Disney Cruise coming to Europe?

Posted: Mon Jun 06, 2005 8:15 pm

The Disney Cruise Line has been a smash sucess at both coasts of the USA - guests are not only snatching up the rooms on both cruise ships of Disney for a "cruise only"-vacation but combine it with visits to the two state-side Disney Resorts in Orlando and Anaheim. With the Mediterrean sea being a popular cruise location already and being accessible from France, rumors have been around pretty much since the inaugural cruise that the Disney Cruise Line sooner or later would add cruises in the Mediterrean which could be combined with a visit to the Disneyland Resort Paris.
In the last years these rumors flared up several times, most recently when a guest survey on the cruise line was reported to have included such a destination as option for the future to be rated by guests - and now the rumors are back once again, as Mouseplanet reports in today's Disneyland Update, that the Disney Cruise Line sent out a survey to selected former guests. Once again Mediterranean cruises were included as a potential option. Interestingly for the 7- or 10-night-offers Barcelona, Spain, is mentioned as home harbour. All new is the option of a 10-night Baltic cruise out of Southampton, England, which was listed too - but then the UK is known as THE Disney market in Europe. Most interestingly: both European options are listed in the section for possible 2007 cruises, even so one would assume that Disney would have to add a third ship to its fleet, as the carribean cruises from Floriday are very popular year round and several new routes on the east coast of the US are mentioned in the survey too. Prices for all potential cruises in the survey start between $1,799 and $2,899 for an inside stateroom, depending on the itinerary.
In todays WDW Update on Mouseplanet, Tom McAlpin, president of the Cruise Line, is cited regarding the current east coast cruises to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Disneyland: "I wouldn't call it a trial run. When we poll our guests â€” when we look at where we want to go next â€” we use comment cards and we use thirdâ€“party research to find out where is the demand. We learned that the highest demand is where we are operating today [in the Caribbean]. The next demand is in California, and we certainly have seen that there have been high levels of demand of Alaska and the Mediterranean."
Nevertheless European Disney fans shouldn't expect anything yet - this is not the first time European cruises have been mentioned in the surveys. Also the need for most propably an additional third ship for the European destinations could result in a further delay, even if the survey shows a large enough interest. Also one could expect surveys with according questions to pop up in Europe or the Disneyland Resort Paris too, to help gauge the interest of European guests, as a visit for US-guests is rather expensive due to the â‚¬/$ exchange rate.