Considering 1st cruise....Help!

[MiJo]

Hi, Fellow DISers,
My DW and I have been kicking around the idea of a cruise for quite some time because several friends have told us how great they are. (Unfortunately, my only vision of a cruise is that of Ray and Marie's from "Everybody Loves Raymond"! Not very appealing.) My DW spoke with Dana (micdan.com) and she recommended trying the Land and Sea cruise so we can "test the waters". We have a quote for $787 each for 3 nights at POFQ and 4 nights on the Wonder (Cat 12 with guaranteed comp upgrade if one is available) beginning Nov 4. Being on a fairly limited budget, we are now thinking about the most reasonable way to get around in FL. We have used Your-Ride and Cartier in the past and try to avoid Mears at all costs. What does the DCL use and how is the cost and service? Florida Tours will do it all (MCO>POFQ>Port Canaveral>MCO) for $235 plus tips. That seems like the way to go but we're not sure. (I hate driving on vacation, especially at WDW.)
Any tips from the DIS cruise veterans would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
Mike

 

[Scratch42]

and to get the full Disney experience, why not use the DCL Buses!

I'm surprised that they did not mention this. You can arrive at the airport and board the bus and they will get you to the resort where you can pre-board for the cruise. After your stay at the resort you will be given instructions as to where the DCL bus is available to board and it will take you to the terminal. Ok, so you won't get there early but it's less of a hassle. Then you can take the DCL bus back to MCO!

Scratch

 

[tkd lisa]

I'd also suggest breaking up the cruise and land portions and booking separatly. You can usually get better prices. With land and sea packages, they count the day you board the ship as one of your package days, and you usually only get 2 hours at the parks. If you book on your own, you can stay at whatever resort you like (not limited to the values because you are in a cat 12), maybe get a great rate or rent points at a DVC, buy only the number of day passes that you'll use, and you can still take DCL buses to the port. One drawback is that under land/sea, you only check in at the resort. Doing it separately, you check in at the resort, then check in at the port and get a new KTTW card. In my mind, the 20 minute check in at the port, and a 2nd card is a small hassle compared to the several hundred dollar savings from a day wasted on park passes, and flexibility on my hotel choice. Just my opinion.

 

[kcashner]

Depending on the season, family size, specials available, etc. booking your land and sea portions separately can save you major $....and you can still ride the DCL bus if desired. You need to check out www.mousesavers.com to see what specials might be available when you'll be there.

The Land/Sea packages include the Ultimate Park Hopper passes for every day of the land portion. We found that we usually don't do everything these passes allow, and thus can save some money using Park Hopper Plus passes. For instance, on arrival day, what time will you arrive? Is it really worth "spending" park passes that day? If we arrive at the airport at 1, it is frequently 3 till we are in the hotel. We hit the hotel pool, unpack, and book a character dinner (Chef Mickey's is great!) That way, DD has the character experience without spending a day of park passes for a few hours of use. Ditto the day you leave. There's no way that you'll spend a full day at the parks since you are leaving for the cruise. On the UPH (land/sea booked together), you are paying for that day in the parks. Again, do a character breakfast, then leave for the port (1901 Park Fare at Grand Flo, Character Mickey's at Contemp, Ohana at Poly, Cape May at Beach Club all have breakfasts without park admission).

Yes, DCL transfers are a nice way to go....but the "break even" point between private limo and DCL transfers is generally 3 people. If there are more than 3 of you, you can take Happy Limo, FL limo, etc. for less than DCL transfers. You can print out a coupon at www.castawayclub.com.

I love staying in a WDW resort when we do the parks. However, if cost savings is your top priority, you can do Priceline bidding for the WDW area. A resort level hotel is frequently available at $70 per night. This includes the Swan and Dolphin. To see the full list of hotels and get a lot of info re Priceline, check out www.biddingfortravel.com. Be sure to look at the list of resort hotels used by Priceline. If there is even one that you wouldn't want to use, do not bid Priceline. Technically, Priceline is for 2 people per room. However, we have never had any problem with calling the hotel after we have an accepted bid and making sure that our room has 2 double beds. Since kids stay free at most hotels, it's not an issue.

Another thought is that the Port Orleans is a "Moderate" hotel, not "budget." If you booked on your own, you could drop down to "budget" level at WDW (the All Star hotels). The rooms are nice and clean, but there is no sit down restaurant (only a food court). Still has all the Disney transportation, etc. The cruise busses do not service the "budget" hotels, so this is an option only if you have another way to get to the port.

Hope this helps......

 

[CheapMom]

We are doing a "build your own land/sea package" Our family of 5 is doing 5 days at All-Star Movies and the 3 day Wonder.
Cat 4 stateroom with package meant we were limited to deluxe resorts- big bucks. So we booked everything separate and got 4 day hoppers instead of the UPH that comes with the package.
Doing it this way we are saving $800 over the land/sea quote we got from DU and that includes the fact that we are staying an extra day in WDW.