What can DCL do to make their pricing "worth it"?

[Scillycruisers]

For the first time in 2016 we are cruising non DCL! The main reason we even looked elsewhere having loved our 5 DCL cruises was itinerary. We cruise in Feb and want at least 7 nights, so accept that it will be the Caribbean but DCL were only doing 3 ports for 2016. As one of those is CC where we may not get ashore, we didn't want to be down to 2 shore visits, so we looked elsewhere. We chose a 4 port itinerary, the fact that it is way cheaper than DCL was for the same week is an added bonus.

 

[DahliaRW]

Its interesting because Ive notice a lot more parents on disney ships with young children are in their 30s and 40s. We didnt start having kids until our 30s so I can relate. Some of my friends have kids our kids ages or younger, but many have grown kids. The ones that have kids that are grown didnt take expensive vacations when their kids were young. Very hard to do in your 20's, but they do seem to enjoying their 40's without kids.

It seems like DCL tends to get a lot of families with young kids with older parents like this. Why? They were DINKs, probably have some savings, both probably still work and can afford it. Even with well-paying jobs, there can be a huge difference financially between having kids in your 20s and kids in your 30s. I think DCL is targeting families in the latter demographic, who probably did take some expensive vacations and possibly cruised before kids.

 

[MillauFr]

It seems like DCL tends to get a lot of families with young kids with older parents like this. Why? They were DINKs, probably have some savings, both probably still work and can afford it. Even with well-paying jobs, there can be a huge difference financially between having kids in your 20s and kids in your 30s. I think DCL is targeting families in the latter demographic, who probably did take some expensive vacations and possibly cruised before kids.

Also depends quite a bit on where you live. Salaries vary depending on where you live. There are many middle class families living in NYC that can easily afford a Disney Cruise.

 

[eskimoinparadise]

Also depends quite a bit on where you live. Salaries vary depending on where you live. There are many middle class families living in NYC that can easily afford a Disney Cruise.

The cost of living in NYC is 214% the cost of living in Florida, so I doubt that analysis holds water.

 

[squirk]

Yes, but the wages in NYC, at least the white-collar ones, tend to reflect that COL as well.

 

[Love2Cruz]

A disney cruise on the Dream for 3 days (balcony) was almost double the price of another mass market cruise for a 7 day.

Is the mouse work THAT much more....no. I'm glad I tried it last year but unless they come down to more normal levels, it may have been my one and only Disney cruise. (I go on 2-3 cruises a year) I'm not saying I wouldn't pay more..but not THAT much more.

 

[Bree]

There will always be people who can afford to fly first class and stay at Raddison hotels and eat at Ruth Chris's.

OMG...I am laughing at people being able to afford 1st class and Ruth's Chris, but picking a Radisson as a swanky place to stay.

 

[Ofinn]

Also depends quite a bit on where you live. Salaries vary depending on where you live. There are many middle class families living in NYC that can easily afford a Disney Cruise.

That depends on what you consider middle class. I think the household average in this country is around 50k.

 

[disprincess4ever]

New shows
New Menus
New family activities/ game shows in the D Lounge/ Studio Sea.

 

[Keyser]

That brings up a good point regarding the Disney brand. If you are new to cruising, who would you be more apt to trust with your vacation dollar - Disney or someone else?

I would bet that most families would go with Disney, even though it costs more. And if you go DCL and love it, won't you be inclined to stick with what you know works for your next cruise, even though it costs more, rather than take a chance on another line?

I mean, cruising in general isn't particularly cheap. Is the DCL price premium worth paying in exchange for (what you see as) a "sure thing"?

Whether you think it is or isn't, I wonder if that is Disney's strategy - to get their claws in you first so you never want to leave.

OK, you hit our family here exactly.

Our family NEVER thought we would want to cruise. The people I knew who went on cruises and the activities I heard about - casinos, drinking, late-night clubs/parties (none of which we would participate in) - made me think these were not at all for us. Oddly enough, I ended up on a Disney cruise as part of a work conference held on board(!), and spent my time thinking how much my family would enjoy it. The 3-day cruise (with some really good discounts!) was exactly what our family needed to "try out" cruising - we were able to combine it with a short trip to WDW so it was a "safe" experiment to see if we'd like it at all. We loved it, enough that we wanted to try the "full" Disney cruise experience (never even considered another line), and booked a 6-day cruise. Loved it again.

So, then, it came time to celebrate our 20th anniversary, and we ended up deciding on Alaska. We looked at all the other lines. Some had itineraries that looked better, some were cheaper. But, there were still lots of uncertainties. We would have to have the kids with us - they loved Disney, but would they like the other ships? Would there be other families our age (demographics do vary a LOT on the Alaska cruises)? Would we end up on more of a booze-cruise like our old impression of cruises? Would we enjoy the entertainment on other lines (we are fans of the Disney shows/movies, though I agree they could update them)? This was our one shot at an Alaska cruise, and Disney was the "sure thing." Maybe we paid more than we had to, or maybe we could have had a better cruise on some other line, but we had an incredibly fun trip, and I don't regret going with Disney at all.

So as we think about another cruise in the future, yep, Disney has a big head start, since we know it and are familiar with it. We'll look at other lines, but it's true that Disney starts able to charge a pretty significant premium, for us. If we were taking cruises every 6 months or something, we could afford to try another line and see what we thought. But, we are infrequent enough cruisers that when we go, we really do want it to be as much of a sure thing as we can, and we know what we're getting with Disney. But, the prices are getting so high that it's really getting difficult to justify. And, once it's too high, we'll be more strongly considering other options, whether a different cruise line, or (more likely) a different type of vacation.

On the original question - what could Disney do to make the value more worth the price? Tough to say, since they're still borderline worth the premium for us (and I know that's exactly what they aim for...). I think some more variety - in shows, in itineraries, in activities on board really could help. We've only been on a few cruises, but the thought of seeing the same shows as our last cruise is not so appealing. And, for having taken just 3 cruises, we don't see that many new itineraries at times we could go, unless we fly to Europe. Onboard activities are enough for us, but just barely - with our youngest kid just about too old for the small pool, and the other pools too small to be useful, we felt like more to do on sea days would be nice. The food has either declined in quality or our tastes have gotten pickier, so better (but not fru-fru) food would be better (and yes, a buffet dinner option would be nice). We found the service to still be quite good (our middle cruise was the worst service, but still not bad). All those things would make me feel the value was better, but it's tough to say it's "necessary", since we're still considering buying at the current price.

 

[squirk]

On the original question - what could Disney do to make the value more worth the price? Tough to say, since they're still borderline worth the premium for us (and I know that's exactly what they aim for...).

Yes, we are the same way. We can afford DCL and it's worth the premium to our family at this point in our lives, but we can see a point where the pricing, if it keeps going up at its current clip, will be too much for our blood.

But yeah - DCL will push their pricing until they start seeing quantifiable resistance to it. And by resistance, I mean declining sales, not crabbing by a vocal minority of Disney nerds.

 

[jahber]

I think in the case of trying a cruise but trusting disney with vacation dollars, you are very much trying something new. Our first cruise to the Caribbean was a very different experience for us than park trips, because we had neither cruised not been to the Caribbean before.

Having said that, not that we've sailed with Disney and are more familiar with how cruising works (a little) we would be more comfortable trying another line. But for that first cruise, knowing we trusted Disney was part of our decision criteria, and it was still a new experience for us!

Oh yes! Cruising is totally different than a WDW land vacation (and better, in my opinion--but that's just my opinion, and I've lived in Orlando my entire life so it's probably not really a valid one ). What I meant was, some people will ONLY EVER cruise or vacation Disney because it's "better" than everything else. Trying something once because you trust the brand can make good sense. But once we've exhausted their offerings, sometimes it's nice to try something else--for us. And I'm so so glad we did! If we had stayed in the Disney bubble we would have missed out on one of the best vacations we've ever had.

Edited to add: and since my pregnancy-addled brain can't focus, let me add that all of this is to say that what Disney can do to make their prices "worth it" is offer truly luxury-level amenities and services (a la Cunard or Seabourn) if they are going to continue charging luxury prices. OR they can lower their prices to "industry standard," since that's their favorite new catchphrase in terms of their alcohol policy.

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

he mall-ness of the Oasis class RCCL ships

to me they just seem like a floating version of West Edmonton mall

 

[FloridaBabe]

They need better itineraries, especially in the Caribbean, it's all the same old same old.

 

[funfam]

I would love to see new shows. For those of us who sail once or twice a year the shows are been there done that for sure. New menus would be great too. Maybe do a survey of past guests and keep a few favorites and change up the rest. I would also love some cooked to order options on the pool deck like many other lines have. We have sailed DCL many times and there are things I love about the product but without some changes and luxury inclusions I don't think we will be booking again.

 

[DahliaRW]

I would love to see new shows. For those of us who sail once or twice a year the shows are been there done that for sure. New menus would be great too. Maybe do a survey of past guests and keep a few favorites and change up the rest. I would also love some cooked to order options on the pool deck like many other lines have. We have sailed DCL many times and there are things I love about the product but without some changes and luxury inclusions I don't think we will be booking again.

The Magic is getting a new show in November, and another was revamped so it feels "new" in some ways. Unfortunately, new shows are really, really expensive for them to implement, that is why they stick around so long. Plus logistically it's a challenge (needs to fit within cast on board, needs to fit the space, etc).

 

[squirk]

I wonder if the lack of new shows supports the notion that Disney is primarily after first-timers vs. repeat customers. If they wanted repeat customers, then they'd change up the shows more frequently so people wouldn't start getting bored with the live entertainment.

But if the bulk of your cruisers are first-timers or tend to be "one and done" with DCL, why would you bother investing resources in new shows? Your existing lineup will forever be "new" to your revolving door of guests.

 

[A_Princess'_Daddy]

None of these ideas are original, but to bring my family back they would need to add:

1. New itineraries. There are only so many times one can go to the same Ports of Call and, while I'm definitely the exception, I cannot stand Castaway Cay, so having that as a requirement on all cruises as one of the ports is a major negative. This is the single biggest factor driving us to other lines; we'd like to go places other than Nassau, St. Thomas, San Juan, and Castaway Cay. On our next cruise that we booked to replace one we just canceled on DCL, we're going to Roatan, Honduras, Belize City, and Cancun, and that variety is interesting to us.

2. New shows, and I like what several posters suggested about using truncated versions of their Broadway shows. The musical revue shows are exceptionally cute once, or even twice, but I simply cannot sit through them anymore and neither will my children or wife.

3. More dining options. The rotational dining is very unique and each restaurant is nicely themed (although outside of Animator's Palace, they all remind me of somewhat generic ballrooms, but in a pretty way), but it also forces you into a system and those restaurants take up space that could be used for other, specialty restaurants. Likewise, the menus offer nice diversity for the first few cruises, but after several years of the same menu, it gets stale and old. All mass-produced food on any mass-market cruise line will always be difficult to prepare well, and I don't think that DCL's is worse than any other mass-market line, but I also don't think it's any better, and for the premium I think they could work on that.

4. This one is weird, and I know it's not a typical opinion, but I'd actually pay more money for less obsequious service. Honestly, I find the constant hovering and wheedling attention to be off-putting. I do not want to be best friends with my servers, cabin steward, or others. I prefer exceptional service in the background, rather than desperately-seeking-approval service in my face.

As to the look and design of the ships, I will agree that from the outside they are quite attractive, but given that I'm sailing on the inside of the ship, looking out, it does not much matter to me. The interiors I find to be fairly similar to other mass-market cruise ships, and while lots of dark wood and brass is not my personal design aesthetic, it's classically nautical and pretty much what I expect. The children's clubs are very nice, although again after multiple cruises my children have gotten tired of the same activities, same games, same programs, etc. That's not a criticism of what they offer, however, but it's not worth doing a fifth or sixth or seventh time, at least for our family.

 

[squirk]

4. This one is weird, and I know it's not a typical opinion, but I'd actually pay more money for less obsequious service. Honestly, I find the constant hovering and wheedling attention to be off-putting. I do not want to be best friends with my servers, cabin steward, or others. I prefer exceptional service in the background, rather than desperately-seeking-approval service in my face.

I can totally see this. Some CMs seem sincerely and genuinely friendly (or at least do a very good job of faking it) and are a pleasure to interact with. Others? Well, you can tell that the smile and the chirpy greeting are just "part of the script" and that as soon as your back is turned, that countenance instantly disappears. I don't fault them for it; they need to do that to keep their jobs and to maximize their tip potential. But there are many times where I want to tell such CMs "Look, you don't have to bother with the act. It's OK."

That's not to say that I want to see scowly unhappy CMs on my cruises, but I don't want ersatz Stepford people either. I guess it's hard for DCL HR to find lots of people who can hit that perfect balance.

 

[BelleWannabe4]

I also wish that they would change up the menus and add a better variety of food. Due to health issues, I am essentially vegan and eating on Disney trips is not especially exciting. However, I can understand that. My diet is not what most of America eats, so I can't expect them to specifically cater to my somewhat bizarre eating habits. With that said, food in Palo, Remy and (oddly) Cabanas have been excellent for me.

At the same time, no other cruise line seems to meet my needs either. I did a LOT of research (I'm kind of crazy when it comes to planning trips) and created a giant pricing spreadsheet. We were looking to cruise in January so not peak cruising time. But, with that in mind, given the upcharges that I would have to pay for "premium" food so that I wouldn't be eating a salad for every single meal for 7 days, the price for a soda package (love my one Diet Coke per day, especially out by the pool) and the more expensive alcoholic beverages (one fun cocktail a day on vacation is good for the soul), the cruises on Norwegian, Princess and Celebrity were all within $100-200 of Disney. RCCL was out of the question because my mom had a horrible experience on that line in the past and was cruising with me.

So, for what I was looking for which was the opportunity to eat normal (for me) food, sit on a lounger with no kids around by the pool and go sit on a beach again with no kids around and be on a sparkling clean ship, Disney was the best choice for only slightly more money. I'm in my 20s and my friends are always a little surprised by my decision. But I'm not a big partyer and I don't want to go to a casino. At this point in time, Disney meets my needs exactly. I skip all shows and spend most of my time in the adult pool area/deck and Serenity Bay. When cruising in November/January, I have never had any problem getting and keeping a lounger all day in the sun facing the ocean. I also could care less about the itineraries in the Caribbean except I do love Castaway. A chair on a clean beach with no buskers and someone bringing me a drink? Yes please. I've now been on 3 Disney cruises with one more planned.

Unless Virgin comes out with an amazing business model, as a childless young professional, I'm going to keep choosing Disney for my cruises.