Just Booked a Disney Cruise!

[Ship's Wake]

We thoroughly enjoyed our Disney Trans Atlantic sailing we took this past April. Disney excels in paying attention to small details that cumulatively make the difference between a good cruise and a memorable cruise.

 

Having sailed 31 days on Holland America versus 14 days on Disney, here is what we found:

 

Disney Cruise Line Strengths

-attention to detail

-entertainment. Remember, Disney is an entertainment company. The number of activities for families and adults onboard far surpassses what HAL now offers. Fantastic production shows, comedians, live performers, piano player, three piece band, game shows, karaoke, trivia, behind the scenes ship tours, cooking classes, a dedicated movie theater playing recent Disney movies (some in 3D), big screen Disney movies under the stars by the family pool midship, Disney character greetings each evening if you are interested, evening deck parties, fireworks at sea, and guest lectures by experts including Disney Imagineers on our cruise. There was plenty of excellent entertainment options every day.

-Disney Magic ship has a nautical theme similar to HAL, with a Art Deco theme from the 1930's (the Disney Wonder has an Art Noveau theme). We found the decor to be a step above the Holland America ships we have sailed on.

-full wrap around promenade deck with plenty of deck chairs on Disney Magic and Disney Wonder

-adults only pool area that is large enough to accomodate the adult passengers who wish to relax there

-a fun atmosphere onboard.

-Palo specialty dining, including dinner, tea, and brunch. We would rate Palo comparable to the Pinnacle Grill. Make sure you reserve a brunch, it was outstanding.

-service is very friendly and very experienced. Many DCL employees have been on the same two ships for years. The lack of turnover shows through in the quality experience onboard. Keep in mind that the new Disney Dream launches early 2011, and will need to be staffed with employees from the Disney Magic and Disney Wonder. By the time you sail in the fall 2011 their replacements should have been had enough experience where this may not be an issue at all.

 

Disney Weaknesses versus HAL

-food in the mdr was better on HAL than Disney. Disney's target market is families, and their dining selection shows this. If you cruise to eat, then you may be disappointed.

-lack of a Crow's Nest area. This will not be a problem for your Trans Atlantic sailing. The Disney ships were designed for warm weather cruising. I would not take a Disney cruise ship to Alaska due to the lack of a forward observation lounge and a retractable dome over the pool.

-deck chairs are plastic and very basic, not at all like the HAL ones.

-HAL has a much better disembarkation process. Disney assigns you to an early or later disembarkation time based on your evening dining time and requires everyone to vacate their staterooms by 8am.

 

We give DCL high marks and found the design and decor of their ships to be outstanding. As long as you understand that their target market is families and don't mind the Mouse and his friends being onboard, you should have a wonderful time.

[Oceanwench]

Great post, Oysterdam!

 

That is the great thing about a HAL cruiser posting about another line -- you know what we all come to expect from HAL, and you can provide insight on how the other line compares.

 

Where else can we get that but here on the HAL boards?!!! Thank you!

[AlexandNessa]

I should turn on signatures, but which ship are you on?

If you've booked the equivalent of a PH on HAL, I am guessing you are in the 1-BR (Cat 3 aka Cat T) on Disney. If you are on the Dream, you will indeed have a concierge lounge.

If you are on the Wonder or Magic, concierge will visit you every day and drop off goodies, and the concierge is only a phone call away if you need a thing. And they can do anything.

There are things we prefer about HAL (itinieraries, suite perks, HMC) and things we prefer about Disney (entertainment, younger demographic, extremely personable staff, 2 full baths in 1BR suites).

One big perk of Disney? Honest to God, they do not care what kind or how much alcohol you bring aboard. Carry it right on. My husband brings a case of Coors Lite to keep it in the room.

We have been on 6 or 7 HAL cruises. We've been on 3 DCL and have 3 more booked. Our next cruise is Disney's 14-night Westbound Transatlantic in September.

If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask!

[AlexandNessa]

Ok, I turned on signatures. I see you are in the Roy Suite on the WBTA for 2011. That explains why you think Disney is cheap! There are very few bargains on Disney, and their Transatlantics are among them (unless you are a FL resident or military, their specials are few and far between).

We are in a Cat 3 (aka Cat T) for this year's WBTA, and I can tell you we only paid $400 more for this 2-week than we did on a run-of-the-mill one week Caribbean on Disney 5/2008. If you look at their Caribbean, Bahamas, AK, and some of their Baltic cruises, or even if you compare suites on HAL v. Disney in their Mexican Riviera cruises, they are no bargain.

We are the same age, and we also have 100+ days on HAL. :)

[Crusing Bob]

AlexandNessa, that explains some things for me because Melinda and I did two 7 day cruises on the Magic and our verandah cabin was at least $2000 more than our Superior Suite cabin for three years running on the Westerdam. Also, Melinda took a 4 day cruise(which I had no interest in) and she got soaked on cost for an inside cabin which again cost more than a 7 day on Holland. We both like Disney but I prefer Holland and so does Melinda when we travel together.

[iceman93]

Ok, I turned on signatures. I see you are in the Roy Suite on the WBTA for 2011. That explains why you think Disney is cheap! There are very few bargains on Disney, and their Transatlantics are among them (unless you are a FL resident or military, their specials are few and far between).

 

We are in a Cat 3 (aka Cat T) for this year's WBTA, and I can tell you we only paid $400 more for this 2-week than we did on a run-of-the-mill one week Caribbean on Disney 5/2008. If you look at their Caribbean, Bahamas, AK, and some of their Baltic cruises, or even if you compare suites on HAL v. Disney in their Mexican Riviera cruises, they are no bargain.

 

We are the same age, and we also have 100+ days on HAL. :)

 

Yes, I've now done a little more poking around and pricing of Disney cruises and see what you mean. I almost can't imagine why the ocean crossings are so cheap! If, as one previous poster put it "you sail HAL for the destinations and Disney for the experience" then the best Disney cruise would be the longest one with the most sea days.

 

We are active military AND Florida residents, but those discounts only seem to help with lower category cabins and the short itineraries. I guess there's enough demand for the suites that Disney doesn't see the need to discount them at all.

 

Regarding cruise pricing in general, I suppose I've seen similar, seemingly inexplicable variations in HAL pricing too. Some cruises are just bargains and others are exorbitant. It must be supply and demand at work, but I guess I'm out of synch with what the general public wants--I'm often really interested in the cruises they seem to discount, which works out well for my family!

 

I'll really be looking forward to your review and impressions of the WBTA you're taking in a couple of months, AlexandNessa. Since our cruise is basically the same one, one year later, you should be able to tell us a lot about what to expect!

[AlexandNessa]

Don't get me started on Disney's suite pricing. :D Since they are nonrefundable, we have moved several cruises instead of cancelling them and losing our deposits. Tends to be a pain. Should you ever decide to take advantage of military/FL resident discounts and do a "taster" cruise as I call them, here is my advice: because DCL suite pricing is outrageous AND non-refundable, on their run-of-the-mill cruises, port upgrades are readily available AND cheap. Sure, you lose the pre-boarding concierge perks, but trust me .... on those short cruises unless you get a big group on your cruise from a certain other message board, the concierge can take care of any request for you.

The other popular discount that Disney offers is "kids sail free." Hubby and I don't have kids so we miss out on this too. DCL priced their Mexican Riviera cruises and Baltic cruises sky high, and so this was the offer to fill the ships. DCL does not discount fares across the board, unless it's the lowest inside cabin category.

Anyway, sea days on Disney v. sea days on HAL are a hands-down Disney for us, and this is the reason that we booked their WBTA: five 25-hour sea days in a row. Heaven on earth for us.

Yes, you will probably miss HAL food. And Palo is good, not great. DCL food is hardly terrible, but HAL has the upper-hand. So does HAL wrt bedding. But the entertainment on Disney cannot be beat. And Pirate Night is one of my favorite nights ever.

Happy planning!

[iceman93]

Thanks again, AlexandNessa. We *do* enjoy the food on HAL, although I have to admit on our most recent Westerdam crossing we found the MDR food to be a bit more commoditized than in the past while the PG was far and away the best we'd experienced. We are really looking forward to rotational dining and hope that Palo gives just a tiny bit of that Victoria & Albert's experience to our cruise.

 

Keep it coming--this is great!