Would a cptn ever change itinerary?

[dskib]

We leave on a 3 night Dream cruise on Friday. Saturday is Nassau and Sunday is CC.

Right now the CC day is mid 60s with "gusty winds" and possible rain, but the day before looks perfect!

Would a captain ever switch Nassau and Castaway Cay days based on something like this? Assuming of course that he was able to dock.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who prefers CC to Nassau.

Thanks!

 

[PrincessShmoo]

We leave on a 3 night Dream cruise on Friday. Saturday is Nassau and Sunday is CC.

Right now the CC day is mid 60s with "gusty winds" and possible rain, but the day before looks perfect!

Would a captain ever switch Nassau and Castaway Cay days based on something like this? Assuming of course that he was able to dock.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who prefers CC to Nassau.

Thanks!

Maybe. Probably not, just for wind and possibly rain. It would also depend on whether he was able to move the Nassau date. There may not be dock space on the alternate date.

 

[Quellman]

We leave on a 3 night Dream cruise on Friday. Saturday is Nassau and Sunday is CC.

Right now the CC day is mid 60s with "gusty winds" and possible rain, but the day before looks perfect!

Would a captain ever switch Nassau and Castaway Cay days based on something like this? Assuming of course that he was able to dock.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who prefers CC to Nassau.

Thanks!

It isn't unheard of. There are a few things in play. @PrincessShmoo is correct on berthing. The other issue is excursions. Not so much a big deal on Castway Cay (though Disney does contract out a lot of the work to locals). But on Nassau, they have to rearrange EVERY tour they have booked and leave no time for those who booked privately. Disney I think has more to lose in terms of a business standpoint from making this change due to cold temperatures and rain.

I hope the sunshine is warm for you on your trip!

 

[KristiMc]

I don't think they change itineraries unless it is for a hurricane that they need to avoid.

 

[KristiMc]

You also have to take into account the other ships at CC. I believe the Magic is scheduled for CC on Saturday so no room for the Dream.

 

[cruisehopeful]

I just read a trip report where the captain changed Castaway Cay day for that very reason. I guess not other ships were docked that day and it was easy to switch a sea day and a Castaway Cay day.

 

[lanejudy]

I just read a trip report where the captain changed Castaway Cay day for that very reason. I guess not other ships were docked that day and it was easy to switch a sea day and a Castaway Cay day.

Assuming no other DCL ships are scheduled at CC, it is very easy to switch a sea day and a CC day. As noted upthread, it gets more complicated trying to switch a Nassau port day with a CC day, or any other port for that matter. And if another ship is scheduled at CC there would be no option. With all 4 ships in the area right now, there is very little wiggle room for alternate attempts at CC.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[CamColt]

In 17 Disney cruises twice we have switched CC with a sea day, once we went to Nassau instead of CC because we couldn't dock there, and not related to this situation but once we went to San Juan instead of St Maarten. So it is possible for itineraries to be changed based on weather/docking conditions, however I would think the captains try to keep to the scheduled itinerary if at all possible.

 

[Sparkie]

October 2013, we had a change. We got caught in port by a sudden tropical storm and the captain decided against trying to get underway. It was sideways raining and even the lamp post looked like they were bending over. But other than no pool, we had dinner, shows, and I didnt even realize we hadnt left port for a while.

The next morning it was announced that today would be a sea day instead of a Nassau day. There were a lot of unhappy campers. Most of which I assume had booked private excursions like Atlantis with the hotel stay.

To me it was a great decision. Leave late, stay safe. Later we learned that the Carnival ship had tried to beat the storm and had gotten caught in rough seas. They were confined to cabins and no dinner service, no activities....

So its possible but there are a lot of variables.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

yes, they do change itineraries where it is necessary. but of course an alternate port is going to be based on availability.

 

[NavyFamily04]

I have my fingers crossed that this will happen with our CC day on Monday, but the only way it works is if they shift the Dream's CC day and At Sea Day from Wed-> Thursday. I doubt it, but one can hope. Also hoping the weather shifts because we have a cabana booked, but the weather is supposed to be 66 and rainy Monday, but 76-79 and sunny the rest of the week. I think I have to cancel my cabana by Thursday (Cruise departs Sunday) to get a refund. It is painful, but it is a lot of money to sit in a cabana in the rain with a 6yr, 3yr, and 10 month old. I have been looking forward to the cabana, but we will see.

 

[ludari]

On a Mexican Rivera Disney Cruise I took several years ago the captain changed our itinerary by removing a port for safety concerns. We ended up going to Cabo on two different days which was fine with me. Better safe than sorry.

 

[kamik86]

I think it is very common for a captain to change the itinerary by having a sea day instead of a port day.

It is very rare from what I have heard for them to swap a port day, add a port day, etc. This is because the ports are determined far in advance and they can't just show up and expect to dock.

 

[MPS516]

We also changed a port in Mexican Rivera due to port damage from a large storm, they made the announcement on a sea day that they were attempting to make arrangements at an alternate port which gave people who had private tours time to make adjustments. Turned most tour companies were unable to accommodate their tours anyway so it all worked out. This was a case of DCL reacting to a situation not impacting our ship or course but trying to positively impact the negative for us aboard.

 

[over50visits]

Absolutely possible. Of course changes depend on docking space available at a port (duh), but I have often heard of itinerary changes due to weather (or mechanical problems), often just an extra sea day...but not always. On one of our cruises it was too windy to dock at CC, so we continued to the next port, docked there a day early, and had an extra day there. It happens. Go with the flow, don't blame Disney for the weather (as some do), and enjoy whatever happens.

 

[com_op_2000]

On a four day cruise several years ago, DVC switched our itinerary between Nassau and CC due to a hurricane approaching from the south.

 

[jeepnjudy]

A few years back it took our CAPT 4 attempts to dock at CC. They did inform the passengers that if he could not make it on his final attempt we would be hanging out at sea until it was time to cruise back up to Florida.

 

[dclpluto]

If a change was going to take place it wouldn't come from the captain. It will come from his superiors on land.

 

[Amw1064]

Yes, they can change as I have had that happen. However for this upcoming weekend the Magic will be on Castaway on Saturday. My friend will be on that cruise.

 

[DCLSailing]

It happened to me a few years back on the Fantasy. Having sailed an Eastern earlier in the year we opted to try the Western later during hurricane season. We didn't find out the iteneray change until at the port though they called the night before telling us it may happen. I forget offhand which hurricane it was but will look it up.

Ultimately the Western simply became an Eastern once more. I'm just happy to be onboard so it wasn't a big issue though I was excited to try the Western.