

[crusingmickey]

We are big fans of DCL. We are doing our first sailing on HAL next month. Yes, we have sailed with our children on numerous Disney cruises, but have also sailed without the kids on Disney. Our only other cruiseline experience was Princess. Disney does a great job of making sure adult areas are just that, which Princess did not do. Rooms, service and food are great!

[Oceanwench]

What better place for a loyal HAL mariner to come and seek information on others' views of the Disney line?
I often read threads here about Celebrity, because I am considering trying that cruise line.
Having a grandchild who loves Disney [almost much as I do!], I am also thinking about a Disney cruise down the road.

Because I am a HAL enthusiast, I like to read what other HAL fans say about other lines and how they stack up against HAL.

So thanks, OP, for starting this thread - I find it very interesting!

[Jade13]

My wife and I don't have kids and we are now both in our 60's and we love Disney for both DCL and WDW. We have done 2 or 3 cruises on Disney and all was excellent. Also, I love lobster and theirs are the biggest I have had compared to HAL.

Bob

Interesting. We have only read good things here regarding this cruise line.

[Jade13]

What better place for a loyal HAL mariner to come and seek information on others' views of the Disney line?
I often read threads here about Celebrity, because I am considering trying that cruise line.
Having a grandchild who loves Disney [almost much as I do!], I am also thinking about a Disney cruise down the road.

Because I am a HAL enthusiast, I like to read what other HAL fans say about other lines and how they stack up against HAL.

So thanks, OP, for starting this thread - I find it very interesting!

If you really want to try another line, I can very highly recommend Azamara (owned by RCCL too). I think it is a good idea to try something new once in a while. When you check their prices consider gratuities are included in the pricing, all nonalcoholic drinks including in your stateroom, and wine with lunch and dinner.

As far as Celebrity, the crew currently on Century is fantastic.

[mrsltg]

My family and I are huge Disney fans! We are also huge cruising fans so I thought DCL would be the perfect answer for a vacation. Nope. Not for us. We sailed on the Magic and she was beautiful - a lot like the HAL ships, actually. The service was fine but the food was really lacking. There were a couple of evenings where I actually ordered something else after tasting whatever my original order had been. We did enjoy the adults only areas immensely. I like the location of Palo as compared to the location of the Pinnacle. I also liked that there are no children allowed. The dinner at Palo was so-so, though. We did thoroughly enjoy the brunch at Palo. I also like the separate bathrooms in the Magic. It made getting ready much, much easier.

What I really didn't like were the lines for virtually everything on DCL. We sailed with our oldest dd and she wanted to see characters. Well, DCL has the characters out at specific times each day. They list who will be where, when. Depending on the character and the costume, the line forms up to an hour in advance. Be forewarned, they do this is the main lobby and it can be difficult to get from point a to point b without passing through. If you have a child who wants to see Cinderella in her blue dress, you may well be on the hook! The CM close the lines off when they get to a certain point. Basically, get there early or avoid the area entirely!

We also were not fans of the music on DCL. It was mostly hip hop and not particularly appropriate for the kids on the ship. It was also not desirable for my dh and I. DH asked the dj on Castaway Cay to play Margaritaville. The dj said the song is not appropriate because it speaks of alcohol. Okay. Literally, the very next song played contained lyrics sung by a young "lady" speaking of someone licking and eating her cherry pie. I assumed she wasn't speaking of baked goods, but I could be wrong. Now, my husband and I found this amusing, but not particularly appropriate...

There were several other things that made the cruiseline something we were no longer interested in. It's all a matter of personal taste, though. I truly hope you have a wonderful time and really enjoy yourselves! Just take my advice and avoid the character signing areas if you don't want to wait... :-)

[iceman93]

Thanks, everyone for the inputs and almost-universally positive reviews of DCL! Even though our Disney cruise is over a year away, I can't seem to peel myself off the computer from reading information and reviews all over the net.

We're going to have to try hard while on board not to compare every little thing to HAL. I've seen people do that on HAL ships (along the lines of, "We usually sail Celebrity and decided to try HAL but I'm not enjoying myself because of a, b, and c that are different.") and they seemed miserable. I do think we're going to miss a library and the Neptune Lounge, which are two places we utilize pretty heavily on our HAL cruises. But we have to shift our mindset a bit--had we sailed on Disney first, we wouldn't have missed those things because we wouldn't think to expect them!

So again, thanks to all who have chimed in with helpful information and good reviews on Disney. I'm pretty sure we'll still consider HAL our primary cruise line, but it will be fun to experience something different for a change!

[mrsltg]

I do think we're going to miss a library and the Neptune Lounge, which are two places we utilize pretty heavily on our HAL cruises. But we have to shift our mindset a bit--had we sailed on Disney first, we wouldn't have missed those things because we wouldn't think to expect them!



I forgot the library. That was an issue for my dh as he read all of his books quickly on that vacation. No library and a couple of Tom Clancy novels in the gift shop - obviously he lived, but a library on a ship is something that matters to him. Just be sure to bring enough reading material to keep you entertained if you are an avid reader!

We did sail Disney first and found we loved the decor. When we were looking for another line we always disliked the Vegas feel. HAL and DCL are very similar in that regard. Both are very classy in appearance. I don't think you could go wrong on either!

If you are checking out info, be sure to go to the disboards. There is a ton of information on DCL over there and lots of DCL enthusiasts who are more than happy to discuss the most minute detail!

Have a wonderful time with the Mouse!!!

[tjcletsgo]

We sailed HAL twice, both times strickly for the itinerary, as our impression was (correctly) that HAL really doesn't have much to offer in the intertainment area (at least for us). On our 10/30/04 Sea of Cortez cruise, everything was dead, dead, dead at 10:30. :eek: It didn't matter because we had a deluxe verandah suite, and were up early for excursions. Our last HAL cruise was May 2009 to Alaska, and we were very busy doing the Alaska thing.

We sailed the Wonder Feb 2009 and I was blown away by Disney. The ship was gorgeous, the crew were incredibly talented and the kids absolutely loved their clubs, and would participate every chance they could. That left a lot of free time for us adults to laze away the day at the adult pool, Cafe Cove coffee/cocktail venue, spas, Palo and all the rest of the adult features. We loved, loved, loved Disney, and have a cruise booked for Spring Break 2011.:D

These are two very different cruise lines. Unless HAL has an incredible itinerary, I'll book Disney every time. For me, Disney is about the ship, HAL is about the destination.:)

[Travalerie]

I have sailed HAL twice with my girls and have enjoyed both cruises. We were able to take advantage of the kids sail free to Mexico promotion and are booked in January on the Disney Wonder. I am excited, I have wanted to try Disney for years now, but the cost just did not make sense. I think our Eurodam cruise was nearly 50% less than the 7 day Disney cruise. I hope the food is as good as HAL's...that is one thing I was pleasantly surprised with on both of our cruises. I tend to like a more serene atmosphere, but its time I throw my hat in with the other families with young kids and enjoy the ride.

[tjcletsgo]

Travalerie,

In my opinion, the food on Disney is good but less fancy. They have escargot and lobster, just less creativity with the sauces and seasonings. I liked most of HAL's dishes, even loved some things, but Disney has more selections for the masses. All in all, I liked Disney better, for the variety and consistency. They have all the eateries out by the pool, soft drinks and soft serve ice cream are free, Palo dinner and brunch are to die for! IMHO, much better than Pinnacle, and a wider selection. Disney's standard inside cabin was large and very well laid out, and we were very comfortable with 2 adults and 2 children in the cabin. I wasn't prepared to like it as much as I did. It got me excited about all things Disney...........we are looking into the new Disney resort in Hawaii!:D

[TraelorMex]

to the poster who suggested "try Azamara"... I really wouldnt! We tried it...Their quality is far below what HAL provieds. IMO.

[slabeaume]

I forgot to mention the cabin sizes! They are a very good size on Disney. I especially liked the curtain that could be pulled across the whole width of the cabin separating the bed from the livingroom area. I was traveling with my Dad and it was nice having the privacy. The fold down couch was very comfortable, too. I also forgot to mention the infirmary. Not somewhere you hope to ever have to go to, but my Dad had an accident at Castaway Cay and ended up in the infirmary in critical condition. The medical care was great and everyone at Disney was great towards me, too, in those hours of stress. It took 9 hours to be evacuated, but it all turned out ok. Disney even gave us a buy one, get one free cruise to make up for it. They didn't have to do that, but I'm glad they did. Our 2nd cruise with them was problem free and wonderful.

[luckysadie]

We did a Disney cruise a couple of years ago. We are an older couple with no small children and we really enjoyed the cruise. We thought the food was not up to par with HAL, although dinner in Palo was very good. We enjoyed the adult pool very much; any children were asked to go to the children's pool or the family pool. The disembarkation was the best we've ever experienced on any cruise line. We went to breakfast based on our dinner dining time and, after we ate, we walked off the ship. No long lines in the stairwell. The luggage was arranged by color (ours was Daisy grey) and by cabin number which meant no searching all over the place for one bag. It was very efficient and totally Disney. Enjoy your cruise.

Hopefully, you won't get tired of hearing "When you Wish Upon a Star" on the ship's horn.

[HeatherInFlorida]

One of my favorite things here on the HAL board (and one of the reasons I continue to read this forum even though I have no HAL cruises booked at the moment) is reading comparisons between different lines.

I find the opinions of those who travel different lines to be more valuable (to me) than those who have confined themselves to just one line over the past several years.

So I wish more posters would feel comfortable writing comparisons between HAL and other cruise lines right here on the HAL board ... what better place to do it?:)

I'm looking forward particularly to the OP's review upon return since he/she has cruised so many days with HAL.

[iceman93]

I'm looking forward particularly to the OP's review upon return since he/she has cruised so many days with HAL.

Thanks so much, Heather, but you're going to be waiting awhile! I've updated my signature to show the booked Disney cruise, which isn't until September, 2011! That just allows more time for the anticipation to build, I suppose...

[oysterdam]

We thoroughly enjoyed our Disney Trans Atlantic sailing we took this past April. Disney excels in paying attention to small details that cumulatively make the difference between a good cruise and a memorable cruise.

Having sailed 31 days on Holland America versus 14 days on Disney, here is what we found:

Disney Cruise Line Strengths
-attention to detail
-entertainment. Remember, Disney is an entertainment company. The number of activities for families and adults onboard far surpassses what HAL now offers. Fantastic production shows, comedians, live performers, piano player, three piece band, game shows, karaoke, trivia, behind the scenes ship tours, cooking classes, a dedicated movie theater playing recent Disney movies (some in 3D), big screen Disney movies under the stars by the family pool midship, Disney character greetings each evening if you are interested, evening deck parties, fireworks at sea, and guest lectures by experts including Disney Imagineers on our cruise. There was plenty of excellent entertainment options every day.
-Disney Magic ship has a nautical theme similar to HAL, with a Art Deco theme from the 1930's (the Disney Wonder has an Art Noveau theme). We found the decor to be a step above the Holland America ships we have sailed on.
-full wrap around promenade deck with plenty of deck chairs on Disney Magic and Disney Wonder
-adults only pool area that is large enough to accomodate the adult passengers who wish to relax there
-a fun atmosphere onboard.
-Palo specialty dining, including dinner, tea, and brunch. We would rate Palo comparable to the Pinnacle Grill. Make sure you reserve a brunch, it was outstanding.
-service is very friendly and very experienced. Many DCL employees have been on the same two ships for years. The lack of turnover shows through in the quality experience onboard. Keep in mind that the new Disney Dream launches early 2011, and will need to be staffed with employees from the Disney Magic and Disney Wonder. By the time you sail in the fall 2011 their replacements should have been had enough experience where this may not be an issue at all.

Disney Weaknesses versus HAL
-food in the mdr was better on HAL than Disney. Disney's target market is families, and their dining selection shows this. If you cruise to eat, then you may be disappointed.
-lack of a Crow's Nest area. This will not be a problem for your Trans Atlantic sailing. The Disney ships were designed for warm weather cruising. I would not take a Disney cruise ship to Alaska due to the lack of a forward observation lounge and a retractable dome over the pool.
-deck chairs are plastic and very basic, not at all like the HAL ones.
-HAL has a much better disembarkation process. Disney assigns you to an early or later disembarkation time based on your evening dining time and requires everyone to vacate their staterooms by 8am.

We give DCL high marks and found the design and decor of their ships to be outstanding. As long as you understand that their target market is families and don't mind the Mouse and his friends being onboard, you should have a wonderful time.

[Oceanwench]

Great post, Oysterdam!

That is the great thing about a HAL cruiser posting about another line -- you know what we all come to expect from HAL, and you can provide insight on how the other line compares.

Where else can we get that but here on the HAL boards?!!! Thank you!

[AlexandNessa]

I should turn on signatures, but which ship are you on?

If you've booked the equivalent of a PH on HAL, I am guessing you are in the 1-BR (Cat 3 aka Cat T) on Disney. If you are on the Dream, you will indeed have a concierge lounge.

If you are on the Wonder or Magic, concierge will visit you every day and drop off goodies, and the concierge is only a phone call away if you need a thing. And they can do anything.

There are things we prefer about HAL (itinieraries, suite perks, HMC) and things we prefer about Disney (entertainment, younger demographic, extremely personable staff, 2 full baths in 1BR suites).

One big perk of Disney? Honest to God, they do not care what kind or how much alcohol you bring aboard. Carry it right on. My husband brings a case of Coors Lite to keep it in the room.

We have been on 6 or 7 HAL cruises. We've been on 3 DCL and have 3 more booked. Our next cruise is Disney's 14-night Westbound Transatlantic in September.

If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask!

[AlexandNessa]

Ok, I turned on signatures. I see you are in the Roy Suite on the WBTA for 2011. That explains why you think Disney is cheap! There are very few bargains on Disney, and their Transatlantics are among them (unless you are a FL resident or military, their specials are few and far between).

We are in a Cat 3 (aka Cat T) for this year's WBTA, and I can tell you we only paid $400 more for this 2-week than we did on a run-of-the-mill one week Caribbean on Disney 5/2008. If you look at their Caribbean, Bahamas, AK, and some of their Baltic cruises, or even if you compare suites on HAL v. Disney in their Mexican Riviera cruises, they are no bargain.

We are the same age, and we also have 100+ days on HAL. :)

[Crusing Bob]

AlexandNessa, that explains some things for me because Melinda and I did two 7 day cruises on the Magic and our verandah cabin was at least $2000 more than our Superior Suite cabin for three years running on the Westerdam. Also, Melinda took a 4 day cruise(which I had no interest in) and she got soaked on cost for an inside cabin which again cost more than a 7 day on Holland. We both like Disney but I prefer Holland and so does Melinda when we travel together.

[iceman93]

Ok, I turned on signatures. I see you are in the Roy Suite on the WBTA for 2011. That explains why you think Disney is cheap! There are very few bargains on Disney, and their Transatlantics are among them (unless you are a FL resident or military, their specials are few and far between).

We are in a Cat 3 (aka Cat T) for this year's WBTA, and I can tell you we only paid $400 more for this 2-week than we did on a run-of-the-mill one week Caribbean on Disney 5/2008. If you look at their Caribbean, Bahamas, AK, and some of their Baltic cruises, or even if you compare suites on HAL v. Disney in their Mexican Riviera cruises, they are no bargain.

We are the same age, and we also have 100+ days on HAL. :)

Yes, I've now done a little more poking around and pricing of Disney cruises and see what you mean. I almost can't imagine why the ocean crossings are so cheap! If, as one previous poster put it "you sail HAL for the destinations and Disney for the experience" then the best Disney cruise would be the longest one with the most sea days.

We are active military AND Florida residents, but those discounts only seem to help with lower category cabins and the short itineraries. I guess there's enough demand for the suites that Disney doesn't see the need to discount them at all.

Regarding cruise pricing in general, I suppose I've seen similar, seemingly inexplicable variations in HAL pricing too. Some cruises are just bargains and others are exorbitant. It must be supply and demand at work, but I guess I'm out of synch with what the general public wants--I'm often really interested in the cruises they seem to discount, which works out well for my family!

I'll really be looking forward to your review and impressions of the WBTA you're taking in a couple of months, AlexandNessa. Since our cruise is basically the same one, one year later, you should be able to tell us a lot about what to expect!

[AlexandNessa]

Don't get me started on Disney's suite pricing. :D Since they are nonrefundable, we have moved several cruises instead of cancelling them and losing our deposits. Tends to be a pain. Should you ever decide to take advantage of military/FL resident discounts and do a "taster" cruise as I call them, here is my advice: because DCL suite pricing is outrageous AND non-refundable, on their run-of-the-mill cruises, port upgrades are readily available AND cheap. Sure, you lose the pre-boarding concierge perks, but trust me .... on those short cruises unless you get a big group on your cruise from a certain other message board, the concierge can take care of any request for you.

The other popular discount that Disney offers is "kids sail free." Hubby and I don't have kids so we miss out on this too. DCL priced their Mexican Riviera cruises and Baltic cruises sky high, and so this was the offer to fill the ships. DCL does not discount fares across the board, unless it's the lowest inside cabin category.

Anyway, sea days on Disney v. sea days on HAL are a hands-down Disney for us, and this is the reason that we booked their WBTA: five 25-hour sea days in a row. Heaven on earth for us.

Yes, you will probably miss HAL food. And Palo is good, not great. DCL food is hardly terrible, but HAL has the upper-hand. So does HAL wrt bedding. But the entertainment on Disney cannot be beat. And Pirate Night is one of my favorite nights ever.

Happy planning!

[iceman93]

Thanks again, AlexandNessa. We *do* enjoy the food on HAL, although I have to admit on our most recent Westerdam crossing we found the MDR food to be a bit more commoditized than in the past while the PG was far and away the best we'd experienced. We are really looking forward to rotational dining and hope that Palo gives just a tiny bit of that Victoria & Albert's experience to our cruise.

Keep it coming--this is great!