Disney cruise without kids

[jb1109]

Hello.

Just wanted any advice on taking a Disney cuise without kids. My husband and I are considering taking a Western Caribbean cruise on the Disney Wonder in February of 2009. What are your thoughts on cruising without kids on a Disney ship. Will we be able to find a quiet spot to enjoy the sun and a little relaxation. Also, what are your thoughts on cruising in February. Is the weather pretty nice? Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks.

[ElenitaB]

I can't comment on the "cruising w/o kids" part of your question because I do cruise with my constant companion.

I can pipe in on the February cruising aspect though! You don't mention your location... we flew in from the Northeast for our President's Week cruise and our flight was cancelled southbound and delayed northbound due to snowstorms (two of the three we had this winter in my neck of the woods). It's advisable to schedule your flight for the day before you cruise so that you're not subject to the whims of Mother Nature and the airlines. Unless you've booked your air transportation through DCL, if you miss the ship because of your flight, you've missed the ship. If you book through them, they will take responsibility in some way, shape or form (like flying you to the next port of call). Rather than put yourself through that stress, try to arrive in Florida a day or two before.

As for the weather ON the cruise, it was nice: not terribly warm and not terribly cold. I wore a light sweater on the decks most of the time, but managed to find a nice little spot in the sun protected from the wind right outside the Cove Cafe (in the adults only part of the ship). That little area with comfy chaise lounges (not the plain ol' plastic ones but ones with thick cushions) is heavenly in location as it's close to the pool and to coffee/tea (it's right around the corner from a bar as well), however it's also one of the designated smoking areas. I settled there once the smokers left. Lots of people were swimming in the pools throughout our cruise. We also had nice weather at Nassau and Castaway Cay (except for a passing rain storm at CC).

If you plan your cruise for a week in February that's not President's Week (when many schools in the Northeast are closed), you might even find a ship that's not filled to capacity.

Happy planning! :sail:

[Joy2theworld]

We did this for our honeymoon and had a fantastic time. We have since taken other cruises, but they couldn't compare to what Disney had to offer us in terms of entertainment, service, etc... The one plus I think was we went in a peek time and the ship was loaded with families. That meant most of the adult areas (adult only pool, adult beach on Castaway Cay, adult classes) were pretty empty. We are doing the 15 day repositioning cruise this summer and I don't know if we'll be so lucky. However, we weill take 15 nights on this ship anytime!!

[jodijo]

I say go for it!

We went on a cruise in Feb and loved it so much we are going again in Feb 09. The weather was wonderful. It was warm (we wore shorts) but not hot.

Also, I am in the process of getting my maters degree and needed to study while on our cruise. I went to the adult only pool area and thoroughly loved it. It was a nice quite spot to relax and study.

I would also recommend the late dinner seating. Although it did not work well for us because we have children (10 & 12), most of the tables were adults and older children. I have to say it was more laid back and relaxing. Not a lot of young kids running around.

[TammiMcMan]

DH and I did the 4 night cruise on our own. Honestly, I'm not a huge fan of sea days, so I'm going to hold off on trying the 7 night. We sailed in early January and the ship was fairly empty. I was very surprised to find every lounge chair in the adult area and around deck 10 were taken. My suggestion is to get up on deck early if you do want to get a lounge chair. We stayed in a suite with a larger verandah, so we just spent much of the sea day there. Not a lot of sun, but it was quiet.

On the plus side, we were able to eat in Palo every night. That was incredible. For the regular rotational dining, you can request a table for 2. There aren't many, but they do have a few. I spent a lot of my time relaxing in the Cove Cafe coffee shop and we also utilized the Rainforest spa area quite a bit. We had seen the shows previously with the kids, so we spent our evenings playing backgammon and watching football games in the sports bar.

I completely agree with Ellen about flying in a night early. It takes a lot of stress off you, especially at a time of year when snow storms are common. Storms can affect travel across the country, so unless you are within driving distance, I'd stay overnight.

[ElenitaB]

We are doing the 15 day repositioning cruise this summer and I don't know if we'll be so lucky. However, we weill take 15 nights on this ship anytime!!
August's EB repo will have more kids than the WB repo, due to school schedules. But just being on the repo would be luck enough for me! Enjoy (and report back about it, please)!

[PAYROLL PRINCESS]

While I went with kids, I don't have any of my own. There is plenty to keep you busy. And there is the adults only part of the ship plus the spa. I didn't find other people's kids a problem at all. It's great to watch their faces during the shows etc.
We had a 2.5, 12 and 17 year old and the older ones were able to go off and do things on their own as well.

[Dixie Springs]

I can't comment on February, but I can comment on the cruise without kids. This was our first cruise ever, for our 25th anniversary. It was also our first vacation without the kids.

Though we missed them, and wanted them to see what we were seeing, we did have a good time regardless. We didn't necessarily access any adults-only areas. Kids don't bother us (oblivious parents are usually the problem). We found Serenity Bay to be almost too quiet and desolate, so we stayed on the family beach for snorkling, lazing, and eating. We did not do Palo either - the meals we had at Triton's, Parrot Cay and Animator's were fancy enough for us.

All that said, we now want to return with the kids (I say kids, but DD's are college-aged). If I can get DD over her sea-sickness fears, look for the 4 of us at the Pirate party...