Mouseinfo reports DCL to go to california too?

[Lloyd Dobler]

Originally posted by Miss Jasmine
how crazy would I be to fly across the country when I live about 45 minutes away from Port Canaveral??!!??!!

No crazier than we were for flying across the country to Port Canaveral when we lived 45 from DL....

 

[erikthewise]

This is all potentially very exciting, but there is no way no way nooo waaay that the Magic will move to the West Coast unless a new ship is available to replace it at Port Canaveral. Regardless of how much weight Ouimet carries, the very successful Magic sailings will not be terminated. There are always rumors of new ships, but if it's going to start sailing Spring 2005 it must already be under construction. Where are the facts, stories, or at least more substantial rumors, about this new ship?

 

[ivanova]

The rumors started flying out of TDA (Team Disney Administration) at DL shortly after Ouimet reported for work ... apparently, along with touring the DLR parks, he has been touring the local docks & cruise terminals, which I'm sure is what has fueled the rumor flames.

DLR is desperate to do SOMETHING for the 50th ... and all that's lined up now is a new parade and new fireworks (Space Mtn and Buzz Lightyear openings won't be until Nov 2005).

One thing about the 50th anniversary celebration is that they are taking it global. The Miceage article mentions the kick-off in Feb 2004 and how it will be synced live with Tokyo & Paris during the official kick-off announcement.

Who's to say that they won't temporarily relocate the Magic or Wonder for 6 months or so in 2005 (which could explain why you can't book past March or April 2005 right now) to the west coast? All of the Disney parks globally will participate in the celebration, so why wouldn't they tie in DCL to the celebration? What better excuse to test the west coast cruising climate? They do it for 6 months, and if it's a flop they send the ship back to Florida no harm no fowl. If it's a roaring success, then they use that opportunity to announce the building of ship #3 which will sail out of Calif in 2008 (or whenever) upon completion of building.

They probably feel like they're nuts for permanently setting up a ship out here untested......

And if this is what they care contemplating doing, what will cruisers in Florida do? I bet they schedule cruises something along these lines:

week #1 - 3 day, 4 day
week #2 - 7 day western
week #3 - 3 day, 4 day
week #4 - 7 day eastern

In a 6 week period this would be 3 3 days, 3 4 days and 3 7 day ccruises. The alternative would be week #1 3 day, 4 day, week #2 7 day western, week #3 7 day eastern, week #4 3 day, 4 day. This would then be 4 of the 7 day cruises in a 6 week period and only 2 of the 3 day and 4 day cruises every 6 weeks.

If they do this then the 7 day cruises will shift to Sunday-Sunday itineraries instead of their current Saturday-Saturday schedule. This way they can still offer their popular 3 day, 4 day and 7 day cruises out of Port Canaveral, but only 1/2 as often. I'd be guessing they'll expereince more sell outs during that time frame (won't hurt their feelings) and we'll see fewer upgrades on those cruises (due to full capacities).

 

[CamColt]

Nooooo! Ive been planning my 10th anniversary cruise(7/05) for years now. If the Magic goes to the west coast, my cruise is out the window.

 

[ThreeCircles]

Originally posted by ivanova
Who's to say that they won't temporarily relocate the Magic or Wonder for 6 months or so in 2005 (which could explain why you can't book past March or April 2005 right now) to the west coast?

I don't think Disney is going to do this as it would make very little financial sense.

For one, you don't just "move a cruise ship." There is much land-based infrastructure that keeps the Magic and the Wonder operating. You have docking contracts, food/beverage purchasing/storage, ticketing/booking agents, etc.

Another question to ask... Does Disney really need to "test" a CA based ship out? With the success of the ships in Florida and considering the number of CA residents that fly to Florida to sail on DCL, I'm pretty sure they're confident that a ship (or two) in CA would do fine. And, if this is the case, I'm sure they're just going to do it the Disney way and build their own terminal and the associated infrastructure as they did in Florida.

Finally, I seriously doubt that Disney is going to move one of their ships simply for the 50th anniversary of Disneyland. They are doing well where they are. Common sense would say that you don't fix something that isn't broken...

As for not being able to book beyond Spring 2005... Well, they have to cut it off somewhere, right? I don't think any cruise line is taking reservations for cruises in 2010.

 

[trishy]

Well, in any case, if the powers that be are reading this thread: PLEASE BRING A SHIP TO CALIFORNIA - PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE Because I hate to fly..........

 

[Nick@ VB+OKW]

Originally posted by trishy
Well, in any case, if the powers that be are reading this thread: PLEASE BRING A SHIP TO CALIFORNIA - PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE Because I hate to fly..........

......

........

 

[trishy]

Hey Nick, tell me, are you one of the "powers that be"?

because I really don't like to fly -
just scares the u-no-? out of me

 

[jrabbit]

ThreeCircles: DCL isn't broken, but the Disneyland Resort is and the addition of a cruise ship quite likely would help. It could bring some of you east coasters out west. (even though you are on Florida's west coast - that doesn't count )