discounted Disney cruises

[marynjason]

Hi all just wondering if anyone books directly or through ab online TA. Which has better pricing? Do they ever run specials? from what I see to go 7 days next April its 3500 for the 3 of in a standard inside cabin..lol for that I could get a suite on Carnival. Please I need suggestions on where to book a cruise my 3 yr old son thinks he's Davey Junes and to see the Dutchman would be the highlight of the week for him.

Thanks Mary

[logan1_2000]

Hi all just wondering if anyone books directly or through ab online TA. Which has better pricing? Do they ever run specials? from what I see to go 7 days next April its 3500 for the 3 of in a standard inside cabin..lol for that I could get a suite on Carnival. Please I need suggestions on where to book a cruise my 3 yr old son thinks he's Davey Junes and to see the Dutchman would be the highlight of the week for him.

Thanks Mary

 

Mary, try the DISboard site for DCL discussion. No one really has discount pricing on DCL, though some will book group sized blocks of rooms for certain dates and then turn around and pass along those rates to their customers. You can find threads at Dis boards doing a search for recommendations of reputable cruise TA's who are knowledgeable about DCL.

 

Consider the shorter cruises to the Bahamas to get the Disney experience at a lower cost. Consider going Disney in "value" season--the fall, for example, since with a 3 yr old you might not be confined to a school calendar as we now are with DS entering Jr. High (but I sure did pull him out of school for cruises at a better price in kindergarten, and 1st grade...hmm, and 3rd grade...and 5th grade...).

 

I don't knock other cruise lines, but please make sure you do good homework to understand what you are getting for your money whichever line you choose. There can be a great difference between ships, for example. And the Disney experience is simply different--doesn't make Carnival, say, on the Glory, one of their newer ships, a bad experience at all, but it is not the same. I'm a big fan of Disney but I've done as many royal caribbean as disney so I do know that there are other choices.

[marynjason]

I too love Disney!! We cruise once a year and we live in Fl so we're at Disney 5 times a year. I just wonder if the price is worth it for someone that already goes to disney soo often. I think we might be better off staying with the tried and true Carnival!

Thanks

[MississippiMom]

I too love Disney!! We cruise once a year and we live in Fl so we're at Disney 5 times a year. I just wonder if the price is worth it for someone that already goes to disney soo often. I think we might be better off staying with the tried and true Carnival!

Thanks

 

I don't live in FL, but I was under the impression that all of the cruise lines tend to run Florida resident specials at some time or another. It certainly would be worth asking about.

[NancyIL]

They are sponcered by a huge travel agency that does a whole lot of bait and switch, It is great for information but if you think that un-named agency is going to give a care about you once they have your cash you are totally wrong. I learned the hard way about them:mad:

 

Disney does not allow discounting so the only "deals" you will get is in the form of gifts from a TA or them rebating part of their comission to you. The ones who rebate huge amounts deal in huge volumes and don't expect them to help you switch your dining or anything else, they are there to get the money and if they have enough cabins booked you will get a gift.

 

I will skip that huge credit and keep my little TA who would do anything in the world for me. She buys my kids gifts and sends them with the documents, to make it more special for them, always gives us some type of credit, nope not the 100-200 credits that disboards place advertises, but see if you can really collect that in the end:rolleyes:

 

I know which "un-named agency" you are referring to, and I booked a January cruise with them due to their group rates. Exactly how do they "bait and switch"? I have had great responses from one of their agents when my mom wanted to switch to a handicapped cabin.

[vossjemi]

I too have used the disboard sponsor and had great results. Our first disney land/sea vacation, they booked me everything I wanted, got my spr room, got my land cinderella breakfast castle reservations (which are tough to get!) & I got a good discount. Now, I'm on the 2nd go around, where the discount is on board credit. I'm using the same agent and she's always been prompt and got me exactly what I wanted. No problems here so far.

[pisces68]

I too love Disney!! We cruise once a year and we live in Fl so we're at Disney 5 times a year. I just wonder if the price is worth it for someone that already goes to disney soo often. I think we might be better off staying with the tried and true Carnival!

Thanks

 

 

Give DCL a chance, I really dont think you'll be sorry. We dont live in FL but we try to go to Disney World at least once a year. I have tired THe Big Red Boat, Royal Carribean, DCL and now Carnival (Liberty) and we're definetly sticking with DCL. The others arent bad but its just not the same magic. Disney has the BEST kids club. Your son will love it!!

[honeydog714]

I know which "un-named agency" you are referring to, and I booked a January cruise with them due to their group rates. Exactly how do they "bait and switch"? I have had great responses from one of their agents when my mom wanted to switch to a handicapped cabin.

IF you are referring to the one I am thinking of, be careful, extras etc. they offer at first don't materialize if they don't fill the group space, all of their pricing is based on volume and filling that group.

 

I am not saying they are not capable, but I would not be so sure your mom keeps that handicapped cabin unless they are willing to fax in a doctors note etc. They have made claims in the past to get a deposit and then have simply ignored customers and billed credit cards for final payment.

 

Hey to each their own, I am simply saying I personally was mislead by them and when it came to final payment things were much different than when I booked

[dahuffy]

IF you are referring to the one I am thinking of, be careful, extras etc. they offer at first don't materialize if they don't fill the group space, all of their pricing is based on volume and filling that group.

 

I am not saying they are not capable, but I would not be so sure your mom keeps that handicapped cabin unless they are willing to fax in a doctors note etc. They have made claims in the past to get a deposit and then have simply ignored customers and billed credit cards for final payment.

 

Hey to each their own, I am simply saying I personally was mislead by them and when it came to final payment things were much different than when I booked

 

I'm sorry you had such a bad experience with "XYZ Travel" we,like others,have had nothing but good experiences with them. We used them for our Sept.'06 7 Day Eastern and we're using them again for our 15 Day EB Repo cruise next year. They have been nothing but accomodating.:)

[metrowon]

They travel with you, their on-board. It's that simple. Metrowon

[CruiseGirlGage]

If I could find a good travel agent, then I'd book through them. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be any in my local area, so I book directly with the cruise line.

[RadioCarla]

I don't live in FL, but I was under the impression that all of the cruise lines tend to run Florida resident specials at some time or another. It certainly would be worth asking about.

 

Disney does occasionally offer a Florida resident rate, but it's usually very last minute on cruises that aren't selling as well as they would like, usually in off periods like May. Also, because there is a limit on the number of children that they can accommodate, the discount rate is sometimes for adults only. The last time I remember it being offered was well over a year ago.

 

Carla

[Mickey&Me]

This time of year you plan on going on DCL makes a big difference. Sept. and Oct are the cheapest months, we have found.