Any feedback about cruising concierge?

Primeval Princess

Momketeer
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May 14, 2020
Due to an FCC and a previously scheduled 2021 5-night Magic cruise being switched to a 3-night on the Dream due to scheduling issues, we are now booked for our first concierge cruise, in March of '21. I'm so excited! I nabbed the last remaining deck 12 category V stateroom available on that cruise.

This will be our 7th DCL cruise, but our first time sailing concierge. Would anyone tell me what they particularly enjoy about cruising concierge? Any tips or recommendations to pass along? This is for myself and my teenage son. I hope to book a family beach cabana. Is there a hot tub on the concierge part of the Dream's pool deck? If so, can teens use it?
 
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I would not do a 3 night concierge, but that is just me. Cat V is a basic room, so no in-suite dining. Advantage to concierge is being able to request cabana reservations, best chance being flexible on any number on the family beach. The open bar is nice and the lounge bartenders will try to make "virgin" beverages for the younger guests. The early boarding is nice, as well as having the kids club cms in the lounge or during the concierge embarkation lunch. The lounge provides a nice place to enjoy Disney themed snacks and a special concierge only character encounter. The escort off the ship at the end of the cruise is a very nice benefit.
 
I would not do a 3 night concierge, but that is just me. Cat V is a basic room, so no in-suite dining. Advantage to concierge is being able to request cabana reservations, best chance being flexible on any number on the family beach. The open bar is nice and the lounge bartenders will try to make "virgin" beverages for the younger guests. The early boarding is nice, as well as having the kids club cms in the lounge or during the concierge embarkation lunch. The lounge provides a nice place to enjoy Disney themed snacks and a special concierge only character encounter. The escort off the ship at the end of the cruise is a very nice benefit.
Thanks for the info, I'll keep that in mind about booking the cabana.

We like 3-night cruises, and actually tend to get just a bit bored on 7-night cruises that aren't port-intensive. We're combining this cruise with a WDW trip.

How does the escort off the ship work? Also, could you please tell me about the concierge part of the pool deck? Thanks!
 
We have only been on one cruise and it was a DCL cruise on the Dream-concierge 1br (we snagged 12000 !)

Boarding the ship was a breeze and so was departure day (they take you down a different elevator and you are at the front of the line)

You email your requests 125 days out - i think. We made sure to tip extra to the bartender - they are not prepaid. We did not use the concierge hosts services at all. They did go over our itinerary on the first day but it was only 3 day and we didn't want a cabana or anything really special. As a matter of a fact, several tastings that we wanted were sold out and so we joined a cruise group on FB and we did the mixology with them. It was so much fun.

There is a hot tub and teens can use it. We only went to the concierge area a few times because there was so much to do. We went to the lounge several times a day.

We got a really nice large print of the Dream from the concierge team. It was totally worth it to us and if we sail again, it will be concierge but at least 5 nights.
 


The concierge passengers gather in the lounge on the last morning. The concierge staff use the "special" elevator pass, and the concierge guests ride an express elevator to the main lobby. There they are met by another concierge staff member, escorted to the gangway to be escorted to the luggage area reserved for concierge. From there, easy access to U.S. Customs.

You don't say how old your teenager is, but concierge guests are free to use the concierge pool deck. This area is blocked from the rest of the pool deck and only concierge guests are allowed to use it.
 
Concierge is awesome for all the reasons mentioned above:
Check-in is quicker and you can check in any time you want.
For ports that require tendering, you get on the tender before anyone else.
First in line for a cabana -- be sure to email your request for one right when you get the notification email from shoreside services.
First in line to leave at the end, and it's super-quick.
Free water bottles in the lounge .
Your concierge can take care of all kinds of stuff for you, not just activity bookings. Like our stateroom was too cold, so we called the concierge and it was taken care of.
It's nice to have the concierge lounge as kind of an exclusive space away from everything.
Free cocktails!!
 


I’ll add concierge is a more relaxing experience. We are quite the opposite from you and we like the relaxing sea days and concierge makes it that much more relaxing and less “hurried”. You will still have the chance to go to Cabanas but just being able to get a bite in the lounge where there is less congestion is low stress.
 
I’ll add concierge is a more relaxing experience. We are quite the opposite from you and we like the relaxing sea days and concierge makes it that much more relaxing and less “hurried”. You will still have the chance to go to Cabanas but just being able to get a bite in the lounge where there is less congestion is low stress.
Do they have snacks in the lounge all day? What are the snacks like?
 
Do they have snacks in the lounge all day? What are the snacks like?

The snacks weren't all day. There were breakfast offerings, cakes and mini sandwiches at teatime, and a hot appetizer selection before dinner during the happy hour beverage service. I think there was usually whole fruit out.

It was our first cruise, so we enjoyed early booking for Palo/Spa/Nursery/Princess Meet reservations, along with the one DCL excursion we wanted to book. We also enjoyed the Nespresso machine most mornings, and chose the express walk-off option on debarkation. But generally, I don't think concierge perks are worth the extra cost unless you are upgrading for more space (like to a Cat T).
 
The snacks weren't all day. There were breakfast offerings, cakes and mini sandwiches at teatime, and a hot appetizer selection before dinner during the happy hour beverage service. I think there was usually whole fruit out...But generally, I don't think concierge perks are worth the extra cost unless you are upgrading for more space (like to a Cat T).
I guess they give you a schedule of their offerings, like when you stay club level at the resorts?

As a party of 2 we really don't need more space. The cat V room looks lovely. The pull-out bed for my son looks nicer than what he gets sailing non-concierge. We want to rent a family beach cabana on CC & concierge is the only way to have a decent shot at that. My son also looks forward to using the hot tub, since there was none on the family deck on the Fantasy, and the Dream's family pool deck hot tub is likely to be removed during dry dock this fall. We like a private table at dinner, and it will be nice not having to go to dining changes upon boarding to ask about that as usual. I might actually get my request for an Enchanted Garden teacup table fulfilled this time. Who knows? I think it's going to be worth it for us. We tend to appreciate the little things.
 
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Do they have snacks in the lounge all day? What are the snacks like?

There is food in the lounge all day starting at 7am with a few 15-30 minute breaks while they change the offerings.

If you Google Disney Concierge Lounge Food, you'll see what's available throughout the day. I'm Platinum and the food hasn't changed much since I first starting cruising.
 

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I guess they give you a schedule of their offerings, like when you stay club level at the resorts?

As a party of 2 we really don't need more space. The cat V room looks lovely. The pull-out bed for my son looks nicer than what he gets sailing non-concierge. We want to rent a family beach cabana on CC & concierge is the only way to have a decent shot at that. My son also looks forward to using the hot tub, since there was none on the family deck on the Fantasy, and the Dream's family pool deck hot tub is likely to be removed during dry dock this fall. We like a private table at dinner, and it will be nice not having to go to dining changes upon boarding to ask about that as usual. We might actually get our request for an Enchanted Garden teacup table fulfilled this time. Who knows? I think it's going to be worth it for us. We tend to appreciate the little things.

I think the Category V rooms offer the best Concierge bang for the buck. Other than more space in a Category T and being able to have meals delivered to your room, the perks are the same.
 
I think the Category V rooms offer the best Concierge bang for the buck. Other than more space in a Category T and being able to have meals delivered to your room, the perks are the same.
The OP doesn’t really need the Cat T or R so the V is fine. Not sure if the cost difference of the 4 to the V is really as justified. This chart is a little old but the ratios are still similar.
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Since the V is really the same room as the Cat 4 you are paying nearly double for the nicer finishes and the concierge perks. It is a relatively small step up in price from the V to the T for double the sq foot.

The fact that a Cat T is twice the size, has a real living room, dining area, real sized TV’s, a real jetted tub and two human sized showers goes a long way when looking at price. Those are just a few things that are tangible differences beyond “in room dining”.
 
Since the V is really the same room as the Cat 4 you are paying nearly double for the nicer finishes and the concierge perks. It is a relatively small step up in price from the V to the T for double the sq foot.

The fact that a Cat T is twice the size, has a real living room, dining area, real sized TV’s, a real jetted tub and two human sized showers goes a long way when looking at price. Those are just a few things that are tangible differences beyond “in room dining”.
On the cruise we booked, a Cat V is a 50% price increase over a Cat 4A. The Cat T was over a 100% price increase over a Cat 4A. So there is a major difference in price between V & T for our cruise.

Concierge prices vary widely by ship, sailing length, sail date and itinerary, so no one chart can really sum up the price differences. You have to look at the prices for each individual cruise to decide what works for you.

The fact that the cat V is only 50% more than a Cat 4A, combined with the FCC we had available to apply to the cruise, makes the Cat V worth it for us on this occasion. For the typical cruises we sail (peak season), concierge has never been worth the cost to us before. That's why I'm excited this time.
 
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I wonder if the difference in price is very flexible? I took a 5 day cruise in a V room that was only a little over $500 difference in price from the 4A (About a 10% premium). It was worth it as we were all adults and would really enjoy the coffee and cocktails as well as being able to schedule spa appts at the same time. Maybe it's because we were three adults. That third person really enjoys a discount!
 
We really love sailing concierge, and have really seen Disney up their game with the concierge product. They will really try to meet all of your needs. We especially love the lounge as it is quiet and the sun deck gives a great escape from the business on the rest of the ship. Some people love the energy of all of the other people- we sail concierge to be able to have some quiet getaway areas. Hope you love it!
 
Concierge prices vary widely by ship, sailing length, sail date and itinerary, so no one chart can really sum up the price differences. You have to look at the prices for each individual cruise to decide what works for you.
I am truly happy that you found a great deal that works for you.

100% agree with you that prices will vary. We live in the Orlando area and could potentially jump on a cruise just about anytime so we check prices frequently. Yes the chart is old but ratios between the categories has typically remained the same. There are always outliers but usually there is a 75-100% price jump from non-concierge into concierge and many times the jump from the V to T is a smaller ratio. Here are just a few future cruises.

Dream 3 day-
496435
Dream 3 day -
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Dream 4 day double dip -
496437
Dream 5 day -
496438
The double dip is the outlier here with the jump from V to T typically being $400-700. So once you get to the concierge categories it is not a huge premium to get double the space. My wife would easily pay the difference to watch her stories in that bathroom mirror/tv while soaking in the jetted tub.:rolleyes1

Don’t want to sidebar this thread any longer so while the difference between the perks for the V and T are not much, the stateroom itself IS the perk of the T.
 

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