For those who've done DCL & another cruise line

[KeithOP]

Originally Posted by SimonB

No worries, you do need to search for the deals though. Another thing to be aware of is that after 2 cruises you get gold status and 3 hours free internet each for each cruise after that. The free WiFi time increases as you go up the loyalty tiers. Only mentioned that as you talked about WiFi in your original post.

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yeah wifi really important to me.

I've never used an hourly paid service before but in a sense I can see how it will be easier to keep track of than a quantity limited one like DCL.

turn it on for 10 mins, email/message, turn it off.

[YorkshireT]

Originally Posted by Imagineer2802

We’ve sailed DCL and Royal Caribbean. We ventured into RC because we too think DCL is expensive. However, we hated RC. The ship just wasn’t up to our expectations, the entertainment was not up our street at all and it was poorly organised (e.g. most entertainment seemed to clash with our dinner seating) and It just didn’t have the “show” and excitement of DCL. Same restaurant every night? Boring. Watching ice skaters that keep falling over dance to random tunes? No thanks...
not in the same league in my opinion. Wouldn’t cruise with another line again. Should also add that we don’t really do the Disney characters now either.

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I do not know which ship you were on but the ice show on the Navigator is brilliant- featuring Olympic Skaters and these amazing light drones. They are definitely not falling over! My daughter who is a dancer, said she thought it was fabulous.
RCI is not formal though- although ours was the Nassau Coco Cay out of Miami. People were in the main dining room with shorts on. I breathed a big sigh of relief, I have enough formality in my real life, I would hate to go on something with formal dress codes etc- no interest at all, and wearing black tie on holiday fills me with horrors- but we are all different.

[Ladyshopper]

I've done 8 Disney Cruises, but am priced out of them now. The last one we did was for our honeymoon in December. Whilst I love DCL and it will always hold a fond place in my heart (especially because it was on a DCL cruise where my husband and I got together!), I just can't justify the extra cost for them over other cruiselines. I actually think the service isn't as good as it used to be, lots of tiny things have been removed or stopped, which individually aren't much, but all together just look like a huge cost cutting exercise on Disney's part while they continue to ramp up the prices.

We've done a few other lines now. Earlier this year we went on Celebrity Millennium from Singapore to Hong Kong, and absolutely loved it. The ship had just been in dry dock and been practically gutted, it was like a brand new ship. We had a drinks package included, and were just really impressed with everything. Also liked that the adult areas were full of people late at night, unlike DCL which is like a ghost town. Had great fun dancing the night away every night! Would definitely cruise Celebrity again.

NCL was pretty good. Had a few issues with food (I'm vegetarian, you wouldn't think that was a problem, but it was!) but overall enjoyed the ship, entertainment etc. Would cruise with them again if the price was right.

Marella - we went on the Dream, which is like some dodgy 70's holiday park on the sea! Luckily we had read the reviews, so knew what to expect. The cabin was pretty awful, very basic, but we actually didn't really mind. It was stupidly cheap, drinks are included (it is basically all inclusive including alcohol), and we went just for a cheapie week away cruising round the Canary Islands. Had a great time and actually, the entertainment by the onboard team was some of the best we have ever experienced. Full on shows every night, they were fantastic. I probably wouldn't go on that ship again, but I think there are some newer Marella ships which I've read good things about.

Next year we have booked two cruises on the brand new P&O Iona which we're really looking forward to. Never cruised P&O, but the prices were really good.

We've also got a Royal Caribbean cruise round Hawaii. That was a bargain, especially when looking at the prices Disney charge for Hawaii! Ours was about half the price, and that included us pre-purchasing the drinks package.

We're both excited to be trying out new cruise lines. I guess we will always compare things to DCL, that is natural, but unless their prices come back down, we are unlikely to cruise with them again. Meanwhile, there is a big wide world out there, and we are enjoying seeing different countries and experiencing new things!

[Floridag1rl]

Entertainment on the Royal Caribbean is the best, broadway shows, Aqua shows, ice skating shows all with professionals. You cannot beat RC for entertainment.

[KeithOP]

I see there are lots of options that go from fort lauderdale, we normally fly into orlando but I guess we could fly to miami... is fort lauderdale awkward to get to?

[Bats]

Originally Posted by KeithOP

I see there are lots of options that go from fort lauderdale, we normally fly into orlando but I guess we could fly to miami... is fort lauderdale awkward to get to?

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It's really close so only about $50 by Uber (depending on size of vehicle)

[Bats]

Originally Posted by Floridag1rl

Entertainment on the Royal Caribbean is the best, broadway shows, Aqua shows, ice skating shows all with professionals. You cannot beat RC for entertainment.

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All subjective. DCL have won numerous awards for their shows, but are they the best? According to some yes and according to others no!
Same with RC, my parents hated their RC cruise - everything about it, so they can be beaten for entertainment, it's just that you like them!

[DonnaD]

Originally Posted by Bats

All subjective. DCL have won numerous awards for their shows, but are they the best? According to some yes and according to others no!
Same with RC, my parents hated their RC cruise - everything about it, so they can be beaten for entertainment, it's just that you like them!

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My mother wasn't impressed with her recent RCI cruise either. She thought it would be better than her usual NCL but it wasn't at all, including the entertainment.

DCL is brilliant for family evening entertainment. NCL was good but very much aimed at older teens and adults on my recent cruise. Priscilla Queen of the Desert was brilliant but definitely not for young kids or some adults.

[danisleigh]

We have done DCL, RCL and NCL and prefer them in that order. Disney are amazing but very pricey and a lot less choice of itineraries. RCL the new ships are amazing for shows and facilities. NCL have some amazing itineraries but we have found the entertainment lacking on the smaller ships and although the dining is flexible which might suit some people we find the service usually isn’t as good. My brother in law raves about celebrity but we haven’t tried them yet.

[SimonB]

Originally Posted by Bats

So Cunard for us was like being on the Titanic with the class system. We truly felt that we would be treated better the more money we spent on cabins/dinings etc. Don't get me wrong, no crew member was rude or anything, but there was so much we weren't allowed to go and places we couldn't eat at because we had the cheapest cabin - it really felt snotty. I like DCL because whether I'm sailing concierge or cheapest cabins, I get treated exactly the same way and I can eat in the same restaurants as everyone else.

My parents hated RC because of the food. My dad does not do well with food (long story, won't bore you), so one evening, when there was nothing on the menu he could eat, he asked for an omelette and chips (chips were on the menu). The server went to the kitchen, came back and said they couldn't do it as they didn't have the equipment. Right?
So, it was that and the upsell of everything they disliked.

Other people love it, so get a wide spectrum of views and give a new cruiseline a go. Worse case scenario is that you have an ok time but choose not to return with them. Best scenario is you love it!

Bear in mind that my parents don't do the ice skating/surfing stuff - so you may love that part of it.

Joa

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Can see your point about the class system. Tbh it’s never bothered us and we are happy with the Britannia fixed dining. We could pay for grills and that would by the looks of things be the same price as an equivalent balcony cabin on DCL. Looking at DCL they operate a class system based on number of cruises taken so a first time cruiser is excluded from certain experiences. I could be wrong though (and frequently am ).

Another off putting thing about Cunard is the dress code. It put me off at first but since my workplace dumbed down our office dress code to jeans and football shirts it’s nice to get dressed up, embrace it and experience the ambience.

I do think picking the correct cruise line for a longer voyage is important as you are on there a long time. Good thing is that there is a cruise line for everyone depending on individual tastes and preferences.