New to DCL

[ten6mom]

Hi all. I am usually more of a Disneyland person but my sister has gotten it in her head that we NEED to try a Disney cruise next fall. We are looking at the 3 night on Disney Wonder out of San Diego.

I went on the DCL website and I am having a really hard time finding some information. I figured the experts here can definitely help

I've been on 2 prior cruises... but only 1 recently (Carnival). My sister recently sailed on a Princess Cruise.

Basically what I would like to know is, what is procedurally DIFFERENT about a Disney cruise? On the web site I don't seem to see, for example, the actual itinerary. (I know it only stops in Ensenada, but I don't know if we get the Sea Day first, or afterwards, for example.

Does it say somewhere which night we'll be dining at which restaurant? I think they do a rotating dining schedule but I can't find any specifics on that.

Also, my total traveling group will be 5 kids and 10 adults. Any guesses on what dining arrangements might look like?

Do we get to choose a dining time (Is there an early/late) or do they just assign it? If my parents and my kids (kids staying in MY room) want to eat early but my husband and I prefer to eat late.... is that doable?

Is there ever any difficulty getting kids (6, 8, 10, 12, and 13) signed up for the various kids' club activities, or is it pretty easy to get in?

What is the suggested gratuity per person per day on DCL? $13/pp/pd?

I would like to see about an OBC, which I assume means I'll probably have to go with either a TA or with Costco travel (Costco has a "costco cash" card with theirs which I am assuming means like a Costco GC, which is fine). Is this accurate, to the best of everyone's knowledge?

Thanks in advance for everyone's help. I hate to drop this kind of (non refundable!!!!) money without truly knowing what I am getting myself into! But time is of the essense (of course we waited too long).

Thank you!

 

[TestingH2O]

Hi all. I am usually more of a Disneyland person but my sister has gotten it in her head that we NEED to try a Disney cruise next fall. We are looking at the 3 night on Disney Wonder out of San Diego.

I went on the DCL website and I am having a really hard time finding some information. I figured the experts here can definitely help

I've been on 2 prior cruises... but only 1 recently (Carnival). My sister recently sailed on a Princess Cruise.

Basically what I would like to know is, what is procedurally DIFFERENT about a Disney cruise? On the web site I don't seem to see, for example, the actual itinerary. (I know it only stops in Ensenada, but I don't know if we get the Sea Day first, or afterwards, for example.

When you search for a cruise and see the list of options, under the date you'll see a clickable link called Ports of Call. That will tell you the daily ports.

Does it say somewhere which night we'll be dining at which restaurant? I think they do a rotating dining schedule but I can't find any specifics on that.

You'll get your rotation when you board. Everyone gets each restaurant for their signature menu.

Also, my total traveling group will be 5 kids and 10 adults. Any guesses on what dining arrangements might look like?

Assuming you link your reservations, you'll all be seated together.

Do we get to choose a dining time (Is there an early/late) or do they just assign it? If my parents and my kids (kids staying in MY room) want to eat early but my husband and I prefer to eat late.... is that doable?

Generally all occupants in a room are assigned the same time. You could do a couple things though. You could list your kids with your parents and then just have them sleep with you. Or you could put your room on late dining and let your kids eat on the pool deck, in the club, or via room service.

Is there ever any difficulty getting kids (6, 8, 10, 12, and 13) signed up for the various kids' club activities, or is it pretty easy to get in?

DCL only allows you to book with kids of a certain age if there is room in the clubs. Character meets are mostly first come first serve. There are a couple ticketed meets, and you can get tickets to those before boarding.

What is the suggested gratuity per person per day on DCL? $13/pp/pd?

$12

I would like to see about an OBC, which I assume means I'll probably have to go with either a TA or with Costco travel (Costco has a "costco cash" card with theirs which I am assuming means like a Costco GC, which is fine). Is this accurate, to the best of everyone's knowledge?

I'm not sure what your question is. Yes, Costco gives a gift card if you book through them. There are also other agencies that offer OBC. Dreams Uimited sponsors this board and offers a credit. You can also get credit by using your Disney Visa card.

Thanks in advance for everyone's help. I hate to drop this kind of (non refundable!!!!) money without truly knowing what I am getting myself into! But time is of the essense (of course we waited too long).

Thank you!

Non concierge deposits are refundable until about 90 days before you sail.

Good luck deciding! Never hesitate to ask questions.

 

[CM Dad]

On the DCL website, when you find the cruise you want, click on the Ports of Call link and then scroll down on the popup. It should show where you will be each day and for port days what the guest ashore and guest onboard times are. It will list the At Sea days.

You will do rotational dining, so you will be assigned to each of the restaurants on a specific night. Your serving team follows you to each of the dining rooms. You don't find out the exact order of restaurants until you board and it will be indicated on the Key To The World card you get at checking.

If you want all 15 in your travelling party to dine together (or at least be assigned to the same dining room and time), you should have all the reservations linked together. We have traveled with a total of 15 (our kids and grandkids) once and did that. We were all seated at a single large table.

There are two dining times that are assigned, main dining 6:30ish and second seating around 8:15. I have a travel agent make my reservations so I don't know if there is an option to select which you want when you make a reservation, but I do know that on the DCL web site, it you look at an existing reservation, there is an option to change the dining. This change may just be a request.

As far as I know, everyone in a stateroom will be assigned to the same dining room/table, so not sure how you could schedule your kids in your room to eat at a different time with your parents. On the day you board the ship, there will be a location and time were you can discuss dining changes, maybe you could ask there about changing the assignments to handle this. Also, you are not required to eat in the assigned Main Dining Room if you don't want to. There will be restaurant on Deck 9 that anyone can go to during its open hours.

Should be easy getting your kids in any of the activities.

Currently DCL will automatically add $12/pp/pd gratuity to your stateroom account. That is a default. You can got to Guest Services to modify that if you want. We typically leave that alone. You will get a sheet with tear off pieces that show the 4 tipped positions with amounts and envelopes for each of those. We usually add that tear off plus some extra cash in the envelopes and hand the envelopes to the crew members the last evening.

For OBC, yes a TA (or Costco as TA) would be options. Not all TAs offer this, so if it is important, check this out ahead of time. If you book the cruise yourself, you can transfer to a TA within 30 days, but the OBC you get from the TA might be reduce, since DCL reduces the commision they give the TA in this case.

There are some other ways to save money, besides OBC. You can open a Disney Vacation Account (https://disneyvacationaccount.disney.go.com/). If the account is open for at least 120 days before you pay, you will get a $20 Disney Gift Card for every $1000 you spend on a Disney Vacation (not just cruise). You can also pay for you cruise with Disney gift cards. Some places sell discount Disney giftcards (Sam's club, BJs wholesale), some grocery chains offer bonus fuels points sometimes, and if you have a Target Red car (credit or debit), you can get Disney gift cards got 5% off.

If you think you might want to take another DCL cruise within 24 months of your San Diego cruise, consider booking while onboard. They are currently offering 10% off the cruise faire plus stateroom credits ($200 for 7 days or more, $100 for shorter) and reduced deposit of %10 if booking a 7 day cruise. If you don't know when in the time you want to cruise, you can also make a placeholder reservation for a flat $250 deposit.

Why is this non-refundable? Unless you are booking concierge level you would be able to cancel up until your Paid In Full date for your cruise to cancel and get a full refund.

 

[ten6mom]

Thank you for the tips so far!

Perhaps I misunderstood the terms and conditions. Let me see if I can find it.....

CRUISE CANCELLATION FEES:
CATEGORIES WITH RESTRICTIONS: Reservations for Inside, Outside or Verandah Categories with Restrictions are NONREFUNDABLE and NONTRANSFERABLE. A 100% cruise cancellation fee applies from time of payment.

Cruises 1 to 5 Nights Where Embark or Debark is U.S. Port (Excluding Suites and Concierge Staterooms)
Days Prior to Vacation Commencement Date
Fee Amount
Standard Sailings
Holiday Sailings*
74-45 days 89-65 days Deposit per Guest
44-30 days 64-43 days 50% of vacation price per Guest
29-15 days 42-15 days 75% of vacation price per Guest
14 days or less 14 days or less 100% of vacation price per Guest

Sorry the columns got kind of messed up. Does this mean that as long as i cancel MORE THAN 74 days out, the whole deposit is refundable??

I was probably reading it wrong.

If that's the case it makes me feel much better!

 

[TestingH2O]

It's talking about restricted fares like a garauntee or concierge. Typical bookings are refundable within the window. Assuming you are looking at a standard sailing, you're good. Using a TA will help clarify all of those dates. They can also book and put a 24 hour hold on your rooms while you figure out exact terms.

Keep asking questions. Most people are happy to help.

 

[Shanti]

CRUISE CANCELLATION FEES:
CATEGORIES WITH RESTRICTIONS: Reservations for Inside, Outside or Verandah Categories with Restrictions are NONREFUNDABLE and NONTRANSFERABLE. A 100% cruise cancellation fee applies from time of payment.

Cruises 1 to 5 Nights Where Embark or Debark is U.S. Port (Excluding Suites and Concierge Staterooms)
Days Prior to Vacation Commencement Date
Fee Amount
Standard Sailings
Holiday Sailings*
74-45 days 89-65 days Deposit per Guest
44-30 days 64-43 days 50% of vacation price per Guest
29-15 days 42-15 days 75% of vacation price per Guest
14 days or less 14 days or less 100% of vacation price per Guest

Sorry the columns got kind of messed up. Does this mean that as long as i cancel MORE THAN 74 days out, the whole deposit is refundable??

I was probably reading it wrong.

If that's the case it makes me feel much better!

Yes, as long as you're not booking concierge or one of the restricted categories, you get a complete refund before the dates listed that cause a loss of the deposit. I've cancelled with DCL multiple times & never had an issue with getting all of my money back.

Good luck with your cruise, & be sure to insure your trip.