Looking into my first Disney cruise-lots of ?s!

[chefmb]

Hello! DH and I just upgraded our PHs from our WDW trip about 2 weeks ago since we knew we were going back in December. Now we are talking about getting one more trip in to use the PHs during the Flower and Garden Fest. DH said he's more interested in going back if we do it with something new---like a Disney cruise! So the APs are valid thru April 28, 2016, and I'm looking at cruises for next April. Here's what I've come up with so far:
Even though it would be short, we are looking at the 3-night (possibly 4) Bahamian cruises from Port Canaveral, so that limits us to the Dream. I like the idea of the veranda, and if I'm willing to have a partial obstructed view, it is about $130 more than the cheaper inside stateroom. Opinions? There's also the deluxe inside stateroom which is a bit larger, and that's only about $45 more than the cheapest room. I've read that decks 5-8 are a good compromise, getting you pretty evenly distanced from everything. I'd love to know your recommendations.

Even though it seems most recommend cruising after a WDW stay, we think we'd rather cruise first since that is new to us (a little more anxiety for me!!) and we're very comfortable going to WDW. It looks like we should plan to get there the day before and stay either close to the port or at a value hotel.

Car questions...DH likes to rent a car. Does anyone rent a car for the whole time and just park at the terminal? How much is it per night to park at the terminal? (The last reference I found said $15/nt.) Can you get any discounts on parking? Is the parking lot safe to leave your car there for 3 or 4 nights? I know we'd be paying for the car and not using it for those days, but the added convenience of renting once, being able to drive from MCO to a hotel the first night, driving to the terminal for the cruise, driving back to WDW without waiting in a line to rent after the cruise, and having the car for the WDW portion of the trip sounds good. Also, is it easy to get from terminal parking to the terminal with your luggage?

So, I guess that's where I am right now. Looking for the ideas on room category, doing WDW after the cruise, and car rental/terminal parking questions are the big ones for now. I'm sure I'll have more!
Oh, here's another question--do the prices tend to go up on the cruises? If so, when?
Thank you so much in advance!!

 

[Footnotegirl]

If you want to rent a car, I would HIGHLY suggest just renting a car for the trip to and back. You can very easily take the rental car shuttle from the office to the port and back for free (took us less than 7 minutes drive, I timed it this last time). But if you're going to be staying at a WDW property either before or after... just use Disney transportation unless you intentionally want to luxe it up with a limo. The walk from parking doesn't look insignificant, and the rental car shuttle, limo, or Disney transportation will drop you off within steps of the port doors.
Go for the 4 day rather than the 3 day if you feel you must do a shorter cruise. With a 3 day you've barely unpacked and gotten used to the ship before it's time to pack up again. I would very much suggest WDW before you cruise. WDW, even if it is a vacation you are used to, is hectic and tiring with all the walking and hitting reservation and fastpass schedules. The cruise is much, much more relaxing and is as scheduled as you want it to be.
As for your stateroom, I have done inside, outside window, and deluxe family balcony. I have been happy with all three, though I don't think I'd go back to an inside with our daughter until she is older as the set up as the room has the big bed towards the back and the kids bed nearer to the entryway and bathroom/shower. The deluxe family balcony was VERY NICE and we did enjoy having that balcony, but we didn't enjoy it the $1,000 worth that it normally would be. If it's only a $130 difference and that isn't a big deal for you, I'd say go for it, but be aware that you won't really be missing that much.

 

[MouseMomx2]

Here's what I've come up with so far:
Even though it would be short, we are looking at the 3-night (possibly 4) Bahamian cruises from Port Canaveral, so that limits us to the Dream. I like the idea of the veranda, and if I'm willing to have a partial obstructed view, it is about $130 more than the cheaper inside stateroom. Opinions? There's also the deluxe inside stateroom which is a bit larger, and that's only about $45 more than the cheapest room. I've read that decks 5-8 are a good compromise, getting you pretty evenly distanced from everything. I'd love to know your recommendations.

I would go with the 4-day sailing and the Oceanview room. The 3-day cruises really only give you two days on board and both of those are in port. The 4-day gives you a sea day to enjoy all the ship has to offer. As for the Verandah vs. Oceanview choice, this is your first cruise and you will have so much to see and do. Plus it is a short cruise. You will not be in your stateroom much so go with the Oceanview this time. If you like cruising (and...warning...it is addicting) save the Verandah for a 7-day when you'll really be able to enjoy it.

Even though it seems most recommend cruising after a WDW stay, we think we'd rather cruise first since that is new to us (a little more anxiety for me!!) and we're very comfortable going to WDW. It looks like we should plan to get there the day before and stay either close to the port or at a value hotel.

Either way works. Do what is most comfortable for you. Definitely get there the day before. We like to do one-way car rentals and stay at a port-area hotel.

Car questions...DH likes to rent a car. Does anyone rent a car for the whole time and just park at the terminal? How much is it per night to park at the terminal? (The last reference I found said $15/nt.) Can you get any discounts on parking? Is the parking lot safe to leave your car there for 3 or 4 nights? I know we'd be paying for the car and not using it for those days, but the added convenience of renting once, being able to drive from MCO to a hotel the first night, driving to the terminal for the cruise, driving back to WDW without waiting in a line to rent after the cruise, and having the car for the WDW portion of the trip sounds good. Also, is it easy to get from terminal parking to the terminal with your luggage?

We do one-way rentals to/from the airport or WDW. There is no way I would pay for a rental for days I would just be leaving it in a garage, but you may feel differently. Parking at the port is $15/day so you'd be looking at $100-200 extra, depending on the length of your cruise and nightly cost of the car. National, Alamo, Budget and Avis all have WDW locations for pick-up/drop-off. We like National/Alamo as they have a location right at the Dolphin resort. All of them have port-area offices with a shuttle to/from the terminal.

So, I guess that's where I am right now. Looking for the ideas on room category, doing WDW after the cruise, and car rental/terminal parking questions are the big ones for now. I'm sure I'll have more!
Oh, here's another question--do the prices tend to go up on the cruises? If so, when?

The prices go up steadily (and sometimes quickly) once dates are released. As a stateroom category fills the price goes up. Your best bet is always to book as early as possible. They do sometimes offer last-minute rates that are lower, but they are not offered for every sailing. Unless you are willing to take that chance, book as early as you can.

Thank you so much in advance!!

Hope that helps. (Click to expand to see all of my answers.)

 

[Kimosabe]

Even though it would be short, we are looking at the 3-night (possibly 4) Bahamian cruises from Port Canaveral, so that limits us to the Dream....I've read that decks 5-8 are a good compromise, getting you pretty evenly distanced from everything. I'd love to know your recommendations.

Lots of people will disagree with me, but to me, any cruise is better than no cruise, so if you want to stick with three nights for the first time, then that's still three nights of a great time. Pretty sure you'll enjoy it to the point of wanting to do another one later (and longer), but for a taste of it, three nights is still great. One of the stops is in Nassau, and lots of people would probably agree with me that if you don't spend a lot of time out and about in Nassau, you're no worse off...so if you want to stay on the ship for much of the day (if not all day), you'd still have plenty of opportunities to take advantage of lots of activities on the ship, plus the pools, etc., will be much less crowded than a sea day (when everything is packed)...oh, and it will save you the cost of an excursion!

As for the deck, I wouldn't necessarily limit yourself to 5-8 if you can get a good deal on another deck. We have done three DCL cruises and the first two were indeed right there in the center of the ship for the same purpose you're thinking. However, we went on our third last month and were on deck 2 (room 2050, to be exact)...and it was probably our favorite room of all. Lots of activities, whether dining, shows, shopping or otherwise, are on decks 3 and 4, and the elevator would take us right up to deck 11 for the pool, so it really ended up being extremely convenient.

 

[mhconley]

Car questions...DH likes to rent a car. Does anyone rent a car for the whole time and just park at the terminal? How much is it per night to park at the terminal? (The last reference I found said $15/nt.) Can you get any discounts on parking? Is the parking lot safe to leave your car there for 3 or 4 nights? I know we'd be paying for the car and not using it for those days, but the added convenience of renting once, being able to drive from MCO to a hotel the first night, driving to the terminal for the cruise, driving back to WDW without waiting in a line to rent after the cruise, and having the car for the WDW portion of the trip sounds good. Also, is it easy to get from terminal parking to the terminal with your luggage?

We do one-way rentals to/from the airport or WDW. There is no way I would pay for a rental for days I would just be leaving it in a garage, but you may feel differently. Parking at the port is $20/day so you'd be looking at $100-200 extra, depending on the length of your cruise and nightly cost of the car. National, Alamo, Budget and Avis all have WDW locations for pick-up/drop-off. We like National/Alamo as they have a location right at the Dolphin resort. All of them have port-area offices with a shuttle to/from the terminal.

Parking at the port is $15 per day.

• A 3 night cruise is 4 days or $60
• A 4 night cruise is 5 days or $75
• A 7 night cruise is 8 days or $120

Martin

 

[MouseMomx2]

Parking at the port is $15 per day.

Thanks! I thought it had gone up again. I fixed my post.

 

[chefmb]

Thanks for the replies so far! DH and I just took our evening walk and I told him what I've discovered so far. We still are thinking the 3-night is a good choice for us for this first trip (if it leaves us wanting more, then we'll just have to book another--DH should be retiring in a few years, so we'll have more time to do more cruising!). Also, the 3-night cruises are Fri-Mon, so we'd have more of the week for WDW during less crowded days, which is a plus to me. We talked about the whole car rental thing. We're leaning towards staying at an Epcot resort (just stayed BWV and loved the location!), making DH more agreeable to just doing the Disney transportation for this trip. Given that, and so many people who suggest cruising after WDW, we are leaning towards following that advice. This also eliminates the need to fly down a night early so we don't miss the cruise. I think we could do either Sunday or Monday thru Friday at an Epcot resort, then the 3-day cruise, no car rental. We just have to make sure we are not trying to do any parks after April 28th (when our APs expire). Any recommendations for booking thru a travel agent (we are AAA members), getting deals etc??? Also, opinions on earlier questions are welcome!! Thanks again. This is exciting!!

 

[Footnotegirl]

I'm not sure about AAA, but most travel agents can't actually get you discounts, per se. You will get charged the same price, but then get certain benefits on the back end. Booking through Costco will get you a Costco gift card when you return from your trip. Booking through Dreams Unlimited will generally get you on board credit (plus every time we've cruised with them we've gotten a gift bag of stuff useful for the cruise). In my experience, booking through a travel agent allows you to have them do the organizing for you, but does not block you from doing your own organizing (such as Palo/Remy reservations, excursions, etc.) if you prefer to do it that way.

 

[griffindesign]

We stayed in cabin 9512 in February. That is a partially obstructed veranda and it was great. I really enjoy having the balcony even on a short trip. When getting ready in the morning or before dinner it's nice to go out and watch the ship pulling in or out of port. Or having a snack or meal out there. Since our 3 night was without the kids it was great being just 2 decks below the quiet cove area, workout room, and spa

 

[griffindesign]

Cabana's and the poolside dining are on deck 11 too.

Another thought is to look at the February dates if you're flexible. It is much cheaper and less crowded than the April spring break cruises. WDW would be less crowded too.

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

Congrats on your first cruise! We've received the best service of our 3 cruises on the Dream. She will be getting some upgrades in November. The best one, IMHO is the Satellite Falls adult only section that is currently on the Fantasy, be sure to spend some time there.

We've done inside rooms on deck 2 (Dream) and on decks 8 & 9 (Fantasy). Deck 2 was great because we never had to wait for elevators during the "dinner rush." Decks 8 and 9 were almost a draw with a slight nod going to deck 8 because we could do the stairs more easily after dinner. When we were on deck 9 our dining rotation put us in Enchanted Garden (deck 2), 3 nights, that was a hike, especially for my wife and daughter in heels.

We try to walk the stairs as much as possible so deck 8 is our favorite, it's easy to get to deck 11 for beverages and snacks, the pool , gym etc.

If you're an early riser, grab some coffee or tea from on deck and enjoy satellite falls before anyone gets up there, it's just amazing. I go up every morning and do yoga, it's a great way to start the day.

I know you're leaning towards the 3 day but........that's really only 2 full days on the ship.

So that's my $.02, again congrats and enjoy your cruise, if you're like the rest of us freaks here, you'll be doing many more.

 

[Flossbolna]

Have you looked at the cruises out of Miami on the Wonder? Those might be a nice option, too and are either 4 or 5 nights. There you would need a car though.

I love doing the parks after the cruise. Especially if you decide to do the three night cruise, I think it will be nice to be able to extend the vacation experience when you have to leave the ship.

 

[jlynch924]

I agree with griffindesign...we had 9664 on our last Dream cruise, which was a partially obstructed veranda, and it was terrific. We were on a short 3-night and the view was hardly obstructed (just a little metal off to the left of the balcony), so it was totally worth it. Since it's considered obstructed, it's much cheaper.

 

[chefmb]

Again, thanks for the info! This is great. I have another question that I can't find the answer to: What does "whitewall" refer to when describing the verandah? In most pictures, there's a white wall separating verandahs, but it could also mean a solid white wall for the front. Big difference since a solid white wall in front would basically block the view when sitting. Thanks!

 

[chefmb]

I agree with griffindesign...we had 9664 on our last Dream cruise, which was a partially obstructed veranda, and it was terrific. We were on a short 3-night and the view was hardly obstructed (just a little metal off to the left of the balcony), so it was totally worth it. Since it's considered obstructed, it's much cheaper.

Did you book category 7A? I'm trying to figure it all out! Thanks

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Again, thanks for the info! This is great. I have another question that I can't find the answer to: What does "whitewall" refer to when describing the verandah? In most pictures, there's a white wall separating verandahs, but it could also mean a solid white wall for the front. Big difference since a solid white wall in front would basically block the view when sitting. Thanks!

It means the outside wall (under the railing) is solid, not plexiglass. It's only a hindrance on the Classic ships where the whole thing is solid whitewall. But on the Dream class ships the whitewall only extends about 18" up from the floor. Then it's plexiglass.

 

[chefmb]

It means the outside wall (under the railing) is solid, not plexiglass. It's only a hindrance on the Classic ships where the whole thing is solid whitewall. But on the Dream class ships the whitewall only extends about 18" up from the floor. Then it's plexiglass.

I just found this "Depending on the category and location you book you will have either a solid white wall verandah where you need to stand up to look out at the water or a plexiglass verandah."
But based on what you just posted, on the Dream it really won't matter. So I can still sit and enjoy the view on the Dream even if the category says "whitewall?" That is very encouraging!!

 

[griffindesign]

Our room 9512 is called a navigators veranda and had very little overhead obstruction on the left, and the plexiglass at the railing. We were just as happy with the view as we have been with our regular verandas. You can check out reviews on specific rooms here:http://www.wdwinfo.com/disney-cruise-line/disney-dream-room-reports.cfm

 

[griffindesign]

Also, 9512 is 7a, and 9012 is it's mirror image. But other 7a's might be different as far as how much obstruction they have or if there is a whitewall veranda. Sometimes you can do a search on a particular stateroom number and pull up pictures of the verandas to see more details.

 

[jlynch924]

Did you book category 7A? I'm trying to figure it all out! Thanks

Yes...it was a 7A. Here's a photo of it. There's just a little bit of balcony to the left that is behind the metal; the right was totally open. There was also a mechanical lift right above us (you can kind of see it), but it didn't obstruct anything either.