davictim Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Incredible trip report, Robb. I agree with all your superlatives about Disney Cruise Lines. We just finished a 4-night cruise on the Dream three weeks ago. I highly recommend DCL to anyone wondering if they should try them out or not. Cruising on the Fantasy is a must do, now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ernierocker Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Okay, I am taking my kids on this ship sometime in the near future! Looks absolutely amazing! I bet this was a nice welcome change of pace from China for you guys! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taylor Finn Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I really, really appreciate you covering this cruise. It looked like a fantastic time. I have always wanted to cruise. It's just been something my parents put on the back burner, in favor of more trips to wdw. I intend on showing this to them. Though it may seem I'm at the awkward age where I'm too old to enjoy it as a kid and too young to enjoy it as an adult. I am a Disney freak though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted October 24, 2012 Author Share Posted October 24, 2012 Was it mostly families on the ship or a mix of people? I reckon I'd feel weird taking that kind of cruise without kids... It was mostly families on the ship, but here's the thing - a majority of the time, the kids are in the kids club or doing "kids stuff" separated from the adults. I'd say most of the time they are together are at meals. And the way Disney seems to organize the dining room, if you went on your own, or with a group of adult friends, you'd probably be paired up with similar people. We had a group of 5 on this ship, so we ended up with our own table anyway, and it didn't matter. I'd say this ship is great for two types of people: 1. Families 2. Disney fans If you don't fall in either of those two categories, I'd probably stick with another cruise line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted October 24, 2012 Author Share Posted October 24, 2012 Though it may seem I'm at the awkward age where I'm too old to enjoy it as a kid and too young to enjoy it as an adult. I am a Disney freak though. 18 is actually a really tough cruising age because most of the ships stop doing any sort of "activities" for that age group to be able to meet us, etc. Unless you are going with a bunch of friends who are also the same age, I'd say cruising is better for the under 17s or over 21s. And that goes for pretty much any cruise line. --Robb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hilltopper39 Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I'm not really a "beach person" either but the private Island day on my RCCL cruise was the highlight of that trip and Disney's island looks even better! I seriously need to take a Disney Cruise in the very near future, these reports have officially pushed that vacation to the top of my next trip list! (You guys should get some kind of commission for selling cruises for Disney!). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 The whole cruise would be worth it just for the . . . Beef Wellington! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted October 24, 2012 Author Share Posted October 24, 2012 (edited) I'm not really a "beach person" either but the private Island day on my RCCL cruise was the highlight of that trip and Disney's island looks even better! I seriously need to take a Disney Cruise in the very near future, these reports have officially pushed that vacation to the top of my next trip list! (You guys should get some kind of commission for selling cruises for Disney!). To be honest, if you're not a "beach person" then Disney's island probably won't be better for you. Honestly, I've been to Labadee as well, and for a first timer there, it at least has the zip line and the alpine coaster I'm interested in, Disney's island actually had nothing I was interested in. And while on Labadee, I didn't personally find the zipline that great or worth the money, I'd at least get off the ship to do the alpine coaster again. I'm not sure I'd even bother to get off the ship at Castaway Cay again. And not because it wasn't a great island for "beach people", it's just that I'm not a beach person, and it really offered nothing else other than being a nice beach. --Robb "Assuming you're taking about Labadee and not RCCL's other private beach...which doesn't have anything other than a beach." Alvey Edited October 24, 2012 by robbalvey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Clinksalot Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 This looks absolutely great. I've seen lots of Trip Reports from Disney Cruises (even the re-positioning ones going through the Panama Canal) and always thought it looked nice but was never tempted to throw down the $$ to do one. This one convinced me otherwise. While my kids are no longer in the main "Disney" demographic I still think they'd have a great time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mosaic513 Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Great TR. My partner and I have been on two 3-day Disney cruises and we love them. We are definitely Dinsey fans and from a "no kids" perspective, what Robb has reported is spot-on, there is always a place to get away form the kid activity or to find some quiet adult only area. And having cruised on other cruise lines too, I found the food on DCL to be far superior. Plus I think the beds on the Fantasy and Dream are beyond comfortable since they are one true mattress instead of two pushed together. Personally I loved Castaway Cay and find the bike rentals to be a great activity to explore the back side of the island. We always get a kick out of riding on the old airstrip and out past the private cabanas. The island lunch is the food weakpoint like Robb mentioned but the buffet back on ship that is practically to ourselves makes up for it. And for the any runDisney (or general running fans) they offer a Castaway Cay 5K too that is a lot of fun. Robb, do you recall seeing any 2-top tables in the main dining rooms? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkTums Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Great TR. My partner and I have been on two 3-day Disney cruises and we love them. We are definitely Dinsey fans and from a "no kids" perspective, what Robb has reported is spot-on, there is always a place to get away form the kid activity or to find some quiet adult only area. And having cruised on other cruise lines too, I found the food on DCL to be far superior. Plus I think the beds on the Fantasy and Dream are beyond comfortable since they are one true mattress instead of two pushed together. Personally I loved Castaway Cay and find the bike rentals to be a great activity to explore the back side of the island. We always get a kick out of riding on the old airstrip and out past the private cabanas. The island lunch is the food weakpoint like Robb mentioned but the buffet back on ship that is practically to ourselves makes up for it. And for the any runDisney (or general running fans) they offer a Castaway Cay 5K too that is a lot of fun. Robb, do you recall seeing any 2-top tables in the main dining rooms? Robb didn't believe me at first when I pointed out the bed issue to him! Great for the majority of their clientele, but pretty much confirms we could never do a TPR Cruise as we need those separate beds for all of our people! I really liked having a true Queen sized bed instead of the two pushed together thing as on every other ship. Great question on the 2-Tops. I honestly cannot say I remember seeing one. They must have a few, but literally, a few. There were very few four tops, and we had to fight to get our own private table for 5 people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeemerBoy Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Great report, guys! Even as a Disney fan, there's just something about DCL that doesn't "grab" me....and I really can't put a finger on it either. The ships look AMAZING, the food looks AMAZING, and I'm sure the service is AMAZING too, but I've just never been that interested in a Disney cruise...and we've even had several opportunities to sail at half price over the years. It's weird. I LOVE being surrounded by the overload of everything Disney while at WDW or any of their other resorts, but the idea of taking that atmosphere offshore just never really appealed to me. Then again, I'm just strange like that. Without question though, the Animator's Palate, stateroom screen "portholes," and several other unique touches looked very impressive. You mentioned you were surprised they hadn't brought that restaurant experience to any of the parks yet, but I'd have to say that it's kind of cool that they haven't. In fact, having it unique to the ship is one of the bigger selling points that would maybe win me over one day. And I'd still like to know what you paid for KT on the black market? With her loving the beach, I'm convinced that's not Alvey blood. Oh, and it's a scorpion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayTricky Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Loving the updates and TR's. Keep it coming. Stunning pictures, the small details make all the difference and there seems to be a lot of them on the Fantasy. It truly looks like a Disney fans dream - lots of crazy inspiring things all squished together and put on a big boat. A bloody big boat at that too. As a regular to Disney (7th trip in Jan, that counts as 'regular' right?) - and someone who has never been on a cruise, would you recommend this for a family of 5 with the youngest being 21? Bearing in mind we are all outgoing, all are big kids and all like to have fun. I wanted to get some views on this... I'm looking to surprise the family next year, and take them all on a vacation. Looking forward to the next report! -JT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted October 24, 2012 Author Share Posted October 24, 2012 (edited) ^ As an older family that is into Disney? ABSOLUTELY! Keeping in mind there isn't as much "party" stuff as on other ships, but there are bars and stuff at night to hang out in, and they did do some fun stuff, like the Pirates night. Edited October 24, 2012 by robbalvey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayTricky Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 ^ As an older family that is into Disney? ABSOLUTELY! Keeping in mind there isn't as much "party" stuff as on other ships, but there are bars and stuff at night to hang out in, and they did do some fun stuff, like the Pirates night. We wouldn't care too much about the lack of 'party' stuff, just as long as we could chill out at night with a nice beverage and then join in with some of the fun themed nights. If it's a proper Disney experience, then it's something I think we would all enjoy. It does look like it's worth it. Plus, I make a mean ass Pirate. -JT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ernierocker Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 (edited) Great report, guys! Even as a Disney fan, there's just something about DCL that doesn't "grab" me....and I really can't put a finger on it either. The ships look AMAZING, the food looks AMAZING, and I'm sure the service is AMAZING too, but I've just never been that interested in a Disney cruise...and we've even had several opportunities to sail at half price over the years. It's weird. I LOVE being surrounded by the overload of everything Disney while at WDW or any of their other resorts, but the idea of taking that atmosphere offshore just never really appealed to me. Then again, I'm just strange like that. You are just mad that they chose to put a water coaster around the perimeter of the ship instead of a monorail. Admit it. Edited October 24, 2012 by ernierocker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted October 24, 2012 Author Share Posted October 24, 2012 ^ He got 'ya there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahecht Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 18 is actually a really tough cruising age because most of the ships stop doing any sort of "activities" for that age group to be able to meet us, etc. Unless you are going with a bunch of friends who are also the same age, I'd say cruising is better for the under 17s or over 21s. If you're not going with your parents, I believe that Princess and Disney are the only lines that let 18-20 year-olds sail without parents or adult chaperones. That said, my girlfriend's younger sister had a great time sailing with just friends on Princess before she turned 21, especially because there were so many people her age in the 18+ discos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahecht Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Plus, I make a mean ass Pirate. I don't think ass pirates would be welcome on a Disney ship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted October 24, 2012 Author Share Posted October 24, 2012 Plus, I make a mean A$$ Pirate. I don't think A$$ pirates would be welcome on a Disney ship. This is Disney! lol Do you think there was anything butt? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeemerBoy Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 You are just mad that they chose to put a water coaster around the perimeter ship instead of monorail. Admit it. Haha, yes! Disney, I hope you're reading this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayTricky Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Plus, I make a mean A$$ Pirate. I don't think A$$ pirates would be welcome on a Disney ship. Haha... I beg to differ. Captain Hook always had that 'I'm gonna shove this hook up your arse' look in his eye. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoCo Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Finally read through this entire report, and I made sure I was eating while doing so, because I knew there was going to be a lot of hardcore food porn. And I'm spent. The Animator's Palette experience looks spectacular (won a THEA award, BTW). For that alone, I'm sold. But throw in the Ahi tuna and avocado stack, the peanut butter mousse (OMFG), and the Space Mountain waterslide experience (OMFG), and this is clearly a can't-miss trip for me. (Also, I'd never heard of sea lice before, GROSS: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_louse) Kick-ass report from start to finish! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbalvey Posted October 24, 2012 Author Share Posted October 24, 2012 ^ Thanks Robert! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy4Coasters! Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 After reading through the TPR "Klassy" cruise trip report and this one, I wanted to thank you for the valuable information that will come in handy when I plan a get away with the wife in the future. I have never been on a cruise but I can clearly see the clear-cut difference between Carnival and everything else! LOL! I have seen the $249, $299 (whatever it is) deal Carnival advertises on tv and it entices me to jump on board and try a cruise with them soon. But honestly after seeing the "klassy" cruise trip report, I couldn't believe the extreme disappointment in service, food, and class all around. I think I'll try a cruise soon with the wife but as I saw Robb mentioned before (on facebook I believe) there aren't many good options from the LA coast so I hope to at least take a RCCL trip that can make the limited options out of LA worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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