2013 dates

[Samantha_Mommy]

For some unknown reason Disney seems to be last (for Cruise lines) on releasing 2013 dates. Can't wait to get the prices as well!

Waiting and waiting

 

[amystevekai&bump]

Mexico is not a distant foreign port. The cruise would have to begin or end in Mexico.

Does that mean that DCL will never be able to do shorter hawaiian cruises?

I was hoping that in the future we might be able to do a one way Hawaiian cruise and either fly there or back again. Or even fly both ways and do a 7 night just around the Hawaiian islands. Are these totally out of the question?

That will put an end to my DCL Hawaiian cruise plans then!!

 

[sammatt]

Does that mean that DCL will never be able to do shorter hawaiian cruises?

I was hoping that in the future we might be able to do a one way Hawaiian cruise and either fly there or back again. Or even fly both ways and do a 7 night just around the Hawaiian islands. Are these totally out of the question?

That will put an end to my DCL Hawaiian cruise plans then!!

Unless DCL build a ship that has a US registry, it's not going to happen. NCL has the market on the Hawaiian cruises because the "Pride of America" is a US ship. It is the only cruise that sails Roundtrip from Hawaii around the Hawaiian Islands. You can sail one way to Hawaii from Vancouver, but not from a US Port. (On RCCL for instance)

 

[jdb in AZ]

Does that mean that DCL will never be able to do shorter hawaiian cruises?

I was hoping that in the future we might be able to do a one way Hawaiian cruise and either fly there or back again. Or even fly both ways and do a 7 night just around the Hawaiian islands. Are these totally out of the question?

That will put an end to my DCL Hawaiian cruise plans then!!

Maritime laws are complex -- in order for a cruise ship to sail one way from the states, or do only the Hawaiian islands without stopping at a foreign port, the ship would have to be built and flagged in the U.S. DCL ships are registered in the Bahamas.

 

[jdb in AZ]

Unless DCL build a ship that has a US registry, it's not going to happen. NCL has the market on the Hawaiian cruises because the "Pride of America" is a US ship. It is the only cruise that sails Roundtrip from Hawaii around the Hawaiian Islands. You can sail one way to Hawaii from Vancouver, but not from a US Port. (On RCCL for instance)

and I would much rather sail to Hawaii round trip on DCL than to sail with NCL-America ever again.

 

[closetmickey]

Please remind me- will platinum and gold get first crack at bookings for 2013 or is that practice only in place for "special itineraries"? Thanks!

 

[luv2sleep]

I am new to DCL. I am confused as to why the prices are so much lower if you are one of the first people to sign up. If I have never been and won't have any priority, how much more per person should I expect to pay for a trip? I have looked at the prices for the current trips. Are these trips severely inflated in price because the itinerary has been out for a while? Had no idea there was a time crunch to all of this. Although I will still go I am disappointed about this. At least with hotels you have a fair shot at getting a good rate even if you are one of the 'general public'.

 

[SanDeeKath]

$10,000 for a tiny little balcony cabin on mostly sea days on the rough Pacific Ocean on a 13 year old ship?

You have got to be kidding me. Highly recommend looking at the Golden or Sapphire Princess, where you can get a suite and all the benefits for 1/2 the price with lots and lots of Hawaii-native activities like lei making, ukeleily lessons, Hawaiian cooking classes, etc.

 

[bas71873]

I am new to DCL. I am confused as to why the prices are so much lower if you are one of the first people to sign up. If I have never been and won't have any priority, how much more per person should I expect to pay for a trip? I have looked at the prices for the current trips. Are these trips severely inflated in price because the itinerary has been out for a while? Had no idea there was a time crunch to all of this. Although I will still go I am disappointed about this. At least with hotels you have a fair shot at getting a good rate even if you are one of the 'general public'.

I'm sorta with you on this luv2sleep. My DD really wants to cruise. DH and I aren't convinced, but I keep checking prices. Plus, I can hardly wrap my head around a vacation for 2012 much less plan for 2013.

Anywho, say cruise dates for 2013 are released in October and I want to book to get a good price. Can someone give me some simple answers to these questions (we've never cruised and I find the info confusing):

1. Better to book online or call?

2. Can I get a AAA discount like you can at WDW resorts?

3. How much of a deposit is due at the time of booking?

4. What if I end of needing to cancel? Can I get a refund like I can with a regular WDW booking?

Thanks!

 

[disdel]

I asked my TA to move a dummy booking to the Hawaii cruise, but I should wait to see the Transatlantic itineraries.

I just sent DCL a message on their web site - letting them know I was "disgusted" that Silver Castaway Club members get no advance booking over the general public! I'll be interested to hear how they have justified that practice...several times!

I'm with you on this - With "only" 4 cruises (but 38 days on board) I was disheartened to see not at least a 24 hour window before the general public.

Being Gold and Platinum it's an added benefit to book early. Not all levels in the Castway Club are meant to be equal, if that was the case why have levels. RCI offers the same thing for their different levels.

I agree it is frustrating, but Disney is not wrong for only opening the Hawaii trip up to only Gold and Platinum members.

Yes , I agree that EACH level has it's perks - so why are Gold and Platinum equal here, yet Silver is not a level at all for these bookings? A two-day window for Platinum, the next two day window for Gold and above, then a window of even 24 hours for Silver and above? Cut it to a 24 hour window for each step, if you want, but we've seen that sometimes it takes the better of 24 hours of phone queing or screen refreshing on rollout days.

Mexico is not a distant foreign port. The cruise would have to begin or end in Mexico.

Nancy, please apply for a front-office job at DCL - you've hit on the obvious answer. DCL one way to Hawaii leaving/returning from a Baja peninsula port, why not?
DCL ground transport could run from SanDiego if need be. And for any possible naysayers regarding dealings with the Mexican government, I can only point to what Disney and their $$$ accomplished on Manhattan's 42nd Street, the transformation of which I witnessed firsthand.

 

[NancyIL]

Yes , I agree that EACH level has it's perks - so why are Gold and Platinum equal here, yet Silver is not a level at all for these bookings? A two-day window for Platinum, the next two day window for Gold and above, then a window of even 24 hours for Silver and above? Cut it to a 24 hour window for each step, if you want, but we've seen that sometimes it takes the better of 24 hours of phone queing or screen refreshing on rollout days.


Nancy, please apply for a front-office job at DCL - you've hit on the obvious answer. DCL one way to Hawaii leaving/returning from a Baja peninsula port, why not?
DCL ground transport could run from SanDiego if need be. And for any possible naysayers regarding dealings with the Mexican government, I can only point to what Disney and their $$$ accomplished on Manhattan's 42nd Street, the transformation of which I witnessed firsthand.

I am surprised that Platinum CC members don't have a booking advantage over Gold CC members, but maybe there aren't enough Platinums to warrant their own day. I'm pretty sure there are PLENTY of Silver CC members, however!

I think it would be quite a pain to have to shuttle 2000+ passengers between San Diego/LA and Ensenada in order to cruise one-way to/from Hawaii. That's probably why so few ships do that.

 

[mkmommy]

I know the rumor is 2013 Med cruises from Rome. I was thinking that doing a back to back would be great but then I thought what would you do on the transition day, you would not be able to actually go into Rome unless they had a really late departure.

 

[NancyIL]

I know the rumor is 2013 Med cruises from Rome. I was thinking that doing a back to back would be great but then I thought what would you do on the transition day, you would not be able to actually go into Rome unless they had a really late departure.

I would probably stay in Civitavecchia until it's time to reboard the ship, or visit another area such as Tarquinia a half-hour north.

 

[Pudo]

I am new to DCL. I am confused as to why the prices are so much lower if you are one of the first people to sign up. If I have never been and won't have any priority, how much more per person should I expect to pay for a trip? I have looked at the prices for the current trips. Are these trips severely inflated in price because the itinerary has been out for a while? Had no idea there was a time crunch to all of this. Although I will still go I am disappointed about this. At least with hotels you have a fair shot at getting a good rate even if you are one of the 'general public'.

Prices on the day the rates are released are as low as they get, they typically don't discount to fill a ship. The inflated rates are unusual, they always go up, but the demand for the Dream and Fantasy are unprecedented so your best bet is to wait for the rates to open in Oct/Nov and book right away.

 

[Pudo]

I'm sorta with you on this luv2sleep. My DD really wants to cruise. DH and I aren't convinced, but I keep checking prices. Plus, I can hardly wrap my head around a vacation for 2012 much less plan for 2013.

Anywho, say cruise dates for 2013 are released in October and I want to book to get a good price. Can someone give me some simple answers to these questions (we've never cruised and I find the info confusing):

1. Better to book online or call?

2. Can I get a AAA discount like you can at WDW resorts?

3. How much of a deposit is due at the time of booking?

4. What if I end of needing to cancel? Can I get a refund like I can with a regular WDW booking?

Thanks!

#1. I prefer to call, but no financial benefit. The website can act up so calling can be less of a hassle.

#2. You can book through AAA, but there are no discounts for being a AAA member.

#3. An onboard booking is 10%, any non-onboard booking (online, phone, or TA) is a 20% deposit. The deposit is based on the cruise fare and not the port taxes and fees.

#4. You can get a full refund prior to the penalty period (75 days out from sailing) in all non-concierge staterooms. Concierge staterooms are not refundable, but you can postpone to another date and not lose your deposit.

Considering #4 if you don't book concierge than their is absolutely NO reason not to book ASAP.

Finally, there is only ONE sure way to save on a Disney Cruise and that is to book the day the rates come out. I'll give you an example. On 10/19/2010 the 2012 rates came out. We were sailing over Halloween 2010 so I waited the week and booked online TWO Cat 4As with 2 adults and 2 children for $7,600 for the 08/25/12 Fantasy sailing. The last price I saw a couple weeks ago for ONE Cat 4A was $9,500!!! By booking early, I have two staterooms for less than the price of one and there is still 10 months to go before the sailing.

If I was you I would get my head wrapped around booking in advance very quickly.



Jeff

 

[SanDeeKath]

Prices on the day the rates are released are as low as they get, they typically don't discount to fill a ship. The inflated rates are unusual, they always go up, but the demand for the Dream and Fantasy are unprecedented so your best bet is to wait for the rates to open in Oct/Nov and book right away.

They do have Kids Sail Free promos sometimes months after the rooms are released. However, you can call and get that promo after it is announced and they will reimburse you the difference (before sailing).

Katherine

 

[ash-n-brensmom]

#1. I prefer to call, but no financial benefit. The website can act up so calling can be less of a hassle.

#2. You can book through AAA, but there are no discounts for being a AAA member.

#3. An onboard booking is 10%, any non-onboard booking (online, phone, or TA) is a 20% deposit. The deposit is based on the cruise fare and not the port taxes and fees.

#4. You can get a full refund prior to the penalty period (75 days out from sailing) in all non-concierge staterooms. Concierge staterooms are not refundable, but you can postpone to another date and not lose your deposit.

Considering #4 if you don't book concierge than their is absolutely NO reason not to book ASAP.

Finally, there is only ONE sure way to save on a Disney Cruise and that is to book the day the rates come out. I'll give you an example. On 10/19/2010 the 2012 rates came out. We were sailing over Halloween 2010 so I waited the week and booked online TWO Cat 4As with 2 adults and 2 children for $7,600 for the 08/25/12 Fantasy sailing. The last price I saw a couple weeks ago for ONE Cat 4A was $9,500!!! By booking early, I have two staterooms for less than the price of one and there is still 10 months to go before the sailing.

If I was you I would get my head wrapped around booking in advance very quickly.



Jeff

Just out of curiosity..did you notice the price go up much between the release date and the date you booked on board...I ask because we will be on board the Dream for the Oct 27th sailing...just wondering how much it would go up in between...that is of course assuming the dates for 2013 will even be released by then..

 

[Pudo]

They do have Kids Sail Free promos sometimes months after the rooms are released. However, you can call and get that promo after it is announced and they will reimburse you the difference (before sailing).

Katherine

I totally agree, there are occasions when you get discounts like Florida residents rates and kids sail free. The KSF rates are normally for Mexican Riviera cruises since those sailings based on what's happening in Mexico are not as popular as they used to be. As a general rule of thumb you can't count on these discounts so booking early is still your best bet

 

[bas71873]

#4. You can get a full refund prior to the penalty period (75 days out from sailing) in all non-concierge staterooms. Concierge staterooms are not refundable, but you can postpone to another date and not lose your deposit.

Finally, there is only ONE sure way to save on a Disney Cruise and that is to book the day the rates come out. I'll give you an example. On 10/19/2010 the 2012 rates came out. We were sailing over Halloween 2010 so I waited the week and booked online TWO Cat 4As with 2 adults and 2 children for $7,600 for the 08/25/12 Fantasy sailing. The last price I saw a couple weeks ago for ONE Cat 4A was $9,500!!! By booking early, I have two staterooms for less than the price of one and there is still 10 months to go before the sailing.

If I was you I would get my head wrapped around booking in advance very quickly.


Jeff

THANK YOU JEFF. I will definatley keep my eyes & ears open and book right away since I can cancel with no penalty. My head might spin, but I'll be OK .

Now, where do I keep checking for release dates? DISboards?

 

[mommy2tati]

THANK YOU JEFF. I will definatley keep my eyes & ears open and book right away since I can cancel with no penalty. My head might spin, but I'll be OK .

Now, where do I keep checking for release dates? DISboards?

Yup. Its a pretty good bet the DIS will know before anyone else. It happened when the NYC & Galveston sailings were released. I believe the DIS had the info a few days before it was officially announced.