Category 1 Stateroom??

[Miescha]

I'm really confused

I would like to book a Category 1 stateroom for a March 2003 cruise but cannot seem to do so. This level of room does not show up on the internet site, and DIS Reservations tells me that there are only 2 of these rooms per ship and they are never available.

Has anyone ever booked one of these rooms?
Does anyone know how to do so?

Can DVC points be used to book these rooms?

Many thanks!

 

[CarolAnnC]

Category 1, 2 and even 3 sometimes are very difficult to book. They are always taken far in advance.

DVC members cannot book higher than a category 4 using points. That would be a room with verandah that accommodates up to 5 people.

 

[1karen]

Call the CRO directly and they can tell you what dates are available. They are rarely availalbe. Good luck!

 

[callahanjulie10]

These are the infamous Walt and Roy Disney suites. There are only 2 on Deck 8. They have something like 1800 sq feet and are big bucks! You can not book under a cat 4 on the website because there are only a few of these rooms available. The best bet is to call DCL and ask when you can book at cat1. I would then plan my vacation around those dates if it is that important to you. Good luck-

 

[dizneykids]

we booked our march 9 7-day cruise in the walter e. suite late november or so 2000.

another way to get one if you have a specific date in mind is to wait until the 60-day prior final-payment date and hope someone decides to give up their reservation. this happened to us over thanksgiving last year. we were in 2 cat 4s on the wonder and our ta called to ask us if we wanted to upgrade to the walt suite. we jumped! is it worth it on the 4-day? nope. but it gave me a taste of what to expect in march....boy, am i ever going to enjoy that suite!

 

[Amzey]

I know my mom tried to book us a cat. 2 on the June 29th and the TA told her that they sell out 2 years in advance..

 

[CarolAnnC]

Just to clarify. It does not matter if you call, look on the website, etc. You cannot book higher than a category 4 using DVC points. It is the policy and written in the contract between DVC and DCL. Sorry.

 

[howardk613]

The category 1 suites are terrific, We have stayed in both of them
and enjoyed it both times. You must book them thru DCL and not thru the internet. We are booked in the Walt suite this Nov. and can't wait. We booked this suite 2 years in advance (in 2000) and got the last available category 1 suite for the entire year of 2002.
If you really want to book one of these suites start booking EARLY. By the way, they are worth the wait. If you are interested, e-mail me and I will send you some pictures.

 

[BethA]

We were in the Walt suite last Aug and booked about 14 months ahead. Tried to get cat 1-3 for June this year and couldn't get it--hoping for a cancellation. We booked for Aug 2003 in Sept of 2001 and got one of the last weeks available with a cat. 1. We booked directly through DCL. We loved it, it was more affordable because we had 7 in the room. The suite was fantastic as was the service. Beth

 

[dizneykids]

beth and howard...we stayed in the walt suite on the 3-day over thanksgiving, but were not terribly impressed with what the concierge staff was able to do for us. can we trust them to get the spa and palos reservations we need or are we better off getting them ourselves? i've heard that reservations for the high tea are very hard to come by, and we would like to go to one.

 

[Michelle]

Dizneykids, I was in a Cat. 3 suite on the Magic, and the concierge staff was fabulous. Not only did they get EVERYTHING I wanted, they were able to accommodate me when I decided to switch the day I did the Palo brunch. I definitely know that was the concierge weaving their magic; I talked to some friends on board who were told there was no availability for a switch they wanted to make. The concierge staff will definitely get you a High Tea reservation.

 

[howardk613]

Dizneykids,
We have been on 2 cruises and both were in concierge rooms. The concierge team was terrific both times and not only did they get us everything that we asked for in terms of reservations, dining room assignments, tours etc. but they also got everything for our married children who were on the cruise with us but in the adjoining category 4 family suites (not concierge rooms). They were great but the suites themselves were the best part of the whole deal.

 

[dizneykids]

...that the concierge staff on the wonder wasn't good, just not real helpful. we wanted to have thanksgiving dinner in triton's, not parrot cay as we were assigned. the concierge couldn't help us. fortunately for us, our head server on our previous cruise is now the manager for triton's, and we had run into him as we left the concierge (they didn't come to our suite as they had when we had a 1-br, but instead required we go to sessions to meet them). my dh explained our situation and within the hour, daniel called us to tell us he had switched us. concierge called just prior to that to say it was impossible. go figure.

i do agree, howard, that the suite is the best part of it all. i expect we'll enjoy it all the more on the 7-day. plan to take advantage of morning room service so we can eat on verandah while at sea. and, perhaps a late-night date for dh and me! some dessert and champagne? i'm getting so excited, i can't wait!

 

[BethA]

We found the concierge staff on the Magic very accomodating. They got us into Palos when we decided to go at the last minute, and got all our other reservations. They changed our character breakfast when it conflicted with spa reservations. I guess who the cast members are would make some difference in the effort invovled. We had Martin and loved him. The suite itself makes the whole trip magical just as Howard said--but he's right you get spoiled and it's hard to go back to other rooms. If they buils a new ship I hope it has more suites. Have a great trip. Beth