Using DVC for DCL

[mfbnjwb]

I have a question about Disney Cruise Line. Do you have to take the cruise within the use year of the DVC points? Or is it like RCI exchanges, where I can book the cruise prior to the expiration of the points and use in in the next year?

Thanks.

 

[CarolAnnC]

You can usually book DCL up to two years out on points. For example, in October 2008 we booked our July 2010 Baltic Cruise on points. Depending on timeframe of the cruise you are looking at you may be able to bank, or even borrow points to cruise on, too.

 

[Tramp68]

Rent your points and book with cash...you will come out ahead

 

[Candace]

I have a question about Disney Cruise Line. Do you have to take the cruise within the use year of the DVC points? Or is it like RCI exchanges, where I can book the cruise prior to the expiration of the points and use in in the next year?

Thanks.

On the Member Website, after you log in, go to the section "Vacation Points". When you get to that page, at the top, you will see when you can book - your 11 month window, your 7 month window, and the DCL window. I think it's like two years ( or maybe a little less) ahead of time.

 

[Crystal_27]

I actually called Member Services a couple of months ago to book our 2011 DCL Dream cruise and it was sooooooo much easier than I was anticipating. I had not banked any points from 2010 yet (obviously) so MS was able to bank the points that I needed for the cruise from 2010 into 2011, leaving me with exactly the number of points that I will need for my 2010 parks trip.

 

[supersuperwendy]

I've been trying to figure out how many points we would need for a cruise since there are 6 of us. So if I wanted to cruise in Dec. 2011 I could call now? I would need all of my Dec. 2011 points plus borrow some 2012. Would that work? Also, how do staterooms work out for big families? The points for deluxe family staterooms are really high. Can we book two inside staterooms that are near each other? If each stateroom only has one adult does that alter the points needed? Like in a hotel room you pay a single adult charge. I'm looking at this point chart and trying to figure how many points I would need for the Dec. 4th cruise...for two deluxe inside staterooms...2 adults/ 4 kids ages 13, 11, 10 and 2. I guess that depends on if they allow 4 per stateroom. Someone explain the ins and outs of DCL please!!!!

http://advc.disney.go.com/media/dvc...ointsChart_DisneyCollection_4NightBahamas.pdf

 

[mfbnjwb]

I'm still confused regarding using DVC for Disney Cruise line. Under the Booking Guidelines of the member website it states that you can book your vacation from 24 months to 14 days in advance. What use year points do you use for the cruise? Is it points that you have at the time of the reservation or is it points that you have at the time of the cruise?

I have 224 points that have been banked from 2008 into 2009 Use Year that expire in April 2010. Can I use these points to book a Disney Cruise in 2011?

 

[AnnaS]

I've been trying to figure out how many points we would need for a cruise since there are 6 of us. So if I wanted to cruise in Dec. 2011 I could call now? I would need all of my Dec. 2011 points plus borrow some 2012. Would that work? Also, how do staterooms work out for big families? The points for deluxe family staterooms are really high. Can we book two inside staterooms that are near each other? If each stateroom only has one adult does that alter the points needed? Like in a hotel room you pay a single adult charge. I'm looking at this point chart and trying to figure how many points I would need for the Dec. 4th cruise...for two deluxe inside staterooms...2 adults/ 4 kids ages 13, 11, 10 and 2. I guess that depends on if they allow 4 per stateroom. Someone explain the ins and outs of DCL please!!!!

You can book two inside adjoining cabins. One adult must be listed for each cabin. So one of the kids would be charged as an adult (points or cash). It still comes out to be less. You can also use a combination of points and cash if you don't have enough points to cover all of you. When you do use cash for anyone, the cash portion must be paid in full when booking.

 

[AnnaS]

I'm still confused regarding using DVC for Disney Cruise line. Under the Booking Guidelines of the member website it states that you can book your vacation from 24 months to 14 days in advance. What use year points do you use for the cruise? Is it points that you have at the time of the reservation or is it points that you have at the time of the cruise?

I have 224 points that have been banked from 2008 into 2009 Use Year that expire in April 2010. Can I use these points to book a Disney Cruise in 2011?

It's points that you have at the time of the cruise. You would not be able to use your 2008 points. I think even your 2009 points are not good banked because they would need to be used by the end of March 2011. I think you would need to bank your 2010 and borrow from your 2011.

Someone please correct me if I am wrong.

 

[tay72699]

I have found the easiest way is to book the cruise through DCL, pay the deposit and then transfer the reservation to MS to use points just prior to the final payment due date. That way you avoid any fees if you have to make any changes to the cruise reservation during that long wait. DCL will refund the deposit after the cruise is paid for with points. Plus you get the room/category you want in advance while you figure out how many points needed or how much you will pay with points/cash. Also, someone correct me if I am wrong, once those points are exchanged for a cruise they cannot be used for a DVC resort stay. So if plans changed those points can only be used for RCI or DCL in the future, correct?
I just booked our 2011 Dream cruise through DCL and will transfer it over to MS at the beginning of 2011 to use points.

 

[Crystal_27]

I'm still confused regarding using DVC for Disney Cruise line. Under the Booking Guidelines of the member website it states that you can book your vacation from 24 months to 14 days in advance. What use year points do you use for the cruise? Is it points that you have at the time of the reservation or is it points that you have at the time of the cruise?

I have 224 points that have been banked from 2008 into 2009 Use Year that expire in April 2010. Can I use these points to book a Disney Cruise in 2011?

You should probably just call MS and ask that question. I know that, since we were booking in 2011, we were able to tap into our 2011 points, but here's the detail of what we did:

We had previously banked 197 points from 2009, so we had 417 points available for 2010. We need 268 points for our 2010 parks trip (not yet booked) and 300 points for our 2011 cruise. So, of the 417 points we had available in 2010, MS held out 268 points for our 2010 parks trip, and used the remaining 149 for our 2011 cruise, leaving us needing 151 from 2011 to pay for the remainder of the cruise. Therefore, after we used 151 from 2011, we will have 69 points remaining.

So, I think that you *can* used banked points so long as you use them to book the cruise before the expiration of your use year (but, since you would be using banked points from 2008, you should definitely call to be on the safe side). MS was awesome when we booked our cruise - - they will tell you exactly what you need to do.

 

[Crystal_27]

I have found the easiest way is to book the cruise through DCL, pay the deposit and then transfer the reservation to MS to use points just prior to the final payment due date.

That is actually an awesome idea!! And, you are correct, that once the DVC points are transferred to DCL, they cannot be reverted back for a DVC resort stay.

 

[AnnaS]

And if you remember when you book/call MS, please post the outcome. Would love and curious to know.

Happy Planning and a Happy New Year!

 

[debdisneycruiser]

We have always paid cash for DCL...however someone recently asked me if you purchased your stateroom with cash, could you use points to upgrade cabins? Anybody know the answer to this?

 

[Pluto 2]

We have always paid cash for DCL...however someone recently asked me if you purchased your stateroom with cash, could you use points to upgrade cabins? Anybody know the answer to this?

no you cannot

 

[Pluto 2]

I have found the easiest way is to book the cruise through DCL, pay the deposit and then transfer the reservation to MS to use points just prior to the final payment due date. That way you avoid any fees if you have to make any changes to the cruise reservation during that long wait. DCL will refund the deposit after the cruise is paid for with points. Plus you get the room/category you want in advance while you figure out how many points needed or how much you will pay with points/cash. Also, someone correct me if I am wrong, once those points are exchanged for a cruise they cannot be used for a DVC resort stay. So if plans changed those points can only be used for RCI or DCL in the future, correct?
I just booked our 2011 Dream cruise through DCL and will transfer it over to MS at the beginning of 2011 to use points.

yes excellent way. i really got burnt on the 2010 points for the med. thought it was a decent deal to use points for the med until the great cat 12 prices came out than my points were only worth about 2.50 a point thats only about half the maint fees. so what i did i ate the 95 dollars. than i paid the med in cash. than with the points i had for the med i got a 4 night and a 7 night cruise for myself. than my parents got a 7 night cruise, points worked out perfect.

 

[CarolAnnC]

I have found the easiest way is to book the cruise through DCL, pay the deposit and then transfer the reservation to MS to use points just prior to the final payment due date. That way you avoid any fees if you have to make any changes to the cruise reservation during that long wait. DCL will refund the deposit after the cruise is paid for with points. Plus you get the room/category you want in advance while you figure out how many points needed or how much you will pay with points/cash. Also, someone correct me if I am wrong, once those points are exchanged for a cruise they cannot be used for a DVC resort stay. So if plans changed those points can only be used for RCI or DCL in the future, correct?
I just booked our 2011 Dream cruise through DCL and will transfer it over to MS at the beginning of 2011 to use points.

DCL and DVC have not always allowed this scenario to happen. So I would be hesitant to count on being able to do this unless you obtain the full name of the CM confirming that you will be able to do so.

Also, all deposits are not refundable. They are per person, and some are quite pricey. So you may be putting up front a very large amount of cash. Here is some info from the Cruise Board here on the DIS regarding DCL deposits:
--------------
Deposits - The 50% deposit special ended at the end of business 9/23/09.
Deposit amounts for 2011 cruises:
Thanks to DU for providing the official information for us to reference.

Length of Cruise..........Category 1 thru 3......Category 4 - 12
................................(Non-Refundable)...........................
3 thru 5 Night.......................$400.................. ....$200......
6 thru 8 Night,............................................ ...................
except Alaskan........................................... ...................
[includes A repos]..................$500.....................$250... ...
10 thru 14 Night and Alaskan....$800.....................$600.......
NOTE: There is no deposit required for children under age 3.

Deposit amounts prior for 2009 & 2010 cruises:
3, 4 and 5 day cruises - $200 per person
7 day cruises - $250 per person
10 day and longer cruises - $600 per person

 

[tay72699]

I spoke with a CM at DCL and at MS yesterday and they both confirmed that the reservation can be transferred to DVC prior to that final payment (75 day or more from the date of sailing) and I my deposit paid to DCL would be refunded...it may take up to 90 days though. Deposits for Categories 4-12 are currently fully refunded 75 days or more prior to sailing for 2010 and beyond sailings (for cruises that are less than 10 days and debark from a US port) per DCL CM, DCL website and my reservation confirmation. All deposits for the Disney Dream maiden voyage are nonrefundable.
But as it was explained to me, cancellation fees would not apply since the reservation would just be transferred keeping the same reservation number, stateroom, etc. Currently DVC and DCL are still allowing this to take place. That does not mean it couldn't change and I was told to check periodically in case this does take place.

 

[nunzia]

I'm confused. How do you transfer the reservation? You just make a regular cruise reservation and pay the deposit, then at a certain date you call MS, say you have a cruise reserved and ask to use your points?

 

[tay72699]

Yes, you give them your reservation number and they contact DCL and take over the reservation. I actually had a reservation transferred from my TA (this had to be done in writing) to DCL and then over to MS. I had made this reservation through a TA and then added on points which made it possible to use points for a cruise. The TA had to transfer it back to DCL and then MS would pick it up from DCL. The reservation has to be with DCL to be picked up by MS; it cannot go from a TA to MS. The transfer has to points has to be made 75+ days prior to cruising; cannot be made after the final payment date. A CM told me that someone had made the change after paying in full and it took some time to get that full payment back. I have been told by a few CMs that it does take 90 or so days to get the deposit back following a transfer to points.