IllumiNation cruise...$150 or $250?

[01Sweetpea]

I am confused....how much is it for the pontoon boat for a BASIC IllumiNations cruise?

 

[Dan Murphy]

This, I think, is current.....

http://www.disneyworldtrivia.com/articleViewer.php?aid=213

There is a thread on the DIS which I think is outdated.

 

[01Sweetpea]

I broke down and called Disney recreation...Basic IllimiNations cruise...$250, same with Wishes.

Not so sure we are going to do this again this year.

 

[peachgirl]

We went last week and it was $250. We had a birthday cruise which should have been another $25, but they didn't charge us for it.

 

[JerseyGirl114]

I was planning on surprising my family and doing this on our trip. That's when I thought it was $150. I already asked my travel agent to see if she can get it. I figure if it was meant to be then we will get the ressie. If not, they can't be disappointed because they won't know about it!

When I asked her to tell me the price she said it would run about $220 + tax. The trip now includes a few snacks and drinks (non-alcohol).

 

[TumFamily]

Hi --

I surprised my family and my best friends family with the Illumination Cruise a few weeks ago. It cost $250 plus tip. It included cans of soda and snack bags of chips. Honestly, it was way overpriced and I would NEVER do it again. My DS talked me into it and I always getted wooed by him somehow! LOL! Deb

 

[JerseyGirl114]

TumFamily -
I wasn't planning on making this something we will always do - unless of course we hit the lottery or something - but tell me honestly - are you glad you did this for them? And how did you surprise them? When did you tell them?

 

[TumFamily]

Yes, I am glad we did it. Everyone really enjoyed it. It was very relaxing and yes, romantic. I didnt tell them until we were in Epcot that day.

One thing though, after walking around Epcot all day the hike to the marina was rough. The thought of hiking back was rough on everyone so we asked to be dropped off at the Epcot exit. By being dropped off, we missed a one hour ride back to the marina. I think that is also why I felt it wasnt worth it. If you could somehow get your car parked by the marina, that would make it even better!!

 

[Crazy Hakim]

The thought of hiking back was rough on everyone so we asked to be dropped off at the Epcot exit. By being dropped off, we missed a one hour ride back to the marina.

I don't understand your comment "we missed a one hour ride back to the marina"

After IllumiNations, you are taken almost directly back to Bayside Marina, by being dropped off at the Epcot dock you saved a lot of steps, but only about 10 minutes of cruise........

 

[Blaze12]

Question, how do you 'book' this cruise?

 

[Dan Murphy]

http://allearsnet.com/btp/illum.htm

Booking the cruise is almost like booking the Castle breakfast, you MUST be calling a few minutes before 7 AM eastern, and call the same as that breakfast. It is a very difficult reservation to get.

 

[peachgirl]

A tip on getting those reservations..

I tried about a month before we left and no luck. I called back 1 week before we left and my second choice of nights had opened up..called back the next day and my first choice had opened up.

There are lots of cancellations on these cruises, so keep trying if you don't get it the first time.

You can request to be dropped off at any dock (Epcot, Boardwalk or MGM) and they'll usually do this for you. We wanted to go to MGM afterwards and they had no problem taking us there rather than the YC marina.

I'm a little confused on the Epcot walk too. Why not just park your car at the YC (I'm sure they allow guest parking if you're taking a cruise) or just take the boat back and forth from Epcot to the YC? It's a long walk from YC to Epcot!

We had a great time and plan on doing this on our next trip!

 

[Crazy Hakim]

You can request to be dropped off at any dock (Epcot, Boardwalk or MGM) and they'll usually do this for you. We wanted to go to MGM afterwards and they had no problem taking us there rather than the YC marina.

As long as the dock is open. If MGM closes early, and the dock is dark, you will not be able to be dropped off there.

 

[magiroux]

At $150 it was well worth it.....at $250 ???? It really is a lovely cruise, but VERY expensive. I can see some people taking the price into consideration when evaluating how much they enjoyed the cruise/show.

I have noticed, in April and also last week, that there are boats going unused at cruise time (something you NEVER saw before), and I think that is a direct result of the cruises being so darn expensive now.

You can park your car at the YC, just not too early. We tried to park there before dinner at 5PM and were not allowed. Also, one time we asked to be dropped off at MGM for the late Fantasmic and they were happy to do so.

 

[peachgirl]

As long as the dock is open. If MGM closes early, and the dock is dark, you will not be able to be dropped off there.

That's true, if the park isn't open they won't take you to that dock.

Our captain was wonderful! The early Fantasmic show was at the end just as we arrived. He backed the boat out to a spot on the water where we could watch the very end where Mickey appears at the top of the mountain. It was so neat to watch. He knew exactly where to park the boat, so apparently he's done this before.