How early do you book your cruise?

[MarkNC2Disney]

If you are already a Costco member and visit frequently, then getting a Costco gift card will get you the greatest savings. I just priced out a cruise with a fare of $5480 that offered a Costco Shop Card of $420, which is over 7% of the fare.

Other travel agencies may offer an onboard credit. The agency I use gives a scaled credit of roughly 5% of the fare, which would be $250 for the cruise I researched. The advantage to the onboard credit over the gift card is that I would use it onboard, without requiring a trip (or trips) to Costco.

Another advantage of using a travel agency experienced with booking Disney cruises is that agents often have been on Disney cruises themselves and can provide suggestions for which itinerary and which cabin type would work best for your family.

Agencies have different processes for booking cruises on opening day of new itineraries. My understanding is that Costco will ask people to be on the line with them when they call Disney, which may require spending a lot of time on the phone waiting to get through. When I want to book on opening day, I email my travel agent before booking opens to let her know which cruise and cabin type/location I want. She then waits on the phone with DCL and emails me the confirmation once she gets through.

So, if your goal is savings, Costco is probably your best bet. If you need more personalized service, you may want a different agency (although I have heard of many good experiences with Costco agents as well).

Thank you this is quite helpful!

I priced out a 5 night cruise on Costco and with Disney. Disney’s was cheaper than Costco by about $400, but the Costco credit was for ~$500… so net about a savings of $100. I wonder if a TA would quote rates closer to Disney’s.

 

[o&smom]

• I book as soon as I know we're going (usually opening day or pretty close).
• I use my Disney Visa to manage the deposit (with the 0% interest).
• I buy $1000-1500/month in Disney gift cards from Target, depending on how quickly I need to pay for the cruise.
  • That might seem like a lot, but I'm usually floating (haha) about 3 cruises at once.
  • I did buy the Costco Disney cards in December too (darn that 2/account limit).
• I do use a Travel Agent for the small OBB and the fact that he sits on the phone to make the reservation. I control everything else (all on-board activities, excursions, etc.).
  • He's saved our butt a few times with issues from COVID and things related to my various family members, so I consider him to be a valuable part of our process. Most of the time he doesn't need to do much, but occasionally, he makes all the difference.

Love using the Disney visa for 6 months interest free!

 

[jrez]

Hi, new to the forum. Im just starting to do some reading and research so forgive my ignorance.

I’m thinking about taking my girls age 6 and 8 on Treasure in April 2025. Is it too early to book? Do prices fluctuate a lot? It’s our first Disney cruise. They’re still in love with all the princess girly stuff so I’m hoping they’ll love the cruise.

Also considering Wish because my daughter loves The Little Mermaid and I saw they have a show on that ship I’m sure she’d get a kick out of it.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

We book as soon as we know we are going. Once the discounted price was enough that we cancelled our original reservation and went with the restricted discount rate instead. For just two of us our 5 night Dream cruise went from $4,500 to $2,800.

In general prices go up for non restricted bookings as time passes from the original on sale date.

 

[Chrissy-Mickey]

We're very flexible, and book when there is a good deal ($200 p.p.p.n.).
Please note that many sailings never get a good deal, and booking as soon as they come out is cheapest.

 

[Mommb]

Thank you this is quite helpful!

I priced out a 5 night cruise on Costco and with Disney. Disney’s was cheaper than Costco by about $400, but the Costco credit was for ~$500… so net about a savings of $100. I wonder if a TA would quote rates closer to Disney’s.

Make sure when you compare quotes that you are looking at the same room type and location. All agencies and the Disney Cruise website should charge the same amount for the same room, but, for example, a veranda stateroom at Deck 8 midship may not cost the same as a veranda stateroom at Deck 7 aft. The Costco website may not show as many room locations as the DCL site.

 

[LaIsla]

Thank you this is quite helpful!

I priced out a 5 night cruise on Costco and with Disney. Disney’s was cheaper than Costco by about $400, but the Costco credit was for ~$500… so net about a savings of $100. I wonder if a TA would quote rates closer to Disney’s.

You can also book directly with Disney and transfer within 30 days (you just fill out a form) to end up with the Costco gift card. That said, they should be the same price in both places.

 

[brentm77]

Make sure when you compare quotes that you are looking at the same room type and location. All agencies and the Disney Cruise website should charge the same amount for the same room, but, for example, a veranda stateroom at Deck 8 midship may not cost the same as a veranda stateroom at Deck 7 aft. The Costco website may not show as many room locations as the DCL site.

This is right. The prices should be identical for the same rooms on either DCL or Costco, or any travel agent. Costco isn't allowed to charge more than the regular DCL price.

In the past, people here have had problems with Costco charging their card many times for the same cruise. We have never had that problem, but I recently saw someone complaining on another forum about this issue, so it must be happening again. I think it is because the website looks like it isn't working and people keep clicking the button over and over again. So if it doesn't work after one click, stop and call Costco.

 

[onesam319]

We are sailing on the Treasure April 26, 2025. We booked this cruise the second week of December, 2023 and were already unable to get main dining. The price only goes up. I don't know if our fare was the lowest it could have been, but we used our placeholder that we just got from our cruise on the Wish that ended December 8.

 

[MarkNC2Disney]

Make sure when you compare quotes that you are looking at the same room type and location. All agencies and the Disney Cruise website should charge the same amount for the same room, but, for example, a veranda stateroom at Deck 8 midship may not cost the same as a veranda stateroom at Deck 7 aft. The Costco website may not show as many room locations as the DCL site.

Am I allowed to post screenshots of both sites? I swear it was not only the same category, but also the exact same room

In any case… good to know the pricing should all be the same!!

 

[auntlynne]

Am I allowed to post screenshots of both sites? I swear it was not only the same category, but also the exact same room

In any case… good to know the pricing should all be the same!!

Yes, show us the evidence!

 

[LaIsla]

Am I allowed to post screenshots of both sites? I swear it was not only the same category, but also the exact same room

In any case… good to know the pricing should all be the same!!

You could always select your room from the DCL site and just call Costco travel to book it. The Costco website isn’t very user friendly. If you’ve got a kid under 3, I bet they haven’t calculated that difference in fare and that’s why it’s shower higher fare on Costco. But that’s just me guessing based on my own experience

If you call while looking at the DCL site, just make sure you aren’t currently still clicked on the room like you’re booking it, because Costco will find the room unavailable! Again, learned from experience!

 

[MarkNC2Disney]

The Costco website isn’t very user friendly. If you’ve got a kid under 3, I bet they haven’t calculated that difference in fare and that’s why it’s shower higher fare on Costco. But that’s just me guessing based on my own experience

I think you nailed it! I have twin 6yo and a 1yo. I clicked further into the process this time and got a pop-up that said my price decreased to the one on Disney’s site. Phew

 

[sadiecatie]

Just FYI, it seems sometimes you can buy more than the two gift cards per account limit at Costco. I’ve purchased three and am planning to try to order a few more next week (gotta wait for that February vacation budget line ). That 10% savings is fantastic!

ETA: argh, spoke too soon (and waited too long)! The deal is gone.

 

[shoes99]

We book as soon as they are available to book. We need an accessible cabin for DH and the Wish and Treasure have more HC balconies than ocean view or inside so we grab what we want right away. We are Pearl so that helps to get an accessible cabin that we want.

 

[lscrivan18]

Okay, we need to sort out the dates still but will probably be ready within a few weeks. Do you book directly with Disney? I see a lot of people recommend using a travel agent. Is that the best way to book? I can float the deposit, I didn’t realize you can cancel a trip, that’s pretty cool but we’re locked in as the kids already know about it and are super excited.

Book with a travel agent that specializes in DCL and offers onboard credit. That's exactly what we do. There is no extra cost to you and you get free money to spend onboard! Also, the reason I suggest an agent who specializes in DCL is because there are so many nuances that a general travel agent may not be aware of. A great DCL agent will tell you everything you need to know so you can have the best cruise!

 

[lscrivan18]

Thank you this is quite helpful!

I priced out a 5 night cruise on Costco and with Disney. Disney’s was cheaper than Costco by about $400, but the Costco credit was for ~$500… so net about a savings of $100. I wonder if a TA would quote rates closer to Disney’s.

Yes, my quotes match Disney prices.

 

[lklgoodman]

Years ago my little town's grocery store would give a discount on any gift cards bought from them. I would buy 1 Disney gift card and then each month I would buy another gift card. Each month I would transfer the amount from each month's card to the very first card I bought. Each payment would then be made with the first card. This way I didn't have to keep track of a lot of different cards. This came in handy when our 2021 cruise was canceled thanks to covid. If I remember correctly Disney changed something about the total amount that can be on the cards, it was around $2000 I think. If I remember corrctly once the first card had reached that amount I had to get another to then transfer other cards onto. Still easier to keep track of 3 or 4 cards. I think the back of the gift cards had the website I used to transfer the new card $$ to the first card.

 

[sadiecatie]

Years ago my little town's grocery store would give a discount on any gift cards bought from them. I would buy 1 Disney gift card and then each month I would buy another gift card. Each month I would transfer the amount from each month's card to the very first card I bought. Each payment would then be made with the first card. This way I didn't have to keep track of a lot of different cards. This came in handy when our 2021 cruise was canceled thanks to covid. If I remember correctly Disney changed something about the total amount that can be on the cards, it was around $2000 I think. If I remember corrctly once the first card had reached that amount I had to get another to then transfer other cards onto. Still easier to keep track of 3 or 4 cards. I think the back of the gift cards had the website I used to transfer the new card $$ to the first card.

Just filling in some of those details for anyone who doesn’t know: you can use the website disneygiftcard.com to manage your cards. The current max amount you can carry on a card is $1000, so beyond that you need to start a new card. You should also be sure to keep your cards and track the numbers/amounts in case for some reason Disney would need to refund you - the refund goes to your original form of payment.

I use the website to manage my gift card totals, but I also keep a note with the card numbers and total amounts (and what they are for, for example if I use some of them to pay for a cruise and others for a WDW trip).

 

[lklgoodman]

T

Just filling in some of those details for anyone who doesn’t know: you can use the website disneygiftcard.com to manage your cards. The current max amount you can carry on a card is $1000, so beyond that you need to start a new card. You should also be sure to keep your cards and track the numbers/amounts in case for some reason Disney would need to refund you - the refund goes to your original form of payment.

I use the website to manage my gift card totals, but I also keep a note with the card numbers and total amounts (and what they are for, for example if I use some of them to pay for a cruise and others for a WDW trip).

That's the website I had used, I couldn't remember the name of it. I haven't used gift cards for a few years since my town doesn't have a Target, Costco or any other stores that offer discounts.

 

[Louise97]

We book as early as possible. Booked on opening day for our first two cruises, though only decided to do our April 2025 cruise recently - luckily it was still at opening day pricing, I checked on disneycruiselineblog.com to see if it had changed at all.

We're in the UK so a $ Costco card isn't much use for us, but we use Dreams Unlimited Travel (since we learned about using a TA through the Dis) for the onboard credit. I just email our agent with the details of our cruise and she sorts it out for us!