Disney Cruises slashes prices once again as it struggles to win over Australian families

• Disney Cruises has offered a 30% discount to a range of wholesalers, meaning cruisers will be able to get 30% off their next Disney cruise for a limited time.
• This promotion isn’t a common one for Disney around the world, but also applied for the end of the last cruising season.
• It suggests that Australian cruisers may love The Mouse – but not at any price.

Disney Cruises‘ first season in Australia was an enormous success, with cruises flying off the shelves. But the momentum didn’t last.

Last season, Disney offered a world first 30% discount on a range of Australian sailings, appearing to suggest they were finding it hard to fill ships. 

Experts suggested that Disney’s high pricing was unreachable for many Australian families and that their marketing was perhaps lacking as well. 

The cruise line appears to be facing a similar problem with its new season, as they’ve offered the same 30% off promotion to a range of wholesalers for the season ahead. It appears that Disney could be realising their pricing simply doesn’t work in the Australian market, and they’re taking steps to adapt it. 

Currently the cruise line has it’s 25/26 season announced, and although the 26/27 season has not been confirmed, Disney Wonder does already show up on future cruise port schedules for the 26/27 season. 

Disney generally announces their new Australian seasons in June, so we’ll soon have confirmation over whether Disney will be returning to Australia, as well as an answer on whether we could be getting a new Disney ship. 

The 26/27 season does appear likely to go ahead, but there are worries about whether Disney will see Australia as a viable market going forward.

While many of Australia’s cruising woes are often attributed to regulatory issues and high port fees, Disney’s future in the country seems to lie more in the challenge of whether a more ‘novelty’ cruising experience can sustain itself in Australia. 

Australia is the world’s fourth largest cruise market, behind the USA, UK and Germany, but has a much smaller population than those countries. Australia is such a force in cruising because of repeat cruisers who will get on cruise ships, such as those of Princess or Carnival cruises, over and over again. 

However, due to a mixture of its pricing and the nature of the experience, it appears Australians may view Disney as more of a ‘one-off’ novelty experience, similar to going to Disneyland, rather than a reliable and accessible holiday to keep returning to. 

This could mean that as well as dropping prices, to reignite interest in the Australian market Disney could try strategies such as bringing new ships, offering new experiences or sailing out of different ports. 

While all of this is happening, the massive, brand-new Disney Adventure is about to start sailing out of Singapore later this year. This already offers an alternative option for those looking to sail again with Disney who want to try something new, as well as those debating which ship to sail with for their first time.

Furthermore, due to Singapore’s close proximity to Australia, particularly some states, as well as the relatively cheaper prices that Disney Adventure can offer due to its huge size, sailing with Disney out of Singapore can even save money for Aussie families versus sailing out of Australia.

All of these factors together paint a difficult picture for Disney Cruises in the Australian market, and this June we’ll soon see if Disney is going to try some new itineraries or even a new ship to garner more interest, or potentially even drop Australian sailings altogether.