gays comfortable on a disney cruise?

My boyfriend and I are spending a week at Walt Disney World for my mother's family reunion. I saw a good deal and decided to follow up the week with a short three day cruise on Disney's Wonder.

I've been on several cruises, both alone and with my boyfriend, but I am slightly concerned that somehow a Disney Cruise may not be as comfortable for us.

Has anyone had any experiences on a Disney Cruise?

I haven't been on a Disney cruise. But, I've read several threads about how gay-friendly they are. It is "Disney" remember. I think a lot of the staff will look after you.

[Jim Bragg]

I don;t see why they would be any differant from any of the other cruiselines. Discrimination is against the hiring policies of Disney and you wi9ll I am sure find a high number of gay folks working onboard as well as a decent number that will also be passengers. Fortunately most people leave their prejudices at home when they cruise and nobody much gives a rip what your personal sexual preferances are. Yes there would be some hard stares if you and your friend were basically climbing all over each other and tossing lip locks on each other but that would also be true of a straight couple. Discreation and moderation is the key, for everyone.
Jim

So basically nobody here seems to know the answer and they're guessing how it should be. Not how it really is.

I'm sure the man is not stupid and has considered the above issues.

He's worried that a ship full of parents with their kids might frown on gay couples on board.

Unless you've actually taken the cruise with a same-sex partner, you know nothing.

[CruiseAholic]

My former partner of 11 years and I did two of the Disney Magic 3-day cruises and absolutely loved it.

We were treated like all other passengers, no one, passenger or crew/staff even gave a second glance that two men were together.

I don't think you will have any problem, we had done about 20 cruises together.

Thank you all very much. Really appreicate the input.

I have been on over 10 cruises with my same sex partner. I am also a travel agent and member of ICTA. I am qualified to answer the question. So, until you know who you're talking to, you know nothing.

[Harry Martin]

Glad to see Ed got the answers he needed, and let's try to be a little more polite, Mr Truth.

Harry

Quoting you, in your very own words:

"I haven't been on a Disney cruise."

[Jim Bragg]

I think the question has been answered by those that HAVE been on a Disney cruise and are in a gay relationship. Just because you haven't done it personally doesn't mean you are unaware of what is customary.
JIm

Well, I am going to play devils advocate and tell you what I though about the Disney Cruise. Basically the first and worst cruise I have ever taken. Yes it’s true that there are a lot of gays working for the mouse but how many are out of the closet….none because it’s Disney. So it makes you feel like you have to do the same. Secondly, its is loaded up with kids. Well I expected that, but what I didn’t expect is that even with the 30 female only baby sitters on board and special rooms dedicated to that it was completely empty. That’s because the kids where running wild everywhere on the ship. I guess most of the parents felt they couldn’t go far.

Unlike a regular cruise that has a mix of people, singles, couples, families, seniors, a Disney cruise is all kids, all families. Now don’t get me wrong, I hate kids but it’s the parents I had a problem with. Imagine sitting in a dining room where the table next you is screaming at their kids to stop doing whatever it is they are doing, but never get up to stop them. Now multiply that times every table in the dining room and you will get the picture. Trust me, the kids don’t leave the parents alone to do their thing like in the commercial. Three days was all I could handle, and I needed a vacation after that.

The ship itself was kind of dated and very 70s. At least the one I was on. Food was just OK. Going ashore was the best part and the private island Disney owns was kind of cool but not spectacular.

By the way, people are not sophisticated either. The dinner table we sat at was with the same people for the whole trip which is customary on most ships but that got uncomfortable when my sister had to tell the daughter of the woman sitting across from us to stop trying to set us up because I was gay. She didn’t seem to get that.

I went on a cruise to Alaska last year on the Sun Princess and it was awesome! New ship, good food, breathtaking scenery and once in a life time experience. Even though it was a straight cruise, we saw a few other gay couples on board and we never felt like we had to hide anything. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would give it a 9 and Disney a 2.

Let me put it this way, if you decided to go out to a fancy dinner, would you go to your favorite restaurant with outstanding food, or would you spend the same money to eat a one of the restraints at Disneyland sponsored by Kraft Cheese? Same goes for cruises.

Out of 19 cruises, we've sailed twice on the Magic. First a 4-nighter, followed by the 7-nighter. Both cruises were fantastic....and I'm not even a Disney fan (my partner is!). For a ship that caters to kids and families, I have to admit we felt more catered to as adults than many other mainstream lines. By that I mean that while Disney pulls out all the stop with childrens programs, etc, they don't stop there. The adult-only entertainment venues at night are first rate....often much better than the mainstreams, in our opinion. Both cruises we've had second seating, and never as much as saw one child in the dining rooms. The "gay thing" has never been a negative issue with us aboard their ships.

If you want to sail when the least amount of kids are aboard, in order to maximize the adult experience, I'd suggest September, October and early November. Both our cruises have been within this timefame. My take on it is that parents aren't going to take their kids out of school immediately after it's started! Jan/Feb/Mar is a different story...the kids are well into the school year and parents are much more likely to pull them out for a week or so. And of course Thanksgiving/Christmas/SpringBreak and Summer are times to avoid if you are able to.

Hello, When did you go on your Disney Cruise? Was it beforew or after Disney launched their own cruise line?? I am currently on the Disney Wonder sailing towards Castaway Cay which we should arrive at in about 5 hours. Everyone has treated me quite well and if you cruise when the kids are out of school then of course there will be tons of children. Right now there are not many children on board at all and after 2nd dining you barelt even see the kids anyhow. I just went to Crazy Karaoke and they even give you free shots when you sing. There are plenty of "family" members on board and as Disney always does, everyone is treated equally. I have a feeling you sailed a "Disney" Cruise when they were on the Big Red Boat by Premier. The food so far has been outsanding, the shows second to none, and the crew spectacular. Give Disney another chance and you won't be disappointed.