Pricing fluctuations

[atoz786]

Do Disney pricing fluctuate throughout the year until sailing? With other cruise lines they always went up or down and used to be you could track it on cruise fish which no longer exists. Having never sailed on Disney if you book during opening day do they tend to ever go down from that or is it just a one way trajectory up? Thanks

 

[tvguy]

Historically, Disney fares have always gone up the closer it gets to the sailing date. We'll see when they resume if the pandemic changed that.

 

[insureman]

Touring plans has a historical fare tracker that is pretty handy although as @tvguy said the pandemic might have changed the the cruise price structure going forward.

 

[Cheburashka]

Do Disney pricing fluctuate throughout the year until sailing?

Yes. As the ship fills up, the price tends to increase. I say "tends" because prices don't increase on every cruise, particularly on cruises that aren't selling well. High-demand cruises (unusual itineraries like Hawaii, Alaska, Europe, and likely, any sailing of the Wish for a while) increase the most.

Some cruises that aren't as full as Disney wants are opened for discounts a few months before the cruise, but there is no way to know in advance if a certain cruise will get a discount. Discount types are Florida resident discounts, military discounts, and general public "GT" restricted guarantee discounts. If you book a GT cruise, you'll have to pay it in full ASAP & it's non-refundable, and they can put you in any stateroom within or higher than the basic category (inside, oceanview or verandah) that you booked. Aside from these specific discount offers, I have never seen prices go down on a Disney cruise.

You can also try to get a slightly reduced-rate upgrade at the port (from inside to verandah, for example), but DCL doesn't tend to give big discounts for that, unlike some other lines. It's still going to cost.

 

[Cheburashka]

Touring Plans Cruise Fare Tracker

 

[atoz786]

Thanks all, good to know. So basically best bet is to book as soon as possible in most cases.

I did check out touring plans so far no data so hopefully as we get into 2022 there’s some activity.

 

[Disneyland_emily]

It’s historically tiered where the first x people in each category pay price 1 then the next x people pay price 2 and so on. If someone in price 1 cancels the next people still pay price 2/3 etc.

It’s not normally an issue but since so many people have ‘dummy’ bookings that have been moved multiple times its inflated the prices more than usual..

 

[atoz786]

It’s historically tiered where the first x people in each category pay price 1 then the next x people pay price 2 and so on. If someone in price 1 cancels the next people still pay price 2/3 etc.

It’s not normally an issue but since so many people have ‘dummy’ bookings that have been moved multiple times its inflated the prices more than usual..

So if you book the day the pricing is released on 7 day Caribbean sailings are you primarily getting the base pricing majority of the time? I imagine as time goes on and more cabins fill the pricing would increase. I guess for future sailings I am trying to ascertain is it best to book as early as possible. Thanks

 

[Starwind]

So if you book the day the pricing is released on 7 day Caribbean sailings are you primarily getting the base pricing majority of the time? I imagine as time goes on and more cabins fill the pricing would increase. I guess for future sailings I am trying to ascertain is it best to book as early as possible. Thanks

Yes. The day pricing is first released is almost always the cheapest any given cruise will be priced. It will almost always only increase in price. How fast that increase happens depends on how popular it is [ie how quickly it sells].

I have booked a cruise that took months for the price to increase, and I have booked a cruise (Alaska) whose price for my cabin category increased within a week. I have seen some very popular itineraries whose prices increased even faster.

Unless you are booking concierge or certain restricted rates, your deposit is refundable until a certain number of days before the cruise. So if you were to book close to opening day and then for some reason the price dropped, you could (1) call Disney and ask for the cheaper price (I don't know if they would do that or not) or (2) book a new reservation at the cheaper price and then cancel the existing higher priced one (you can even ask them to apply the refund to the new booking).

 

[DisneyMusicMan]

For DCL, a good rule of thumb is to book as early as possible. That’s when fares are lowest. I’ve seen opening day prices stay in effect for months, and in other cases they go up within hours and days. But, in general, the trends don’t indicate fares go down over time. There may be anecdotal examples of when this isn’t the case, but I think those scenarios are few and far between.

 

[lanejudy]

I am trying to ascertain is it best to book as early as possible.

Yes, it is recommended to book earlier rather than later. Fares typically increase. While there may be some last-minute restricted deals that could be lower, no guarantee on that. If your schedule is set and/or you want a specific date, go ahead and book. Waiting works best for folks with flexible schedules and who won’t be upset if they don’t get to go.