Questions regarding dinning options and prepaying gratuities/activities/excursions

[Captain Scruffy]

Hello Everyone,

 

We are first time Disney cruisers and had some questions. I'm sorry if they seem silly, but I couldn't find answers online...

 

1. Is there a way on the Disney website to prepay gratuities/activities/excursions?

2. Is there an "beverage plan" for non alcoholic drinks?

3. One in our group PREFERS vegetarian meals, but will occasionally eat fish or chicken. I see you can specify a vegetarian diet on the website, but are there usually non meat options in the dining room anyway? If we specify vegetarian will there be a special menu offered?

 

Thanks guys, I'm sure there will be more questions coming :o

[1025cruise]

I don't recall if you can prepay everything ahead of time. With regards to beverage plan, no there isn't, but fountain soda is freely available in the buffet and up on deck. Can't answer the vegetarian question.

[Shmoo here]

Hello Everyone,

 

We are first time Disney cruisers and had some questions. I'm sorry if they seem silly, but I couldn't find answers online...

 

1. Is there a way on the Disney website to prepay gratuities/activities/excursions?

2. Is there an "beverage plan" for non alcoholic drinks?

3. One in our group PREFERS vegetarian meals, but will occasionally eat fish or chicken. I see you can specify a vegetarian diet on the website, but are there usually non meat options in the dining room anyway? If we specify vegetarian will there be a special menu offered?

 

Thanks guys, I'm sure there will be more questions coming :o

1. You can pre-pay gratuities by calling DCL directly. The cost of the gratuities will be added to the cruise cost. Excursions/activities cannot be pre-paid. They are charged to your onboard account the first day of the cruise. You can purchase onboard credit to cover the costs of the excursions, though.

2. No. There is a drink station available 24/7 that has sodas, coffee, tea (hot & cold) various flavors, hot chocolate, water, and some Hi-C drinks. It's located on the pool deck.

3. There are vegetarian options. Not sure how "vegetarian" they are. You can see the various menus here for an idea of what's available on different menus:http://disneycruiselineblog.com/menus/

[Captain Scruffy]

I don't recall if you can prepay everything ahead of time. With regards to beverage plan, no there isn't, but fountain soda is freely available in the buffet and up on deck. Can't answer the vegetarian question.

 

I appreciate the response. I saw that there was free soda offered at certain locations. I assume they charge at other locations for the soda. I was hoping for an "all in" price so we don't feel like we have to trek back to the free station.

[Shmoo here]

I appreciate the response. I saw that there was free soda offered at certain locations. I assume they charge at other locations for the soda. I was hoping for an "all in" price so we don't feel like we have to trek back to the free station.

You can order non-alcoholic drinks in the lounges and from the poolside servers, as well as from room service, but those come with a cost.

 

Or you can bring your own soft drinks onboard. But those would be in your room, and you'd have to trek back there to fill up.

[Captain Scruffy]

1. You can pre-pay gratuities by calling DCL directly. The cost of the gratuities will be added to the cruise cost. Excursions/activities cannot be pre-paid. They are charged to your onboard account the first day of the cruise. You can purchase onboard credit to cover the costs of the excursions, though.

2. No. There is a drink station available 24/7 that has sodas, coffee, tea (hot & cold) various flavors, hot chocolate, water, and some Hi-C drinks. It's located on the pool deck.

3. There are vegetarian options. Not sure how "vegetarian" they are. You can see the various menus here for an idea of what's available on different menus:http://disneycruiselineblog.com/menus/

 

Thank you very much. I really appreciate the menus!

 

 

We have cruised before and we like to pre-pay as much as we can. Other cruise lines really make this easy, I wonder why Disney doesn't?

[Shmoo here]

Thank you very much. I really appreciate the menus!

 

 

We have cruised before and we like to pre-pay as much as we can. Other cruise lines really make this easy, I wonder why Disney doesn't?

While some cruise lines do require payment for excursions at time of reserving, not all do. And at least one allows either paying at time of reservation or having it charged to your onboard account.

 

Gratuities on DCL, unlike other cruise lines Hotel Service Charge (or whatever they call it), are just that - gratuities. DCL will add them to your onboard account automatically, or you can remove them and tip directly.

[moki'smommy]

You can pre-pay your gratuities on DCL by contacting DCL directly or your TA (if you booked thru one.) You can also pre-pay anything else you wish. Rather than showing up as a payment for a specific excursion, spa visit, or whatever, it shows up as a credit on your account which is then applied to whatever charges you make. Anything unused can be refunded to you. If you know you booked 4 people on a $100 excursion, simply put a $400 credit toward your account prior to boarding.

 

Beverages--no "all inclusive," but also no daily charge for it. You can get all the freebies you want in the dining rooms and at the beverage stations by the buffet and by the pool area. Anything from a bar or lounge will come with a cost.

 

There is at least one vegetarian option at every meal. They will also make other dishes for you upon request and 24 hours notice. You can eat vegetarian in the adult only restaurants as well. And if you decide that you want a grilled salmon portion with your vege meal, they'll happily do that for you as well. The fact that you list vegetarian as a dining preference is just that--a preference that you are free to alter.

[Captain Scruffy]

You can pre-pay your gratuities on DCL by contacting DCL directly or your TA (if you booked thru one.) You can also pre-pay anything else you wish. Rather than showing up as a payment for a specific excursion' date=' spa visit, or whatever, it shows up as a credit on your account which is then applied to whatever charges you make. Anything unused can be refunded to you. If you know you booked 4 people on a $100 excursion, simply put a $400 credit toward your account prior to boarding.

 

Beverages--no "all inclusive," but also no daily charge for it. You can get all the freebies you want in the dining rooms and at the beverage stations by the buffet and by the pool area. Anything from a bar or lounge will come with a cost.

 

There is at least one vegetarian option at every meal. They will also make other dishes for you upon request and 24 hours notice. You can eat vegetarian in the adult only restaurants as well. And if you decide that you want a grilled salmon portion with your vege meal, they'll happily do that for you as well. The fact that you list vegetarian as a dining preference is just that--a preference that you are free to alter.[/quote']

 

Thank you, this is all very helpful! We like to pre-pay and add an OBC before we cruise because it helps us stay within budget. As you probably know, spending can get out of hand once on board. We find our way helps cushion that final bill :o

 

And it's nice to hear that they accommodating with the meal preferences. We were worried there wouldn't be (m)any vegetarian options at dinner. This doesn't sound like it will be an issue at all! Thank you again!!