Won a cruise! Unlimited Funds! Help me book

Flying in day-of is risky at any time of the year, but ESPECIALLY in the winter. Always do whatever you can to get in at least the night before. It would be horrible to miss this gift because of something preventing that flight from getting in that day/on time.

Good point. I'm going to take your advice and fly in late the night before. My poor dad and my 7 dogs, 2 cats and a turtle will have to suffer lol.

Thank you!
 
the largest verandah room
The largest verandah room onboard the Magic is one of 3 categories: 4A, 4B, and 4E. It has a queen bed (2 people), a pullman-style sofa bed (1 person), a fold down upper bunk (1 person) and a murphy bed (1 person). All in one room.
 
I'm absolutely sure that whatever I book at the time of reservation is included in the gift. However, whatever can't be booked at the time of booking will be on me. The guy who gave it to me said be sure to put in whatever upgrades, transfers, elephants, etc. that you can.

This sounds like it is just including the room, airfare, trip insurance, and transfers. Anything else (port excursions, onboard activities, stateroom gifts/amenities, tips) will not show up in the same bill as the room and transportation, even if you book them the same day. You will not be able to book most of those things until 75 days prior to sailing, which I don't advise, because by that time the rooms for 5 may well be sold out, especially since the cruise you are looking at is a mid-winter break for many east coast schools so is very popular. And if you wait until 75 days to book everything together, you would still have to "buy" onboard credit (like a gift card) to pay for them because they are normally not billed until you are on the ship, and are billed via the room charge. I highly doubt your employer will let you buy the equivalent of a gift card on their dime; and the receipt will just say "shipboard credit $x amount" rather than a specific activity you book.

I think it is worth going back to your employer and letting them know that anything onboard cannot be paid at the time of the reservation, and seeing if they will cover anything. If not, don't sweat it. We have cruised without any extras, and it is still a great time.
 
None of my other business trips are taxable and that's exactly what this is classified as.

So the purpose of this trip is business? You are performing work duties as part of the trip? Because you describe it as something you won. If it is a prize, or even just a vacation being provided by your work, then the cost of the trip is counted as income for you and you will owe income tax on it. That is different than a business trip you take in order to perform your work duties, which would not be taxable to you.
 


So super amazingly fun and what a dream! I understand you have school calendar and pet sitting issues, but a 5 night Feb cruise is very low season (except Pres Day weekend), hence the Marvel theming to garner interest, is there no way to get the really expensive weeks like Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Years? Christmas themed and SO pricey!!!
 
I would find some way to do a 7 day on the Fantasy. Forget school it's a free cruise and your nephew is only 5. Does he like Star Wars. Put your dogs in a pet hotel if you have to it's only 2 more days. The Fantasy is one of the best ships sailing the seas. If your not going for itinerary at least pick the best ship.
I would not waste a free cruise on a 5 day Magic cruise....blah.
 


Why would she have to pay tax on a free trip? The company would pay tax when they purchase it. People often gift family members with free trips.
 
I have nothing to offer by way of advice that hasn't already be said. I just wanted to say WOW. A most-expenses-paid cruise is still a fantastic prize. Enjoy!
 
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When I worked as a travel agent I earned a few trips for making a certain amount of sales. I order to have to avoid paying tax on it, we had to make it a business trip so we had to spend one day of each trip viewing hotels - something that’s normally part of a travel agent education trip. You would normally have to pay tax on a reward trip from an employer because it’s considered additional income.
 
So super amazingly fun and what a dream! I understand you have school calendar and pet sitting issues, but a 5 night Feb cruise is very low season (except Pres Day weekend), hence the Marvel theming to garner interest, is there no way to get the really expensive weeks like Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Years? Christmas themed and SO pricey!!!
I can get any week I want but this is the timing that works best for us. We would rather not go during a holiday and in the middle of winter out of the NY cold will be awesome :)
 
When I worked as a travel agent I earned a few trips for making a certain amount of sales. I order to have to avoid paying tax on it, we had to make it a business trip so we had to spend one day of each trip viewing hotels - something that’s normally part of a travel agent education trip. You would normally have to pay tax on a reward trip from an employer because it’s considered additional income.
This trip is actually a gift from Disney to my company so my company isn't actually paying anything.
 
Also if can, ask the Disney cast member who books your cruise to add the gratuities to your booking at the time you book. That way they are all taken care of in your gift and you wont have to worry about them during your sailing.
 
Why would she have to pay tax on a free trip? The company would pay tax when they purchase it. People often gift family members with free trips.

The theory is that it is income: otherwise employers could get around income tax laws by giving lots of lavish perks to employees in lieu of salary. As another example, my old employer used to give us free gym memberships and taxi rides home when we worked late at night; but the value of those benefits that was recorded on our W2s as taxable income to us.

From OP's description it does not seem to a business trip (e.g., a travel writer taking a cruise to write an article about it), but rather a cruise that Disney is gifting to the employer, and the employer is gifting to OP. That does sound like it could be a taxable event because even if the employer did not pay for the trip, it is a valuable asset the company has that it is giving to OP, which could be viewed as a form of compensation for OP's work at the company, but I am not accountant. The point is; OP should definitely consult an accountant.
 
This is clearly not a business trip, but several people have mentioned deducations for a cruise that was taken for business purpose. Check with a tax professional for the specific circumstances, but there's a specific limitation that prohibits deducting cruises as business expenses unless they are entirely within the US and on a US flagged vessel.
 
This is clearly not a business trip, but several people have mentioned deducations for a cruise that was taken for business purpose. Check with a tax professional for the specific circumstances, but there's a specific limitation that prohibits deducting cruises as business expenses unless they are entirely within the US and on a US flagged vessel.
Thanks, but I'm not worried about any tax situation. This post has gotten way off topic. I asked my question, got answers and now people are stuck on taxes. SMDH.
 
None of my other business trips are taxable and that's exactly what this is classified as.

This is a "gift" and not a "business trip" - it has a monetary value to it, and it will show up in your W2 (meaning you will have to pay taxes on it as it will count as a form of income). Even if the company were to have purchased it themselves and paid SALES TAX on it, you would still be in a position where you would have to recognize it as income and pay INCOME TAX on it.

There is no "alcohol package" on Disney cruises per se, but there are some wine and beer pre-purchase options that you could look into.

Port Excursions are separate from the cruise, and are not guaranteed to be "delivered" because they require that your ship docks at the required port, on the specified day and time, and may be subject to other variables outside of the control of Disney. Booking the excursion does not guarantee that it will happen, and it is not billed directly as part of the cruise.

The largest non-concierge room would be a Deluxe Family Stateroom with Verandah which would sleep up to five. It will have a queen bed (two adults), a sofa bed (one adult), a pull-down bunk bed (one child), and I believe a Murphy bed (one child or shorter adult). It's going to be tight quarters at sleeping time - keep your suitcase count to a minimum so you can store all of it under the queen bed. Also, you may want to plan to keep "extra" clean clothes in one suitcase (pull them out as you wear clothes that in drawers and on hangars) and put dirty clothes in the other to augment the storage available in the room.
 
The murphy bed, upper bunk, and sofa beds all have twin size mattress on them. Our two (5'10") sons slept on the sofa bed with no problem.

The reason I mentioned the different beds like that was partly because the pull-down bunk is rated for a certain weight and intended for kids and I seem to recall that the sofa bed was easier for a taller adult to "fit on" than the Murphy bed... Could be wrong on that piece, though.
 

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