Get Ready So Cal and the West Coast!!

Get Ready So Cal and the West Coast!!

To all our So Cal. Clients, Friends and Family. If you love Disney Cruise Line and want to get in on some local DCL magic get ready!!! Disney Magic and Disney Wonder with possible new ships are coming!!!

 

Starting Fall 2027 DCL will have Preferred Anchorage when in port at Catalina! They made an agreement to bring more guests to Catalina. This agreement will allow DCL to port there a possible 84 times a year! It starts as a 5-year agreement with 2 possible 5-year extensions. Summers DCL will port at Catalina on Tuesdays. Fall, Winter and Spring they can port Tuesdays and Saturdays! What this means from 2027 to 2042 DCL will be very active on the West Coast!!! The first of these dates should be announced sometime around June of 2026. These cruises will include Halloween on the High Seas and Merrytime Cruises!!!

 

What makes this more exciting is DCL has ordered 3 ships, from Meyer Werft that are between the size of the Classic-Class Disney Ship, Disney Magic and Wonder and the Dream-Class ships, Disney Dream and Fantasy. They will be 20% bigger than the Classic ships and significantly smaller than the Dream ships. They will carry between 400-600 more guests than the Classic ships and 1,000 less than the Dream Class. They will carry 3,000 guests. From the information I have been able to find the new ships should be able to go through the Panama Canal! West Coast could possibly have one of the new ships ported here!

 

For those of you who wonder why the larger ships can’t go through the Panama Canal here is the answer. All Disney Ships were built so they “fit” in the Panama Canal. The problem is they are too tall to go under the Bridge of the Americas. They would need to remove part of their height to make it possible. Take off a funnel to get through the Canal?? I don’t think that is going to happen.

 

Home porting in either Los Angeles or San Diego would be wise for DCL. They could take advantage of Land/Sea packages with the Disneyland Resort. There is also a significant increase in the Cruise Industry out of the West Coast within the last few years.

 

It is possible there will be a Christening and Maiden Voyage of one of the new ships out of San Diego or Los Angeles. I suggest putting some money aside, I think putting the funds on a Disney Gift Card. This could be saved and used for this cruise! If you have $23.75 or $25 per month you could save part the deposit up!! I’m thinking the ship for 2029 will start booking in the Summer of 2028.

 

How do you get ahold of Discounted Disney Gift Cards??? Do you have a Target Circle Debit or Credit Card?? You have a way to save 5% on Disney Gift Cards!! Yes, you heard that right. Purchase Disney Gift Cards at Target or Target online and get at $25 dollar card for $23.75. $47.50 gets you a $50 card. A $100 card costs $95. You can combine cards up to $1,000 on one card.

 

I recommend getting 1 $25 physical card. Then purchase eGift Cards that you can add to that card. Just go to DisneyGiftCards.com and log in using your Disney log in. You can combine the cards into $1,000 Cards. I’ll explain more in my next post.

What is the 2025 Agreement Between Disney Cruise Line and Santa Catalina Island?

What is the 2025 Agreement Between Disney Cruise Line and Santa Catalina Island?

As posted back in February 2025, it was announced that DCL would pay a premium fee for preferred anchor docking while in port. This agreement also includes the number of visits from DCL to Catalina along will the number of months DCL will port there! This agreement will start Fall 2027! Sound good to you?? Well, if you live closer to San Diego, Ca than one of the ports in Florida this is WONDERFUL news!

 

In brief it states that DCL will pay $1.50 per guest for the first 5 years, to start. The standard price currently is $7.00 per guest. DCL will pay $9.50 per guest to start. This price will increase by 25% at an agreed timeframe. Disney has stated an agreed number of dates and number of guests it will bring to Catalina Island. At the end of 5 years this agreement can be extended for another 5 years. At that point there is one more possible 5-year extension. This agreement can be extended until 2032.

 

Breakdown:

Disney is guaranteeing to bring 120,000 guests to the port at Avalon, Catalina per year.

For preferential rights, Disney is setting specific dates of Saturday and Tuesday during peak summer season and Tuesday during the Off Season. This is an incredible number of visits per year. It is more than any other line that stops at Catalina.!

The agreement states DCL will be stopping at Catalina every month of the year!

Disney Magic and Disney Wonder are specifically mentioned in the agreement as being ships to port at Catalina. (Catalina is a small port and even smaller city. Only smaller ships can port there.) There is room to add more ships.

 

What does it mean:

DCL will have at least 1 ship on the West Coast year-round!!!

DCL will have 2 ships  stopping during the peak season! This means 2 or more ships on the West Coast!

 

Conjecture:

Disney is building 3 new ships 2029-2031.

The ships are new class of ships that will be approximately 20% larger than The Classic Magic and Wonder.

The New-Class will be smaller than The Dream-Class, that holds 4,000 guests.

The New-Class will hold 3,000 guests, approximately 400 more than The Magic and Wonder.

The New-Class look to be about the right size to go through the Panama Canal. The Dream and Triton-Class ships are too big to go through the Panama Canal.

Disney Wonder could continue to go to Alaska during the summer and may possibly continue going to Australia during the winter.

 

 

What are the Pros for Catalina:

Catalina will have scheduled days 18 months out when they know a DCL ship will be in port.

Having set days, Avalon can control the congestion in the port and in Avalon itself.

Businesses in Avalon will be better able to staff and prepare.

Disney has pledged to support improvements to Avalon’s infrastructure.

Disney has pledged funds for conservation and environmental efforts.

 

What are the cons for Catalina:

Increased crowds in Avalon.

Increased usage of water, power and fuel.

Increased issues with infrastructure repair/maintenance.

Increased environmental impact.

 

What are the Pros for DCL and DCL Fans on the West Coast:

The West Coast is one of the fastest growing areas of the Cruise Industry. Wise Choice to grow here.

West Coast will now have year-round DCL cruising available.

West Coast may get a ship in another state, like Oregon or Washington.

It is possible DCL will eventually consider going North instead of South and visit Canada before heading back to the West Coast Port.