DCL carry-on alcohol policy changing Sept. 30 2015

[Goofy4Ever]

I'll start by saying it's easy to be snarky when it doesn't effect you.
Lots of people are complaining that it was changed after their PIF date and they can't cancel. But I have yet to see ( doesn't mean their aren't) anyone who is not past their PIF date say they are going to cancel. And really your going to tell your kids sorry guys we aren't going on the Disney cruise because We can't bring a bottle of Rum.

Yes we have cruised Disney a lot and yes we carry on our own wine and yes we have a cruise booked in December that this will effect. But luckily it's a 4 day so 4 bottles of wine and we should be ok. Lol.

We are not cruising until Feb. and I am not cancelling this trip, however, I was planning on re-booking onboard and unless DCL changes their mind about this policy, I probably will give RCCL a try. I guess it will all depend on how much my alcohol bill is during my cruise

 

[littleblackegg]

For me, I think this change will be mitigated by an adult drink package with maybe a little Castaway Club discount. If people know what they are paying in advance and what they are getting for that payment, I think the whole shock of change thing will die down some. I never had more than a bottle of champagne (once, a bottle of Campari) in my room, preferring to go out on the ship if I wanted a cocktail. I think the people who like to have cocktails at night in their room will be most affected, but I can see drinks delivered to the stateroom pretty easily, right?

 

[jetskigrl]

So, someone just called me saying they were representing Karl Holz's office in regards to my email. The jist of the call was, "sorry you are disappointed." Basically, they don't care what I have to say because I cannot cancel and they have my money, and I said that to him. He keep saying he thanked me for sharing my opinions but they are not making any changes, even for those who should really be "grandfathered" in. I reminded him that people booking a DCL cruise today, can review the new policy and factor that into their decision. We, factored the other policy into our decision and is akin to a "bait and switch." The representative said that that is not really bait and switch, to be technical, that would be giving me a different product than I signed up for. It may be the same product, but the price is significantly altered for us, Mickey Mail is gone, Palo costs more, the corkage fee is ridic and babysitting is more expensive. Not bait and switch exactly, but, really, why is he arguing over semantics? The product is not different but it is not of the same caliber. He dared to say that people do not really factor that into their decision. REALLY? REALLY? It convinced my husband and uncle to go on this cruise. To many men, a budget is a HUGE deal, and to my uncle so is Jack Daniels on the Veranda. He did say, I see your point a lot too. all very canned stuff.

I was very annoyed he kept using the word disappointed. NO, I feel cheated, and bummed about my budget being blown. And please, do not thank me for sharing an opinion you do not care about. Disney would care if I could cancel my booking, because that would be money walking away...I did point out that many of us only know about this because we are active on social media. He made the point that it will be going out in cruise docs, IF, we or the travel agent opted for that. I feel really bad for the people that are not active online. I forsee many, many people finding this out at the Port...

Condescending email and even more condescending phone call I'm really sorry to hear that. They do really think that people will continue to buy whatever they sell just because it has the Disney name on it. At some point, that name is not going to be enough to carry them anymore. We are already giving up our DL passes after this year (after being passholders for 16 years) because the price is no longer reasonable for what we get. Looks like shine is starting to wear off the Disney Cruise Line name for us too.

 

[godde8ss]

Or they should allow a more lenient policy for those of us on longer sailings, including allowing us to have a bottle of liquor. This really was a factor in us deciding on DCL vs. another line, so now they have pulled the rug out from under us.

I mentioned this to the rep, this very thing. And he told me, people don't really decide on their cruises because of that. And I said, sir you are out of touch. You may not hear that on recorded conversations with people booking directly with Disney, but, some do, in fact, use this as one of the decision factors. It is how I sold two of our family members on the price difference. We used it as part of our decision, and now it is gone, which is wrong... It shows how out of touch they are with their customers.

 

[godde8ss]

If people know what they are paying in advance and what they are getting for that payment, I think the whole shock of change thing will die down some.

Yea, that is the root of the problem...Those of us PIF do not get that option, but future cruisers go into the decision knowing the new policy.

 

[AquaDame]

It will be a huge mess with people going to whatever area they have set up for re-claiming their booze, at port and on the ship. Do you want to stand in long lines just to get your booze back after a cruise???

In this one case yes. It is actually a huge part of the enjoyment of the Southern itinerary for us - we really enjoyed going to all the distilleries back in October and getting bottles to take home of stuff we can't get in our state. If this policy had been in effect we wouldn't have switched from our Eastern Fantasy later in the year. Its not going to be the same trip this time...

So, someone just called me saying they were representing Karl Holz's office in regards to my email. The jist of the call was, "sorry you are disappointed." Basically, they don't care what I have to say because I cannot cancel and they have my money, and I said that to him. He keep saying he thanked me for sharing my opinions but they are not making any changes, even for those who should really be "grandfathered" in. I reminded him that people booking a DCL cruise today, can review the new policy and factor that into their decision. We, factored the other policy into our decision and is akin to a "bait and switch." The representative said that that is not really bait and switch, to be technical, that would be giving me a different product than I signed up for. It may be the same product, but the price is significantly altered for us, Mickey Mail is gone, Palo costs more, the corkage fee is ridic and babysitting is more expensive. Not bait and switch exactly, but, really, why is he arguing over semantics? The product is not different but it is not of the same caliber. He dared to say that people do not really factor that into their decision. REALLY? REALLY? It convinced my husband and uncle to go on this cruise. To many men, a budget is a HUGE deal, and to my uncle so is Jack Daniels on the Veranda. He did say, I see your point a lot too. all very canned stuff.

I was very annoyed he kept using the word disappointed. NO, I feel cheated, and bummed about my budget being blown. And please, do not thank me for sharing an opinion you do not care about. Disney would care if I could cancel my booking, because that would be money walking away...I did point out that many of us only know about this because we are active on social media. He made the point that it will be going out in cruise docs, IF, we or the travel agent opted for that. I feel really bad for the people that are not active online. I forsee many, many people finding this out at the Port...

Man... did he even extend the offer to cancel with a full refund? They have changed my trip and I'm frustrated too. Sadly I can't even complain to them about that one since its the plane tickets that are nonrefundable and we all know how likely an airline is going to care about this, lol.

I am leaning towards canceling our second DCL trip later next year though. We don't have flights or anything to hold me back and I am pretty ticked off at the way they are handling the customer side of things. Its one of the Baja ones and I did want them to do very well on the west coast so we could maybe get some more time with the ships over here... but suddenly I am not caring quite as much as I did before.

AGAIN, for all the people gleefully enjoying my "childish tantrum" this is becoming far more about the way they are handling their customers and our complaints than any of the concerns I had over their new policy.

 

[godde8ss]

Man... did he even extend the offer to cancel with a full refund? They have changed my trip and I'm frustrated too. Sadly I can't even complain to them about that one since its the plane tickets that are nonrefundable and we all know how likely an airline is going to care about this, lol..

No, although I brought up how Carnival did that when all they were disallowing was water bottles (they let their guests cancel for a full refund and reduced the price of the water delivery to the cabin). He said, I cannot comment on what other lines do. I was not asking him to comment. I was asking if they were doing something, like, insert Carnival example here,...

 

[Subi WRX]

No, although I brought up how Carnival did that when all they were disallowing was water bottles (they let their guests cancel for a full refund and reduced the price of the water delivery to the cabin). He said, I cannot comment on what other lines do. I was not asking him to comment. I was asking if they were doing something, like, insert Carnival example here,...

LOL, hypocrites. The stock response I got from my e-mail (citing we were post-PIF) is that their policy is in line with other cruise lines.

It's the Disney Difference when convenient, but industry standard when it's not.

If we were not within PIF, we'd cancel our cruise.

 

[littleblackegg]

Sounds like they need time to figure out their next step. There really isn't anything they can offer that will make everyone happy right now, and I suspect they know that. When people are in the parks, they have the element of "public unhappiness." Even worse than unhappy guests are guests that can be seen being angry or unhappy in front of other guests. Disney does EVERYTHING to avoid that. Even though they have to deal with social media, they are not dealing with the effects of public unhappiness YET. Once they do and they start coping with their new policy at the ports, they will have a new customer service management strategy. Right now, they don't have to do anything other than "we're so sorry." It just has to do with their profits long term. They seem to be more generous with people who come at it from a "I am so sad that I have to cancel my vacation because we didn't budget for these extra expenses," approach than a "All the other cruise lines do this and that" approach. I think they are like that because a lot of Disney cruisers are families, and come for the Disney magic experience.

 

[littleblackegg]

LOL, hypocrites. The stock response I got from my e-mail (citing we were post-PIF) is that their policy is in line with other cruise lines.

It's the Disney Difference when convenient, but industry standard when it's not.

If we were not within PIF, we'd cancel our cruise.

You hit it on the head.

 

[GWS]

Good for you that you don't have to worry about a budget while on vacation. Most people aren't so lucky.

In just the past few months DCL has gotten rid of dropping things off for characters to sign, significantly limited what drinks you can bring on board, and raised the corkage fee on wine. Not to mention all the changes they made with onboard booking and Palo prices in the last year or two. Yet, the price stays the same or continues to go up. If you think they're gong to stop there, I'd like to point you to all the perks DVC and AP holders have lost and continue to lose in a continuous slow progression over the years.

So the change in alcohol policy doesn't affect you. What if the next change does? What if they start charging for room service? Or meet and greets? Or kids clubs? Are you going to have the same laissez-faire attitude that "relax, it's just vacation?" At what point does Disney get rid of enough perks that it's worthy of being commented on?

For a lot of people, we're not talking about the price of a souvenir. We could be talking about $500-$1000 extra on an already expensive vacation.

Wow, sounds like I stuck a nerve with you.

Let me be clear that I am by no means well off that changes don't affect me at all however I was simple stating this one does not affect me. I never said that this should not affect anybody else. I save money for me and my family to enjoy our vacations to and I do understand that going Disney means I will be paying for a premium service.

BooToYou7, lets have a drink on me, Cheers!

 

[Neesy228]

Well got my canned reply from Disney and these two things disappointed me even more....

"Again, I am so sorry for any disappointment and hope these concerns will not affect your regard for Disney, as there is magic in the Disney name"

And this is really what EVERYTHING boils down to -- the company thinking that they are above reproach simply because of the name. No matter what they do, they firmly believe people will come and spend money because it is Disney. And they may be right -- people are paying $20 for french toast sticks at BOG. What they will lose over time are their most loyal, long term customers, but maybe they don't care because that "magical name" will continue to draw money from new sources. It seems to be a horribly bad business model.

And it makes me sad.

I've been a Disney lover since childhood. When they made changes at the parks that I didn't like (FP+, continued decline of Epcot etc) we moved to DCL and to DL so that we were still able to enjoy Disney without all of the frustration of the WDW experience.

I am a little over two weeks past my PIF date for our October cruise. The newly announced alcohol policy will not only affect our port experience - I think we are the second cruise out with the new policy in place, so imagine the chaos - it will affect our trip as well. I'm not a big drinker, but we are beer snobs. My DH and I enjoy a couple beers while getting ready for dinner or after our kids go to bed. If we bring 12 beers for the two of us, on our seven day cruise...well, lets just say that math doesn't work.

We will find other vacation options from now on. I'm glad our kids are getting bigger and ready for other adventures. And I'm so glad that they/we got to experience Disney before they became so arrogant and indifferent to their guests.

 

[Cruise]

I'd say anyone who does actually book another line due to this or other changes to be sure to forward your email copy of your reservation with the other line to DCL guest services along with a note explaining which changes to policy (even if it's not just this one) caused you to book with someone else.

At least it'll show them you were serious about taking your business elsewhere.

 

[BooToYou7]

Wow, sounds like I stuck a nerve with you.

Let me be clear that I am by no means well off that changes don't affect me at all however I was simple stating this one does not affect me. I never said that this should not affect anybody else. I save money for me and my family to enjoy our vacations to and I do understand that going Disney means I will be paying for a premium service.

BooToYou7, lets have a drink on me, Cheers!

Well, not you specifically and I apologize if it looks like I was attacking you. It's just frustrating to see a bunch of people dismiss our concerns because this one change doesn't affect them. I want people to understand that yes, this is one change. But it's also one change in a series of changes showing that there's a pattern of cutting back on perks while charging more for the product. At what point is there no longer a reason to pay a premium?

I will take you up on that drink, though. I need it!

 

[mevans9066]

This nov will be our first Disney cruise so we're disappointed yes that when we finally save and are able to go it won't include so many things we've read about from others or what was advertised when we book! So I saw where people said DCL tried this year's ago and then said nevermind which I have no hopes of that happening now I don't think! But back then did they make the change so abruptly and make so many people angry cause it was just after they paid in full like we just did and it goes into effect before we sail? Or was it more this new policy will start on such and such back then? Just curious? We're still going and probably wouldn't cancel this cruise even if it wasn't announced that there's a new policy 2 days after we paid our final payment ( Uggghh really not cool Disney! ) because us and our kids have been looking forward to it! But it definitely will impact our planned budget being so close to sailing and we'll probably not sail DCL again when you can get the same and more pretty much for much less when we have cruised on other lines! We'll save seeing our fav Mouse for trips to WDW! But with all the chaos and uproar I've seen on social media I was curious how it went down previous when they tried it!?

 

[Joel0917]

I feel as i will chime in as well. The cost the cruises going up stopped us from doing a 7 day last year and back to a 4. But we really missed the 7 day. So we are doing a CAT 7a for next Easter on the Fantasy 7 days. However Palo price increase has made us stop going to Palo. WE really did enjoy brining one bottle of rum and one bottle of wine on board, and as still racked up $200+ in drinks. But today i spent time looking at 2017, i only really cruise at Easter since wife is a teacher, it's a week we know we'll be safe to go. Looked at new carnival Vista. A room they called a suite..bigger than the 7a, but no 1Br suite. it was $4500 for 6 days (not 7). add in $140 for soda. $160 for meal upgrades at restaurants we'd want to go to and $20 for Seuss breakfast..figure another $80 in other "nickel and dime" pastries..ets that would normally be included on Disney and we are at $4900. Still about $2000+ less, factoring 6 days instead of 7...so about $1100 cheaper. At the end of the day i have to decide is the $1100 worth Disney. While my kids are still young now, but in 2017 will be 12 & 8...i just trust DCL. I'll have to wait and see 2017 costs when they come out in October and then see how my Disney loyalty is.
But right now i'll be bringing on 2 bottles of wine and smuggling in 2 bottles of Rum..i love my malibu and Captains' White Rum.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

This nov will be our first Disney cruise so we're disappointed yes that when we finally save and are able to go it won't include so many things we've read about from others or what was advertised when we book! So I saw where people said DCL tried this year's ago and then said nevermind which I have no hopes of that happening now I don't think! But back then did they make the change so abruptly and make so many people angry cause it was just after they paid in full like we just did and it goes into effect before we sail? Or was it more this new policy will start on such and such back then? Just curious? We're still going and probably wouldn't cancel this cruise even if it wasn't announced that there's a new policy 2 days after we paid our final payment ( Uggghh really not cool Disney! ) because us and our kids have been looking forward to it! But it definitely will impact our planned budget being so close to sailing and we'll probably not sail DCL again when you can get the same and more pretty much for much less when we have cruised on other lines! We'll save seeing our fav Mouse for trips to WDW! But with all the chaos and uproar I've seen on social media I was curious how it went down previous when they tried it!?

From what I recall, the last time DCL established a more restrictive alcohol policy, it was basically, "effective immediately". And rescinded almost as quickly - it lasted about 2 days.

 

[Ofinn]

I feel as i will chime in as well. The cost the cruises going up stopped us from doing a 7 day last year and back to a 4. But we really missed the 7 day. So we are doing a CAT 7a for next Easter on the Fantasy 7 days. However Palo price increase has made us stop going to Palo. WE really did enjoy brining one bottle of rum and one bottle of wine on board, and as still racked up $200+ in drinks. But today i spent time looking at 2017, i only really cruise at Easter since wife is a teacher, it's a week we know we'll be safe to go. Looked at new carnival Vista. A room they called a suite..bigger than the 7a, but no 1Br suite. it was $4500 for 6 days (not 7). add in $140 for soda. $160 for meal upgrades at restaurants we'd want to go to and $20 for Seuss breakfast..figure another $80 in other "nickel and dime" pastries..ets that would normally be included on Disney and we are at $4900. Still about $2000+ less, factoring 6 days instead of 7...so about $1100 cheaper. At the end of the day i have to decide is the $1100 worth Disney. While my kids are still young now, but in 2017 will be 12 & 8...i just trust DCL. I'll have to wait and see 2017 costs when they come out in October and then see how my Disney loyalty is.
But right now i'll be bringing on 2 bottles of wine and smuggling in 2 bottles of Rum..i love my malibu and Captains' White Rum.

Curious why you feel you have to pay for specialty restaurants on carnival if you wont do palo on dcl. People always talk about nickel and diming on other cruise line but the restaurants are optional. More than likely you will see some sales or specials on carnival before 2017. Im always getting emails for other cruiselines. Kids sail free, half off second guess, obb, free drinks, free excursions. It seems like other cruise lines are always running sales.

 

[jlynch924]

He dared to say that people do not really factor that into their decision.

Maybe he should take a look at these discussion boards to get a real grasp on what his target audience is thinking...

 

[SonyaShay]

I have been reading along since this thread started but have yet to chime in.

The policy would have had a huge impact on my FE gifts for my June cruise in which we gifted each Dad a 12oz craft beer from my hometown. This would have given me no allowance to carry any on for my husband until Cozumel 2 days later. I agree with everyone that this boils down to profits for DCL. The only time I have even been in the adult district of the ship was for our private group Mixology in which I left very tipsy for only $20. I expect to see the costs for Mixology and tastings to rise very soon now that everyone knows how much of a deal these type classes are.

One very large change DCL made recently that I have not yet seen listed is the new PIF date being pushed farther from sailing date for all cruises. Just since my first cruise in 2012 DCL has changed the carry on policy, the PIF dates, the onboard booking policy (twice), the pricing of nursery, the price of Palo (I believe twice), the price of Remy, the hours of the hot tubs and signatures at Guest Services, most of which have happened in the last 12 months, all while increasing prices across the board.

I have never considered cruising with a different line but I am seriously debating if I will keep my placeholder for Summer 2017 that I booked in June. For the first time I actually pulled up other cruise lines and searched their itineraries yesterday.