I just returned from a 5-day cruise with my wife, two kids (aged 4.5 and 22 months), along with the grandparents. This was our first Disney Cruise. Overall, it was a fantastic experience. Service was excellent, food was well above average, and the kids had a great time, which was our primary purpose. Some specific notes below...

Embarkation: We splurged for the 1-BR concierge suite because it was relatively inexpensive due to time of year and it gave us more room for the kids. The grandparents did not have suites/concierge, and we were wondering whether they would let them board early with us even though they didnt pay for concierge services. Early research suggested they would not be allowed to, but this proved false. We simply asked and DCL obliged, and we were all aboard by 11:40, one of the first groups on the ship. It was very simple.

Concierge Services: I didnt know if this would really be worth the extra money, and I guess it depends on what use you make of the concierge. We didn't make excessive use, but I will say this was an amazing feature on so many levels. Our personal concierge, Joanne, was great. Very personable, knew our names whenever we ran into her, responded to every request promptly and with a great attitude, etc... Before we ever met her, she got us tickets to meet the Frozen characters and princesses, which were the only ticketed character meetings, and she said she can get us more anytime. Also, on the point noted above, even though our parents weren't concierge guests, they got the benefit of many of these services when they tagged along with us, including tickets with us to meet the characters. And we were told they could join us in the concierge lounge, though we never took advantage of this. Not sure this would occur if you booked one concierge room and a large number of non-concierge (i.e. for a very large group), but for our group of 7, they were happy to let them tag along and get many of these benefits. Read more