Journalist produces definitive report on a Disney cruise
Most parents are aware of the ever-expanding Disney cruise line, which enables them to join their young children on a sailing designed to fascinate. Disney currently operates four big cruise ships, and two more are reaching completion in European shipyards.
Impartial descriptions of those cruises are hard to come by. People who write for the newspapers are loathe to criticize the powerful Disney empire. And the most recent critique, which appeared in the travel section of The New York Times, is no exception. The Times writer is quick to admit that his 5-year-old daughter was fascinated by the cruise, calling it the best time she had ever had. The writer himself largely confines his review to factual descriptions of the events of the Disney cruise (a four-day sailing from Miami to the Bahamas and back), without voicing an opinion of those events.
But one judgment stands out prominently in the course of a lengthy article. It is the warning to “bring money” if you opt for such a cruise. Prices are cited for various optional features on the cruise, and they are of a worrisome level.
The writer and his wife booked massages for the two of them. Their cost: $170 per person. He ordered a tray of four small glasses of Scotch. The cost: $60. The family posed for a Disney photographer. Naturally, they were then billed for the snapshot they received, according to an interview Frommers recently conducted with the Times writer.
Throughout the four-day sailing, according to the same interview, the family was constantly “upsold.” Disney staff were continually advising them of optional extras and encouraging them to spend, spend, spend.
To my eye, the prices they were charged for such extras were always higher than one would encounter on the average non-disney cruise. Though the quality was high and the customer service were of the very best, one was always aware of the effort to persuade passengers to increase considerably the total cost of the cruise.
You may disagree with my own reaction to those policies and their price level. And if you’d like to apply your own test of these extra expenditures, read the full New York Times article at www.nytimes. com/2018/03/05/travel/disneycruise-magic-bahamas.html. Then, you’ll be able to reach your own assessment of a typical Disney cruise.
Note to the reader: Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip. The information in this column was accurate when it was released, but prices are competitive, sometimes limited and can always change without notice.