Booking for someone else?

[Peaseblossom36]

If I book a cruise for someone else will they be able to make payments on their own profile? We want to cruise with family but they don't have a profile yet. They are also silver, so we are the same booking dates. I was hoping to do it when I booked so we could have an easier time booking connecting rooms. However, I doubt they will want to make payments through me.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I would call and explain what you'd like to do. Your family members can then set up their own Disney account so that they can book excursions, tastings, etc. before sailing. They'll also need a Disney account to check in online. Once they've created an account, they can make online payments, assuming you're not using a TA. If you use a TA, he/she can handle all of this and deal with making payments for you or family members. When my TA makes a payment on my behalf, the payment is to DCL, not the travel agency.

 

[Peaseblossom36]

I would call and explain what you'd like to do. Your family members can then set up their own Disney account so that they can book excursions, tastings, etc. before sailing. They'll also need a Disney account to check in online. Once they've created an account, they can make online payments, assuming you're not using a TA. If you use a TA, he/she can handle all of this and deal with making payments for you or family members. When my TA makes a payment on my behalf, the payment is to DCL, not the travel agency.

I did call and they were able to give me the number I needed, however that portion of the website doesn’t appear to be working (of course). He made an account, it’s just not linking to his castaway account. We wanted to book tomorrow, so it’s pretty unfortunate. I’ll try again tomorrow and hope we can still get what we want when it actually works.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Why not just book on the phone? I booked/bought a cruise for my niece and her family last year. I told my TA, Here is the date, ship, passenger names, DOBs and their address. I gave her my cc. She sent the email to me but if you're booking directly with DCL you could give your family member's email for their reservation.
Once they have a Disney account, they add the reservation number to it to see it all there.

 

[Peaseblossom36]

Why not just book on the phone? I booked/bought a cruise for my niece and her family last year. I told my TA, Here is the date, ship, passenger names, DOBs and their address. I gave her my cc. She sent the email to me but if you're booking directly with DCL you could give your family member's email for their reservation.
Once they have a Disney account, they add the reservation number to it to see it all there.

I suppose I could and just pay their deposit. I prefer doing it online though, I have a toddler so it can be difficult to have phone conversations.

They can book the cruise themselves easily, the issue is that they can’t link their castaway club status to their Disney account so can’t book tomorrow. I’m going to call again in the morning to see if they can just update that on their end since the website is broken.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I suppose I could and just pay their deposit. I prefer doing it online though, I have a toddler so it can be difficult to have phone conversations.

They can book the cruise themselves easily, the issue is that they can’t link their castaway club status to their Disney account so can’t book tomorrow. I’m going to call again in the morning to see if they can just update that on their end since the website is broken.

The CM on the phone should be able to book their cabin without you giving their Castaway Club or knowing anything about their online account. All you need is name and date if birth. The CM should be able to find them easily if they have cruised DCL before.

Ask your family member for their credit card info and the CM can apply deposits appropriately using each cc. The CM should also be able to make the reservation with a 2-3-day hold and you will be able to pay the deposit later. If you miss the deadline though it will automatically cancel.

I can relate to your difficulty finding time to call. I have 2 kids that are now grown. Maybe do it after your baby is asleep for the night or during an afternoon nap.
Unfortunately, that usually means not accomplishing something else that needs to get done.

 

[lanejudy]

I did call and they were able to give me the number I needed, however that portion of the website doesn’t appear to be working (of course). He made an account, it’s just not linking to his castaway account.

Has there been a name change? Such as the person was a child at the prior cruise and is now a married adult with a new name. Or make sure they are using the exact name as it was used with DCL previously -- such as "Robert" and not Bob or Bobby, etc. Another one that trips up the computer is names like "MacDonald" because DCL may have it spelled as "Mac Donald" with a space. Sounds simple but the computer won't match in any of those situations.

 

[lanejudy]

I suppose I could and just pay their deposit. I prefer doing it online though, I have a toddler so it can be difficult to have phone conversations.

If the DCL account and CC status issue can't be resolved today, a work-around would be if you have more than 1 silver in your immediate party. Split up the guests, such as swapping you and one member of the other family. There just needs to be 1 silver in each stateroom to book at the early booking. Many families book this way and just switch sleeping spots onboard.

 

[Peaseblossom36]

Has there been a name change? Such as the person was a child at the prior cruise and is now a married adult with a new name. Or make sure they are using the exact name as it was used with DCL previously -- such as "Robert" and not Bob or Bobby, etc. Another one that trips up the computer is names like "MacDonald" because DCL may have it spelled as "Mac Donald" with a space. Sounds simple but the computer won't match in any of those situations.

There hasn’t, the cruise was just in 2003 and was booked through a travel agent by another family member. I had the same issue when I created my Disney account but they were able to find my Castaway number and connect them when I booked my first trip as an adult. I believe it’s a website issue because they plugged in the number and it just said “null”. The cast member on the phone said the number would be all they needed. I’ll call again today and try and figure it out.

 

[clh2]

So I am curious, we also cruised in 2003, with a 9 year old. Not sure how it happened, she is now 29, married with 3 little ones. Her name did change. We want to cruise with my DH and her family. is she still the same castaway club number as DH and me?

 

[laurelew]

So I am curious, we also cruised in 2003, with a 9 year old. Not sure how it happened, she is now 29, married with 3 little ones. Her name did change. We want to cruise with my DH and her family. is she still the same castaway club number as DH and me?

Everyone in your family should each have their own Castaway Club number. My parents, sister, and I last cruised DCL in 1998 and our numbers are four unique numbers in succession. However if you will be booking in multiple cabins, it may be easiest to book by phone. That is what I did today.

(Funny story, the DCL rep I spoke with told me my Castaway Club number was not a real number because it is only 5 digits and she had never seen that before. When she saw it in the system on her end she joked I must have sailed on the Big Red Boat. Nope, just the first year the Magic debuted.)

 

[Peaseblossom36]

So I am curious, we also cruised in 2003, with a 9 year old. Not sure how it happened, she is now 29, married with 3 little ones. Her name did change. We want to cruise with my DH and her family. is she still the same castaway club number as DH and me?

If she wants to book on her own for some reason she can call and they will give her her number. When I booked my first cruise as an adult I called because we had no way to get the information, I didn’t even know for sure what year I cruised and they were able to find it.