Positives and Negatives of Back to Back cruising on DCL?

[jenhelgren]

I'm not sure if there is already a thread similar to this question but we are considering our first back to back cruise on DCL and I am trying to think out the pros and cons of cruising back to back. If you have the same cabin for both cruises-do you always keep the same wait staff or does it vary? Having the kids club closed most of the first day and participating in double safety drills before sail away are some instant negatives that pop into my mind. Are there any perks besides possibly getting a better price on two shorter cruises than we would get on a longer cruise?

 

[ahain]

The only "perk" that I see in B2B is getting CC credit for 2 cruises instead of one. I have never done a B2B, but assuming your looking at 3 or 4 night cruises, I don't think I would care for feeling like the transition day is basically lost in the shuffle.

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

I'm not sure if there is already a thread similar to this question but we are considering our first back to back cruise on DCL and I am trying to think out the pros and cons of cruising back to back. If you have the same cabin for both cruises-do you always keep the same wait staff or does it vary? Having the kids club closed most of the first day and participating in double safety drills before sail away are some instant negatives that pop into my mind. Are there any perks besides possibly getting a better price on two shorter cruises than we would get on a longer cruise?

When we've priced out B2B on the Dream vs 7 nights on the Fantasy, Fantasy was cheaper. However if 2 stops at Castaway Cay is a big deal for you then go with a B2B.

 

[n2mm]

We are doing our first b2b next week. Some of the positives for us is knowing we can skip a show and see it on second cruise, being able to book 2 future cruises, castaway cay twice, relaxing more because we don't have to do it all, getting credit for 2 cruises as we get closer to platinum, 2 nights of fireworks, to name a few. Negatives are doing 2 drills, but they don't take too long, getting off for a couple of hours at port canaveral, though we are the first ones back on the ship. Of course there are the little positive things too like two castaway club gifts, 2 sets of dvc gifts, enjoying the same menu twice if we want, or skipping a dining room and eating at cabanas or palo if we want. I've done the 7 night a few times, but it was around $800 more so thought we would try our first b2b.

I did a little research and my reservations are linked. On departure day they hold the b2b travelers in a lounge area until everyone leaves the ship. Then you get off, go through customs, then check back in. You wait in the platinum lounge area. You get back on first before any other level.

 

[millie]

I am doing a back to back on the Dream in October but the 3 night is with my daughter and then she leaves and my husband is flying down for the 4 night with me. Does anyone know if he will be able to board with me or will I have to wait and board with his boarding number?

 

[tinkerone]

I did a little research and my reservations are linked. On departure day they hold the b2b travelers in a lounge area until everyone leaves the ship. Then you get off, go through customs, then check back in. You wait in the platinum lounge area. You get back on first before any other level.

if your b2b is from port Canaveral you may not find this true. the rest of the ports I don't know about however we have done many b2b's, all on the fantasy, and have always had to disembark on our own. I have read of this happening for people and I have read also that it depends on how many people actually are doing the b2b's but don't count on it as fact. its still easy enough to do, you just do it on your own.

 

[n2mm]

if your b2b is from port Canaveral you may not find this true. the rest of the ports I don't know about however we have done many b2b's, all on the fantasy, and have always had to disembark on our own. I have read of this happening for people and I have read also that it depends on how many people actually are doing the b2b's but don't count on it as fact. its still easy enough to do, you just do it on your own.

Thanks, good to know. I got my info from several people who recently done B2B who said they got letters in their cabin the evening prior and gave them instructions on staying back. My TA said the same thing. Though I certainly know things change, so I'll be prepared. We are on the Magic, same cabin.

 

[CamColt]

We have done 2 B2Bs and actually had a 3rd booked but they cancelled 1 of those cruises on us. We don't care so much about the ports, it's more about the cruise experience for us, just being on the ship. The only port we really care about is CC, so getting there twice is great. We have done the 4 night/3 night so on the first cruise we saw the main shows and did all 4 MDR dinners. On the 3 night we skipped the shows (more time to relax by the pool, and to do the other littles things that happen at show time), and it didn't matter what night we booked Palo for since we weren't missing anything we hadn't done.

As for getting back on the ship, it was different both times. Once they had everyone doing B2Bs wait right before going down the escalators. They brought us down and around as a group and had us wait until the ship was cleared, just a short time, and then let us back on. LOVE having the ship to a limited few for a couple hours. There was no trouble getting a lounge chair by the pool. The second time we were let off on our own to walk around, and had to wait a bit longer. We didn't really have much time before the other guests were let on but we still got a jump start.

The negative that would bother me in doing it again, is we would only get our OBB benefits on 1 of the cruises so it would likely be less expensive to do a 7 nights and get more of an OBC.

 

[peterpanstout]

We have done several b2b cruise and love them. Most of ours have been in Miami on the Wonder in the same cabin. After breakfast we met in the lounge, a crew member took us off the ship, we waited for them to clear the ship then were allowed back on. It is the same every time. I didn't feel like it was a lost day. More like a down morning! I would start my laundry in morning, (no waiting for machines!) and finish when we got back on board. We were allowed back to our cabins and did not have to wait. They asked us to hang out at the adult pool and kept food out in the Cove lounge. DS thought that was pretty cool!

Only down side was drill twice.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I am doing a back to back on the Dream in October but the 3 night is with my daughter and then she leaves and my husband is flying down for the 4 night with me. Does anyone know if he will be able to board with me or will I have to wait and board with his boarding number?

If you wish to board together, you'll have to wait for his boarding number to be called.

 

[jenhelgren]

Thanks for all the input. It really helps to hear everyone's opinion and I forgot about 2 fireworks shows!!
I probably should have mentioned that the cruises we are looking at are the Galveston to San Juan and San Juan to Port Canaveral. I am assuming there will be a ton of B2B cruisers for these cruises. The 6 night does not stop at Castaway-so we would only get 1 CC stop
Our last 7 night on the Wonder we got a character breakfast and I don't even know if DCL has character breakfast or 7 night cruise perks anymore but I am wondering if we would miss out on any since it is only a 6 night cruise. Would disembarkation/embarkation be any different at San Juan port?
Did anyone B2B from San Juan this year that has any comments?

 

[TestingH2O]

Thanks for all the input. It really helps to hear everyone's opinion and I forgot about 2 fireworks shows!!
I probably should have mentioned that the cruises we are looking at are the Galveston to San Juan and San Juan to Port Canaveral. I am assuming there will be a ton of B2B cruisers for these cruises. The 6 night does not stop at Castaway-so we would only get 1 CC stop
Our last 7 night on the Wonder we got a character breakfast and I don't even know if DCL has character breakfast or 7 night cruise perks anymore but I am wondering if we would miss out on any since it is only a 6 night cruise. Would disembarkation/embarkation be any different at San Juan port?
Did anyone B2B from San Juan this year that has any comments?

I thought I read it was illegal to do those 2 cruises B2B.

 

[kiford]

If you have the same cabin for both cruises-do you always keep the same wait staff or does it vary?

They'll ask if you want the same wait staff. We liked our servers so we kept them. If you don't get asked what your preference is, check with your Head Server.

On departure day they hold the b2b travelers in a lounge area until everyone leaves the ship. Then you get off, go through customs, then check back in.

Depends on whether or not there are a lot of others doing B2B. There were only 3 families including ours when we did our B2B so we were just told to disembark, go through customs and go back upstairs and check back in. We were then placed in the Concierge lounge and let back on at 10:30. You'll get a letter the night before telling you what to do.

Another benefit if you choose to take advantage is the ability to book both Palo and Remy for dinner twice each. We only booked one of each because we wanted to get a chance to see all of the dining rooms since it was our first time on the Dream. The disadvantage to doing two Palo/Remy's is that is that if you like your tablemates, you won't see them for much because the shortness of the two legs. I'm glad we didn't do two because on our second leg we had told our Head Server that we wanted the same servers and we were originally scheduled to be at a table of our own (which we wouldn't have liked anyway because we like meeting new people). He put us at another table and one of the couples turned out to be someone we'd sat with on our prior cruise the year before and who we got along really well with. We missed one night with them because of Remy so I'm glad we didn't miss more. It was probably one of the most relaxing vacations I've ever had.

We liked having repeat menus because it gave me a chance to try a few different things. We liked having repeat shows because we didn't feel the need to go every night - we were able to see all of them spread over a few more days. We didn't care about the ports (Nassau and CC) so we spent most of our time on the ship. We only got off once at Nassau (for lunch) and at CC we just got off for lunch and then spent the rest of the time on the ship.

We didn't find the turnaround day to be terribly much of a loss as others people have said. Yes, there was the time we spent going through customs (45 min?) but even waiting to get back on the ship we spent the time sitting in a lounge reading. If we hadn't got off the ship, we would have been sitting in a lounge reading. When we got back on the ship, most things aren't open so we went to the Cove Cafe, had a coffee and sat reading. Which we would have been doing had we not left the ship. I'd be quite happy to do another B2B.

 

[SnowWhite2]

Just got off the Wonder last week from the last Southern Caribbean from San Juan and then did the B2B San Juan/Miami repo. It was a 7 day then a 5 day. I heard there were 25% of the people doing the B2B. You are going on two Disney cruises so how bad can it be! In San Juan, those of us that were returning to the ship immediately after disembarking were to meet in Wavebands at 9:45 and then we were all escorted off the ship, through customs, back upstairs to check-in and get our KTTW cards and then immediately boarded. No one to announce you as you entered this time. (one down side)

We all went to Cove Cafe or the pools and hung out until lunch time. There were snacks in Cove Cafe and they allowed everyone to order a free coffee drink. We don't drink coffee but it was a nice for those that do. We had brought our Tervis cups so we went to the soda fountain for drinks and just hung out and read magazines in the comfy chairs in Outlook Cafe.

Let me know if you have any specific questions. I'd be glad to answer them.

Oh, and about two days prior to the end of cruise one, we received a notice of a port adventure in San Juan. It was basically a tour of old and new San Juan and it was pretty cheap - about $35. I think the staff started to panic that they were going to have 400 or so people roaming around the ship between cruises and wanted to find a way for some people to get off for awhile.

 

[Bella29]

We did a b2b on the Magic our of Miami in January, here is our experience:

pros:
(1) Castway Cay twice
(2) 2x shows - we went to them all the first time, the second time only the one we loved (Tangled).
(3) more time to get to know the staff, a little extra quiet time on board during the transition day where you're already settled and everyone else is a "newbie".
(4) in general the second segment was much more relaxing (partially because the first was a 4 night with no sea days)

cons:
(1) repeating menus - we did a 4 night and a 5 night so 4 menus were repeated and it was too close together.
(2) repeating movies - we would have liked more variety in the BV movie theater schedule but they were just showing the same ones we had seen the week before.
(3) no boarding family photo the second time.
(4) the transition took 2 hours total and I thought it was very poorly handled. The letter said to meet in a lounge at 9 or when the "last call" was, but didn't say when last call would be, we showed up at 9. We sat there for an hour. A CM stood in the middle of the room with a clipboard and called room numbers repeatedly. There were only 20 or so people there, so it would have been easier and more pleasant if she had walked around to check off each person that was there, but instead she droned on calling the room numbers of the people that weren't there... for a long time. The missing pax may have actually been contractors who were sitting out in the hall. There were also 8 non-b2b passengers that were late getting off the ship and there was a lot of confusion around this. Our group was herded off like cattle and told to stop here. Now move forward 50 yards. Now stop here. Wait and watch 4 passengers pass by. Now move another 50 feet. Now wait here. Watch the final 4 stragglers go (and resist booing them, who knows why they are late). Go through customs, now wait here. One CM yells to our shepherder "don't put them in concierge", presumably because we are so behind schedule. We finally get into the departure terminal, which already has new passengers checking in. We wait in line to check in behind newly arriving passengers. We finally check in, and the CM checking us in is utterly clueless as to how b2b works. We're visibly wearing our lanyards, she's strangely offended that we don't want 4 more. Then we wait in the main waiting area for awhile and reboard. All told, two full hours of vacation wasted. More than the time, it was the treatment that I couldn't stand. I avoid Disney excursions because I don't like being herded around like cattle, and this was 10x worse. And the Miami terminal, especially where we were waiting in line before checking in, is not a pleasant area. Other than the form letter from Karl Holz thanking us for cruising b2b, it was clear that we were a real PITB to the staff in charge of the transition.


I have heard better things from other b2b cruisers about the transition, especially at the Port Canaveral terminal, so I hope our experience with the transition is an anomaly. In general, I would not suggest a b2b if you haven't cruised Disney before. It's not a good first experience because it's just weird. I think the 7 nights are scheduled really well as far as shows and meals. If you're an experienced Disney cruiser and the b2b works better in your schedule or budget, then go for it. Even with the minor irritations we had, I would like to do a 7/7 b2b next year, not because I love b2bs but because I want to cruise twice without flying twice.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Thanks for all the input. It really helps to hear everyone's opinion and I forgot about 2 fireworks shows!!
I probably should have mentioned that the cruises we are looking at are the Galveston to San Juan and San Juan to Port Canaveral. I am assuming there will be a ton of B2B cruisers for these cruises. The 6 night does not stop at Castaway-so we would only get 1 CC stop
Our last 7 night on the Wonder we got a character breakfast and I don't even know if DCL has character breakfast or 7 night cruise perks anymore but I am wondering if we would miss out on any since it is only a 6 night cruise. Would disembarkation/embarkation be any different at San Juan port?
Did anyone B2B from San Juan this year that has any comments?

Chances are you won't be able to book those two cruises back to back. It violates the PVSA.

I thought I read it was illegal to do those 2 cruises B2B.

It is.

 

[CamColt]

Another pro IMO, was the last night of the first cruise, when you know that sad last night feeling that everyone else is experience, and the rush to be packing up to get the luggage out, you are not dealing with any of that. Sure, you have to do it in a few days, but it's still a great feeling knowing your cruise is not over like everyone else's.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

@jenhelgren - in case you missed it - those two cruises can't be taken B2B.

 

[tltay2005]

We are looking into doing one, my question is about luggage. If we do add onto our current cruise, we would not have the same room. What do you do with your luggage? Do you still put it out the night before, claim it and then turn around and drop it back off?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

We are looking into doing one, my question is about luggage. If we do add onto our current cruise, we would not have the same room. What do you do with your luggage? Do you still put it out the night before, claim it and then turn around and drop it back off?

You pack up your bags, and your room host will see to getting to your next room. All you take off the ship are what you need to check in (ID, etc). Plus something to keep yourself amused during the wait, as well as any electronics and medications.