cyclenut

The thing that bothers me about this app is you have to turn on wifi, which is expected, but which also means other apps on your phone will start using wifi doing automatic updates. Those will all need to be turned off. They don't mention that part. Imagine Facebook playing catch-up in the background or suddenly getting email.

A few of my own personal observations.

Disney is more expensive. I have cancelled a Disney Fantasy cruise and booked the exact same dates and virtually same itinerary aboard the FOS for substantially less money. We had and awesome experience aboard the Freedom.

We are now sailing the Fantasy in January on the Eastern itinerary and are paying more than the FOS, but not that much more. It was an onboard booking.

Disney offers a very different experience that some would claim is a superior experience. I agree with most previous posters, except perhaps MizDaisy. Disney is an overall better cruise experience than any line catering to the same market. The difference is in the detail. Perhaps someone who has cruised DCL a dozen or more times has a completely different perspective than the average cruiser who may not see that many total cruises in a lifetime. Those details may no longer matter.

The "free" soda, while included in the cruise price, does offer something different for your experience. The idea that it is already paid for, doesn't require a special cup or sticker and readily available does mean something. If calling it "free" bothers some people, perhaps there is another way to explain why it feels free.

The rotational dining is unique as are the split bath deluxe staterooms. The cast members are the friendliest anywhere, although you will see some exceptions. Remember that they are still people .. Who have good days and bad days. On balance though, you are much more likely to encounter friendly service from random cast members on Disney ships. Why? It is considered by Disney to be the single most important thing about working for them.

It really is about the details. On the FOS, the ship was clean and the crew friendly, but not as clean or friendly as the Wonder. The Carnival Inspiration was way behind. But there was something else that I can't quite quantify. Disney is putting on a show. From the moment you visit the web page or call the Disney travel office, the experience begins. Every detail. The entire experience is managed. Nobody else in this market does this ... At all. It isn't even that Disney does it better. Nobody else even tries.

When I want that type of vacation (and sometimes I do), Disney is really the ONLY choice. It isn't just a cruise with Disney ... It is a vacation experience.

This is one thing I don't like about DCL. You are at a disadvantage and there will be some things not available to you. Even as a Silver member booking 90 days out, there were no cabanas available online for my upcoming trip. On my first DCL a cruise, finding a Palo brunch was not possible online. One was found once on board, but the time wasn't very ideal. Had to move around something else planned. There were also some Disney exclusive excursions that were already full.

DCL does try to hold some things in reserve and there are always cancellations, but this is only a problem on DCL.

Love the Disny brand. Visit DL often and have a great time when DW an I cruise together on DCL. We won't pay a hefty premium though. We did that once and it was NOT worth the extra cash. If you can get a Disney ship for a little more, do it. If it is a lot more, skip it.

We found the shows on the larger RCCL ships to be better than on DCL. Service was about the same and DW preferred RCCL food to DCL, while I preferred DCL.

Point being, there are too many variables to make generic comparisons across the entire line. RCCL has far more ships that offer vastly different experiences while DCL has four ships and attempt to provide a similar experience across the entire line, even though there is a significant difference between the larger and smaller ships in their fleet.

The midst important consideration is what fits your desire for a vacation experience best. Nobody else can answer that question for you.

DW and I did the grand romance package and room decorations. We felt both were worth it. We had a standard inside stateroom and left the decorations up all 7 days of our cruise. They were not annoying at all. We had a door sign as well. The grand romance package includes an 8x10 photo in a silver photo frame as well as a special breakfast in bed that was far better than traditional room service. I agree that the before dinner and after dinner treats on formal nights were a little exotic but still fun to taste. The terry robes you can take with you were nice too. We really enjoyed it!

Excellent review. We were also on that sailing. Loved every second of it. I've also posted a few pics over on Peggy's thread. I used an iPad for connectivity and it was great!

I disagree. I know a lot of families of four (or more) who take at least one vacation every year. In fact I know a lot more who do than who don't. My cousin is in Ireland with his family of four right now. My friends are a family of four and just got back from a Disney cruise. Other friends just got back from two weeks in California with their four kids--and I guarantee that trip cost a lot more than a week long DCL cruise would have.

Perhaps your sample is skewed to your demographic? I found this article that seems to support your position with respect to how many families actually take vacation.

http://travel-industry.uptake.com/blog/2011/05/10/american-families-are-eager-to-travel-again-per-amex-and-homeaway/

Although from that same article is an interesting comment regarding the average cost of those vacations.

"In addition, vacationing consumers plan to take an average of two weeklong vacations, spending about $1,200 per person, and three weekend getaways, with an average spend of $300 per weekend. For families, nearly two-thirds (64 percent) will take one or more weeklong trip."

Again, that's your opinion. It cost more than mass market lines, but in my opinion you get what you pay for.

My only opinion so far is that I'm anxious to experience DCL and decide for myself if it was worth the money.

Do you mean "median?" The median household income in the US in 2009 was just shy of $50K. While that would be poverty in parts of the northeast, it's a comfortable living in a lot of the south, and you could easily take a family of four on a carefully shopped 3-4 day cruise on DCL every year on that income.

Yes, I mean median. I have no idea why I typed medium :o.

The median is more relevant by state and can be found here:

http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/income/data/statemedian/index.html

It is actually higher than $50k for a family of four, the example family size being discussed in this thread. I spot checked the list and it seems that Arkansas is one of the lowest at $53k.

I do agree with your more recent post that a cruise with DCL is attainable if a family decides to make it a priority. That doesn't mean it is affordable though. Affordable implies a certain "value" proposition. I don't think DCL has positioned themselves as a value line, and I wouldn't want them to.

I'm not sure that's accurate, as there are a large number of people who do just that. Could "most" do an expensive Med sailing yearly on DCL? Probably not. But I do think that most families of four could sail in an inside cabin every year if they chose to do so.

OK ... a "large number" ... maybe ... but "most" ... NO WAY.

"Most" families of 4 can't even afford a vacation every year, let alone a cruise vacation every year and certainly not a DCL vacation every year.

DCL is expensive. We'll know if that expense was worth it when we return from our first DCL cruise to Alaska, now just over 30 days away!

Mind you this is not a knock on DCL. But if you really think that "most" can afford such a thing, you should probably read up on the medium income in America.

There is no question that Disney is an expensive brand and DCL is no exception to that. But you know what to expect with Disney and most agree that you are getting what you pay for. Our family is older now and everyone is a big Disney fan. We are finally booking our first DCL cruise. Most of the family has never been on a cruise before and when we gave everyone the choice of cruise lines and itineraries, it was DCL by a mile. Our chosen destination was Alaska aboard the Disney Wonder. By the time we pay for the airfare, cabins and shore excursions, the price is definately very high. It will probably be our last vacation as a family (kids are ages 16-22) so we figured we might as well go out right!

That's the real point. If you are planning on cruising anyway, the additional cost for the Disney experience is worth the price.

...your favorite spot to hang out on the ship? What was your favorite show/entertainment?

 

You are welcome to tell as much as you'd like; I love details! :)

Just got back from the Pacific Coastal on this ship.

We liked the Solarium! A little too hot at times but real near the outside if you want a little fresh air.

We spent some time in the card room but don't smoke so avoided the casino for long stints and were disappointed that the library offered cigar smoking in the evenings as it excluded us from that room if we wanted to find a quite place on the ship in the evening. So, we went back to the Solarium. Nice!

No matter what we say about the entertainment though won't mean much as this was the last cruise for much of the entertainment. They are putting in all new shows for the Alaska cruise.