Help me sell concierge service to my spouse

[PrincessShmoo]

Can someone explain the big appeal of the cabanas to me? What all does it include? It seems like a lot of $$$! Thanks in advance!

 

[waggles02673]

We get a Cabana every cruise but we also don't do shore excursions at other ports. We love the Cabanas and to us they are worth the money.

 

[Bear3412]

Which ship are you focusing on?
How many nights?

 

[DnA2010]

For me no I wouldn't - we sail on both Disney and Royal and for that extra 1500-2000k I could almost add on another week of cruising with Royal, or more time in parks etc. Everyone is different thought- we prefer more vacations over concierge etc.

 

[bumbershoot]

What ship?

She really wants to get a private cabana on the family beach. I heard you are more likely to get it if you are concierge level. True?

It's the easiest, most "you'll almost certainly get it", way to get a cabana, yes.

How much of a difference is the check in process? Is the wait to get on the ship that much better?

Checkin once at the port? Shorter line. Near immediate boarding once they've started boarding the ship. The feeling of cutting the entire line (this does NOT make me happy, I don't like cutting lines, and it makes me feel very VERY awkward).

Can someone explain the big appeal of the cabanas to me? What all does it include? It seems like a lot of $$$! Thanks in advance!

I can't. I've done it and I cannot tell you any positives about it. I would not do it again.



I've done two concierge cruises on Dream and I've done two non-concierges, and I like NON better. I explore the ship more, I spend more time out of the small lounge, when I'm not in concierge. When I'm in concierge I want VALUE and that means I'm limiting my time to that lounge, darnit. This is a ME thing. If it is a YOU thing, or if it is a YOUR WIFE thing, it's worth thinking about ahead of time. It was also my issue with the cabana. I didn't use the included snorkel equipment etc, because I was paying for the cabana and I was going to use it. I dislike rope hammocks but I forced myself into it. The thought of sitting on stuffed lounger cushions with the sweat of a thousand people before me on them grossed me out tremendously but I sat there, because I'd paid for it.

If that would ring true for you or your wife...think about it hard before booking that cabana.


When we booked concierge the first time it was around $300 more than the room we had booked already. 3 night cruise, so $100 more per night. 33.3333333 bucks more per night for each of us than the room we'd booked previously for that cruise. There is no chance in any part of Hades that I would pay $2500 more for concierge. Second time I didn't have a different room booked beforehand, so I don't know the cost of the next room down, but in looking at the cost, the total cruise price was less per night than the first concierge cruise we booked. More total, but less per night. The whole cruise was barely over your $2500 upcharge.

Even accounting for Disney-inflation, there is not enough value in concierge, for me, to do that.

That's my flat out opinion based on two concierge cruises, two nonconcierge DCL cruises, and now 4 non-DCL, non-concierge, cruises.


Someone above said that normal DCL cruises they wait on you nearly hand and foot. In the cruise industry that's about how they do it. DCL does it with Mickey flair, but they are no better, in my experience, than another line. So you're already paying the earth for nothing that much better than others, and then including concierge and then including the cabana....jinkies.

Remember that you get soda and bottled water with concierge, too...so paying for that with the cabana is just irritating to me.

 

[MunFam]

I am in the NO WAY JOSE party. We paid $4200 for a 15 day DCL WBPC cruise last year for our family. $2,500 is more than half of another vacation. I am more than capable of packing my own sunscreen, magazines and renting snorkel equipment. There are food and drinks available all over the ship and for $1500-$2500, I can wait in a crowd for an hour to get on the ship.

Now, staying at Wilderness vs Pop, I totally understand that. There is definitely a difference in the rooms and amenities. On a DCL ship, you are still dining and swimming with the "commoners" (haha). A person in the cheapest inside room eats the same food and uses all the same amenities (minus a concierge lounge) but hey, I can find everything in the concierge lounge on my own on the ship.

That is why I will never bring myself to pay for concierge. At the same time, I just got home from a weekend at the St. Regis and stayed in a suite that had a private butler, so I am no cheap-skate, but I like to get what I pay for and I cannot justify the "amenities" of concierge for the price.

 

[keaster]

I would say no. As other have said 1500-2500 is a huge increase, and I would rather book Remy or Palo or do a cabana massage on the beach with my saved cash!

 

[xinfamousxi]

We are looking at 4 nights on the Dream.

The $2500 doubles the square ft as it goes from 299 sqft to 600.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

We are looking at 4 nights on the Dream.

The $2500 doubles the square ft as it goes from 299 sqft to 600.

How much time do you plan to spend in your room? On a 4 night cruise, I'd say that you'll be out and about, and only sleeping/showering in your room. I could be wrong. Maybe you plan on just staying in your room?

 

[SonicGuy]

If I was your wife I would say no. Huge waste of money. We have stayed at the wilderness lodge, love it, and would do it again. We have never stayed at pop. But the comparison is not accurate. As just a basic dcl customer you are waited on pretty much hand and foot. There is food everywhere on the ship. Concierge is a complete waste in my opinion. Buy her $2500 worth of jewelry in port somewhere. That will wow her.

Out of curiosity - have you sailed Concierge with DCL?

 

[Hundredacre]

Out of curiosity - have you sailed Concierge with DCL?

Of course not. It is not worth it in my opinion so why would I stay concierge? My children too are also spoiled enough. But this is just my opinion. We are more independent, do not spend huge amounts of time in our room, try to avoid eating too much on the ship (definitely do not need another lounge with food in it), and we are not big drinkers. Actually barely drink. So the concierge system would be a huge waste for us. We are really working on getting our children to understand that they are over privileged already. Frankly, I'm not sure we are fully getting through on that one. Another thing- we have never had to wait to get on the ship, so that draw is not there for us either. We get there right at our boarding time and every time there has been no line for processing and we have boarded right away.

 

[DCLDVC1]

It always amuses me how people who have never done something say it isn't worth it.

 

[Hundredacre]

It always amuses me how people who have never done something say it isn't worth it.

It always amuses me how some people are very uncomfortable when someone has a different opinion.

 

[MunFam]

It always amuses me how people who have never done something say it isn't worth it.

Every person places a different value on the services and amenities provided. I value my money more than the convenience of having such goods and services provided to me. Therefore, I do not NEED to experience Concierge to place a value on it. Some people place a high value on the services provided by sailing concierge therefore they pay for it and that is wonderful.

 

[kiford]

It always amuses me how people who have never done something say it isn't worth it.

I don't need to experience concierge to know that, when I look at the list of services, it's not worth it to me. For the very few that I might take advantage of, the cost just isn't justifiable for us. Others are able to make the same judgement without experiencing it. We've done concierge/club level in hotels in various cities but that is where we know that we'll take advantage of what's on offer. We know that this won't be the case on DCL. We've always preferred to take the cost differential and put it towards those specific things that are of value to us.

In order for the OP to convince his wife, he'll have to look at the various services and opportunities that it affords them, the atmosphere and describe to her how it will enhance their vacation to the tune of the increased amount. Then it's really up to her to decide if that holds value for her.

 

[winterface]

I wouldn't go on the cruise unless I was at concierge level, its just that huge of a difference. We went with the 1 bedroom suite and it was a massive space with a wonderful jetted tub, big enough for two.

The food and drinks at the lounge were fantastic, morning, afternoons, evenings, it was all good. Plus having the fridges loaded with every drink you could want thats just free to grab and go was wonderful. The Evian facial mist on the deck was great too, very refreshing.

Being able to skip the sheer madness and cow herding of the check in in the terminal was a huge plus too. Express elevator to get on the ship and get off was great.

Also did the cabana at the adults only beach and that was fantastic as well. Big plus to the 1 bedroom suite was that they would bring the main dining room meals to you so you wouldn't have to deal with having to go all the way down to the near bottom floors of the ship and deal with the crowds.

I also enjoyed having a more private hallways and spaces, it was much more relaxing, No crowds and the concierge hosts will help you with anything you need or want.

The price just isn't a big deal to us, especially considering everything we got. We never once thought "hey we could probably do without all this" but when we take vacations, we go all out. Some folks prefer more budget minded trips, and thats okay. I just know after seeing the non-concierge way of doing things that way of vacation is not for us.

 

[tink1970]

I don't think my DH would have initially been in favor of concierge had I told him how much more it was but he does really enjoy it. That said, we don't have to sail Concierge every time we cruise. "Value" and "worth it" are completely subjective so you'll get all sort of opinions on it.

If I had to sell him on it, I would've mentioned the coffee maker (he is a big coffee fan), pre-dinner wine, boarding first (although now we do that as Platinum), decreased foot traffic in the 12th deck hallway, and the cushy loungers on the sun deck. It's hard for me to put a specific dollar value on these benefits and so I usually just set a budget for myself then shop for a cruise--if our favorite cabins (12510 or 12514) are within that budget, great; if not, hey we're still cruising!

 

[_Crush_]

One thing to consider is the additional gratuities. I believe it's about $20 per person per day to tip the concierge staff. This is in addition to the standard cruise tips.

Since the first post mentioned the price difference, this is a relevant additional cost to consider.

 

[disneydiane61]

Just my 2 cents on the subject. I have been on 4 Disney Cruises. The first 3 were non-concierge and the last one in a 1 bedroom concierge, which I upgraded to at the port. I was anxious to try concierge, but not willing to pay full price. The difference for the 1 week Fantasy cruise from the cabin I booked and the 1 bedroom was over $4900
pre-cruise. The price I paid for the upgrade at the terminal $1150. A $3800 savings.

Yes, I was the first person in the terminal, and read on the disboards some great advice and tips on "how to make it happen". Was it worth it? Yes, I loved the room and still got to wait in the concierge pre-board area. We enjoyed the concierge lounge, the fabulous concierge staff, and loved the concierge lounge bartender in the evenings who would make me some great "mock-tails" since we are non drinkers. The room was Amazing, enjoyed having dinner in our suite from any restaurant we wanted, and the private sun lounge area. The only set back, of not booking at least the 125 days ahead of sail date, is not being able to book a cabana, but it was just DH and I, and we were not interested in a cabana. We took advantage of the room and spent more time in the room and balcony than I would have in a smaller cabin.

So.... Now that I have experienced concierge, I would do it again, but only as an upgrade a the pier. the cost vs value for a concierge, for me, is only "worth it" if I can get it the day of embarkation, at the "pier price". And what did I do with the $3800 I saved? Of course, booked another Disney Cruise.

 

[xinfamousxi]

I talked to the wife tonight and she basically said it was my call. She gave me her two cents and some other information. She basically said since we are doing only 3 or 4 night cruise its a waste to upgrade the room to the one bedroom since we will be out and about. It comes down to adding the service or not for $1500. I let her know about the cabana and she thinks that since this is our first vist to the island we will be exploring and not using the cabana much.

She did tell me that as much as her and my daughter loved WL they want to see if its possible to do Poly. My daughter also apparently really want to do universal for a day because she wants to see the Harry potter world. Ultimately she's leaving the choice to me but not for the 1 bedroom only the added service to the verandah room.

The plan is 3 or 4 nights on cruise 6 days on land.