Booking Recommendation

[Liiath]

Hello! So in April 2018, my boyfriend and I will be going on our first cruise (Disney Wonder - Mexico) with my family and friends (also their first time). Now already, because I'm a Disney and planning freak, my boyfriend and I are talking about taking a second Disney cruise in 2019 (either to Alaska or Europe) and have invited along his family to join us.

I've read that the 2019 itineraries should be opening in a couple of months, and since I'm sure we'll have our destination decided by then, I'd like to book as early as I can (prices are lower the earlier you book, correct?) However, I've also read that, if you book a cruise while on board, you'll receive on board credit, and 10% off. But prices increase the closer you get to the cruise date, right? So if we wait for April to book, there will likely be less staterooms to choose from, and prices could be higher...right? I guess I'm just wondering what a more experienced cruiser would do - book the 2019 trip as early as we can, or wait to book until we're on our April cruise. Which option offers the best savings?

I hope all of that makes sense - if there are any questions, please let me know, and thank you in advance!

 

[DCLDVC1]

Hello! So in April 2018, my boyfriend and I will be going on our first cruise (Disney Wonder - Mexico) with my family and friends (also their first time). Now already, because I'm a Disney and planning freak, my boyfriend and I are talking about taking a second Disney cruise in 2019 (either to Alaska or Europe) and have invited along his family to join us.

I've read that the 2019 itineraries should be opening in a couple of months, and since I'm sure we'll have our destination decided by then, I'd like to book as early as I can (prices are lower the earlier you book, correct?) However, I've also read that, if you book a cruise while on board, you'll receive on board credit, and 10% off. But prices increase the closer you get to the cruise date, right? So if we wait for April to book, there will likely be less staterooms to choose from, and prices could be higher...right? I guess I'm just wondering what a more experienced cruiser would do - book the 2019 trip as early as we can, or wait to book until we're on our April cruise. Which option offers the best savings?

I hope all of that makes sense - if there are any questions, please let me know, and thank you in advance!

Book the 2019 cruise on opening day and then check pricing again when you're on your cruise in April.

 

[FigmentSpark]

You are correct in almost all your assumptions. While no one knows for sure what DCL will do, in the past, the fall release of cruises were January to April. It's possible there will be some Alaska cruises then, but more likely the summer release will happen in Feb or March.

As the PP said, book what you want on opening day for the best choice and price. Unless you book concierge, it will be fully refundable by the time your cruise comes around. Then, "reshop" the cruise while on board. If the price has gone up (it could) such that your pretty much negate your savings, you might choose to stick with what you booked before the cruise and just buy a placeholder for your third cruise while on board.

 

[GPaLarry]

Get a "placeholder" when on your cruise for a future one, then you can use it within two years on newly announced cruises. This can't help you now, but after you are hooked with the first one, it will come in handy.

 

[Liiath]

Perfect, thank you all! I'm not sure why it didn't occur to me to book asap, then just re-shop while on board and cancel to re-book if the on board offer is better - that's genius. We won't be booking concierge, so as long as we're still in the "full refund" window, I have no problem doing that.

I'm assuming we can re-book at any point during our April cruise, correct? And if we do decide to cancel our existing reservation to re-book for the on-board offer, is that something they can do for us then and there, or should we walk away, cancel ourselves, and then return to re-book? I guess I'm just worried about the possibility of them denying us the on-board offer, if they know we already have an existing reservation.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Perfect, thank you all! I'm not sure why it didn't occur to me to book asap, then just re-shop while on board and cancel to re-book if the on board offer is better - that's genius. We won't be booking concierge, so as long as we're still in the "full refund" window, I have no problem doing that.

I'm assuming we can re-book at any point during our April cruise, correct? And if we do decide to cancel our existing reservation to re-book for the on-board offer, is that something they can do for us then and there, or should we walk away, cancel ourselves, and then return to re-book? I guess I'm just worried about the possibility of them denying us the on-board offer, if they know we already have an existing reservation.

Yes, they can cancel your existing reservation and book an onboard one for you. It happens frequently that people will re-shop an already existing reservation and find it's a better deal to rebook.

 

[Liiath]

Oh great! Glad to hear it's easy and common. We will go that route then!

Thank you all!

 

[FigmentSpark]

@PrincessShmoo - If the OP is cancelling and rebooking, does it matter if they used a TA or not?

 

[Dug720]

@PrincessShmoo - If the OP is cancelling and rebooking, does it matter if they used a TA or not?

Sort of.

If they book it themselves and really like their stateroom, the onboard booking agent has a way to book it with another cabin, then cancel the original one and move the new one into that cabin.

If they used a travel agent, they will have two reservations until they are home (or use shippernet to communicate with their agent) to have their agent cancel the original one and try to get the cabin moved to the original one.

Either way, they'll have to pay the deposit on the new reservation (I've seen reports that it got moved, but I've never had that done). Just the sooner that original one gets cancelled, the sooner that money goes back into the person's account.