3 night vs 4 night??

[magchavez]

We are considering our first Disney cruise in June but can't decide between the 3 or 4 night cruise. Any suggestions? We'd also like to stay a couple of days at Disney World. Does it make sense to book the land and see package, or is it more cost effective to book them seperately? Any ideas?

 

[aznaphrodite]

I've only been on a 4-night cruise and I already thought it was too short. With only one full day at sea, we barely did anything on the ship.

Even though we did the 4-night cruise followed by WDW, we didn't book the Land & Sea Package because we wanted to stay at Grand Floridian and Grand Floridian isn't one of the hotel choices for the package. However, even though we didn't do a package, you can still use the DCL motor coach to get to WDW from the port as long as you paid for transfers.

 

[Soccermom-Cheri]

I have heard that booking WDW and the cruise apart is cheaper. And, as mentioned you can choose your lodgings this way.

My opinion is nothing less than a 7 day. If I had to choose between 3 and 4 day sailings, I would go for the 4 day. On the 3 day, you barely get unpacked and then have to prepare to leave.

 

[Grendalynn]

My vote is for a 4 nighter... we did a 3 nighter and didn't have nearly enough time to really enjoy the ship and everything on it!! You wont be disappointed... If anything - you will be be wishing you did a 7 nighter!!

 

[kcashner]

A 4 day is too short; I can't imagine what a 3 day would be. Like you no sooner get on than you're getting off again.

You have to price out the land/sea packages and booking separately to see which would be cheaper. It depends on the time of year, any specials that may apply, etc. One big way to save money is to stay at a different level of hotel than goes with your cabin (like you want a balcony on the ship but you're happy with a moderate resort). Another trick is to rent DVC points...but June is a fairly expensive time for points.....see DVC rental section of the boards if interested--it's basically a really deluxe resort cheaper! If you're happy at a value resort, the savings are even greater.

So...decide what you want for your WDW stay. Then price the package as well as pricing the land and sea separately.

 

[tlynk]

We just got off a 3 night cruise and it was way too short. It was a teaser. We had no other options due to our schedule, but it was really hard to get off the Wonder. I felt like we were just getting into it and then it was over. I would go for at least the 4 night or longer if you can.

 

[msabol01]

For a first cruise I would recommend a 4 day. We did a 3 day for our first and it was just a little too short. Plus with a 4 day you get a day at sea which gives you a good taste of a longer cruise.

I would also suggest you arrange your travel so that you do the parks first and cruise second. This way you'll get to recovery and relax from your park days and will actually be a little refreshed prior to getting back to the "real" world.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

My opinion is nothing less than a 7 day.

I agree 100%.

In fact, we did a 7 nt. western double dip over Thanksgiving and only had 2 sea days. It left me wishing for more time on the ship. I really prefer the eastern that it gives you 3 sea days. It may sound like a lot of time but really it flies by. There's just so much to do and not enough time to do it all. JMHO but I think if you've already done WDW a few times, just go with a 7 nt. and you won't regret it. It's not really that much more $$ and works out to fewer $ per night.

No way would I do a 3 nt. I guess it's better than nothing at all but I'd guess most of us on the cruise boards love DCL as much if not more than WDW.

 

[tlynk]

I would also suggest you arrange your travel so that you do the parks first and cruise second. This way you'll get to recovery and relax from your park days and will actually be a little refreshed prior to getting back to the "real" world.

I second this! I love WDW and thought I'd regret not doing WDW after the cruise, so we went to WDW 2 days prior to the cruise and 1 day after. It was not relaxing at all. I would not do WDW after a cruise again. DH and I were way too tired to enjoy the parks.