Of course, the best and the most fun option would be to go on a Disney Cruise and also have a great time at Disney World. But for many families, both is not an option. So, decisions need to be made to figure out which vacation is best for your family. Trying to decide between Disney World vs. a Disney Cruise can be tough but my goal today is to give you some things to think about to help with your decision.
I do give my opinion of which I think might be the winner in each circumstance. But, the winner truly depends on your family’s needs so that is why I say “possible winner.”
At the end of this post there is a link to a FaceBook Live I did on this subject but the opinion slants a little toward DCL.
Let’s look at some aspects that you might want to consider:
Location of the vacation
Disney World is in Florida and it always will be.
But your Disney Cruise vacation can begin in quite a few different locations. Money can definitely be saved being able to drive instead of fly or just have less driving time. Plus, you can save a lot of time in transit before and after the vacation if you leave from a port closer to home.
What are the places that Disney Cruises depart from?
- Vancouver, BC, Canada
- San, Diego, CA
- Galveston, TX
- New Orleans, LA
- New York, NY
- Miami, FL (while only 5 hours from Orlando this port is closer for those near Miami)
Possible winner: Disney Cruise
Vacation Accomodations
At Disney World, there are a host of options for your family. There are possibilities from smaller rooms at Disney’s All-Star resorts to 3-bedroom club level suites at the Deluxe Disney resorts. In addition, these rooms are at all different prices that fit budgets for every family. Need a kitchen for your family? Want extended family to stay with you? Or, just want your family to have a bit of room to move around? At Disney World, you can book suites to accommodate these desires. Disney world has thousands of room options available to suit just about any family and just about any need.
On a Disney Cruise, your choices are limited. There are some staterooms that can sleep 5 but most are only for 4 or less. If you have a larger family you must book multiple staterooms (some can connect which is nice) or a suite. Staterooms are also limited in space and don’t provide much room for a family to move around. Extended families might end up booking rooms all over the ship.
Other special considerations: Children under the age of 17 must be booked in a room with an adult over 21. Children cannot be even booked in a connecting room (inside door) to the parents. So, for instance, if a single parents of 4 children wants to book a stateroom they would need to book a suite. This also means that extra thinking if you want to bring a under-21 childcare provider or childrens’ friends you might not want sleeping in the same room.
Possible winner: Disney World
Ease of Communication
Communication at Disney World is pretty simple if you have a cell phone. You can easily text or call your family at any time (as long as you have the proper cell service and battery life).
On a Disney Cruise, communication is quite costly since you are outside of the United States. In order to use your cell phone for calling you must purchase a plan through your cell phone company or onboard the ship. Through the Navigator App you can text other passengers for free but only while onboard the ship.
Possible winner: Disney World
Childcare
While the Disney World parks are super fun for kids there aren’t really any options for your kids to be taken care of while the adults go out and play.
A Disney Cruise is amazing for childcare throughout your whole vacation. Let me list the ways:
- During the day children can have fun in the kids club appropriate for their age group
- At dinner children can eat in the kids club or eat with the adults and then half way through be taken to the club so adults can have dinner together.
- In the evening, kids clubs are open for parents to enjoy the nightlife
- On port days kids can stay in the kids clubs while parents go on an excursion or just explore the port.
- At Castaway Cay there special options for kids too
As you can see there are childcare options almost the whole vacation. Note: for children under the age of 3 childcare is limited and must be reserved ahead of time.
Possible winner: Disney Cruise
Variety of Dining Options
Disney World has so many different restaurant options and different types of cuisine. You can find everything from quick-service burgers and fries to five-star meals from gourmet chefs. Do you want Japanese, BBQ, Italian, or African food? It’s all available at Disney World. Also, there are so many snack and dessert choices at the parks, resorts, and Disney Springs. Pretty much anything you could ever want to eat can be found at Disney World.
Food on a Disney Cruise is delicious and of wonderful quality. But the menu is slightly limited and there are only a few different dining locations. Don’t get me wrong, there is plenty of options to satisfy most any palate but there just isn’t the variety you find at the parks. On the cruise, there are many lovely snacks but they also don’t vary much throughout the vacation.
Possible winner: Disney World
Ease of Dining
At Disney World, there are so many options of where you can eat it can be overwhelming. For table-service restaurants, you need to get reservations ahead and for the really popular ones, you have to do so 180-days before your vacation. That can be stressful! And then you have to figure out how to get to the restaurant from where you are which can take up to 1 1/2 hours on Disney transportation. Easy probably isn’t the correct descriptive word for dining at Disney World.
On the other hand, eating on a Disney Cruise is super simple. You have an already reserved table for your family in the main dining room every night. Even if you don’t want to eat at your assigned restaurant there are only a couple of other options. As I said, super simple!
Possible winner: Disney Cruise
Motion Sickness
At Disney World, you can easily avoid motion sickness. If you are prone to feeling nauseous from movement you can avoid the offensive rides such as the Mountains, Mad Hatter’s Tea Cups, or Flights of Passage.
On a Disney Cruise if you are prone to motion sickness it is a little more difficult to avoid. The ships are always moving on the water possibly causing a problem for you. There are some things you can do to help like anti-nausea medication or patches, pressure point wristbands, or ginger. For some, taking these precautions, choosing the right ship size or stateroom location is enough for a great vacation. For others, not so much!
Possible winner: Disney World
Access to Health Care
Since Disney World is in Orlando there is excellent health care available within a close proximity. You can easily find an urgent care center or hospital. If you have complicated medical needs you might feel more comfortable being within easy reach of medical care.
On a Disney Cruise they do have medical facilities staffed 24/7 with skilled physicians, but they are not as capable at handling very complicated needs. Plus, since you are outside the United States getting back for medical care can be difficult.
Possible winner: Disney World
Mobility Issues
There is so much walking at Disney World a person should really start training months ahead of their vacation. Those with mobility issues either have to sit and wait a lot for others or get some type of assistance (an ECV or wheelchair). While using an ECV or wheelchair might seem easy the navigation through crowds can prove difficult.
Disney Cruise ships are quite large but there is not nearly as much walking needed. You are always welcome to bring a wheelchair or ECV to make transportation on a cruise ship even easier. Plus, passengers with mobility issues have the option in some ports of choosing excursions created especially for them.
Possible winner: Disney Cruise
Vacation Pace
Disney World parks are very large with a lot of places to go, things to do and see. Most people want to see as much as they can and often find themselves criss crossing the park. This means lots of walking and often hurrying to make the FastPass, restaurant reservation or show on time. By the end of the day they flop into bed with just enough time to recharge for the next day and do it all again.
The pace of a Disney Cruise is quite different. Yes, there are a lot of activities onboard and you could be busy from morning to night but it still doesn’t have the same feel as the busyness of the parks. There isn’t as far to walk and many of the activities wouldn’t be considered active. Not to mention the fact that one of the major activities on a cruise is laying by the pool or sitting on your balcony overlooking the ocean.
Possible winner: Disney Cruise
Pregnancy and Babies
Disney World is a place for all ages and stages. The youngest baby can tag along with the rest of the family for a wonderful vacation together. There will be some rides that baby will have to wait behind with someone while the rest of the family does a rider switch but still a great time. Being pregnant at Disney World is fine at any stage. Granted, all the walking and the heat might not be too comfortable and you might have to miss the big rides but still fun. If you do bring a baby along make sure to take advantage of the Baby Care Center, a quiet respite in the midst of a busy park.
To sail on a Disney Cruise, Pregnant women cannot reach their 24th week at any time during the cruise. Babies must be at least 6 months old (1 year on some, especially longer cruises). . Keep in mind that staterooms are small and so sleeping arrangements with babies can be a little challenging. Feeding young children on a cruise can also pose some difficulties. Potty training is a whole other ball game I am not sure I would want to tackle on a cruise ship. Oh, and children must be potty trained to go in the pools, hot tubs, spas, or waterslides. No swim diapers are allowed (as opposed to the resort pools and water parks which allow swim diapers).
Possible winner: Disney World
Planning Ahead
A Disney World vacation takes A LOT of planning and way ahead of vacation time. Deciding on which resort to stay at and what kind of room can be just the start of the confusion. Dining reservations can be made 6 months ahead (very necessary for popular restaurants) which means you need to have a rough idea of what parks you want to visit each day (or how much you want to park hop). FastPasses can be booked 60 days ahead (if staying at a Disney resort) which takes a little planning of your day. If you don’t plan you run the risk of standing in a lot of lines or not getting to do what you what.
A Disney Cruise, on the other hand, is a bit easier to plan. Sure it may be confusing and take a bit to figure out which itinerary and stateroom are best for your family but that is really easy peasy compare to Disney World planning. You can take some time to plan what excursions you want to experience on port days. But, if you want to be more spontaneous and just wait until you are onboard the ship that is perfectly fine.
Possible winner: Disney Cruise
Character Interactions
Disney World is home to many, many characters. The variety between all four parks is astounding. But, (and this is a big but) you will most likely be standing in a long line to see them. You also have to find them in all different locations all over the park. You could spend all day just getting autographs and pictures.
On a Disney Cruise, there are fewer characters to see. Don’t get me wrong, there is a very good variety of characters just not as many as in the parks. But, you usually don’t wait in line for more than 15 minutes. Character greetings are in the same locations and are scheduled throughout the day. Princess greetings can be scheduled ahead and you get to greet them all (usually 3 or 4) in a short amount of time. And then, at some of the deck parties, you can get up close and dance and sing with them. So fun! Meeting characters is so easy on a Disney Cruise. If you want to learn more about meeting characters on your Disney Cruise then check out this post.
Possible winner: Disney Cruise
Price of the Vacation
Price is most always a consideration when planning a vacation. But it isn’t always cut and dry. Both vacations can be done on a budget or go over-the-top with luxury. Cost depends on the size of your party, desired accomodations, etc. When comparing be sure to compare apples to apples. Don’t compare a value resort with a concierge stateroom or an inside cabin with a verandah cabin. You probably want to include a dining package and park tickets (activities) to mimick the all-inclusiveness of a cruise.
Another thing to consider is that the level of service on a Disney Cruise is fantastic and cannot be quite compared to Disney World resorts. This is definitely something to think about when you are comparing value resorts with even an inside cabin.
It isn’t always true but generally, a Disney World vacation comes out a little less expensive than a cruise.
Possible winner: Can’t say. Too many possibilities.
I hope that giving you these things to think about will help you with your decision. Trying to decide Disney World vs. Disney Cruise can be challenging but I am here for you if you have any other questions! Please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Here is a link to a FaceBook Live I did on this topic (slants a little to DCL)
Happy travels to you…until we meet again!
Here are some other links you might be interested in:
- What makes a Disney Cruise Special–part 1
- Disney Vacations: More than just theme parks!
- 5 Cool New Experiences at Disney World (opened Fall ’19)
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