Meet and Greet Ticket Worries

[twitterpated31]

Hello all!

I am brand new to the boards. Brand new to Disney travels. Brand new to cruises.

Thank heavens I found this site because I know nothing about any of this.

I just got tickets for a 4 night Cruise on the Wonder in March 2018 with 3 days in Disney World afterwards. Beyond excited to experience Disney for the first time with my 3 kids!!!!

My big worry is scoring tickets for the Frozen and Princess meets. Because this is my first cruise I will be in the last group to sign up for things. Will I be able to sign up for tickets online (I believe my window starts 75 days before the cruise?)? Or will I have to wait until I board the ship? And will there be any tickets left?

Does anyone have a sense of whether these tickets tend to all be booked before the first time cruisers get a chance?

Also, I believe the princesses are different during each cruise? Do they stay consistent during the meet and greets on a single cruise or would different princesses attend different meets? Also, are there any princesses who are always on the cruise?

Sorry for all the questions and thanks a million for your help!

 

[PAGA2003]

I think you will be fine getting tickets for your cruise. We just got of the Wonder on Sunday and due to the smaller size of the ship and it being low season it seemed it was fairly easy to get meet and greet tickets, brunch reservations, etc. I noticed tickets available online right up until we set sail. You may not get your first pick of times but I think you will definitely get tickets On our sailing the princesses were Cinderella, Tiana, Ariel and Rapunzel at the meet and greet.

 

[twitterpated31]

Thanks so much! What a relief.

I hope we have Ariel and Rapunzel on ours because they are my daughter's faves.

Is there any chance we might see more Princesses on board than the ones that attend the Princess Gathering?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Thanks so much! What a relief.

I hope we have Ariel and Rapunzel on ours because they are my daughter's faves.

Is there any chance we might see more Princesses on board than the ones that attend the Princess Gathering?

There's always a chance. But the Princess Gathering (that you can pre-book tickets for) typically has Cinderella, Tiana, Snow White, Belle, and Ariel. Not all of them all of the time. Sometimes only 3 of them.

 

[dani24]

It probably depends on your particular sailing, and how popular it is. But we're first time DCL cruisers, and our window just opened up last week for our cruise on the Wonder in May. We had no problem getting every reservation we wanted, at times we were very pleased with (and I can be kind of picky). There were plenty of spots left for the ticketed meet & greets, Palo, spa packages, Royal Court Tea, etc.

Plus, even if you don't get what you want in the online check in, you may be able to still get reservations once you are onboard. DCL holds some slots only for onboard booking for some (if not all) of the activities that you can pre-book. Make sure you figure out where to go to ask, and then head there very soon after boarding the ship. Plus, I've read that sometimes people cancel or move their reservations, so periodically check the online booking to see if anything opened up.

 

[Bsmitty]

It probably depends on your particular sailing, and how popular it is. But we're first time DCL cruisers, and our window just opened up last week for our cruise on the Wonder in May. We had no problem getting every reservation we wanted, at times we were very pleased with (and I can be kind of picky). There were plenty of spots left for the ticketed meet & greets, Palo, spa packages, Royal Court Tea, etc.

Plus, even if you don't get what you want in the online check in, you may be able to still get reservations once you are onboard. DCL holds some slots only for onboard booking for some (if not all) of the activities that you can pre-book. Make sure you figure out where to go to ask, and then head there very soon after boarding the ship. Plus, I've read that sometimes people cancel or move their reservations, so periodically check the online booking to see if anything opened up.

What are the best times to get these tickets for? Or most convenient days/times that you prefer? We're sailing on a 7 night cruise on the Fantasy. Would love any suggestions on what days/times to plan things.

 

[dragynally]

What are the best times to get these tickets for? Or most convenient days/times that you prefer? We're sailing on a 7 night cruise on the Fantasy. Would love any suggestions on what days/times to plan things.

It would really depend on what else you have booked. We were on the Fantasy and did the Frozen and Princess meets back to back on the second day (first sea day). But we didn't have any brunches or other things planned.

 

[Geomom]

When booking your times, be sure you know if your itinerary has a time change. If you have to move the clocks forward the night before, it's hard to get to an early time. (Speaking from experience here...on our Alaskan itinerary, I booked the Princess Gathering for our last day at sea, 9AM...DH and I woke up at 8:50AM, kids were still asleep, no one was making it there that morning. Luckily we'd already met 2 of the 3 princesses earlier in the cruise, so the kids weren't upset.)

 

[Trera]

we booked late on the Wonder and when we went to book princess meet and greets...............they were all sold out.

 

[gilsan]

we booked late on the Wonder and when we went to book princess meet and greets...............they were all sold out.

Keep checking some may come available. We booked late for our cruise I couldn't get tickets at first, but we got some the next day.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

As PP said you can often get them when you first board. Make sure you do it the moment you get on board. It's usually in the same location where you change your dining rotations.

 

[Weedy]

There are still a limited number of tickets available once you board.
This is from the Navigator:

 

[Trera]

There are still a limited number of tickets available once you board.
This is from the Navigator:
View attachment 224061

what boat was that from?

 

[IBelieveInTheMagic]

I can echo they hold back tickets for the meet and greets. I just disembarked from the Dream yesterday and a cruiser (who was on her first sailing) started chatting with me while we were waiting to check on our dining preferences. I gave her some tidbits and helped answer questions and then she found me later on. She then asked me the top 3 things they shouldn't miss and I told her about the character meet and greets and to head to Port Adventures (or Guest Services as I hadn't checked at that point) to get tickets for them as they do sell out. I bumped into her later and she was so grateful I told her as she didn't know and she did score tickets for both of them.

Heather

 

[Weedy]

what boat was that from?

This was from the Dream but all the ships hold back some tickets and they are available at the Port Adventure Desk.

 

[Anchors Away 2016]

What are the best times to get these tickets for?

Personal preference of course, but we found when we did the Princess greeting pretty much the first couple of slots they offered, our line was VERY short. A bit later, at the Frozen greeting, the line was a bit longer. Might just be that Frozen was more popular, or random chance, but my sense was, the lines grow over time, even though each person has a set time. So if avoiding lines is important to you, maybe going for an early time is a good thing.

 

[amerz77]

You all are making me hopeful. I think I have checked every hour, hopeful an availability has opened. My girls and I (not going to lie...lol) would be devastated if we didn't do princess meet and greet.

 

[For the love of Pooh]

My daughter and I booked a Christmas cruise the first week of December on the Wonder about a month before the cruise and were still able to book tickets online for both Frozen and Princesses.