Booking Questions-Costco vs DCL??

[jenhelgren]

We have always booked our DCL cruises directly through Disney but we are Costco members and I am trying to figure out if the extra Costco card would be worth it to us. I read some threads on Costco bookings but they weren't very recent. Does anyone know how the Costco bookings work for 2015? I thought I read that with Costco you can make changes and book your own excursions online at DCL-you just have to make changes that involve names or money through Costco so you get a little more flexibility than booking through a regular TA. I am really torn on this because I am a control freak and like to be able to contact DCL directly about my reservation but I am also frugal and the extra money is a bonus
I also noticed that the October Panama Canal cruise is not even listed on Costco Travel. Do they only get certain cruises?

 

[bumbershoot]

You can't make changes to your actual reservation, like changing rooms, changing names, etc. You can't request dining rotations on your own.

You CAN book excursions, you CAN book Palo/Remy. You can request distilled water and extension cord for CPAP.

You DO give up some control, but you don't give up ALL control. And you can book ON their website, which to me is a huge bonus (I don't like the system smaller TAs have where you contact them for a quote then contact them again to book).

The one funky thing costco does is that they have you pay a bit before actual Pay In Full date. This is weird, but it's to help just in case there's a payment issue. You know you'll be PIF by that date so you'll be OK. And you can pay earlier, and you can do it right through their website and it goes through immediately to Disney.

Not sure about what cruises they get; thought it would be all cruises, but maybe they already sold the rooms they had for it.

 

[Sandbtwmytoes]

We booked through Costco and took our trip in April. We just received our Costco cash card for booking with them. We have booked many non disney trips with Costco and they have all been excellent. I was able to contact DCL directly for any of the precruise questions I had. I also called Costco to change a few things that pertained to my reservation (such as they had a birthday wrong) and they put me on hold while they called DCL and then Costco got back on the line with me to confirm the change. I received an email also that confirmed the change. Costco seemed to have a direct connection to DCL because whenever I called DCL I waited for a long time, but the wait with Costco calling DCL was short. I was able to book all excursions online from the DCL website. I was never told by DCL that I had to contact Costco directly, but I didn't have many issues. I mostly used this forum for my questions

Great info by the poster above.

 

[bumbershoot]

Costco seemed to have a direct connection to DCL because whenever I called DCL I waited for a long time, but the wait with Costco calling DCL was short.

Same experience.

I was never told by DCL that I had to contact Costco directly, but I didn't have many issues.

Same here, but like you I didn't call DCL about *everything*. I also started with my question, NOT my reservation number. That let them keep their ears open, instead of closing down once they saw the TA on my reservation.

Great info by the poster above.

Aw, you're so sweet!


(and all the same info goes for booking Royal through costcotravel, in case anyone wonders...except that with Royal they give OBC instead of the cash card)

 

[Happy100]

Used Costco three times now. We booked on board then transferred our reservation to costco within 30 days. our OBC was transferred and we didn't have to pay more then the 10% deposit paid at time of booking on board. No issues at all. Shortly after we completed our cruise we received our cash card which was approximately 9% of the cost of the cruise.

 

[ajmomouse]

I have used costco 3x. Love them. No issues. Disney Cruise line has always also been happy to answer any of my questions. They have never told me I had to call my travel agents. I call costco with room changes, date changes dining requests, but call disney with cruise specific questions (what night is frozen night, passport questions, etc..) and they are always happy to answer them

 

[DISNEYFAN3260]

Used Costco three times now. We booked on board then transferred our reservation to costco within 30 days. our OBC was transferred and we didn't have to pay more then the 10% deposit paid at time of booking on board. No issues at all. Shortly after we completed our cruise we received our cash card which was approximately 9% of the cost of the cruise.

If you book a placeholder on board do you transfer it to Costco within 30 days, or within 30 days after you choose your actual sailing? And is the cash card amount always a set percentage of your cruise fare or does it work some other way?

I'm going to book a placeholder on board in August and think I might like to use Costco based on the good comments I see on the boards.

 

[missyp]

the cash card works out to be about 8%. Not sure how the new placeholder works with travel agents but I am sure the on board booking agent will have all that info. My guess is you transfer it to travel agent once you book an actual cruise, but that is just a guess

 

[DISNEYFAN3260]

I noticed the Costco Travel site specifically states that the cash card deal does not apply when the original booking is through DCL or on board. But clearly many here have booked on board and transferred and still received the incentive. I'm confused!

 

[missyp]

I noticed the Costco Travel site specifically states that the cash card deal does not apply when the original booking is through DCL or on board. But clearly many here have booked on board and transferred and still received the incentive. I'm confused!

I have booked on board with Disney and transferred my reservation to Costco when I got home. I have also named Costco as my travel agent while booking onboard. Either way I have received a cash card.

 

[missyp]

If you call Costco they are very helpful. They can answer your questions

 

[DISNEYFAN3260]

If you call Costco they are very helpful. They can answer your questions

Thanks, I will do that. It's always great to start here to get helpful info to know what to ask or what I may encounter

 

[mlayton14]

Can you book VGT rates via Costco website after Disney releases them?

If I want to book 2 or 3 staterooms via Costco, does there need to be a Costco member in each stateroom?

Assuming I book multiple staterooms, do I get one Costco cash card per stateroom or one cash card in total for all?

Thanks in advance !

 

[ajmomouse]

people would leave costco

 

[MelSpees]

people would leave costco

???

 

[MillauFr]

people would leave costco

Of course they leave Costco. I leave Costco every time after I go shopping there.

 

[cruisingringo]

I booked our cruise with Costco a few months ago and it was fine. They were a slightly better value compared to Expedia/Orbitz with the Costco cashback card. I directed all communication to Disney through the DCL website (linking reservations, changing dining room seating) and they have been very helpful.

 

[bumbershoot]

I call costco with room changes, date changes

Those should have gone through the TA. The CM was in the wrong to change the room and date. That's the TA's domain.

 

[genki3]

A couple people have mentioned that DCL never told them to contact their TAs directly for particular requests. On the flip side, I was! A couple times too, so it does happen. It really depends on the CM you get on the phone or who is in charge of answering online inquiries that day...

I just completed my first DCL cruise (booked through Costco) on the Fantasy a couple weeks ago. I really like the ability to look for availability of rooms, prices, cash card bonus, etc. myself. And exactly 1 week after debarkation, I got my Costco Cash Card delivered to my home. Talk about efficiency!

Can you book VGT rates via Costco website after Disney releases them?
If I want to book 2 or 3 staterooms via Costco, does there need to be a Costco member in each stateroom?
Assuming I book multiple staterooms, do I get one Costco cash card per stateroom or one cash card in total for all?

I booked GTY rates 1 month before my first cruise. If there are rooms to fill, I'm sure Costco would have them too as I'm assuming they work off the same system as DCL in real-time.

As for multiple rooms, I booked 4 staterooms via Costco for our upcoming Alaska cruise on the Wonder. I made all the reservations, paid all the deposits my credit card (everyone else paid me separately) and linked all the rooms together. I simply gave them my membership# and that was it. As this trip hasn't happened yet, I haven't gotten the cash cards yet but I was told that all cards (for each of the staterooms) will be mailed to me.

 

[mlayton14]

Great info thanks , you mentioned paying with a credit card, assume it must have been an AMEX card or does the travel dept accept other ? Thanks again