Loyal to Royal, but would a one-off Disney be worthwhile?

[TBone2K]

Done many RC cruises as you can see in my sig. Comparing RC vs Disney. Same dates, 4 nights, private island and a stop at Nassau. Balcony room. The mouse is 3x the price. Have the best and brightest here tried? For a six year old, is it worth paying the extra for a one-off Disney cruise?

[poocher]

For 3x the price, sail Royal & use the difference to visit the Mouse.

[pyrateslife4me84]

With a six-year old, I think it’s worth it. Is that on the Wish? We are doing a 4-night on the Wish later this year. 

[smokeybandit]

I don't think it'd ever be worth it to pay that much for a cruise just for Mickey and Minnie.

[klfrodo]

There is no limit when it comes to the grandkids. Well, there is,,,, but 3x for a 6yo for Micky & Minnie? I'd do it in a heart beat.

[doppelganger2621]

I guess it depends—are your kids super into Disney? My kids were basically all but done with Mickey Mouse by age 4 or so. They like Disney, but meeting a character at Disney World wasn’t really that wild to them by age 6.

Edited June 13, 2022 by doppelganger2621

[crzndeb]

I did a 7 day Disney cruise back in 2016, when the grandkids were almost 3 and 4. It was magical, and they loved it, and it was a great cruise. My oldest daughter and granddaughter are Disney fanatics, and have continued to do a few more since then. You only live once and to me it is totally worth it. 
Everybody chooses how they spend their money, and I think some of those are nuts, but taking your grandchild on a Disney cruise is something you won’t ever regret.

[jalves]

yes, its worth it to try a different line.  Disney will be more expensive but it will be a different experience.  If you don't try it you'll never know if you like it.

[diesel1973]

Did a Disney cruise 5 years ago and I felt it was not worth the money. Did a RCCL cruise on the Freedom a year or 2 later. My 3 grandchildren loved it compared to Disney. Was to go on a cruise in 2020 and hands down they wanted Royal. Was cancelled cue to Covid, Should be greater now as they have revamped some of their ships. Asked TA why Disney is so expensive and she said you pay for the magic. She was right. They magically remove the money from your pockets!!!

[bjlbbk]

We did a family Disney cruise when our kids were 15 months, 3 and 5 years old. For us it was okay, but not worth the extra cost or anything we ever chose to repeat. Our kids had just as much fun (if not more) on our Royal cruises...and the adults had WAY more fun (and this is coming from true Disney fans that love all things Mickey). We had done a Royal cruise just three months before our Disney cruise and we spent our whole trip comparing the two. There was definitely a lack of entertainment and activities for the adults when we had down time (while the kids were in kid programs or sneaking in a nap with Grandpa). We still had fun, but It was not necessarily magical for us.

[Ourusualbeach]

I agree with others on the price.  3 nights in a balcony at over $2300 for 2 people seems pretty steep.  This is on the Wish in February. 

[RobInMN]

Back like 15+ years ago, when there was just Magic & Wonder, we did a multi-family Disney Cruise when all the kids were about 5-8? We thought it was a great experience, and I have always said since that if you can afford it, it's totally worth doing at least once. Even if you don't have kids.

[drb116]

Absolutely worth it, but even more so when your kids are a couple of years older. We have done many Disney and many Royal and have found that they offer much different things.

 

First, Disney is not just about the mouse. Yes there are characters on board, but that should not be your main reason for choosing a Disney Cruise.

 

We do Disney cruises because there are so many more family activities. Other cruise lines have lots of adult activities, lots of kids activities, but not as many things to do together as a family. This is where Disney shines. Things like family game shows, family karaoke, crafts, etc are part of it, but it goes beyond that with shows that are enjoyable for both kids and parents, dining rooms that engage kids while still having the nice touches for adults, and the ship features such as the AquaDuck and the AquaMouse. Castaway Cay has tons of family activities and water features that you don't have to pay for.

 

A cruise can be a lot of fun for a family, but we found Disney cruises create long lasting memories.

 

That said, Disney cruises tend to be all very similar. It is absolutely worth the price to do a few times, but we tend to mix in a few Royal Caribbean cruises for every Disney that we do just to help keep it fresh.

Edited June 13, 2022 by drb116

[Mapleleafforever]

1 hour ago, TBone2K said:

Done many RC cruises as you can see in my sig. Comparing RC vs Disney. Same dates, 4 nights, private island and a stop at Nassau. Balcony room. The mouse is 3x the price. Have the best and brightest here tried? For a six year old, is it worth paying the extra for a one-off Disney cruise?

We priced out Disney before and just couldn't justify paying that much compared with Royal. 

[orville99]

2 hours ago, TBone2K said:

Done many RC cruises as you can see in my sig. Comparing RC vs Disney. Same dates, 4 nights, private island and a stop at Nassau. Balcony room. The mouse is 3x the price. Have the best and brightest here tried? For a six year old, is it worth paying the extra for a one-off Disney cruise?

No.

[powelweb]

We did one 4 day Disney cruise 10+ years ago when our kid was young, even though we usually cruise Royal. What I remember most beyond just so many kids everywhere was that there seemed to be more "me and my kid first" attitude which I attributed to the pricing level- people who didn't usually cruise were on board because it was Disney, and they wanted to get their money's worth.

 

I had said we would only do a 7 night or longer if we did Disney again, but we haven't.

 

I did love the shows- they were magical for sure.

[alohayall]

We started cruising with Disney. My latest cruise was with Disney.  My next cruise is on MSC - principally for the price.  Only one RC cruise (Allure) so far.  That was 8 years ago.  Will be trying RC again in the next year or so.  (They have my money from a cancelled cruise, so not a matter of if, but when).

 

Price is the hardest thing to swallow for Disney.  All things Disney, including a theme park vacation.  
 

But I also don’t routinely book Suites or Concierge. It’s even hard for me to pay extra for a balcony.  I always look at the extra cost as “that could be a whole extra cruise - or more.”  What something is worth is so individualized.

 

If I had a six yo who was into Disney characters, possibly enjoyed hanging out with other kids (or really, just spending time together as a family), I would pick Disney.  The ship is kid friendly. But it’s not adult unfriendly - depending on what kind of adult you are.

 

I love the main theater production shows. But I also spent money to see The Lion King on stage.  I enjoy new movies put out by Disney and Marvel. They are shown in a proper movie theater.

 

The decor of the ship is beautiful - more like an upscale hotel than the shopping mall look of the Allure.  
 

No drinks packages, no adult parties by the pool (they show Disney movies all day on the Jumbotron above the kids pool.). There is an dedicated adult pool area. There are plenty of bars. 
 

No casino = no wafting of smoke into the Promenade (this could have changed since I sailed on Allure.)

 

The private island is very much a private tropical beach.  No plastic water park.  Sand, clear water, one water feature.  A dedicated adult beach.  Peaceful.  Plenty of free loungers and umbrellas.  
 

…But I would recommend the Magic or Wonder if the price is better. The small ships are cozy but big enough.  Less walking for little legs.  
 

I’ve got 19 Disney cruises under my belt.  Will consider doing more when I am in the mood for another beach vacation.

 

 

[cloud_nine]

It depends on what you think is worth it. The food and service is leaps and bounds ahead of Royal (they're also amazing with allergies/intolerances), the entertainment is just as good (you even get a show with dinner in certain restaurants!) and you have to remember that soft drinks and room service is included on Disney (which are generally extra on Royal). Even the alcoholic drinks and specialty coffees are a reasonable price! Plus you can bring 2 bottles of wine/champagne on per person at every port, which certainly helps to balance the cost of alcohol, if you drink. The rooms are slightly bigger on Disney too, and the split bathroom is lovely. However, there are a couple of things I didn't like about Disney, in that in order to book certain things (Shore EX, Alcohol tastings, etc) if you were a first time cruiser, you had to wait until all their loyalty members had booked theirs first, so by the time you could book, a lot of things were booked up. Their IT department could also rival RCI's (absolutely awful!) and with everyone checking in/booking their shore ex, tastings, arrival times etc all at once (it opens at a certain time on a certain day and it's all go, go, go!) the website crashed quite a few times! Ultimately, it's up to you to decide if it's worth it. I'm not sure I would pay 3x the price tbh, but I don't have a 6 year old. 

[Jimbo]

My Wife and I have done 1 Disney Cruise, it was so worth  it just for a different experience then from Royal.

[renza]

We did Disney once. That was enough, for the price we did not find it worth it at all. We can go on oasis class ships for a week for less than what Disney wants for 3 days. Not even close to worth it. 

[time4u2go]

Yes. Definitely do it. You'll be glad you did. 

[CariBear]

After 19 Disney cruises....I can say it's worth it. However, my family loves Disney. I often go on DCL with my girlfriends as we love the adult only areas....and again, we are all huge Disney fans. The shows are amazing, and the service has been the best we have received. If you are a Disney loving family, then I would say go! The Oceanear's Club for your 6 year old is amazing!!! The Disney Dream out of Miami will be the best price-wise as the Disney Wish is a brand new ship that has very high demand right now. I have been on the Dream 11 times....same itinerary each time....so if you would like any advice or help, please feel free to DM me.

[Cutigerlady]

We cruised with Disney first and it wasn’t for my family (9 & 5).  My kids were not a fan of the kids club, said it’s loud and very chaotic. There are kids screaming everywhere you turn and long lines for the characters.  We thought the shows were comparable, as well as the service.  We felt that everywhere we turned someone was trying to sell us something - a drink, souvenir bag, etc. 

 

We prefer Coco Cay over their island.  They were selling a bag of water for $30 and that instantly made my kids thirsty and no where could we find free water!  My husband walked back to the 5k course to get them a drink. 
 

I had to do a lot of selling to get my husband back on a cruise ship. We’ve been on 3 with Royal and have a 4th booked.  My family had annual passes to Disney and we went all the time, but the cruise just wasn’t for us. 

[Tee & Chilli]

3 hours ago, TBone2K said:

Done many RC cruises as you can see in my sig. Comparing RC vs Disney. Same dates, 4 nights, private island and a stop at Nassau. Balcony room. The mouse is 3x the price. Have the best and brightest here tried? For a six year old, is it worth paying the extra for a one-off Disney cruise?

Are you aware Disney has stopped the characters at the park and possibly cruises also. You may want to do some research. I was at the parks last week. No characters, no parades, no fireworks. Fireworks on cruises 15 minutes max.

[time4u2go]

4 minutes ago, Tee & Chilli said:

Are you aware Disney has stopped the characters at the park and possibly cruises also. You may want to do some research. I was at the parks last week. No characters, no parades, no fireworks. Fireworks on cruises 15 minutes max.

https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2022/03/disney-character-greetings-returning-to-u-s-sites-this-spring/#:~:text=As early as April 18,share a laugh with Goofy.