New to Disney cruise

[Plantcitycruise]

I have a couple questions that hopefully someone can answer for me. Our family has taken a couple cruises on Carnival. Mostly because we can get to the Tampa port in 20 minutes. I'm sure that I will hear that Disney is way better than Carnival, but I would like some specifics on how from someone that has taken both.

 

We are planning on taking our daughter on a cruise for her 9th birthday next October. I like to take care of all the planning/paying well in advance just so it's done. However I have read a couple posts about Florida rates being a big discount. Am I better off waiting and trying to snag one of the Florida rate deals closer to sail date, or booking now and getting the room I want?

 

My wife and daughter really want to do this Disney cruise. I am just having a hard time justifying twice as much as either a comparable Carnival or Royal Carribean cruise with similar itineraries and travel time. I by no means am trying to be cheap, it's just that it is quite a bit more expensive...of course after showing them photos of the Fantasy, it appears it's a moot point.

[ducklite]

I've sailed on both Disney and Royal Caribbean. You wouldn't get me back on RCCL if it were free. I'd sail DCL again if I were cruising with a child. In fact it would be the only line I'd consider for a Caribbean cruise with a child.

[iloverags2]

The nice thing about DCL (up until now, and for the foreseeable future) is that they will give you the Florida resident discount even if you have already booked, paid in full, and passed the cancellation/penalty date. We have done this a few times with no problems. Once we had the difference refunded to us; other times we have just upgraded our stateroom.

 

Hope this helps with that question!

 

As far as the differences, i much prefer Disney (although I would cruise Royal Caribbean again...Carnival, not so much). A few things to keep in mind about Disney - if you are a soda drinker, those are included in your cruise (from the drink stations and in the dining rooms...if you order from a bar or from room service, then there is an additional charge). Also, if you want to bring your own alcohol or bottled water, there is no limit as to what and how much you can bring. The only stipulation is that it must be carried on (I use my airline regulation luggage on wheels!). Room service is 24 hours with no additional charge during the overnight hours (except for the normal items that have a surcharge such as alcohol, can soda, and boxed candy).

 

The shows on Disney are much higher quality - think Broadway style. Yes, they are very Disney oriented, but very nice productions.

 

If you book a deluxe inside or higher category stateroom (anything other than standard inside basically), you will have the split bath which we love! Also, all DCL staterooms, regardless of ship and category, have a sofa. This is a definite perk over other cruise lines, and something that just drives me batty with the other lines! (Princess really needs to get on board providing couches at the very least in their regular balcony staterooms...oy!)

 

The biggest draw for us is just the ship itself. Disney ships are gorgeous!

[CariBear]

If you are looking for a Florida resident discount then October is a great month to go......except if you are looking at a Halloween sailing. I went this October on a discounted rate....with a friend who usually sails around the same time each year with discounted/FL resident rates.

[Plantcitycruise]

Thanks for the info so far. We have always gotten a balcony so far and I personally couldn't imagine otherwise. It is really nice to sit out there and read while the ship is cruising...I read more in 7 days on a cruise ship than the rest of the year combined. I did see the split bath layout which was really nice.

 

Not big soda drinkers, so the free soda is not a selling point for us. I like that you can bring alcohol though.

 

I'll have to look into the Florida rate discount even after booking. Does it matter if you book through them or a travel agent? Just curious.

 

I keep reading info and Disney has the highest approval ratings. I'm sure the shows will be very entertaining.

 

We are not super picky so Carnival hasn't been a let down to us as it has others. We have done balcony rooms, anytime dining and just scheduled our own excursions and never had any issues. Sure the food could be better, but I'm not expecting Charley's or Ruth Chris for the price I'm paying....not sure I could even eat Chili's for the price you pay on any cruise.

 

Thanks again for all the feedback. My family is excited to go on Disney...and now my wife mentioned it to her mother, and she wants to go...which means we are going.

[redxpanda]

If you can be a little flexible with your dates, you will probably be able to find a discount that works for you.

 

What we did was book a sailing and stateroom we liked and I kept a keen eye on the rates. I tracked them myself in excel. Eventually, FLR (the special DCL code for fl rates) came out for the month prior to our sailing. We booked beginning of February, so it was only 5 days difference for us to switch to a January sailing and quite the discount. We upgraded from an inside to a balcony for the same price with our young DD in our room. the in laws did the same and actually saved a few hundred. DD wasn't discounted.

 

Eventually, FLR rates came out for our original Feb cruise date, they were released just before the pay in full date of our original cruise, but when I looked on the booking site our original date wasn't available for the discount for some reason! So, I'm glad we switched.

 

As your pay in full date approaches, you can get an idea for how many rooms are available by going to the DCL booking site and pretend to book a stateroom for your sailing. If a lot of categories are still open and many rooms in each still available, then there is a decent chance discounts will come out.

[iloverags2]

It doesn't matter if you book through DCL or a travel agent...if you do use a travel agent, be sure you find one that will be willing to call DCL as soon as those FLR rates are released to ensure the discount is applied (if you book ahead of time and the FLR rates are released later).

 

One thing to keep in mind, the FLR rates are typically available on the 3 and 4 night sailings. I don't believe I have seen those rates on a longer sailing (7 nights) since 2010.

[Gatrcruzer]

It doesn't matter if you book through DCL or a travel agent...if you do use a travel agent, be sure you find one that will be willing to call DCL as soon as those FLR rates are released to ensure the discount is applied (if you book ahead of time and the FLR rates are released later).

 

One thing to keep in mind, the FLR rates are typically available on the 3 and 4 night sailings. I don't believe I have seen those rates on a longer sailing (7 nights) since 2010.

 

Currently there is a FL resident rate for the Wonder 7 ni Holiday cruise, as well as 4/5 night Wonder trips, in addition to the Dream's 3/4 night cruises. However, you simply don't know. I have seen a lot of guarantee rates for the Fantasy 7 night cruises this Fall, particularly after the paid in full dates. These rates are guaranteed for a category (inside, outside, balcony), and they will assign your cabin - you must take what they give you, and no refunds. I do not believe you could get these rates after your paid in full date, the way you can with FL resident rates. So if your cruise offered guarantee rates, but not FL resident rates, you could not get them. I like the advice of checking inventory frequently as you get close to your paid in full date, and you can decide whether to cancel/rebook after the date, or take a chance that a FL resident rate will pop up. It is a bit risky.

[Plantcitycruise]

The trip is for our daughters birthday so unfortunately we won't be flexible with our dates. Plus in-laws will be coming now too and they will be flying in from Texas.

 

The good news is it's a 10\26 sailing on the Fantasy. That means we get Halloween on the ship, I think that will be fun. Good news that they do have 7 day Florida resident rates sometimes. Do I just pay deposit or the full amount to be able to take advantage of a Florida rate if it shows up later? I think if you prepaid in full on Carnival then you could get the lower rates in OBC if they showed up.

 

We definitely don't want the guaranteed room option. My wife needs to be in the middle of the ship to cut down the bouncing. She can get some mild see sickness in the front or rear of the ship sometimes.

 

Plus we would like to be on deck 7 or higher, for view and less theater sound...now I'm starting to sound very picky for someone trying to save money. It's just hard for me to mentally get over the fact I could go on the Freedom of the Seas (also very good rated) twice for same price.

[iloverags2]

It doesn't matter how you book and then make payments for the FL resident rate. Once it becomes available (if it does even for your sailing) you can switch it over to the FL rate regardless if only a deposit has been made or if it has been paid in full. I have not seen FL resident rates on the 7-night Fantasy cruises, but with the 2014 itineraries set to be released any day now it's possible those 2013 fall cruises might see people jumping ship (ha ha) and rebooking for 2014. If the inventory warrants then you could see some FL resident rates. Fall sailings are most common for those, along with January sailings.

[Plantcitycruise]

Thanks for the info. You all have been very helpful. Whether we get the Fl rate or not won't change the fact that we will have an awesome time.