Princess or Disney in Alaska with kids?

[Sister Ter]

We have cruised with the Disney Fantasy and RC Allure of the Seas before with our kids aged 12 and 8. Now we are looking at Alaska for our family. Would my kids enjoy Princess or does it skew older? They loved the Disney cruise btw.

[Kamloops50]

We have cruised with the Disney Fantasy and RC Allure of the Seas before with our kids aged 12 and 8. Now we are looking at Alaska for our family. Would my kids enjoy Princess or does it skew older? They loved the Disney cruise btw.

 

If they loved Disney , stick with them . They might find RCI to their liking as well.

[sherryf]

I love Disney, but for me, an Alaskan cruise is about Alaska. Disney is much more expensive usually, and the money could be better spent on some amazing excursions.

 

My kids were older (12, 15 and 18) when we sailed Princess to Alaska, but they had a wonderful time. If you are interested in the types of activities for the Shockwaves group (8-12 year old, so both of your kids) you can find the schedules from our cruise here: http://s204.photobucket.com/user/cruisinmama06/library/Princess%20Patters?sort=3&page=1

 

Also, Disney does not go to Glacier Bay, which is a priority for many people.

[Budget Queen]

Demographics on Alaska cruises is "older" with the bulk middle aged and above, with all ages sailing. It is NOT the Caribbean. I have also heard Disney is also not comparable to Caribbean sailing with more adults on the Alaska itinerary.

 

But, as already mentioned, you may want to find out Alaska. What is the reason you have chosen it? Be certain, any cruise you pick is going to be for your priorities. There are some very different itineraries to consider.

[Ashland]

Demographics on Alaska cruises is "older" with the bulk middle aged and above, with all ages sailing. It is NOT the Caribbean. I have also heard Disney is also not comparable to Caribbean sailing with more adults on the Alaska itinerary.

 

But, as already mentioned, you may want to find out Alaska. What is the reason you have chosen it? Be certain, any cruise you pick is going to be for your priorities. There are some very different itineraries to consider.

This is excellent advice...My kids weren't interested in Alaska until they were much older, like now in their early 30's ;)..Up until recently it was all about Mexico, Caribbean and the Med cruises. Taking them on their first Alaska cruise May 2014..and they are excited :D.

[Budget Queen]

We have cruised with the Disney Fantasy and RC Allure of the Seas before with our kids aged 12 and 8. Now we are looking at Alaska for our family. Would my kids enjoy Princess or does it skew older? They loved the Disney cruise btw.

 

The best advice I can give you, is to involve the kids in the PLANNING. Give them things to look up and get a spark of interest going for them about ALASKA. There are a LOT of wrong assumptions people have about Alaska, including the cruises. Instilling some "WOW, REALLY" ideas will go a long way. Let them have a say in the excursions, they are old enough to understand about costs, be frank about any budget you may have. Nothing will involve them more, in their enjoyment than seeing stuff they have found out about, come alive. :)

[Sister Ter]

The more I research, the more I think Disney is the right fit for us.

[Mary Ellen]

We've done a good number of Alaskan cruises, including one on Disney. The Disney cruise is about Disney, with Alaska in the backdrop. That was fine for us, as we'd been there about 5-6 times at that point and wanted to experience a Disney cruise without going to the Caribbean. The itinerary was pitiful, but we did enjoy Disney. We did feel sorry for anyone on board who wanted to see Alaska - particularly anyone wanting to see tidewater glaciers calving from a ship.

 

For Alaska, Princess (and HAL) have the best experience.

[karatemom2]

We started cruising with Disney when my kids were 5 and 10. In fact our first two cruises were with Disney and they hooked us on cruising as a great vacation option for our family. But of course Disney is very expensive and at that time only had two ships with limited itineraries and nothing in Alaska at that time.

 

So we decided to try some other lines and quickly settled on Princess as a favorite for our family. Our children loved Princess and I was very impressed with the quality of the children's program. My kids have literally grown up since then on Princess cruises.

 

Alaska is such an amazing place and Princess offers great itineraries and a super Alaska experience for adults and children. Not to mention the wonderful indoor pool that Disney does not offer. I actually think at the ages of your children you will find that minus the characters, Princess really has as much or more to offer than Disney in terms of fun for the entire family.

 

Just my two cents! :)

[chipmaster]

A few years ago we were torn between princess and disney. IHMO I'd pick Princess in a heartbeat for the scenic cruising difference. If Disney still only does Tracy Arm that is worth saving money and getting better scenic.

 

Princess is no Disney with characters, theme resturants etc. etc. but you don't pay for it and you get what Alaska is about with Glacier Bay.

 

if you want Disney you might as well go to their park, pay a bit more for meals and charactertime.

 

BTW we picked Princess for our choice and our kids had a great time. Would the cruise experience be better on Disney, likely. But i likely wouldn't have spent for helicopter / dog sledding, which I did and that was really more priceless than any mouse meal :D

[1CruiseManiac]

We are looking to take a cruise this year with our 5 year old daughter. We have been asking this same question. I have found a number of different pieces of information around the internet. The general opinion is that Disney is much more expensive than other cruise lines and similar cruises around Alaska. Princess has a good reputation for being very child friendly, but Disney screams children, so the experience on Disney, would probably be very kid oriented and enjoyable. Disney also has a great talent in being appealing to adults, as well. I would say that Princess is the best option if you are looking for a cheaper cruise, but Disney will be well worth the money overall.

[Lady Anna & Sir Troy]

We took our daughter on Princess (around age 11 I think?), they were very friendly but she was very bored. I did involve her in the planning too! She just felt too old for the kid activities in the kids club.

 

Our friend took their 5 and 7 year old grandkids on a Princess Alaska Cruise and they liked it, but the kids said they preferred the RCCL cruise they went on. Surprisingly what the kids liked best was the marine animal talks and the totem pole tour.

 

I continue to maintain that RCCL and NCL are the best for all age groups (Disney probably is as well but I haven't dealt with their cruises very much).

 

Hope this helps!!

 

Lady Anna

Edited January 7, 2014 by Lady Anna & Sir Troy

[mollanjake]

We took our daughter on Princess (around age 11 I think?), they were very friendly but she was very bored. I did involve her in the planning too! She just felt too old for the kid activities in the kids club.

 

Our friend took their 5 and 7 year old grandkids on a Princess Alaska Cruise and they liked it, but the kids said they preferred the RCCL cruise they went on. Surprisingly what the kids liked best was the marine animal talks and the totem pole tour.

 

I continue to maintain that RCCL and NCL are the best for all age groups (Disney probably is as well but I haven't dealt with their cruises very much).

 

Hope this helps!!

 

Lady Anna

 

 

We have not taken our Alaskan cruise yet, but my 8yo DD didn't really like the kids club on RCCL. She was really looking forward to it. She was at the upper end of the age group, which never makes her happy. She said the other kids that were wild/too crazy.She did love the rock wall, mini golf and all the other stuff RCCL had though.

 

Personally I couldn't justify the added cost of a Disney cruise, when I selected a cruise last Spring Break. I didn't even consider them for Alaska.

 

I would look at port arrival times and length of stay in the ports.

 

Many on this board say Glacier Bay is a must. I am sure it is fabulous, but I decided the extra port ISP would be more enjoyable for my family. Just couldn't imagine being able to enjoy Glacier Bay with a hot a Toddy and my DD for very long. (Please don't attack me for saying this!)

 

Only you know your family best! Good Luck!

 

 

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