Which would you do and Why?

[ssatterly]

3 days on the Ship and 4 days at Disney or 4 days at sea and 3 days at the parks? My kids have never been on a cruise or to Disney? How long does it really take to see all of Disney not counting Epcot. My kids are a bit to youg for that park?

[pvangordon]

I did the 7 day land/sea package last year, with 4 days at the parks and 3 on the cruise. I highly recommend this setup, which I believe schedules you at the park first, then you do the cruise at the end. It was wonderful to start off at the parks when I had a lot of energy, and when that part of the trip was coming to an end, I had something more to look forward to. It was also great to do something very relaxing after running around each of the parks for 4 days.

 

If this is your kids' first trip to Disney, I think it would be more fun for them to get the park experience. The cruise is just an extra goodie!

 

As for the parks themselves, I don't have kids so I can't really say what it takes. Hubby and I would usually head to a park in the late morning, see the attractions we wanted to see, then head back in the late afternoon for a nap and dinner somewhere else. I thought we'd be running around crazed, trying to fit everything into the time we had, but it was actually quite well-paced. You'll have a pool at your hotel where the kids can swim in the afternoon; there are also the water parks. You may also find that they'll love certain parks so much, you'll want to split them up into 2 half days to see everything.

[gizfish]

How much time it takes you to do Animal Kindgdom, MGM and the Magic Kingdom depends on how much of each you expect to be (and your kids insist on) seeing. It also depends on the time of year you will be there since at some times, the parks close around 7:00, and at some times the crowds are so bad that to see all you want would take longer. I suggest you get "The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World" by Bob Sehlinger so that you can get an excellent overall idea about what to see, where to stay, what to eat, and how long it will all take. If it is at all possible, you may want to schedule an extra day for the land portion of the trip and do four days on land and the four day cruise. That is the best of both worlds, but of course with Disney's prices, it can be expensive.

[crystalloubear]

If you have never been to Disney before, 4 days would be really pushing it to see it ALL even NOT including Epcot (there are things in Epcot for children). We go to Disney a couple times a year usually (our son is now 4 and has been there 5 times) and it is always changing, but one thing that always remains a constant is this - Do not become a theme park commando. By this I mean trying to squeeze it all in to 4 days and ending up just being really tired by the end of the trip and all you remember is rushing around. My advice to you would be to buy a good Disney guide book such as Passporter:A guide to Walt Disney World. go to http://www.passporter.com They offer sample touring plans for different age groups, but do not just stick to their plans. Read the entire book and decide ahead of time what you would really like to see. A loose plan will help you see what you want to see and not waste your valuable vacation time trying to decide what to do next.

[ruvidu]

This would be my advice. Check and get your best price on the 4 day cruise and the get your best price on a less expensive on site hotel such as All Star Movies. You may find you can do more than the 7 days and have the best of both worlds. Disney has too much control over which hotels and staterooms you can stay in on these packages. We know. We went the inaugral year. You may want to check at disboards.com for some super info on just this thing as well.

Russ

[Druke I]

We chose the 4 day cruise, which was preceded by three days at the park.

 

We had been to Disneyworld before, knew what we wanted to do there, and were interested mainly in the ship experience.

 

Had we never been to the park before, I am sure we would have done 4 days at the park, with a 3 day cruise.

 

Michael

[cynnomore]

I would choose the 3 days park/ 4 days cruise for this one simple reason...food expense!

 

During the 3 days at the park-you would have to pay for your own food-which can be expensive with breakfast/lunch and dinner. Meanwhile, food is included in your price for the cruise. Depending on how large your party is, the 4 day cruise option may be the more economical choice, food-wise.

[Chloe Girl]

ssatterly:

 

Will definitely do the 3 day land / 4 day sea again!!

 

There is so much at the parks to explore!

 

The last cruise was a 7 day on another cruise line with 3 sea days...got to be a little boring!

 

V&M

[MickeyMark]

We went through this same delima, and opted for the 7 day cruise. We just knew that we'd be kicking ourselves if we only went for 3 or 4 days.

[BambiRumsey]

We also had the same challenge but ended up booking a 7 day cruise (we REALLY enjoy cruising). We will spend Saturday night after the cruise at the WDW Dolphin and our flight does not leave until 8pm on Sunday. We got a 2 day park hopper tickets. Since our daughter is only 5, we plan concentrate on Magic Kingdom. If we should get through everything on Saturday we will have Sunday to explore MGM or Epcot or Animal Kingdom a little bit or finish Magic Kingdom if we don't see everything on Saturday.

 

I think financially we will come out spending less than if we did the shorter cruise with a park stay or if we did a week long park stay. Hannah will see Princesses and characters on board (all she really cares about) and she will get a chance to ride some rides. For me personally, I go to Disney because it is Disney, not for the rides really and we will get the "Disney" experience on board.

[Julia’s Journey’s]

Our first cruise was a 4 night and after that we decided our shortest would be 7 as on the 3 & 4 night, before you have unpacked and relaxed it's time to pack and leave, we have been to disneyworld lots of times, spent a week at a time doing the parks without the hectic experience as there is so much to do, now we alternate between the cruise and the parks as, as the kids get older they appreciate different things at the parks. Friends do the 3/4cruise and love it.

Whatever you choose make it based on your family preference, cost and vacation time available.

Julia

[karen2cruz]

We did the 7day land/sea package and loved it. It really takes a week to see all of Disney World, for first timers. This time was our 3rd time at the park, so we really knew where we wanted to go and what could be missed. It was very nice to end the vacation on a relaxing cruise. Disney has crowd control to a science, and I never felt rushed on the cruise.

[sharod]

We did the 4 day land/3 day sea in April. It was the vacation of a lifetime. I had been to the parks many times before but never on a cruise. If I had it to do over again, I would do the 7 day cruise. We didn't get to do a fraction of what we wanted. The cruise is just so relaxing. The kids can go their own way and you don't have to worry about them. You can keep busy, everything is just a short walk, or you can do nothing at all. Now that is what I call a vacation!!!:p

[Dsnyfn]

3 day cruise and 11 days at the parks for us. Our 2006 cruise will be our first one and we can't wait.

[dondiane]

Really depends on your kids likes and dislikes. The only waiting in line you do on the ship is for the photo/autograph signing with the characters. In the park depending on the time of year your line waits can be anywhere from no lines to 90 minutes and more. They do offer fast past in the park now on some rides/attractions but not all. I just came back from the park last week and most lines were 25 to 45 minutes. We did 4 night cruise 3 day park with a three and a half yr old. Her first Disney experience. She seemed to have more tolerance on the ship than in the parks mostly due to the line waits. It really depends on your children. As most agree you could spend many many days at the park and still not see everything.... and all the parks have things that interest kids even Epcot. The park foods are costly. The ship does have a child program that enables Mom and Dad a few hours of "quite time"

Have fun whatever you decide.

[Dsnyfn]

We always go to WDWthe first couple weeks of Dec and have had no issues with lines and can't wait to combine our WDW Dec vacation with our first DCL trip. We have 3 kids and my BIL and SIL have 2 kids there will be 11 of us in total.

[DiMitch]

We did the 4 day land, 3 day sea....then came back to orlando and did another week in a time share. To really see the parks you definatly need the extra time, even if you skip epcot. Especially if you go in peak season. We went in October, which is one of the slowest times and we still waited in very long lines. The only downfall to our scenario was the 3 day cruise was way to short. It was a great way to get a feel for cruising (it was our first cruise) until we knew if we would enjoy it, get sea sick, etc.but as it turned out, the 3 days went by so fast we barely got a feel for the ship. We ended up booking a 7 day eastern for this October, while we were still on board. Whatever you choose, you will love it!

[SunFunCruiser]

I can't imagine doing a Disney trip before or after a 3 or 4 day cruise. I was exhausted getting off that ship after 4 days! LOL We did WDW 2 days before but not park commando style, because we go often. You'll never see everything you want at the parks in 3 days, it may be disappointing.

I would just take the 7 day and enjoy the cruise. Save WDW for another time if you can't add days to that. JMHO

[NHLady]

never even made it to the movie studio. We spent time at the other parks, including Epcot and even though my daughter was only 2, she really enjoyed it. There were plenty of characters walking around Epcot and she got a lot of autographs for her book! Plus she loved the laser show at night. Our next trip we plan on 3 day Disney, 4 day cruise and then we're surprising the kids with another 3 days at Disney! I have afeeling I'm gonna need a vacation to recover from my vacation!! LOL!

[glennjudy1]

We just returned from a 2 week trip, one week at WDW and Universal Studios and then the 7-day Disney cruise. We are big Disney fans but we really enjoyed the 2 parks at Universal (Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure). They are as well themed and entertaining as the Disney parks. We have two daughters (5 & 6 years old) and they really enjoyed Islands of Adventure. Anyway, the 7 day cruise seemed too short as it was, I can't imagine only being on the ship 3 or 4 days. As an interesting point, my kids enjoyed the cruise more than the parks. The activities for kids plus Castaway Cay were huge hits.

[jerseygirl63]

We love the seven day cruise on the Magic. We go to the theme parks every year and we have a ball but to truly enjoy and relax go on the seven day cruise. We had the best time, our kids now "play" Disney Cruise at home where each room of the house is a different port of call or section of the ship. The kids will NEVER be bored and the grown ups will love the service and attention:) Enjoy:)

[parrotcruiser]

If you've never been to WDW, do 7 days at the parks. That way you can explore at a slower pace and don't have to be Disney Commandos.:D

[Susie51]

My sister and I have been planning our 3 day land/ 4 day sea trip for 4 1/2 years. We booked in March 2004 for our land/sea package which starts June 9. It is so close now. It is hard to believe. I've never been to WDW or on Disney Cruise Line. This will be my 12th cruise. We will be parasailing on Castaway Cay! I'm looking forward to this new adventure.

 

I love longer cruises. I have done 12 night British Isles, 11 night Hawaii, and 10 night Panama Canal, but with our group of 7 including a 16 month old and 3 year old 7 night land/sea package sounds about right.

[CathyCanada]

Without knowing how old your children are and considering that they have not cruised or been to WDW, I think I would suggest the 3-night land/4-night sea. This gives them a taste of Disney that will be further enhanced on the ship and 4 nights is just long enough for a first-time cruiser if you are not sure how they will like it.

 

The WDW parks can be done in 3 days with careful planning and it is always great to leave them "wanting more". The kids' programs on the Disney ships are outstanding.

 

Have a great trip, whatever you decide!

 

Cathy

[StitchesToo]

Of course being at a cruise message board I am not surprised that the cruise options are getting more votes. I am going on my first Disney cruise in December, but have done the parks about 7 times. This will be my first cruise so I'm trying the 3 day cruise and also doing another 5 days at the parks. So obviously I'm prejudiced to DisneyWorld. Maybe it will change after I experience cruising!

I don't think 4 days will be enough time to see everything at the parks. Also, I think the 7 day cruises offer better ports of call. If this is the only trip you plan to make then I'd probably split it between a cruise and the parks. If you can come back in the future, then I'd just do the land or just the cruise.

FYI, I found it cheaper to book the two parts separately. Also, the price on park tickets drop dramatically when you stay for 7 or more days.

There is also an option to purchase park tickets for up to 10 days that have no expiration date, so you could spend a little more for tickets now and take another trip in the future. A great site for information is mousesavers.com.