Who did you book through?

[Meisha B]

Have you booked a Disney Cruise through a website other than Disney? I have found some good deal, but am afraid I will not get all the same info as I would through Disney. And, I'm afraid that it's not legit or something since they are so much cheaper.

[Drince88]

I booked my cruise through Small World Vacations. Everything went great, and I had super communication with the travel agent.

I know some travel agencies will buy up some number of staterooms and offer them at a discount.

Who are you looking at, and for when?

[Meisha B]

All Seas Travel or Vacations To Go. All Seas had two that I was looking at in the end of April, and I'm not sure of the date I was looking at for Vacations To Go.

It is just going to be me and my DD (6) and All Seas was almost one thousand dollars cheaper!

[Tony]

If All Seas is cheaper, it is because they booked a block on that sailing early on, and locked in a lower price. They have a good reputation. You can also check with Mouse Ear Vacations, to get another quote.

I always recommend people work with a reputable travel agency. They will never cost more than Disney, frequently have lower prices, and can provide more service and assistance than Disney can. We've booked both with and without an agent - and will never book a cruise again without using an agent.

[Meisha B]

Thanks for the info. I was just afraid, I wouldn't get to pick all of the stuff you pick, whatever that is (excursions, dinner seating), and have the option for the transportation from the airport and all of that.

[GusMan]

(With humor :) )I will go against the grain a little bit as I have booked my trips directly with DCL. The first time, we were new cruisers and we did a land and sea package. We got great service from DCL and it was an overall great experience. But in hindsight, the "land" part was a little pricey.

The second time we booked another land and sea vacation but we did the two legs separately after hearing about that idea from others here on MP. Once again, booked the sea part through DCL and was very happy with the results. Land part was actually done via renting points from a DVC member. Big savings there on a 2BR villa at the BWV.

Regardless, I think it is always a good idea to search around for the best value that fits your vacation needs. I think there are more deals out there now than there ever was. Most of those deals are going to be found via booking through reputable agencys such as the ones mentioned above. Just make sure that when you compare features and prices, you do so with the full price in mind, including taxes and the like.

[Drince88]

When I booked through Small World I told the agent my preference on dinner seating -and I was able to book all my own excursions on the Disney Website. I'm not sure if that was because she used her version of the Disney website to book or not.

(Though that DOES remind me that I need to call DCL And get my Castaway Club number and stuff!)

[momof three]

We also booked through Small World Vacations. We did our rookie cruise, a 4 day Wonder, on May 11th last spring. We loved it so much we rebooked while on board. Disney will send the booking back to your agent if you request this.We are going on a 7 day western next May.We had to change the dates on both cruises and out T.A. Heather could not have been nicer about this. She has also manged to save us quite a bit on our first cruise. She has let me know that with all the recent deals that Disney is offering for cruises that she is keeping her eyes open for anything that could pop up and have us save more money. I trust here with this because she saved us an additional $400.00 a few months before our first cruise.

We also added my Mom several months after we booked and Heather was a pleasure to work with. This was a huge hassel because we had to change our cabins. I do all my own booking for our W.D.W. trips but I would never dare book a Disney Cruise without our awsome T.A.

Mily

[Drince88]

We also booked through Small World Vacations. We did our rookie cruise, a 4 day Wonder, on May 11th last spring.
Hey, I was on that cruise! (Double-Dip, super windy the first day, gorgeous beyond all belief the second?)

[mom22gls]

We also booked through Small World. We got a great rate on our cabin, and the agent told me it was the last one available at that rate, which indicates that they did have a block. I got another quote from AAA, for the same cruise, same dates, and same cabin category. Small World's quote was about $500 less than AAA. I had regular e-mail contacts with the agent, and when she left, I got a personal call from the owner/manager, and the new agent promptly introduced herself by e-mail. I would book with them, again, in a heartbeat.

[mkraemer]

Years ago, when I booked my first Disney Cruise, I did it on my own, through Disney Cruise Line. I have always felt like an informed consumer, and I always like to book my own travel. I did a lot of research, and I thought I knew what I was doing.

After I became a travel agent, I learned so much! And had I, as a travel agent, booked that first cruise over again, I would have done things differently. Much differently. Much smarter. Much more economically.

Live and learn. I handled the details of my recent cruise--which included 12 other people in 5 staterooms, ranging in age from 8 to 88. It was great.

When people are starting to think about cruise vacations, one of the things they don't realize is that commissions are built in to those trips--it is not something that is added on to the price.

And, as another poster said, travel agencies (mine included) often book blocks of staterooms on itineraries, and that locks in the price. That means, as the ship fills and the price increases, the agency's price for those staterooms remains the same, which can amount to a substantial savings.

Travel agencies work differently. Some are 'big box' type places, where you book with someone on the phone, and after you hang up, you never speak to that agent again. Other agencies (such as CruisingCo/MouseEarVacations) have agents develop relationships with clients, and we look out for our clients' best interests. We handle all the details for our clients such as booking shore excursions, arranging transportation, getting their preferred dining time, and making sure they have a nice stateroom (yes, some are nicer than others for various reasons), are all part of what we do to ensure the best possible experience.

[momof three]

Cathy:

This was the best vacation ever! I hope you experince was just as Wonderful!

Disney still has not sent our Cast away cards or numbers either. Your not allone. I was able to get our numbers from our travel agent eairlier this month. She told me it took almost a year to get her cards. We actually have to pay off our cruise in mid Jan if we want to do early booking for Cast away members. Wouldn't you know the bill arived in the mail this week. Still no cards but we were in the system as return cruisers. I hope this gives you peace of mind.

Mily

[Meisha B]

How does payment work with travel agents? Is it the same timeline as with Disney or is it more flexible?

[mkraemer]

How does payment work with travel agents? Is it the same timeline as with Disney or is it more flexible?

Disney sets the timeline for everyone, and remember, you can't book shore excursions or make spa or Palo reservations until your booking is paid in full.

[Niwel]

I booked through AAA with the help of a rockin MP friend who made our trip a dream come true!

[GusMan]

How does payment work with travel agents? Is it the same timeline as with Disney or is it more flexible?
From my DCL experiences, Disney sets the time line and the nice part is that you can make a payment anytime up till your final payment deadline. So, in essence, you can get an "interest free" payment plan for your trip. (Of course, the further out the trip, the more "free" months you have to pay on it...)

We put our payments on our Disney Visa to get the points and when we made the final payment, we got 6 months 0% financing on that final payment. That was through DCL - not sure if that is a perk if you go through other agency's. Im sure others will chime in to help clarify that.

[mkraemer]

We put our payments on our Disney Visa to get the points and when we made the final payment, we got 6 months 0% financing on that final payment. That was through DCL - not sure if that is a perk if you go through other agency's. Im sure others will chime in to help clarify that.

You can pay with Disney Visa through travel agents, absolutely!

Using the Disney Visa is a great idea because of the interest-free timeframe. If you already have a Disney Visa, it makes sense to keep track of how many reward points you have accumulated. We saved our points until just before our trip, and then we were able to have 'free' money to spend on the cruise on our Disney Rewards Card.

If you pay for your entire trip on your Disney Visa, there is a $50 onboard credit. Of course, that, as with so many things, is always subject to change but it's good to know and worth checking when you plan to travel!

[GusMan]

You can pay with Disney Visa through travel agents, absolutely!
It is also my understanding that to get the special interest rate, etc, the agent must be an authorized Disney travel agency. (Please feel free to confirm.) I mention that since not all TA's have such a designation.

[Tony]

One other trick on the Disney Visa that I started using the last couple of cruises. Any Cruise payments you make prior to sailing are included in the 6 months no interest. So, I now have my travel agent (Hi Ted!) prepay our gratuities about 2 weeks before sailing. That way I get the extended interest rate. If you pay the gratuities on board, they charge interest like normal - no promotional discount.

(On gratuities, we almost always prepay the recommended amount, and then add more as appropriate based the level of service provided at the end of the cruise. )

[Drince88]

Do you pre-pay for your excursions, too, Tony?

[Tony]

No, though I'm not sure if you can. We usually do our excursions with non-Disney trips. We've found that we can do the same things, frequently for less money. For example, in Cabo San Lucas in May, we booked a 4-wheeler excursion with a company. Turned out, AVP, Andrew, Jennifer and I were the only ones doing it that day. So we had a private tour for just the four of us. For a lot less than what Disney was charging.

[mkraemer]

Do you pre-pay for your excursions, too, Tony?

If you are booking excursions separately from Disney, some vendors require payment in advance. That might not be the case with the company that Tony booked with, but it was the case for a shore excursion we booked for Grand Cayman in November.

[mkraemer]

It is also my understanding that to get the special interest rate, etc, the agent must be an authorized Disney travel agency. (Please feel free to confirm.) I mention that since not all TA's have such a designation.

That's a very good point, and I don't know the answer to it. MouseEarVacations is an authorized Disney travel agency, so it's never been a question for me.
:D

[Two Bears]

You do not need to be a Certified Disney Specialist to book with Disney. There are certain requirements that Disney has for registering a travel agency to do business with them, but they do not have any effect on the public. These conditions deal with business practices and solvency issues.

There are several travel agents out there that have taken special training from Disney to become Certified by Disney. This is a nice piece of information to know about your agent because it means that they have gone the extra step to know the product and what is going to work best for you.

As to shore excursions: When you book with DCL, they are put onto your shipboard charge account and are not prepaid in advance. This is actually the case with most cruise lines, there are a couple of exceptions. As to private companies, your travel agent needs to really know the reputable ones and the ones that are going to get you back to the ship in time for sailing. There are a number of nightmare stories out there about people missing their sailing because they did not make it back in time. Most outside vendors do require prepayment for their excursions but they can be covered by outside trip insurance if you have it, these types of excursions will never be covered by DCL's insurance, actually neither will anything booked away from DCL be covered.

Hope this helps.

Ted

[Drince88]

You do not need to be a Certified Disney Specialist to book with Disney.
But does a non-Disney certified agent allow you to get the special interest rate if you use your Disney Visa for payments?