Cruise/ABD trips on line

[WeLoveABD]

Just read through the new cruise/ABD combo trips--pre-night trips (Vancouver, Barcelona), Alaska and med cruise add-ons. Interesting! No prices given--still hoping for an eastern med cruise in 2012 with and ABD add-on!

 

[sayhello]

Cool. Where are you seeing the info about pre-nights?

The Alaska add-on includes dog-sledding on a glacier! The ultimate excursion from what I've heard. It looks like a pretty good set of activities/excursions to me.

Sayhello

 

[HappyGrumpy]

I got home late tonight and saw this! Part of the DCL website is down and its too late to call DCL so if anyone gets the pricing let me know!

 

[jlwhitney]

It looks amazing, I am higly tempted to do it, just waiting for reg excursions to be posted to know for sure. The only thing that concerns me is lack of free time in the majority of the ports. Since sometimes it is nice to wander around in port and look in the shops and such

 

[mkmommy]

The Barcelona pre cruise looks good, but I have already booked flights so that is out, and no Pompeii or Cinque Terre so ABD will have to wait for another time.

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

We would dearly love to do the ABD add-on to our cruise in June and I had fully intended on booking when it was released. But the price for myself and 2 kids is an additional $7,800.000. I think this may be out of our price range. If I book the tours myself, including a private car in Rome, I was estimating it would cost in the area of $5-$6,000.00. Also, I had hoped for the Blue Grotto in Malta and a tour of Naples instead of pizza making (which I figure we can do at an Italian restaurant somewhere - not quite the same, I know, but when I am in Italy, I want to see the sights and soak up the history, not make pizzas in a hot kitchen).

My main concern is that my almost 20 year old son will enjoy the tours more with a group of people than his ancient mom and baby sister!

Decisions, decisions....I guess I am going to make a deposit....my agent says I can cancel right up to the 90 day mark and get a full refund on the ABD portion.

I am waiting for my agent at DU (who I have already been in contact with this morning) to let me know if the 3 nights in Barcelona are optional and if so, what the additional cost is. The price she quoted me (above) includes Barcelona.

 

[maleficent_fan51]

FYI. Just got off the phone with DCL and DVC. Here are the prices/points for the ABD add-on for Alaskan Wonder:

DCL - Adult $2179 per person Deposit $300
DVC - Adult $2179 per person or 311 points per person. Payment due upon booking with DVC

 

[sayhello]

We would dearly love to do the ABD add-on to our cruise in June and I had fully intended on booking when it was released. But the price for myself and 2 kids is an additional $7,800.000. I think this may be out of our price range. If I book the tours myself, including a private car in Rome, I was estimating it would cost in the area of $5-$6,000.00. Also, I had hoped for the Blue Grotto in Malta and a tour of Naples instead of pizza making (which I figure we can do at an Italian restaurant somewhere - not quite the same, I know, but when I am in Italy, I want to see the sights and soak up the history, not make pizzas in a hot kitchen).

My main concern is that my almost 20 year old son will enjoy the tours more with a group of people than his ancient mom and baby sister!

Decisions, decisions....I guess I am going to make a deposit....my agent says I can cancel right up to the 90 day mark and get a full refund on the ABD portion.

I am waiting for my agent at DU (who I have already been in contact with this morning) to let me know if the 3 nights in Barcelona are optional and if so, what the additional cost is. The price she quoted me (above) includes Barcelona.

While the 3 nights in Barcelona sound great, they are listed completely separately from the cruise add-on on the website. There is nothing that makes me think it's a part of the onboard ABD add-on. I would be very surprised to find that it's a required part of the cruise add-on, or that you couldn't take the Barcelona pre-cruise add-on without doing the one during the cruise. It really looks like a separate add-on.

I'll be interested to hear what ABD tells you.

Sayhello

 

[sayhello]

OK, so here's all the pricing from DCL for the ABD add-ons:

Alaska:

Alaska add-on for the 7-night cruise portion:

Adult $2299
Child $2069

Vancouver 4 day/3 night pre-cruise add-on (can be done seperately from the cruise add-on. Pricing is totally separate)

Adult $1799
Child $1619

The gal said the pre-cruise add-on was not available for the May 3rd cruise, but is for May 10 - Aug 30, 2011. She didn't specify if that applied to the cruise add-on or not.

Mediterranean:

Med 7-night cruise add-on

Adult $2299
Child $2069

Med 10/11-night cruise add-on

Adult $2699 (a $200 increase from last year)
Child $2429

Barcelona 4 day/3 night pre-cruise add-on (again, can be booked separate from the cruise add-on. Pricing is totally separate)

Adult $1799
Child $1619

She also told me a bit about the other pre-night that DCL has for the Alaska cruises. They've contracted with the Rocky Mountaineer (train vacations) for a pre-cruise trip to Whistler. Pre-night in Vancouver, train to Whistler, 2 nights at the Fairmont Chateau in Whistler, train back to Vancouver for another night, transfer to the port.

That costs $2688 per reservation for 1 to 4 people.

Sayhello

ETA: Whoops! *WDW*Groupie*, I can't possibly figure out how DU came up with $7,800.00 for the 3 of you either including or excluding the Vancouver add-on. I'll be VERY interested to hear what DU tells you.

 

[WeLoveABD]

OK, so here's all the pricing from DCL for the ABD add-ons:

Alaska:

Alaska add-on for the 7-night cruise portion:

Adult $2299
Child $2069

Vancouver 4 day/3 night pre-cruise add-on (can be done seperately from the cruise add-on. Pricing is totally separate)

Adult $1799
Child $1619

The gal said the pre-cruise add-on was not available for the May 3rd cruise, but is for May 10 - Aug 30, 2011. She didn't specify if that applied to the cruise add-on or not.

Mediterranean:

Med 7-night cruise add-on

Adult $2299
Child $2069

Med 10/11-night cruise add-on

Adult $2699 (a $200 increase from last year)
Child $2429

Barcelona 4 day/3 night pre-cruise add-on (again, can be booked separate from the cruise add-on. Pricing is totally separate)

Adult $1799
Child $1619

She also told me a bit about the other pre-night that DCL has for the Alaska cruises. They've contracted with the Rocky Mountaineer (train vacations) for a pre-cruise trip to Whistler. Pre-night in Vancouver, train to Whistler, 2 nights at the Fairmont Chateau in Whistler, several excursions, train back to Vancouver, transfer to the port.

That costs $2688 per reservation for 1 to 4 people.

Sayhello

ETA: WeLoveABD, I can't possibly figure out how DU came up with $7,800.00 for the 3 of you either including or excluding the Vancouver add-on. I'll be VERY interested to hear what DU tells you.

Great info--thanks for the update! As for the ETA...twasn't me that found that--but WDWGroupie!

 

[sayhello]

Great info--thanks for the update! As for the ETA...twasn't me that found that--but WDWGroupie!

Whoops! Guess I'm getting old!

Sayhello

 

[taaren]

We would dearly love to do the ABD add-on to our cruise in June and I had fully intended on booking when it was released. But the price for myself and 2 kids is an additional $7,800.000. I think this may be out of our price range. If I book the tours myself, including a private car in Rome, I was estimating it would cost in the area of $5-$6,000.00. Also, I had hoped for the Blue Grotto in Malta and a tour of Naples instead of pizza making (which I figure we can do at an Italian restaurant somewhere - not quite the same, I know, but when I am in Italy, I want to see the sights and soak up the history, not make pizzas in a hot kitchen).

My main concern is that my almost 20 year old son will enjoy the tours more with a group of people than his ancient mom and baby sister!

Was on a tour with a different company in Italy when I had the choice of Blue Grottoes on my own or a monastery through them. Go with the Blue Grottoes! Its one of my favorite memories of that trip! A lot of 'self-guided' stuff can be cooler than what the packaged tours are ... I want to try ABD one of these days, but the swiss-cheesing it with your own plans is definitely a win-win idea.

 

[maleficent_fan51]

Great price info Say Hello. Surprised my quote was different from yours. I was expecting the cost would be considerably lower compared to the ABD add-on for the Mediterranean last year (7 nights vs. 10/11 nights). Lots to think about. Can't wait for DCL excursions to appear on their website.

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

OK, so here's all the pricing from DCL for the ABD add-ons:


ETA: Whoops! *WDW*Groupie*, I can't possibly figure out how DU came up with $7,800.00 for the 3 of you either including or excluding the Vancouver add-on. I'll be VERY interested to hear what DU tells you.

Apparently there was a miscommunication between my DU agent and ABD (or DCL, not sure which), as this was the original e-mail from my agent:

The Disney Cruise Line released the ABD add-ons today. The price on the 3-night tour prior to your Mediterranean cruise would run $2699.00 per person for the 1st and 2nd passengers and $2429.00 for the 3rd passenger so the additional total that will be added to your current cruise total would be $7827.00. Disney requires an additional deposit at the time we add the ABD to your reservation--the additional deposit required would be $1800.00. You will need to submit this amount either online at our secure site from your quote or call it in to our toll-free number at 888-374-0494. Once I have the additional deposit, I will be able to add this to your reservation for you. Availability is subject to change so please submit the payment as soon as possible. Have a great day!

After further questioning, I found out that the quoted price does NOT include the 4 days prior to the cruise (Barcelona). That would be an additional $3,600.00 Pardon my sticker shock!! As much as I dearly want to add the ABD Barcelona, I don't think I can justify the additional cost.

So in summary, the cost for our ABD cruise add-on is $7,827.00 (I did round-up)! The more I think about it, the more I can't possibly justify the Barcelona portion (I figure we can swing a day or two on our own for less than $1,500.00 including hotels). Also, she did backtrack and tell us that the deposit was adjusted to $900.00 for all 3 of us, the original quote of $1,800.00 included the Barcelona portion.

I hope I haven't confused anyone!

 

[sayhello]

Apparently there was a miscommunication between my DU agent and ABD (or DCL, not sure which), as this was the original e-mail from my agent:

The Disney Cruise Line released the ABD add-ons today. The price on the 3-night tour prior to your Mediterranean cruise would run $2699.00 per person for the 1st and 2nd passengers and $2429.00 for the 3rd passenger so the additional total that will be added to your current cruise total would be $7827.00.

How old are your kids? The ABD add-on pricing is per person, by Adult/Child, not by # of people per room. If you and one child are over 12 years of age, that would be the two $2699.00 fares. The $2429.00 would be for a child under 12. I assume you're doing the 10 or 11 night cruise.

Disney requires an additional deposit at the time we add the ABD to your reservation--the additional deposit required would be $1800.00. You will need to submit this amount either online at our secure site from your quote or call it in to our toll-free number at 888-374-0494. Once I have the additional deposit, I will be able to add this to your reservation for you. Availability is subject to change so please submit the payment as soon as possible. Have a great day!

After further questioning, I found out that the quoted price does NOT include the 4 days prior to the cruise (Barcelona). That would be an additional $3,600.00 Pardon my sticker shock!! As much as I dearly want to add the ABD Barcelona, I don't think I can justify the additional cost.

That jibes with what I was told. And, as you say below, it's $300 per person for the deposit. Since the 4-day pre-cruise add-on is a separate trip, it requires a separate deposit, too.

So in summary, the cost for our ABD cruise add-on is $7,827.00 (I did round-up)! The more I think about it, the more I can't possibly justify the Barcelona portion (I figure we can swing a day or two on our own for less than $1,500.00 including hotels). Also, she did backtrack and tell us that the deposit was adjusted to $900.00 for all 3 of us, the original quote of $1,800.00 included the Barcelona portion.

I hope I haven't confused anyone!

I'm surprised your TA was so confused. It's not like the concept is brand new (although the I guess pre-nights are).

Sayhello

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

I do really like my TA at DU, so I am not worried about any confusion. I know the Barcelona portion is new and she may have been one of the first callers, thus the confusion. I am totally impressed that she remembered I wanted to do the ABD add-on and I had an e-mail from her first this morning!

My kids are 19 and 9 (she turns 9 before the cruise). Yes, we are doing the 11 night cruise. I have read that you really need the extra sea day to relax!

We were hoping to do Alaska this summer as well, but I guess I had forgotten that the cost for ABD would be so much!!

I do have a question -- will we get an additional onboard credit from DU for booking ABD through them? I am asking as I believe you would get a credit if you booked an ABD tour (i.e. Knights and Lights) with them and the cruise add-on is (almost) separate from the cruise!! A girl can dream, right!!

 

[sayhello]

I do really like my TA at DU, so I am not worried about any confusion. I know the Barcelona portion is new and she may have been one of the first callers, thus the confusion. I am totally impressed that she remembered I wanted to do the ABD add-on and I had an e-mail from her first this morning!

My kids are 19 and 9 (she turns 9 before the cruise). Yes, we are doing the 11 night cruise. I have read that you really need the extra sea day to relax!

We were hoping to do Alaska this summer as well, but I guess I had forgotten that the cost for ABD would be so much!!

I do have a question -- will we get an additional onboard credit from DU for booking ABD through them? I am asking as I believe you would get a credit if you booked an ABD tour (i.e. Knights and Lights) with them and the cruise add-on is (almost) separate from the cruise!! A girl can dream, right!!

You probably would get the American Express Gift Card, not an onboard credit. There's no "onboard credits" for ABD, but DU does do the Gift Cards for booking ABD's through them. And yes, it technically is a separate tour (separate deposit, after all), so I would think it would qualify. But you'd have to ask your TA to find out for sure!

Sayhello

 

[sayhello]

So ABD has added the dates for the ABD/DCL add-ons to their site. Still no prices listed. But they've changed the name of the tab from "Rates & Dates" to "Dates", so I'm assuming they don't intend to list the prices.

For the Alaska add-on:

• May 3, 2011 <== ETA: this appears to be an error. It was there at first (I cut & pasted from the website) but now this date is gone.
• May 10, 2011
• May 17, 2011
• May 24, 2011
• May 31, 2011
• June 7, 2011
• June 14, 2011
• June 21, 2011
• June 28, 2011
• July 5, 2011
• July 12, 2011
• July 19, 2011
• July 26, 2011
• August 2, 2011
• August 9, 2011
• August 16, 2011
• August 23, 2011
• August 30, 2011

For the Alaska cruise Vancouver pre-days:

• April 30, 2011
• May 7, 2011
• May 14, 2011
• May 21, 2011
• May 28, 2011
• June 4, 2011
• June 11, 2011
• June 18, 2011
• June 25, 2011
• July 2, 2011
• July 9, 2011
• July 16, 2011
• July 23, 2011
• July 30, 2011
• August 6, 2011
• August 13, 2011
• August 20, 2011
• August 27, 2011

So it looks like the add-on & pre-days *are* available for the May 3rd cruise, unlike what DCL told me.

Med 7-night add-on:

• July 30, 2011
• August 6, 2011
• August 13, 2011
• August 20, 2011
• August 27, 2011
• September 3, 2011

Med 10-night add-on:

• June 8, 2011
• June 29, 2011
• July 20, 2011

Med 11-night add-on:

• May 26, 2011
• June 18, 2011
• July 9, 2011

Med cruise Barcelona pre-days:

• May 25, 2011
• June 5, 2011
• June 15, 2011
• June 26, 2011
• July 6, 2011
• July 17, 2011
• July 27, 2011
• August 3, 2011
• August 10, 2011
• August 17, 2011
• August 24, 2011
• August 31, 2011

A couple of the dates look wrong (May 25 for Med pre-nights with the cruise starting May 26) but I'm guessing this is close.

I haven't checked the list against DCL's site, but it sure looks like this is most or all of the cruises!

Sayhello

 

[WebmasterJohn]

I do really like my TA at DU, so I am not worried about any confusion. I know the Barcelona portion is new and she may have been one of the first callers, thus the confusion. I am totally impressed that she remembered I wanted to do the ABD add-on and I had an e-mail from her first this morning!

My kids are 19 and 9 (she turns 9 before the cruise). Yes, we are doing the 11 night cruise. I have read that you really need the extra sea day to relax!

We were hoping to do Alaska this summer as well, but I guess I had forgotten that the cost for ABD would be so much!!

I do have a question -- will we get an additional onboard credit from DU for booking ABD through them? I am asking as I believe you would get a credit if you booked an ABD tour (i.e. Knights and Lights) with them and the cruise add-on is (almost) separate from the cruise!! A girl can dream, right!!

Thanks for the kind words about your DU agent.

DU is giving an additional SBC for booking the ABD add-ons. It makes more sense to give these as an SBC as opposed to a seperate gift card if they have a cruise component attached.

You should receive an email from your TA with this information shortly.

 

[hugscot]

FYI. Just got off the phone with DCL and DVC. Here are the prices/points for the ABD add-on for Alaskan Wonder:

DCL - Adult $2179 per person Deposit $300
DVC - Adult $2179 per person or 311 points per person. Payment due upon booking with DVC

WOW That sounds like fun but way pricey!!