Bargain Magic double dip cruise 9/27/08

[Muushka]

Just when I thought we had given up DCL for Celebrity, I found a great price on the 9/27/08 Magic cruise. Rumor has it that The Magic will be in drydock September 6-27, so the ship will be, well, for lack of better words, ship shape!

We got a CAT 5 for $2632 (2 adults) with $300 refund from Sam's club after the cruise is complete. A great price.:yes:

And we get to do Castaway Cay twice on this cruise! The "other" board has a great thread for this cruise and I think we made the right choice. Now, if only the hurricanes will stay away!:violinist

[carolina_yankee]

That's a great price! Their website doesn't show that cruise, but they do have great prices on other fall 2008 inteneraries.

Dirk

[Muushka]

Yeah, I had a hard time finding it on their website, but it is listed under special itineraries. I liked this one because of the 2 trips to CC.

[carolina_yankee]

On the Costco Travel site, or the DCL site? I was on the Costco site . . .

Dirk

[Muushka]

I booked through Sam's Club. And I had a hard time finding it on the DCL website. Sam's actually has it listed for $150 more for the CAT 5, but they found me a group rate when i called. Which was great because the CAT 6's that were left were all way off mid-ship (which we really need due to sea sickness problems).

[CRSNDSNY]

Just when I thought we had given up DCL for Celebrity, I found a great price on the 9/27/08 Magic cruise. Rumor has it that The Magic will be in drydock September 6-27, so the ship will be, well, for lack of better words, ship shape!

We got a CAT 5 for $2632 (2 adults) with $300 refund from Sam's club after the cruise is complete. A great price.:yes:

And we get to do Castaway Cay twice on this cruise! The "other" board has a great thread for this cruise and I think we made the right choice. Now, if only the hurricanes will stay away!:violinist

WOW! That's a GREAT PRICE!

[zulaya]

My DH and I only did a cruise (non-Disney) once and we hated it. I'm now looking at doing a Disney cruise because it seems like there are way more activities than lounging in the sun and drinking alcohol.

I know next to nothing about booking cruises and when to do it...that first cruise was a free trip I had earned...

So is booking a cruise worse than booking DVC, in terms of planning ahead...it seems like it's 1-2 years in advance that people think about this rather than even the 11 months for home resorts.

[mkhurley]

My DH and I only did a cruise (non-Disney) once and we hated it. I'm now looking at doing a Disney cruise because it seems like there are way more activities than lounging in the sun and drinking alcohol.

I know next to nothing about booking cruises and when to do it...that first cruise was a free trip I had earned...

So is booking a cruise worse than booking DVC, in terms of planning ahead...it seems like it's 1-2 years in advance that people think about this rather than even the 11 months for home resorts.

Depends on the type of room you want, but if your fine in an inside room it's not big deal. My BIL booked his room about a month out for our Feb Cruise and got a pretty deep discount thru his work (pilot). Nicer rooms with a verandah you might wanna book as early as you know. We had a 2BR Suite booked for our Med Cruise, but had to cancel it, we booked that as soon as they opened up that cruise for booking.

We'd been on Carnival before and they seem to be big party boats, we aren't into the heavy partying anymore so it really wasn't for us, Disney is ALOT different.

[Muushka]

I think booking a DCL cruise is worse than DVC because DCL prices go up the closer it gets to the cruise. So if you book early (not sure what everyone defines early as for DCL, but I would say at least a year out) you can get the early booking prices plus better choice of cabins.

We are not loungers or drinkers. Although sitting out on the promenade deck is something we both enjoy.

If you book a cruise, you have up until 75 days before sailing to cancel with a full refund.

Have fun shopping!

[zulaya]

OK, so here's my current thought...

I'm thinking about a 3 day or a 4 day in October 08 because the kids have a school break with 3 days off. I'd love to do a 7 day at that time, but DS will be in his first year of middle school and I'm just not sure how he'll be doing, etc.

I do not want an inside cabin. I can deal with just a view, but would prefer a veranda of some sort.

We are a family of 4 and the Deluxe cabins with verandahs all seem to work from the info I have read on disneycruise.com.

We were on Royal Caribbean for the cruise DH and I took. It's not that it was a "party" ship per se...just that the pools were not really for swimming...too teeny to have more than 5 people in at a time...the people seemed content to spend all day on deck just sitting there OR doing the casino that took up the middle of the ship.

I am not a big drinker, gambler or a sitting still type person. I like to have action while on vacation...that's why Disney parks work for us. And it seems...from the very little I have read...that the Disney Cruise sounds fun as well.

Couple more questions:

1. Nassau: I'm thinking that a stop at Atlantis would be a great for us. The price is pretty hefty, but for a one-time deal I can handle it. The excursion info says it's 7-8 hours in length. So my question is...what if we've seen all we want to see and done all we wanted to do in say, 5 hours. Can we go back to the ship early? Or is it their arranged transportation comes for you in 7 or 8 hours and if you want to come back early transportation is on your own?

2. Do you arrange airfare and transfers with Disney or with your TA or on your own? Any pros and cons?

3. Tipping. I don't know much about it, but from what I have heard you have tip just about everyone you come in contact with. Kind of defeats the all-inclusive nature of a cruist, IMO, but that's another thread.

How do you pay for gratuity? I know you pay per person in your party, but WHEN do you do this? Daily? At the end? I have no idea.

Thanks

[Muushka]

OK, so here's my current thought...

I'm thinking about a 3 day or a 4 day in October 08 because the kids have a school break with 3 days off. I'd love to do a 7 day at that time, but DS will be in his first year of middle school and I'm just not sure how he'll be doing, etc.

The 3 day has the 'over the weekend' advantage (great for DVC) but it seems like too much trouble for that short amount of time. We did a 4 day and that was very nice.

I do not want an inside cabin. I can deal with just a view, but would prefer a veranda of some sort.

We are claustrophobic so no inside cabin for us! We did a veranda on the 7 day and a CAT 9 (large porthole) on the 4 day. We really enjoyed the porthole. It was very large and made it seem like we were on a ship. But we really loved the veranda. Plus, with the veranda, the location is better. We needed mid-ship for the second cruise (waves issue :rolleyes: ) so the upper CAT 9 would not work, we were on deck 2. With the CAT 6, we were on deck 6, a much better location.

We are a family of 4 and the Deluxe cabins with verandahs all seem to work from the info I have read on disneycruise.com.

We were on Royal Caribbean for the cruise DH and I took. It's not that it was a "party" ship per se...just that the pools were not really for swimming...too teeny to have more than 5 people in at a time...the people seemed content to spend all day on deck just sitting there OR doing the casino that took up the middle of the ship.

I am not a big drinker, gambler or a sitting still type person. I like to have action while on vacation...that's why Disney parks work for us. And it seems...from the very little I have read...that the Disney Cruise sounds fun as well.

Couple more questions:

1. Nassau: I'm thinking that a stop at Atlantis would be a great for us. The price is pretty hefty, but for a one-time deal I can handle it. The excursion info says it's 7-8 hours in length. So my question is...what if we've seen all we want to see and done all we wanted to do in say, 5 hours. Can we go back to the ship early? Or is it their arranged transportation comes for you in 7 or 8 hours and if you want to come back early transportation is on your own?

sorry, we did not do an excursion at Nassau

2. Do you arrange airfare and transfers with Disney or with your TA or on your own? Any pros and cons?

sorry, we drive!

3. Tipping. I don't know much about it, but from what I have heard you have tip just about everyone you come in contact with. Kind of defeats the all-inclusive nature of a cruist, IMO, but that's another thread.

The people that you tip on DCL are people that serve you in your room and in the dining room. Room steward, dining room server, assistant dining room server and head server.
And on one cruise I gave my head server's tip to my assistant server (he did everything for me, she did nothing!) Tipping is done at the end of the cruise. And by then, you are happy to give them something for their great service. Some tips are automatically added to you purchases (like drinks for example). We always give it in individual envelopes in cash, but you can have it added to your bill if you like.

How do you pay for gratuity? I know you pay per person in your party, but WHEN do you do this? Daily? At the end? I have no idea.

Thanks

You are welcome!