Disney vs royal

I exclusively cruise with Royal Caribbean however I am going try Disney... but am a little anxious. Does anybody have any input on some of the differences between the two. I do know DCL seems to be more expensive than RCCL. Any info would be appreciated.

Disney ships - Black

RC Ships - White.

That's it......

Disney cruise fare includes soda, Royal does not.

Disney allows any alcohol to be brought on, Royal only allows two bottles of wine.

Disney has no casino, Royal does.

I exclusively cruise with Royal Caribbean however I am going try Disney... but am a little anxious. Does anybody have any input on some of the differences between the two. I do know DCL seems to be more expensive than RCCL. Any info would be appreciated.

with RCI's pricing these days DCL and RCI are priced pretty close.

Bill

Disney ships - Black

 

RC Ships - White.

 

That's it......

Disney's hulls are actually a very dark blue. They are NOT black.

We sailed Disney a few years ago and it is quite different than the other cruise lines. They are very family oriented. If you have children they will LOVE Disney as there is so much to do.

The character breakfast was fantastic. Every evening before dinner you can take photos with the different characters in the large atrium. The Disney shows are amazing compared to other cruise lines.

There are different dining rooms you eat at every night (total of 3) The food is pretty much the same. Disney includes soda for free. Disney has themed dress nights (like Pirate night) they had fireworks at sea.

If I compared the Allure to Disney I would say they are both on par as far as entertainment. However If I'm comparing Disney with other RCI cruises I've taken then by far Disney entertainment is better.

Disney is more expensive to sail - however their inside cabins are larger than RCI inside cabins. I would sail Disney again if given the opportunity and good price. Again if you have kids you will NOT be disappointed by going with Disney.

Thanks for the info.

Disney's ships have three main dining rooms. You will rotate between the three, keeping the same table number and serving team throughout. How many nights you are on the ship will determine which menus you will see. The first time through the rotation you will get the standard menu for each restaurant. If you're on a 4-night cruise, one night will be Pirate Night with a menu to match. If you are on more than 4 nights, there are additional menus - on the themed nights all MDRs will have the same menu.

There is a dining room, Cabanas, that is buffet for breakfast and lunch. It is available for dinner as a sit-down restaurant (no up charge) for all but the first and last nights.

All of the ships have Palo, an Italian restaurant for those passengers 18 and over - $25 up charge per person. On the Dream and Fantasy, there is also Remy which is 18 and over also - I think the up charge there is $75 (not positive).

Shows are Disney-themed and Disney quality - I've heard on 7-nights the opening show is more an ad, but I haven't experienced it. I live in NYC and go to Broadway shows, and these easily match the quality of those.

First-run Disney movies - even 3D - in an actual movie theatre (as opposed to a room where they put a screen down).

Castaway Cay has a family beach and an adult beach . They offer a 5K non-competitive fun run every day a ship is there.

We sailed Disney a few years ago and it is quite different than the other cruise lines. They are very family oriented. If you have children they will LOVE Disney as there is so much to do.

 

The character breakfast was fantastic. Every evening before dinner you can take photos with the different characters in the large atrium. The Disney shows are amazing compared to other cruise lines.

 

There are different dining rooms you eat at every night (total of 3) The food is pretty much the same. Disney includes soda for free. Disney has themed dress nights (like Pirate night) they had fireworks at sea.

 

If I compared the Allure to Disney I would say they are both on par as far as entertainment. However If I'm comparing Disney with other RCI cruises I've taken then by far Disney entertainment is better.

 

Disney is more expensive to sail - however their inside cabins are larger than RCI inside cabins. I would sail Disney again if given the opportunity and good price. Again if you have kids you will NOT be disappointed by going with Disney.

Just so you're aware, the character breakfast is NOT offered on the Dream and Fantasy at all and is not offered on every Wonder or Magic cruise. It depends on the itinerary.

And just as a note, I've been on 2 Disney cruises, one with my all-adult family and one as a solo adult, and there is plenty for adults also. Thanks to the amazing kids' clubs they have with extensive hours, I was far less aware of kids running all over than I was on the Holland America cruise I was recently on to Alaska where the club area seemed small and with limited hours as I saw kids all over all the time.

Just so you're aware, the character breakfast is NOT offered on the Dream and Fantasy at all and is not offered on every Wonder or Magic cruise. It depends on the itinerary.

 

And just as a note, I've been on 2 Disney cruises, one with my all-adult family and one as a solo adult, and there is plenty for adults also. Thanks to the amazing kids' clubs they have with extensive hours, I was far less aware of kids running all over than I was on the Holland America cruise I was recently on to Alaska where the club area seemed small and with limited hours as I saw kids all over all the time.

My wife and i have cruised DCL with the kids, with our grandson and just by ourselves.

Loved every minute of every DCL cruise.

Would cruise with them more often if they weren't so expensive.

Bill

My wife and i have cruised DCL with the kids, with our grandson and just by ourselves.

 

Loved every minute of every DCL cruise.

 

Would cruise with them more often if they weren't so expensive.

 

Bill

Yeah...going solo most of the time, it can end up being a wash in a lot of cases for me.

Contemplating taking my parents on a cruise over my Spring Break (I teach)...not sure what their plans are, and they would need to get themselves to the port (I can't do it ALL!) - but that kind of mimics what happened on our family cruise in July 2013 where they paid fare and I paid my travel. :) We'll see.

We cruised Disney 8 times prior to doing FOS the last 5 years. We loved the service and meals and the kids programs. But we found the nightlife to be very lacking and the pools were very small also so our Disney days are probably done until Grandkids(which will hopefully not be for awhile :)

I didn't see if you will have children with you or not, but I will say that our granddaughter loved the Disney Dream cruise in 2013! The characters are so personable - of course, being 6 yrs old at the time, the princesses were a highlight and she was especially surprised when "Belle" saw us in a hallway much later in the day and and stopped to chat with us; she remembered our granddaughter and even mentioned that they had the same dresses on that morning! How do they do that???!!! :) She had a (very loose!) tooth but she wanted to wait to pull it until we got on the ship because I told her I had read that Tinkerbell would put a surprise under her pillow instead of the tooth fairy since we would be out at sea...sure enough, she pulled it and awoke the next morning to find out I was absolutely right! LOL Pirate night was another big hit with our family, and Castaway Cay was amazing. The soft drinks being included was a plus for our DD and SIL...others have explained the dining very well. I'm not really sure that I prefer the Disney dining rotation for myself, but I'm pretty sure that for children it's a good thing. Cabanas offers good selections and the dining choices near the pool are convenient and the food (especially pizza and burgers) was really good. The kids club area is amazing...it's been a year and a half ago and she still talks about how much she liked going in there! There were a LOT of kids on the ship, but I feel that Disney does a wonderful job of managing that - everything from the port to disembarkment seemed revolved around the children (and parents!) having a marvelous and safe vacation.

We have no regrets about sailing with Disney with our family even tho it did cost more...however it's just DH and I in October, and we will be back on Freedom of the Seas . ;)

I didn't see if you will have children with you or not, but I will say that our granddaughter loved the Disney Dream cruise in 2013! The characters are so personable - of course, being 6 yrs old at the time, the princesses were a highlight and she was especially surprised when "Belle" saw us in a hallway much later in the day and and stopped to chat with us; she remembered our granddaughter and even mentioned that they had the same dresses on that morning! How do they do that???!!! :) She had a (very loose!) tooth but she wanted to wait to pull it until we got on the ship because I told her I had read that Tinkerbell would put a surprise under her pillow instead of the tooth fairy since we would be out at sea...sure enough, she pulled it and awoke the next morning to find out I was absolutely right! LOL Pirate night was another big hit with our family, and Castaway Cay was amazing. The soft drinks being included was a plus for our DD and SIL...others have explained the dining very well. I'm not really sure that I prefer the Disney dining rotation for myself, but I'm pretty sure that for children it's a good thing. Cabanas offers good selections and the dining choices near the pool are convenient and the food (especially pizza and burgers) was really good. The kids club area is amazing...it's been a year and a half ago and she still talks about how much she liked going in there! There were a LOT of kids on the ship, but I feel that Disney does a wonderful job of managing that - everything from the port to disembarkment seemed revolved around the children (and parents!) having a marvelous and safe vacation.

 

We have no regrets about sailing with Disney with our family even tho it did cost more...however it's just DH and I in October, and we will be back on Freedom of the Seas . ;)

Thanks so much. We are sailing with a 4 year old I am sure he will enjoy it.

My thoughts:

1) rotating from one dining room to another, with the same wait staff, is genious. IT made me realize how repetitive it is to eat in the same dining room every night, as is the Royal experience (unless you opt for the specialty restaurants, of course!).

2) We spent more $$$ by far on photography on Disney, due to all of the opportunities to get pictures with the characters :D

3) The pirate night on Disney is the most awesome experience - so well thought out!

4) Dect phones on Disney - also genious, because most times, those walkie talkies we bring from home on Royal just don't cut it :cool:

My thoughts:

 

1) rotating from one dining room to another, with the same wait staff, is genious. IT made me realize how repetitive it is to eat in the same dining room every night, as is the Royal experience (unless you opt for the specialty restaurants, of course!).

 

2) We spent more $$$ by far on photography on Disney, due to all of the opportunities to get pictures with the characters :D

 

3) The pirate night on Disney is the most awesome experience - so well thought out!

 

4) Dect phones on Disney - also genious, because most times, those walkie talkies we bring from home on Royal just don't cut it :cool:

How do you get those phones?

Se

Cr

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Disney cruise fare includes soda, Royal does not.

 

Disney allows any alcohol to be brought on, Royal only allows two bottles of wine.

 

Disney has no casino, Royal does.

Can understand some of the additions and exclusions. Now that you mentioned them.

I have friends who cruise both and have nothing but praise for Disney

Live royal also

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How do you get those phones?

They are in the stateroom when you arrive.

How do you get those phones?

There are 2 Wave Phones in each cabin. They usually have some additional ones available for a deposit at Guest Services if you need more than 2. They also work on Castaway Cay.

There are 2 Wave Phones in each cabin. They usually have some additional ones available for a deposit at Guest Services if you need more than 2. They also work on Castaway Cay.

That is very cool. It seems DCL is a lot more accommodating to families with young children.

That is very cool. It seems DCL is a lot more accommodating to families with young children.

It's a cool idea, but the phones are old and beat up. They only operate in silent mode, and they only provide one charger though they provide two phones. They remind me of cellphones from about a decade ago. Neither water resistant nor shock resistant. If you damage or lose one I think the charge is $250 for the phone.

Here are some of my notes:

But I definitely plan to try Disney again as we want to try Castaway Cay again. It was too cold and we were getting sick at that point.

Sailed on more RCI than I can count now.

- never got noro

- think the food is just okay

- shows quality vary ship to ship

- service okay to pretty great

- easy access to port everglades and Miami

- rci will separate king beds into singles

- I can be walking down the promenade or on the pool deck and easily run into a DreamWorks character and get a photo without even trying.

- bars and nightclubs are pretty busy on rci - fun groups

- Rci portholes are boring

Sailed on one Disney cruise last February

- both got noro

- food is way better

- shows we saw were great

- lots of new movies being shown in theater (even 3D)

- service really great - loved the MDR change each night

- didn't like having to drive to Port Canaveral

- all beds are kings and cannot be separated. They all do have sleeper couches

- get ready for extremely long lines (1 hour +) and very controlled - if your little one (or you) want a photo with a Disney character. The best bet is while waiting to board - the wait may not be so bad.

- few people in the bars or nightclubs

- Cataway Cay seemed cool - just didn't enjoy b/c it was too cold/raining.

- virtual porthole is amazing. Very cute

I would not go on Disney if u r not bringing kids. Nothing to do after 9. No casino and very boring after kids are in bed. Very expensive as always with Disney. Try it once not worth it again.

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