What's your breaking point?

[FigmentSpark]

I'm with you, @keaster. The Canadian dollar is ruining all my plans to be loyal to DCL.

I will say, the idea of DCL being only a little more may depend on 1 - what you think 'a little more' is and 2 - the time of year. For example, March break 2018 I was pricing out the Fantasy and the Harmony of the Seas. Harmony was cheaper and still cheaper if you consider things like soda/drinks pkg and dining pkgs. But when you're spending that much money, the difference in how much cheaper starts to look like maybe it's worth it to pay a little more for the Fantasy. That's when that idea of what "a little more" is to each person. For some, saving $200 on a room is a windfall. For others, splurging and spending and extra $1500 is no big deal.

 

[cruiser21]

Well, good luck on the other cruise line. Hopefully they have a forum like this so you can share tips and tricks. Odd that so many people want to post in a DCL forum about how much they prefer the other cruise lines. Threads like this seem to pop up at least once a week. If I was in a RCCL forum I wouldn't care about what they have on Disney.

She's booked on DCL and she's trying to decide between other options. I see some of the same people that don't like it have actually startted threads asking about other cruiselines. Even. made announcements that they such and such ship. Hypocrisy at its best

 

[AquaDame]

See but every time I compare cruises it's not "a little money" it's a lot- generally double! Our very good deal VGT cabin on an off season week in may was still double the cost of our post Christmas week on the Oasis!

To us double is a little money - we sail just two adults so the fare is easy to swallow. If we were paying for four or five I might feel differently, but my point is that even if it is half as much we did not enjoy our time on RCCL enough to want to do it again. Even if we were paying for a large family we'd just go less. We would rather not sail than have what was for us a mediocre vacation - way too many other things to see in the world! I went in thinking 'I would like to sail more! We can take two cruises for this price!' and came out thinking 'You know, actually I'm good. I don't want to do that again...!' Sadly we had to with my in-laws later that same year - we went in trying to be very positive, assuming it was a one off, and had a mediocre time again. My husband, who is NOT a Disney person, felt the same way. Despite our sour cruise experience with RCCL we were/are still excited to sail on DCL. The only way to know for sure if you'd like it though is to try it. Anecdotal evidence isn't good in this case, IMO.

 

[squirk]

Threads like this seem to pop up at least once a week.

It would be nice if the mods would merge all of the "Is DCL worth it over RCCL/NCL/CCL/etc.?" threads into one, wouldn't it?

 

[Dug720]

It would be nice if the mods would merge all of the "Is DCL worth it over RCCL/NCL/CCL/etc.?" threads into one, wouldn't it?

Or just make the RCCL forum for all other cruise lines. DU sells NCL per their website, so it is probably only a matter of time before they sell Carnival Corp too...

 

[cruiser21]

It would be nice if the mods would merge all of the "Is DCL worth it over RCCL/NCL/CCL/etc.?" threads into one, wouldn't it?

Why? People ask the same questions over and over again on this forum. Whys this on a problem.

 

[squirk]

Why? People ask the same questions over and over again on this forum. Whys this on a problem.

Yes, there is redundancy here, but I think there are some "worst offender" topics where the same question literally is asked at least once a week. Mods have been known to consolidate other topics for this very reason.

Also, consolidation is much more efficient and helpful for the people seeking information. Rather than creating the umpteenth post asking "Is DCL worth it over RCCL?" and waiting for answers to trickle in, just do a search for a consolidated thread, and you will instantly get tons of existing answers to your question.

 

[AquaDame]

It would be nice if the mods would merge all of the "Is DCL worth it over RCCL/NCL/CCL/etc.?" threads into one, wouldn't it?

My concern is they tend to be so specific... it's not as black and white as 'can we wear shorts on formal night'. People usually get into their exact reasoning, the lines they are considering, heck sometimes even their family and financial history. We were able to rationalize one main Carnival comparison/review thread since there were so very many all at once and in the end it was just a comparison/review thread, but would it be fair or dare I say nice for us to put every vent into one big vent thread when people's circumstances can be SO very different?

The surest way to be certain of direct and relevant answers is to have a separate thread that can easily be skipped by those who don't want to get bogged down with other lines. We don't want to over moderate here... we try to only step in when things really get out of hand.

 

[cruiser21]

Yes, there is redundancy here, but I think there are some "worst offender" topics where the same question literally is asked at least once a week. Mods have been known to consolidate other topics for this very reason.

Also, consolidation is much more efficient and helpful for the people seeking information. Rather than creating the umpteenth post asking "Is DCL worth it over RCCL?" and waiting for answers to trickle in, just do a search for a consolidated thread, and you will instantly get tons of existing answers to your question.

I think this one irritates some people and usually leads to debatel; therefore it seems more redundant. I actually see a lot of things being asked over and over which is fine it's good to have fresh responses.

 

[squirk]

My concern is they tend to be so specific... it's not as black and white as 'can we wear shorts on formal night'. People usually get into their exact reasoning, the lines they are considering, heck sometimes even their family and financial history. We were able to rationalize one main Carnival comparison/review thread since there were so very many all at once and in the end it was just a comparison/review thread, but would it be fair or dare I say nice for us to put every vent into one big vent thread when people's circumstances can be SO very different?

The surest way to be certain of direct and relevant answers is to have a separate thread that can easily be skipped by those who don't want to get bogged down with other lines. We don't want to over moderate here... we try to only step in when things really get out of hand.

Fair points. By the same token, are these "Is DCL is too expensive/Is RCCL a better value?" threads really all that different?

If John Smith posts "I am paying X for DCL when I could pay only Y on RCCL. Talk me into/out of DCL." Is it really that much different than Jane Doe posting "I think I made a mistake booking DCL. I just found out I can sail NCL for Y." or Bob Anderson posting "Has DCL priced itself out of the market?"?

Whether John is sailing with a wife and three kids and paying $5500, or Jane is sailing solo paying $2700, or Bob is sailing with his new wife and in-laws and paying $8500, the answers are almost all the same.

Casinos. Flow Rider. Sky diving. Drink packages. Kids clubs. Aqua Theater. Signature dining. Disney brand. And so on, and so on.

I appreciate the effort to not over-moderate, but perhaps there is a happier medium?

 

[AquaDame]

Fair points. By the same token, are these "Is DCL is too expensive/Is RCCL a better value?" threads really all that different?

If John Smith posts "I am paying X for DCL when I could pay only Y on RCCL. Talk me into/out of DCL." Is it really that much different than Jane Doe posting "I think I made a mistake booking DCL. I just found out I can sail NCL for Y." or Bob Anderson posting "Has DCL priced itself out of the market?"?

Whether John is sailing with a wife and three kids and paying $5500, or Jane is sailing solo paying $2700, or Bob is sailing with his new wife and in-laws and paying $8500, the answers are almost all the same.

Casinos. Flow Rider. Sky diving. Drink packages. Kids clubs. Aqua Theater. Signature dining. Disney brand. And so on, and so on.

I appreciate the effort to not over-moderate, but perhaps there is a happier medium?

At its root? No, not at all. But in the ~~feeling~~ a little... maybe I am being too fretful but I would hate for people to feel like we are ignoring their plight by shoving them all into one thread... they already feel beat down by an uncaring capitalistic business. We're trying to help them feel better, you know? I get what you're saying though and there are definitely some days I want to put them all in one basket... and hey, maybe we should at least try it. Maybe I can get @CamColt to chime in...

 

[kaseyC]

Why are people so bothered by these types of threads. Yes, there are a number of them but they are not taking over the board. What I do if I'm not interested in a thread, I just scroll past and I don't bother opening it up. I'm definitely not going to open it up just so I can post something snarky. Just scroll by if the topic doesn't interest you. Simple solution.

 

[FigmentSpark]

I don't want to see the threads merged. People don't read through huge threads, but will read fewer pages of multiple threads.

And the reason people don't post on the RCCL board isn't just that they don't know about it. It's that the RCCL board is a sleeper board. If you want an answer and it's a comparative one, this board is hopping. There will be people to answer and give a variety of answers. There are fewer people who go to the RCCL board.

 

[squirk]

At its root? No, not at all. But in the ~~feeling~~ a little... maybe I am being too fretful but I would hate for people to feel like we are ignoring their plight by shoving them all into one thread... they already feel beat down by an uncaring capitalistic business. We're trying to help them feel better, you know? I get what you're saying though and there are definitely some days I want to put them all in one basket... and hey, maybe we should at least try it. Maybe I can get @CamColt to chime in...

I truly applaud the sentiment that we don't want people to feel like they or their concerns are being minimized. I am very sympathetic to the fact that these are expensive vacations, and often require people to make financial sacrifices to make these trips happen. It's natural to have buyer's remorse after making such a monetary commitment; all the more so if you are new to DCL or new to cruising in general. And I totally recognize that even if we older hands around here have seen a question asked-and-answered 100 times already, the topic is probably "brand-new territory" for the person asking it.

But I stand by my point that 90% of these new threads can be answered by the same set of information.

People may think that they are the only one desperately counting pennies to afford the cruise, but they're not.
People may think that they are the only ones worrying about their kids not liking the food served in the MDR, but they're not.
People may think that they are the only ones worries about safety at the ports, but they are not.

In other words, your concerns and worries are important, but they are not necessarily unique. And I mean that in the best possible way. If a new cruiser could see a consolidated thread demonstrating how many hundreds of families had concerns about the kids clubs only to find that their kids LOVED them, or a consolidated thread about how many people were worried that the straw market vendors in Nassau being too aggressive, I think a.) that would be a much more efficient way of gathering opinions and insight; and b.) it would be a comfort to know how many people had the same concerns as you but still had a great time nonetheless.

Finally, let me apologize to the OP. I did not mean to hijack. I'll be quiet now.

 

[cruiser21]

Some of the people that are the most bothered by these threads cruise I've noticed cruise on other cruise lines. I'm not sure why the "worth" issue is so bothersome to them . They obviously have their reasons for cruising on non- DCL cruises. They should realize cost is a big factor for a lot of families.

 

[Pens Fan]

Why are people so bothered by these types of threads. Yes, there are a number of them but they are not taking over the board. What I do if I'm not interested in a thread, I just scroll past and I don't bother opening it up. I'm definitely not going to open it up just so I can post something snarky. Just scroll by if the topic doesn't interest you. Simple solution.

If I could "like" this post multiple times, I would.

 

[CamColt]

At its root? No, not at all. But in the ~~feeling~~ a little... maybe I am being too fretful but I would hate for people to feel like we are ignoring their plight by shoving them all into one thread... they already feel beat down by an uncaring capitalistic business. We're trying to help them feel better, you know? I get what you're saying though and there are definitely some days I want to put them all in one basket... and hey, maybe we should at least try it. Maybe I can get @CamColt to chime in...

I have to agree with kaseyC, if a topic doesn't interest someone you don't have to read it. While this is a topic that comes up often, I don't feel there are too many of these threads, making it a problem. I feel we could keep an eye on it and revisit this topic if it gets out of hand.

 

[mousefan73]

Or just make the RCCL forum for all other cruise lines. DU sells NCL per their website, so it is probably only a matter of time before they sell Carnival Corp too...

They Already book Carnival. Just booked with them one.

 

[Dug720]

They Already book Carnival. Just booked with them one.

So the excuse for "only" having the non-DCL forum RCCL is no longer valid... Maybe it's time to make it an "Other Cruiselines" forum finally. Just for the sake of clarity and keeping things in their place.

(And for the record, I have never said I won't sail another line. I HAVE sailed and enjoyed RCCL. I HAVE sailed and somewhat enjoyed fathom (loved the itineraries and the Impact Guides, didn't love the P&O ship or crew so much). I HAVE sailed and did NOT enjoy HAL. I do have cruises booked on Princess and Celebrity because they seem more my style. I've seen enough videos (no, NOT just by Spring Break people - by Sea Cruisers and others) to know that Carnival and NCL are not my style. So all the snark about "some people even have things booked on other cruise lines" can stop. Not referring to @mousefan73 with that. )

 

[mevelandry]

Or just make the RCCL forum for all other cruise lines. DU sells NCL per their website, so it is probably only a matter of time before they sell Carnival Corp too...

I asked for a Carnival forum last year (like RCCL) but it did not happen, that is why we stick to the thread I created.

Anyway, I organized it so people can put comparison with other Carnival cruiseships in the same thread.

But I agree with you.