10/19/2013 An Eastern Fantasy

[ppartekim]

I forget that it's 'not so far' for some of you. I don't think I could get off the flight and get onto the ship - need some downtime and go to see the House of Mouse. We will be flying in Long Haul. My son does not travel so well long haul so he needs a few days to get over the flight.

I swore after the last flight I'd never come over again but we could not resist it for that long.....!! We was over in April just gone, I would have preferred it to be this October but with the cost of flights coming out around £4500 for is (yes, that is Economy - Oct is real expensive for some reason) it was just going to be too much.

We ALWAYS fly in the day ahead as I trust the airlines NOT to be on-time while the ship is ALWAYS on-time.

Even for our cruise this Oct (Wonder Hawaiian cruise) we are driving down to LA from SF a day early just to make sure. And then we added a couple of days for MNSSHP at DL for fun..

 

[Scotty69]

We are going to be at PORR without a car for 6 days before the cruise. Is anyone else getting the Disney Cruise Bus??

We took the Disney bus from French quarter last October. It worked out great. Only drawback is you don't get to the ship until sometime between 1 and 2 pm.

 

[BLeeS]

We took the Disney bus from French quarter last October. It worked out great. Only drawback is you don't get to the ship until sometime between 1 and 2 pm.

I think we are going to do a private car...$$ is about the same and we want to be on the ship early...another thought is going back to the airport at the break of dawn, which will allow you to check in and catch the first bus out of there. This puts you there by 11ish...even writing about this alternative is painful though.

 

[ppartekim]

I think we are going to do a private car...$$ is about the same and we want to be on the ship early...another thought is going back to the airport at the break of dawn, which will allow you to check in and catch the first bus out of there. This puts you there by 11ish...even writing about this alternative is painful though.

depends on the amount of people and if you needed a car anyway. For just the two of us the DC Bus was always cheaper and not worrying about luggage (DC L picked it up from our room) was always nice and stress free.. As long as we made to the ship in time for lunch I was a happy clam.

 

[truck1]

I think we are going to do a private car...$$ is about the same and we want to be on the ship early...another thought is going back to the airport at the break of dawn, which will allow you to check in and catch the first bus out of there. This puts you there by 11ish...even writing about this alternative is painful though.

Have you looked into a rental? Theres been some great deals on rental cars recently. That would allow you to get there when you want and not depend on any one.

 

[disneycruisers2013]

Hmmmm, never thought about it taking so long, that is a bit of a pain tbh.

Well, we are going to be leaving from PORR - if anyone is interested in sharing some sort of car or minibus then give me a shout (I cannot reply to PM's yet as not enough posts) and it will probably be easier/cheaper to share the fare. We are going to be going to be going back to Disney as well as some of our stuff will be staying in left luggage.

ETA: I have found a 14 person luxury van with trailer for luggage, with CBC from the Disney area, for $170 ew or $315 return. Potentially $12.50 pp ew or $22.50 rtn, plus tip if the van has 14 people. Any interest in sharing? There will be 4 of us and we would prefer to get to the port early although this is our 1st cruise so it is all new to us, would have to have time to have a good look around assuming that we can check out luggage in beforehand.

 

[ppartekim]

Hmmmm, never thought about it taking so long, that is a bit of a pain tbh.

Well, we are going to be leaving from PORR - if anyone is interested in sharing some sort of car or minibus then give me a shout (I cannot reply to PM's yet as not enough posts) and it will probably be easier/cheaper to share the fare. We are going to be going to be going back to Disney as well as some of our stuff will be staying at PORR.

I've just checked and Quick Silver have a 10 person van for $170 one way or $310 return.

Limo for 10 people is $190 one way or $350 return.

It's going to be $120 ew for the Disney bus. There are 4 of us so if you was going to get the bus and want to share please say. It does not matter where you are staying as long as it's not too far out of the way otherwise the cab will cost more.

Going to have a hunt around to see if I can find it cheaper now.

Good luck, several of us have looked now and again at renting vs DCL. One thing to consider is the amount of luggage folk will be bringing, it could be 1-2 bags per person plus a carryon; this has made getting a small-midsized car (cheapest) difficult and getting one big enough for people and bags is pushing the $200 which you found.

So, in the end most either use DCL or just stay near the port and use the hotel shuttle to get in earlier.

 

[disneycruisers2013]

Good luck, several of us have looked now and again at renting vs DCL. One thing to consider is the amount of luggage folk will be bringing, it could be 1-2 bags per person plus a carryon; this has made getting a small-midsized car (cheapest) difficult and getting one big enough for people and bags is pushing the $200 which you found.

So, in the end most either use DCL or just stay near the port and use the hotel shuttle to get in earlier.

That sounded a bit negative towards what I asked.

I cannot post a link as it thinks it is spam but I have found a travel company that advertises on another forum I use in the UK, it offers a luxury van that carries 13-14 people but it also includes a luggage trailer for up to 22 bags, for $260 ew. If 12 people were to go together then it would be $22pp and quicker/cheaper than the Disney Bus. Even if 8 people went it would be cheaper than the Disney bus.

Alternatively you can hire a 28 seater minibus for $400 WDW to PC. If 20 people went on it that would be $20 per head.

 

[ppartekim]

That sounded a bit negative towards what I asked.

I cannot post a link as it thinks it is spam but I have found a travel company that advertises on another forum I use in the UK, it offers a luxury van that carries 13-14 people but it also includes a luggage trailer for up to 22 bags, for $260 ew. If 12 people were to go together then it would be $22pp and quicker/cheaper than the Disney Bus. Even if 8 people went it would be cheaper than the Disney bus.

Alternatively you can hire a 28 seater minibus for $400 WDW to PC. If 20 people went on it that would be $20 per head.

Sorry, was not trying to be all negative. A bunch of us tried looking up private cars and group buses/vans several times before the Fantasy MV last year and only the buses/vans made the financial sense. But, those fell apart as folks couldn't get enough people to agree on a place and/or time without the van/bus driving to various resorts to get people.

 

[ratt1345]

So after a lot of talking with my wife Dreams83, we have decided to postpone our trip until we are completely out of debt with CC and our home equity loan. I realized that I could pay this off in ~3 years give or take a couple months. My job is going through a restructure and I think this would be the best option for us. May be one day we will see you in the future cruise! Have a great time!!

Sorry I am a little slow in reading some recent posts. That's too bad you won't be there!!!! Sometimes reality rears its ugly head and we have to do the responsible thing. You are right, it is what's best for you and your family. DCL isn't going anywhere!!! There will be other cruises you can go on. I am hoping for the best for you with the finacial situation and your job.

 

[Fastpaks]

Bummer, that's so responsible of you! Good luck with everything!

Thanks... going to need it.

Good luck, it won't always be easy but they feeling when you pay off that final debt is AMAZING! Any any cruise after that will feel amazing when you know that you have paid cash and won't have a CC bill waiting for you when you get home.

We have always paid for vacations in cash. I can completely relate to enjoying a vacation not having to owe when I get back. I'm just tired of the rest of the days where the kid needs clothes or my wife needs something and we struggle to find it. The best part of the budget at this moment is we will be out in 41 months, IF we don't get any more money than what we are currently making.

It's not long to wait really and is the most responsible thing to do. Maybe see you in a few years time.

It seems like it will be forever, but I did run some numbers... and the CC's will be gone by this time next year. We have almost 1k on the cruise now.. and are thinking we will just move dates and throw money at it when we can. With 10% and the Obc is the only reason we haven't down right got rid of it. (cross fingers) a few years from now would be great on the blue ocean!!

 

[kellyb2000]

We ALWAYS fly in the day ahead as I trust the airlines NOT to be on-time while the ship is ALWAYS on-time.

There was a thread on here a while back I wish I could find - very sad really. The jist of it was the importance of trip insurance. The people chose to fly in the day before, big storm came through, can't remember all the details, but they tried everything they could to get to the port, but no luck. The ironic part is they wanted to fly in the day before to make sure they got there in time and if they would have flown in the day of (as they mentioned it was clear and beautiful) they would have been fine. Instead they lost their whole vacation and the money it cost them.

I don't really have a point as to why I shared this! It just made me think of it when I saw what you said.

 

[ppartekim]

I don't really have a point as to why I shared this! It just made me think of it when I saw what you said.

Murphy will happily mess with the best laid plans...

 

[truck1]

There was a thread on here a while back I wish I could find - very sad really. The jist of it was the importance of trip insurance. The people chose to fly in the day before, big storm came through, can't remember all the details, but they tried everything they could to get to the port, but no luck. The ironic part is they wanted to fly in the day before to make sure they got there in time and if they would have flown in the day of (as they mentioned it was clear and beautiful) they would have been fine. Instead they lost their whole vacation and the money it cost them.

I don't really have a point as to why I shared this! It just made me think of it when I saw what you said.

I think I remember that thread. Basically, by the time that the airlines finished bumping them or the flight, it was even to late to drive. It was like 2 am on the departure morning when they realized they would not make the cruise. They would have gotten to MCO by like 10pm the night before the cruise.

 

[disneycruisers2013]

So funny story, when we sailed on the Magic a few years back, TheDis literally took over the entire ship. Commandeering was an understatement for our invasion! Of the 2400 on the ship, we had a little over 450 Dissers. Meaning 1 out of every 5 people on the ship was us. Every time we turned around, we were running into folks with Dis Lanyards. Several have become great friends that I still talk on FB to this day. It was Good times!!

I am just finally catching up with all of this thread as I have a spare hour this morning.

How do you know who other Dissers are? There are no pictures of people on here.

 

[disneycruisers2013]

"Fish finders club" - I like it!!

Is everyone already working on their FE gifts? I just can't motivate myself this far out... And I think I'll need to know numbers before I can commit to any particular project!

I've bought my gift bags already

And I have found some things to put in the bags but I have to stop myself from buying everything as it is still a little early, but I am always looking out for things in stores while shopping. I think that if I spread the cost of buying items, say £10 a month, it'll make it much easier to afford rather than buying everything at one time.

I sit here thinking about making things myself but I am THE least crafty person ever so I do not think I'll be able to make the wonderful things like other people seem to do.

Thank goodness we are flying up a level, we get an extra case each - otherwise I'll be having to pay an extra luggage allowance for these, LOL.

 

[disneycruisers2013]

Sorry, was not trying to be all negative. A bunch of us tried looking up private cars and group buses/vans several times before the Fantasy MV last year and only the buses/vans made the financial sense. But, those fell apart as folks couldn't get enough people to agree on a place and/or time without the van/bus driving to various resorts to get people.

Well, either way it looks like we are going to rent the minimum of a 10 seater to get there so if another family wants to join us, we will be leaving the Disney area around 10am so please let me know.

 

[disneycruisers2013]

I realise that I am the only one who has posted here this morning and your next email update is going to be full of my inane natterings. I finally sat and read all of the thread this morning and asked questions as we go.

We have got some more plans laid out so I wanted to share them.

Flying from London into MCO on Sunday 13th October where we will get the ME and stay at PORR until 19th.

They have a really good offers in the UK for booking so far in advance and if we rent a room for minimum 5 nights and buy a park ticket, we get free dining plan for our stay, we also get a free $200 gift card (so that is the kids 'spending money' sorted out). We have a different ticket than you guys do and they call it an 'ultimate' and it gives unlimited access for 7, 14 or 21 days - we have gone for the 21 day ticket so we can go to WDW at the start and end of our vacation.

At the end of the cruise we are heading back to stay at a Disney Resort for one night (not sure where yet though).

The next day we are heading to Texas for 3 days to see some 'friends' that I have made through my work many years ago, and while I have 'spoken' to them on email I have never met them so I realise this would be the idea chance. In the middle we will be going to the Six Flags park just north of Dallas.

And then we will head back to WDW to stay there to either the Friday or Saturday evening - the kids need to be back in school for Monday and we will 'lose' a day flying home.

We always stay at WDW at the end of our holiday so we can utilise left luggage and the DME on the last day and not have to worry about having luggage left in a hire car, our flight leaves around 7.30pm so we do get a full last day and leave Disney around 4pm. We stayed at BLT last time although I did not think much of the ToTW lounge. Wasted a whole last night in there as well. Disappointing.

I will stop talking now.

 

[disneycruisers2013]

2 more questions while I think about it:

Can someone please confirm that we can take a small carry on case on the airplane if we fly from MCO to Texas? We have never flown within the US. Are their customs to go through and can we take a carry on case onto the actual plane so we have not go to wait for it at the end? How does that work? And does it take long?

Is there a time difference between Orlando and Dallas? I am sorry if that is THE most stupid question to ever be asked on this thread, just trying to sort my plans.

 

[ppartekim]

2 more questions while I think about it:

Can someone please confirm that we can take a small carry on case on the airplane if we fly from MCO to Texas? We have never flown within the US. Are their customs to go through and can we take a carry on case onto the actual plane so we have not go to wait for it at the end? How does that work? And does it take long?

Is there a time difference between Orlando and Dallas? I am sorry if that is THE most stupid question to ever be asked on this thread, just trying to sort my plans.

Your questions might get answered faster on the FB page as most of us are there (you too).

Yes, Most airlines allow a carry-on plus a small handbag/computer case. Only international flights go thru customs so, an MCO - DFW trip should not and you only go thru TSA when you arrive at the Airport (so MCO).

Since most people now only try to use carry-on (to avoid the baggage fees), those upper bins can get pretty full fast in which case it becomes a checked-bag and you may have to wait (but that is the gamble).

There is a one hour time difference between Dallas (CST) and Orlando (PST). In air flight time is probably about 2-3 hours.