Flights - Book Thru Disney or On Your Own?

[DisneyLisa]

I'm trying to finalize our trip for March 2005 and am wondering if anyone can tell me whether or not it's better to take the flight package thru Disney or just book it on your own.

I usually book everything independently but I'm just wondering if it's better to go with DCL when there's a cruise involved. I know that March has been known to bring some pretty bad weather up here (or it can be quite warm...you never know) and I've seen years where the news shows snow storms delaying people in the airports trying to get out for their March Break vacations. Do you have more protection if you book your flight with DCL? I'm finding their price a little high but if it's worth it, then that's the way I'll go.

I appreciate any advice. I've been pondering this and finally figured if I posted the question of this Board, I should be able to get lots of tips/advice.

I can't believe it...here I am trying to get ready for our trip to WDW next week & I'm in the process of booking a cruise. ...but our dates just became available & I didn't want to risk not getting a SPR. It's also Thanksgiving here in Canada so with all this cruise planning, turkey-eating , packing for our trip, "organizing" DH & DS so they don't starve while we're gone ..I'll be soooooo ready for our trip to WDW next Friday.

TIA

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Book your own air.

If at all possible, fly down on the day prior to your cruise. That way, you'll greatly reduce the chance of missing your cruise departure due to weather-related delays, mechanical delays, missed connections, or flight cancellations. And you won't have to get up at 4:00 a.m. to head to the airport for an early morrning flight, causing you to be dead tired the first evening. (Even if I could be guaranteed that a same-day flight would get me to the ship in time, I'd still fly the day before.)

There have been horror stories on this board from people who have been booked by DCL on awkward connections, and unwanted overnight "red-eye" flights.

With advance planning, you're even likely to save money by making your own flight arrangements.

 

[goodstarr]

I agree

 

[jgalecpa]

I agree as well.

One note, though:

If you book your own air, I recommend booking your own insurance as well.

If you book insurance through DCL the air you book separately is not covered, but if you book your own insurance and air, the air can be covered as well as saving substantially on both.


My two cents


Jim

 

[lsmac]

This far in advance, I would most definately book your own air! We did not book our own air this time because monetarily it did not pay because I booked so late (60 days out). With having to fly in day prior etc., it just didn't add up and I decided to take our chances with Dis air. We did Disney air one other time for our 4 day Wonder and they did a wonderful (no pun intended) job on the connections etc. I am just hoping they will do a great job this time too.

With this much advance you should be able to get the schedule you want at the price you want. Good Luck!

Lisa

 

[Jeanny]

Hey Jim~ thanks for that point on the insurance...

I booked our air on SW when it became available. I had spoken with DU and they couldn't guarantee me a non-stop flight out of PVD and I really didn't want to get up at 4am and be traveling down the East Coast in January, and I made arrangements to fly in the day before, just in case...

I do have the insurance through DU, should I cancel that and go directly through ??Access America is it called? and have them cover both my flight and cruise? I though DU would cover my flight even though I had made the arrangements myself.

see you learn something new here everyday!

 

[DisneyLisa]

Can you explain how the insurance "thing" works Jim...I assume I would get my own insurance for the price of the cruise plus my airfare, is that correct? But isn't it based on the cost & taken out as soon as you book the cruise...how do I know how much insurance I need if I haven't purchased my air fare? I apologize for my my lack of knowledge here but do appreciate everyone's advice.

 

[nisiemouse]

I am also a little confused about how much insurance to purchase. I guess you should also include the cost of transportation (e.g. if you are renting a car). Anything else?

 

[moocow35]

I too am very curious on how this would work. My trip is already booked with DCL Air, but searching all the airlines that they typically use: Delta, US Air, etc.. it would appear that my only choices are on tiny "prop" planes connecting in Ohio or PA. DCL Air did this in February to my family, and there is NO way I would step foot on a tiny plane like that. My air right now with DCL is alot cheaper than say going with Jet Blue, but for peace of mind, AND a direct flight I am seriously considering canceling the air portion of my trip, and going for broke with Jet Blue. I also have the insurance with DCL, so what I get from this thread is I should get my own insurance for air if I do it myself?

Thanks in advance,
Robin

 

[lsmac]

I will try to answer some of your insurance questions:
No, DCL does not cover air if booked independent. If you book air independent, you need to book insurance within 14 days of deposit in order to be covered for "pre exisiting conditions". Check out the following website: www.insuremytrip.com which will offer quotes from several companies. The one I have used before that was great was TravelGuard Intl.
In order to figure cost of insurance they will ask for total amount of trip PER PERSON, or you can do a total of the trip costs. This would include your airfare and cruise costs!
In order to book insurance you will need to know the approximate costs of your airfare. I believe when I booked with TG before I gave an estimate and booked from there.

I hope this helps. If you check at insuremy trip they also have several FAQ sections to help as well.

Lisa

 

[lsmac]

As for rental cars etc., you would not need the insurance for that. Insurance for the rental car is purchased at time of rental. Cancellation for cars and hotels is typically within 24 hours of reservation so no need for trip insurance.
The only thing to cover would be airfare and cruise as well as luggage. Keep in mind that airlines insure your luggage up to $500 I believe, anyway.
Lisa

 

[DisneyLisa]

Thanks Lisa. I'll do a bit of research and get that all taken care of before I leave on Friday. I think I will just wait & book my flights on my own...surely there will be some seat sales in the next year and a half.

Thanks everyone for the replies and have a nice weekend.

 

[vgaskin]

We did Disney air last time but did not do insurance. We thought since Disney booked it, they would take responsibility for it, WRONG! We had a 6 am us air flight that was cancelled and we could not get another flight until late in the afternoon. We were supposed to be in Orlando at 10 am but didn't get into Orlando until 10pm. We had land/sea so we were ok. When I found out that we would miss out on a day of passes, I called Disney and see if there was any compensation just for the unusable passes, she said no, since I didn't purchase insurance. All the flights were connecting.

This time I booked our own air, straight thru on an airline I trust and got our own insurance. I think we even saved money!

 

[ericnj]

I would stongly recommend you set up your own flights. Three reasons you control what you want, you control what you want, your control what you want. I booked through Disney and my airline schedule gets us to the boat late (3pm) and makes us rush the last morning to get to our return flight. This is my first trip but I have learned my lesson. They pick your flight and then you have to fly it or pay extra to change it.

 

[Nick@ VB+OKW]

Book your own flights and arrive the day before your cruise.

 

[rae519]

Difference between $1100 and $600 - we booked our own. We got the flights and the seats we wanted and none of the "wait and see" of having Disney do it.

Rae

 

[FanofDis]

We are going the week before Easter (April 3, 2004) and the air costs were very high but I didn't want to take the chance
with DCL and not get a nonstop flight (which would make our 2 1/2 hour flight turn into a 4-5 hour trip).
I purchased a "air deviation" through DCL for an additional $50. a person which guaranteed us direct flights. There are 3 of us so the cost was an additional $150. but I thought it was worth it.

 

[lsmac]

I purchased a "air deviation" through DCL for an additional $50. a person which guaranteed us direct flights. There are 3 of us so the cost was an additional $150. but I thought it was worth it.

How does the air deviation work? How did it guarantee you a direct flight? It would definately be worth the addt'l $150 to me to get direct flights! PM me if you want!

Thanks!
Lisa

 

[disneyholic family]

i always book my own flights because we're very particular about what airlines we fly and what seats we're assigned...
as for weather related problems, last summer i gave us 3 days of travel time for our trek across 3 continents, 1 sea and one ocean to make it to our cruise in time......as it turned out, we were delayed for about a half day in Kennedy due to weather that had the entire east coast shut down......
next summer we're doing the 7 day land/sea, so i'll only give us about an extra half day beyond the full day of travel.....
in fact i'm about to make the flight reservations this week....good thing you posted this to remind me....

 

[WDWLVR]

We always do our own flights as well. It is so easy to do via the web and I like the control of knowing early on when we are flying. Plus it helps with the frequent flyer miles.