How to save on booking

[Mrspeaks]

We went on our first DCL cruise in September and loved it! We are ready to go again! I regret not booking while on board to get the discount and the obc.

What do you do to get the most savings on your booking?

I've been reading posts about opening day rates and then also booking close to the sailing to get the gt rates. I'm a little confused about the opening day approach. Do you simply check the website frequently to find the day they post the new cruises or is there a certain day they publish opening day cruises? Can you transfer the rate you got on an opening day cruise to an earlier date? Are these rates lower than waiting to after the paid in full date to try to get the gt rates?

 

[lanejudy]

DCL will release dates whenever they feel like it...it could be anytime, may or may not be similar to previous years. Monitor these boards as it will quite likely be announced her maybe a day or so in advance.

Cruising pricing is on a tier basis -- meaning the lowest prices are generally offered early and prices increase as more staterooms are booked. Hence, the recommendation to book early (opening day). However, depending on the time of year you are considering, those prices may not rise as quickly. School vacations and holidays tend to rise the fastest.

I'm a little confused about your question "transfer a rate on opening day to an earlier cruise?" Each cruise is priced individually, so if you change dates you will pay the rate for the new cruise on the date you change the reservation. You can't "borrow" the fare from one cruise for use on another cruise.

*GT rates may or may not be lower than opening day. By the time *GT rates come out, most cruises have been available for booking for at least a year, sometimes 18 months, so plenty of time for fares to increase well above opening day rates. There have been some reports of *GT lower than opening day, but not always. I guess it just depends on how much DCL feels they need to discount and how much availability is left at that point.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[su_A_ve]

DCL might send you an offer to book for a discount similar that on board, however it will be a bit restricted as to when you can cruise.

Keep an eye for a promotion.

Otherwise your options to save as much as possible are:

* opening day rates for high season and holiday cruises
* cruise during low season
* cruise last minute under *GT rates
* look for rarer offers like kids sail free on sailings that don't do too well
* book with a TA to get on board credits (prices will be the same as with DCL)

Be careful of DCL promotions like special sailings or land/sea packages. They are in fact rack rates and have no discount (or have general public offers for WDW). You are better off booking thru a TA as you can get OBC.

 

[Davids-Coco]

Book through a Travel Agent with a good OBC and that will allow you to pay with multiple gift cards. Then look into the Target red card and pharmacy rewards discounts

 

[WDW_Diane]

Book through a Travel Agent with a good OBC and that will allow you to pay with multiple gift cards. Then look into the Target red card and pharmacy rewards discounts

Please explain how Target rewards cards help with getting a good cruise rate. I have a Target card. Thanks!

 

[rcchello]

Please explain how Target rewards cards help with getting a good cruise rate. I have a Target card. Thanks!

Target credit cards (Redcard) gives you 5% off on purchases including Disney gift cards. If your state allows it Target will give you an additional 5% off coupon if you get a certain number of prescriptions which can be used with the Target card discount. (NJ does not allow duscounts based on purchasing prescription drugs)

You then use the discounted Disney gift cards to pay for your cruise.

You can actually get a better discount if you actually work for Target.

 

[AmandaRG]

We aren't restricted to school schedules. We have two dummy bookings out there, but we are more looking for "deals" during less popular travel times. Another thing we have done is booked a cabin we would be happy with and then checked for upgrades at port. Once it wasn't worth it to us, but on the Fantasy last December it totally was!

 

[Mrspeaks]

Thank you for your responses. We just received the offer for 10% off in the mail yesterday! That makes me feel better about not booking on the cruise. I guess I just lost the obc. Seems my plan to save will be the 10% off, using target red card, and going off season again. I will be looking for a travel company that offers obc. The one I used last time did not. If you know of a good agency that offers nice obc offers and other perks please let me know.

 

[Lauriejl2]

NY does not allow for the discounts at pharmacy either I found out after I transferred my rx to Target for only that reason lol

 

[Postal68]

Thank you for your responses. We just received the offer for 10% off in the mail yesterday! That makes me feel better about not booking on the cruise. I guess I just lost the obc. Seems my plan to save will be the 10% off, using target red card, and going off season again. I will be looking for a travel company that offers obc. The one I used last time did not. If you know of a good agency that offers nice obc offers and other perks please let me know.

well, you have the option of using a travel agent such as Dreams Unlimited and you will get some sort of On -Board Credit still.

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

Thank you for your responses. We just received the offer for 10% off in the mail yesterday! That makes me feel better about not booking on the cruise. I guess I just lost the obc. Seems my plan to save will be the 10% off, using target red card, and going off season again. I will be looking for a travel company that offers obc. The one I used last time did not. If you know of a good agency that offers nice obc offers and other perks please let me know.

If you use Costco they will give you a Costco cash card after your cruise worth about 8-9% of your cruise fare. Sometimes that might be better than some of the OBC you get from other TA's

 

[HEMI]

Does anyone know if I can call in my Gift Cards for payment or if my Travel Agent needs to do it?
I would prefer to do it myself to save her the work since I am getting the discount. Thanks!

 

[ahain]

Does anyone know if I can call in my Gift Cards for payment or if my Travel Agent needs to do it?
I would prefer to do it myself to save her the work since I am getting the discount. Thanks!

Your travel agent needs to do it...

 

[HEMI]

Your travel agent needs to do it...

Oh dear. I think my TA is going to hate me when I show up with 50 of them. Can she refuse them? I plan to take them in next week once I have them all and my payment is due mid November. The savings are $450 so it is worth it to me.

If she does it happily, there will be a little gift for her .

 

[Becky925]

Oh dear. I think my TA is going to hate me when I show up with 50 of them. Can she refuse them? I plan to take them in next week once I have them all and my payment is due mid November. The savings are $450 so it is worth it to me.

If she does it happily, there will be a little gift for her .

We always take a bunch of gift cards to our TA and she's always happy to do it. We get a discount on gas through a local retailer, and I can't tell you how many free tanks we've gotten thanks to Disney.