DCL Has Their Protocol Out!!!

I'm reading that mask compliance is good on the Magic and is being enforced. Is anyone hearing otherwise? My husband wants to cancel our September Western right now due to the unknown number of unvaccinated guests and switch to another line that is sailing with 95% vaccinated. I'm trying to take a more measured approach to the stay/cancel evaluation, but lack of mask compliance/enforcement would be a deal breaker for me as well.

I would wait until a few US cruises sail before gauging mask compliance.
 
No character meet and greets (assumed)
I recommend watching the U.K. blogs and seeing the way the characters roam the ship in high spirits and sometimes with funny antics. Some people's goal is to get an autograph, photo or hug from the character and that's fine, but if you're just looking for a good character experience, what I've seen in the U.K. blogs looks very appealing. One of these took place on the promenade, where Pluto was looking for his lost ball, with Mickey helping. You'd never see that kind of thing on a normal cruise, and there's something to be said for seeing that kind of thing unexpectedly during your cruise, instead of planning a time to wait in line to get your picture taken.
 
No deck parties
Thats not correct. On the Magic UK cruises they have Freezing The Night Away deck party. It is scheduled twice, so that each seating of MDR can see it. People can watch it either from the pool deck area or the railings above. On the pool deck area there is limited capacity and each party have a designated place to stand to watch it.

Fireworks have been mentioned in the The Dream new procedures, so most likely they will do the same as Freeing The Night Away on The Magic in The UK.

No basketball
This is due to social distancing. They are using the basketball area as space for people to sit.
 


Trying to be realistic now that the excitement of DCL resuming has worn off. Putting together a pro/con list of sailing with these protocols:

PRO:
Cruising again on DCL
DCL quality
DCL cleanliness
Less crowded on ship and CC
DCL will continue to update protocols as needed

CON:
No fish extenders
No character meet and greets (assumed)
No deck parties
No basketball
No hammocks
Masks required indoors
No popcorn during movies
No shuffleboard
Lack of time in kids clubs
Cost of cruise very high given restrictions


Still working on more. Our cruise isn’t until February so we have some time. And I know DCL can not win either way. Things will continue to change.

Just not sure how I feel. I was happy yesterday and depressed today. We go on cruises for escapism and much of the fun listed on the CON list that makes me wonder why pay DCL prices for none of the amenities that make DCL shine.

It wall all come down to each individuals pro and con list. For me the biggest con right now is when I wake up after a peaceful sleep on DCL with no care in the wind and feeling great i then need to grab a mask and jolt back into reality that things are not normal and that just isn’t what I want to do on vacation. But others may value that. I think DCL is going a little overboard with stuff like basketball, shuffleboard and hammocks as we should not be worried about outdoor and contact issues.

Yesterday was so excited, today would likely cancel, tomorrow who knows :)

We're also supposed to cruise in Feb. The lack of shows is another big con for our family. We're cruising with first timers and that's obviously part of the experience, as are character meets. What really turned me off yesterday was reading that they're limiting the number of people allowed in the concierge lounge at one time. It just seems that now instead of a vacation where you can go where you want/when you want there are not only things you cannot do at all but others you have to reserve time for such as pool time. On top of this our final payment is due early SEPTEMBER! FIVE months prior to our cruise. Disney has not given any concessions to concierge during this time. It's absolutely ridiculous! I'm sure we'll be moving it AGAIN for even more $$.
 
Thats not correct. On the Magic UK cruises they have Freezing The Night Away deck party. It is scheduled twice, so that each seating of MDR can see it. People can watch it either from the pool deck area or the railings above. On the pool deck area there is limited capacity and each party have a designated place to stand to watch it.
From the Disney Cruise website:

Deck Parties
Deck Parties have been temporarily paused.
 
From the Disney Cruise website:

Deck Parties
Deck Parties have been temporarily paused.

you are just trying to pick holes. What I'm saying is that the FIREWORKS mentioned on the new procedures most likely will be the same procedure as whats currently happening on The Magic in the UK.

It will be a new type of experience, they are just making people aware not to expect the pre shut down deck party.

I will keep saying it, watch the UK vlogs, people are jumping to all sorts of assumptions that their Dream cruises experience will be ruined with these new procedure. You should just see the excitement and joy and happiness in the UK Vlogs, the amount of people who are just so over the moon about being on a Disney Cruise.
 


We as a family agreed no matter what the rules we were getting on the ship regardless. After 1 + year of sitting home, and the countdown clock on the refrig, we are going even if we have to wear a suit of armor.

For us the experience of being a family and not separate Mobile Phone Bubble individuals for a week is what we love, regardless of what ever amenities are available. We will make time for us and enjoy the ocean, beach, food and ship. We will look at this cruise a new experience to be shared.

We have always said that Disney is ridiculously expensive but they are the cream of the crop. When we get on the ship they will make it a great cruise.

This kind of sums it up for us. The mask requirement? eh... everyday the media scares us by reporting it will be re-instated (this is Ma. and we have been free of mandates, if vaccinated, since the end of May). It may very well be-no one knows. We did a quick Disney trip in May. At first at felt weird, masks on, masks off, but then we relaxed, fell into the routine and really enjoyed ourselves. Nothing is normal yet. No one knows when it will be. It might take a lot longer than we all thought. In the meantime, I want to live life, the best I can. No one has any guarantees. Our cruise, if it goes, will be the one that takes us to platinum. My kids, now young adults, graduating college, finishing up and becoming a police officer (talk about worry!), our delayed 35th anniversary cruise (supposed to be Greece-2 years ago). This may be our last together as our family exists now- we are booked for Greece this summer, not sure yet if things in the world will allows us to go. We too, will take time for us- the ocean, food (no cooking for me!), the ship. Just being together. That is what is important to me. Time with my family. It will be a great cruise.
 
Every single Vlog I have watched , the mask compliance seems to be very high. People are just so happy to be able to experience a Disney cruise, that the mask requirements and all the other new procedures don't seem to be impacting their enjoyment of the cruise experience.
That's because the UK just lifted their mask mandate on July 19, per the UK governments website. Ours has been lifted for some time now and compliance was not great when their was a mandate. People will wear their mask when they are supposed to on the cruises. Are they going to be happy about it? A happy cruiser is a repeat cruiser.
 
I'm reading that mask compliance is good on the Magic and is being enforced. Is anyone hearing otherwise?
I would wait until a few US cruises sail before gauging mask compliance.
I agree with @randumbo to give that a little time. Yes, mask compliance doesn’t appear to be an issue on the UK cruises and may not be on the Dream. However some of that may be due to local requirements in the UK which have not been as relaxed on such things as here in the US where most abandoned mask-wearing at least a couple of months ago.
 
Trying to be realistic now that the excitement of DCL resuming has worn off. Putting together a pro/con list of sailing with these protocols:

PRO:
Cruising again on DCL
DCL quality
DCL cleanliness
Less crowded on ship and CC
DCL will continue to update protocols as needed

CON:
No fish extenders
No character meet and greets (assumed)
No deck parties
No basketball
No hammocks
Masks required indoors
No popcorn during movies
No shuffleboard
Lack of time in kids clubs
Cost of cruise very high given restrictions


Still working on more. Our cruise isn’t until February so we have some time. And I know DCL can not win either way. Things will continue to change.

Just not sure how I feel. I was happy yesterday and depressed today. We go on cruises for escapism and much of the fun listed on the CON list that makes me wonder why pay DCL prices for none of the amenities that make DCL shine.

It wall all come down to each individuals pro and con list. For me the biggest con right now is when I wake up after a peaceful sleep on DCL with no care in the wind and feeling great i then need to grab a mask and jolt back into reality that things are not normal and that just isn’t what I want to do on vacation. But others may value that. I think DCL is going a little overboard with stuff like basketball, shuffleboard and hammocks as we should not be worried about outdoor and contact issues.

Yesterday was so excited, today would likely cancel, tomorrow who knows :)

That CON list though.
 
you are just trying to pick holes. What I'm saying is that the FIREWORKS mentioned on the new procedures most likely will be the same procedure as whats currently happening on The Magic in the UK.

It will be a new type of experience, they are just making people aware not to expect the pre shut down deck party.

I will keep saying it, watch the UK vlogs, people are jumping to all sorts of assumptions that their Dream cruises experience will be ruined with these new procedure. You should just see the excitement and joy and happiness in the UK Vlogs, the amount of people who are just so over the moon about being on a Disney Cruise.
I'm not trying to pick holes in anything. You literally said:
Thats not correct. On the Magic UK cruises they have Freezing The Night Away deck party.
And I responded that according to Disney Cruise Lines own website deck parties are temporarily paused. You actually used the word deck party in your statement.

If anything you are trying to slap some bondo and house paint over a giant hole and say look just like new.
 
I guess it depends on where you live. With the exception of the car lots being empty and a 2 x 4 x 8 costing $11 everything seems pretty normal where I live.
True, some days it seems ok and then you turn on the TV-lol. All how you take things and where you live def. plays into it.
 
I'm not trying to pick holes in anything. You literally said:

And I responded that according to Disney Cruise Lines own website deck parties are temporarily paused. You actually used the word deck party in your statement.

If anything you are trying to slap some bondo and house paint over a giant hole and say look just like new.


0:45 Freezing the night away party
 
Same - our next cruise is on the Fantasy in early March. As of right now we’d sail with these restrictions, but if they are still only stopping in CC we’ll cancel.

So, I must have missed reading this.... will the Dream cruises not go to Nassau? Only go to CC?
 
I would wait until a few US cruises sail before gauging mask compliance.

That's the rub for us. PIF date is Monday so we have to decide this weekend. We are already PIF but our first time cruise friends are not.
 
This is what DCL sent to passengers on the first Liverpool cruise when the UK Government changed the date when capacity levels would be increased. They had too many passengers booked and needed to reduce numbers.


Thank you for booking a Disney Magic At Sea with Disney Cruise Line. As you may be aware many of the UK Governments Covid 19 restrictions were expected to end on June 21 but have now now been extended until at least July 19.

Among these restrictions is capping the number of passengers able to board cruise ships at 1000 people or 50% of the ships capacity. Unfortunately your sailing currently exceeds this limit.

We are currently offering a limited number of guests the opportunity to change their sail date and receive a 50% discount on the voyage fare of a 2, 3 or 4 night Disney Cruise Line sailing taken on or before December 31 2022 or cancel their sailing and receive a full refund.

This offer is only available to guests on the July 15 sailing. Current availability on Disney Magic at Sea Sailings from Liverpool is limited, however there is availability out of the other UK ports should you wish to sail this summer close to home. There are also 3 or 4 night sailings out of Port Canaveral, Florida or Miami Florida, available.

If you are interested in selecting an alternative sail date or cancelling your booking and receiving a full refund, we ask that you contact us by Tuesday July 6 2021.
And if not enough cancel or change? For me, there's almost no incentive they could offer short of a free cruise that could get me to reschedule.
 
And if not enough cancel or change? For me, there's almost no incentive they could offer short of a free cruise that could get me to reschedule.

As per a PP this offer was very popular, so much so that people who contacted Disney 4 hours after the email were told that the offer was no longer valid as they had reached their target capacity level.
 
I'm reading that mask compliance is good on the Magic and is being enforced. Is anyone hearing otherwise? My husband wants to cancel our September Western right now due to the unknown number of unvaccinated guests and switch to another line that is sailing with 95% vaccinated. I'm trying to take a more measured approach to the stay/cancel evaluation, but lack of mask compliance/enforcement would be a deal breaker for me as well.

I’m with your husband on this one. I’m not comfortable that there could be 75%+ unvaccinated on a cruise and DCL doesn’t have a problem with that. Not with the Delta variant surging and so many yet unknowns. Also, many of us have seen the entitled arguing customer on these cruises. Maybe not on the first one, but I expect it to happen pretty quickly that people will be avoiding the masks, complaining that it’s too hot/hard or whatever for their children to wear it, and/or the CMs will tire of enforcing it. Too many states have different views, rules etc throughout the pandemic and those people will all be together on one ship. I also don’t expect compliance with anything here similar to the UK, since we’ve had so much trouble as a whole even following proven precautions to try to end this pandemic.
I think obviously some people will be happy with these rules and enjoy the cruise, but each of us have to decide if we can live with these changes/risks for the high cost and still enjoy ourselves.
 

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