Disney cruiser "Royally" converted

[annedar]

Glad to hear you like RCI. We sail for our first time with RCI on FOS in 4 days! We've been on all the Disney ships plus we've done HAL, Celebrity, and Princess. Our kids are 16 and 18. Disney has always been our favorites but we always find something we like better or enjoy more on the other lines. Very excited to try FOS. We'd still love to do a Disney cruise again but the prices are insane. Hard to justify stuffing 4 people in an inside cabin on Disney for what you could pay for 2 cabins (sometimes balconies or above at that) on another ship.

[Clarea]

While I don't know for sure they don't use live music (it could be under the stage like normal stage shows), I will gladly take that over the horrifyingly dreadful "City of Dreams" I sat through on the Radiance last summer. I would rather sit in my cabin and do nothing than subject myself to dreck like that ever again. (Not that I will be sitting in my cabin - but I will NOT be wasting time on Six Flags-type dreck while cruising this summer.

I felt the same about the production shows on Radiance.

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

I felt the same about the production shows on Radiance.

 

Granted I should have taken the hint to get out of Dodge when the cruise director introduced City of Dreams by saying "If you've been drinking this will make perfect sense I'm sure..."

[dcgrumpy]

Glad you enjoyed your cruise. We're also Disney lovers and DVC owners. We're going to WDW before our Indy cruise next year. But I can't justify the price of DCL. And now that my kids are all preteen/teens RCI is a better fit.

Edited March 23, 2016 by dcgrumpy

[glamourpup]

More Disney lovers and DVC owners here, and we were on Liberty last week (so maybe we saw you in Cozumel!). We had the same experience: a really outstanding vacation on Liberty and don't see how we can justify DCL's prices, particularly since we paid $1000 less for a grand suite on Liberty than we were going to pay for a regular verandah room on the Fantasy the same week. I think from now on we'll get our Disney fix in the parks and enjoy cruises on Royal.

 

We didn't see many of the Royal shows though. We enjoyed the comedian the last night, and sat through the musical impressionist to be polite (he clearly hadn't updated his act in about 40 years, though somehow most of the rest of the audience loved it!).

[3Blessings]

It's funny that you mention this because I said the same thing to DH. We really enjoyed the live orchestra on FOS and the way they "floated" in and out during the productions. I've never seen that on DCL. In fact, there was WAY more live music in all venues on FOS.

The nightlife between the two cruiselines cannot be compared. DCL is a ghost town by 11pm, while Freedom was just getting started. We really enjoyed it.

 

We've been on one Disney and were disappointed that there really wasn't any nightlife. We went from bar to bar hoping to find something fun but ended up in the room early every night. For the price, I agree RCCL is definitely the way to go.

[Woodmnky]

Sailing on Freedom last year was enough to convince us to jump ship from Disney as well. While I still really love DCL, the cost to enjoyment ratio is just not there for me. If there wasn't a price difference I would likely go for DCL (mainly because I have a 5 yo who still really loves the Disney magic), but since that is unlikely to happen we will happily sail RCI and just hit WDW for a day or two before to get our dose of Disney.

[seechelles]

I am so glad to see this post! We have also only done Disney but now that the prices are soooooo high and our kids are older we are going on Liberty in August. This just makes me more excited!! Thank you everyone for easing an anxious mom's mind.

 

 

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[dpcmh]

I too am glad to see this post!!! We've only sailed DCL and will hit gold this fall. I too have been sickened by DCLs price hikes and gone into orbit with all the money grabbing decisions coming out of WDW lately. We love cruising and taking our 1st Royal cruise in a month on the Allure. So happy to see all of these positive comments!!!!

 

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[actuarian]

My wife and I are also DVC members and we are C&A Diamond Plus on RCCL and Castaway Club Platinum on DCL. Therefore, we have a lot of experiences to compare. We would never pick RCCL over Disney if the same size rooms were priced the same on both cruise lines. Unfortunately, they are not priced the same so we cruise RCCL more often than DCL. However, my opinion is that the shows are much better on Disney (in spite of not having a live orchestra), the MDR food is much better on Disney, Palo is much better than Giovanni's Table and Remy is much better than any restaurant on RCCL. Of course, Disney has nothing quite like the RCCL Ice shows or Aqua shows but still, IMHO, price is the real difference. By the way, although it is irrelevant to this thread, Disney is the only cruise line I know of that never calls an accommodation a suite unless it really is a suite of rooms.

[jagsfan]

I love RCI and Princess, but the Disney balcony cabins are better, and the children's activities phenomenal. So it's really apples and oranges.

 

 

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[wdwluvin]

More Disney lovers and DVC owners here, and we were on Liberty last week (so maybe we saw you in Cozumel!). We had the same experience: a really outstanding vacation on Liberty and don't see how we can justify DCL's prices, particularly since we paid $1000 less for a grand suite on Liberty than we were going to pay for a regular verandah room on the Fantasy the same week. I think from now on we'll get our Disney fix in the parks and enjoy cruises on Royal.

 

We didn't see many of the Royal shows though. We enjoyed the comedian the last night, and sat through the musical impressionist to be polite (he clearly hadn't updated his act in about 40 years, though somehow most of the rest of the audience loved it!).

 

LOL! It was so cool to see the two ships berthed next to each other in Cozumel. We spent quite a bit of time wandering the top deck checking out all of Liberty's cool water features!

 

I took a pic of the "sisters" side by side:

[wdwluvin]

I'm happy that my post has helped other Disney fans who may feel a bit nervous about straying far from the Disney "bubble". I know I was scouring these boards and other forums for every bit of comparison reviews between RCI and DCL before our cruise.

[sasha96]

We've cruised DCL and liked it a lot. But, we like Royal better...

 

I don't just want to see characters in shows, and RCI offers variety. There are more options overall, to eat, entertain, shop, etc. The DCL rooms are nice but the Quantum class rooms are fabulous!

[ramanda]

The Disney ships really look fabulous and gorgeous but my kids are teenagers so I pretty much think they are too old for a Disney Cruise but the thing that I don't like about their ships is that the pools seem really tiny and there aren't that many of them. It seems they have one main family type pool and it is in the shape of Mickey's ears so it just seems crazy small for all those people. Maybe it's fine once you get on board - don't know. Although my only other cruise experience was on Monarch way back in 1993 and I just don't remember it being crowded at all but it was so long ago who knows. I know pools can get crowded on sea days from what I have read but RCI ships seem to have larger and more numerous pools. We are booked on Allure for August and am super excited.

[glamourpup]

LOL! It was so cool to see the two ships berthed next to each other in Cozumel. We spent quite a bit of time wandering the top deck checking out all of Liberty's cool water features!

 

I took a pic of the "sisters" side by side:

 

Ha! I have the same picture, I was fascinated! And I did the same thing, walking the pool deck and trying to see where things were different. It looked pretty much the same except for the water slides.

[hanna04]

It is true that Disney does not use a live orchestra for their shows? The live music is one of the things I enjoy the most about Royal's shows.

 

I've never seen a live orchestra in any of their Broadway style shows, but they are very good.

[RCI Cruisers 004]

Glad to hear you are enjoying Royal. Freedom and Allure are two of our favorite ships ! We have been loyal to Royal for years, but now we are also adding Disney to our cruising experience , and loving it. We are doing another Disney in a couple weeks then going on Oasis again. We love the variety of what each line has to offer ! But as you mentioned, there is a huge price difference, we can get a GS on Royal cheaper than just a balcony on Disney.

[alaskawdw12]

We're also HUGE Disney fans. I'm 31 and I've been to WDW 27 times (and I live nowhere near Orlando lol), I've been to every Disney park in the world and on two Disney cruises, so naturally when we were planning our honeymoon in Alaska we wanted to go with DCL. But when we started looking into it we saw that the price was double RCCL's and just too expensive for us. So we searched these boards for anything that would calm our nerves about cheating on The Mouse. We were really worried about the cruise experience, about the service and the other passengers, but we totally fell in love with Royal! We think the service is on par with Disney - the whole staff is just so friendly! I also think RCCL offers a lot more activities for adults throughout the day than DCL. Really the one thing Disney does better are the shows (live music or not). The original shows on RCCL are a joke in comparison with DCL (I'm talking about the stage shows, not the ice shows or acrobatic shows), both in terms of quality and in terms of the talent on stage. I think no one can beat Disney when it comes to that. But there's so much going on around the Royal ships that it doesn't matter, and we also really enjoyed the guest acts - like the comedians and magicians. The passengers onboard are nice and friendly, really no difference there between Royal and Disney (which was a major concern for us).

We're now loyal to Royal when it comes to cruises, because we love their product and can't offered DCL...we've been on the Radiance twice and on the Allure once and loved both ships!

I'm so happy you had a great cruise :)

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

As a solo cruiser, the price usually ends up being about the same (considering I limit myself to ships that *gasp* feel like ships - no shopping malls, ice rinks, things that make them into land resorts that happen to be on the water, not that you'd know unless there's a storm), so my preference has always been Disney unless either the group I'm with is on a different line (running cruises), or the itinerary I want is on another line (could NOT pass up this upcoming cruise on the Brilliance as it goes all around Italy and goes to Venice).

 

However...

 

What has done it for me - making me jump ship, though honestly more likely to X than RCCL on anything but the two above situations - is that I am spoiled to 7-night cruises. 3 or 4 nights just seem too crazy short. And the Dream's funky schedule makes B2B impossible, so for now that leaves me with the Fantasy. Which, in the times I can cruise, has been given over to Star Wars freaks - NO normal cruises from January through April of next year.

 

I'm hopeful that when their 2 new ones come online they have some that are normal Disney cruises of 7 nights... Until then, I'm not subjecting myself to the crazy (and getting hit with light sabers and crap).

[marci22]

We are also DCL fans but have been priced out in recent years. I am amazed people are paying their prices now especially considering that I have read that they are slowly removing a lot of the little extras that really set them apart. We have been on all but the Magic and had hoped to sail on her this year, but couldn't swing the price. We sailed on Enchantment two years ago and hated it, the kids were miserably bored. We said we would never do RCI again. We were considering the Norwegian Getaway, but after reading many reviews comparing the Getaway to the Allure, we decided on the Allure at the last minute. I am really hoping we don't regret it.

 

Our kids' first cruise was on Disney around 2003 and they loved it, but I didn't like the amount of very young kids. I heard 'mom! mom!' WAY too many times. Our next cruise was RC Explorer and they loved it.

 

I don't know about DCL, but Disney parks/resorts are in full cost cutting mode, supposedly due to Shanghai Disney. I understand cost cutting but they are taking it to new levels, so you're probably better off not paying the price at this point.

 

We did a 5 night Enchantment (10 years ago) and my kids were not that thrilled. Finding food at weird hours was problematic, and the ship just felt too small for young teens. So for Caribbean we stuck to the bigger ships (Voyager class and above) and they were happy. They liked Allure a lot, I think you will be fine.

[M313M]

We love DCL, but they have priced us out at this point too. I booked the Harmony (our 1st Royal cruise) in an OV room for November. The same week was $1500 more on the Fantasy in a standard inside. Learning so much on here about Royal, and we can't wait for our first time!

 

 

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[Liltx31]

We've been on one Disney and were disappointed that there really wasn't any nightlife. We went from bar to bar hoping to find something fun but ended up in the room early every night. For the price, I agree RCCL is definitely the way to go.

 

Absolutely true! We are late diners and by the time dinner was over and we dropped the kids at the club, there would only be one adult show/activity left. No one even dancing in the club. Such a downer that we were ready for bed before the kids. Usually we're out until 1 or so.

 

Also, the food was horrible. Glad we did it once (kids twice with gp) but never again.

 

I will say the larger balcony room with single murphy bed was nice And split bathroom. However, we can book a suite or balcony/inside for the same price.

 

We love all the other lines, carnival and ncl best. Now we go for price and itenerary So rccl was the best value for our upcoming southern Caribbean.

[emeraldcity]

Thank you for sharing your experience. I feel Disney Cruise Line is a good choice for people with young children; but for older kids, their Disney experience probably need to include a chance to ride Tower of Terror and Expedition Everest.

 

I'm often asked what cruise I would recommend for people and I always start by noting they should select a cruiseline first that would likely meet their needs. Anyone with teens who starts to tell me they're thinking of a Disney cruise for their first cruise I advise they should really do some comparisons with RCI. I feel it's a better fit for families with older children because of all the features the ships have for the active set. I particularly tell them to do some price comparisons. I was shocked by the huge price difference a couple of years ago. It's sobering to think it's considered pricier now.

[Aggiecruiser01]

Hi everyone,

 

We just disembarked on Sunday for our absolutely AWESOME Freedom of the Seas cruise. We absolutely loved it.:)

As you can see from my signature and username we are usually loyal to the Disney brand name. We are Disney Vacation Club members and have sailed on all of DCL's ships. Disney, however, is getting stupidly expensive so it was with some trepidation that we booked our spring break cruise on FOS.

We need not have worried as we decided (myself, DH and DS16), about halfway through our cruise last week, that we would be hard-pressed to book another DCL cruise.

Our experience on FOS met and, in many cases, surpassed DCL.

We loved our interactions with the friendly crew, the terrific food (MDR, Chops, Giovannis, Sabor, Windjammer), entertainment (fabulous shows and so many choices), beautiful ship...I could go on and on....:)

 

We booked for next spring break on the Allure. Can't wait!

 

If any DCL cruisers have any questions about the differences/similarities; feel free to fire away!

 

Hooray.. this is the post I've been looking for! :D I recently posted the below thread/question.. any insight (encouragement) would be greatly appreciated! We have been on Disney twice when our kids were really young and now are going on Liberty of the Seas-

 

I keep 'pondering' on this topic- Disney Boat vs. new Liberty of the Seas... The last two cruises we sailed were Disney... Incredible. But we decided to try a 'less expensive' option.. we are sailing on the new Liberty of the Seas in May. Hoping the adding of all the water slide fun will make it just as good as our Disney experience (the kids will also love the rock climbing, mini-golf, flow rider, an ice skating that RCCL offers). My kids are 6 and 8 and will be in the same kids club together so that will be nice.

 

Anyone out there have a Disney vs. the new Liberty of the Seas comparison? Or even a boat that is similar to Liberty (with all the new add ons) It will be interesting to see the difference between the two... my expectations are reduced as I know it is not Disney.. But would love to gain a renewed loyalty to RCCL for our family- the price sure is right! And after this cruise we will be platinum members (sailed on RCCL a bit before kids)