New Ship to be in Asia?

[Brennan_Crowe]

I read the article about DCL expanding to a second terminal at Port Canaveral yesterday. That reminded me of a conversation I had with a cast member on the Disney Dream from my last cruise on June 10th-15th where she said that DCL was looking at a second private island in the Philippines? Her husband and her were both from the Philippines. She told me they were looking for people that know or could learn Chinese. I was thinking that if DCL were to do an Asian based cruise, it could tie into Hong Kong Disneyland. There are a number of cruises out of Hong Kong and this would fill in a need for family style cruising. This would be a convenient location for the APAC market segment and if they do get a new island in the Philippians, then this would be a great port for those type of itineraries for them to be based due to the major hub airport and ties to the park there. So, when the new ships start rolling out in 2021 through 2023, what are the chances that one of those gets placed over in Asia?

 

[southerngirl528]

So, when the new ships start rolling out in 2021 through 2023, what are the chances that one of those gets placed over in Asia?

There have been tons of rumors circulating on this since the new ships were announced. Personally, I think it would be great! But it remains to be seen if they do it. I do hope they expand out to more itineraries with the new ships.

 

[Soham KB]

Personally, I’d love to see the new ships go to different places.
Since the four right now are all based in southern US, I think that it would be awesome to
a) have a private island in the Philippines
b) tie in with Disneyland Hong Kong
We shall see ..

 

[jlemieu1]

I so hope they go to Asia!!!!! I've been asking crew for years trying to plant a seed.

 

[jdb in AZ]

If DCL expands into Asia, I would imagine they'd send the Magic there to "test the waters" so to speak, and put the new ships in tried and true itineraries.

 

[DynamicDisneyDuo]

If DCL expands into Asia, I would imagine they'd send the Magic there to "test the waters" so to speak, and put the new ships in tried and true itineraries.

I'm also wondering if, as a condition of recent announcements re: Port Canaveral and DCL, if one or more of the new ships won't be contractually obligated to home port out of PC for a while.

 

[Keone2002]

I too want to see expanded itineraries. Based off what I have read, rumors are the new ships will initially be in the caribbean - the market is just so big and caribbean equal high profits for all cruise lines.

 

[Shanti]

I read the article about DCL expanding to a second terminal at Port Canaveral yesterday. That reminded me of a conversation I had with a cast member on the Disney Dream from my last cruise on June 10th-15th where she said that DCL was looking at a second private island in the Philippines? Her husband and her were both from the Philippines. She told me they were looking for people that know or could learn Chinese. I was thinking that if DCL were to do an Asian based cruise, it could tie into Hong Kong Disneyland. There are a number of cruises out of Hong Kong and this would fill in a need for family style cruising. This would be a convenient location for the APAC market segment and if they do get a new island in the Philippians, then this would be a great port for those type of itineraries for them to be based due to the major hub airport and ties to the park there. So, when the new ships start rolling out in 2021 through 2023, what are the chances that one of those gets placed over in Asia?

I would be very surprised if none of the ships were sent to Asia after the new 3 come out. There is a big Asian market for Disney, and it would be easier for Australians to cruise from Asia, too.

 

[Agent 86]

I'd be happy with Asia (since Australia is probably asking for too much).

I've never been to the Philippines, so I have no idea what their islands / beaches are like. But, if Disney is looking to go there, I'm sure it must be pretty decent. And Chinese-speaking cast members makes sense. Chinese international tourism is a growing at a phenomenal rate. And with Shanghai Disney, it would be wise to further try to tap into that market.

 

[gotomu212]

If DCL expands into Asia, I would imagine they'd send the Magic there to "test the waters" so to speak, and put the new ships in tried and true itineraries.

I have read a few good articles about other lines in Asia. There are a few things that are customized to better suit those markets and it’s apparently difficult to bring an existing ship over without tweaks (dining and public areas were the big specialization). There’s some though that that with 3 new ships, 1 could be built to accommodate the Asian market.

 

[mmmears]

I'd welcome any new and interesting itineraries. We haven't taken many Disney cruises since going around in a circle in the Caribbean just doesn't work for us. When we travel (well, other than an occasional trip to WDW or DL) we want to see new places.

 

[Intr3pid]

We have indeed discussed this topic in the new ships thread. One ship should head to Asia at some point. The Caribbeans has too much competition and deteriorating profit margins. Hurricanes and viruses aren't helping either.

I doubt any private island will be in the mix in Asia. (You need one in Caribbeans to compete.) The cruise itinerary should theoretically connect Tokyo Disneyland with Shanghai Disney Resort and Hong Kong Disneyland.

Hong Kong Disneyland has been in a grind against the Ocean Park and honestly could use a cruise boost. ABD now also has year-round HK/China/Cambodia/Vietnam tours.

A permanent ship in Asia can do Japan and China in the summer. China and Southeast Asia in the fall and spring. And Southeast Asia / Australia in the winter (our winter).

A part-time ship could be more ambitious. Summer in Alaska, reposition to Hawaii and then to Asia in early fall, the rest of the season in Asia, and then return to Alaska through Hawaii in late spring.

One wildcard though is this new trade tension. 'Disney heading to China' may not be the most amusing news to start the day for you know who.

 

[3monkeys4me]

I'd love to see a Disney ship in Asia...though it will likely be several years before we head back to Asia to travel. I've been to 2 out of the 3 Disney parks in Asia now (heading to Tokyo in October to round out the trio) and it seems like there would be a market for Disney here. Cruises and Disney are both pretty popular, and it would be closer to Australia too.

I could easily see the ship based out of Hong Kong or Shanghai to tie into the Disney parks there.

 

[mousefan73]

I'd be happy with Asia (since Australia is probably asking for too much).

I've never been to the Philippines, so I have no idea what their islands / beaches are like. But, if Disney is looking to go there, I'm sure it must be pretty decent. And Chinese-speaking cast members makes sense. Chinese international tourism is a growing at a phenomenal rate. And with Shanghai Disney, it would be wise to further try to tap into that market.

Beaches in phillipines are awesome. Friend just spent a month there

 

[mmouse37]

I'd be interesting in cruising DCL in Asia....I had not heard any rumor about an island in Philippines but I have heard of them scouting a second island in the Bahamas. That was a discussion fairly recently on the Dis.

MJ

 

[GPaLarry]

Living in Oregon, I have always wished one of the new ships would be based on the west coast. Going to Hawaii and/or Australia/NZ would be awesome. Looking at the routes other cruise lines cover might give you an idea of DCL's potential cruise plans. Maybe one ship would go around the world and my wife and I could live on it..."only if you believe."

 

[Currahee]

I am a Filipino-American and we have the top 10 beaches in the world, including the islands of El Nido, Palawan and Boracay to name a few. Try 'googleing' pictures of those beaches. We just got off the Dream last spring break and spoke to the Filipino head waiter and he did mention about Disney going to Asia but was not specific. It would be great for Disney to extend their ships that far as they do have Disneyland in Shanghai and Hong Kong.

 

[Intr3pid]

I am a Filipino-American and we have the top 10 beaches in the world, including the islands of El Nido, Palawan and Boracay to name a few. Try 'googleing' pictures of those beaches. We just got off the Dream last spring break and spoke to the Filipino head waiter and he did mention about Disney going to Asia but was not specific. It would be great for Disney to extend their ships that far as they do have Disneyland in Shanghai and Hong Kong.

El Nido and the Big Lagoon. You can catch a glimpse in the ending scene of The Bourne Legacy.

 

[Keone2002]

I would be very surprised if none of the ships were sent to Asia after the new 3 come out. There is a big Asian market for Disney, and it would be easier for Australians to cruise from Asia, too.

I agree that Asia would be a great market and would love to do it myself. As one of the other post mentioned I too was told by a Crew Member in May on the Fantasy that DCL was looking for another Caribbean island. I understand from a couple of online post they have found an island and that details are being worked out. In addition to other articles just this week from Florida news publications that Port Canaveral was studying how to expand in order to serve more than one DCL ship at port on the same day. All this does point to DCL increasing Caribbean presence in some respects. I do think its possible that one of the larger ships will find a place in Asia, will it be one of the new ships, or the current Dream or Fantasy is totally up in the air. If one of the ships does end up there, I will seriously consider the option.

 

[gotomu212]

The other thing that might help with China is that they relaxed their visa requirements last year. Getting off the ship in Shanghai is possible without a visa (although the rules are still murky and some things need to be tightened up). Chinese visas, especially for certain professions, can be difficult to get and it’s a time co summing process. These transit visa exceptions might make a big difference if they want to visit mainland China and do a Shanghai tie in.