disney cruise line question About This Page:

[scdisneyfan]

I was thinking of booking a disney cruise through my travel agent. She is not a disney expert nor does she have one on hand but she knows me very well from booking several non disney trips. My question is: Is is cheaper to book through her or on my own. I want a land and sea package at the end of september/first of october. The price online seems expensive. I'm not sure but is it cheaper to book them separate. I am used to paying between 6-700 per cruise but with this being a land and sea package it was nearly 1000 per person. Which seemed a lot to me. I didnt know if the TA can book it cheaper,etc. Also, what is your experience with cruise booked in sept/oct on the disney ships? are there a lot of complaints? Can you help me figure this out??

[Belle*]

There are times when as a TA, we can get certain cruise dates cheaper because agencies book group space when the dates are released. This means that we booked group space at an Early Booking Savings which we can then pass on to the customer. But what you will see more frequently is an agency offering rebates or onboard credits as incentives for booking with them.

It is usually less expensive to book the land and sea portions of your trip seperately. Since Disney links your land accomodations to the stateroom category you book when you book a package, you are limited in your choices. Booking them seperately allows you to splurge on an ocean view or verandah stateroom while saving your $$ on a value resort like Pop Century. Or vice-versa - splurge on a moderate or deluxe at WDW but save on an inside cabin while at sea.

It looks like you got your Sept/Oct question answered in the Cruise forum but just in case... September/October is Hurricane Season however this means that it is a less expensive time to cruise. The weather (when not raining) is still beautiful and crowds at the parks are usually reasonable aside from holiday weekends. Plus, the ship can alter it's itinerary to avoid the worst of the weather.

Hope this helps!

[scdisneyfan]

Oh yes this does help....Its all new to me when it comes to cruising with disney so i thought i would ask. Yeah i think i may chance september if feasible. Just to see what its like. Thanks for the info!

[dmpyron]

You should price it both ways. A lot depends on what you want in the way of accommodations. If a Value is all you need at the parks, then you'll have to book them separetly. Rebating is getting harder. Disney has new rules about final payments that make it harder. You can still do it. Disney is looking at what a number of cruise lines have already done, which is to limit the amount of time you can offer a group. Although if this change came about, it probably wouldn't be until the next release of dates&rates. Booking a Land & Sea is a tricky proposition. There are a lot of variables to consider. If I weren't an agent, I'd go with one. Someone with Disney experience. You seem to know cruises and you probably know Disney, but the two together can sometimes be confusing the first time around. Yes, it's expensive. Disney has an audience that's willing to step up and pay the price. Some hotels in the Orlando area are discounting rooms heavily. Disney occasionally has "sales", but you don't really save much. The same thing with DCL. Carnival has some great prices on their Bahamas cruises out of Canaveral, but not DCL. And they're sailing above capacity.