New Ports For DCL?

[disneyophile]

I read in my current issue of Disney Magazine that DCL will add new ports to their itinerary. Does anyone have any details? Are they adding more ships, or changing the current itineraries?

 

[invaderzim]

go to www.disneycruise.com and click on rates, dates and more at the top. Then you can select the itineraries. There are a BUNCH of them -- two Eastern Caribbean cruises this August with changed ports. The 10-day Christmas cruise with added ports. And, of course, next year's Mexican Riviera and 14-day repositioning cruises through the Panama Canal.

They are building a third ship, but it is about two years away from completion. Rumor (from a DCL rep) is that it will either be docked on the East Coast in NYC -- or become harbored in California and that next year's trial cruises in California are a test to see how well it would do.

 

[ivanova]

could it be that they are referring to the summer 2005 "new" ports/itineraries?

 

[webray]

Besides the repo sailings...the new ports are for the current intineraries...San Juan and Antigua for the eastern sailings.

You can see the details at disneycruise.com.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Originally posted by invaderzim
They are building a third ship, but it is about two years away from completion.

There is not a third DCL ship under construction -- nor has DCL or a shipyard announced that there is a contract to build one.

Disney had done design and planning work for a fleet expansion. That's been confirmed by captains on the ships and by DCL press representatives.

The word is that Disney has been in talks with various shipyards, but that's as far they've gone. Although other cruise lines have ordered a new ships in recent years (despite 9/11, the economy, the Euro exchange rate, and the huge increase in cruise capacity), Disney has not done so.

 

[invaderzim]

Horace: I have to disagree. I was told on two different occasions by two different DCL reps that they have not only completed the design and contract, but that the ship WAS under construction. Only passing on what DCL told me recently.

 

[ivanova]

If a ship were under construction, it would be on the list of all ships currently under construction, and it's not (Horace, do you have the link to that list handy?). And being the HUGE expenditure that it is, it cannot be kept secret either. So I tend to agree with Horace that there's TALK about building it but it's not currently under construction. The DCL reps may be either been misinformed or miscommunicated the information (i.e. they are waiting for construction bids, etc.).

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Originally posted by ivanova
If a ship were under construction, it would be on the list of all ships currently under construction, and it's not (Horace, do you have the link to that list handy?).

There are several sites that list new builds. I like http://www.cruiseserver.net/travelpage/other/new_build.asp

It may take a few weeks after a contract for a new ship is announced before the lists are updated. But there hasn't been any such announcement from DCL.

Originally posted by ivanova
And being the HUGE expenditure that it is, it cannot be kept secret either.

Exactly. Two 90,000 GRT ships at today's Euro exchange rate will approach USD $1 billion. Public corporations can't hide such financial commitments from their shareholders or from the Federal Government.