Mom's comparison of RCCL,NCL, and Disney

[melinda0222]

Let me start by telling a little about myself. I am a mother to 3 boys(11,9,7) and I have gone on 9 cruises total. I have had the privilege of beingon the Disney Dream, Norweigan Getaway, and RCCL Independence of the Seas in the last 15 months. I feel like I have a unique opportunity to compare the 3 from a mothers perspective. This is just my opinion and observations, to help other parents.

 

 

My first comparison will come directly from my boys and it involves the kids clubs. My boys enjoyed all 3 kids clubs but the Disney's kids club blows the rest out of the park. The amount of activities and the type of activities were better. The fact that Disney lets my kids play together is an additional bonus. The actual kids club is much bigger on Disney. From a parents perspective Disney's kids club has a lot of advantages. The first, and biggest, is that it doesn't close down during the day. Both NCL and RCCL only keep their kids club open for 3-4 hours at a time. It seemed like everytime my husband and I finally got relaxed, one of us would have to leave to go get the kids. We don't stick the kids in the club and then forget about them for the rest of the day, but we do enjoy the freedom that comes with deciding when to take the kids out. In addition both RCCL and NCL charge a fee after 10pm per kid and Disney does not. I also like the GPS's they put on the kids, to make it easier to find them. Don't get me wrong my kids enjoyed all the kids club but Disney was better.

 

 

The next comparison is the food. We have enjoyed the specialty restaurants on all 3 ships and we believe that it is most definitely worth every dollar we spent. Let me also tell you that my husband and I enjoy food. We feel like good food is essential in vacation. We have also stayed at multiple different all inclusive resorts, so I feel like we have a pretty good idea on the limitations that cruise ships face in feeding the masses. I just recently got off IOS so my opinion of the food is very fresh in my mind. Let me state that I seem to remember feeling like the main dining room food was average on both Disney and NCL. I don't remember being overly impressed but I wasn't disappointed either. However I was disappointed in IOS food. I definitely felt like they didn't deliver average to good cruise food. My Mom was also on IOS and she has more than 35 days with RCCL and has gone on numerous other cruise lines and she felt the same way I did. I do feel like food is very individual to the ship, so I wouldn't base my dislike of the IOS food on all RCCL ships. My personal opinion, as we continue to go on other cruises, is to do more specialty restaurants.

 

 

Along the line of the food, is how you dine. On Disney you rotate restaurants with your severs. This is great for the younger kids as each dining room is unique. On NCL you have freestyle. You decide where and when you want to eat. On the Getaway they had 5 free main dining rooms, all a little different. I loved, loved the fact that you could not make reservations at the main dining room. You show up when you want. I recall only ever having a wait at 1 restaurant and we left and went to another dining room that had no wait. On IOS they have my time dining. I felt like there was a pressure, with a family of 5, to make a reservation time 2 months before we left. I felt like if you didn't have a reservation and wanted to eat during “busy” times you would be waiting. I have to say I strongly disliked this. I loved being free to eat when and where I wanted to dine. NCL wins this hands down for me. We also felt like the lunch options were very limited on IOS compared to NCL and Disney. In general I preferred the food on NCL over the other two. The Getaway had 20+ restaurants on board and we really enjoyed the variety.

 

 

The entertainment is my next comparison. The general nightly shows are significantly better on Disney. There really is no comparison. The talent, show, production,etc... just makes Disney shine. I will say that I felt like RCCL had better small acts. I really enjoyed the live band that we found on IOS. Don't remember finding that on NCL or Disney. Disney has less adult shows than the other two lines. I really feel like this area is a wash between the 3 lines. I feel like what you find and do is subjective to each ship and to each person. However if you want a big nightly production that can be enjoyed by all, Disney will not disappoint.

 

 

My last comparison is the actual ship. So in this case I am comparing the Dream, Getaway, and IOS. I also recognize that the Getaway was a brand new ship when we went on it. The Dream and IOS are a little older, but by no means old, so I feel like comparing these 3 is fair. Each ship had its pluses and minuses. The IOS had really great kids pools. My kids loved being able to swim in a pool. The NCL and Disney don't have the best pools. The NCL had 5 water slides. The water slides were amazing and enjoyed by my older two, husband, and my self. Everyone also enjoyed the Aquaduct but after that there wasn't much in the way of pool area for Disney. This is a toss up between IOS and Getaway. It all depends on weather you prefer slides or pools. The adult only areas on the Dream are amazing. They are secluded and virtually empty, so it is a really great area on the ship. The Getaway has an area called the Vibe, which is amazing. Yes it costs and there are limited tickets sold, but if you are lucky enough to get them, it is like you are on your own ship. There is a private area of comfortable chairs with umbrellas, bar, and hot tub all with an amazing view. The IOS adults only area was not secluded and people could walk through it. It was really crowded. It was a disappointment for my husband and myself. Disney doesn't have a rock climbing wall or any other things to do on the ship. There big draw is all the characters. So if you have kids that are of the age where the characters are important, than this is huge draw. The Getaway had so many amazing things to do. We were huge fans of the ropes course, rock climbing wall, trampoline bungy jumping. My older two kids were never board while on board the Getaway. My youngest was 6 at the time and I think he would have enjoyed the characters a little more. The IOS had some fun things, but it seems like all there things had long lines and were not meant for my kids ages. The rock climbing wall was better on IOS, taller. IOS has the flowrider, which didn't do a lot for my kids. In fact my youngest couldn't do it at all. There was an ice skating ring, but we never made it there other than the ice show. In general we as a family preferred the Getaway when comparing ships.

 

 

I hope this helps out others who are trying to make a decision. In general my advice is that if you have younger children and price isn't a huge sticking point, then Disney all the way. You and your kids will enjoy your time more. Disney just does a better job of taking care of the young ones, which in turn makes your vacation better. If your kids are getting older 8 and up then consider the Getaway. The ship itself has so much to offer, and the freestyle dining makes vacation more enjoyable. I can not recommend the IOS. While we had a good time, there were too many things we didn't enjoy. Maybe going on one of RCCL newest ships would be a very different experience than IOS? Remember this is just my opinion. Feel free to ask questions and I will do my best answer them.

Edited February 21, 2016 by melinda0222

[Biker19]

Let me start by telling a little about myself. I am a mother to 3 boys(11,9,7) and I have gone on 9 cruises total. I have had the privilege of beingon the Disney Dream, Norweigan Getaway, and RCCL Independence of the Seas in the last 15 months. I feel like I have a unique opportunity to compare the 3 from a mothers perspective. This is just my opinion and observations, to help other parents.

 

 

My first comparison will come directly from my boys and it involves the kids clubs. My boys enjoyed all 3 kids clubs but the Disney's kids club blows the rest out of the park. The amount of activities and the type of activities were better. The fact that Disney lets my kids play together is an additional bonus. The actual kids club is much bigger on Disney. From a parents perspective Disney's kids club has a lot of advantages. The first, and biggest, is that it doesn't close down during the day. Both NCL and RCCL only keep their kids club open for 3-4 hours at a time. It seemed like everytime my husband and I finally got relaxed, one of us would have to leave to go get the kids. We don't stick the kids in the club and then forget about them for the rest of the day, but we do enjoy the freedom that comes with deciding when to take the kids out. In addition both RCCL and NCL charge a fee after 10pm per kid and Disney does not. I also like the GPS's they put on the kids, to make it easier to find them. Don't get me wrong my kids enjoyed all the kids club but Disney was better.

 

 

The next comparison is the food. We have enjoyed the specialty restaurants on all 3 ships and we believe that it is most definitely worth every dollar we spent. Let me also tell you that my husband and I enjoy food. We feel like good food is essential in vacation. We have also stayed at multiple different all inclusive resorts, so I feel like we have a pretty good idea on the limitations that cruise ships face in feeding the masses. I just recently got off IOS so my opinion of the food is very fresh in my mind. Let me state that I seem to remember feeling like the main dining room food was average on both Disney and NCL. I don't remember being overly impressed but I wasn't disappointed either. However I was disappointed in IOS food. I definitely felt like they didn't deliver average to good cruise food. My Mom was also on IOS and she has more than 35 days with RCCL and has gone on numerous other cruise lines and she felt the same way I did. I do feel like food is very individual to the ship, so I wouldn't base my dislike of the IOS food on all RCCL ships. My personal opinion, as we continue to go on other cruises, is to do more specialty restaurants.

 

 

Along the line of the food, is how you dine. On Disney you rotate restaurants with your severs. This is great for the younger kids as each dining room is unique. On NCL you have freestyle. You decide where and when you want to eat. On the Getaway they had 5 free main dining rooms, all a little different. I loved, loved the fact that you could not make reservations at the main dining room. You show up when you want. I recall only ever having a wait at 1 restaurant and we left and went to another dining room that had no wait. On IOS they have my time dining. I felt like there was a pressure, with a family of 5, to make a reservation time 2 months before we left. I felt like if you didn't have a reservation and wanted to eat during “busy” times you would be waiting. I have to say I strongly disliked this. I loved being free to eat when and where I wanted to dine. NCL wins this hands down for me. We also felt like the lunch options were very limited on IOS compared to NCL and Disney. In general I preferred the food on NCL over the other two. The Getaway had 20+ restaurants on board and we really enjoyed the variety.

 

 

The entertainment is my next comparison. The general nightly shows are significantly better on Disney. There really is no comparison. The talent, show, production,etc... just makes Disney shine. I will say that I felt like RCCL had better small acts. I really enjoyed the live band that we found on IOS. Don't remember finding that on NCL or Disney. Disney has less adult shows than the other two lines. I really feel like this area is a wash between the 3 lines. I feel like what you find and do is subjective to each ship and to each person. However if you want a big nightly production that can be enjoyed by all, Disney will not disappoint.

 

 

My last comparison is the actual ship. So in this case I am comparing the Dream, Getaway, and IOS. I also recognize that the Getaway was a brand new ship when we went on it. The Dream and IOS are a little older, but by no means old, so I feel like comparing these 3 is fair. Each ship had its pluses and minuses. The IOS had really great kids pools. My kids loved being able to swim in a pool. The NCL and Disney don't have the best pools. The NCL had 5 water slides. The water slides were amazing and enjoyed by my older two, husband, and my self. Everyone also enjoyed the Aquaduct but after that there wasn't much in the way of pool area for Disney. This is a toss up between IOS and Getaway. It all depends on weather you prefer slides or pools. The adult only areas on the Dream are amazing. They are secluded and virtually empty, so it is a really great area on the ship. The Getaway has an area called the Vibe, which is amazing. Yes it costs and there are limited tickets sold, but if you are lucky enough to get them, it is like you are on your own ship. There is a private area of comfortable chairs with umbrellas, bar, and hot tub all with an amazing view. The IOS adults only area was not secluded and people could walk through it. It was really crowded. It was a disappointment for my husband and myself. Disney doesn't have a rock climbing wall or any other things to do on the ship. There big draw is all the characters. So if you have kids that are of the age where the characters are important, than this is huge draw. The Getaway had so many amazing things to do. We were huge fans of the ropes course, rock climbing wall, trampoline bungy jumping. My older two kids were never board while on board the Getaway. My youngest was 6 at the time and I think he would have enjoyed the characters a little more. The IOS had some fun things, but it seems like all there things had long lines and were not meant for my kids ages. The rock climbing wall was better on IOS, taller. IOS has the flowrider, which didn't do a lot for my kids. In fact my youngest couldn't do it at all. There was an ice skating ring, but we never made it there other than the ice show. In general we as a family preferred the Getaway when comparing ships.

 

 

I hope this helps out others who are trying to make a decision. In general my advice is that if you have younger children and price isn't a huge sticking point, then Disney all the way. You and your kids will enjoy your time more. Disney just does a better job of taking care of the young ones, which in turn makes your vacation better. If your kids are getting older 8 and up then consider the Getaway. The ship itself has so much to offer, and the freestyle dining makes vacation more enjoyable. I can not recommend the IOS. While we had a good time, there were too many things we didn't enjoy. Maybe going on one of RCCL newest ships would be a very different experience than IOS? Remember this is just my opinion. Feel free to ask questions and I will do my best answer them.

 

Might read easier for others.

[Clarea]

Thanks for sharing your views.