Disney or RCCL?

[suni]

I have cruised MANY times.Now,  I want to take a 4 and 6 year old with me. There will be 6 adults. I have some people say I should do Disney. I think there is enough on RCCL to make young children happy. Thoughts? Am I making a mistake staying away from Disney? Help! 

[Clarea]

Will the adults miss the casino?  I believe there is still no casino on Disney.

[gerif]

When our DGS was in that age group, he preferred RCI over Disney. 

[Con5421]

Disney! For sure and if your childern like Disney. We don't miss the casino. But Royal is no bad choice.

[matj2000]

The cost of Disney is almost 2x as much in price.

 

And your are willing to pay that much more just to ensure that a 4 & 6 YO will be happy?

[Ourusualbeach]

Depends on which Royal ship you are talking about.  If going on Roysl I would stick with Voyager class (that have been amped), Freedom class, Oasis class or Quantum class ships.

 

My personal preference would be an Oasis class ship.

[Spunky946]

We were on navigator of the seas over Christmas and my kids loved it.  Lots of stuff to do.  

[diesel1973]

4 years ago we went on Disney Wonder for 7 day cruise with 3 GC. It was just OK but very $$$$$$$. Next year I priced another Disney Cruise and price went up by 1/3.We went on Freedom for 7 day cruise. Price was 1/2 and GC enjoyed it more. I asked Disney agent why their cruises were so expensive. Their response was "you pay for the magic". I responded" yes, you magically remove the money from our pockets".

[Trinam2]

When my kids were younger they preferred Carnival to Disney and RCI. There was a lot of kids to play with and it had a casino for us. Disney is really expensive but it is an amazing experience especially if you bundle the cruise with a trip to Disney World. Our TA was able to get us a couple days before the cruise at a great rate.

[lvcrzn]

While I sail on Celebrity, RC (upcoming  Symphony) and NCL, I’ve taken the family on both Disney Dream and Fantasy. The grandkids were in the same age group as yours are when on the Fantasy, a little younger when on the Dream.  The service exceeds any I’ve ever experienced on any cruise line that I’ve sailed, however you do pay a premium price for it. The children’s club is fantastic! Disney is about kids....so there are lots and lots of kids everywhere . Disney characters and Princesses through out the ship is a sight for any age especially all the Star Wars characters  on SWDAS. And  Disney’s entertainment (shows) is amazing. Should you decided to sail Disney I highly recommend Star Wars Day at Seas on the Fantasy even if your children are not big fans. It was an experience that all in my family will never forget. My opinion for what it’s worth is that your children are at a good age for Disney as were mine, so if you are considering this option perhaps now might be a good time. I’ve read many reviews about the RC kids’ activities which all are very good. My Grandkids are now a couple of years older and were on the Allure last year and did not want to join the kids’ club. They grow up fast. 

[jenf22]

Our now 11-year old had WAY more fun on Allure than on our 3 DCL cruises.  And we saved a TON of money!

[lvcrzn]

Hi Jenf22...I so agree about the savings! As I posted...all the reviews I’ve read  about the RC kid’s club are very good. 

[orville99]

Disney openly promotes what it offers as a "once in a lifetime experience", so my suggestion would be to only do a Disney cruise once in your lifetime. After one cruise with them, you will have experienced all the "magic" that they have to offer, and once your wallet recovers from the magical way they emptied it while you smiled at the opportunity to go broke, you will find that you can do two+ cruises on any other line for the price you paid for a single Disney cruise.

[WisconsinFan]

Our first cruise ever was with Disney. It was a once in a lifetime trip for us. We were over the moon with the Disney entertainment, Castaway Key, the personal service, the rotational dining experience. Our kids cried when we left (they were small, they are now 20 and 25!), heck I cried when we left. We just looked at the bill from that first cruise way back in 2006 and it was more than what we now pay with Royal- for four in a ocean view (not balcony). I am so glad we did it once, it got us hooked on cruising and we have wonderful memories. I doubt we will be return customers, even if the day comes we have grandkids to take with us just because of the cost.

[kag19]

I just asked our TA the same question.  She told me that you definitely pay a premium for Disney and the service is excellent but unless your kids are really into Disney and the characters then to save the money and go on Royal as there is more variety for kids.  She recommended the same as Ken had above and said to stick with Freedom class, Oasis class or Quantum class ships. Our kids will be 10 and 6 when would be taking a cruise with them and honestly they are already starting to grow out of Disney and the characters.  Especially the older one.  We will most likely take our TA's advice and book Royal instead.

[BrandFam4]

6 hours ago, suni said:

I have cruised MANY times.Now,  I want to take a 4 and 6 year old with me. There will be 6 adults. I have some people say I should do Disney. I think there is enough on RCCL to make young children happy. Thoughts? Am I making a mistake staying away from Disney? Help! 

 

We took the kids on a Disney cruise in 2015 when they were 5 and 7 and they LOVED it. But at the time we were all about Disney and also had Disney passes. At the time it was worth it to spend the extra to do a Disney cruise. Now the kids are not as big of Disney fanatics so we are doing a RCL cruise where we are getting a 2x as long cruise with amazing ports.

 

We personally did not miss the casino at all. But we were only on a 5 day cruise. If it was a longer one, maybe.

 

So bottom line. If the grand kids love all things Disney then it is worth it. The characters are great and the staff go above and beyond like i've never seen. But if just having fun is the issue regardless of characters, etc save the money and go on RCL.

Edited January 15, 2019 by BrandFam4
my math is terrible

[erby2283]

Is OP referring to Disney World for a land vacation or a Disney Cruise?

[LuCruise]

13 minutes ago, kag19 said:

I just asked our TA the same question.  She told me that you definitely pay a premium for Disney and the service is excellent but unless your kids are really into Disney and the characters then to save the money and go on Royal as there is more variety for kids.  She recommended the same as Ken had above and said to stick with Freedom class, Oasis class or Quantum class ships. Our kids will be 10 and 6 when would be taking a cruise with them and honestly they are already starting to grow out of Disney and the characters.  Especially the older one.  We will most likely take our TA's advice and book Royal instead.

We took our kids on Allure when they were those ages and they loved it.  We've stuck with Royal ever since.  At the time we look at Disney vs Royal and for the price difference we went with Royal (and so glad we did!).  For us too, we won't do Disney anymore as they have outgrown it, especially our son and Disney seems very princess focused.  As an aside, we love love love the parks, but that is a different vacation.

 

When they were younger (2 and 6 years), we were on Disney Magic and it was very good.  Everything is geared towards kids from activities to shows, etc so it's definitely a good option for OP with the ages mentioned.  But as suggested, Royal is great too for kids and amazing for families...and sticking with the amped ships (esp something like Independence which has an amazing kids pool splash area with smaller waterslides - although not sure if kids in diapers are allowed, as with Disney too) or Oasis or Quantum.  It's a shame that they are getting rid of DreamWorks as that was an excellent feature for kids. Our kid don't go to the kids clubs so can't talk personally from that perspective (but have heard very good things)