New 2018 Disney Cruise Line Destinations
Disney Cruise Line will sail new itineraries and to new ports starting Fall 2018, including first-time visits to Bermuda and Quebec City, Canada.
In addition to these new itineraries, there will be special sailings from New York that take guests to Walt Disney World Resort and Castaway Cay. In case you’re concerned that these new ports mean an old one is on the chopping block, relax: Disney Cruise Line will continue sailing from California, Texas, and Florida in Fall 2018.
In this post, we’ll offer some general press release style info on the new Disney Cruise Line ports of call and destinations, followed by our thoughts and some tips for booking…
Quebec City, Canada will be featured on two new 7-night itineraries sailing between New York and Quebec City in September 2018. These sailings include two days in Quebec City plus stops at other Canadian ports new to Disney Cruise Line: Saguenay and Baie-Comeau.
For the first time, Disney Cruise Line sails to the beautiful island of Bermuda. Each 5-night sailing includes two full days in Bermuda, and one 6-night sailing includes three days in Bermuda.
Fall 2018 Disney Magic sailings from New York also include three 7-night voyages to Walt Disney World Resort. Each cruise includes a stop at Castaway Cay and in Port Canaveral, Florida, with every guest receiving a 1-day Walt Disney World Park Hopper ticket and round-trip transportation between the ship and the parks.
In September and October 2018, the Disney Wonder sails out of San Diego, California with voyages to Baja and the Mexican Riviera. Baja sailings visit Cabo San Lucas and Ensenada. Mexican Riviera sailings stop in Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlán, and Cabo San Lucas.
In November and December 2018, the Disney Wonder heads to Galveston, Texas with a variety of Caribbean and Bahamian itineraries. All cruises to the Bahamas include a stop at Castaway Cay.
In December 2018, the Disney Magic returns to Miami with sailings to the Western Caribbean and Bahamas, including stops at Key West and Castaway Cay.
Throughout late 2018, the Disney Fantasy and Disney Dream sail a variety of Caribbean and Bahamian cruises from Port Canaveral, Florida, with every sailing including a day at Castaway Cay.
As we mention in our 101 Best Disney Cruise Line Tips, DCL prices fluctuate based upon projected demand. In terms of a ‘strategy’ for booking these cruises, I’d say it really depends upon whether any of these are absolute must-dos for you. If so, you’ll want to play it safe and book early. Several of the itineraries listed are pretty limited, so it won’t take significant demand for them to sell out or increase in price.
Scarcity coupled with the number of diehard Disney Cruise Line fans might result in the lowest prices being early-on. If I were a betting person, I’d guess the Bermuda and Mexican Riviera cruises in particular will sell quickly, causing prices to increase. I could see this with even more of the itineraries, but those seem to have the right combination of coolness, scarcity, and the right timing.
I’m hopeful this is not the case, at least with the Quebec City itineraries in September. I’ve been wanting to visit Quebec City for the last couple of years (albeit for their famed Christmas markets), so it’s like Disney read my mind (well, partially…see the previous parenthetical) with these itineraries.
To me, these seem like pretty niche itineraries. That, couple with the fact that they are one-way cruises, so basically two repositioning cruises, seems like a recipe for low demand. I could see some New Yorkers doing both cruises to avoid airfare, but I think (and hope) there won’t be a ton of people interested in that. As a result, I could see these being cruises that offer solid last minute discounts.
We’d need airfare to do this either way, so I don’t really care where we start and end up (…although a flight to Quebec costs more miles than does one to New York). I’ll definitely be keeping my eye on those cruises for deals. For me, Quebec City is not a bucket list destination…more like a (I don’t know, what’s smaller than a bucket?) puddle list destination. 😉
Aside from this, the cruise that really interests us are the Mexican Riviera one from San Diego. This would mean no need to purchase airfare, which is really appealing. Plus, the Mexican Riviera looks gorgeous. I would even “settle” for the shorter Baja cruises.
Unfortunately, I’m betting these will be popular itineraries that will sell well (and probably cheapest early-on), meaning no last minute discounts. I don’t even want to do fall into the “trap” of researching that itinerary, because then I think it’d become a must-do. I love Disney Cruise Line, but am far too cheap to pay full price…
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Your Thoughts
What do you think of these new and returning itineraries? Any that appeal to you? Any thoughts on which you think might have good deals come along later, and which you’d recommend buying now? Do you think Disney Cruise Line is worth the premium pricing? Any other tips to add or recommendations? If you have questions or thoughts, please share them below in the comments!
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Does indeed Disney do last-minute luxury cruise deals? I had read from a Disney travel agent that Disney generally does not offer previous minute deals on their cruises because, if they’re having trouble filling a ship, they have a policy of offering special discounts to certain groups
you are so funny tin
Does Disney do last-minute cruise deals? I had heard from a Disney travel agent that Disney generally does not offer last minute deals on its cruises because, if they’re having trouble filling a ship, they have a policy of offering discounts to certain groups (starting with cast members) rather than the general public. Have you had luck with this? I’d kind of written it off given what I’d heard.
What the travel agent told you is correct (the ‘certain’ groups are Cast Members, military, and Florida residents) but if those discounts are not enough to fill rooms, Disney will quietly drop prices for the general public.
Disney Cruise Line tries to avoid ‘sale!’ pricing since they are positioned as a truly premium/luxury product and don’t want the image of discounting, but they do offer discounts.
East-coast Canadian with in-laws in Quebec City – my suggestion would be to start in NYC, spend a couple nights in Quebec after the cruise, then take the train into Montreal (possibly spend a couple nights here depending on time/$$$ budget), and fly home from Montreal. That airport will give you a lot more flight options compared to Quebec’s!
All joking aside, my husband and I are likely going to do So Cal in spring/summer 2018 for a week. I’m thinking Disneyland 3 days, the shore somewhere in Laguna, then San Diego. We’re in PA so I’d like to do as much as possible while were out there, but don’t know if we’d have time to fit in any of the National parks too, maybe Joshua Tree.. I’ve already started poking around over on Travel Caffeine for ideas!
I got pretty excited about the new Canada itinerary. I super highly doubt we’d book it straight up, but I also super hope we can plan it with a last minute deal. I don’t want to research too much and then be disappointed though, have done that with another cool cruise plan that fell through. Since some Canadians like the NY cruises, I’m hoping that lowers some demand for this new itinerary. But not so low they never do it again if it doesn’t work out for us next year. Hah.
Hi Tom! You should definitely upgrade your cruise to Quebec city to bucket list status! Ships dock right in the heart of the old city and you can take romantic walks on the cobblestone streets, shop in really unique boutiques and have one of the greatest museums right by the ship. Historic sites are a few minutes’ walk away, and what better way to wake up than with a view of Chateau Frontenac? I MAY be a bit biased, but really you should think about it and come visit me at said museum 😉 Sincerely, Your biggest French Canadian fan, France (yes, it’s my real name…)
I would be weary of the Mexican Riviera cruises. I don’t know how Disney will deal with it, but other cruises to these destinations are referred to as “party/booze cruises”. It skews towards a very young demographic looking to vacation in a very loud and oblivious manner. The cost and location are key to targeting a younger demographic. I know you are Sarah are young and childless, but I feel like this isn’t a demographic you would enjoy. Especially trying to enjoy adult only areas of the ship.
But I’m interested to see if Disney’s higher fares and child friendly brand will keep the “spring break” crowds low.
I’m sure there’s a bit of that element in the locations themselves that you’d experience, but no way is DCL going to have that issue on its cruises. They’re cost-prohibitive. Why cruise with Disney to Mexico when you can do Carnival for a fraction of the cost?
We did Baja (Ensenada and Cabo) with our 3 and 4 year old and it was in no way a “booze cruise”. We had an AMAZING family vacation!
Puddle list. You’re so funny. Tin..? Pail..? Can perhaps?
If you get around to doing either the Mexican Riviera or Baja cruises, you’ll most definitely have to do a trip report! My dream So Cal vacation would start in Disneyland, on to San Diego, finished up by one of those cruises! Which would also cost $$$$$$, but hey, Disney says dreams really do come true…
San Diego–and Southern California, in general–is a beautiful place. If you ever have the chance, it’s most definitely worth a visit. Although Walt Disney World is a better long vacation destination than Disneyland, California absolutely trounces Florida, in my opinion.