Cruised Before- Never With Disney-need Pointers

[bratray]

HELLO

looking to take a 7 day cruise next year around may- there will be 5 of us-

do we need two cabins

what are main differences between the 2 ships

where to look for the best bargains

is there a formal night

what types of activities for 5 yr old

any activities for teens 17 & 16

thanks for any tips or pointers

 

[PoohJen]

You are going to have so much fun just in the planning!!!

first, go to www.disneycruise.com and order the free dvd/vhs from Disney! (my kids and I watch it all the time!)

For my family of five, I first booked the Cat 4 family cabin. But then realized for the same $$ we could get two cabins - a Cat 6 (verandah) and a Cat 11 across the hall. Alot more space, plus the extra bathroom! (the cat 4 really isn't much bigger than a cat 6).

Of course, if you don't care about the verandah, you can get 2 inside rooms alot cheaper. There are lots of connecting rooms, but they go fast.

Yes, on the 7 day cruise there is a formal night.

The two ships are basically the same, just different itineraries.

For an idea of activities, go to www.dcltribute.com and click on the link for the Navigators - these are samply daily itineraries for each cruise. Dave has posted ones for adults and kids.

I have found www.dreamsunlimited.com, www.allseastravel.com and www.vacationstogo.com to have the best rates. alot of folks also recommend Costco.

Good luck and Happy Planning!!!

 

[Dreamer04]

do we need two cabins
With two grown teenagers- I would vote for two cabins.

what are main differences between the 2 ships
By next May, the only difference is their ports of call

where to look for the best bargains
I suggest allseastravel.com

is there a formal night
One formal and one semi-formal

what types of activities for 5 yr old
The Oceaneer's Club is for children

any activities for teens 17 & 16
The Stack is the teen club

thanks for any tips or pointers

Check out dcltribute.com for copies of the Daily Navigators. They list all the activities. There are also Navigators for all the ages groups. Also, a the top of the message board, there is a link to helpful cruise info. In that link, there is a thread that lists "All the best tips summarized"-AWESOME info there!

Read the trip reports, greta details there. Any other questions, just ask!

Ursula

 

[TheWog]

The ships are essentially identical. There are subtle differences such as restaurant names, statues placed around the ship, artwork on the exterior of the ship, things like that. The room size and locations are identical and the deck layouts are the same. The Wonder does shorter voyages with the Magic performing the 7 night voyages.

For bargains look at off peak times. Consider January, September, October, May (as you have mentioned). People have had real good luck with the travel agents listed above.

I would say two cabins. An inside and verandah would work best for you.

Your 5 year old will love the clubs. Very kid oriented and enjoyable. There is the Mickey pool with the water slide. Movies, games, arcade, ping pong. tons of stuff. The older kids will have the Stack and older groups to hang out with. On Castaway Cay they have their own excursions to do. You need to sign up early for those though I think.

There is a Formal night and a semi-formal night.

DCL tribute is a good site and if you were to put Castaway Club in a google search a good website may pop up as a result.

 

[TiggerKing]

I would check with more than one travel agency when attempting to find the best deal. One poster said they used Allseastravel.com, I was most successful with CostCo, others have gotten their best deal with Dreams Unlimited and AAA. There are a multitude of factors, so I would check with all of them. Also, when comparing, be sure you are comparing apples to apples. Decide before you start asking for quotes whether you want them to include travel insurance, transfers and air fare. Then, when you call or e-mail them, specify that you do or do not want the above items included in the quote.

Also, since you are considering a 7 day trip, be aware that the Magic, which is the ship for the 7 day itineraray, will be repositioning to California in May. Therefore, your cruise must end on or before May 14, which is when it departs for the west coast.

Hope this helps.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Allow me to add to three of the answers:

Originally posted by Dreamer04
what are main differences between the 2 ships
By next May, the only difference is their ports of call

Physically, the main difference is the decor. But the big difference is that the Magic sails 7-night cruises (and sometines even longer). The Wonder sails 3-night and 4-night cruises.

Originally posted by Dreamer04
where to look for the best bargains
I suggest allseastravel.com

I suggest Dreams Unlimited. They sponsor this board, and they specialize in Disney. They typically offer good rebates and/or stateroom credits.

Originally posted by Dreamer04
is there a formal night
One formal and one semi-formal

Only on the Magic. Not on the Wonder (although jackets are suggested for Triton's).

 

[bratray]

thank you all very much for the fast responses!

i am so very excited

great money saver on booking 2 rooms instead of one family room!!

i love to plan vacations