Current Cruise Pricing

[keaster]

DCL is definitely out of reach for us for now...I just compared August 5 2017 in a 5A balcony on the 7 night Western Caribbean on the Disney Fantasy to August 6, 2017 in a superior ocean view with balcony on the 7 night Western caribbean on Oasis on the Seas.

We are 2 Adults/1 Child (14 at time of sailing).

Disney Fantasy 5A (246 sq. ft. inc. balcony) - $7500.63 US or $9574.13 Canadian

Oasis of the seas Superior Ocean view with balcony (262 sq. ft. inc. balcony) - $6131.00 Canadian (we can book in Canadian dollars on RCCL website)

I LOVE Disney to death...but that's not a minor difference. Yes it's summer and yes it's high season...but for some people they can only go at high season.

 

[KashasMom]

We're doing a 13 night Baltic cruise on RCI - BALCONY for THREE of us in JULY for $7,251 (with three days in St. Petersburg!). Think that was a steal! Closest comparison on DCL would be the 10 night for $14,368 (which would make a 13 night $18,676!...and that's in mid-June, which we couldn't even do because of school.) We have one more Disney cruise booked and I think that will be it for us. I just don't see the value in cruising with Disney.

 

[Ofinn]

I do think they have the princess market cornered for sure. But my son is 6, we will be doing our first DCL cruise in November. Next year we are doing a Northern Europe/Iceland..wanted to go DCL, but I would never pay over $13k for myself and a 6 year old in a standard room. That's absolutely ridiculous! I don't know who could see the value in that, but maybe the parents of a princess loving little girl could.
We can't do RCI either because I don't like their itinerary, so now I'm looking at MSC. But if we were doing a Southern Caribbean, I wouldn't hesitate to choose a ship with rock climbing walls, surf simulators, etc etc for my child.

Not all of DCL's prices are completely absurd, but the Southern Caribbean and 11 night Europe itineraries are completely and insanely disproportionate for what they are.

I posted something similar to this in another thread- I think Disney is counting on the Super (Disney or nothing) Fans and on the Princess lovers..
I have seen people post that they will skip an annual vacation in order to afford the DCL one. Also that it is their one trip either annually or semi annually. Those people will pay these prices.
People who have an excess of money and want to pay will still pay.

However-People who do not see the value in these price tags, and know what kind of vacation they can get with same overall money..as well as not willing to make DCL/WDW etc their only destination for the year, and would never skip a vacation in a calendar year- those people will not pay, regardless of income level.

If someone has convinced themselves that $13k for 2 in a standard room is a value, good for them, and I hope they have an amazing trip. But I can't imagine DCL filling a ship at that price point.

I predicted this time last year that the Norway/Iceland, and British Isles cruise would not sell at that price. I am predicting the same thing for the Baltic cruise and the Iceland cruise next year. I fully expect to be on the Baltic cruise June 18 with a either a GT rate or an interline rate. The current GT rate on the June 17 Iceland cruise is where DCL should have priced it to begin with. I feel bad for the people that booked on opening day.
You are right about the Disney Fanatics. I've been around these boards long enough to know there are people on here that will only take Disney vacations even if takes them three years to save up for it. The people with excess money just don't care. The middle class families that like to vacation a couple times a year seem like they have had enough.

 

[Kimberly9701]

I predicted this time last year that the Norway/Iceland, and British Isles cruise would not sell at that price. I am predicting the same thing for the Baltic cruise and the Iceland cruise next year. I fully expect to be on the Baltic cruise June 18 with a either a GT rate or an interline rate. The current GT rate on the June 17 Iceland cruise is where DCL should have priced it to begin with. I feel bad for the people that booked on opening day.
You are right about the Disney Fanatics. I've been around these boards long enough to know there are people on here that will only take Disney vacations even if takes them three years to save up for it. The people with excess money just don't care. The middle class families that like to vacation a couple times a year seem like they have had enough.

I definitely would have booked if I could get a balcony at the VGT rate that's offered for 2016. I'm sure a lot of people would have. I'm extremely curious to know how many actually ended up booking that cruise since prices have been released.

I'm also very curious to know the number of people who booked the southern Caribbean who end up cancelling. I'm sorry but the prices they are asking for a Caribbean with so much competition..and so many newer ships sailing.. I just can't imagine all of said people actually taking that cruise.

 

[Ofinn]

I definitely would have booked if I could get a balcony at the VGT rate that's offered for 2016. I'm sure a lot of people would have. I'm extremely curious to know how many actually ended up booking that cruise since prices have been released.

I'm also very curious to know the number of people who booked the southern Caribbean who end up cancelling. I'm sorry but the prices they are asking for a Caribbean with so much competition..and so many newer ships sailing.. I just can't imagine all of said people actually taking that cruise.

The cruise meet thread was pretty dead all year. There have been a lot of people joining in the last month saying they just booked. Most of them live in the US. There's also Military, cast member, interline, travel agent discounts on this cruise. I think they discounted it earlier enough for people to get decent airfare. The GT rates came out a couple of days after the PIF date in Feb.

 

[tidefan]

So, just for fun, I compared the spring break week we sail next year. Now, we did an OBB back in January for a 5e on the Fantasy, so, this is 10% off (and has $200 OBC), but for a 7-night Eastern, it was around $5,000. As a note, we were able to get one of the 5e's that was a former HA that has been reclassified, so we've got the big room with the huge balcony on the back. Says 246 sq ft with balcony, but I'd say this room (7688) has double that.

The cheapest balcony we can get in on RCCL Oasis (which is doing a Western, so that basically disqualifies it for our needs) is a D4 (Superior Ocean View with Balcony - 182 sq ft + 50 foot balcony). Price for 3 there was $3,724, which is a bit cheaper than the DCL. However, based on itinerary and room we have, I'd say the Fantasy is still worth the difference. For fun, I also priced out a Jr. suite, which would be comparable to our room on the Fantasy. It was $5,049. Basically a wash.

The real value is the 7-night Carnival Magic, which has just had all the Fun Ship 2.0 upgrades added (Guy's Burger, which, unlike Johnny Rocket's you don't pay extra for, and Blue Iguana). Also, Magic has a large water park and a ropes course. So, the cheapest balcony for the 3 of us was $2,515! Half of DCL and $1,200 less than RCCL! So, to compare room sizes, an Ocean Suite was $3,525 for the 3 of us. Which is less than the regular balcony on either RCCL or DCL.

That being said, we will stick with the Fantasy as we were fortunate enough to book this prior to it becoming a SWDAS cruise and the subsequent price increase. However, if I were booking today and didn't have an OBB, I'd take a hard look at the Carnival Magic.

 

[CailinFig]

At some of the price diferentials you could bring along your very own personal "Cinderella" to read to your daughter daily and still come out ahead.....

Lol! A singing Anna and Elsa combo cost me $350 for 1.5 hours for my daughter's birthday last year. At the time I thought that was expensive.

 

[AquaDame]

My husband was like this until I started showing him numbers and utube videos. People are having just as much fun on ncl and celebrity etc as they are on dcl.

I definitely think everyone should try other lines and decide for themselves. We ended up cancelling our Southern Caribbean this last January on the Wonder right after Disney changed their carry on alcohol rules and tried out RCCL. It was just okay.... for us both sides of the pro/con list had items on them, but the cons definitely were more than the pros. If the main pros hadn't been cost and the port of calls I may have been snarkier about it.

We are sailing on RCCL at least once more this July on a Northward Alaska itinerary, and again price and ports played a huge part in that. I wanted to try Princess or Celebrity but we are sailing with family so price was the most important factor. Disney was out anyway since we had already done their one itinerary - I want to see something new and I wanted to spend time in Denali as well which we will be able to do this way.

I've showed my husband the videos of the new ships coming down the line - they impress me, but he doesn't seem to care. He thinks the quality of DCL is worth it even more now after our lukewarm RCCL experience, whereas I was sold to keep trying other lines. I'll be getting him on the Carnival Vista at some point - its only fair to try the new ships as well as the old ones on other lines - but for now he was willing to pay 2017 prices for Norway.

 

[cruisehopeful]

I'm one who hasn't seen much lower prices on other lines when I comparison shop. I don't travel at the peak times. The closest room on Princess to a DCL ocean view is a mini-suite. If you want a couch that folds into a bed, you have to get a mini suite. When I've compared DCL OV to Princess mini suite, the price is a few hundred different and can be more or less. More often than not, it's been a little higher for Princess. Again, I don't cruise during summer or holidays.

I've inquired about NCL and getting comparable service to DCL. The NCL regulars have all told me that I'd need to book the Haven for that. The Haven sounds great and is usually twice the price of what I pay for DCL. I'd love to try the Haven, but I just don't see that in my future.

I have seen much lower pricing for Carnival, though. My cruise partner is a young adult and wouldn't be allowed in the adults only areas on their ships, yet. So, I won't be sailing Carnival for a couple years at least, if at all.

 

[NancyIL]

I'm one who hasn't seen much lower prices on other lines when I comparison shop. I don't travel at the peak times. The closest room on Princess to a DCL ocean view is a mini-suite.If you want a couch that folds into a bed, you have to get a mini suite. When I've compared DCL OV to Princess mini suite, the price is a few hundred different and can be more or less. More often than not, it's been a little higher for Princess. Again, I don't cruise during summer or holidays.

I've inquired about NCL and getting comparable service to DCL. The NCL regulars have all told me that I'd need to book the Haven for that. The Haven sounds great and is usually twice the price of what I pay for DCL. I'd love to try the Haven, but I just don't see that in my future.

I have seen much lower pricing for Carnival, though. My cruise partner is a young adult and wouldn't be allowed in the adults only areas on their ships, yet. So, I won't be sailing Carnival for a couple years at least, if at all.

An oceanview cabin on DCL has only a window - not a balcony. It isn't at all comparable to a Princess balcony or mini-suite.

 

[NancyIL]

We're doing a 13 night Baltic cruise on RCI - BALCONY for THREE of us in JULY for $7,251 (with three days in St. Petersburg!). Think that was a steal! Closest comparison on DCL would be the 10 night for $14,368 (which would make a 13 night $18,676!...and that's in mid-June, which we couldn't even do because of school.) We have one more Disney cruise booked and I think that will be it for us. I just don't see the value in cruising with Disney.

RCI's Ultimate Scandinavia-Russia cruises with 3 days in St. Petersburg are great! My daughter and I went on one in 2014.

 

[NancyIL]

I definitely think everyone should try other lines and decide for themselves. We ended up cancelling our Southern Caribbean this last January on the Wonder right after Disney changed their carry on alcohol rules and tried out RCCL. It was just okay.... for us both sides of the pro/con list had items on them, but the cons definitely were more than the pros. If the main pros hadn't been cost and the port of calls I may have been snarkier about it.

We are sailing on RCCL at least once more this July on a Northward Alaska itinerary, and again price and ports played a huge part in that. I wanted to try Princess or Celebrity but we are sailing with family so price was the most important factor. Disney was out anyway since we had already done their one itinerary - I want to see something new and I wanted to spend time in Denali as well which we will be able to do this way.

I've showed my husband the videos of the new ships coming down the line - they impress me, but he doesn't seem to care. He thinks the quality of DCL is worth it even more now after our lukewarm RCCL experience, whereas I was sold to keep trying other lines. I'll be getting him on the Carnival Vista at some point - its only fair to try the new ships as well as the old ones on other lines - but for now he was willing to pay 2017 prices for Norway.

Which Royal Caribbean ship were you on? I've been on twice the number of RCI cruises as on other cruise lines, and I like them well enough. They tend to have good itineraries at reasonable prices. However, I still want to go on another long Disney cruise, so I hope the fall 2017 Panama Canal cruise will be comparably priced to the April one.

 

[AquaDame]

Which Royal Caribbean ship were you on? I've been on twice the number of RCI cruises as on other cruise lines, and I like them well enough. They tend to have good itineraries at reasonable prices. However, I still want to go on another long Disney cruise, so I hope the fall 2017 Panama Canal cruise will be comparably priced to the April one.

It was Jewel of the Seas stopping in Barbados, St Lucia, Antigua, St Maarten & St Croix. The price and itinerary were great, much better than DCL on those counts. But we were often bored; even the shows at night weren't our cup of tea (there were many racist & sexist jokes which I don't like). The solarium I loved, but it was always packed until late at night by which time it was too cold to swim. I had problems utilizing my drink package by design (very hard time finding non alcoholic drinks outside of the buffet which closes - generally I had to try to push through the crowds at the bar and the attendants were visibly bothered by my requests for OJ and bottles of water since they didn't get a tip). The ports were great and the food was fine - I really liked having a dinner buffet as I didn't enjoy their MDR. They actually told us not to come when I had booked us for my time dining (6:30pm) since it was not a convenient time for them. We did come a little earlier per their request but they "solved" the issue on top of that by rushing us through our meal and skipping the bread course. Twice. We spent a ton of time in our room reading or playing games whereas I prefer to be out running around the ship since nothing was really going on. They had entertainment in the bars at night but I'm only good for maybe 1 or 2 drinks a night, so thats only fun for maybe 45min to an hour. Hardly anyone went to their trivia sessions. There wasn't even anything on the stateroom TV - they kept running the same shows over and over and I actually wished I spoke Spanish because their channels had comedies like Brooklyn 99 showing. The movies in the theatre weren't good choices either and it is right by the casino. I don't gamble... especially not in smokey areas since I am allergic. :/

I too feel like I liked it well enough despite all that, but where we are at financially versus how much vacation time we get I'd much prefer to love the ship I am on so no time feels "wasted" (as if time at sea is ever wasted, I know I know..!) I really hope I like them better in July!

 

[NancyIL]

It was Jewel of the Seas stopping in Barbados, St Lucia, Antigua, St Maarten & St Croix. The price and itinerary were great, much better than DCL on those counts. But we were often bored; even the shows at night weren't our cup of tea (there were many racist & sexist jokes which I don't like). The solarium I loved, but it was always packed until late at night by which time it was too cold to swim. I had problems utilizing my drink package by design (very hard time finding non alcoholic drinks outside of the buffet which closes - generally I had to try to push through the crowds at the bar and the attendants were visibly bothered by my requests for OJ and bottles of water since they didn't get a tip). The ports were great and the food was fine - I really liked having a dinner buffet as I didn't enjoy their MDR. They actually told us not to come when I had booked us for my time dining (6:30pm) since it was not a convenient time for them. We did come a little earlier per their request but they "solved" the issue on top of that by rushing us through our meal and skipping the bread course. Twice. We spent a ton of time in our room reading or playing games whereas I prefer to be out running around the ship since nothing was really going on. They had entertainment in the bars at night but I'm only good for maybe 1 or 2 drinks a night, so thats only fun for maybe 45min to an hour. Hardly anyone went to their trivia sessions. There wasn't even anything on the stateroom TV - they kept running the same shows over and over and I actually wished I spoke Spanish because their channels had comedies like Brooklyn 99 showing. The movies in the theatre weren't good choices either and it is right by the casino. I don't gamble... especially not in smokey areas since I am allergic. :/

I too feel like I liked it well enough despite all that, but where we are at financially versus how much vacation time we get I'd much prefer to love the ship I am on so no time feels "wasted". I really hope I like them better in July!

We were on Jewel in 2005 when it was a fairly new ship, and we loved it. I like RCI's Radiance-class ships best, and we'll finish out the group on Radiance in 2017.

Our most recent RCI cruise was on sister ship Serenade in Canada/New England last October. I liked most of the shows in the main theater. However, the movie theater was so small that you needed to get there really early to get a seat. I generally don't watch TV, but my husband does. I also noticed that the shows on our cabin TV kept repeating over and over, and the movies were in a variety of languages! We prefer to eat dinner in the main dining room, and we found servers we really liked - so we asked for the same table each night. (We had My Time Dining.)

There were definitely more sea-day activities that interested me on DCL than on RCI, and that's why I don't mind longer Disney cruises with lots of sea days.

 

[darnheather]

I'm one who hasn't seen much lower prices on other lines when I comparison shop. I don't travel at the peak times. The closest room on Princess to a DCL ocean view is a mini-suite. If you want a couch that folds into a bed, you have to get a mini suite. When I've compared DCL OV to Princess mini suite, the price is a few hundred different and can be more or less. More often than not, it's been a little higher for Princess. Again, I don't cruise during summer or holidays.

I've inquired about NCL and getting comparable service to DCL. The NCL regulars have all told me that I'd need to book the Haven for that. The Haven sounds great and is usually twice the price of what I pay for DCL. I'd love to try the Haven, but I just don't see that in my future.

I have seen much lower pricing for Carnival, though. My cruise partner is a young adult and wouldn't be allowed in the adults only areas on their ships, yet. So, I won't be sailing Carnival for a couple years at least, if at all.

I've had this same problem. Some cruise lines/ships have 2 person rooms as the standard. To get three in a room I have to upgrade to the point that it is close enough to DCL to ditch it. I've only cruised the once, but the service and not having to worry about what was free or not made it an incredible vacation. I like soda. When we are vacation I allow my kids to drink soda. I don't have to worry about a "soda package" unless the price is drastically less and the room is the same size!

 

[RedSox68]

There was



A while ago there was long thread, showing where RCCL and Celebrity and a few others on comparable vessels/ cabins were the same and sometimes more.

I have never cruised in the summer anywhere. As I said above, 2 times, I was referring a March 2016 to March 2017 Fantasy cruise.

If you followed my posts you would have notice I often am fast to point out something I feel DCL was wrong to do. I was not happy about the booze cut backs, the loss of the Mickey Mail, to the loss of the Pillow case signing and said so, I was not happy about the way they handled the CM who assaulted the young girl in the elevator and said so, etc, etc, etc, Please do not tell me what my opinions are. Where we differ is that pricing is a matter of market not DCL being greedy. ALL lines, every single one of them charge the most their product can get. Some people don't want to pay DCL price and some sadly cannot, but that does not make DCL greedy. They simply put out a special cruise with Disney Magic and Pixie dust and the people was willing to pay for it.

As I HAVE OFTEN SAID, IF ANYONE FEELS DCL I NOT WORTH THE PRICE, THEY SHOULD GO TO A LINE THEY ARE HAPPY WITH. WHY SHOULD THEY NOT???


AKK

I think the overall problem with Disney pricing is the fact that it rises too quickly and never do they offer sales/incentives/packages like every other cruise line on the market. Now I am not talking about the Florida/Military discounts they offer, and yes once in a while they come out with very last minute deals for GTY -- which most people cannot take advantage of because of air. But every other cruise line ( and I do a lot of cruise searches for deals) has sales/discounts/incentives sometimes as far as a year out. Princess is having a huge sale and it includes sailing through March of next year! Our Bermuda cruise on NCL for October was booked last Fall and they were offering incentives and a large discount, which to this day their pricing has NOT gone above.

Disney has a long history of price gouging -- allowing prices to jump sometimes by thousands in a day. Granted, the older and worn itineraries do not have the price jump anymore as people search out new itineraries. I have priced out NCL, HAL and Princess for all the itineraries that Disney is offering both this year and next and not a single itinerary that I looked at came close to being as expensive as Disney. For what you pay for a verandah on some cruiselines amounts to an inside room on Disney and for a shorter time period.

I think time will tell how long Disney can keep up with the higher than market pricing they do -- as more and more people will start to realize that in this financial market they cannot afford to drop 2-3 years worth of vacation money onto one trip.

I think every family with children should treat themselves to a Disney cruise, it's just a matter of affordability and timing.

 

[RedSox68]

I'm one who hasn't seen much lower prices on other lines when I comparison shop. I don't travel at the peak times. The closest room on Princess to a DCL ocean view is a mini-suite. If you want a couch that folds into a bed, you have to get a mini suite. When I've compared DCL OV to Princess mini suite, the price is a few hundred different and can be more or less. More often than not, it's been a little higher for Princess. Again, I don't cruise during summer or holidays.

I've inquired about NCL and getting comparable service to DCL. The NCL regulars have all told me that I'd need to book the Haven for that. The Haven sounds great and is usually twice the price of what I pay for DCL. I'd love to try the Haven, but I just don't see that in my future.

I have seen much lower pricing for Carnival, though. My cruise partner is a young adult and wouldn't be allowed in the adults only areas on their ships, yet. So, I won't be sailing Carnival for a couple years at least, if at all.

I'm sorry, but this isn't true! We sailed on Princess last year and had originally booked an oceanview for three adults with a fold out sofa. It was considered a deluxe oceanview. They also have deluxe verandahs that hold 3 without upgrading to a mini-suite. Believe me, I priced out and researched ad nauseum when comparing Disney's British Isles cruise to others. We ended up in a deluxe verandah for 3 which was $11,000 LESS than Disney's Oceanview!!! Same itinerary, same time period.

 

[KashasMom]

RCI's Ultimate Scandinavia-Russia cruises with 3 days in St. Petersburg are great! My daughter and I went on one in 2014.

We are all SO excited and we have an amazingly active roll call with a lot of us doing excursions together.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

I think the overall problem with Disney pricing is the fact that it rises too quickly and never do they offer sales/incentives/packages like every other cruise line on the market. Now I am not talking about the Florida/Military discounts they offer, and yes once in a while they come out with very last minute deals for GTY -- which most people cannot take advantage of because of air. But every other cruise line ( and I do a lot of cruise searches for deals) has sales/discounts/incentives sometimes as far as a year out. Princess is having a huge sale and it includes sailing through March of next year! Our Bermuda cruise on NCL for October was booked last Fall and they were offering incentives and a large discount, which to this day their pricing has NOT gone above.

Disney has a long history of price gouging -- allowing prices to jump sometimes by thousands in a day. Granted, the older and worn itineraries do not have the price jump anymore as people search out new itineraries. I have priced out NCL, HAL and Princess for all the itineraries that Disney is offering both this year and next and not a single itinerary that I looked at came close to being as expensive as Disney. For what you pay for a verandah on some cruiselines amounts to an inside room on Disney and for a shorter time period.

I think time will tell how long Disney can keep up with the higher than market pricing they do -- as more and more people will start to realize that in this financial market they cannot afford to drop 2-3 years worth of vacation money onto one trip.

I think every family with children should treat themselves to a Disney cruise, it's just a matter of affordability and timing.

I agree with a lot of what your pointing out. Believe me I would love to have cheaper DCL cruises and go more often. At some time DCL will find that limit and they will simply come down to the level they are selling the most cabins as the best price.

My point is that DCL is not gouging anyone. They are offering their own, high quality cruise with the Disney touch, magic and pixie dust at the most the market will pay. The same as all other cruise lines and companies world wide. Believe me if Carnival, RCCL or NCl could sell their cruise product for more, they would! If you or I could work someplace else for more money better beanies, we would a well.

It is all called free Enterprise.

I have said many times, when anyone reaches the point where they feel DCL is not worth the price or sadly the cannot afford the price, they should make themselves happy and move on to another line.

Right now for the staterooms we pay for and the time of year we cruise with DCL and the length of cruise and Itinerary, we feel DCL and the special, magical Disney product they provide, it's worth the money.

I see concierge staterooms are going very high, but that isn't my concern because I cannot afford those staterooms before or now.


Thanks for being polite. With this subject, often anyone not agreeing Disney is totally wrong and evil, they are called Disney fanatics, and kool aid drinkers, are told they defend Disney on everything which is plainly untrue and is childish and rude. Most people with a opposing view point are run off and leave.

For example right now I am raising cane about the $149.00, 3 hour EMH in the Magic Kingdom, yet here Ihave been calaled much of the above. The difference is I will stand and defend my view point.

Anyway that is another subject.


AKK

 

[MakiraMarlena]

They have four ships at DCL. Princess runs 17 ships with one new one on the way. Royal Caribbean runs 25 ships with two new ones coming. Harmony of the Seas will be the world's largest cruise ship with capacity for more than 6,000 passengers. Yep, that is six thousand passengers on one ship. I hope they have enough deck chairs. DCL is a niche market. Its niche prefers summer bookings and is still willing to pay more for them. And yes there are some people outside the niche who are willing to pay for DCL in some circumstances. Want a better deal on DCL, cruise in the off-season.

Want to see high prices, check some other niche markets, like ultra small ships with all balcony staterooms, the totally all inclusives, the around the world sailings, etc. These may not be the niche markets that families with children prefer; indeed they seem to mostly market to my parents, who are 80.

No, it's not price gouging. Nobody's paying the price for a Disney cruise because they NEED a Disney cruise. They want one. They will pay what it takes to get one.

I'll be on Royal Caribbean in Europe this summer but I'll be on the Fantasy next summer (yes in summer). I'm considering adding a drink package on RCL. It's about $500 for the full cruise (long cruise). Will I like that better than paying as I go with Disney? I don't know yet. As far as I can tell I won't be doing any excursions through RCL but they are comparable to Disney's. I'll be at a lot more specialty upcharge restaurants though.