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I’ve said before that dollar per dollar, it’s very hard to beat value when it comes to cruises, especially if you are a fan of all-inclusive vacations. I highly recommend that every family with young children goes on a cruise at least once. You may hate it, though I seriously doubt it.
Once you take advantage of complimentary Kids Club and get to actually relax (yes, really!) on your vacation, you will probably become a fan. Sure, most affordable cruises are mass-market. Don’t expect exclusivity or Michelin-rated food, and you won’t be disappointed. Cruising is an efficient way to see several destinations without the hassle of packing and unpacking, and do so in comfort.
One thing that is a serious drawback, however, is the tiny size of cabins. I have a hard time sharing a 400 square feet hotel room with my two kids, and certainly feel claustrophobic in a 200 square feet room. The solution? Consider getting two cabins.
Pricing out next year’s Thanksgiving cruise on Royal Caribbean
As a rule of thumb, cruising during major holidays is expensive. Christmas period is the worst. Hurricane season is over, kids are off for two weeks, plus, it’s very cold in most parts of the country. So naturally, cruising seems like a logical choice for a family vacation.
I recommend you go during Thanksgiving instead. In fact, that’s what we may end up doing next year. My husband really enjoys cruises and says that’s the only time he can truly relax and leave the work behind. I’m definitely not going to book anything just yet. We have to save up the money, get the vacation dates approved etc. For now, this is more of a window shopping.
Believe it or not, many cruise lines have already loaded the schedule for next year, and the prices are often quite good. I was surprised to find this 4-night Thanksgiving Bahamas cruise (stops at Nassau and RCL private island) on Cruise.com for a semi-reasonable rate:
The ship is Mariner of the Seas that is currently going through a major refurbishment. According to RCL website, “this summer, Mariner of the Seas debuts all-new features, with more ways to play on the most maxed-out short getaway ever. Launch yourself into a virtual world on a new bungee trampoline experience — Sky Pad. Hang ten on the newly added FlowRider surf simulator or race down The Perfect Storm waterslides.”
Taking our then 8-month old daughter on her very first cruise
My husband likes to have a balcony, so that’s the type I was looking at. Unfortunately, balcony staterooms on Mariner of the Seas have a small sofa bed for additional guests, so the kids would have to share it at night. Not ideal. The size is 200 square feet, including balcony. Again, not ideal. Here is the price for four people:
It’s definitely not cheap, and works out to be a little more than $400 per day. However, for that money you are getting transportation to Bahamas, a place to sleep plus balcony to enjoy the views, good food, Kids Club and private island experience. But there is still that tiny room you have to share with kids. Is there perhaps a better way to do this cruise? I believe there is.
You can simply book one balcony and one inside stateroom:
When you take on-board credits into account, you will actually be paying less for two staterooms. They are located on the same deck, only a few doors apart. Even if all you do is sleep in the inside stateroom, I think it would be a sanity saver. This is what I plan on doing if we end up booking this cruise.
When sharing one stateroom with kids and spouse makes sense
Cruise lines occasionally run specials where you can bring kids for free (just pay port charges and taxes). We actually took advantage of NCL “Kids cruise free” promotion when I booked our cruise to Alaska. It definitely pays to check and sign up for cruise line newsletters so you can be notified of such sale.
Other cruise lines like Costa and MSC have a policy of letting you bring kids under 17 for free. Holland America often charges only $99 to add a third and fourth passenger, which can make it an attractive option on longer sailings. It’s not as family-friendly as NCL and RCL, but we enjoy it. To me, Holland America offers the best of both worlds: a somewhat refined experience and a decent Kids Club.
What about Disney cruises?
I thought about going just once. In fact, my daughter is begging us to do it. But. I. Just. Can’t. I know many people rave about Disney cruises, including Nancy. But I simply can’t justify paying three times for a similar Bahamas cruise. Is the food on DCL really three times better? Are character photos worth the crazy premium? Not to me.
Disney hasn’t yet posted a schedule for next fall, but here is what a balcony cabin on a 4-night DCL Bahamas cruise will cost you this year:
I think I just had a mild heart attack. Hmm, $1,600 vs. $4,800 for the same type of cruise, and you get two rooms with Royal Caribbean instead of sharing one cabin… Unless Walt Disney himself comes back from the dead and serves as my personal butler for the duration of the cruise, I ain’t sailing DCL.
I’m a bit of a cheapskate and simply would not enjoy myself knowing how much we paid for Disney cruise. I respect the fact that many consider it to be the best thing since sliced bread, but Disney cruise has never been on my bucket list. And looks like it will stay that way. I’m afraid my kids will have to “slum” it on Royal Caribbean. I’m shedding a tear just thinking about it! Poor things. 🙂
I recommend you read these posts in order to decide if DCL cruise is worth the crazy premium:
Cruise with a Toddler on Disney Magic: the Good, the Bad and the Magical
10 tips for first-timers on Disney Cruise Line
Is the “juice” on Disney cruise worth the squeeze?
How to get the best price on your cruise
For the most part, quotes on cruises will not vary a whole lot. That said, there are a couple things you can do to make sure you are getting the best deal. Once you pick a sailing, check CruiseCompete where various agencies submit their lowest bids.
You should also check Amex Offers because you can often find a discount valid towards certain cruise lines. Got two Amex cards and each one has a cruise offer in the profile? Save it by opening multiple tabs and ask a travel agent to split the payment.
For example, here is an offer I’m currently seeing under Amex Premier Rewards Gold card:
Discover-affiliated travel agency often has good promos on cruises, plus cash back specials. The downside is that you have to use a Discover card in order to lock in the discount. Still, it’s often worth going that route.
Few days ago many Barclaycard Aviator cardholders got this targeted offer:
If you are planning to book a Carnival cruise anyway, why not take advantage of it? Very often you have to make a deposit of only $100 per person, so this will almost certainly be the best way to pay.
Credit card bonuses that can help you pay for your cruise
There are a few offers that could be a good fit: Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite MasterCard and Capital One Venture Rewards. The sign-up bonuses give you a flat rebate against travel purchases. You can also use bonus for your tips because they should be coded as travel purchase. You could use one card to make a down payment, and another for the second (final) part.
You can also sign up for cards like Chase Sapphire Preferred and Chase Ink Business Preferred that earn flexible points. Even though many would argue that it’s not the best use of Ultimate Rewards, the bonus is indeed redeemable towards cruises, and you get 1.25 cents per point.
You will have to book through UR portal by calling in, but the price is usually comparable to what you would find via regular travel websites. If you happen to have Chase Sapphire Reserve, you can redeem your UR points at 1.5 cents apiece which, in my opinion, represents excellent value. Read more on all these offers in my Hot Deals page. If you’ve recently applied for 50k points bonus on Citi Thank You Premier card (now dead), you can redeem it towards your cruise and get 1.25 cents per point.
Readers, have you taken your family on a cruise? Did you enjoy it?
Click here to view various credit cards and available sign-up bonuses
Author: Leana
Leana is the founder of Miles For Family. She enjoys beach vacations and visiting her family in Europe. Originally from Belarus, Leana resides in central Florida with her husband and two children.
is there a way to search for cruises on the Chase portal? Or do you have to call in and have them price it out for you?
@MM As far as I know, you can only book the cruise by calling, but prices are usually comparable to other travel sites. Of course, you should always check for any promos that are not reflected in Chase portal. I do think if you have Chase Sapphire Reserve, it will be hard to beat getting 1.5 cents per point.
Another tip… don’t fall for the “Family Stateroom” category. We are a family of 5 and can’t fit into a standard room, so I was excited to hear about this larger room. But, similar to your findings, it was cheaper to book two adjoining rooms than the Family Stateroom… and we’ll have more space and two bathrooms.
Of course these are interior room categories. I personally find balcony or ocean view rooms to be a waste of money. I don’t go on a cruise to sit in my room.
Disney? We loved our last two Disney vacations, but I won’t touch a Disney cruise. Last time I tried pricing out a 7-night Disney cruise for our family of 5 it was $10k; more than double the rates from all the other major cruise lines. Not happening.
@projectx I totally agree! It’s crucial to compare apples to apples. Plus, with two or three children, it’s almost essential to have two bathrooms. I really don’t like the idea of my kids sharing a tiny sofa bed. The end up fighting and nobody can get any rest as a result.
On Disney cruises: I feel the same way. I seriously can not believe the current rates, yet folks are paying them. Granted, I haven’t actually been on Disney cruise, but I have a pretty good idea on what it’s like. I know my kids would love it, no question about it. That said, they love all cruises!
I did dcl once and we were done. Prices are insane. If you think WDW is expensive DCL is much worse. But people pay!
@Natasha Yup. I actually would love to go on DCL just once, but can’t see it happening. Not at this price. But I’m definitely not trying to talk anyone out of it. People have the right to do whatever they want with their money.
Oh, and I totally agree with the strategy of booking two cabins. On our Alaska cruise last summer, booking two porthole cabins was thousands of dollars cheaper than booking one verandah cabin! Everybody wants a balcony on Alaska cruises, so the other cabins are usually significantly less expensive.
I honestly don’t blame DCL for charging what they do. This is capitalism in action: supply vs. demand. People are obviously willing to pay these prices. I would like to try DCL at least once, but the rate has to be more reasonable. I just can’t see paying three times more than RCL. Sheesh. But different strokes for different folks, I suppose.
I do think Mariner of the Seas looks pretty cool. We can’t reserve anything till the end of this year, at the earliest. So, I’ll see what the price looks like then.
I saw an article on the refurbishment of the Mariner of the Seas, and it looks like it will be a fun ship! If we ever jump ship from DCL, it will be to Royal Caribbean.
Back when we started sailing DCL, the prices were expensive, but more in line. In 2013 we sailed for 4 nights in two cabins with 5 people for ~$1600 from Galveston. We sailed the next year from Port Canaveral for around ~$2000. It’s really in the last 3 years that the prices have increased astronomically.
We booked our very first cruise just a few months after our daughter was born. We were completely overwhelmed with 3 kids and realized that our extended family was not going to help us get a break anytime. The reason we booked Disney is that it was the only cruise line to have kids clubs open during dinner hours. We really just wanted a nice, quiet dinner to ourselves for a few nights. We were desperate. And our cruise on Disney gave us a much needed break.
Now, we’re addicted to DCL and afraid to let it go. We must cruise during the off-season months to be able to afford the steep price. We’re pulling the kids from school next January for a few days, but the following year my oldest will be in high school and we probably can’t do that any longer. 🙁