First Time Cruisers - am I overthinking it? - UPDATE: We're hooked!

Disney Cruise Line
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None of us have ever been on a cruise, not a single one. DH and I have talked about going on one ever since we met, but never made it happen. We did an all-inclusive resort last summer (Beaches Turks & Caicos) and loved it, and that got us back on wanting to try a cruise. We’re looking at June 2025 when I have a week of PTO already guaranteed.

I may have made a mistake in letting my kids watch some videos with me researching DCL, and now DD8 is absolutely in love with the idea of the Marvel Superhero Academy, so that means either Wish or the new Treasure. Treasure does have a 7-night itinerary for the week we want, but that just seems like a lot to commit to for a first cruise, right? Plus that price tag. :face_with_spiral_eyes:

The Wish has a 4-night itinerary with Nassau, Castaway Cay, and a sea day that would also fit our dates. And I know DD4 (will be DD5 then!) would LOVE the Arendelle dining over the Coco. And there’s appeal in the Wish already being a known quantity (i.e. we would know our room theme, etc). And there’s main seating available for that cruise, while the Treasure is saying only second seating is available right now. I know you can request to move, but if we didn’t get moved, that would be disastrous for our kids, who would be unconscious before appetizers.

Other consideration is that DH does get motion sick in a car if he is not driving. He’s never had issues on planes or boats (including spending a whole weekend on a houseboat where you felt every rock). And we do have a stockpile of Scop patches and Zofran. But the Treasure itinerary is already pretty booked up, with most availability left in the forward section, whereas the Wish would give us more options in the mid or aft section, which I know is preferable if we’re worried.

So I guess my main question is, if we love it, will 4 nights feel too short? I would forsee us staying on board in Nassau to just keep enjoying the ship if we did that. I mean, I know the obvious answer is try the 4 nights and if we love it, book another! Someone tell me I’m overanalyzing it (big surprise for a Liner, right?).

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We’ve only ever done one cruise and it was a three night on the Dream. It went fast, but I wasn’t sure if we’d like it, and I didn’t want to commit to longer just in case. I think I’d have to be really excited about the ports to do a 7 night one, so 4 nights seems perfect to get your feet wet!

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I always think that longer is better for cruises but with the conditions you’ve outlined I would probably go with the four night cruise. It sounds like a better fit for your family. And if you absolutely love it you can book a second cruise at a discount before you disembark!

I wouldn’t worry overly much about DH getting motion sick. If he’s been on boats before with no issues then a cruise ship is unlikely to be a problem.

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We did a 4 night for first cruise (Allure of the Seas) and it was perfect for a first cruise. We now want to do a longer one, probably along the East Coast into Canada, because our favorite part of the cruise was stopping in Nassau even though we didn’t stay long. So a cruise with more ports.

Anyhow, it took a 4 day cruise to whet our appetite. I don’t think we would have liked a longer cruise unless it had more ports aside from the private island(s). Disney’s private islands are similar to RCCL’s and it just wasn’t our vibe. We have watched videos of Disney private islands, and it kind of turns us off of Disney cruise itineraries in that area.

As far as motion sickness…I needed to take Meclizine every day. First day in particular I didn’t feel great, but as the cruise went along the waters got smoother so that helped. I could definitely feel the motion though.

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Yay that you’re exploring a cruise!

You’re not wrong to think any of this! We have the Treasure booked for June 2025 and while we love cruising and are excited to see what a 7-night itinerary is like, the price of it is so much! And yes, 7 days is a lot to commit if you don’t know how you’ll do with cruising.

Our first cruise we cruised with extended family that had seasickness/motion sickness concerns that were warranted (they ended up definitely needing medication and it put a damper on a few nights for their family). We were careful to get rooms that had a balcony (for fresh air & horizon sights) on the lowest possible deck for that and closer to midship. What that family member has learned from/told us from it was that she was always fine in the room, but that’s not where the majority of the cruise so she wouldn’t necessarily let the room location be entirely dictated by being midship.

The times they were most affected were at the shows and dinners that are aft/forward. Dinners can last awhile and often both dinners and showtimes are happening when the ship is moving it’s fastest to make the next port (so if there’s waves you’ll feel it the most at the fastest and at the forward/aft locations that the theater and most dining rooms are). But definitely be prepared for it. And next time that family member is going to request a patch since she knows it will affect her (and her daughter).

If you use the time in Nassau to mostly be on the ship, it can serve as a sea day. They do a lot of activities on the ship still and you’ll be able to explore & enjoy more of the ship. So far on all our 4 days with stops in Nassau we’ve largely stayed on the ship to explore, especially our first time on each ship. So I think with your plan you won’t feel it too short.

If you have questions, ask away! We have a bunch of liners with recent experience on the Wish and we’re happy to help!

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Our first cruise was 7 nights and I regret none of it and it still felt too short! We’ve subsequently done 4 and 3 nights that have felt WAY too short. If you can stomach the 7 night price tag I doubt you will be upset with more time.

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Thought I’d let everyone know that we ended up cruising the Wish 4-night itinerary 3/31-4/4, and we absolutely fell in love. Right now, we’re all saying we think DCL might even edge out WDW for us :scream:, which I never would have predicted! DD8 in particular is obsessed. She had the time of her life in the Oceaneer Club. The girls went to the club everyday, so DH and I got to roam around on our own, take naps, and chill in the Hyperspace Lounge. We’re not huge beach people, so we only stayed on Castaway Cay until lunch, then came back and enjoyed a mostly-empty ship. DD8 and I saw Captain America: Brave New World together. DD5 adored the pools, splash pad area, and the Slide-a-saurus Rex. Sadly, she was just barely under the mark for AquaMouse. DH and DD5 enjoyed the pirate party and fireworks, while DD8 and I went to bed early. We all had the time of our lives.

We thought all the dining was fantastic. DH’s aunt that traveled with us follows a low-protein, vegetarian diet for medical reasons, and she loved trying all the vegetarian and plant-based meal options. We did end up stuck with second seating for dinner, and it was fine! We just made sure to have a pre-dinner meal about 5PM at the food court up on the pool deck. DD5 loved the chicken tenders and fries, and DD8 fixed herself a BBQ platter everyday. Then the soft serve ice cream, of course.

Our last night was our rotation in the Arendelle restaurant, and it was truly perfect. DD5 learned a perfect mimic of the “Yoohoo, family!” that had us all in stitches. I had not watched any videos of the actual show ahead of time, so I was not prepared for the response I had. See, Frozen 2 came out in theaters the week before I had DD5, so our last only-child outing with DD8 was to take her to her first movie theater to see it. For the next two years, she wanted me to sing the lullaby, “All Is Found” from the movie to her at bedtime, then it also became DD5’s bedtime lullaby for ages. During that time, I had a patient at work I took care of almost every day who was in a complex end-of-life situation, and her mother’s trust in our care broke our hearts every time we talked. Then, I would come home from work just in time to put my girls to bed, and hold them close, and sing that song. Every night, when I got to the end lyric, “Where the North wind meets the sea, there’s a mother filled with memory,” I would hold my girls a little tighter and think of that mother. That little girl died that summer, and I think of them every single time I hear or sing that song (it’s still an occasional bedtime request in our house). And when they were singing it at the end of dinner that night, I was just an openly weeping mess in the middle of that dining room. There’s nothing like the Disney feels.

So, now we’re hooked, and we immediately got to work trying to convince everyone we know to go on a cruise with us, which is how we just ended up with a last minute booking to go back on the 3-night itinerary 6/27-6/30! :rofl: We talked one of DH’s best friends into going with us with his family. GTY discount rate for the win! And we still have a placeholder for 2 staterooms for another future cruise - we have our eye on finding a 7-night itinerary we can convince my parents to come along on.

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I’m so glad you had a wonderful time! Our girls were 6 and 9 on our first Disney cruise and they loved it as well. We’ve now done four cruises ( over 11 years) and I would happily spend all of my vacations on a cruise ship, especially if it was a Disney one! Can’t wait to hear about your next cruise.

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:face_holding_back_tears: Wow. This is tough but so beautiful.

I’m glad you had a great time! I love cruising as well–can’t wait to get back out there!

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I love everything about this!

Our first cruise I planned with DSIL and then convinced some other cousins to join us along the way, and it went from being initially planned in maybe 2019 to maybe 2020 to finally booking it for 2021 and then re-booking it a couple of times until we went March 2023 finally. And we were hooked too!

That summer (May-September) was the 25th anniversary for DCL and when we got home from our trip, we decided we had to see that, so ended up on the next ship Sept 2023 and just got home an hour ago from sailing #8. It’s our most favorite vacation.

And I love love love the Wish!

This is especially beautiful. There really is nothing like it. And the crew and all the entertainment really do make the cruise so special and meaningful!

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