Sobering videos of fantasy cruise

[erik3dis]

Definitely seems to be two different groups here. Those that accentuate how relaxing the cruises as a result of being so empty and those that miss the activities and energy. And whether or not you travel with kids seems to be a huge factor.

We are booked on the Wonder over Thanksgiving and the revised itinerary just released today. No CC or Keywest, replaced with Cozumel and Costa Maya. With two teenaged children, it's very likely we are taking a pass.

Basic things (as I understand it) like not being able to play basketball, ping pong or shuffle board) and such limited entertainment options really are factors for us. We are not yet at the stage of life where eating and laying around poolside are how we want to spend our vacation.

I do wonder how full a holiday cruise like that will be? My guess is the ship will be more full which for the sake of those going, is hopefully reflected in more activities.

 

[sethschroeder]

miss the activities

There is actually no relation to how full a cruise is and activities. That comes down to how cheap Disney is. What I don't want is a full ship which seemed to be the point of the post I read but maybe misunderstood.

Same with going to Alaska last month. It was amazing because ports where there would be 3/4/5 ships of 2k-4k people only had 2 ships each with less than 50% capacity. Meaning instead of upwards of 15k-20k tourists you were left with around 1.5k-3k total in port.

What I took away from the post was that they were disappointed ships were not packed and all social distancing wasn't removed.

 

[MomOTwins]

Definitely seems to be two different groups here. Those that accentuate how relaxing the cruises as a result of being so empty and those that miss the activities and energy. And whether or not you travel with kids seems to be a huge factor.

We are booked on the Wonder over Thanksgiving and the revised itinerary just released today. No CC or Keywest, replaced with Cozumel and Costa Maya. With two teenaged children, it's very likely we are taking a pass.

Basic things (as I understand it) like not being able to play basketball, ping pong or shuffle board) and such limited entertainment options really are factors for us. We are not yet at the stage of life where eating and laying around poolside are how we want to spend our vacation.

I do wonder how full a holiday cruise like that will be? My guess is the ship will be more full which for the sake of those going, is hopefully reflected in more activities.

I’m not sure I follow—the onboard activities are still happening. Kids clubs have kids programming. Spa, golf simulator, character meets, bingo, trivia, mini golf, aqua duck, broadway, port adventures—it’s all still happening just with fewer people.

 

[erik3dis]

I’m not sure I follow—the onboard activities are still happening. Kids clubs have kids programming. Spa, golf simulator, character meets, bingo, trivia, mini golf, aqua duck, broadway, port adventures—it’s all still happening just with fewer people.

Is this true? I was under the impression activities were curtailed. Fewer shows, fewer events like trivia, animation classes compared to prior cruises, sports deck closed, no shuffleboard etc.

 

[Maggie'sMom]

Is this true? I was under the impression activities were curtailed. Fewer shows, fewer events like trivia, animation classes compared to prior cruises, sports deck closed, no shuffleboard etc.

You are correct. There are fewer activities as compared to cruises prior to COVID.

 

[DCLCruiseFan09]

Is this true? I was under the impression activities were curtailed. Fewer shows, fewer events like trivia, animation classes compared to prior cruises, sports deck closed, no shuffleboard etc.

When we were on the fantasy a few weeks back, there was Plenty of shows, trivia and movies. Mini Golf and Shuffleboard were available. Animation classes were available. I couldnt speak for the family activities but the bars at night were busier than I had ever seen them and regularly closed to capacity until someone else left.

Its all going to boil down to what you are looking for in a vacation, but for us it was the best we have ever had on DCL. So good in fact we booked a 5 night out of Miami on the Magic in November!

 

[erik3dis]

When we were on the fantasy a few weeks back, there was Plenty of shows, trivia and movies. Mini Golf and Shuffleboard were available. Animation classes were available. I couldnt speak for the family activities but the bars at night were busier than I had ever seen them and regularly closed to capacity until someone else left.

Its all going to boil down to what you are looking for in a vacation, but for us it was the best we have ever had on DCL. So good in fact we booked a 5 night out of Miami on the Magic in November!

I suppose "plenty" will be different for everyone based on their interests and makeup of their family.

That is the first I had heard about capacity limits in the bars. So you wait outside in a line until someone leaves?

 

[beccawes7471]

ok, well now I am really thinking of booking! We went to an all inclusive in Jamaica in January and the resort was at 20% occupancy, our whole family LOVED it, ages 12-69. We had our pick of everything and a beautiful beach almost all to ourselves each day. We've hesitated against rebooking with Disney the last 6 years bc the pools are so small and so crowded. This may make the difference for sure.

 

[DCLCruiseFan09]

That is the first I had heard about capacity limits in the bars. So you wait outside in a line until someone leaves?

Most of the time, if they had to politely turn someone away, they would just go to one of the other bars (On the fantasy it was usually La Piazza which is right in the center) and wait for some folks to leave. They didn't have lines per se, it never got that crowded however there were multiple times that we were in Ooh La La that people would come in and they would politely let them know they were at capacity for seating but they could still order a drink at the bar if they wanted something to go.

 

[3 Hobbits 2 Disney]

Thank you @dcl for erring on the side of health. Perhaps lower capacity could lower restrictions, I don’t know -/I’m neither an epidemiologist nor soothsayer.
I’ll see you in Dec 2022.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I was on a B2B in Aug on the Dream and JUST got off the Fantasy this AM… there were definitely changes from the cruise in Aug to the one we just got off…silly things like a lot more movies on Funnel Vision (because there were literally 4 movies they showed on the Aug cruise), filling the trams on CC, more tastings…just some examples of how they are slowly starting to try stuff. I did talk to a officer while we were waiting for the pilot to jump off and she said they are definitely learning in every cruise what is working and not. She said,and did not further explain, there were something that are only going to be temporary but somethings that have really worked and are here to stay. The difference between my 2 cruises was the 1st one you didn’t have to be vaccinated and if you were…no Covid tests and now full vaccinated 12+ and everyone gets a Covid test. As far as masks go I mean wearing them inside the ship wasn’t really bothersome and getting pics with the characters and Princesses now seems easier then ever. I have the 6 night booked at the end of the month.. if anything I would say what is holding me back from booking another one after that is the food quality has gone down especially in Cabanas and quick service.

Glad to hear there are more movies on Funnel Vision. It made no sense to me to only have a couple each day. Out in the open breeze is the safest place to be on a ship. Why direct more people back indoors? Outdoor activities should be encouraged.

Also I have heard that the new muster routine is likely to be permanent. I was told they are getting almost 100% positive response regarding that. While I certainly appreciated how easy it was, I wonder if a single tween onboard would be able to answer correctly if given a pop quiz about how many horn blasts should you listen for and what you should do in case of emergency. Just hearing instructions is not the same as seeing how to line up. Many of us are visual learners. Tell me til you're blue in the face and I'll still forget in 5 minutes but show me and it will stick forever.
At the time of the Costa Concordia accident, I thought is was truly despicable that the ship was in motion and many people never even had a muster drill. Yes, it's a PITA but it's seriously important and to keep scaling it back out of convenience is a bit crazy. JMHO. I wonder how many parents don't even bother to check if their closet has a life jacket in proper sizes for all their children, including babies. When we all had to put one on for the muster drill, we knew our kids had the correct size.

 

[WannaBeImagineer]

Definitely seems to be two different groups here. Those that accentuate how relaxing the cruises as a result of being so empty and those that miss the activities and energy. And whether or not you travel with kids seems to be a huge factor.

We are booked on the Wonder over Thanksgiving and the revised itinerary just released today. No CC or Keywest, replaced with Cozumel and Costa Maya. With two teenaged children, it's very likely we are taking a pass.

Basic things (as I understand it) like not being able to play basketball, ping pong or shuffle board) and such limited entertainment options really are factors for us. We are not yet at the stage of life where eating and laying around poolside are how we want to spend our vacation.

I do wonder how full a holiday cruise like that will be? My guess is the ship will be more full which for the sake of those going, is hopefully reflected in more activities.

I saw that itinerary change yesterday and I think I would rebook also, that's a drastic change from what you originally booked.

 

[MomOTwins]

Glad to hear there are more movies on Funnel Vision. It made no sense to me to only have a couple each day. Out in the open breeze is the safest place to be on a ship. Why direct more people back indoors? Outdoor activities should be encouraged.

Also I have heard that the new muster routine is likely to be permanent. I was told they are getting almost 100% positive response regarding that. While I certainly appreciated how easy it was, I wonder if a single tween onboard would be able to answer correctly if given a pop quiz about how many horn blasts should you listen for and what you should do in case of emergency. Just hearing instructions is not the same as seeing how to line up. Many of us are visual learners. Tell me til you're blue in the face and I'll still forget in 5 minutes but show me and it will stick forever.
At the time of the Costa Concordia accident, I thought is was truly despicable that the ship was in motion and many people never even had a muster drill. Yes, it's a PITA but it's seriously important and to keep scaling it back out of convenience is a bit crazy. JMHO. I wonder how many parents don't even bother to check if their closet has a life jacket in proper sizes for all their children, including babies. When we all had to put one on for the muster drill, we knew our kids had the correct size.

I mean, I’ve done three DCL muster drills now and we were crammed on deck with so many other people, everyone jostling one another and complaining about being out in the hot son and holding my toddler who is squirming to get away… I never heard a word of the instructions. Watching a video in the stateroom sounds so much more pleasant and I will actually have enough peace and quiet to hear it this time.

 

[mmouse37]

Will be cruising very soon just not DCL and very certain it will be enjoyable. As mentioned, fewer people could be a unique ghost town-ish (maybe) experience but the fact that we will be on a ship AND SAILING will be awesome!!!

Make it want you want OR NOT is my mantra. I have a cancer scan 4 days after returning and honestly will be going WAY OVERBOARD on all things I shouldn't do because "what's done is done" and for me remaining life is meant to live, NOT JUST TO EXIST.

Exactly......and this is one of the things that I missed most....just being out on the ocean.



MJ

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I mean, I’ve done three DCL muster drills now and we were crammed on deck with so many other people, everyone jostling one another and complaining about being out in the hot son and holding my toddler who is squirming to get away… I never heard a word of the instructions. Watching a video in the stateroom sounds so much more pleasant and I will actually have enough peace and quiet to hear it this time.

I agree but do people really watch it? I didn't in August but Ive heard the shpeil 23 times.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Exactly......and this is one of the things that I missed most....just being out on the ocean.

View attachment 610928

MJ

Yes. The simple things are more appreciated. The stars in the sky, watching the wake the ship makes. Ahhh, so nice to see it all.

 

[erik3dis]

Most of the time, if they had to politely turn someone away, they would just go to one of the other bars (On the fantasy it was usually La Piazza which is right in the center) and wait for some folks to leave. They didn't have lines per se, it never got that crowded however there were multiple times that we were in Ooh La La that people would come in and they would politely let them know they were at capacity for seating but they could still order a drink at the bar if they wanted something to go.

I hadn't really thought of this. I guess there will be capacity limits for activities like trivia, animation, bingo etc. Hopefully they have it figured out as we approach holidays and ships will be fuller.

 

[DCLCruiseFan09]

I mean, I’ve done three DCL muster drills now and we were crammed on deck with so many other people, everyone jostling one another and complaining about being out in the hot son and holding my toddler who is squirming to get away… I never heard a word of the instructions. Watching a video in the stateroom sounds so much more pleasant and I will actually have enough peace and quiet to hear it this time.

I've only done like... 6 cruises total and I could almost repeat from memory everything in the spiel (Including the emergency alarms...). I am sure there are others who are in the same boat and they've done way more cruises than I have. I LOVED the new muster drill with the app. The video was only 8 min long if I remember right and even better, no hanging out in the hot sun.

EDIT: Even if they did go to the actual physical drill, do you think the teens and tweens paid attention? My money is on no

 

[EveV]

I'm so looking forward to our cruise now! We are a family of 3, only child, but she is hoping that the cruise will be nearly empty and that we will leave her alone so she can read and hang out on the balcony and eat ice cream/popcorn/Snickers. She likes Edge and kind of finds one person to hang out with. Hoping she actually wants to hang out with us on this cruise lolol. We feel like empty nesters some times.

 

[cvjw]

Glad to hear there are more movies on Funnel Vision. It made no sense to me to only have a couple each day. Out in the open breeze is the safest place to be on a ship. Why direct more people back indoors? Outdoor activities should be encouraged.

Also I have heard that the new muster routine is likely to be permanent. I was told they are getting almost 100% positive response regarding that. While I certainly appreciated how easy it was, I wonder if a single tween onboard would be able to answer correctly if given a pop quiz about how many horn blasts should you listen for and what you should do in case of emergency. Just hearing instructions is not the same as seeing how to line up. Many of us are visual learners. Tell me til you're blue in the face and I'll still forget in 5 minutes but show me and it will stick forever.
At the time of the Costa Concordia accident, I thought is was truly despicable that the ship was in motion and many people never even had a muster drill. Yes, it's a PITA but it's seriously important and to keep scaling it back out of convenience is a bit crazy. JMHO. I wonder how many parents don't even bother to check if their closet has a life jacket in proper sizes for all their children, including babies. When we all had to put one on for the muster drill, we knew our kids had the correct size.

We took disney cruise number 5 and 6 in August. I loved the new muster drill procedure. I actually watched the video twice, once for each cruise. It is also playing thru out the ships audio, so it is really hard not to hear it. I learned so much more watching the video than crammed into a theater or standing in the hot sun. I hope the new muster drill procedures stick around.