Coronavirus and DCL Megathread - Suspension of Departures for the fleet until early November. Booking only available from early December.

[cwis]

Not sure anyone mentionned this on this thread, Scott on Twitter said if your new cruise is less than your original cruise, the difference would be given as non-refundable OBC on your new itinerary.

Guess it will be time to try high-end liquors for some us.

 

[mmmears]

According to DCL's website, the 30-day PIF is for 3 specific European cruise dates in July:

Alternatively, Guests currently booked on our July 13, July 18 and July 25, 2020, European sailings may delay their final payment to 30 days prior to their sailing. ​

​

Enjoy your cruise!

Guess I'll have to wait and see for the August cruises then.

For those who think it's easy to "just move your cruise a year" please understand that it can be much more complicated when one is traveling overseas to start the cruise, and that not all families may be able to go next summer. Not the end of the world, but it's not the same as just getting down to PC for a weekend cruise.

I'm not faulting Disney right now. We will just have to wait and see how things play out, although if they don't push out those PIF dates we have decided we will just cancel before it's too late.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

True but all US hospitals must be accredited by a licensing body and part of this accreditation is having policies and procedures in place for these types of circumstances, as well as how to follow clear cut CDC guidelines.Health care workers mightneed a refresher, but it’s certainly not something new .

Exactly the same at the hospital where I work. I am confident they can handle it. They are very proactive and we review disaster plans annually. In 30 years there, we've never had to activate it, but just like DCL crew practices how to lower a life boat, we have training over and over and over. And over.

 

[Gentry2004]

A little confused about the $300 pp fee if you cancel. I don’t see anything on page 35 explaining that and DCL has not sent me the email even though my cruise is in May.

They were charging people $300pp to rebook their cruise until they announced this latest policy (no fee to rebook.) Apparently people who paid the $300pp can get the fee refunded.

 

[DIS_MIKE]

They were charging people $300pp to rebook their cruise until they announced this latest policy (no fee to rebook.) Apparently people who paid the $300pp can get the fee refunded.

Oh I see! Thanks for clearing that up. Glad to here DCL is refunding the fee for the people who already canceled.

I‘m from PA and we had our first case of coronavirus confirmed AND of course it’s in my county of all places. Guy came back from a trip to Europe. Didn’t expect it to reach my area so soon. I guess the reality will be setting in soon.

Just glad I can cancel my cruise the day before my sail date with ease if this really goes south.

 

[Lizzy777]

I am not sure why, but I am blown away with some of the comments and replies. Disney is not responsible for this virus. Your VACATION does not constitute an emergency. We were all offered insurance. 12 months to rebook is generous and not required. Everyone should make the personal decision of what is best for their individual and specific circumstances. If things stay as they are, I will be traveling 3/30 on the Dream. If there are significant changes, I am thankful Disney has given us until the day before to make changes. In the grand scheme of things, I truly hope people realize how ridiculous they sound. #hopeIgetacredit

 

[cwis]

I am not sure why, but I am blown away with some of the comments and replies. Disney is not responsible for this virus. Your VACATION does not constitute an emergency. We were all offered insurance. 12 months to rebook is generous and not required. Everyone should make the personal decision of what is best for their individual and specific circumstances. If things stay as they are, I will be traveling 3/30 on the Dream. If there are significant changes, I am thankful Disney has given us until the day before to make changes. In the grand scheme of things, I truly hope people realize how ridiculous they sound. #hopeIgetacredit

Part of me agrees with you. Part of me thinks that, maybe, DCL is not as generous as other lines, and THAT is something that raises my eyebrow.

Should DCL be a leader [it was] or a follower [as it has become]?

 

[brentm77]

Part of me agrees with you. Part of me thinks that, maybe, DCL is not as generous as other lines, and THAT is something that raises my eyebrow.

Should DCL be a leader [it was] or a follower [as it has become]?

I don't know that they need to be as generous as other lines. It seems they are in a different market and may have a much harder time filing late cancellations than the discount lines.

I have a June Italy cruise booked, and I was extremely nervous about making a decision by mid-April of whether to pass the 50% cancelation fee deadline. Now, I can wait and see just how much things change into late May. That is huge for us! Disney didn't owe this to us. It was our responsibility to insure the trip. I think the offer is very generous considering the very difficult financial times the industry has ahead of it.

 

[fredandkell]

I don't know that they need to be as generous as other lines. It seems they are in a different market and may have a much harder time filing late cancellations than the discount lines.

I have a June Italy cruise booked, and I was extremely nervous about making a decision by mid-April of whether to pass the 50% cancelation fee deadline. Now, I can wait and see just how much things change into late May. That is huge for us! Disney didn't owe this to us. It was our responsibility to insure the trip. I think the offer is very generous considering the very difficult financial times the industry has ahead of it.

I agree. I think this is very reasonable and allowing people to PIF later will hopefully keep the ships full should this thing settle down by summer. I hope Cunard follows suit with a delayed PIF, although I'm not holding my breath.

 

[TCARON]

May 30 Med cruise booked on the Magic. Very happy to see Disney offer a 100% credit. Good for 15 months out vs 12 because it is the Med cruise. Flights booked through Disney so they would be refunded or at least change fees waived. The problem we have is an ABD Barcelona Escape trip planned just before the cruise. ABD actually delivers us to the ship. ABD is not offering credits or refunds. 75% cancellation penalty applies, 100% 46 days out.

My worry is not about getting the virus but about the impact to the cruise, I.e. no port stops, shops closed, basically Italy shut down or worse ship quarantines.

Do you think ABD will reconsider a credit or refund?

 

[princesscinderella]

We are sailing on the April 11th fantasy and I had moved a couple weeks ago from a family ocean view to a verandah 4a gty stateroom because if we did get quarantined I didn’t want to be stuck without access to fresh air with 5 people in a small room. My kids are 15, 12 & 10 so it would get cramped quickly. Well I’ve been checking daily for my room assignment, and today I got an email from the concierge team that we were given a complementary upgrade to a concierge family ocean view veranda!!’ So excited, it was a $13k difference for concierge when I changed from ocean view to veranda which was only $950, which was worth my peace of mind. Unless we are sick we fully intend to sail. We are in South Florida so we are a quick drive to Port Canaveral. But it’s nice to know if we have to change last minute we can, so thanks Disney!! The concierge when I spoke to him said he did notice we had sailed a lot with DCL we have 8 under our belt this one will make 9, so maybe this helped with the Pixie Dust!! Any business is vulnerable with this virus threat and we just have to roll with the punches and make the best decisions we can with the current information.

 

[traderginger]

While toning down all the entitlement on what you deserve from DCL, have some empathy for the crew.
-They work longer/harder shifts to ensure the ship remains clean & safe.
-They dont get to leave the ship at the end of the day, so any outbreak is just as dangerous to them as you.
-Many rely on the tips from a full ship, so partially filled ships will impact them.

Just some perspective to add to a scenario where we are the customer, and DCL is the business. They are doing great things to give us this flexibility, but our cost is not the only cost.

 

[Pluto1008]

Not sure anyone mentionned this on this thread, Scott on Twitter said if your new cruise is less than your original cruise, the difference would be given as non-refundable OBC on your new itinerary.

Guess it will be time to try high-end liquors for some us.

Has anyone heard if we are able to split the credit being offered for the original cruise between two new cruises or does the whole credit have to be used on just one new booking with any remainder used as an OBC?

 

[fredandkell]

May 30 Med cruise booked on the Magic. Very happy to see Disney offer a 100% credit. Good for 15 months out vs 12 because it is the Med cruise. Flights booked through Disney so they would be refunded or at least change fees waived. The problem we have is an ABD Barcelona Escape trip planned just before the cruise. ABD actually delivers us to the ship. ABD is not offering credits or refunds. 75% cancellation penalty applies, 100% 46 days out.

My worry is not about getting the virus but about the impact to the cruise, I.e. no port stops, shops closed, basically Italy shut down or worse ship quarantines.

Do you think ABD will reconsider a credit or refund?

I would certainly email them or call to ask!

 

[cwis]

I don't know that they need to be as generous as other lines. It seems they are in a different market and may have a much harder time filing late cancellations than the discount lines.

I have a June Italy cruise booked, and I was extremely nervous about making a decision by mid-April of whether to pass the 50% cancelation fee deadline. Now, I can wait and see just how much things change into late May. That is huge for us! Disney didn't owe this to us. It was our responsibility to insure the trip. I think the offer is very generous considering the very difficult financial times the industry has ahead of it.

Sure, they're in a different market. Of course, I do appreciate the offer. Anyways, I can't help but notice it's not the most generous, some other lines went ahead.

On the same story, I booked my flights for my next cruise with Air France. That airline (along with KLM, same company) is the most generous in term of rebookings and changes: no fees for any travel up to May 31st regardless of when the booking was made. I'm glad I've chosen to fly with them. Wish I could have said the same for DCL.

While toning down all the entitlement on what you deserve from DCL, have some empathy for the crew.
-They work longer/harder shifts to ensure the ship remains clean & safe.
-They dont get to leave the ship at the end of the day, so any outbreak is just as dangerous to them as you.
-Many rely on the tips from a full ship, so partially filled ships will impact them.

Just some perspective to add to a scenario where we are the customer, and DCL is the business. They are doing great things to give us this flexibility, but our cost is not the only cost.

I was thinking on all DCL crew on tipped positions, and feel so bad for them, and was considering tipping more on my next cruise to help them. This must be a terrible time for them and their families.

 

[tidefan]

DCL just updated the policy again for european cruises:

Update – 3/6/20 4:30 pm – Disney Cruise Line has now updated their cancelation policy for sailings out of Europe this summer. Guests booked on European cruises through a July 25th departure date can now change their reservation up to 24 hours prior to embarkation. You will receive a 100% cruise credit to be used for a future sailing within 15 months of the original sale date. The credit is non-refundable and standard prevailing rates will apply. In addition to this temporary policy change, DCL is allowing guests who are currently booked on the July 13, July 18 and July 25th European sailings to delay their final payment until 30 days prior to sailing.
.

Just an aside... As one of those that just PIF the July 1st Greek Isles, this is a bit of a slap in the face to us. Would have been nice to have had that 30 day PIF as well...

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Just to lighten things up a little...we are leaving for the port to board the Wonder in New Orleans for the WBPC cruise. Let’s hope for none of this!

Have a great time!!
We are booked for this same sailing in 2021.

 

[mom2brooke76]

I’m supposed to cruise next Saturday and am reconsidering now based on the Grand Princess. Twenty one people tested positive so far and NINETEEN of those are crew members

 

[mmmears]

I’m supposed to cruise next Saturday and am reconsidering now based on the Grand Princess. Twenty one people tested positive so far and NINETEEN of those are crew members

Add to that the fact that they are going to have to move the ship to a non-commercial port, get everyone off, and start more testing. Just awful.

 

[mom2brooke76]

Add to that the fact that they are going to have to move the ship to a non-commercial port, get everyone off, and start more testing. Just awful.

I just suspect that you’re going to hear of more and more people sick due to cruises from ALL lines. Clearly nobody is immune to this and in an environment like a cruise even top notch cleaning/hygiene isn’t going to stop this. Even with temp taking at port, there are asymptotic people walking around