Linking Reservations: Pros and Cons?

[skiergirl4]

We have family in four staterooms traveling together on the Fantasy this summer.

What are the benefits to linking our reservations in the My Disney Cruise site before online check in?

Are there any drawbacks to having the accounts linked before online check in?

I believe that we should have the reservations linked before we sail so we can be seated together (or close) at dinner. Is this correct?

TIA!

 

[PrincessShmoo]

We have family in four staterooms traveling together on the Fantasy this summer.

What are the benefits to linking our reservations in the My Disney Cruise site before online check in?

Are there any drawbacks to having the accounts linked before online check in?

I believe that we should have the reservations linked before we sail so we can be seated together (or close) at dinner. Is this correct?

TIA!

Yes, the reservations should all be linked if you all want to sit together for dinner.

Drawback: Only one reservation at a time can be logged onto during the online check in process.

 

[cutedisneygirly]

Drawback: Only one reservation at a time can be logged onto during the online check in process.

If my reservation and my parents' are linked, could they log in from their computer and I log in from mine to check in? Or does it not matter and it's just one reservation at a time can check in?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

If my reservation and my parents' are linked, could they log in from their computer and I log in from mine to check in? Or does it not matter and it's just one reservation at a time can check in?

If two (or more) reservations are linked, only one reservation at a time can be logged into. Regardless of how many computers you use.

 

[skiergirl4]

Thank you, PrincessShmoo! That’s what I was worried about. Once they’ve been linked (I linked them), can they be unlinked and then relinked?

Any benefits to keeping them linked before online check in?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Thank you, PrincessShmoo! That’s what I was worried about. Once they’ve been linked (I linked them), can they be unlinked and then relinked?

Any benefits to keeping them linked before online check in?

As far as I know you can unlink them, and then relink them after everyone has checked in.

 

[AngelDisney]

If two (or more) reservations are linked, only one reservation at a time can be logged into. Regardless of how many computers you use.

I thought after linking the reservations, I would be able to check in and book excursions for the two staterooms together. Can I still book excursions and Palo brunch for both rooms if the reservations are linked? Is it only online check in I have to log in one account at a time? What’s the best strategy to deal with the situation? Unlink to check in then link to book excursions/dining? TIA for your kind advice!

 

[NS8VN]

If two (or more) reservations are linked, only one reservation at a time can be logged into. Regardless of how many computers you use.

Are you positive about this? My group has 3 separate reservations linked and we sat in the same room on 3 different computers all logged in to our accounts checking in at the same time.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

I can't imagine why you would need to all do online check-in at the same time. Pretty sure there is no penalty for doing it separately, so I don't see why you'd have to unlink just to do the online check-in.

One stateroom can book activities and adult dining for all linked staterooms, but if the staterooms have different Castaway Club levels, you can't book for lower levels at the time the higher-level booking opens. For example, if one stateroom is platinum, only that stateroom can book activities at the platinum level booking date. The party will have to wait until the booking date for the other levels to book any activities or adult dining for the lower level staterooms. But that would be true even if the staterooms were not linked.

While one stateroom can book activities for all linked staterooms (I think up to 4 staterooms), each stateroom has to be checked in separately.

 

[Anchors Away 2016]

Maybe it is already clear, but just in case, I'll try to say the same things in a different way...


If you link multiple reservations together, you can book all the activities for all the rooms from any one of the accounts, provided that you are all the same CC status. So if you are all silver for example, you can go into the account, view all four reservations and book activities for them (though there may be an issue with so many linked reservations, can someone give first hand info on this?)

During this time (of booking activities) someone else in your party may not be able to access it. So what my sister and I did, with our linked reservations was that I logged on, with her on the phone with me, and I read off our options to her and booked everything for her family and mine. Some things were just for her family, some were for mine, some were for both, some were for a subset of each, no problem.


"Check-in" on the otherhand, is different than booking activities. My sister and I were able to log in at the same time to check-in (put in passport #'s, get a PAT, etc.) but not to book activities. Again, we were talking on the phone at the same time to coordinate PATs.

YMMV, but that was our experience.

Oh, another clarification, OP says they have 4 STATEROOMS, but how many separate reservations do they have? For instance if I had a family of 6 in two rooms, that would just be one reservation, and thus one check-in...

 

[MakiraMarlena]

if you link more than 4 staterooms you are then limited on what you can book at the same time.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

For instance if I had a family of 6 in two rooms, that would just be one reservation, and thus one check-in...

Doesn't each room have it's own reservation number?

 

[Anchors Away 2016]

Doesn't each room have it's own reservation number?

Hmm. Could be. I thought that was only if you had multiple parties. My mistake!

 

[CKHeeb]

I love linking. I like to see what the rest of my party is doing.

 

[Marcelyry]

I am traveling with a group and we are in 3 different cabins. We linked them all before check-in and it made it really easy to book activities together, especially tastings. This way you ensure that you are all in the same time slot. If you try and book them separately, you might not find the availability you want. That would be the only advantage I could think of. Each room has to do their own check-in.

 

[Anchors Away 2016]

I love linking. I like to see what the rest of my party is doing.

I am traveling with a group and we are in 3 different cabins. We linked them all before check-in and it made it really easy to book activities together, especially tastings. This way you ensure that you are all in the same time slot. If you try and book them separately, you might not find the availability you want. That would be the only advantage I could think of. Each room has to do their own check-in.

These are both great points. Not only does linking allow you to book for the rest of your group, but later on it allows you to see at a glance who is doing what. This comes in handy when you are considering adding other things (spa treatments, etc.)

And as @Marcelyry says, and I forgot to mention, even if you are booking an excursion for 15 people, you don't have to book for all 15 at once. If you ask the system for a certain number of spaces, and it doesn't have that number available, it won't say, "Oh there are only 14 for that timeslot." It will just say, "Nope." So if you can't get the number you want for something, pick a lower number until it goes through and then get as many as you can. Remember, until 3 days before you sail there is no penalty to cancel. This means that other people WILL cancel, and it also means if you end up not getting enough slots, you can still cancel later. So if you need 15 and you can only get 5, take them, and then keep checking back to see if you can get a few more at a time, or even one at a time.

 

[Weedy]

Remember to pick a Port Arrival Time for each cabin.

 

[skiergirl4]

One stateroom can book activities and adult dining for all linked staterooms, but if the staterooms have different Castaway Club levels, you can't book for lower levels at the time the higher-level booking opens. For example, if one stateroom is platinum, only that stateroom can book activities at the platinum level booking date. The party will have to wait until the booking date for the other levels to book any activities or adult dining for the lower level staterooms. But that would be true even if the staterooms were not linked.

This will be everyone's first cruise with DCL, although we have all cruised with other cruise lines, so no worries about being different CC levels. We have four separate reservations (four reservations numbers) and four separate staterooms. This is an extended family trip for my parents' 50th anniversary. With being new to DCL, I'm already worried about the limited options that will be available to us in terms of PAT, excursions, character breakfast, and meet and greets. Because of that, I didn't want anything else to slow down our check in process when our window opens at midnight. I'm thinking that it's not ideal to have someone wait for a long line of check ins (from our group) to happen before they can log in and select their PAT, etc.

Is it correct that online check in (for the PAT) opens up at basically the same time as when I can book excursions, meet and greets, etc? Midnight at day 75?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

This will be everyone's first cruise with DCL, although we have all cruised with other cruise lines, so no worries about being different CC levels. We have four separate reservations (four reservations numbers) and four separate staterooms. This is an extended family trip for my parents' 50th anniversary. With being new to DCL, I'm already worried about the limited options that will be available to us in terms of PAT, excursions, character breakfast, and meet and greets. Because of that, I didn't want anything else to slow down our check in process when our window opens at midnight. I'm thinking that it's not ideal to have someone wait for a long line of check ins (from our group) to happen before they can log in and select their PAT, etc.

Is it correct that online check in (for the PAT) opens up at basically the same time as when I can book excursions, meet and greets, etc? Midnight at day 75?

Yes, your window opens at midnight, eastern time. Now, on occasion, one window or the other (excursions or online check in) may be delayed. Sometimes both are. This delay can be just a few minutes, to hours. Just be patient.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

I've never had to select a PAT (I was platinum before they started it) but I don't think it's that important, they would likely let your entire party board together, so I don't think you need to unlink just to get a PAT, and even if you do unlink, you would all have the same issues with being separate staterooms in a queue to check in.