Anyone been on a Disney Cruise?

[lewber]

We are considering one in the Spring. My husband is only willing to do the shorter 3 or 4 day ones so I think that only leaves the Bahamas. We would be traveling with another family. Three boys total, ages 10-15.

Has anyone done one? Any suggestions on booking? Where to get the best price? Obviously these boys aren't really interested in character meetings, but I assume there's lots of other stuff. Also, my husband likes to be very busy. Will he be happy.? :lol:

[Tammi K]

We did one several years ago. LOVED IT! The ship is beautiful - in a sophisticated, not cartoony, way. The staff is wonderful. There are tons of family activities during the day and more adult themed activities at night. There is no gambling on the ship which make it different from other cruise ships, but we didn't miss that.

 

The kids area is wonderful. My kids wanted to go every single day. I apologized one day because the kids were still there at closing (1 am) but the staff reminded me, "It's their vacation, too!"

 

Everything about it was great.

 

We had a wonderful time. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

[jenn-]

We just went on one a couple of weeks ago.  This was my first time cruising with the kids and the first time on Disney, but my fourth cruise.  I don't think I would do it again.  I spent all my time either getting the kids ready for something or getting them to and from the child watch (typical mom stress on vacation not necessarily Disney Cruise specific).  They did love the child watch though.

 

I will warn you though, on Disney ships there is a hangout for kids 3-12, 11-14, and 14-17 and they do not let them mix whatsoever outside of those age groups.  Just a warning before the 15 yo thinks he can hang out with the 10 yo.  Depending on the age of the one in the middle, they may be able to go to a couple of different ones.  My DD was 13 this year and I don't think she enjoyed the cruise as much because she is painfully shy and had no one to hang out with in that 11-14 club.  If we had gone last year, she could have played with her little brothers at least.

[Trish]

My kids loved our Disney cruise. (ages 11 and 13 at the time) They spent some time in the "tweén'' club called Vibe. They enjoyed that and we felt that was safe, they went with their onboard Wave phones in case we needed to get in touch with them. There are a lot of things to do outside the kids clubs though. Don't miss any shows! They are high quality and very entertaining.  Be sure to use your daily Navigator page to be aware of all the possibilities.

 

Just a personal opinion, I think 3 days would feel a bit short. 4 might be ideal in your situation. Ã have no advice on discounts, we booked through AAA and got some extra perks that way.

 

A few weird tips that worked for us: after regular meal hours you can get drinks on a certain deck -- I brought a McDonald's cardboard cup carrier so my husband or one of my sons could get drinks for the whole family if we wanted them back in the room. You can get five drinks in them using the middle. Also, I bought a see-through (clear) over the door shoe holder with 24 pockets to hang over the bathroom door. (toilet is separate from shower which is nice) That held TONS of toiletries for the whole family, was a real space-saver, and due to being transparent you could readily see what you needed. Suitcases fit under the bed.

 

Also we brought a personalized magnet from home to put on our door (it's metal) to easily distinguish it from other cabins.

 

Everyone onboard is extremely helpful.

[Mom0012]

I like to be very busy on vacation and the Disney Cruise was not for me.  It's been a number of years, but I do remember afterwards how disappointed my husband and I were with it.  My kids were also disappointed because they had been to Disney and the cruise was nothing like it.  The biggest issue was that they had no interest in hanging out in the kids' club.  They were little and I don't remember there being that much for them to do since they weren't interested in that.  If you were looking for a relaxing vacation, then I would say you could sit by the pool and read while the kids were entertained in the club, but without that, I can't even remember what we did.  There was a small pool.  We did do an excursion in the Bahamas and that was nice.  None of us thought Castaway Bay/Cay? was anything that special. 

 

Trish, what things did you do other than shows?  I'm sure I'm forgetting what was available.  For us, some of it may have been that our kids were still little.  I know for many people, this cruise is their perfect dream vacation.  I know my sister had a few friends who had gone and loved it.  She thought my feelings about it were quite odd, and maybe they are. :laugh:

[Ottakee]

I will warn you though, on Disney ships there is a hangout for kids 3-12, 11-14, and 14-17 and they do not let them mix whatsoever outside of those age groups.  Just a warning before the 15 yo thinks he can hang out with the 10 yo.  Depending on the age of the one in the middle, they may be able to go to a couple of different ones.  My DD was 13 this year and I don't think she enjoyed the cruise as much because she is painfully shy and had no one to hang out with in that 11-14 club.  If we had gone last year, she could have played with her little brothers at least.

That is good information to know as my kids are delayed and would really fit better with younger ages. I really don't want my special needs teen in with 17 year old boys.

[jenn-]

That is good information to know as my kids are delayed and would really fit better with younger ages. I really don't want my special needs teen in with 17 year old boys.

Disney is usually pretty good with special needs. You might want to call and ask about that specifically.

[Plateau Mama]

 

 

I will warn you though, on Disney ships there is a hangout for kids 3-12, 11-14, and 14-17 and they do not let them mix whatsoever outside of those age groups. Just a warning before the 15 yo thinks he can hang out with the 10 yo. Depending on the age of the one in the middle, they may be able to go to a couple of different ones. My DD was 13 this year and I don't think she enjoyed the cruise as much because she is painfully shy and had no one to hang out with in that 11-14 club. If we had gone last year, she could have played with her little brothers at least.

This is not totally accurate. We went two summers ago. My kids were 4.5, 10, 12. All my kids were allowed to hang out in the kid club with their little brother (although after 12 they would not have been allowed.). My 10 yo was allowed to go to Vibe with his sister. The rule is if they are within a year of the age and have a sibling of club age the parent can give permission for them to be in the club.

 

My two older kids had a blast. I hardly saw them at all. We gave them a a Wave phone and the rule was they had to stay together. My younger guy did not enjoy the kid club as much. I feel instead of two kids clubs they should have different age ranges. That being said all my kids still talk about the cruise and beg to go again (the little guy especially).

[Mom in High Heels]

We did one a few years ago and it was amazing!  Indy was 7 (almost 8) at the time and said he'd rather go on another Disney cruise than go to WDW.  That's quite a recommendation.  We went with a group of people we knew, and one of Indy's friends had a younger sister who wanted to be in the play area with him, and they didn't have a problem with that.  There was a special needs kid on our cruise who was with the younger kids, and it wasn't a problem.  

James Bond and I were ALWAYS busy.  There were loads of things for adults to do.  We did a RCI cruise and it was't nearly as good as Disney.

[msrift]

Funny, we just got back from a Disney Cruise last week. We did a 7 day in the Caribbean with four kids ages 3-11. We really enjoyed it (the 11 yr old keeps literally crying about how much he wants to go back). I don't think we'll be doing another one, at least not soon, just because there are so many other things we'd like to do. 

Some things I'll comment on from pp: over the door hangers are no longer allowed, as they've been damaging the finish on the doors. Technically, Edge is for tweens (11-14) and Vibe is for teens (14-17). They will allow a little flexibility, but not much. An 14 year old would be allowed to go into either and an almost 14yr old might be allowed in as well, depending on how full the ship is and how he carries himself. An 18yr old will be kicked out the day he turns 18 (even if it is in the middle of the cruise). Our 11 yr old LOVED that he basically had the run of the ship. He'd take the little wavephone (cell phone) and be gone. He'd go get ice cream, watch a movie, catch up with friends, whatever. He participated in some of the Edge programs, like Sports Deck Fun and the Pizza and Pajama Party, but he certainly didn't do everything he could have. Have the boys go to the 411 (or whatever they call the meet and greet) at 10pm the first night of the cruise. They'll meet the counselors and the other kids, pick the activities for the cruise, etc.

Go to the disboards and sign up for the FE (fish extender) for your cruise - it's kind of a secret santa thing. I swear, receiving all the little trinkets was one of the highlights of the cruise for the kids. We gave out individual packages of nutella, others got all crafty and made Christmas ornaments, others gave out booze.  :coolgleamA:

 

There is a good sized portion of the ship that is adult only (pool, hot tub, spa, gym, and a couple of lounge/bars), with magicians and comedians performing shows for just adults. I don't think you'll have trouble staying busy, even if you avoid all the character stuff. I was annoyed when my crew kept falling asleep - too many cool things to do! Google "navigator" and whatever itinerary you're considering. The navigator is the daily schedule and people have posted copies for most sailings.

 

I think my son's favorites were the food - unlimited, even in the sit down restaurants. Want two appetizers or double portions? Go ahead. There's soft serve ice cream available 90% of the time, and the beverage station (included on Disney cruises) is also available 24 hrs.

 

I also think that a 3 day cruise would feel rushed - I don't think I'd do shorter than a 4 day. Hope you go and enjoy! 

 

 

[msrift]

Oh, and as far as price- generally, prices start out low when cruises are first released (12-18 months ahead of time) and then increase as the categories sell out. Good old supply and demand. If you want to gamble, you can wait and see if they'll release any GTY rates close to sailing date. Those rates lock in a category, but you can't specify a cabin. As you have 5 in your party, you might want to look into two cabins. Sometimes it actually works out to be less expensive, and the extra room is nice. You can either request adjoining cabins, or splurge and get one verandah cabin and one inside cabin across the hall to try to save some money. If you book with a travel agent, they'll probably give you onboard credits (we received $150/cabin which we used to pay tips). Other than that, Disney rarely runs sales. They might run a 'kids sail free promotion' but then those cruises are overrun with little tykes. 

 

We spontaneously booked a cruise when we heard they were having trouble booking out of Galveston and were heavily discounting those particular cruises. If you want to go in the next couple of weeks (not a holiday one!), there might be a deal to be had.  

[jenn-]

This is not totally accurate. We went two summers ago. My kids were 4.5, 10, 12. All my kids were allowed to hang out in the kid club with their little brother (although after 12 they would not have been allowed.). My 10 yo was allowed to go to Vibe with his sister. The rule is if they are within a year of the age and have a sibling of club age the parent can give permission for them to be in the club.

 

My two older kids had a blast. I hardly saw them at all. We gave them a a Wave phone and the rule was they had to stay together. My younger guy did not enjoy the kid club as much. I feel instead of two kids clubs they should have different age ranges. That being said all my kids still talk about the cruise and beg to go again (the little guy especially).

 

I have heard this used to be the case but they have had a massive crack down on the age division.  That is why there is that 11-12 either or for the clubs.  Your 3 would have all been young enough for that cruise to go into the littler kids club.  Same thing when you have a 14 yo they can go to either teen club.

[Dahliarw]

You're going to find the best prices booking either the day the bookings open or if there is a really good last minute special for your cruise.  For us, we booked our upcoming cruise the day it was released for booking and the rates have not been cheaper than that since we booked (though we did need a cabin that sleeps 5, it may be different for other categories).  I checked the special rates that were released for our cruise a couple weeks back and it was $1500 more for us than the day we booked.  So if you can plan ahead, I would.

 

A heads up on shorter cruises.  The first day you will get on the ship sometime in the vicinity of lunch time.  There is a muster drill that day that is mandatory (safety drill) as well as the bon voyage deck party - you'll also be spending time getting your cabin set up, etc.  On the last day you leave the ship early in the morning (I believe you have to be off by 9 or 9:30.  So when you're thinking of days to "fill", there is not all that much time on the boat those two days.  Also any day your ship is in port, you can sign up for (at extra cost) excursions.  So even though we're going on a 7 night cruise, we have 4 days where we won't be on the boat as we're in port, then we have the first and last day, so we only have 2 full days on the boat where we can't get off, if that makes sense.  From what I've read on disboards, there is a lot to do on the boat.  Though I am also the type that will be happy sitting on deck reading my kindle while the kids are in the kids clubs.

 

On a 3 night bahama cruise you'll leave florida, spend the next day in nassau, the next day at castaway cay, and then get off the ship the following morning back in florida.  On a 4 night bahama cruise you'll do exactly the same thing, but with a sea day in between.  Personally, I think those would feel REALLY short, but that's just me.

 

I can let you know how we like it when we go in January!  You should also check out disboards.

[Mom in High Heels]

 

 

On a 3 night bahama cruise you'll leave florida, spend the next day in nassau, the next day at castaway cay, and then get off the ship the following morning back in florida.  On a 4 night bahama cruise you'll do exactly the same thing, but with a sea day in between.  Personally, I think those would feel REALLY short, but that's just me.

 

 

 

This!  We got on our cruises around noon the first day, and had to disembark NLT 9:30am the last day.  James Bond says anything shorter than 10 days isn't worth it.  I would be okay with 7, but the longer the better IMO.  Sea days were some of our favorite.  Indy went to the kid's place (some days Han Solo did for a while when we cruised after he was born), and we had the day to bum around.  I went to several lectures, and there were classes on napkin folding (sounds lame, but it was fun!), cooking demonstrations, games hosted by the cruise line (James Bond was the only person to win a free drink by hitting a golf ball into a hula hoop they put in the middle of the pool, and on the FIRST try!), bands to listen to, massages (oh, yes, there were massages!), movies, and hanging out by the pool reading (in the shade for me!).