Disney cruise line questions

[jockey]

I know there is a seperate sections for DCl but I have a few questions for those of us travelling from the UK!

Firstly, I plan to book through VH as I have vouchers that I can use! I plan to book the three night cruise and then 11 nights a the GF will VH be able to provide the transfers etc. Also can I stay a few days at the GF then go on the cruise and return to the GF - obviously it will be a different room but will they be able to store some of our luggage?


What type of room will I need, would prefer to have a balcony, there will be three of us - me, Dh and DS who will be 2.

What is included in the price regards food tipping etc?

Sorry for all the questions but I have no idea about the cruise at all!

 

[MrsJobba1]

I know there is a seperate sections for DCl but I have a few questions for those of us travelling from the UK!

Firstly, I plan to book through VH as I have vouchers that I can use! I plan to book the three night cruise and then 11 nights a the GF will VH be able to provide the transfers etc. Also can I stay a few days at the GF then go on the cruise and return to the GF - obviously it will be a different room but will they be able to store some of our luggage?


What type of room will I need, would prefer to have a balcony, there will be three of us - me, Dh and DS who will be 2.

What is included in the price regards food tipping etc?

Sorry for all the questions but I have no idea about the cruise at all!

Hi,

I have cruised 4 times with DCL and am booked on the 11 night med cruise this year so I will try and answer some of your questions. I have always booked through DVC so not sure about VH.

You can get transfers through DCL I have used these 3 times however last summer we used FLtours towncar. (Which we prefered as we got to the port alot earlier than with the buses.

We normally stop @ wdw for a couple of nights to get ourselves accoustomed to time etc. You should be able to put your cruise in the middle of a stay. Wdw bell services will also hold some of your luggage for you.

The categories of room go from 12 to 1. If you want a veranda you would need cat 6 or above.
12 -10 inside
9-8 inside with porthole
7 very small navigator veranda
6, 5, 4 veranders
3 -1 suites

We have always stopped in an inside cat so I can't tell you what the veranders are like exactly.

With regards to what is included - all your food is (although room service requires tips)
Soft drinks are included when getting them from the drink machine on deck 9 (self serve) or in the dinning rooms. You pay for them if you order them at a bar or via room service.

Sadly adult beverage are not included. You also have to pay extra for photos, tips, and excursions.

If you look on the disboard cruise line forum they have some stickies (permanent threads) at the top which have everything you want to know about the cruise. It is also a very friendly board.

This is also a link to my trip report of my most recent cruise
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1194035

I hope this has helped with some of your questions, feel free to pm any other questions that I can help you with.

Happy New Year

(PS hope you can make sense of this)

 

[florida sun]

Hi Jill

Cant add any more than Helen's excellent post, but only to say that when Vicki and I went we had a cat 6 verandah which was fabulous, however when booking, if you do fancy a verandah try and find out what area the ship they are booking for you. The varandahs at the rear of the ship (due to the curve of the ship) are solid white ones, whilst in the middle they are see through Plexiglass. We had the solid white one, which was fine,but after seeing my friends who had a plexiglass one, I realised what sort of view we were missing. Once you sit down on your varandah with the solid ones, you can not see anything out at sea at all, however you can with the plexiglass. I have also seen the Navigators Veranders which are the same size as the others but much more enclosed, with a restricted view.

 

[jockey]

Thanks for all the info guys! I have just looked at prices with VA and to be honest it may be a LOT cheaper to book everything individually! I was going to convert a load of Tesco clubcard vouchers to VH vouchers but I think I will use them elsewhere!

 

[jdybnsn]

Hi

I'm sure that it will be cheaper to book direct with Dreamsunlimited (this boards sponsor and very reputable US company) - they usually offer exactly the same rates as booking with Disney Cruise Line directly (so check their site for rates) plus a stateroom credit (a credit of $s paid directly to your on board account).

If you can run to it though, as I've said before, try and do the 4 night rather than 3 night; as 2 days is just not long enough .......but there again, neither is the 4 night,..... but you do get much more out of the experience (believe me you would be so glad of that extra day, even though it is spent at sea)...and really there is not so much difference in cost between the two.

We did our 4 night cruise on the end of our holiday last time ...it worked out well, we were off the boat at 9am the morning of the day that we flew home, spent the day at DTD and playing crazy golf before heading off to the airport mid afternoon.

The shows on board are fantastic and they are free ...so too are the kids clubs, for all ages (with the exception of the nursery for babies) and they are open all day till 12 am - be prepared for having plenty of time to yourselves if cruising with kids ! The best thing is that the kids clubs are never over subscribed as Disney only allows so many kids of each age to be booked on each cruise.
We booked a cat9 on deck 2 which are the rooms with the large porthole - for a 3 or 4 night trip I think this would be perfectly adequate, as you won't be in your room very much.... and unless you are booking a cat 4 upward then the rooms sizes themselves, are all very much the same. That said, if you are smokers, and/ or going in the Summer months, a verandah of some sort would be very nice if finances allow it. NB. smoking is permitted but only in designated areas.

Best tip I can give is to arrive at the port for an early check in (10am - 10.30am) as you can board the boat from just before noon, and have the whole afternoon on board; using the pools and eating in the restaurants, before you sail at around 5pm. thus you gain an extra 1/2 day of cruise experience

Happy cruising !

 

[jockey]

Great! Thanks for all the info!

 

[KayleeUK]

This sounds like great idea Jill

 

[Andrew DEREK UK]

I fully agree with all the above, I have booked with VH before, ( if you do ask them to supply you with DCL's booking number so you cn book palos and shore trips on line.
But my last three trips I have booked with Dream's and as the dollar rate has been good paid it off quickly. I have alwas had a Cat 4 room with balcony it is great on the long trips 7/14 days when you have many sea days, however on short trips you really will not be in your room much so I would say save the cash you will not have the time!
VH booked DCL transfers and gave me a car when I booked with them, so doubled up, I drove to the port and back so didnt use the transferes bar the luggage service collecting from the Polynesian.