Disney Wonder Cruising From Sydney 2023

[arxcards]

For those in a bubble, booking is available on Thursday.

[2022cruisey]

Priced a cruise, roughly $7000 for a 6 day cruise for 2..  Looked much less but when you got to the next page, the lesser price was American dollars.  I can get 2 of us on a 14 day cruise to NZ with everything included for that.   No thanks Disney.

[easytiger]

Just booked a 4 night cruise from Brisbane  A$5450 for 2 ,   for the cheapest balcony cabin. Crazy prices !!

[carlandlyn]

48 minutes ago, easytiger said:

Just booked a 4 night cruise from Brisbane  A$5450 for 2 ,   for the cheapest balcony cabin. Crazy prices !!

Hi, can we ask how you did that? Ta......

 

[easytiger]

Early booking for Castaway Club members ( previous cruisers ) opened on the 27th . 

[MMDown Under]

5 hours ago, easytiger said:

Early booking for Castaway Club members ( previous cruisers ) opened on the 27th . 

Have you cruised with them before overseas ?  What did you enjoy about Disney Cruises?

[easytiger]

7 hours ago, MMDown Under said:

Have you cruised with them before overseas ?  What did you enjoy about Disney Cruises?

Have been on a few Disney Cruises out of Port Canaveral.  It goes without saying that the entertainment is  second to none.   Really enjoyed the adults only areas as cruising without children.  I didn't think the food was any better or worse than any other cruise line,  although the rotational dining where you get to experience 3 different restaurants with the same wait staff is pretty cool.   The Wonder is one of the older ships and has that classic liner feel.   It's Disney .. what can I say 😀

[MMDown Under]

5 hours ago, easytiger said:

Have been on a few Disney Cruises out of Port Canaveral.  It goes without saying that the entertainment is  second to none.   Really enjoyed the adults only areas as cruising without children.  I didn't think the food was any better or worse than any other cruise line,  although the rotational dining where you get to experience 3 different restaurants with the same wait staff is pretty cool.   The Wonder is one of the older ships and has that classic liner feel.   It's Disney .. what can I say 😀

Sounds wonderful.  Our family made repeated visits to WDW in Orlando.  It was a magical educational fun place.

[Mikamarii]

Didn't go through all 4 pages so sorry if this has all been said.

 

Family is huge Disney fans. Proposed in Disney, honeymooned in Disney and disney cruise. We were Disney Vacation Club owners for a decade. Been to WDW, DL, Aulani in Hawaii, and 3 Disney Cruises. Loved every minute if it. There is a special experience that you get with Disney that you just don't seem to feel with anything else.

 

However, we had our first cruise with Royal in 2020 (a month before the pandemic hit) and also had an amazing time. Yes it wasn't the same feel but that doesn't mean it was better or worse; it was just different.  And we've grown to love Royal as well. 

 

The rotational dining is great, and the theming of the restaurants is amazing. The restaurant, Animator's Palate, has a giant screen where Crush the turtle appears on the screen and interacts with guests just like in the parks.  Everywhere you look on the ship you feel like you are part of a movie, just like the parks. I believe the rooms are also bigger and you get a split bath so one bath has shower and sink and other has sink and toilette. Great for families. There is also a movie theater on board that plays Disney Movies that are often still in theaters. They have Character meet and greets all over the ship (with lines of course) and some exclusive ones that are ticketed (they are free but you have to sign up....and wait)

 

It's Disney, which means all that 'feel' comes with a price tag and in some cases that price tag is double what you would pay for with any other cruise line. We can get two rooms with Royal for the price of one with Disney. If you are a Disney fan, DCL is something you should experience. Each person has to justify whether the price is worth it. We know we are likely done with DCL because of the price. We always weigh the options but in the end it just comes to be too expensive when other cruise lines alos provide an amazing experience.

[curry767]

Anyone getting in to the booking website, I thought it opened at 8am AEST

 

[BrissieB]

47 minutes ago, curry767 said:

Anyone getting in to the booking website, I thought it opened at 8am AEST

 

Website crashed.  Apparently bookings opened early this morning around 2am.

[curry767]

Yes Disney are renound for their awesome IT.

 

I put the website up at 7am this morning on multiple devices and the best I got in was at 840 AEST and it is still unusable

[BrissieB]

I was in a line and then I got booted.  Then it went to site unavailable.  Now I'm back in a line.   

 

[icat2000]

I got through okay when I had a look but too expensive for my tastes. Plus Pete said to me no. Its okay if your 3 but as an adult no value.

[Essence08]

My little one woke up around 1:30am crying, got him back to sleep but couldn't sleep myself. Figured I'd jump on the Disney website to double check which cruise and cabin I wanted to book when Australian cruise bookings opened at 8am - surprised to see 'Early Booking Available' when I selected a cruise. Figured I'd get to the end of the booking and it would say I wasn't eligable ( not a previous cruiser) but nope - all went through successfully.

Booked a 4 night cruise from Melbourne.  Feeling very sorry for all those that have tried to book from 8am this morning, looks like a disaster. 

[arxcards]

24 minutes ago, icat2000 said:

I got through okay when I had a look but too expensive for my tastes. Plus Pete said to me no. Its okay if your 3 but as an adult no value.

I know quite a few people that have cruised Disney in the past with their kids. Kids are all grown up, yet they have been waiting impatiently for weeks to book. Some booked yesterday, so it must have been less chaotic for past cruisers getting in early. The advice given is to close your eyes when you hit the confirm button.

 

Not for us either, but maybe when we are in grandkid territory. I get it though. Some of the dearest cruises we have done have been Rock the Boat. Same Royal ship, same amenities, but the entertainment changes everything and well worth the double price tag for us - so I see why adult Disney fans are queuing-up for this.

[Mikamarii]

34 minutes ago, arxcards said:

Some booked yesterday, so it must have been less chaotic for past cruisers getting in early.

In our experience with booking DCL is opening dates are always chaotic. Their cabins never go on sale. At best, you may get something from your TA but never a sale from disney. As such, their prices never go down. Only up as cabins book up. And they only release their dates up to a year in advance or so. Not 2-3 years like Royal. 
 

it’s almost a guarantee prices will be more after the first wave of bookers book. The plus is that all fares are refundable. There’s no extra cost for it. So lots book opening day to get a good price then cancel later. It’s good for the booker but terrible for everyone else as it drives prices up. 
 

this where a good ta becomes invaluable. Tell them what you want and they get on the phone and book for you to avoid the chaos. 

Edited September 29, 2022 by Mikamarii

[arxcards]

36 minutes ago, Mikamarii said:

In our experience with booking DCL is opening dates are always chaotic. Their cabins never go on sale. At best, you may get something from your TA but never a sale from disney. As such, their prices never go down. Only up as cabins book up. And they only release their dates up to a year in advance or so. Not 2-3 years like Royal. 
 

it’s almost a guarantee prices will be more after the first wave of bookers book. The plus is that all fares are refundable. There’s no extra cost for it. So lots book opening day to get a good price then cancel later. It’s good for the booker but terrible for everyone else as it drives prices up. 
 

this where a good ta becomes invaluable. Tell them what you want and they get on the phone and book for you to avoid the chaos. 

Makes sense.

I agree about the T/A too. Much easier to just get an email with booking details on it.

[MMDown Under]

1 hour ago, Mikamarii said:

In our experience with booking DCL is opening dates are always chaotic. Their cabins never go on sale. At best, you may get something from your TA but never a sale from disney. As such, their prices never go down. Only up as cabins book up. And they only release their dates up to a year in advance or so. Not 2-3 years like Royal. 
 

it’s almost a guarantee prices will be more after the first wave of bookers book. The plus is that all fares are refundable. There’s no extra cost for it. So lots book opening day to get a good price then cancel later. It’s good for the booker but terrible for everyone else as it drives prices up. 
 

this where a good ta becomes invaluable. Tell them what you want and they get on the phone and book for you to avoid the chaos. 

Agree using a Disney cruise TA would be good value. 

 

2 hours ago, Essence08 said:

My little one woke up around 1:30am crying, got him back to sleep but couldn't sleep myself. Figured I'd jump on the Disney website to double check which cruise and cabin I wanted to book when Australian cruise bookings opened at 8am - surprised to see 'Early Booking Available' when I selected a cruise. Figured I'd get to the end of the booking and it would say I wasn't eligable ( not a previous cruiser) but nope - all went through successfully.

Booked a 4 night cruise from Melbourne.  Feeling very sorry for all those that have tried to book from 8am this morning, looks like a disaster. 

One time you were lucky your little one waking you up at 1.30 am crying!!  You must have got a delightful surprise to book successfully.

[kaseyoz]

Been away too long, cannot work out how to reply to a particular comment.

regards why disney?
the same as already posted. But can I also add, why do folk book a balcony when they can have the same cruise in an inside cabin.

it is for the experience.

i did the Panama cruise on the Wonder a few years back, no kids. You can bet your bottom dollar i was going to book one of these Aussie cruises.

NYE 6 nights cheapest cabin $6000. Will forgo something else.

[NSWP]

Disney Office in USA is closed up due to Hurricane Ian.

[MMDown Under]

2 hours ago, BrissieB said:

I was in a line and then I got booted.  Then it went to site unavailable.  Now I'm back in a line.   

 

Oh I feel for you getting booted off line, after being on line, then site unavailable.  Hope you're successful making a booking. 

I had to phone at 9am to making a once in a week only booking.  Got straight through and told to hold.  I was a nerve wreck waiting for a human voice.  Relieved to be successful.

[MMDown Under]

1 minute ago, NSWP said:

Disney Office in USA is closed up due to Hurricane Ian.

I'm waiting to hear from a friend who lives in that part of Florida.  We've driven through Florida and along the Panhandle after hurricanes and there was debris everywhere and no SES helping clean up all the rubbish.  We are blessed with our volunteer SES here.

[Essence08]

2 minutes ago, MMDown Under said:

I'm waiting to hear from a friend who lives in that part of Florida.  We've driven through Florida and along the Panhandle after hurricanes and there was debris everywhere and no SES helping clean up all the rubbish.  We are blessed with our volunteer SES here.

 

Hope your friend is safe and well, these weather events are becoming so much more frequent and so much harsher. 

And yes to your previous reply - first time I haven't minded being woken through the night by my little one. Poor little one has an ear and chest infection so pretty miserable, but a Disney cruise is cheering me up at least 🙂 

[MMDown Under]

6 minutes ago, kaseyoz said:

Been away too long, cannot work out how to reply to a particular comment.

regards why disney?
the same as already posted. But can I also add, why do folk book a balcony when they can have the same cruise in an inside cabin.

it is for the experience.

i did the Panama cruise on the Wonder a few years back, no kids. You can bet your bottom dollar i was going to book one of these Aussie cruises.

NYE 6 nights cheapest cabin $6000. Will forgo something else.

You just click on quote under the particular comment you wish to comment on.  

I agree, unless you are very wealthy, spending money is always something else foregone.  I have ancient cars which take me from A to B.  The number one vehicle for wealthy Americans is a ute!  Most wealthy people I know are frugal, which is why they are wealthy. 

We still talk about our visits at WDA as a family and continued when our children were adults.  When it got too expensive with a weak Aussie dollar, we just stayed a couple of nights at WDW, then outside WDW in cheap motels.