Has the price of DCL chased you away?

[cgolf]

I'd love to try Celebrity as well, but I'm slightly older than you, (47). Have you seen the new Celebrity Edge? http://www.celebritycruises.com/edge/

Wow That is an amazing looking ship! They put a tremendous amount of thought into it, including using the magic carpet for tendering. I almost fell over when I looked into the prices, affordable

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

Wow That is an amazing looking ship! They put a tremendous amount of thought into it, including using the magic carpet for tendering. I almost fell over when I looked into the prices, affordable

I can't believe all the new amazing ships coming out in the next few years. I'm sure the new DCL ships are going to have features that will blow our minds, I think they'll have to. NCL even has a ship coming out that has a go kart track on the top deck! Unfortunately, it's for China sailings only so I'll probably never see it but man that would be fun.

 

[FairestOfThemAll37]

What's crazy for me is I want to try Celebrity and I am not really that old, lower 40s, and on my 5 night 40th birthday cruise on the magic did the aquadunk like 115 times. For some reason their ships and decor look really relaxing. I could hate it of course, but is on my list of lines to try.

I love celebrity and have cruised them many times in my early 30s. I don't share tables and don't really care to meet people while cruising so I'm not that fussed about the age of the other cruisers.

If you just want to relax and hang with your travel companion(s), Celebrity ships are beautiful and relaxing and have a nice feel to them.

 

[tink1970]

I read a trip report on an Alaska cruise someone did on X and became really interested in them, ships are beautiful and service seems to be great. For some reason I'm absolutely in love with the real grass deck on the top of some of their ships. I just haven't been able to sell our teenagers on them yet. I almost had them sold on a Celebrity cruise for June/July 2018, it's a 10 day from Eastern Caribbean from New York, (I think), that actually is docked in the Boston Harbor on 7/4 so we could spend that day in Boston and then see the fireworks from the ship. Unfortunately it's on one of their older ships that just wasn't as pretty as the Soltice or Equinox. The itinerary was absolutely fantastic though.

I think the first cruise my wife and I do without the kids will be on X.

I love celebrity and have cruised them many times in my early 30s. I don't share tables and don't really care to meet people while cruising so I'm not that fussed about the age of the other cruisers.

If you just want to relax and hang with your travel companion(s), Celebrity ships are beautiful and relaxing and have a nice feel to them.

So glad I'm not alone in looking at some of these lines (for me it's all about the itinerary/date...if DCL had my date and time open I'd be dropping some serious coin with them. But they don't so I won't!).
I've actually been researching Celebrity v. Oceania quite a lot over the weekend. I've narrowed it down from RCI, NCCL, X, and Oceania. Royal's website is abysmal and I get so frustrated just trying to use it; NCCL just seems too big (even if in The Haven). The only thing that seems to sway me from Celebrity is the dress code and the departure date. Still mulling it over but suspect I'll make a decision in the next couple of days. Definitely a fun choice to "have" to make

 

[aprincessatlast]

I love celebrity and have cruised them many times in my early 30s. I don't share tables and don't really care to meet people while cruising so I'm not that fussed about the age of the other cruisers.

If you just want to relax and hang with your travel companion(s), Celebrity ships are beautiful and relaxing and have a nice feel to them.

This for sure.

I have to say I am drawn to Princess and Celebrity the most outside of DCL. They both seem to have that low key elegant vibe. We like pools and low key entertainment.. Movies etc. Unfortunately my kids are still in the DCL age range so it is a great fit and it has become part of their childhood more so than WDW. I am saddened by the rise in prices over the past few years. This winter with only what seems to be one GT status on the Fantasy and very limited on the other sailings has me longing for the days before Disney bought all those IP's and upped the prices to insane prices and brought all the specialty itineraries I could do without. (Marvel Day, Star Wars Day, Merrytime, Halloween time...etc) We were good just seeing Mickey roam the halls, a few good shows, movie theatre and Castaway Cay!

We have done 1 Princess so we might go that route again. I get that all people love Disney but honestly if it weren't for my kids I doubt I would really look at DCL past trying it a few times. The cruise industry has changed a lot in the past few years and many lines have caught up or exceeded "Disney" standards. Many beautiful ships out there and service has been relatively the same on the 3 lines we have tried. RCL, Princess, and DCL.

 

[NancyIL]

I love celebrity and have cruised them many times in my early 30s. I don't share tables and don't really care to meet people while cruising so I'm not that fussed about the age of the other cruisers.

If you just want to relax and hang with your travel companion(s), Celebrity ships are beautiful and relaxing and have a nice feel to them.

We always share a table, and I enjoy meeting people while cruising!

 

[Shanti]

I honestly don't price DCL by other cruise lines though. I don't view it as the same experience. I price DCL based on what I would pay for a similar experience at WDW.

This is how I look at it, too. I recently chose between spending Easter weekend on a 3-night Dream cruise or at WDW with a 4-night stay in a standard room at Animal Kingdom Lodge. I chose WDW since we just cruised the Fantasy in December, and I want us to see Wishes & La Nouba one last time before they're gone forever.

Between lodging, food and 3-day one park per day passes for only 2 people, the full-price Dream cruise in a verandah stateroom would have been significantly cheaper than WDW, even though I got the AKL resort room with a 25% discount. Yes, the cruise is one less night, but still...this is a standard room at AKL, not even a monorail or Epcot resort.

Disney is raising their prices across the board- it seems to be currently even worse at the resorts than it is for the cruise line. Given the higher WDW crowds & less reasonable prices for even their cheapest deluxe rooms, I'm leaning more towards DCL than WDW these days.

 

[bcwife76]

I'm strongly contemplating doing one of their single verandah cabins on Edge for my 2019 Winter Break...

My DH and I are 40 and 41 and I had a 24hr hold on Celebrity Edge for March break 2019. Sadly I had to let it expire as my husband does not want to cruise the new ship until it's actually been launched, and to make sure (his words) 'the magic carpet doesn't make the ship tilt to one side'

Hoping to book Edge for Spring break 2020 instead!

 

[seacruise]

This is how I look at it, too. I recently chose between spending Easter weekend on a 3-night Dream cruise or at WDW with a 4-night stay in a standard room at Animal Kingdom Lodge. I chose WDW since we just cruised the Fantasy in December, and I want us to see Wishes & La Nouba one last time before they're gone forever.

Between lodging, food and 3-day one park per day passes for only 2 people, the full-price Dream cruise in a verandah stateroom would have been significantly cheaper than WDW, even though I got the AKL resort room with a 25% discount. Yes, the cruise is one less night, but still...

Disney is raising their prices across the board- it seems to be currently even worse at the resorts than it is for the cruise line. Given the higher WDW crowds & less reasonable prices for even their cheapest deluxe rooms, I'm leaning more towards DCL than WDW these days. I also like that DCL takes you to new places, which WDW obviously can't do.

Same experience for us. We did 7 night on the Magic last year in a balcony followed by 4 nights at the Contemporary. The 4 nights at the parks cost us just as much as the 7 night cruise. We are going to Disneyland in a few weeks which will be less expensive, but only because we are ok with staying offsite there. Still find DCL to be a decent deal when comparing Disney cruises and Disney Resort vacations. We are booked for 7 days on the Wonder in Feb 18 for roughly $400 more than our 7 nights on the Magic cost in 2016. Definitely an increase, but not too bad.

 

[akemom]

We have been to WDW several times but we have never cruised. My DD and I are dying to go on a Disney cruise! For my family of five to go on a 7 night cruise on the Fantasy would be $11,500! We can only vacation during summer break. Plus we would need to get to Florida from the Midwest and factor in expenses for port excursions, tips, alcohol and souvenirs. We can do a week at Disney for half the price of the cruise, so for us the price is definitely what is keeping us away!

 

[hrhdhd]

The only thing that seems to sway me from Celebrity is the dress code and the departure date. Still mulling it over but suspect I'll make a decision in the next couple of days. Definitely a fun choice to "have" to make

Celebrity has relaxed its dress code lately; "formal" is now "Evening Chic" and means mostly a shirt with a collar and sleeves (including polo shirts), and long pants for men. Not hard to meet.

 

[cruiser21]

Same experience for us. We did 7 night on the Magic last year in a balcony followed by 4 nights at the Contemporary. The 4 nights at the parks cost us just as much as the 7 night cruise. We are going to Disneyland in a few weeks which will be less expensive, but only because we are ok with staying offsite there. Still find DCL to be a decent deal when comparing Disney cruises and Disney Resort vacations. We are booked for 7 days on the Wonder in Feb 18 for roughly $400 more than our 7 nights on the Magic cost in 2016. Definitely an increase, but not too bad.

I agree with you. We're spending 8 nights at WDW. I really dont want to talk about how much this is costing. I was originally going to do just 5 nights, but then I decided we might as well do the water parks and DQ one last time. I figure I might as well go all in. Next year I'm doing something cheaper like go back to Europe.

 

[tinkerone]

We can do a week at Disney for half the price of the cruise

Us to, very easily. Of course I don't feel the need to stay at a deluxe resort so it is very easy to have a week at WDW be a better price than a week on DCL. Throw in a discount like free dinning, room only or Canadian and I'm really rolling. Happy days!

 

[cruiser21]

Us to, very easily. Of course I don't feel the need to stay at a deluxe resort so it is very easy to have a week at WDW be a better price than a week on DCL. Throw in a discount like free dinning, room only or Canadian and I'm really rolling. Happy days!

I like my deluxe hotels. Im really fussy when it comes to hotels. Not so much the hotel itself, but location is really important me. I'm this way every city we go to. I like to be where all the action is. WDW therefore is more expensive for us then a Disney cruise.

 

[seacruise]

Sure, you can stay offsite or at a value resort or whatever much cheaper than staying at a deluxe. However, is that really a valid comparison to DCL? To me it's the same as saying I could cruise Carnival a lot cheaper than I could cruise with Disney.

 

[cruiser21]

Sure, you can stay offsite or at a value resort or whatever much cheaper than staying at a deluxe. However, is that really a valid comparison to DCL? To me it's the same as saying I could cruise Carnival a lot cheaper than I could cruise with Disney.

I think it's really hard to compare a land vacation to a cruise. There totally different experiences. I guess if you cruise DCL just for the Disney stuff, you could find a way to get the Disney stuff cheaper on land. I don't cruise DCL for the Disney experience . I cruise because I like to cruise. I like cruising on DCL and other lines. I like visiting different ports and trying new ships. Stay offsite at WDW has just never had any appeal to me.

 

[tinkerone]

Sure, you can stay offsite or at a value resort or whatever much cheaper than staying at a deluxe. However, is that really a valid comparison to DCL? To me it's the same as saying I could cruise Carnival a lot cheaper than I could cruise with Disney.

I don't understand your comparisons. Carnival is not a Disney product where as WDW is. Value resorts are, to me, the equivalent of inside cabins, ocean views and even some of the verandas. Mods, again to me, would be the equivalent of veranda cabins while concierge would be the equivalent of deluxe. That's how I see it however I have had others who don't.
Staying off property would be like comparing DCL to staying offsite. Offsite has nothing to do with Disney.
This is all JMO but for me its very easy to compare Disney products to one another. I have tried ocean views and verandas and prefer the ocean views. I have tried every category of hotels at WDW and prefer the values. I don't need bells and whistles, I need quick and easy.

 

[cruiser21]

I don't understand your comparisons. Carnival is not a Disney product where as WDW is. Value resorts are, to me, the equivalent of inside cabins, ocean views and even some of the verandas. Mods, again to me, would be the equivalent of veranda cabins while concierge would be the equivalent of deluxe. That's how I see it however I have had others who don't.
Staying off property would be like comparing DCL to staying offsite. Offsite has nothing to do with Disney.
This is all JMO but for me its very easy to compare Disney products to one another. I have tried ocean views and verandas and prefer the ocean views. I have tried every category of hotels at WDW and prefer the values. I don't need bells and whistles, I need quick and easy.

I don't get your comparison. The ship is a resort. The amenities are the same no matter what type of room you have. Value resorts have no spa, gym, restaurants, H20 products or pool slides. There is a huge difference between staying at a value or a deluxe. The only difference between staying in an inside room or a verandah is the size of the room and the view. I booked an inside room on our next cruise, and I would never stay at a WDW value resort.

 

[KashasMom]

I think it's really hard to compare a land vacation to a cruise. There totally different experiences. I guess if you cruise DCL just for the Disney stuff, you could find a way to get the Disney stuff cheaper on land. I don't cruise DCL for the Disney experience . I cruise because I like to cruise. I like cruising on DCL and other lines. I like visiting different ports and trying new ships. Stay offsite at WDW has just never had any appeal to me.

Truth be told, I cruise Disney because I like Disney "stuff" like the characters. I cruise other lines because they have ships I like better or shows I like better or food I like better but most importantly because they have itineraries that are better!!

 

[havaneselover]

I don't get your comparison. The ship is a resort. The amenities are the same no matter what type of room you have. Value resorts have no spa, gym, restaurants, H20 products or pool slides. There is a huge difference between staying at a value or a deluxe. The only difference between staying in an inside room or a verandah is the size of the room and the view. I booked an inside room on our next cruise, and I would never stay at a WDW value resort.

I agree. I've heard this before and it doesn't make sense to me either. There are two levels of service/amenities on DCL--concierge and non-concierge. Non-concierge to me is still better than WDW deluxe imo. And I've stayed value and deluxe and value was fine but nothing like an inside cabin on dcl (I've stayed inside, outside, and verandah).