ducklite

Why would they when there are other vehicles that will carry a family of 4 or 5 or 6 or 7... The Prius certainly won't do that many people.

Why would you buy a gas guzzler when you didn't need to carry that many people? Maybe that's why we can afford nice vacations every year--because we don't buy more car than we need... The Prius will comfortably hold four for long distances, five kids for long distances.

No you said that is not the same as a great many ;)

As I see it, "most" is a bigger number than "a great many." And MOST could afford a DCL cruise every year if it became a priority over spending money on other things they want but don't need.

Are you a family of 4? Most don't travel in a Prius.

 

200,000 people are not "most" families of 4.

Why wouldn't a family of four travel in a Prius? There's plenty of room for four people and luggage. If you don't think so, you've probably never been in one.

I didn't say that 200K was "most" families of four, the point is that there are a great many people who have no problem financially taking a DCL cruise annually.

But that requires you to be a DVC member, most families of 4 are not DVC members.

 

If they drive that adds plenty of other expenses - Gas ain't cheap either.

 

Hey you might be right but DCL is an expensive cruise for those paying cash and perhaps even for those using DVC points.

DVC admits to having over 150,000 members, and I've heard that the number is over 200,000.

And "expensive" is a relative and subjective term. "gas ain't cheap" also depends on your perspective. My husband drives a Prius. Yup, gas is "cheap" when we're taking a trip in that car.

Hmmm, every year, just not sure about that. I guess if you did very little else. And you were local to a port I suppose.

 

Carribean 7 days

 

Dec 1, 2012 current rate for that family of 4 inside is $4699.37

 

Dec 3, 2011 is a steal I guess at $ 3,038

 

Bahamas 3 nights is $ $1852 Dec 2012, Many other lines that would be a 7 day cruise to somewhere.

 

Not knocking Disney, if they can get those rates I guess the economy is OK but still a family of 4 every year? Ouch!

 

And before airfare!

A lot of people use their DVC points, or they book the next cruise while they are on board for the savings. A lot of people will do a three day then use their DVC points for another 5-6 days at WDW. If they drive (doable from much of the east coast or southeast) it's actually a pretty affordable vacation, especially if they buy AP's and get two trips out of them.

DCL is not a line most could do on a yearly basis.

I'm not sure that's accurate, as there are a large number of people who do just that. Could "most" do an expensive Med sailing yearly on DCL? Probably not. But I do think that most families of four could sail in an inside cabin every year if they chose to do so.

I was actually just commented on what someone else wrote about getting free park day ticket or a fast past. They use to do the free park ticket on the day of your birthday but they no longer to that as far as i know. I dont need a "perk" but if they offer it and its my bday why not...

That was a one time promo that only lasted a year and it ran in 2008--or maybe 2009? It's been over and done with for a quite some time now. If you had an AP you could take your choice of a FastPass that was good on every ride for the entire day, or a $75 gift card for merchandise only (no food) in the parks. I still have $40 or so left on mine. :)

Hi!

I am going on a cruise for my bday. actually my bday is a couple days after i get back from my cruise but its my 40th so we are going on a cruise to celebrate. We are staying at a disney resort the day before the cruise. I call Disney and they stayed they dont do the perks for the birthdays anymore. Can anyone confirm this? Did I get misinformed?

 

I also went back online to try to find the button to register for bithdays but could not find it could anyone help me find this?

 

thank you

I'm not sure what type of "perk" you were looking for. You can get a "Birthday Button" when you check in at your resort or from guest services in any of the parks.

Disney never has automatically offered any other celebration incentive. Some people have gotten a birthday card signed by a character in their room, and sometimes at a restaurant they'll put a candle in your dessert, but that's about it and it's never been guaranteed. (On the cruise they will generally bring a small generic birthday cake to your table if you let them know it's a birthday.)

If you want an in-room cake or room decorations or something along those lines, order it in advance and plan on paying for it. They do not, and never have, provided this on a complimentary basis.

The only exception is if you are a concierge/club level guest, in that case they will generally provide a cake delivered to your room--but even then it's never guaranteed.

Comparable in cost to a meal at a fine land-based restaurant, perhaps, but hardly typical of what most other lines charge in their specialty restaurants and some of the descriptions were definitely what I would call "over the top" unless you are accustomed to comparing even the finest cheese plate with fine caviar.

Actually far less than the cost of a similar land based meal--perhaps I wasn't clear in my earlier post. Typical meals at Victoria and Albert's at Disney's Grand Floridian run a minimum of $200 a person, dinner with wine at The French Laundry runs $400 per person and up. And just because YOU are not accustomed to fine dining, it doesn't mean that no one else onboard is.

I'm not sure just how many of the folks choosing a Disney cruise for their family, would be regular patrons of the restaurants you mention. Heck, they, like me, have likely never heard of them.;)

Just because you aren't familiar with fine dining establishments, it doesn't mean that there isn't a market for them. Obviously Disney felt there was a market for Remy or they wouldn't offer it. And based on the success of Victoria and Albert's--which sells out on a regular basis--there is obviously a market with the "Disney crowd." Also, keep in mind that there are many who cruise DCL without young kids in tow. Again, it's not a one size fits all situation.

If you don't like it, just don't eat there. No one is making you do so, and it really shouldn't make a difference to you one way or the other.

Just read a review of Disney Dream in a travel trade publication in which the reviewer mentioned dining in Remy, a specialty restaurant on the ship, where a party of two paid $381 for a "special" six course meal which included a "cheese plate that made us feel as if we were sampling the finest of caviars":rolleyes:

Have never heard of such an expensive meal on any cruise ship and while I know it is not typical of what most people would pay on Disney or most any other cruiseline, I thought it was a bit over the top.:)

Actually the price is on par or even quite a bit less expensive over what a similar meal on land would run. I believe this is Disney's version of Victoria and Albert's "at sea." Not quite French Laundry, but certainly along the lines of Per Se. (Both of which will set you back a minimum of $400 a person.) Over the top? Not really. Very unique and exciting for an at sea restaurant, but pretty typical of the type of dining experience they are emulating. Personally I can't wait to dine there on our anniversary this fall!

Two comments.

First, until DCL has trouble booking cabins, they have no incentive to offer lower pricing. While they might not be affordable for OP, they obviously are affordable for many others.

Second, people choose different lines for different reasons. We are cruising DCL this fall as they offer a cabin configuration that many others don't--that is a 1BR suite with the bedroom actually separated by a door as opposed to a curtain. To get this on most other lines you double or even triple the cost. Also, DCL has the most liberal policy on bringing alcohol aboard of pretty much every cruise line sailing from US ports. We will fully take this opportunity to bring along fine wines from our cellar (paying corkage of course) rather than paying steep mark ups on what is for the most part a pedestrian or even poor wine selection.

We've traveled in many cruise suites (RCCL and NCL) and this was the first time we really used it. First, it was very relaxed and attentive at the same time. Drinks (water, soda, and juice) were always available. Alcoholic drinks were available some of the times as well. We weren't very far (2 or 3 doors away) from the lounge and they lounge was bigger and less stuffy than others I have experienced. You also have to go through the lounge to get to the suite sun deck. We definitely enjoyed the sun deck. It was not crowded at all and staff was very attentive there as well.

 

The concierge staff were great with my kids. They played card games with them and taught them some magic tricks. They never felt unwelcomed. I have felt on some other cruise ships that my children had eyes burning in the back of their heads if they entered the lounge especially on RCCL. This was not the case here. There were no time restrictions for children either. It was nice that wnen I was getting ready for dinner, the boys and their dad would go to the lounge and play cards or just talk. Made getting ready less stressful for me!

We won't have kids with us, so keeping them entertained won't be an issue. When we cruised RCCL, under 18 wasn't allowed in the lounge when they were serving alcohol, so basically after 5:00 pm or so. Even then, we just didn't really use the lounge. I'm sure we'll wander to the sun deck at some point, although we'll probably spend more time on our balcony, we like the fresh air, but prefer the shade.

Is the water bottled or filtered? Can you take it out of the lounge? That might be a good reason to visit. ;-) We're bringing our own wine onboard, so the alcohol in the lounge doesn't really draw us, unless they're pouring some decent Port as an after dinner "wee dram." ;-)

This is great info, not just for me but others as well--thanks!

It does have a frig under tv in living room. We enjoyed the room a lot however, it is was difficult getting around the furniture to get to the balcony. Especially when the couch was opened up. The bedroom is extremely tight. The bathroom is very large but dark. The bathtub is huge and loved the shower. The tv in the mirror is definitely cool. The closets were outside the bedroom but really just outside. This really didn't make a difference to us. The concierge lounge was definitely a plus! We spent a lot of time in there. You cannot store luggage under bed as there was drawer space underneath.....definitely a plus because I felt storage was lacking. But then we needed to store luggage in closet. We had 4 people in our room so we really could have used more storage. Bring hangers (wire ones were best) because we didn't have enough. When the murphy bed was opened, we had to go through the bedroom to get to the other side of the room. It may sound like I am complaining but truly we enjoyed the room a lot as well as the suite perks.

Thanks so much! We're only three, so the sofa bed won't be opened, our son will take the Murphy--the mattresses on those are almost always a lot more comfy than the ones on sofa beds.

My neighbors have one of those "TV in the mirror" things, I agree, totally cool, but nothing I'd ever spend the cash on for my house. :-)

We're only on a three day, so I expect we'll only have a suitcase and garment bag between us, so I'm not worried about storage.

Because we're bringing a garment bag, a lot of the stuff that "needs" to be hung will already be on hangers, but that's a good tip. I had forgotten that on the Magic we didn't have enough hangers either. Our cabin steward found some wire ones, but I really don't like wire hangers, as soon as I get dry cleaning home I transfer the clothes to wooden or padded hangers. (I know, kind of OCD)

I remember thinking that there was too much furniture in the 1BR on the Magic, they should have removed one of the chairs in the living room and used a slightly smaller table or maybe a narrower rectangular one in the dining area to make more space. I did like the space in the bedroom, sounds like they've carved out bedroom space for a larger bathroom?

What drew you to the lounge? We had lounge access on our RCCL cruise, but really didn't spend much time in there.

Well, I guess we'll rinse our stemware in the bathroom sink then. :-)

It does have a fridge though--correct? (Or at least a cooler/chiller unit?)

I have seen the artists renderings, I was really looking for subjective than objective information. We're in a "hump" room as well.

If you've sailed in both floor plans, which did you prefer?

We had a 1BR on the Magic and were thrilled with it. Next we'll be in the 1BR on the Dream, and I'm sure I'll love it, but I'm wondering if I'll miss being able to get to the balcony directly from the bedroom. I'm also not sure that I like the fact that there is no direct access to the closets from the bedroom.

I understand the tub is large enough for two on the Dream, on the Magic it had jets but was really only suitable for one person.

Is there a wet bar? We actually used that feature more than we expected we would on the Magic.

What other differences did you notice?

You can put them onto your account at guest services, and then use your room key in the shops. But I don't think you can actually use the cards in the shops.

I don't think you can use any form of tender except your room card in the shops and arcade.

We're probably going to book Palo for that night. Not really into those "themed" things.

Ducklite, Did you know that Lancome owns and produces L'Oreal? In a pinch you might want to try one of their mascaras. One of their formulas might be very similar to Definicils at half the price. Good luck:D

I've tried them, and unfortunately they aren't quite the same.

Don't use baby powder as face powder, it will seriously clog your pores.

I like Cover Girl loose powder (I use it with a kabuki brush) and Revlon shadows and eye liner.

The one department store brand I will never give up is Lancome mascara. I've tried them all and still buy Définicils, there is NO other that even comes close.

If you are staying at a Port Canveral hotel the night before your cruise, Rusty's is a fun restaurant with reasonable prices and good food. If the weather is nice, sit outside. If you are on a Sunday Wonder sailing, have dinner around 4:30 on Saturday and you'll see the Magic leave the port and go right past you while you eat!