Disney Cruise Line vs. Carnival (or other) Cruise Line

[disney4life2008]

I am taking my 1st cruise in January on Carnival Cruise Line. However, because I am a Disney fanatic, I feel the need to take a cruise on DCL as well. However, DCL is almost twice (even 3 times more) as much as Carnival and only 3 days vs. Carnival being a full 8 nights.

What is the Disney difference in cruising? What makes DCL so much more expensive and is it worth it?

 

[DisneyJoe]

What stateroom category? What time of year? How many people?

You need to be sure you are comparing equivalent staterooms etc. ie. making an apples to apples comparison.

Also, it can be a better value to book a longer Disney cruise.

It's also better to book a Disney cruise well in advance, sometimes 18 months or more, as that is when their pricing is lowest - as the ship fills, the prices go up. With such a short time before this sailing, the Disney ship is most likely close to being full. Carnival ship is probably offering deep discounts to fill their ship.

Many also believe that the fact that other cruise lines have casinos and therefore higher alcohol sales helps keep their pricing lower; Disney, catering to a larger family audience, has no casino and fewer alcoholic beverage sales. These are high profit items.

I personally believe that Disney is worth every penny.

PS. Disney's standard staterooms are larger than many other cruise line's staterooms.

 

[DecWDW]

I've cruised on Norwegian a couple of times and Disney a couple of times. Hands down, I'd choose Disney again! Disney seems more elegant plus the Disney touches are so nice. I think it's totally worth it. What we're doing right now is, we've already booked for Oct. 2010 and each month or so we go online and pay a little more money. That way we don't feel such a financial pinch all at once. Sometimes they have specials where the deposit is half price too.

 

[Disneyfalcon]

Disney charges more because they can, and because most people, myself included, feel they're worth it.

Disneyjoe is absolutely right about many of the reasons. No casino, the ship sails full most of the time, etc.

Deals on Disney cruises can be found by booking as soon as possible, sailing during hurricane months, and when school is in session, etc. There have also been several specials recently for military, Florida residents, and even kids sail free promotions.

It's an awesome cruise. You won't regret it.

 

[worldfanatic]

Carnival does a great job, as does Disney.
For me, I can't go without a balcony. Wouldn't be a cruise without one.
On the current Disney ships, there are too few balcony rooms compared with other room categories, so the price is generally twice as high as on Carnival ships for the balcony.(most Carnival ships have a higher percentage of balcony rooms).

It looks like the new Disney ships(coming in 2011 and 2012) will have more balcony rooms. I'm hoping that brings the prices closer to Carnival's.

 

[Martian Crab]

I went on a Disney cruise last year with my family (5 altogether) and we stayed in an inside cabin. We had a great time. You're only allowed 4 per room but my in-laws had a cabin which we intended one of our kids to sleep in. As it turned out, we all fit in our room just fine. I've never been on a cruise before but my wife and in-laws have. They were very impressed by the quality of the Disney cruise. I liked that there weren't drunk wild people around my kids. Carnival can get quite rowdy from what I've heard from friends and family. Castaway Cay was so much fun! I wish we could have skipped Nassau and stayed the extra day at CC.

 

[lbrad]

I went on a Disney cruise last year with my family (5 altogether) and we stayed in an inside cabin. We had a great time. You're only allowed 4 per room but my in-laws had a cabin which we intended one of our kids to sleep in. As it turned out, we all fit in our room just fine. I've never been on a cruise before but my wife and in-laws have. They were very impressed by the quality of the Disney cruise. I liked that there weren't drunk wild people around my kids. Carnival can get quite rowdy from what I've heard from friends and family. Castaway Cay was so much fun! I wish we could have skipped Nassau and stayed the extra day at CC.

I AGREE!!! We loved Castaway Cay:sohappy: Could have skipped Bahamas!

 

[Disneyfalcon]

We enjoyed Atlantis, but Castaway Cay is the highlight of a Disney Cruise. I could spend every day there.

The five night itinerary with two stops at Castaway Cay was one of our favorite cruises.

 

[Phonedave]

We enjoyed Atlantis, but Castaway Cay is the highlight of a Disney Cruise. I could spend every day there.

The five night itinerary with two stops at Castaway Cay was one of our favorite cruises.

We swam with the Dolphins at Nassau last time we cruised. Loads of bucks, but the look on my kids faces and the fact that they still talk about it made it worth the money.

You can't do that at Castaway Cay. Aside from that, Castaway Cay wins hands down.

-dave

 

[RobnRachal]

We swam with the Dolphins at Nassau last time we cruised. Loads of bucks, but the look on my kids faces and the fact that they still talk about it made it worth the money.

You can't do that at Castaway Cay. Aside from that, Castaway Cay wins hands down.

-dave

That's what we're doing this trip. . in 34 days. . our oldest absolutely LOVES dolphins. This is our first cruise. Told hubby Disney was the only cruise I'd try (heard so many horror stories about other cruise lines) We are unbelievably excited!!
I did a lot of research before booking, so we could get the best price. We booked 10 months away for a 4 night cruise. We have an inside stateroom, but we figured it's like going to the "World" we only sleep and shower in our room. So paying less each trip just means we can keep going back. :ROFLOL:
Gotta tell ya that new Disney Dream is looking super tempting :lookaroun

 

[Disneyfalcon]

We swam with the Dolphins at Nassau last time we cruised. Loads of bucks, but the look on my kids faces and the fact that they still talk about it made it worth the money.

You can't do that at Castaway Cay. Aside from that, Castaway Cay wins hands down.

-dave

Very true! We swam with dolphins and it was worth every penny!!

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Hubby has talked about doing a cruise for a while. My brother-in-law & his wife love to cruise & are going on a Carnival cruise for Thanksgiving. I've never had much of an urge to go on one. I think I'm the oddball (again). I don't do casinos (not an issue w/Disney cruises). I'm very much not a beachy person. Sand & salty water make me all sticky & miserable...then there's heat... :hurl:. My life is an ongoing struggle not to eat the wrong things or overeat so with all the stories you hear about "Oh we went on a cruise and the food was awesome and everywhere and tons of it, blah blah blah" really freaks me out. I would be so miserable either being around all that food (I don't have to see it, just knowing it's there) and fighting not to eat it all. And if I "splurged" and started eating I would be miserably uncomfortable and totally self-loathing. So considering I'm not a beach person and the food doesn't do anything but make me miserable I just don't see how I could go on any cruise and enjoy it. I have these horrible visions of being stuck on a boat with nothing to do but eat. :ROFLOL:

Sooooo, rather than spend on a cruise we go to WDW where we can run around, get plenty of excercise, tons to do, you have to pay for each food splurge, and if I do allow myself a yummy treat or two I don't feel like a big pig.

But we're in the process of getting our passports. I like to think it's so if the DH takes a job out of the country we can all go together but he might be thinking "Book the cruise!!!" :lol:



OOOhhhh!!!! I meant to mention this. I forget exactly when it was (couldn't have been during hurricane season because we don't travel then as this would guarantee a storm at our house the day we left). We were on a plane with a family who were on their way home from a Disney Cruise. Yep. The lady was totally, majorly miffed! Bless her heart. She had scrimped & saved & planned this Disney Cruise that she had always dreamed of taking PLUS it was her 40th birthday. They ended up having horrible weather the whole time they were on the boat and were not able to visit Castaway Cay. She was just sick over it. I felt so bad for her. :lookaroun

 

[fireworkz]

I've looked at Disney Cruises several times, but always found a better price with another line. However, I'm still tempted to one day go for a Disney Cruise. Other people I have talked to while on a cruise tell me Disney feels more luxurious, and has better service and entertainment than most lines.

Something else for you to consider - Disney Magic and Wonder are pretty close to each other in age, upkeep and amenities. While Carnival has so many ships, at very different ages, levels of upkeep and services available. You might be getting a cheaper cruise simply because you're going on an older ship.

I would suggest checking out http://www.cruisecritic.com, that is blocked with great expert and member reviews of just about every ship afloat. It also offers overviews on each of the major cruise lines. That should really help to compare the two lines.

 

[Grizzly Hall 71]

Yes disney is worth it. I went on a carnival cruise this summer and I was about to jump off and swim to port canaveral to get on the disney cruise.
1. Carnival the bevargaes aren't all free, Disney they are free i.e sodas and what have you (except alcohol and room service)
2. Carnival's service is ridicously bad, they don't treat you as a V.I.P. disney caters to your every need and makes sure your satisified to the fullest.
3. Carnival's decor looks like a mix mash of colors, like a 2 year old would do. disney is so elegant and amazing.
4. Carnival's entertainment is really for college students (i.e the prices being low) and Disney every single person is entertained from the youngest 4 year old to the 85 year old in your family.
5. The kid clubs run at certain hours throughout the day while disney runs all day long from 9 to 12.
6. Dining is an experience on disney while on carnival your stuck in the tacky looking dinning room every night, disney has 3 different ones so each night you'll feel in a different world.

I will give carnival that half moon cay (their private island) is nice but Castaway Cay is everyone's perfect getaway. You can't describe into word, it's just awesome.

The prices are lower depending on your type of stateroom and amount of people. Some 3 nights start as low for $600 for 2 people. You must do a disney cruise.

 

[gettingsmaller]

We have cruised twice--both times on Carnival. Once was on the Sensation doing a 3-day to Nassau. The other was Valor doing Exotic Western Caribbean (Grand Cayman, Honduras, Belize, Cozumel). Sensation was very neon. Valor was very tasteful and had a more elegant feel.
I have no complaints about service or cleanliness of the ships. We enjoyed every minute of our cruises.
That being said, I think the entertainment on DCL would be more child-friendly, the decor of the ships is probably nicer, and Castaway Cay is probably really nice. In short, I am sure that the DCL experience is quite different from Carnival.

If money is tight, it's hard to justify the cost of a Disney cruise, but I am thinking about trying to take a cruise on the Disney Dream in 2011. For me, though, the cost evaluation goes something like this: "Hmmm, 3 days on a Disney cruise or 8 days at Disney World?" Tough to justify not going to WDW...

 

[DisneyJoe]

"Hmmm, 3 days on a Disney cruise or 8 days at Disney World?" Tough to justify not going to WDW...

Be sure to add in the cost of food at WDW - otherwise, you are not making a fair comparison, as the Disney Cruise includes 3 meals++ per day.

 

[palmage]

Carnival is a distant last place in the cruise world.

 

[gettingsmaller]

Be sure to add in the cost of food at WDW - otherwise, you are not making a fair comparison, as the Disney Cruise includes 3 meals++ per day.

True, but we have only gone the last few years with free dining...

 

[RickyMouseMom]

Ok, I have given this thread new life. I have cruised Disney Wonder twice (2000 & 2010), have Disney Dream booked (Aug 2011). We have tentatively decided to cruise on Carnival Freedom in Feb 2011 as a cheap get-away ($1840 for 2A 2C - 6 days). Now after reading these reviews of Carnival, I am disturbed. Will it REALLY be all that bad? Certainly we understand it will be a different kind of experience from DCL. What I want to hear from someone is 'Yes, Carnival is a nice experience too!'. I am envisioning fall-down drunks everywhere, and nothing to do but eat 24/7.

 

[happymom52003]

Ok, I have given this thread new life. I have cruised Disney Wonder twice (2000 & 2010), have Disney Dream booked (Aug 2011). We have tentatively decided to cruise on Carnival Freedom in Feb 2011 as a cheap get-away ($1840 for 2A 2C - 6 days). Now after reading these reviews of Carnival, I am disturbed. Will it REALLY be all that bad? Certainly we understand it will be a different kind of experience from DCL. What I want to hear from someone is 'Yes, Carnival is a nice experience too!'. I am envisioning fall-down drunks everywhere, and nothing to do but eat 24/7.

I have been on two Carnival cruises, but both were 10+ years ago so I don't know if my opinion will be of much use to you. I enjoyed the cruises, however they were a VERY different experience from the other cruise lines I have been on (Norwegian, Celebrity, and DCL). Compared to those three lines, Carnival really felt like the Motel 6 of cruises for me. However....I don't know anything about their newer ships. I am actuallly going on a Carnival cruise in May, but it is a theme cruise...and I am going because of the theme, not the cruise line. I would never go on Carnival again by choice, regardless of the deal I could get. But...if you know what to expect going into it, and you are okay with it, you should not have a problem. You will find a lower level of service, lower quality food (although I would not say the food was bad...it is just much better on the other cruise lines I have been on) and without trying to sound snobby (really....I don't mean to be snobby, I just don't know how else to say this) there will be a different set of people on carnival than you will find on many other cruise lines. Maybe it has to do with the fact they draw more college age people and singles who are looking to party?? I don't know.


I think to sum it up, I will give an analogy. If you book a room at a Holiday Inn, most likely you know ahead of time that while nice, a Holiday Inn is just a plain, run of the mill motel....and you will most likely be fine with your experience there. However, if you book a Holiday Inn and for some reason you have the impression it is comparable to the Four Seasons, then obviously you would be disappointed when you checked in and saw what you were getting. Carnival= run of the mill motel, Celebrity Cruise Line (and other comparable lines, including DCL)= Four Seasons.

What type of experience are you looking for? And who are you going with? I think this will play a big role in whether or not you like Carnival.

I don't think you should cancel your trip. Just have realistic expectations. Carnival does have alot of fans....possibly you could end up loving it. It just was not the type of cruising experience I enjoy.