Disney Cruise, Alison Meacham is the author of the Disney Vacation Money Savings Guide. She owns luxury Florida vacation rental homes within 5 minutes of Disney. You can view her resort villas at www.windsorpalmsusa.com

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Do you dream of a Disney Cruise Vacation? Well now it is more affordable than ever with some great special deals available at the moment from Disney. But is Disney cruising for you? And how do you get the most value for your money?

Disney is one of the premier cruise lines. They certainly know how to make a cruise extra special. Based in Cape Canaveral the Disney Magic and Disney Wonder cruise ships are identical in basic design but have their own variations – Magic is Art Deco and Wonder is Art Nouveau.

The Disney cruise itineraries to the Bahamas and Caribbean tend to remain the same through the year which sometimes have slight variations. For 2008 and 2009 you can choose from 3 or 4 night cruise of the Bahamas or a 7 night Caribbean Disney cruise. The 3 and 4 night Bahamian cruises can also be combined with a land based cruise at Walt Disney World. With each of these cruises one of the ports is the Disney owned island Castaway Cay. This secluded island is often one of the highlights of a Disney cruise.

There are sometimes ‘special’ itineraries such as those which have just been announced by Disney for 2010 to the Mediterranean and Northern Europe. There are also 2 repositioning Transatlantic cruises for 2010. These repositioning cruises often offer great value for the traveler looking for a special deal on a Disney cruise.

Click on thumbnail above to see the sections of a Disney Cruise ship

How do you get the best deal on a Disney cruise? Well the general for booking all cruises is that the earlier you book the better deal that you get. Disney knows that it has a certain number of cabins to fill for each sailing and so the price tends to go up the closer you get to the sailing date. However if you have a lot of flexibility as to when you can sail and which itinerary you would like then you can sometimes get a great deal by waiting it out until the last minute. But be prepared to be flexible for the lowest prices.

The cabin which you choose has a big influence on the cost of your cruise. So give some thought to what exactly you need. Some people are fine with an inside cabin with no window, but for others this is not their idea of fun! The design of the Disney ships is excellent though and this means that they have some of the largest staterooms offered in the cruise industry. A great choice of course is a balcony cabin. Or for a family of 5 Disney offers a Category 4 cabin. But always check whether the rate on two adjoining cabins would be a better value for your party of 5 – it may give you more space for less money.

Whichever cruise you choose you are certain to have a magical vacation with Disney.