Disney Cruise...everything you need to know...

VaBusa

oRg Gal
Staff member
Administrator
The short version – Disney Cruises are awesome!  I highly recommend ‘em…



The long version – brace yourself!  Hey, I’ll break it up by categories so you can read what you want, for those interested in doing this cruise.  

<span style='color:blue'>THE CABINS</span>
The “cheap†rooms (cabins without the veranda or a window) are just fine.  We priced the rooms with a view, but for double the cost, we opted for the cheap seats.  Hubby and I were quite pleased, plenty of room for little ones, queen-sized bed, bunk beds for the kiddies, one room with a sink and a toilet, the other with a sink and shower/tub.  Plenty of storage space, television, room service.  We paid roughly $1500 for a 4-night Bahamian cruise for 4, just in case you wanted to know.  
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<span style='color:blue'>THE FOOD</span>
All of your meals are included, and that includes sodas and tea (I only mention it because apparently other cruise lines charge for this).  Alcoholic beverages are separate and just about everything you order on a Disney Cruise seem to be $6.  You dine every evening in a different restaurant and your servers follow you for the entire cruise, get to know you, help you out should you need anything.  Our youngest got sick pretty much as soon as we boarded, but our servers helped us out by bringing our meals one evening to the room, piping hot.

The food wasn’t all that I’d expected, but there is plenty of it.  Kids migrate to the food places near the pools that server pizza, hot dogs, hamburgers, chicken and French fries.  Breakfast was decent, but we found that you can sit down and order from the menu or hit one of the many buffet restaurants and get the exact same food.  Dinner is always a set meal; no buffets as you can find for breakfast and lunch…

The biggest surprise was that our dining menus were set each night.  You’d have about 5 things to choose from as an appetizer, soup or salad, an entrée and dessert.  The items were “oddâ€, so if you’re a picky eater, have fun!  I never saw something I was just dying to try for dinner and by the time we got off the ship, all I wanted was a stinkin’ salad.  
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 It did afford you an opportunity to try new foods, and they were more about the presentation than the quality, IMHO.  The pretty plates, drizzled sauces in designs all around a mound of food in the middle of the plate…kind of surprising for a Disney cruise I thought.  The kids menus were what kids like…the usual mac & cheese, hamburger, chicken, etc.

I never learned ‘til it was too late – I kept ordering mixed drinks (whiskey sour, pineapple margarita) and never had a GOOD one.  I should have ordered beer…hubby agreed, the Disney guys don’t really know how to make a good mixed drink and I’m not even sure they had alcohol in ‘em
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 Just a note should you want a refreshing beverage – order beer or wine!  

<span style='color:blue'>THE SERVICE</span>
The service by all staff onboard was unbelievable.  I don’t have a single complaint about anyone.  Seems they all go over the top to make sure you’re happy.  If you don’t like the meal you just received, they’ll fix you something else, if you want something that’s not on the menu (like a specialty drink), they’ll attempt to make it for you.  If you need anything done to your room at any time, they’ll be there.  The service was top notch; never seen such a huge group of people just being nice.

It is not assumed that you’ll tip, but toward the end of your trip info is dropped off in your room with a suggested tip rate should you opt to do so.  We were so pleased with the staff, we gladly did tip.  Total for tipping for your room host, server and assistant server in the dining room as well as the head guy that greets you when you dine out - $176.  You give what you want, but we followed the guidelines and added just a small bit to round things up, then gave the tips directly to those people along with a big thank you the night before getting off the ship.  It was $176 I didn’t mind parting with given the level of service.

<span style='color:blue'>THE SHIP</span>
…is amazing!  We boarded the Disney Wonder (there's also a Disney Magic)...

You will walk your legs off just getting to your room, but that helps keep the lbs off from all the eating!  
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 Everything is very clean and organized.  Directories in every elevator and in each lobby guide you on your way.  There’s plenty of room to move around and I never felt “crowded†except while walking through a picture place called “Shutters†where you could purchase pictures taken by Disney photographers of your family throughout the vacation ($9.95 per 6x8 photo with a price break if you buy 10 or more).  That place was nuts, especially toward the end of the cruise – everyone trying to find photos, getting in line to complain or buy pictures.

The pictures their photographers take are great though – worth checking out if you have your children pose with any of the characters on board.  

<span style='color:blue'>DISNEY’S ISLAND</span>
Castaway Cay was gorgeous and a great break from the ship, even if just for a day.  It’s a beautiful island, not heavily developed aside from the pavilions where you get food or the open air bars for a drink, a shop to buy Disney fare and restrooms with showers to wash the sand off.  The beaches are broken up by activity (one beach to rent equipment such as snorkel gear, jet skis or paddle boats, another for family and yet another for adults only)…tons of beach chairs and umbrellas, hammocks among the palm trees.  The water is beautiful and clear…a bit chilly in January, but felt refreshing nonetheless.  There was an “activity center†in the water near us where kids could climb up ropes, jump in the water, etc.  It was closed while we were there; low tide…looked fun though.

The sand was wonderful and clean…not much to do aside from lying there and watching the kids play, but that’s exactly what I wanted to do!  It was our best day on the trip…
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Even on the island, Disney staff walked around with a tray taking your orders for drinks…nothing like lying in a hammock while yet another crappy mixed drink is sent your way…that drink almost tasted good…
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<span style='color:blue'>THE ENTERTAINMENT</span>
Guess what parents?  If your kids are willing, each day of the cruise you can drop ‘em off with other kids in the Oceaneer’s Club in the morning and they’ll keep ‘em ‘til after midnight!  My kids, of course, weren’t old enough to do that simply because they’d rather be with Mom and Dad, but the list of activities for kids willing to hang out with other kids all day was unreal.  Staffers coordinate activities every day for the kids and many don’t want to leave.  They’ll feed ‘em, keep ‘em happy and occupied all in Disney style.  I was expecting that you could drop kids off “someâ€, but not all day and night!  

They break up the kids activities by age, so your child would be with others his/her age.  There’s also a teen group, a “loft†where the teens hang out, etc.  

There are several family-oriented activities, like a staged “game show†where families are pitted against other families in question and answer sessions about all-things-Disney.

Each evening there’s a live show in stage…very funny (the ones I got to see) and very well put together.  They are, of course, all based on Disney characters, but the adult humor is still there.

There’s a movie theater on board.  During our cruise they were showing ‘Narnia’, ‘Chicken Little’ and ‘Flight Plan’, so fairly new movies.  We never made it to a movie despite my attempts…

The Mickey Pool and huge slide is a hit with the kids.  The other pools (one is a family pool and the other is for adults only) are small and feel crowded with just a few people in ‘em.  We kept busy doing other things or had the kids in the Mickey pool.  I wouldn’t say hanging out in the pool is a highlight on a cruise.  

The Disney characters are everywhere on the ship.  They were always having “photo shoots†for the kids to pose with Mickey or Goofy, and the lines were pretty long.  The Princesses on board were a huge draw for all the little girls, most of which were walking around in $60 princess gowns themselves, no doubt bought at the on board Disney store after some crocodile tears
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(mental note for those with little princesses – bring your own dresses!)

Each evening you receive a “Personal Navigator†in your room.  It’s a directory of all the ship’s activities the following day.  The directory is 4 pages long and small print, so needless to say, you’ll never get bored!

There’s a bar with big screen TV’s for the sports fans, a couple of areas that are 18+ or adults only (bars), and a restaurant that is strictly for adults if you can ditch the kids long enough.  The nightlife runs ‘til 2 a.m. (I can attest to this as I could hear music from the bedroom every night…it wasn’t enough to keep me up, but you could hear it)

<span style='color:blue'>ODDS AND ENDS</span>
You can’t just pay for stuff while on board.  They like for you to charge anything you do buy to your room so you can feel as if you’re not really spending money at all!  Just be careful and if you have older kids, be sure to let guest services know they are NOT allowed to charge stuff using their “Key to the World†card (every member of your party gets one before boarding the ship)  **We witnessed a teen charging 5 pairs of $24 sunglasses to his parents room**  
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The spa on board was great – hubby got me a 90 minute massage for Christmas, and it was worth it.  Young gal named Jill from Sweden was very kind to my poor, old body
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 I was covered in some algae mud stuff and wrapped like a burrito in aluminum foil for 30 minutes…oh yes, a picture would be worth a thousand words!  Then she massaged by aching body for a long time…well worth the money, even though it was expensive.  A MUST DO FOR THE WIVES!!!  (hint hint)

Each time you board the ship, leave it or head in to a restaurant, you’ll be given sanitizing wipes for your hands or liquid sanitizer.  They do their best to keep the germs at a minimum…

There are laundry facilities on board; 5 industrial washers and dryers on 3 separate decks.  Believe me, it’s not nearly enough by day 3 when everyone and their brother is trying to do laundry.  I did witness a cat fight over a dryer though; gals can be scrappy!  

I think that’s enough…this is officially my longest post ever LOL

And now for pictures…

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Castaway Cay was the best day we had...very relaxing and the weather was perfect...couldn't have asked for a better day...
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Each night, the guy taking care of our state room would come in and turn the beds down, leave chocolates and make "towel creatures"...he'd find our sunglasses and use 'em too...the kids loved it...
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Sounds like you had a great time. Very good right up Michelle. It is good to hear about stuff like this from someone you are familiar with and not someone on a website (that could be someone from the staff). Thanks.
 
The public beach was small...but Sam loved the waves tossing him all around...and the water was just gorgeous...
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Sounds like you had a great time. Very good right up Michelle. It is good to hear about stuff like this from someone you are familiar with and not someone on a website (that could be someone from the staff). Thanks.
Why thank you...didn't mean to bore anyone, but honestly I'd wished I'd known some of the things I do now BEFORE the trip...
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And yes, it was a great time...
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Very effin' cool, Michelle! Thanks for the report!

--Wag--
 
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