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Musings on a first time Disney cruise


dateacher
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Background - Grandfather, Grandmother (me), two sons, two DILs and three grandchildren, Boy 6, Boy 4, Girl 1. Adults are all veteran cruisers on other lines

 

I loved it!. I did this trip for my kids and was surprised how much I really loved it. I like Disney but I'm not a Disney freak. We all got into the spirit however (even grandpa who obliged by being one of the Seven Dwarfs - Grumpy).

 

One son and his family went in the day before and spent it at Disney World. We got there early the day before and just hung out at our hotel and Disney Springs. It made getting from airport to hotel to ship a breeze.

 

The food was as good or better than any other cruise I have been on (Carnival, HAL, NCL, RC).

Shows were the best of any cruise, including the wonderful new Beauty and the Beast.

 

Service was great although I'm not sure if it's any better than other lines. Going on Celebrity in two months so I can have a better idea.

 

Kids loved the water rides at CC and on the ship. The even got me to go down one of the rides at CC.

 

We originally booked ocean view cabins but switched at the last minute because the price wasn't too bad and my kids thought it would give them a place to hang late at night when their kids went to bed. Not sure how much they actually used it but we did.

 

The kids club was great although my grandsons didn't use it as much as I thought they would. There were enough adults to keep then busy.

 

Granddaughter went to the nursery a couple of times. It worked out great although it was a little expensive compared to the free kids club. Both the nursery and kids club are so well run.

 

Things I wish Disney did differently - they need a pool for kids in diapers. The concept of no diapers in the pool doesn't work because they had to shut one pool because of a kid NOT in diapers. Another day at CC instead of Nassau. We really enjoyed it. Finally, I would love a drink package. I haven't looked at my final bill yet. I don't want to ruin the high from the trip.

 

The only thing I would do differently is not take my family until the youngest child is 3. While my grandaughter had a good time (as far as I could tell), she won't remember it and her schedule was a little more inflexible (although she rocked one of the shows while her cousin slept.)

 

All in all, a great trip. I'm sure we will go back but not for a few years (until all the other grandchildren are born). Thanks for all of the tips from the experts on here.

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Things I wish Disney did differently - they need a pool for kids in diapers. The concept of no diapers in the pool doesn't work because they had to shut one pool because of a kid NOT in diapers. Another day at CC instead of Nassau. We really enjoyed it. Finally, I would love a drink package. I haven't looked at my final bill yet. I don't want to ruin the high from the trip....

 

All in all, a great trip. I'm sure we will go back but not for a few years (until all the other grandchildren are born). Thanks for all of the tips from the experts on here.

They have Nemo's Reef (splash zone) for those in diapers. It has it's own water supply/drain system. It's not a DCL thing, it's a CDC thing. There are no public pool facilities that allow kids in diapers. So, DCL really can't "do" anything about allowing kids in diapers in the actual pools.

 

DCL does do double dip cruises (two stops at Castaway Cay), on occasion.

 

Only "drink packages" on DCL are the wine and beer packages. They apparently don't feel the need to sell packages that allow lots of (alcoholic) drinking.

 

Glad you enjoyed your cruise. We, obviously, love DCL cruising.

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They did use the splash zone and enjoyed it. My granddaughter can't really walk so she had to have someone hold her hands to walk through the spalsh zone. She spent a lot of time crawling around it.

 

I didn't realize all cruise lines had that the rule. I never needed to know before now.

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thanks for sharing your review!!

i'm looking forward to taking our grandkids when they get a little older (they're 2 and 3 now with another one on the way)..

 

we did a big family WDW vacation in august (3 weeks at saratoga springs) and had a wonderful time...

after my son and his family returned home, my daughter, son in law, husband and i went on the Dream for 3 days..

all four of us said the wee ones would have had fun on the ship too...

so that's something we will definitely do in the future....

probably on a DCL med cruise, since that's much closer to us and easier for us to get to..

 

.

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I'm sure I will think of more things as the days go by. We did think the spa and exercise area were not as good as other cruise lines. The massages were ok according to those who had them but they couldn't use the other facilities for free, something most spas allow. I usually like to exercise in the ship's gym. It's nice to be able to look out (usually) to the ocean. This one just didn't have the same feel and it was really warm in there. Normally, I don't notice the temperature in the gym, just know when I am getting hot from exercise. This room was warm and stuffy. They needed to up the a/c. I gave up and walked the deck which is something I should do anyway when on a ship.

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Only time will tell if your granddaughter will remember. I took my son on the dream when he as a few months shy of 2 yo. Everyone told me he wouldn’t remember. My stance was that he would live in moment AND I would take a lot of pictures. He’s five now and Believe it or not he remembers. He often asks me to go on the “Mickey Boat” again. He says that we slept in a hotel and had breakfast. He also remembers pirate night.

 

He went to the nursery and they loved him and said he assisted with other kids when they cried. At age 3, I took him on a NCL cruise and he wouldn’t stay in the club for more than 30 minutes, lol. We have an upcoming cruise so we’ll see how he fairs in the kids club on Disney;)

 

 

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Shmoo--the "no kids in diapers" is a USPH regulation, not CDC. Not that it really matters. Bottom line is that it is a government regulation.

 

A 3 year old may well not be comfortable in the Oceaneer's Club--something many parents have reported. They are young and sometimes overwhelmed by the atmosphere, the number and ages of kids, etc. Others do great. And we had times at 8 or 9 when my daughter loved the Lab and other times when it wasn't a hit. It depended on the CMs, the kid group, and whether she made a friend in the first day or two.

 

As to an adult beverage package--DCL does allow each adult to bring on wine or beer, which most lines do not. Honestly, I'm glad they don't have an unlimited package. I don't see nearly as many adults over-indulging on DCL as I do on some other lines, which may be due to that card swipe each time. They do have the beer mug deal and the coffee punch card.

 

Yes, the nursery is expensive. On the other hand, an "under 3" pays 1/2 of the cruise fare portion of the ticket that a 3-12 year old does. That difference pays for many hours in the nursery, while the older kid fare includes the kid programming.

 

There are things that we love about DCL, and things we prefer on other lines.

 

Thanks for a good review.

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