ABD Italy Land trip vs. ABD Mediterranean Cruise?Preference?

[scottmel]

Hi I am looking into the ABD Italy trip and can't help notice a significant difference in price for the cruise. Seems to cover several of the same stops....Anyone think one is better than the other? Share your thoughts. Thanks! Also is airfare insane from the USA to ROME? Any ideas of a price to expect for June 2018? thanks!

 

[DD's Prince]

Hey scottmel - I'm no expert on the Med cruise (haven't done one) and have only done one ABD. We did Bella Italia last summer and loved it. I looked at the itinerary for both trips and a few things stood out. First is the accommodations. On the cruise I would expect rooms similar to the other ships in Disney's line. Small space/cramped quarters. On an ABD the hotels were very nice with plenty of space. They put you right in the middle of the action so you can experience as much of the culture as possible. There is frequently time to explore on your own at the end of the day. You can't do this on a cruise. Next are the meals. On the cruise most meals will be on the ship but look to be all inclusive (like other Disney cruises). On the ABD there are a few OYO meals but all meals are in the country you are visiting and give you more exposure to the culture again. Next, the cruise will hit Barcelona and France and then Italy. It's a chance to see several different areas of the Mediterranean. On the Italy ABDs you are in country for the entire trip. Also, the ABDs are generally small groups (25-40) that spend the entire trip together. It makes for some good company and travel companions.

I have been on several Disney Cruises (Caribbean) and enjoy those but was looking for something different with ABD. The ABDs are very low key Disney and the guides are fantastic. For our family we really wanted to experience the culture and see as much of the country as possible. We are now headed to Greece this summer for our second ABD.

As for airfare, it can vary depending on where you are flying from. My experience (based on flight for 2 ABDs) has been that the Air department of ABDs has better prices than I could find online. When I booked airfare for both trips the ABD Air price was about 40% less than multiple sights online. For full disclosure we did fly business class. In economy the difference was about 25% less. I would expect East Coast flights to Europe to be about $1000-$1500 for coach and $2500 for business class.

Good luck with your decision. I don't think you can go wrong either way.

 

[sayhello]

Hi I am looking into the ABD Italy trip and can't help notice a significant difference in price for the cruise. Seems to cover several of the same stops....Anyone think one is better than the other? Share your thoughts. Thanks! Also is airfare insane from the USA to ROME? Any ideas of a price to expect for June 2018? thanks!

This may be obvious, but I just want to make sure you know that you have to pay for your cruise cabin on top of the cost of the ABD.

I loved the add-on I did, but the biggest downside is that you have to leave port late afternoon. So you don't get to see any of the cities in the evening, which I love.

Sayhello

 

[scottmel]

Hey scottmel - I'm no expert on the Med cruise (haven't done one) and have only done one ABD. We did Bella Italia last summer and loved it. I looked at the itinerary for both trips and a few things stood out. First is the accommodations. On the cruise I would expect rooms similar to the other ships in Disney's line. Small space/cramped quarters. On an ABD the hotels were very nice with plenty of space. They put you right in the middle of the action so you can experience as much of the culture as possible. There is frequently time to explore on your own at the end of the day. You can't do this on a cruise. Next are the meals. On the cruise most meals will be on the ship but look to be all inclusive (like other Disney cruises). On the ABD there are a few OYO meals but all meals are in the country you are visiting and give you more exposure to the culture again. Next, the cruise will hit Barcelona and France and then Italy. It's a chance to see several different areas of the Mediterranean. On the Italy ABDs you are in country for the entire trip. Also, the ABDs are generally small groups (25-40) that spend the entire trip together. It makes for some good company and travel companions.

I have been on several Disney Cruises (Caribbean) and enjoy those but was looking for something different with ABD. The ABDs are very low key Disney and the guides are fantastic. For our family we really wanted to experience the culture and see as much of the country as possible. We are now headed to Greece this summer for our second ABD.

As for airfare, it can vary depending on where you are flying from. My experience (based on flight for 2 ABDs) has been that the Air department of ABDs has better prices than I could find online. When I booked airfare for both trips the ABD Air price was about 40% less than multiple sights online. For full disclosure we did fly business class. In economy the difference was about 25% less. I would expect East Coast flights to Europe to be about $1000-$1500 for coach and $2500 for business class.

Good luck with your decision. I don't think you can go wrong either way.

Thanks for the well thought out answer. You are exactly right. I read SayHellos Trip report and as lovely as it seemed I just don't like cruises. Was trying to make myself like this one but your points on the food, city atmposphere well taken. Thank you so much. I appreciate the thoughts on the flights a well. We have enjoyed two domestic ABDs and if we did overseas would prefer with ABD as well. Thanks again!

 

[scottmel]

This may be obvious, but I just want to make sure you know that you have to pay for your cruise cabin on top of the cost of the ABD.

I loved the add-on I did, but the biggest downside is that you have to leave port late afternoon. So you don't get to see any of the cities in the evening, which I love.

Sayhello

Not obvious to me at all! Thanks for pointing that out! I thought that was so crazy cheap!

 

[abdgeek]

Hi I am looking into the ABD Italy trip and can't help notice a significant difference in price for the cruise. Seems to cover several of the same stops....Anyone think one is better than the other? Share your thoughts. Thanks! Also is airfare insane from the USA to ROME? Any ideas of a price to expect for June 2018? thanks!

I've done both the Med Cruise ABD add-on and the ABD Italy tour. I did the DCL Med Cruise add-on first. While I loved it, I didn't realize that I wouldn't see everything on my bucket list the first time. I loved Barcelona and seeing Monaco, etc which I wouldn't have seen with the ABD. I took a second DCL Med Cruise to see the rest, but again there were things I didn't get to see on the cruise because of the way the excursions were set up. I didn't do the add-on the second time because it was almost verbatim the same one I did the first time. However, this time the ship went to Venice, which I loved. After that, I did the ABD Signature Italy tour to see the last things I wanted to see more in depth. The behind the scenes access to the Vatican Museums, Sistene Chapel, etc. was awesome. Looking back, if I had done the two ABD Italy tours in the beginning I would have seen everything in just two trips. At some point I plan to do the ABD Bella Italy tour to see the Amalfi Coast. If you do the DCL Med Cruise without the ABD add-on you will not have a very immersive experience but will have to prioritize what you want to see. On each of my trips to Europe, coach has been about $1500 and business class about $4000. I usually fly Delta, but I'm sure you can find cheaper fares. I only do one layover so I know that contributes to the price.

 

[aggiedog]

If you do the DCL Med Cruise without the ABD add-on you will not have a very immersive experience but will have to prioritize what you want to see

I'd just add that if someone really wanted to cruise, you can have wonderful port experiences by organizing them yourself. After our Baltic cruise, we decided the days we took matters into our own hands (with trips and tour guides I found thru TripAdvisor) were hands down better than the standard DCL tours. Really, no comparison at all. All of our tours were private, just the 8 of us. We had an amazing, in depth tour of Tallinn with a local guide. No, you won't get the special Disney insider things - but that isn't really why we travel, ultimately. There are folks who don't feel comfortable with non-cruise directed tours, and I understand that, but if you do, it's the way to go.

That said, if you want a good look at any given country, then a land based trip is the winner. Cruises give you a toe-dip in the local water before you are loaded back on the ship, fed american food, watching "Frozen - The Musical." You'll get a much more in depth cultural experience with ABD, or any land based trip.

 

[CrazyZeus1]

We've done all 3 Italy Iteneraries land based (Bella Italia, Viva Italia, and the Italy/Switzerland trip), and we are taking the Med Cruise ABD add on this summer. We were just talking about how the Rome visit will go because we were pretty spoiled on our Viva Italia trip! The after-hours Sistine Chapel visit is like nothing I would have imagined...my son and I just laid on the floor and talked art. We got to stand at the back wall for the Last Judgement (which was his favorite thing we studied before we came) and really got to eat it up. That is something we won't have on the cruise so we're curious what our visit will be like coming up. If I were only going to get to do Italy, and the Rome visit, once I would pick the land based ABD hands down because we got to do so much, stay at some amazing hotels, and like SayHello said, you get to enjoy the towns and cities at night which are spectacular.

We like the Med Cruise ABD because it visits some stops we wouldn't get with any of the land based ABDs, so we'll see lots of awesome new stuff I'm sure. But if you want to "do Italy", definitely pick land based IMO!