I don’t know that you could ever call a Disney cruise “cheap.” However, you can find some less expensive Disney cruises. Here are some of our techniques for taking less expensive cruises:
- Off season
- Early bookings
- On board bookings
- Late Bookings
Off season
Booking during the off-season (when schools are typically in session) can result in great savings. The most expensive Disney cruises are definitely at Christmas Break, Summer Break, and Spring Break. We try to find cruises that are during long weekend breaks during the school calendar when other schools might be in session. Another great time for us is the last two weeks before Labor Day. A lot of schools go back into session during this time, but ours don’t start until the Tuesday after Labor Day. This gives us a two week period in which we can find a slightly cheaper cruise to take advantage of.
Early bookings
Disney cruises tend to be cheaper when they are initially released, and climb in price as the ship fills up. To take advantage of this, book the cruise you want immediately when the bookings are first released. Members of Disney’s Castaway Club (Disney’s frequent cruisers club, which is available to everyone who has traveled on one or more Disney cruise) can book earlier the general public, so they might be able to get a slightly better price. The more you sail Disney, the higher-level Castaway Club membership you receive – and the earlier you are able to book future cruises.
Onboard bookings
Once you are onboard and enjoying a Disney cruise, you might want to find a way to get right back on board. Disney has an onboard bookings desk right there on the ship. If you book onboard, they will offer you a few discounts. The first is an onboard credit to be used next time you sail ($100 for cruises less than 7 days, $200 for cruises 7 days or longer). The second incentive is a reduced deposit for cruises 7 days or longer (10% instead of the usual 20%). The last discount is a 10% reduction in price for *MOST* cruises. Disney has started to black out that 10% discount on a lot of the popular cruises (for example, Spring Break, Christmas Break, and special itineraries).
Late Bookings
If the ships aren’t filling up close to the departure date, Disney will start to offer various discounts to get people on board. These incentives include military discounts, discounts for Florida residents and guaranteed room discounts. There are proof of eligibility requirements for both the military and Florida discounts. We don’t have any experience with these since we don’t qualify.
The guaranteed staterooms guarantee a “view,” but not a specific cabin. There are three types: IGT (Inside Guarantee), OGT (Oceanview Guarantee), and VGT (Verandah Guarantee). You will generally be assigned a cabin a few days out from the sailing. These fare types can be upgraded depending upon availability though (an IGT can become an OGT or VGT), but you won’t ever be downgraded.
The downside of discounts for late bookings is that they won’t be available on a cruise that is popular. You will also have to be flexible, as these discounts generally won’t become available until 75 days or less from the time of sailing. The fare is due in full immediately once you book, and is non-refundable. With those drawbacks in mind, using late bookings is a great way to get a cruise discount if you have the flexibility to travel whenever you want.
If you have enjoyed this article, please be sure to check out our Disney Cruise Line information page, which has useful hints in addition to our cruise trip reports!
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