Best Cruise for Adult and Kid Fun?
Just about every major cruise line will have entertainment for kids. Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Carnival, etc. will all have great kids programs and great kids groups. I’m in my late 20s, love Disney World, and my parents took us on about 10 cruises throughout my childhood. The Disney cruise was probably my least favorite (it was also my first when I was in 3rd grade — although their cruises are probably a bit different now). You’d probably be better off looking for the ports of call you want and finding a ship that has a fun gimmick like an ice rink or mini golf course for additional entertainment.
bleucube: you are not allowed to bring your own alcohol aboard any cruise, and if they find it they take it away. So, I’m not going to tell you that a plastic water bottle is a great way to hide, say, vodka or gin in your luggage. Because that would be wrong. Incidentally, on some cruise ships (I know Carnival for sure, but I am not sure about others) you can bring your own sodas and pack them in your luggage, and if you like soda, that will save you a lot, since it costs almost as much as the alcoholic drinks.
There’s a lot of great information here already. I concur that Disney is a great family cruise, and high-quality for adults too (as long as you don’t mind Disney characters and no casino). That said, my nieces and nephew had a great time on Carnival, and although it may be a little less upscale it is substantially less expensive and has much better nightlife. In terms of suggestions for getting a good price, I don’t know for sure with Disney but for Carnival the price will always be the same regardless of where you go (unless you’re booking as a big group). They’re really strict with travel agencies about that (they are trying to create a level playing field for their in-house booking agents). Personally, I’d suggest you contact the cruise lines directly because their agents generally know a lot more about the nuances of each ship than travel agents. (I’ve been disappointed with the majority of agents I’ve worked with.
I double-checked and found that there are conflicting Disney policies on alcohol depending on which site you visit, including Disney’s own cruise site. I would go with arnicae’s info, which seems to be the most current, but here’s what I found for the record: Disney had signs on embarkation indicating no alcohol or coolers are permitted, but one of my cruise outlets says that the official line from Disney (which is NOT, interestingly, found anywhere on their own cruise portal) is that alcohol is not prohibited and that passengers can bring alcohol aboard as long as it is in a carry-on. Whatever the official policy, they seem very relaxed about enforcing it, so you could probably get away with bringing alcohol on board. Royal Caribbean and Celebrity have become increasingly strict about searching for alcohol. Carnival prohibits it as well, and actually prohibited soda and water once but recanted.
