Last minute booking advice

[Crumpets]

I am highly considering booking a 5 day cruise on the magic in early July. We cruise frequently but haven't sailed Disney for many years. My biggest concern is that it is going to be PACKED because of the summer break and because we are last minute many of the activities/tours etc will be full. How busy and cramped does the ship get? Last cruise was MSC at New Year and we couldn't get 1 lounge chair on the sea days...not even on an upper deck in the shade. My daughter is 11 and i think would still love the "disney magic" but nervous that all the fun stuff will be too busy for us to really enjoy it. Spam me with your tips/tricks and suggestions please

 

[sponica]

It probably depends on the dates in July more than anything. But it's a smaller ship, so there will be fewer people even if it is close to sold out.

 

[Skippyboo]

What cruise are you looking at ? I see a 5 night Eastern and 5 night Western Caribbean on the Magic this July. The eastern one is going to Lighthouse, Nassau and Castaway w 1 sea day. The 2 Disney islands you don’t really need to book an excursion to enjoy. Western is Cozumel and Castaway w 2 sea days

 

[Crumpets]

It probably depends on the dates in July more than anything. But it's a smaller ship, so there will be fewer people even if it is close to sold out.

July 6-11

 

[Crumpets]

What cruise are you looking at ? I see a 5 night Eastern and 5 night Western Caribbean on the Magic this July. The eastern one is going to Lighthouse, Nassau and Castaway w 1 sea day. The 2 Disney islands you don’t really need to book an excursion to enjoy. Western is Cozumel and Castaway w 2 sea days

It’s the Cozumel/Castaway Cay sailing July 6

 

[jalapeno_pretzel]

We were on a Magic 5 night at spring break last year, and it was definitely busy, but we managed. We made use of quieter times ... we're up and at Cabanas when they open and it's relaxed. We bring a couple of plates back to the room for the sleeping kids so no one has to go later in the morning when it's busy. We chose dinner 2nd seating, and the pool deck is really nice when first seating leaves for dinner. We're not crazy about being out long in the sun anyway, so we're not really trying to get lounge seats in the middle of the day. We got in line for characters well in advance of when they appeared, and the kids just entertained themselves with nintendos. The couple of times I used the adult pool area, it was really quiet - only a couple of other people in the water, and only a handful lounging. Trivia was small. We don't do the sail away party ... we like enjoying it on our balcony with a drink and snack. We also skip the MDR in the morning we're leaving, and carry our luggage off.

The only times it felt uncomfortable were the mid-late morning lines to Cabanas spilling down the stairs making it difficult for us to get out on the deck (we were just one deck below right near the aft stairs), and the line-up for dinner was always pretty packed. Dinners were noisy and took longer than we would have preferred - and longer than we were had experienced on our previous two cruises. But, nothing was terrible, and I'm glad we went.

 

[Mommb]

The Disney ships usually sail full or close to full, so the ship may not be any more packed than at any other time. Booking late will make it more difficult to get adult dining, beverage tastings, Bibbiti-Bobbiti-Boutique and excursions. You may also be limited to late dining. If you're not bothered by those limitations, though, you can have just as good an experience as if you'd booked earlier.

If you're able to book, your daughter will be able to go to the Tween club.

The pools onboard will be busy. Castaway Cay will have fewer people than when the Fantasy/Dream/Wish are in port, so it should have sufficient space for the Magic passengers.

So the question is whether you will be disappointed to not get activities that need to be booked in advance. You might still be able to get some, and if not, you can try while you're onboard.

 

[auntlynne]

If you are going to pick a summer cruise, this one this year may be your best choice.

The alternating weeks go to Castaway and Lighthouse - and are more expensive; probably more full. And the Dream and Treasure are also running.

We try to avoid kid-heavy dates (go when it’s mainly 5 and under, when the kids are not so freely moving about) - so I don’t know how bad it can get. But it is limited to the (truly full) capacity of the ship.

Two months out and still a lot of cabin inventory (I guess you know that), you might not even be stuck with late dining. If it doesn’t happen at booking, put in a request through your reservation.

If you are okay with the possibilities of crowding you stated and the heat of summer, sounds fun.

There should be enough options in Cozumel even if Disney excursions are sold out. And Castaway is great with nothing special added (if that’s not your case, then reconsider this cruise). Or things like Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique or Royal Court Tea.

 

[Clarkson U]

I say go for it. It will be busy for sure but with an 11 year old every time you go will likely be busy. The kids clubs will still be fun. The kids pool will get busy during peak times of the day but at other times will be very lightly used.

I think you will still have a great time. Many port adventures will likely still be available and others are available directly from the local tour operators. For Castaway Cay you don't need to really pre-book anything to have a great time. I don't know about early dining but if you don't care which dining you get it won't matter.

Enjoy.

 

[Dive Bar Casanova]

Last minute booking we've found travel agents way too slow.
We click on the cruise we want and go from there.
From the time we contact a travel agent to the time they get going on our request we can watch the ship cabins disappear from availability by the minute.

Walked into AAA Travel and the guy ahead of me was booking 12 cabins on the Dream. That's the customer they love and I'll never get service in my lifetime.

Off subject, not last minute but the opposite:

What we tell those that are on a tight budget:
The best way to get the best deal on a DCL cruise is search the DCL website and click on the cruises you like.
Don't buy anything but leave your email address.

Then in a few months 35% offers come in. We've seen them as high as 40% off.
If on a tight budget pick the cheapest cabin on the cheapest cruise then take the 35% discount.
BUT most important is clear your cookies before you return to the DCL website and you'll see even an additional drop in cruise prices.

Cabin prices with DCL are demand and interest drivin'. Cookies trigger that.

Same experiences with a cheap-O cabin as anyone else on the cruise. Maybe not the split bathrooms and the cabin is 1 ft narrower and 2 ft shorter,, it's still full of that Disney character, energy and charm.

We stuff collage age daughters and their GFs in those cabins and they are in Disney heaven.

 

[aliceinvunderland]

We always cruise sold out itineraries during school breaks (spring break, Thanksgiving, New Years) and haven’t ever found the ships to be uncomfortably crowded. And we would never, ever go to the parks during those times because we hate crowds. In fact, we choose to cruise because the ships literally cannot be “overcrowded” like the parks can. Go for it!