1st time Discount questions

[Hatbox]

DH is a cruise enthusiast, but not a Disney fan. He's curious about DCL only because he's heard how great the service is and how nice the ships are - but the Disney brand is almost a turnoff for him and the price tag is not what we're used to on other cruise lines. Now that we're expecting our first child, I think he's more willing to explore DCL, but the question that keeps coming up is, "Is it really worth double or triple our usual budget?"

Touring Plans says the way to get the best fare is to book as early as possible, at least 1 year out. Is that true? Are there other ways for anyone who hasn't been on DCL before? I'm planning to contract a Disney-knowledgable travel agent but we're not at that point yet.
(My parents are moving to Florida in a year or two, so I expect we'll eventually coerce them to come with us so we can use their FL resident discount. But before then?)

 

[PrincessShmoo]

DH is a cruise enthusiast, but not a Disney fan. He's curious about DCL only because he's heard how great the service is and how nice the ships are - but the Disney brand is almost a turnoff for him and the price tag is not what we're used to on other cruise lines. Now that we're expecting our first child, I think he's more willing to explore DCL, but the question that keeps coming up is, "Is it really worth double or triple our usual budget?"

Touring Plans says the way to get the best fare is to book as early as possible, at least 1 year out. Is that true? Are there other ways for anyone who hasn't been on DCL before? I'm planning to contract a Disney-knowledgable travel agent but we're not at that point yet.
(My parents are moving to Florida in a year or two, so I expect we'll eventually coerce them to come with us so we can use their FL resident discount. But before then?)

DCL doesn't run "special offer" things like other cruise lines. The only "discount" regularly given are the last minute, restricted fares offered on cruises that aren't selling well. That said, most of the time, those fares are higher than the same cruise was on opening day for the same cruise. I'm fairly confident that last minute, restricted fares aren't going to be offered for some time to come under current conditions.

So, yes, generally, the cheapest fare you're going to find will be when the first is cruise open for booking, usually around 18 months out.

The Florida discounts are also offered on cruises that don't seem to be selling well, so I'm not sure how many of those will pop up, once cruising begins again.

 

[Hatbox]

DCL doesn't run "special offer" things like other cruise lines. The only "discount" regularly given are the last minute, restricted fares offered on cruises that aren't selling well. That said, most of the time, those fares are higher than the same cruise was on opening day for the same cruise. I'm fairly confident that last minute, restricted fares aren't going to be offered for some time to come under current conditions.

Thank you! DH is well-versed in all things cruises, and I "speak" WDW planning, but trying to get a footing with DCL seems like a whole new thing. It's going to take a lot of persuasion to get us booked on a Disney cruise 18 months out, but sounds like I better get to work on that.

 

[T & R]

DH is a cruise enthusiast, but not a Disney fan. He's curious about DCL only because he's heard how great the service is and how nice the ships are - but the Disney brand is almost a turnoff for him and the price tag is not what we're used to on other cruise lines. Now that we're expecting our first child, I think he's more willing to explore DCL, but the question that keeps coming up is, "Is it really worth double or triple our usual budget?"

Sounds like me when my wife booked our first DCL cruise. I was not a fan and thought it was pricey. Fast forward to now and we average 2 a year and I keep telling my wife that 2 isn't enough. Don't be surprised if your DH gets hooked. Make sure you book that placeholder when you're onboard for your first cruise because days after getting home he'll be researching for the next one. Classic rookie mistake is not booking the placeholder on your first cruise.

 

[auntlynne]

Former cruisers are going to nab the cheapest rates per category on popular cruises, but you can still save money.

I do the 5% savings route of Disney gift cards purchased from Target with their credit card. Sam’s Club $75 packs are 4% savings, combined with whatever cashback your credit card offers.

Others go through COSTCO for more substantial discounts / store spending card rewards.

This year, Big Box stores were a cashback category for Discover card with 5%.

Travel agents can’t discount cruise fares, but may have other offers (onboard credit...) to reduce your costs.

Unique, rarely offered or specialty cruises are going to cost more. You can sort of figure that out by the price.

We are Disney Cruise fans, not necessarily Disney fans. The ships are beautiful. Cabins are more spacious. I have found workers on every carrier to be about the same - helpful and friendly. On Disney, you get the push complete the survey and indicate only superior service. My Honda dealer is the same. Drives me nuts. I have found no discernible difference In food among lines.

We chose Disney when I started sailing. My nieces were my travel companions, aged 11 and up when we began. No one really took part in the kids’ clubs, by personal preference. They all sailed together as a family last fall, now aged 24 and up (and still no little kids among them). They had enough to keep them busy onboard (or we were off the boat at the ports).

I love the G to PG feel Of everything. The nighttime comedians on the Carnival Cruise I took this year we’re R to X/MA rated, in my opinion. Those who drink (and that’s a fair amount of the cruisers) are typically well behaved.

If I were sailing with a kid, it would definitely be Disney. The facilities for children look as though they are part of the ship’s design, not an afterthought that is tucked away in a corner. Makes me a little jealous of their play areas (which adults do get to use on longer, specialty cruises).

Is it worth the extra money? I wonder that, but am currently booked for this year and next. The prices keep rising, but we still love the opportunities they provide, along with the benefit of transportation, food, and lodging all rolled into one. When your future little one is older, it’s a great place to let them have more independence in a safe environment that you might not do where things aren’t so well contained.

Whatever you chose, I hope you have some great vacation adventures as you grow your family.

 

[Hatbox]

Sounds like me when my wife booked our first DCL cruise. I was not a fan and thought it was pricey. Fast forward to now and we average 2 a year and I keep telling my wife that 2 isn't enough. Don't be surprised if your DH gets hooked. Make sure you book that placeholder when you're onboard for your first cruise because days after getting home he'll be researching for the next one. Classic rookie mistake is not booking the placeholder on your first cruise.

Great to hear that full conversion is possible! And thanks for the placeholder tip.

 

[Hatbox]

Is it worth the extra money? I wonder that, but am currently booked for this year and next. The prices keep rising, but we still love the opportunities they provide, along with the benefit of transportation, food, and lodging all rolled into one. When your future little one is older, it’s a great place to let them have more independence in a safe environment that you might not do where things aren’t so well contained.

Whatever you chose, I hope you have some great vacation adventures as you grow your family.

Holy wow - thanks for all the saving tips. I wouldn't have thought of those. I also hadn't considered before how much value the family-friendly environment would add. I've seen some things on other ships and wouldn't dream of letting my child of any age out of sight on those.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Holy wow - thanks for all the saving tips. I wouldn't have thought of those. I also hadn't considered before how much value the family-friendly environment would add. I've seen some things on other ships and wouldn't dream of letting my child of any age out of sight on those.

Sadly, it's the illusion of safety onboard a DCL ship over any other cruise line. There have been incidents onboard Disney ships with unattended children. Remember it's just a small town, lots of people who are unknown to either you or your child.

 

[Hatbox]

Sadly, it's the illusion of safety onboard a DCL ship over any other cruise line. There have been incidents onboard Disney ships with unattended children. Remember it's just a small town, lots of people who are unknown to either you or your child.

That just sent me down a Google rabbit hole and I've been adequately scared. Point taken.

 

[maribeau]

Great to hear that full conversion is possible! And thanks for the placeholder tip.

Count us in the “full conversion” camp! I booked our first Disney Cruise for 2013 without asking “permission”, rescheduled it to 2014 when DH wasn’t fully sold on the idea, and we have sailed once per year ever since! In between cruises I hear a lot of “Why aren’t we already on a ship again?!” LOL! The cruise we have booked for November this year is one that DH actually sought out and picked without me ever saying a word! It happens. The reluctant partners get the “bug” too! (Thanks to these forums I *did* book a placeholder on our first trip!)

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I booked our first Disney Cruise for 2013 without asking “permission”, rescheduled it to 2014 when DH wasn’t fully sold on the idea, and we have sailed once per year ever since!

We didn't start cruising until 2008. Since then - 25 cruises, 12 of which are Disney. We're averaging around 2 or 3 cruises a year. Until THIS year....guess we won't be hitting the mark for this year. We had to cancel a Cuba cruise (well, switched it to an October cruise), European River cruise in April and the Sea of Cortes cruise in October (Boo! )

 

[DCLCruiseFan09]

Sounds like me when my wife booked our first DCL cruise. I was not a fan and thought it was pricey. Fast forward to now and we average 2 a year and I keep telling my wife that 2 isn't enough. Don't be surprised if your DH gets hooked. Make sure you book that placeholder when you're onboard for your first cruise because days after getting home he'll be researching for the next one. Classic rookie mistake is not booking the placeholder on your first cruise.

My Husband was identical to this. I finally got him on a Disney cruise and he doesn't want to do anything else now. Usually I describe it to people as, Disney Service, subtle Disney touches, and you can avoid the really "Disney" Specific things (shows, characters, etc) if you don't want to do them.

I have sailed on nothing but restricted fares and tend to do pretty well cost wise. I usually look for off season/repositioning cruises as they tend to be cheaper. Lately its seemed like the 5 night sailings on the Magic from Miami are the most affordable. We have never had the flexibility of booking on the release dates due to work schedules.

 

[Husker Mike]

One caveat on using gift cards to pay for a Disney cruise. When cruises are cancelled, refunds are processed to the form of payment used to pay for the cruise, so those people now have thousands of dollars in Disney gift cards.

 

[DCLCruiseFan09]

One caveat on using gift cards to pay for a Disney cruise. When cruises are cancelled, refunds are processed to the form of payment used to pay for the cruise, so those people now have thousands of dollars in Disney gift cards.

This is very true, however up until this current situation (COVID), it was very rare to see cruises cancelled. Most often you would see it if a ship wasn't ready coming back from dry dock, etc.

 

[MomOTwins]

Definitely keep an eye on the Dis news stories on the right hand side of the screen in these forums. Every week, they post the discounts available. The best deals tend to be for florida residents, military or canada residents, but lately there are more special discounts available to everyone, though typically with a restricted fare (i.e., you let Disney choose the room for you within a category--VGT (verandah guarantee); OGT (oceanview guarantee) or IGT (inside guarantee)--and the fare is non-refundable).

 

[T & R]

Definitely keep an eye on the Dis news stories on the right hand side of the screen in these forums. Every week, they post the discounts available. The best deals tend to be for florida residents, military or canada residents, but lately there are more special discounts available to everyone, though typically with a restricted fare (i.e., you let Disney choose the room for you within a category--VGT (verandah guarantee); OGT (oceanview guarantee) or IGT (inside guarantee)--and the fare is non-refundable).

Yes, also noticed on the last round of discounts they included a lot of discounts for the upcoming Fantasy sailings for October this year. That was strange to me. You would think they would want to be reducing capacity and not try to give additional incentive to pile more people on?

 

[MomOTwins]

Yes, also noticed on the last round of discounts they included a lot of discounts for the upcoming Fantasy sailings for October this year. That was strange to me. You would think they would want to be reducing capacity and not try to give additional incentive to pile more people on?

My guess is one of two things: (1) there are so few bookings currently in Oct. given hurricane season and Covid fears/travel restrictions that they need to have more guests books to make the cruise worthwhile (even with reduced capacity--e.g, they may be planning to resume cruising at 1/3 capacity, but currently only have 10% of the ship booked); or (2) they have zero intention of sailing in October but would like people to make bookings to help with cash flow, on the theory that many people will opt to rebook rather than get a refund when DCL ultimately cancels.

I would probably guess the latter given they had a ton of steep discounts on Dream/Fantasy August cruises before those were cancelled too.

 

[T & R]

My guess is one of two things: (1) there are so few bookings currently in Oct. given hurricane season and Covid fears/travel restrictions that they need to have more guests books to make the cruise worthwhile (even with reduced capacity--e.g, they may be planning to resume cruising at 1/3 capacity, but currently only have 10% of the ship booked); or (2) they have zero intention of sailing in October but would like people to make bookings to help with cash flow, on the theory that many people will opt to rebook rather than get a refund when DCL ultimately cancels.

Option 1 would be good and bad. Would be kind of sad with only 10%-30% capacity but would still go rather than no cruise. I suspect the cash grab on option 2 as well but hope I'm wrong. If it is option 2 and only 10% of the people re-book over a refund, that's still a pretty big interest free loan to them.

 

[MomOTwins]

Option 1 would be good and bad. Would be kind of sad with only 10%-30% capacity but would still go rather than no cruise. I suspect the cash grab on option 2 as well but hope I'm wrong. If it is option 2 and only 10% of the people re-book over a refund, that's still a pretty big interest free loan to them.

Yeah.... I really really wanted to be back at Castaway Cay this year, but when they cancelled my August cruise, I just gave up hope and rebooked until next year. Had been thinking about a Thanksgiving cruise but didn't want to be cancelled on again--so October just feels unlikely to me.

 

[auntlynne]

Sounds like me when my wife booked our first DCL cruise. I was not a fan and thought it was pricey. Fast forward to now and we average 2 a year and I keep telling my wife that 2 isn't enough. Don't be surprised if your DH gets hooked. Make sure you book that placeholder when you're onboard for your first cruise because days after getting home he'll be researching for the next one. Classic rookie mistake is not booking the placeholder on your first cruise.

placeholder! I’ve kicked myself several times for not always booking one. I would say, I have cruised enough for one lifetime - and find myself months later On a ship with a non-discounted fare.

you can always cancel it when you get home, but you can’t add it once your foot is off the boat.

Thanks for the info.