It is time for me to come back to The Dis for suggestions/opinions! My DFi and I are getting married Sept 1st and have decided on a Disneymoon! (I always knew he was a keeper hehe) Originally, we were planning on a 10-night stay at a moderate resort with Deluxe Dining (hoping for a free dining promo and then upgrading to deluxe). Our plan was to use the 10 days to relax, do a few romantic experiences (horse drawn carriage ride etc), enjoy great food and most importantly, enjoy each other. All the while, trying very hard not to go Disney-commando. LOL. All was good, until my dad brought up DCL, and how they have great deals right now for Sept. We could pretty much pull off a one week cruise plus 3-4 days in WDW with our same budget! My first thought was "Gorgeous verandah view... great food... great entertainment... Castaway Cay... LETS DO IT!" But then reality kicked in and I thought about WHY the deals were most likely on... WEATHER.... We would probably be cruising sometime in the first two weeks of September. Peek Hurricane season. I have cruised 3 times before. 1 DCL 3-night in January '09 (great weather, rocking ship on first night but I didn't mind), 1 Alaska cruise with RC in August '09 (again, rocking sometimes, but not crazy), and 1 Western Caribbean last August on RC Oasis of the Seas (pft, barely felt anything on a ship that huge! We were pretty much following a storm, so we got lucky and didn't feel any of it.) DFi has only been on 1 cruise, to the caribbean, and he doesn't recall feeling sick, but weather was great on his trip too. But that was 7 years ago! Since neither of us have really experienced bad weather aboard a ship, we're kind of worried. I know a lot of people here will say not to worry, the captains are great at avoiding storms if they can worst that can happen is the itinerary is changed. And in all other occasion, I would be fine with that and just go with the flow. But being that this is our honeymoon, we both just want to have a good and relaxing time. We're not sure if the idea that we might get stuck in a torrential storm and the ship is almost tipping over will be very relaxing... What are your thoughts? Should we suck it up and just go for it? Should we stick with WDW only? How about if we just did a 3 or 4 night cruise... Would it be any better or not make a difference? Long post, I know... I'm known for being detailed.
Keep in mind that there is also the possibility that a hurricane could hit Florida around the same time as you are considering this cruise. It has happened before! The point being...you cannot let the weather affect what you want to do for your honeymoon. If your honeymoon is taking place in early September, and you want to do a land/sea trip with Disney...just do it. Just like your wedding, not everything will go as planned. What is more important to you - a perfect vacation, or the time relaxing with your new hubby as you bask in that "just married" feeling together? If you really want the vacation weather to be perfect...well, that just can't be guaranteed, no matter where you vacation or when. I've had friends where that's been important to them, though (among other concerns), and they have delayed their honeymoon for a while to be able to travel when it's convenient. The best wedding-related advice I was ever given, though, was to remember that at the end of the day, and at the end of all the planning and stress, you will wind up married to your best friend. As long as nothing happens to jeopardize that...it's not worth stressing over. I will also point out that my husband and I did a very similar honeymoon to the one you are considering - we spent three days in WDW (our first trip together) and 7 days on a Western Caribbean cruise with DCL afterwards. We went during the last week in August. The weather was perfect all week, but after all of the planning concerns with the wedding, we were ready to just get a move-on and start the relaxation...I think I spent all of one day post-booking thinking about the weather, and then realizing there was nothing I could do about it. Edit: Additionally, if turbulent waters are a major point of worry for you, I would relax. Twice now we have cruise in August, and yes, twice now there are been a storm somewhere in the Caribbean that mildly affected our trip! On our honeymoon, we sailed around a storm (did not affect our ports at all, or the weather, sans a thunderstorm on the first night), and on our second trip last August, a storm was chasing us around for most of the week (we moved the sail-away party indoors and had a bit of rain one morning on CC). It took me this entire post, and a few minutes after, to even remember that these things happened. The waters were very manageable, even for my motion-sicness-prone DH, and we had a blast anyway. Again...this is all totally out of your control, so my personal advice is to either do what you really want for your honeymoon regardless of weather concerns, or delay the honeymoon if having a "perfect" trip is something really important to you. Good luck with your decision...and if you do choose to cruise Disney for your honeymoon, I'd be more than happy to share my experience if it will help you plan!
I think I'd only add the cruise if you can do 4-5 days (or 7!). To do 3-4 days at WDW and then try a 3-day cruise is not going to give you much time for relaxation. A long stay at WDW can be amazing though. There is never enough time to do everything no matter how long you stay.
Personally I would defo do the cruise, we got married in October and did a 4 week honeymoon which included a 7 night cruise and 2 weeks in wdw. We both came away and said the cruise was the best bit and we wish we had done two 7 night cruises and only one week in WDW. Weather can be rubbish but we were on the Fantasy the day after Hurricane Sandy and yes they had to cancel one of the ports but, it wasn't that rough and everything was amazing!! Trust me its not that bad!! Congratulations on your wedding!!
I would do a shorter cruise (like the 4-day). That way you will have more time at WDW, plus if the cruising weather is bad and the seas rough, it won't be for "most" of your vacation.
We did 7-day Disney Cruise and 2 days in the parks in September for our honeymoon. Actually the 2 days in the parks was part of a four-day ticket back when they had park hopping and didn't expire built in, so it was logical to extend our trip. We've done parks then cruise and have also done cruise then parks. I prefer the cruise/parks option to vice versa. The cruise goes by way too fast after the parks.
I would definitely add a cruise! There is lots of romance on the ships, and I think it would be a perfect honeymoon! And IF the weather were to turn bad, it would just give you more alone time in your room.
TONS of adults only options on DCL. From wine tastings, dinner at palo (or remy), to the adults only pools and clubs. But, look at your budget...
Thanks everyone! The more we talk about it, the more we are leaning towards a 7-night cruise aboard the Fantasy. Reading some trip reports and experiences from other couples has certainly helped. We're going to suck it up and do it! The wonderful magical memories will outweigh a rocky ship for sure. We're thinking doing the World first for 3 nights, since the cruise doesn't leave until Saturday and we don't want to wait 6 days to start our vacation. You Dis-ers are so awesome! I feel like giving back. Maybe this year will be the year I actually start (and complete) a trip report. Mayyyybe even a PTR... ! Yay! LOL! Can't argue with that!
We got married in Oct. 2010 and didn't honeymoon until 6 weeks later. It was actually nice to just go back to a routine after the wedding weekend craziness and not start a honeymoon right away. Plus, it gave us something to look forward to again! We are doing a 7 night on the Fantasy this Sept/Oct to celebrate our 4th anniversary. I can't wait! It was less than the 4 night DVC Member cruise we were considering. Have a great wedding and Disneymoon!
