NY Times Article about Disney Cruises

zombiebbq

zombiebbq

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
This article was posted yesterday on NY Times' Travel section:

On a Disney Cruise, It’s a Stressful World (After All)

Of course, since NY Times is a bastion of "intellectualism" both the writer and many of the commentors are quite snobbish and dismissive of anyone who enjoys Disney vacations. I posted a few comments in defense of those of us who love Disney. Just thought you all might like to have a read.
 
Sans Souci

Sans Souci

Well-Known Member
I have been on a few Disney cruises (and I am a NYT subscriber) and for the first time cruiser, I think any type of cruise can be overwhelming. My preconceived notions of cruising were gleaned from watching "The Love Boat" as a child and reading "A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again" by David Foster Wallace, one romanticized cruising, while the other denigrated it. I was fortunate that my first cruise was with a group of friends who had been numerous DCL cruises, so I had people explaining how things like dining worked, etc.

Some of his complaints about were about things that are industry wide--size of the stateroom and the up sells in the spa. And I know it can be overwhelming, but the hosts leave a Navigator in the stateroom when they turn the bed down. So, anyone who wants to know what happens the next day should be looking that over. I have never dressed as a pirate for pirate night, but I believe they mention pirate dress in the Navigator.

He does admit from the beginning he had a bad feeling about the cruise, which might have colored his perception. I think his biggest issue was booking a four night, because he admits that he finally got into it on the last night. :)

It could be that he just doesn't like cruising and that's okay.

As far as the NYT commentariat goes, it is no different than any other big city paper. Sure, there are always people who are going to look down on WDW and cruising as vacations. What does it matter? Does it make your vacation less enjoyable?
 
zombiebbq

zombiebbq

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
dmw said:
A rookie to cruises and to Disney should NEVER write an article, unless the purpose is to share how bad of a job he did actually preparing for the cruise. Most of the negatives apply to any cruise line, as any experienced cruiser will tell you. And the author is a travel "Editor"???
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I'm a long time reader of the NY times, and I can tell you that the Travel section rolls out a few Disney, Cruise and other untypical "NY Times" style vacation articles every couple of years, only to have them tinged with distaste of the model in which they are discussing. This isn't the first article where Disney, and cruising, has been written in such a way by NY Times travel authors. It irks me to no end- if you don't like Disney or cruises then find someone who either does or is at least impartial to write your article!
 
zombiebbq

zombiebbq

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Astro_Digital said:
Seemed unbiased and detailed report.
Nothing Disney nuts need to get upset about
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Unfortunately, NY Times' has written about Disney before and it is always with a holier than thou smugness. They have another article tinged with the same smugness on their Travel page right now- and I've seen several in my 20 years of religious NY Times reading.
 
Phonedave

Phonedave

Well-Known Member
As somebody who outright says that Disney cruises are not worth the money, I still disagree with this article. It really seems as if the writer did not do his research prior to his first cruise, and went into the cruise with pre-disposed to it being a failure.

-dave
 
J_Carioca

J_Carioca

Well-Known Member
Phonedave said:
As somebody who outright says that Disney cruises are not worth the money, I still disagree with this article. It really seems as if the writer did not do his research prior to his first cruise, and went into the cruise with pre-disposed to it being a failure.

-dave
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Are we reading the same article? The author mentions in multiple places how much his daughter enjoyed it, and also says many positive things about his own experience (excellent customer service, friendly staff, good massages, etc...) He had some apprehensions about cruising and Disney, but overall he appears to have no problem acknowledging what was good and what was not so good.
 
D

DisneyJoe

Well-Known Member
Sans Souci said:
And I know it can be overwhelming, but the hosts leave a Navigator in the stateroom when they turn the bed down. So, anyone who wants to know what happens the next day should be looking that over. I have never dressed as a pirate for pirate night, but I believe they mention pirate dress in the Navigator.
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Anyone taking a Disney Cruise will also receive numerous emails before they sail, and a nice booklet with their cruise contract and luggage tags and other documentation as well as some tips. You should read this material before sailing.

It will also be strongly suggested that you download and use the Personal Navigator phone app which is free to use on the ship on their internal network. This contains all of the info that is in the printed navigator and more.
 
EOD K9

EOD K9

Well-Known Member
It doesn't seem like a terrible article, but it does however seem as if there was some failing to plan. I had no idea really about the Pirate Deck Party or door magnets. I also wouldn't have sent my daughters to BBB on CC day. I had a great time each day on my first cruise and, like the author, had gotten into it by the last day. I have cruise 7 and 8 planned for this year, and number 9 is set for next year. I enjoy the experience. While I have read what @Phonedave has previously posted in other forums about the price, he knows there is fun to be had if you prepare and keep an open mind.
 
MomofPrincessGrace

MomofPrincessGrace

Well-Known Member
Sounds like most of his complaints were concerning the costs of things that he booked, knowing how much they cost. Slight complaints about dropping $200 a BBB, but knowing that there were cheaper options. I feel like he wasn't really excited about it from the beginning.
 
MisterPenguin

MisterPenguin

President of Animal Kingdom
Premium Member
zombiebbq said:
Unfortunately, NY Times' has written about Disney before and it is always with a holier than thou smugness. They have another article tinged with the same smugness on their Travel page right now- and I've seen several in my 20 years of religious NY Times reading.
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Did you happen to catch these non-smug and mostly flattering articles from the NY Times about WDW?
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Sans Souci

Sans Souci

Well-Known Member
 
BoarderPhreak

BoarderPhreak

Well-Known Member
Sounds like an ill-prepared whiner. Many "issues" were not even part of the cruise or having to do with Disney, and well, yeah - a lot of stuff common to ALL cruises.

Move along folks, nothing to see here... 🙄
 
Club Cooloholic

Club Cooloholic

Well-Known Member
Astro_Digital said:
Seemed unbiased and detailed report.
Nothing Disney nuts need to get upset about
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I agree, and if you read it the whole way through, the writer seemed to admit he was having a good time. Now I will say, if he ever sailed Royal Caribbean he would see some real upselling! I don't miss the constant hocking of wares in he main concourse that Royal does.
 
T

tk924

Well-Known Member
Someone who has written travel articles for almost a decade should know better than to take a trip without planning and knowing what they're getting into before they book. No excuses.
Fail to plan. Plan to fail.
 
zombiebbq

zombiebbq

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I hope some of you read the comments on this article. People who enjoy Disney vacations were described as "sad", "pathetic", and basically what is wrong with America today. Also, a few people called going to Disney their version of hell. I had a good chuckle over that.
 

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