Crowds on ship for peak times vs. others

[strawberryblonde]

It has nearly been a year since I booked my 3/20/04 cruise through DU. I just read DonnaDavid's trip report from her 3/22/03 cruise with great interest and was a bit worried to read she found it very crowded because of Spring break. I had thought most cruises sailed at full or nearly full and hadn't thought about peak times effecting enjoyment. I'm starting to get cold feet now and wondering if I should change my sailing date to 5/04 instead? Can anyone who has sailed during peak and offpeak advise? I picked 3/20 because that will be our 10 year ann. but we can sail at any time. Both DH's and my birthdays are in May.

 

[Wishing on a star]

Wow, Spring Break in mid March. Easter is not for a few weeks yet!

When is Easter next year? If you will be sailing close to Easter, then I imagine that, yes, it would be very crowded with lots of kids! While most DCL sailings are probably full... Two adults per cabin is a lot less than two adults and 2.5 kids per cabin!!! We decided to sail late Sept, when most all kids are in school. I know there will still be lots of kids onboard. But, I do hope it makes a difference in the crowding. Especially for DS(5). I too am interested in hearing others experience on this!

Have you compared rates on the different sailings. I am thinking that May 4 might cost less. The price would be a big kicker for me too!

Boy, I thought I was booking early when we booked one year in advance!!!

 

[strawberryblonde]

Thanks for your feedback. I looked into the rates for midMay (Eastern) and it would cost me about $300 more because I reserved my March rate so early. So saving money isn't a factor. Easter is around April 11 next year, far enough away . Your explanation of how there could be more kids makes sense, hadn't thought of it that way before. My DH is more interested in celebrating our ann. then birthdays and I'm totally attached to our sailing date, lol! Sometimes the obsessive planner in me gets alittle nervous Just didn't want to be "fighting" for a chair, place to stand, table to eat at ect., I want to relax.

 

[Ashley24]

I have sailed during Easter and Christmas breaks and also in October. I did not notice a big difference in crowds at all. The ship is organized in a way to alleviate crowding. I wouldn't let the timing change your mind at all!

 

[Padre Disney]

strawberryblonde,
We just got off the 3/17 cruise and have the 3/20/04 cruise. It was spring break for us. I thought I heard that our cruise was full with over 2700 people (that included crew). I loved it. The ship is so big and there are so many different things to do that it didn't bother us at all. We booked again on board. The weather was wonderful. I would much rather sail in March than over the summer months when it could be very very hot.
We did notice that Castaway was a little busier then it had been for our December 2001 cruise. But I am sure the weather made it that way.

 

[strawberryblonde]

Thank-you both for posting! Padre Disney, did you leave your sliding glass door open for breeze at night?

 

[Padre Disney]

We had an inside cat 10 deck 7 this time. Had cat 5 deck 7 for our 3 day. Noticed I was not at all sick on the 7 day with the inside room. Loved the inside room and have more inside rooms booked for the 3/20/04. But when we did have sliders we kept them shut at night. I think the kids were afraid a big sea monster would come in and get them.

 

[inkkognito]

I have sailed at very crowded times (such as major holidays and times when the kids are out of school) and totally uncrowded off-peak times (for example, a cruise in January when half the dining room was empty on late seating). I can honestly say that I prefer to sail with the crowds! Unlike Disney World, which can be a miserable place when crowded, the ship is built to handle a full load of passengers. You may have to make some accommodations, such as getting to the shows early to get the seats you want and making those Palo and spa ressies early (always a good idea anyway), but to me it's worth it. I enjoy being around other people. I really hated it when the dining room was like a ghost town, as were the shows...the absence of energy was eerie without a full house laughing, cheering, and applauding.
On our March cruise, we noticed a very high kid population, but since Disney has lots of adults-only areas, that was never a problem. I like being around the young uns for a while, and when I got tired of it, it was off to the spa or the adult pool!
The only thing I dislike about a very crowded ship is the increased potential for noise. I can't stand noisy hallways, as they keep me awake. But this can be resolved by picking your stateroom carefully (for example, 5650 is so far aft that you rarely hear anyone, no matter how full the ship is).
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[thedisneymom]

I also cannot stand hall noise. I reminded everyone in my family every afternoon and night to wait until they got in the room after leaving the elevator before speaking. You never know who has a napping chid (or adult).

 

[Impala]

Do not worry

We sailed a couple of weeks ago, the ship only had four empty cabins, and it was fine. No long waits, and we managed to get a hammock on castaway key. The only crowding I saw was the kiddies pool, which always seems crowded. We were staying at the back (stern) of the ship... and it was stillvery quiet.

Now me.. I want to sleep on the deck one night, on deck 5 on one of those recliners... do you think they would let me??

John

 

[currycook]

Perhaps the DCL vet's can say with more assuance. But on the last cruise the Captain answered to a question that the ship (wonder) usually sails with full or close to full capacity on all cruises. I dont see how spring break would make that much of a difference.

 

[GenieDana]

Try searching http://www.cruise-locator.com for your saildate. It will show you available staterooms for categories 12 through 4. I checked it against Expedia.com and Travelocity.com and Cruiselocators seems to have what the previous two sites list plus a few extra (so a more complete picture of stateroom availability). If a lot of rooms are unsold, then one could conclude less "crowds."

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Originally posted by GenieDana
Try searching http://www.cruise-locator.com for your saildate. It will show you available staterooms for categories 12 through 4.

Cruise Locators will only show you up to 7 available staterooms for a given category -- even if there are 40 staterooms available in that category. Cruise Locators is one of many online travel agencies (including Dreams Unlimited) that uses the CruisePath "engine" to provide price quotes for major cruise lines. Keep in mind that CruisePath shows rooms depending upon the number of passengers in your party, so if your party is 3 passengers or is 4 passengers, you may see different rooms listed.

I think currycook has the right answer. Cruise lines price their staterooms with seasonal pricing and specials to assure that each sailing is at or near capacity. The pasenger mix may vary by season, which will affect the number of passengers. For example, when school is in session, there are likely to be more couples without children or familes with pre-schoolers.

It's likely there will be more passengers on an Easter Vacation cruise than on a cruise during a low demand period. But it won't be like the theme parks, where on busy days, they can have 5 times as many guests as on slow days.

 

[GenieDana]

Thanks <u>Horace Horsecollar</u> for the much needed explanation. I guess then there may be more vacancy than what is listed, particularly if the sites show 7 available staterooms for your size of party and desired category.

How do I interpret if shows <b>less than seven</b>, or if it shows <b>GTY</b>?

Thanks!

 

[CRSNDSNY]

We've been on the 7-day Christmas cruise (always filled to capacity) and a post-New Years January 5th 4-day (not a peak time to cruise and wasn't filled to capacity). My husband and I both agree that whether the ship is 100% full or 90% full, it is still going to seem like a lot of people. We wouldn't prefer one scenario over another because it didn't seem to feel different to us.