3 Night vs 4 Night Bahamas Cruise.. 1000 savings for WDW?

[mousefan73]

We cannot decide.. We have never cruised and want to book the Bahamas cruise. We are torn between the 3 and 4 night mainly due to cost... 4 nights is a 1100 Dollar difference and since we are already in Orlando we would like to add on WDW.. This 1000 we can almost get 4 nights WDW at the BC!!

Is 1100 worth an extra sea day? We are 2 Kids and 2 adults, Kids are 12 and 13. I was thinking Nassua is only a a couple of hours of port time so there we get at least half a day boat to explore... Castaway we want to use every second on that Island.

 

[NJMomto2]

For $1100, I would take the 3night and just plan to board by noon the 1st day to enjoy as much as possible.

I always divide the cost of the cruise by number of nights and take the best $/day value. Every cruise has the same basic elements.

with land and sea - I think you will get enough vacation time

 

[undertheradar]

We cannot decide.. We have never cruised and want to book the Bahamas cruise. We are torn between the 3 and 4 night mainly due to cost... 4 nights is a 1100 Dollar difference and since we are already in Orlando we would like to add on WDW.. This 1000 we can almost get 4 nights WDW at the BC!!

Is 1100 worth an extra sea day? We are 2 Kids and 2 adults, Kids are 12 and 13. I was thinking Nassua is only a a couple of hours of port time so there we get at least half a day boat to explore... Castaway we want to use every second on that Island.

In my experience, a 3 day cruise is less relaxing than a 4 day cruise. When you are saying that you could get almost 4 nights at BC, does that include meals, tickets and entertainment for those WDW days? Sea days are a nice relaxed day.

 

[MickeyEarrings]

That 3-Night cruise is likely on the Dream, which is huge. You’ll just learn your way around when it’s time to leave! And you’ll want to pack fun and adventure into every moment of those days...just like the 3500 other passengers.

Will that leave a bad taste in your mouth about cruising?

The answer to that question may help you decide.

 

[Otimon]

If you've never cruised before, would suggest the 3-night to get your feet wet so to speak and see how you enjoy it. Use the extra money for a WDW stay this time.

Have been on both 3 and 4 night cruises and personally prefer the 3-night. Like being able to get off the ship if I want so sea days are boring for me for the most part.

Good part is: You can always plan a 4-night or longer once you know what it's like! Bon voyage.

 

[Rob1872]

For our first cruise last year we were not sure how our kids would respond to it, so we did 3 days at Universal Studios and a 3 night cruise. Everyone had a great time at both locations, and enjoyed the cruise enough that we are doing a 7 day in less than 2 weeks. If you can really do 4 days at Disney World for $1,100, then I'd do the 3 night cruise and the longer Disney time. However, as the previous poster said, there are more costs involved. I'd assume that $1,100 would get you closer to 2 days of theme park tickets, resort, and food.

 

[Cirlonde]

We were in a similar position as you last year when we were planning our first cruise (which is coming up in May). We were looking at a 3 night versus a 4 night with two trips to Castaway Cay. I was so tempted...but we decided the extra cost for one day wasn't worth it, especially since this is our first cruise and neither of us are sure how we will feel about cruising. So, we opted for a week at WDW and the 3 night cruise. After May, we will be better informed when deciding on the next trip (if we become repeat cruisers that is!)

 

[mmmears]

Our first cruise was a 3-night combined with a few days before and after at WDW. We had a blast and were happy with our choice. Having said that, we haven't taken a 3-night one since then, instead opting for 4 or 7 nights. But in your case that's quite a difference in price between the two. I'd choose to do some land and some sea and pick the price you are comfortable with paying. We were iffy about going on a cruise and the 3-night was a good pick for us. We had a great time and have taken a few since then.

 

[KashasMom]

That is such a big difference for one extra night/day. Get on as early as possible on the first day (wear or carry on your bathing suits so you can start enjoying your vacation right away!). Stay on for as long as possible on Nassau day. Enjoy an extra day or two at WDW! You'll still have plenty of time to see the shows and enjoy the ship.

 

[dcassetta]

I'm usually in favor of longer cruises, but if you can get almost 4 nights at the Beach Club for $1000, jump on that!!

 

[mousefan73]

Well we went for the 4 night.. I played around with Dates.. The Sept 3rd 4 night still had oceanview avail and was anyways cheaper than August.. So we switched weeks and now the difference is only 400. For that we will take the extra day!!! Plus Halloween cruise!!!!!

We are doing WDW anyways before the cruise as we are international and will plan at least 2 nights before cruise, so i would have gotten Extended park days to cover the post cruise Portion.. This is why the 1000 would have gotten us 4 additional nights at BC ( with a Discount )

 

[Shanti]

Well we went for the 4 night.. I played around with Dates.. The Sept 3rd 4 night still had oceanview avail and was anyways cheaper than August.. So we switched weeks and now the difference is only 400. For that we will take the extra day!!! Plus Halloween cruise!!!!!

We are doing WDW anyways before the cruise as we are international and will plan at least 2 nights before cruise, so i would have gotten Extended park days to cover the post cruise Portion.. This is why the 1000 would have gotten us 4 additional nights at BC ( with a Discount )

Sounds good. I agree with a 4-night cruise being more worthwhile. Just be sure to get insurance for that Sept. 3rd cruise, as that is prime hurricane season.

 

[mousefan73]

Sounds good. I agree with a 4-night cruise being more worthwhile. Just be sure to get insurance for that Sept. 3rd cruise, as that is prime hurricane season.

Yeah working on that now. This might be my next thread haha

 

[cheribelle]

Good for you! We sailed on a 4 night as our first cruise just to test the waters. Loved it so much that we only book 7 nighhts or longer now. I even thought the 4 night was short but I look at it as I got to sail the Dream! Enjoy you won’t be disappointed!

 

[JWG]

Yeah working on that now. This might be my next thread haha

We always use 3rd party and don't get the Disney insurance. Can save big money there also.
there are a few trip insurance aggregator websites that will allow you to compare various types, carriers, etc.

 

[mousefan73]

We always use 3rd party and don't get the Disney insurance. Can save big money there also.
there are a few trip insurance aggregator websites that will allow you to compare various types, carriers, etc.

Can you PN some recommendations.. to start my Research.. how much do you guesstimate for a 4 night Family of 4?

 

[dcassetta]

Can you PN some recommendations.. to start my Research.. how much do you guesstimate for a 4 night Family of 4?

https://www.insuremytrip.com/ is a good place to start. They have offers from many companies and have a chat function where you can ask questions. Insurance can vary greatly depending on what you want the policy to cover.

 

[dcassetta]

Well, that was one blocked. Thought it was okay, but I guess not. Try https://www.travelinsurance.com/

 

[jesseybell]

After having done a 7 night cruise and then a 3 night (or a 4 night, I can't remember), I swore I never would do a short cruise again. But also the boats were very different - this was RC 13 years ago, and the 7 night was a huge boat and the short one, a small old boat. Now we will be taking on a 3-night at the end of our Universal vacation (and we were taking a day trip to Cape Canaveral anyways - we just moved that day to the end, which happened to be a Thursday and the Dream leaves on Friday). We couldn't pass it up! But the way we see it, we were just on the Fantasy 2 years prior so the Dream is practically the same boat so we don't need to take all the exploration time. We will do a short excursion in Nassau and then relax on CC. 6 months away is too long away!