Tired of Repeat Bad Deck Parties and Repeated Entertainment Shows

[CRB#33]

Nah, I've only ever cruised once and probably only will one more time. The shows were wonderful. The deck parties were great even when moved inside because of downpours.

It's Disney. I would say that the deck parties really take children into account. This was where we saw the characters interacting with the crowds. I guess it could have been a bit more "caribbean", but it never even crossed my mind. I was too excited when Minnie Mouse came right over and hugged my DD and I got a picture.

 

[Michelle]

Love the deck parties. I love to dance and now I know all the steps to the dances and it's FUN.

As for entertainment, yes I agree there is some updating to be done and DCL is introducing a new show this year. Honestly, I rarely go to the shows (except for Disney Dreams); we tend to do the different adult games and then dance all night or go to Sessions.

 

[DisneyCruiseluvr]

I could do without the dancers at the deck party dancing to Ricky Martin's "Livin' La Vida Loca". Can't they come up with a new dance routine from one year to the next? We've seen this 3 times!!! As stated before, it would be ok to watch the same entertainers as long as they danced to a different tune!!!

 

[aprilgail2]

I actually didn't go to one deck party our whole last cruise...maybe this time I will. I was getting a massage during the sailaway party and with a 2 year old we were in the cabin every night by 930.

 

[Moosysmom]

My first cruise in March, all adults no kids, we enjoyed the deck parties, (we brought our own streamers and bubbles) and we went to Hercules (only okay), Who wants to be a Mousekateer (why couldn't I be in the hot seat, I knew the answers), The farewell show, and Disney Dreams the best show.
My friends and I were commenting on the Carnival ship leaving port before us that no one was on deck as they were pulling out to see. But the Magic's decks were filled with people, dancing, singing and having a great time. I would say that the entertainers could get old for multiple cruisers, and even some of the entertainment is Korny, but I guess that's Disney. It's your own fun to make and if it's not fun then you need find something else. I will definitely cruise DCL again, and would not have a problem repeating a show I truly enjoyed. We went to a movie one night instead of a show and had a great time.

 

[SlyHubby]

who are the deck parties and shows supposed to keep entertained - you or the kids?

no matter how bored I am with it, the kids always love it and if that's not what you're there for, you shouldn't be on DCL.

personally, yes, I'm bored with all of DCL after only two cruises. next cruise, it's one of the megaships for us.

 

[CRSNDSNY]

Originally posted by Disneylunatic
IAs for Hercules...it needs to go and I was not aware that a new show is in production and I am glad to hear it.

DH and I love Hercules the MUSEical and would be really upset if it were to go -- . It's our favorite stage show (although very close to Disney Dreams).

We've been on 2 Disney Cruises in the past year and a half and have 2 more booked for the next year and a half -- we are looking forward to all shows as we have not tired of them yet and quite frankly, I'm not sure that we ever could or would.

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"

 

[CRSNDSNY]

Originally posted by SlyHubby
who are the deck parties and shows supposed to keep entertained - you or the kids?

no matter how bored I am with it, the kids always love it and if that's not what you're there for, you shouldn't be on DCL.

Some people seem to forget that not everyone has kids or cruises with their kids. Yes, some entertainment is and should be geared toward children, but the same should be for adults. This is probably why DH and I love Hercules -- it has much more adult humor in it. Disney Cruise Line prides itself with catering to both the kid crowd, as well as the adult crowd.

From disneycruise.com: "Here, specially designed areas and activities let adults, families, teens, and children play together and separately, creating magical memories that last a lifetime."

So just as Moosysmom and Inkognito have said (and I'm paraphrasing), there is so much to do and so much variety that there is always a million other things to do if you don't like the main stage shows or performances. That's the beauty of DCL. They really know how to cater to a variety of passengers.

 

[eye R.N.]

I like the sail away party because I love to watch us pulling out of port, see the sea turtles and the dolphin around the boat, if we are lucky.

As for the shows, I love Disney Dreams, so I keep going to that. My kids love WWTBAM so we go to that.

With so many other things to do we usually miss deck parties. I think I would miss them if they were gone because there would be more folks competing for my spa time.

 

[melissaga]

Disney Dreams IS going... or at least changing.

We were told this by at least one cast member on our late May cruise on the Magic. The new show (or at least the new version) will have characters from Toy Story and some other shows not currently featured.

 

[SlyHubby]

Some people seem to forget that not everyone has kids or cruises with their kids. Yes, some entertainment is and should be geared toward children, but the same should be for adults

I disagree. If you go on a cruise with DCL, like WDW itself, you should know ahead of time that it is heavily slanted at the children. Just like you have specialty cruises of all sorts from all the cruise lines, a Disney cruise is specialized for the children. Yes, it is "family" oriented, and there are specific activities for adults, but overall it is geared to the children.

So just as Moosysmom and Inkognito have said (and I'm paraphrasing), there is so much to do and so much variety that there is always a million other things to do if you don't like the main stage shows or performances. That's the beauty of DCL. They really know how to cater to a variety of passengers

I disagree again - far from "a million" other things to do, and there isn't so much variety. If you don't want to go to "the" show on a particular evening, pretty much your only alternative is to see the movie that happens to be showing at the same time. It also became very clear to me, that the 2 days at sea were particularly lacking in the "variety" of things to do. It seemed that all of the activities were pretty much identical from one of the days at sea to the other. Further, the lack of the number of activities became very clear on our second day at sea when there were some heavy storms and everyone was pretty much stuck inside. When it became clear that people were going to be stuck inside, instead of showing the movie in the small movie theater where you had people sitting in the aisles on the floor because it was packed, they should have moved it to the big theater so many more could have killed some time. It was just another item that made clear that there was a lack of activities.

 

[gottaluvdisney]

I have sailed six times and each time I have gone to the shows/deck parties. Always have enjoyed them. I think it is all the way you look at it. I have gone to Disney many times and rode Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise, Space Mountain, etc. All those things have stayed the same over the years, yet I still enjoy riding them. Every so often a new attraction is added, but that is not the reason that I keep going back.

As for 'things' to do while these shows are going on - there are many many things to do, you just have to want to do them - such as a swim in the pool, soak in the hot tub, play basketball, shuffle board, ping pong, listen to music in the Promenade lounge, go to Sessions, ESPN, watch a movie, dance party in Studio Sea, sit on deck 4 with a book, walk around the deck, enjoy your verandah, play a hidden mickey game with your kids - I am sure there are more activities to find around the ship - sometimes it is nice just to entertain yourself.

 

[CRSNDSNY]

Originally posted by gottaluvdisney
As for 'things' to do while these shows are going on - there are many many things to do, you just have to want to do them - such as a swim in the pool, soak in the hot tub, play basketball, shuffle board, ping pong, listen to music in the Promenade lounge, go to Sessions, ESPN, watch a movie, dance party in Studio Sea, sit on deck 4 with a book, walk around the deck, enjoy your verandah, play a hidden mickey game with your kids - I am sure there are more activities to find around the ship - sometimes it is nice just to entertain yourself.

Exactly, gottaluvdisney! And those are just naming a handful of things to do. I guess it's all in what you personally consider fun and entertaining. After two cruises we still have a difficult time picking what to do next and can't wait to try things we haven't done before during our upcoming cruises.

 

[ncligs]

Originally posted by WebmasterMichelle
I love to dance and now I know all the steps to the dances and it's FUN.

..........

 

[Incharge]

I'm with WebmasterMichelle... I LOVE to dance. We are anticipating this deck party, and have every intention of dancing our way out of port. (Three Circles...If you see this tall old babe out there doing the cha-cha slide and keeping up with every move, hey that will be me)
Consider those of us who have never cruised DCL. Weren't you bursting with awe about the deck party, shows, and everything they do? Didn't the horn bring tears to many of your eyes when it played? We "newbies" are looking forward to the same awe and happiness of these first-time experiences. I want all after me to be as happy with the trip as I plan to be. I can't wait to hear this horn!

 

[inkkognito]

SlyHubby,
If you think there is nothing to do on DCL during the days at sea, be sure to stay away from RCCL. Compared to Disney, they were totally boring as they seemed to think that most passengers would amuse themselves in the casino. There were a couple of cooking/entertaining demos, but that was about it. On Disney, there are chats with the entertainers, a backstage tour of the theater, talks with the captain, and much, much more.
In addition to the movies, when we don't want to see the evening show, we've found many other options such as the pool/hot tub, spa (massage, Rainforest or whatever), or even just some relaxing quality verandah time (if you don't have a verandah stateroom, go to deck 4 or deck 7 aft). I guess it's all in what you want in a vacation as to whether you consider Disney boring or not. Personally, I can't imagine feeling like there is nothing to do on either ship.
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[Mojomanny]

I think we need to understand that while Disney has a high percentage of repeat cruisers, this is a small percent of the people on the cruise. For the vast majority of the guests the shows are new and exciting.

Regarding the comment about the same menu 3 years in a row. Wow, you have a better memory than me. I cannot remember what I had for dinner last week. I do presume most guests eat at most two entree's from any nights menu, meaning you probably still have good choices left. I know I would take a menu from the Magic any night instead of whatever we are making at home.

I have to say I think the poll question is highly biased and really designed for a single answer, that being Yes. I enliken this to the question, "Has your spouse resolved their drinking problem?". If you answer Yes, you are agreeing they had a problem and (happily) have resolved it. If you answer No, you are acknowledging they had a drinking problem.

This is why I trust very few of the polls that are reported. "95% of people polled stated they would like to see an increase in spending for education" can be the result of the question "Would you prefer to see more money spent on education or give a tax break to the rich?"

Nobody asked, just my opinion.

 

[cinnamongirl66]

The party music was my least favorite part of the Disney Cruise, too. When I'm in the Caribbean, I want to hear Caribbean music! I was JAMMIN when I rode the Castaway Cay shuttle to the adult beach and there was steel drum Disney music (do they still play this?) I liked it so much I bought the cd! I think they should have a steel drum band playing stuff like "Under The Sea" at the sailaway party Kids and adults alike could jam out and dance- island style!

 

[Disneylunatic]

Originally posted by cinnamongirl66
The party music was my least favorite part of the Disney Cruise, too. When I'm in the Caribbean, I want to hear Caribbean music! I was JAMMIN when I rode the Castaway Cay shuttle to the adult beach and there was steel drum Disney music (do they still play this?) I liked it so much I bought the cd! I think they should have a steel drum band playing stuff like "Under The Sea" at the sailaway party Kids and adults alike could jam out and dance- island style!

Finallly...there is somebody out there that agrees with me. Get rid of the DJ and have a steel drum band...I'm sure that since this is a CARRIBEAN CRUISE that type of band wouldn't be hard to find. The DJ music that they play isn't even close to the Disney Movies. It's a Disney cruise for petesake...they have the characters...why not play the Disney music from the movies that we all know and love with a steel drum band...As far as I've concerned...that would be a 110% improvement over what they do now.

 

[AnnMorin]

Originally posted by Mojomanny
.

Regarding the comment about the same menu 3 years in a row. Wow, you have a better memory than me. I cannot remember what I had for dinner last week. I do presume most guests eat at most two entree's from any nights menu, meaning you probably still have good choices left. I know I would take a menu from the Magic any night instead of whatever we are making at home.

Since I am allergic to poultry which includes all eggs, chicken broth and the meat of chicken, duck, and turkey, quail, fowl etc. my menu choices are very limited. So YES I do know that I had the same thing three years in a row. I was not complaining, just happy that there will be new choices. All restaurants change their menu, have specials etc. There is nothing wrong with wanting variety from year to year.