Upgrades, discounts, other perks

[sweet angel]

I booked my November land/sea vacation thru a TA back in January. Is there any way to get upgrades, discounts, etc. at this point, or do I need to save all my new knowledge from these boards for my next trip?

Also, land excursions in Nassau and Castaway Cay...what to see, what to miss...and how about doing it on your own?

 

[mmouse37]

Since you are not a Florida resident, I doubt you would be able to get any kind of discount at this point...unless DCL lowers the price of your cruise for some reason. If you check their website (or have your TA keep checking) and see that the price has gone down then your TA could call DCL and request the discount.

As far as upgrades.....they are hit or miss and no one has a way to predict to whom and when they will happen.

In Nassau we just walked around a bit and then headed over to the Atlantis to just see it. Spent most of the day enjoying the quiet of the ship and pool areas. On CC there are plenty of things to do from relaxing or doing water sports....it is all personal preference.

Good luck...

MJ

 

[jrabbit]

Sweet Angel...er...I mean Sweet Naïve Angel. There are NO discounts or upgrades on DCL - even for returning cruisers.

Well there are actually a few.
1) DCL will sometimes give complementry upgrades - so far no real set of "criteria" has been identified on who, how or why they are given. My observation is that if you have a cat 11 gty room, you have the best chance of being upgraded.

2) Sometimes you are able to purchase a room upgrade at the port. Most of the time you are not able because the ship is "full"

3) Sometimes you can get a room credit if you book the cruise with the Disney VISA.

4) Most cruises that you book onboard will earn you a room credit - depending upon the length of cruise and if it's a special one or not and when the cruise is sailing.

5) Back to the Disney Visa - If you charge your vacation with it you can take 6 months to pay it off interest free. I haven't tried this yet (next year). Be sure to check with Bank One to see how this really works.

6) Like MMouse37 said - If you are a Florida resident and can be flexible as to when you can sail and how "short of a notice" you need to sail, you can get a good Florida discount. (I wonder if you gave DCL a Florida address and an out of state mailing address if they would notice? )

7) Finally, you can find a travel agent (like Dreams Unlimited) that will give you discounts and/or room credits with your booking.

There may be other discounts/credit available - I'm just not remembering them at this time.

 

[cjsmith]

Originally posted by jrabbit
Sweet Angel...er...I mean Sweet Naïve Angel. There are NO discounts or upgrades on DCL - even for returning cruisers.





6) Like MMouse37 said - If you are a Florida resident and can be flexible as to when you can sail and how "short of a notice" you need to sail, you can get a good Florida discount. (I wonder if you gave DCL a Florida address and an out of state mailing address if they would notice? )"
.

Your legal address needs to be on the documents and then they will ask for your license at the port with your Florida address on it. You are warned that if you're not a resident, they will charge you full fare.

 

[sweet angel]

Interesting...thanks for the info.

I checked the DCL site and my vacation is now quite a bit more than what I booked it at back in January. I guess I shouldn't be greedy.

Next time I'll know to check the Dreams Unlimited, etc. website along with the DCL site and TA before I book. Live and learn!

 

[PoohJen]

Sweet Angel,
I think it's still worth a try to see if you can "re-book" your cruise w/ a disney visa (if you are so inclined) - they are offering $50 on board credit per stateroom for 2004 cruises.

Also, see this link regarding on board credit code - some people have had success with this, and you don't need to re-book (ostensibly for first-time cruisers).

Good Luck!!!