Carnival or Disney?????

Has anyone cruised both with the kids? If so, which one did you prefer for families? I have a 3 year old and a 6 year old. We have cruised Carnival's and were very happy with the Camp Carnival, but that's all we know is Carnival, would like to know more about the Disney cruises. Thank you in advance..........

I just returned from a 7-day on the Magic with a 3 and 6 year old! We had a great time and the kids enjoyed it so much! They have an incredible kids program, and the ship is graet! You will have a great time on Disney!

[disneylynn]

Disneys island is not ot be missed!!!

My son and I did the 3 night Wonder in September. They have an amazing kids program that the other lines should learn from. They don't close for meal times and stay open late (some nights until 1am) at no additional charge. They have a kids pool with the slide just for them. He was so disappointed when we had to leave that I promised him we would go again this year. He (and I) is counting the days until Aug.28th!!!

We just returned from the Disney Magic February 21-28 (Eastern Caribbean). It was our first time sailing with our children ages 5 & 6. We had a GREAT time! The kids Oceaneer club is fantastic. Our kids loved it and always asked to go. This left some alone time with husband! It is open from 9:00 AM - 12 or 1:00 AM and it does not cost extra past 10:00PM like the other cruiselines. We had a very nice room that slept 5 with a balcony . However, all disney rooms are more spacious than other ships with the same type of room. Also, having 1 1\2 baths was so nice!! Lots of storage! We brought 5 suitcases and 4 carryons and still had empty drawers! The refrigerator was empty so we could put our own stuff in it. Pluto's/ Pinnochio's served hamburgers, hotdogs, pizza, sandwiches, icecream, and fruit all day! It was fast and delicious. Also nice for kids because we had late seating. Rotating restaurants was also fun. We had a great waitstaff that rotated with us! Service was terrific! Lots of great character appearances. They even came to the pool to dance, exercise,and play games! On Tuesday (tropical night ) they had a night dance party with the characters that was a blast! The bonvoyage party was also lots of fun. The Thursday show "Disney Dreams" is a must! Embarkation was easy .We got to the terminal about 12:15 and was on the boat around 12:45. Went to the buffet, registered our kids in the kids club, and our room was ready about 1:30. The only mistake I made was waiting to see our dining room tickets that were in our room so to know what night we wanted to go to Palo's the adult restaurant. We went right down to Studio B to make reservations and they only had a few times left. Go right when you get on the ship and if you want to change after you see your dining rotation you can. FYI - Our formal night was the 2nd night and semi formal was Thursday night . Disembarkation was the easiest we had ever had. We ate breakfast in the dining room because they offered a full breakfast compared to continental at the buffet the last morning. Afterwards, we just walked off the ship at our leisure with the crew wishing us well. Is Disney more expensive? Yes. But if you don't mind spending $1500 to $2500 more than other very nice ships for a 7 night vacation, then it's something every family should do atleast once! No other ship can make it as "magical " for a young family like Disney!

[disneylynn]

A.sawnson
I could'nt say it any better!

thanks for all the info, I truly appreciate it!!!!!!!!
Has anyone done both, Carnival and Disney? Also, does anyone recommend land and sea, or just doing a 7 night cruise is better?/ We go to Disney every May, I don't know if a 3 day cruise would be much fun, not enough time. What are the rates usuall for a 7 night Disney cruise?

[disneylynn]

I have been on the 7 day cruise and the land and sea .( 3 day cruise, 4 day land)
I paid the same for both trips you pay for 7days. If you have done disney I think you should go for the 7 day cruise. There is so much to do plus the 7 day cruise offers better ports.either way you will have a great time.

We did the 4 day land 3 day sea trip. We loved it ! We had a 3, 5, and 8 year old at the time. They loved the kids clubs. It was great because it gave us some time to relax by ourselves. The food was great! It seemed that was all we got done doing. The shows were wonderful! The kids loved them as much as we did. We enjoyed hitting the parks and staying at the Polynesian for 4 days. We were exhausted by the time we got on the boat! So, it was nice to be able to relax. Checking in and departing were a cinch. No complaints about this trip what-so-ever! My kids beg every year to go back. We would like to go again someday!

[shubaby]

we did both!
we only took our child on the disney boat................
i would not even consider to take her an any thing but!
disney is the best cruise for kids and adults, i NEVER under stand it when i see kids on the other ships????????

[bigsky]

I've been on Carnival many times and just got back from Disney. Since you have little ones, I'd go with Disney. You WILL pay extra. YOu're paying for the name. We took our kids, 13 and 15. They hung out in the teen club. Didn't see them much. THey had a good time. But they couldn't compare to the Carnival cruise because we've only cruised alone except on Disney.
For myself, 4 days on the ship isn't enough! I just wouldn't do that again. But you have little ones. And having the land/sea, you get a taste of both. But if you've been to WDW, I'd go for longer on the ship. There's characters all over and lots to do for the little ones.

Another option you could consider is going to WDW for whatever amount of time you'd like and go on a 4 day on Carnival out of Port Canaveral. Just depends on what your budget is too.

Whatever you decide, I'm sure your kids will have a great time!!

I would recomend a 7 day Disney cruise ,we are going on one next year! In 2002 we did go to Disney world and stay at Fort Wilderness. I think the cruise/ land would be too much(with my kids anyway!)

We are thinking about taking a cruise a Christmas. My children are 10 and 13 years of age. Which cruise do you recommend? Also my husband loves to gamble. Is there gambling on the ship? Please let me know so I can start making plans!

Thanks so much!

[Darcy]

gjsunshine

No gambling on the Disney ships. You might want to take a look at Carnival or RCI. My kids (10, 12, 15 & 20) preferred Carnival over RCI (as did my husband and I), but we didn't cruise the Voyager class on RCI which I understand is great for kids. Hope this helps.

Darcy