Woohoo!
We just booked a Disney cruise to the British Isles for July! 12 glorious nights. My oldest daughter is getting married in June so this will be a welcome unwinding after the craziness of wedding planning and whatnot. 12 glorious nights…oh, did I already say that? Disney cruising is my speciality and our favorite way to *do* Disney. I always say it’s all the magic of Disney at a more laid-back pace. Though with 8 ports I’m not so sure about the laid back part!
We’ve already started planning, as you can imagine. I thought I’d share some of how a Disney Travel Agent works to plan their own trip. Here are some of my favorite tips:
Airfare - I’ve started watching airfare to see what the general prices are and who’s been running the best pricing. We have points for this trip so I’ll probably be using those. We like our American Airlines credit card for international travel because there aren’t international fees. And with the card we get free luggage - 12 nights means a lot of luggage. Try as I might I’m not a light packer, especially for a cruise. There’s formal night, and semi-formal night, and who knows what the weather will be like!
Weather - Speaking of weather, I start checking out what the weather is generally like during the month that we’ll be traveling. The British Isles are not like the Caribbean so we’ll need some warmer clothing and umbrellas, boots, maybe.
FB group - For a Disney cruise (and other cruise lines, too) I like to see if someone has created a FB group. These are an awesome way to get to know some of the people sailing with you before you step foot on the ship. There are great ideas exchanged…tips from others who’ve sailed the same itinerary before, port adventure recommendations, gift exchanges, etc. Just yesterday I was able to find out a couple of the entertainment options for our sailing and shared it with our group.
Port Research - We like to start watching shows on The Travel Channel, Hulu, Netflix, etc. Anywhere we can find a show about the places we’re headed we’ll start watching and taking notes. I’m looking for the local recommendations as well as the general touristy things. One of the ladies in our FB group shared that she reached out to all of the libraries in each of the ports and asked for a list of books/movies, etc. that were set in their town. What a great idea! Now, I’ve got some reading to do before hand (or at least on the flight/trip).
FB Post - I always put out a FB post that asks who has been where we’re headed. And what are their must see, do, eat things. I love to find out about the local dive that has the best food that’s not to be missed. We don’t like the big chains when traveling and I want to know where the locals go and what tips others have picked up.
As we get closer there will be more details that need to be attended to, port adventures booked, packing to take place, but I hope you enjoyed my overview of the initial planning stages!
If I can ever help you with YOUR trip, I’d love to earn your business!
Shar Rundio
shar@gomdv.com
480.560.7255
We just booked a Disney cruise to the British Isles for July! 12 glorious nights. My oldest daughter is getting married in June so this will be a welcome unwinding after the craziness of wedding planning and whatnot. 12 glorious nights…oh, did I already say that? Disney cruising is my speciality and our favorite way to *do* Disney. I always say it’s all the magic of Disney at a more laid-back pace. Though with 8 ports I’m not so sure about the laid back part!
We’ve already started planning, as you can imagine. I thought I’d share some of how a Disney Travel Agent works to plan their own trip. Here are some of my favorite tips:
Airfare - I’ve started watching airfare to see what the general prices are and who’s been running the best pricing. We have points for this trip so I’ll probably be using those. We like our American Airlines credit card for international travel because there aren’t international fees. And with the card we get free luggage - 12 nights means a lot of luggage. Try as I might I’m not a light packer, especially for a cruise. There’s formal night, and semi-formal night, and who knows what the weather will be like!
Weather - Speaking of weather, I start checking out what the weather is generally like during the month that we’ll be traveling. The British Isles are not like the Caribbean so we’ll need some warmer clothing and umbrellas, boots, maybe.
FB group - For a Disney cruise (and other cruise lines, too) I like to see if someone has created a FB group. These are an awesome way to get to know some of the people sailing with you before you step foot on the ship. There are great ideas exchanged…tips from others who’ve sailed the same itinerary before, port adventure recommendations, gift exchanges, etc. Just yesterday I was able to find out a couple of the entertainment options for our sailing and shared it with our group.
Port Research - We like to start watching shows on The Travel Channel, Hulu, Netflix, etc. Anywhere we can find a show about the places we’re headed we’ll start watching and taking notes. I’m looking for the local recommendations as well as the general touristy things. One of the ladies in our FB group shared that she reached out to all of the libraries in each of the ports and asked for a list of books/movies, etc. that were set in their town. What a great idea! Now, I’ve got some reading to do before hand (or at least on the flight/trip).
FB Post - I always put out a FB post that asks who has been where we’re headed. And what are their must see, do, eat things. I love to find out about the local dive that has the best food that’s not to be missed. We don’t like the big chains when traveling and I want to know where the locals go and what tips others have picked up.
As we get closer there will be more details that need to be attended to, port adventures booked, packing to take place, but I hope you enjoyed my overview of the initial planning stages!
If I can ever help you with YOUR trip, I’d love to earn your business!
Shar Rundio
shar@gomdv.com
480.560.7255
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