Totally new to cruises

[Laneyg]

Planning a trip to WDW was SO fun, even though it was overwhelming. I remember being 100% new to Disney and learning all the little tips to make the most of our trip.

I feel like I'm just starting out again because I am so unfamiliar with DCL. I've never taken a cruise at all, let alone a Disney cruise.

Could someone give me some idea of where I should start my research? We would be a party of 8. 5 adults and 3 "tweens."

What time of year is best? Lower crowds, better price?

How many different options are there as far as where you go? Are there any options where you spend time at Disney World?

What all is included in the price of a cruise?

Thanks for any help on where to start!

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Planning a trip to WDW was SO fun, even though it was overwhelming. I remember being 100% new to Disney and learning all the little tips to make the most of our trip.

I feel like I'm just starting out again because I am so unfamiliar with DCL. I've never taken a cruise at all, let alone a Disney cruise.

Could someone give me some idea of where I should start my research? We would be a party of 8. 5 adults and 3 "tweens."

What time of year is best? Lower crowds, better price?

How many different options are there as far as where you go? Are there any options where you spend time at Disney World?

What all is included in the price of a cruise?

Thanks for any help on where to start!

Well, here is a good start. I'd suggest checking the FAQ sticky for some basic information. And post questions here. Also, have a good look at the DCL website, that will probably also prompt some questions.

DCL generally sails full, so time of year could result in higher (or lower) costs. As the space onboard fill on any given cruise the prices will rise.

DCL has only 4 ships, so itineraries are a little more limited than other cruise lines. The Dream does 3 & 4 night Bahama cruises. The Fantasy primarily does 7 night Eastern & Western Caribbean cruises. The Wonder does Alaska in the summer time, and the Magic does Mediteranean & European cruises in the summer. Other times of the year the Magic & Wonder will "fill" in with various Caribbean cruises.

Most cruises depart out of Port Canaveral, but Miami, Galveston, Barcelona, San Diego, and Vancouver are other embarkation ports DCL uses.

There aren't any land and sea packages, but you certainly can book a WDW trip that coincides with a cruise (either beforehand or afterwards).

Included in cruise price is meals (except extra cost adult dining); soft drinks from the drink stations and in the dining rooms. Room service (except for select items). Shows, movies, kid's clubs are all included. Various shipboard activities - crafts, trivia, characters.

 

[FigmentSpark]

I just started reading threads that interested me and then asking my own questions as they came to me. I also kept a document open where I could copy and paste any information I thought I needed to know. I didn't really use much of that, but at the time, it reinforced the information for me. But this board is really great for the wide variety of information and the large number of people that participate here.

 

[jrabbit]

Some thoughts on Pricing...

Time of Year
any time kids are out of school are more expensive... Breaks: Spring, Summer, Christmas

cruises over 3 day weekends (3, 4, 5, 6, 7 or more nights) usually show a bump up in price. Cruises that include July 4 - Way expensive!!

Star Wars and Marvel Days At Sea cruises also carry a premium

Fantasy and Dream are typically more expensive cruises (per day) than the Magic and Wonder (newer ships vs. older ships and perceived benefits of cruising on a new ship - YMMV).

September - seems to have some of the lowest rates because: 1) School just started, 2) Hurricane Season (June - November)

Usually, the earlier you can book a cruise, the less expensive it is. DCL uses a tiered popularity pricing scheme: the more rooms sold in a category and for a cruise, the more expensive the remaining rooms become.

That takes care of some of the basics of higher and lower prices by time of year.

Other Pricing - well Stateroom Selection that impacts price
Type of Stateroom: Inside (no windows), Ocean View (porthole), Veranda (deck) and Concierge (larger room, larger deck other perks, lots of money)

Each type of room has variations that cause different prices
* On the Dream/Fantasy many of the inside rooms have a "Magic Porthole" to the outside world, some of the inside rooms do not (I THINK!!). No Magic Portholes on the Magic and Wonder. Some Inside rooms have the split bathroom, others do not (again I THINK).
* Ocean View rooms on Deck 1 have two smaller portholes that are positioned higher up on the wall, all other decks the porthole is a large one where you can sit on the couch and see outside.
* The Veranda rooms can be: Navigator (enclosed with a large "porthole" - without glass), Solid Wall (have to stand to see the ocean) or Plexiglass.
* Concierge rooms - I cannot speak about!

Each room type will carry different prices based upon location, location, location!
which Deck then
Forward, Mid Ship or Aft

Some rooms sleep 5 - these tend to be on the expensive side.

The first TWO people in the room pay full price. Occupants 3 and 4 and for the rooms that sleep 5, pay a reduced fare. Everyone's taxes per person is the same.

Other Stateroom Info
All rooms (so far) on DCL sleep at least 2 people (probably 3 actually). SOME rooms sleep 4. The 4 person rooms are scattered throughout the ship, across all categories.

Many rooms can be connecting rooms - but by no means is every pair of rooms connected.

There are a few Handicap Accessible rooms on the ships

Reasons for specific rooms that can hold 3 or 4 people NOT being able to book the extra passengers:
* Room in the assigned Lifeboat for that stateroom is at capacity
* if person is under age 18 - the maximum number of kids in an age group has been hit

 

[IrishEye]

If you are staying at a WDW resort pre cruise you can take DCL transportation (35 per person), your bags are picked up in your room the morning of the cruise and you take a coach to port. With 5 people there are cheaper car services that will transport you to port, you drop your bags at the porter station and they are delivered to your stateroom.

The adult premium dining options (if you choose) are by reservation, dinner is easier to get than brunch.

Where you go is mostly determinable by your interests. Having never cruised before you may wish to try a Bahama or Caribbean to see if it is something the family enjoys. It is easy to fall in love with DCL when everything from the time you land at MCO to the time you fly back out is handled by them. Once you decide where you want to go and what dates and ship you are going to sail, look at all the options. We are only 4 but take Disney transportation for the luggage handling, flight check in on board and knowing if there is a problem there is someone who will be committed to fixing it.

 

[squirk]

This board is a great "live" resource. However, for a "fixed" resource that you can read anywhere, write notes in, etc., I suggest this:

PassPorter's Disney Cruise Line and Its Ports of Call 2017 https://www.amazon.com/dp/1587711699/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_Jsy7ybQ7SD9RP

Should be out any day now. Or just buy the previous edition if you can't wait.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

A cruise is completely unlike planning WDW. There will be no "woo! discounts!" like booking a Disney hotel. It starts at Rack Rate and goes up from there, save a few very last-minute offers for FL residents and military. Room amenities differ by level but everyone has the same dining rotations and access to pools and etc., essentially. The people booking an Inside cabin aren't segregated entirely from the Concierge passengers (although they get a lounge).

Once you pay, the main things you need to account for are port transfers, tips, excursions, uncharged food if you want that, and booze.

 

[MunFam]

As a travel agent, our first and only DCL Cruise was a West Bound Panama Canal Cruise. We chose this cruise because:

1. Lowest rates per night of any cruise available all year.
2. There were less than 200 minors on our cruise...that means empty kids clubs and special attention from the Youth team and characters.
3. Because we were on board 14 nights, we really got to know the crew.
4. The shows were not crowded...despite the cruise being full, most were only sailing as couples, even if a room held 2, 4 or 5 people.
5. All the menus were cycled through, so we got to try EVERYTHING
6. Sea days with special events and activities not offered on other sailings like behind the scenes tours, special cooking class, tastings, etc. They even rolled out their all new "Frozen" show and deck party on our sailing!!
7. Panama Canal!!
8. Cartagena, Columbia was a place we would only ever visit via a cruise ship and it was AWESOME!!
9. Did I mention tons of sea days and low prices?

And last, we live within walking distance of the Port of San Diego, so we walked home from the ship.

 

[perditax]

Highly recommend the Unofficial Guide to the Disney Cruise Line.

It's nice to have the info all in one place.

 

[CamColt]

I agree with Princess Shmoo. Looking around here will give you a great start.

When you are ready to look into pricing options, and ultimately book the cruise I would highly suggest going through a Disney Specialist Travel Agent, such as Dreams Unlimited Travel(who sponsors these boards). Not only will you get an On Board Credit for booking with them, they are the experts and will walk you through every step of the planning process.

 

[Geomom]

Also check out Scott's blog: www.disneycruiselineblog.com
He has tons of information on his site, including personal navigators (the daily activity schedules) for most cruise itineraries, and menus of the restaurants.

I kind of stumbled into the Disney cruise stuff...I don't remember how, although I am on the DISboards often for Disney Vacation Club stuff...but I discovered that Disney cruise line does Alaska. DH and I had said we'd only cruise if it was going to Alaska...and we love Disney, and I was looking for someplace new to go with the kids. I did lots of research by reading the boards here, and reading Scott's blog. DH was worried about being bored on sea days, so it was great to have old navigators to look at. We really enjoyed our 1st cruise, and for people who had never really planned to cruise...we have a second one booked for next summer, the Northern Europe one. For us, itinerary is important. We loved having our floating hotel that took us from 1 place to another...having dinner and a show every night, etc.

Make sure you are aware of what is included/not included in the cruise cost. Most things ARE included, but the gratuities for server/assistant server/head server/stateroom host are NOT, you will get a bill at the end of the cruise with that charge which is $12/guest/day--if you have 4 people/room you are paying $48/day for tips.

Check out the prices/rooms on the Disney site (https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/), but then book with a Travel Agent who gives onboard credit (free money to spend on the ship). We went with Dreams Unlimited.

And enjoy your cruise!