disney cruise

[tinksgilrs08]

Hello everyone,

I was just wondering if anyone has taken the cruise and if the food is included in the price when you book

 

[WED10078]

My wife and I just got back from a Disney Cruise and the food is absolutely included in the price, with a few exceptions. Here's a quick run down of what to expect food and drink wise. On the day you depart there will be buffet on deck 9 which is included in the price and is rather tasty. When you book your cruise they put you on a dining rotation of parrot cay, triton's and animator's palate. These are all sit down menus where you are free to order an appetizer, salad, entree, desert and coffee, all included. You can also go to deck 9 and pick up a slice or two of pizza, get a late night burger or sandwich, or ice cream and all the fountain sodas that you can handle. For breakfast you can grab something quick at any of the stands on deck 9 or visit Animator's palate, triton's, or parrot cay for a buffet style breakfast, the same thing applies to lunch.

The only things that are not included are of course alcohol, however, the drink of the day is typically really good, reasonable, and fairly strong at $3.95. Also, if you want popcorn, snacks, or drinks while watching a show or movie on the boat that costs extra. My recommendation would be to grab some snacks from any of the quick service places on deck 9 and take them in, don't worry nobody will say boo about it. Lastly, YOU MUST, have dinner at Palo, it costs $10.00 extra a person and you have to book ahead of time but it is well worth it, trust me, it was the best meal I have had in a long time. If you pay for the romance package, which is also well worth the money, Palo is free any you get a bottle of wine up to $50.00. By going to Palo it will replace whatever dining location you were scheduled to have dinner at so if there is some place your dying to eat at plan accordingly. Any other questions just ask. You'll have a blast!!!

 

[Laura]

Hello everyone,

I was just wondering if anyone has taken the cruise and if the food is included in the price when you book

Cruises are all-inclusive and you will eat your brains out.

Additional expenses:
Alcohol
Souvenirs
Candy
Palo ($10/pp)
Shore Excursions
Gratuities

You can pay your gratuities before you leave which I found extremely convenient.

 

[wannabeBelle]

Absolutely your food is included. Within the Disney cruise I have found that they are fairly comprehensive with a very few exceptions. Other cruises lines literally nickle and dime you to death on stuff like soft drinks, additional food costs ( premium restaurants and even in one case additional food costs per certain menu items!) so if you are looking at other lines, be sure to ask the same questions!!! Belle

 

[mas]

Kids on Cruises

I'm dying to go on a Disney cruise but DH does not want to be overridden with tiny tots (we have 0 of our own) :fork:

Are there any good times to go that are more adult oriented - and I don't mean R rated! LOL

 

[WED10078]

"mas"

Just having recently returned from a Disney Cruise, my wife and I personally felt that the majority of the kids we encountered on the cruise were perfect little angles. It appeared as if their parents knew that their little rugrats and all the other guests are the same boat in the big blue sea and kept control of them. There are also enough adult areas on the boat to keep away from little ones if you need to. Personally the kids back at Disney World were ten times worse.

 

[Phonedave]

One thing I did not see mentioned is, room service is free, except for soft drinks (and alcohol of course)

Its nice to tip, but there is no charge for the food. If you call ahead, they will also wrap up sandwitches for you.

Also, when you are on Castaway Cay, all food is also free - it's Disney's island. Again you pay for alcohol, but Chicken, Pasta, Burgers, Fries, Ice Cream, the worlds best fresh fruit display - all free.

Also, while not free, when the ship docks at Castaway Cay, it plugs into the islands communication net. This means you can use your cabin key to buy things (recreational things like floats, souvineers, or booze) and have it charged to your cabin. No need for cash or a credit card as you need at a "normal" port of call.

-dave

 

[Phonedave]

I'm dying to go on a Disney cruise but DH does not want to be overridden with tiny tots (we have 0 of our own) :fork:

Are there any good times to go that are more adult oriented - and I don't mean R rated! LOL

Disney makes a distinct effort to "un-Disney" the cruise. The service is there, the all inclusive price is there, but it is not a "cuetsy, kiddie, characters, kidfest" type cruise.

There are also quite a few adult only places on the ship. My 9 year old was in fact quite upset. At times she likes to just chill out and relax. One night they had closed the kids pool and the family pool was decked over for an event. She was indignat that she could not go into the adult pool to swim. She was saying "all I want to do is swim quiet in the water, who am I going to bother, I am a person too" I found it quite funny. But the point is, there are adult only areas.

There is a whole deck where the "day care" and i's not really day care, its like the kids zone, is. There are also kid only clubs on the ship.

You are not going to be overrun with tiny tots

-dave

 

[Brwneyedgirl72]

Went on my first Disney cruise in November and was truly surprised that you can avoid the throngs of children if you want to. The adults only pool is quite restful, there is an adult only beach on Castaway Cay, and there are no children in Route 66 in the evenings. The only times that we really saw alot of kids was during the shows - even the late seating dinner was virtually kid-free. Trust me, I love kids - but it was very nice to have a relaxing experience without too much interruption! Enjoy.

 

[natalia1681]

I did not realize that there were so many adult only areas! I love kids, but in very small and controlled doses (can you tell I don't have any of my own:ROFLOL I think that this info will be very helpful in convincing some friends that this is a good way to go for vacation:sohappy:

 

[wdwmomof3]

We have never been on a cruise and I would love to try the Disney cruise but it is so expensive. Is there a way to get a discount on one? The 50.00 on board credit that I have seen is nothing to the 8-10K that I have been quoted. There are five of us. We could go to Disney for 2 or three weeks for that.:shrug:

 

[Enderikari]

Cruises are all-inclusive and you will eat your brains out.

Additional expenses:
Alcohol
Souvenirs
Candy
Palo ($10/pp)
Shore Excursions
Gratuities

You can pay your gratuities before you leave which I found extremely convenient.

Wait, you went on a cruise? When?

Need a math tutor yet?

 

[tinksgilrs08]

i looked on the disneycruise.comwebsite and did some pricing and we will drive to port Canaveal and leve our car there nd then board and we choose a standard room and delined the trip insurance and all that and I total cost abot 1300 so if the food is included its a great deal just the extras keep to a minium.. Even when we went to the parks and stayed at the resort and my two daughters saw on the stuff they only spent the 100 we budgeted for them and we left not spending to much on souvinors

 

[Enderikari]

Tink - Sucker's pay full price... Go to Sidestep.com and do a Disney Cruise search to get some pretty good discounts on them. Should help the costs a bit

 

[wdwmomof3]

The quote that I got from Disney was for a family suite or stateroom. I thought it was insane. I guess there is a better way to do it.

 

[wannabeBelle]

Hey Mom, They were probably going for accomodations that would have all of you in the one "room". Would you consider individual cabins? Id check the prices for it both ways to see which works out better!! Belle

 

[wdwmomof3]

Hey Mom, They were probably going for accomodations that would have all of you in the one "room". Would you consider individual cabins? Id check the prices for it both ways to see which works out better!! Belle

I just checked the website that was posted and it was a ton less, and the Disney site did not offer any type of discount. We are in the process of getting all of us a passport now so that we will be ready. I'm thinking about it for next year so I have a little time to check around.

by the way, two rooms would be great!!

 

[Phonedave]

The quote that I got from Disney was for a family suite or stateroom. I thought it was insane. I guess there is a better way to do it.

Right off the bat, the family suite is very very pricey. You can get much lower cabin rates, and they are still very nice cabins (ones with a veranda) you can also get much much lower rates for a room with a "navigators veranda" - which oddly enough is not as nice as a normal vernada, you would think a navagator would get something better. Then the price really drops for porthole rooms or inside rooms.

You have to also remember that just about all your food, and most of your entertainment is paid for.

I would not do the bus transfers ($70 a person) but would either rent a car or better yet, book a limo/car service. Especially with a group of five, you are looking at $350 total for a bus, you can easily get a limo for that.

The nice thing about car service (or a rental) is you can get there early. That way you can enjoy the ship while it is in port. Pools (and bars) are open, as are some buffets. You can also get on early and book the spa appointments (and the open air cabana massages on the adult only beach) if you want. Slots for those fill up very quickly. If you take Disney transport, it gets you there whenever it gets you there. It may pick up from multiple resorts and get you there pretty late in the afternoon. You are not going to miss the ship but you may have 2-3 hours less "playtime" on board then people who drove or took a car service.

-dave

 

[wdwmomof3]

Right off the bat, the family suite is very very pricey. You can get much lower cabin rates, and they are still very nice cabins (ones with a veranda) you can also get much much lower rates for a room with a "navigators veranda" - which oddly enough is not as nice as a normal vernada, you would think a navagator would get something better. Then the price really drops for porthole rooms or inside rooms.

You have to also remember that just about all your food, and most of your entertainment is paid for.

I would not do the bus transfers ($70 a person) but would either rent a car or better yet, book a limo/car service. Especially with a group of five, you are looking at $350 total for a bus, you can easily get a limo for that.

The nice thing about car service (or a rental) is you can get there early. That way you can enjoy the ship while it is in port. Pools (and bars) are open, as are some buffets. You can also get on early and book the spa appointments (and the open air cabana massages on the adult only beach) if you want. Slots for those fill up very quickly. If you take Disney transport, it gets you there whenever it gets you there. It may pick up from multiple resorts and get you there pretty late in the afternoon. You are not going to miss the ship but you may have 2-3 hours less "playtime" on board then people who drove or took a car service.

-dave

Great advice Dave. Thank you for the information. If you have anymore helpful hints please post them.

 

[Phonedave]

Great advice Dave. Thank you for the information. If you have anymore helpful hints please post them.

If it matters to you

when at Castaway Cay, cabins on the Starboard side of the ship will have views across the lagoon, viewing the beaches, the flying dutchman that is moored there, and all the people zipping around on banana boats, parasailing, etc.

Cabins on the port side are on the wharf side. You see everyone leaving the ship and walking along. Not a nice view

Also when at Port Caneveral the Starboard cabins face the port. So you can see all the people waving at you as you sail.

Of course you can see all this stuff from the decks anyway. What are you doing in your cabin? Get out there and have fun!

-dave