There is a marked difference between a trip to Walt Disney World and a Disney cruise. The trip to Orlando is a full on military-type assault. The cruise is an actual vacation! We have experienced two 4 night cruises, both to the Bahamas, and most recently, a 7 night cruise to St. Martin and St. Thomas. Over the 3 cruises, we have experienced 3 of the 4 Disney ships and our ages have ranged from 9 to 71. We have enjoyed all of them! I do not believe you have to have children to enjoy a Disney cruise, but it certainly helps. And, we are not really “cruise people”, but we LOVE the Disney cruises.
On the Disney cruise you can expect to receive top-notch service, great food, outstanding shows, and a beautiful, clean environment. The destinations we have visited have been fine, but you can have a wonderful trip without ever leaving the ship. Now, if we ever do Alaska or a European cruise, I expect that will change my perspective.
Let me try to outline the “Disney Cruise Experience” generically… The cruise terminal at Port Canaveral is beautiful. The magic begins there with televisions showing Disney cartoons and a character or two walking around as you wait to board.
When you board the ship, your family name is announced and the crew welcomes you aboard with applause. You can immediately enjoy lunch either on deck or in a restaurant inside. Oh the food! All your food is included, including soft drinks and tea. Even the majority of the room service choices are included. You dine in all three of the ship’s restaurants, but your wait staff, who you will adore by the end of the cruise, follows you from location to location each night. For breakfast or lunch, you can choose a buffet on deck or table service in a restaurant. If you order something you don’t care for, send it back and order something else. No problem! No additional charge! No grumpy face from your servers. In fact, if you appear to be dissatisfied with your choice, they will go above and beyond to encourage you to make another selection. You can also choose, for an additional charge, to dine in the adults’ only restaurant, where you will experience even BETTER service and food. If you have children under 18, they can enjoy the excellent kids’ clubs while you dine alone, for NO EXTRA CHARGE.
With all that food, you need a way to work it off. I suggest strolling around the deck each day. Or using the exercise equipment in the spa (no extra charge). Or taking an exercise class. Or playing basketball on deck. Or swimming. Or just sleep it off on a shaded deck chair! You will never get bored on a Disney cruise, even if you have multiple days at sea. We have taken a mixology class (an additional charge applies), towel folding class, cooking class, watched first run movies in the theater, and used the Rain Forest spa (also an additional fee – but so worth it).
The nightly musical shows are good, especially if you have seen all the Disney films. They also offer a variety of entertainment such as comedy acts, musical groups, ventriloquists, jugglers, and more. The great thing about Disney is they offer a “family friendly” version of their non-Disney shows at an earlier time and an “adult” version of them at a later time. If you like music, dancing, karaoke, trivia games, etc., then the bar/lounge area is for you. These areas are open to the entire family until around 9 PM each night, and then it is adults only.
On your port days, you can choose to stay on the ship, book a Disney excursion, book a private excursion through a third party vendor, or explore the port on your own. We have done all of the above and have had good or at least adequate experiences with all. Staying on board was our choice the 2nd time we visited Nassau, and we enjoyed a very quiet adult pool area while the majority of passengers left the ship. The 3rd party vendor excursion we took in St. Martin accomplished what we wanted it to, and the Disney excursion in St. Thomas was enjoyable and actually comparably priced. Prior to taking the cruise, I recommend researching your ports and the 3rd party vendor excursion options on the internet so you can decide which option is best for you and meets your budget.
The most amazing port of all is Disney’s private island in the Bahamas, Castaway Cay. We have been 3 times and loved it each time. On our first trip, we experienced the family beach, and I had a massage in a cabana on the adult beach (EXTRA CHARGE). On our second trip, we again did the family beach, but also rented bicycles to explore the island. On our most recent trip, we had all “adults,” so we spent all our time on the quiet adult beach, where we discovered they grill rib eye steaks for lunch. All your food is also included on the island. The beaches, water, and even the bathrooms are pristine. I would never bother paying for a beach excursion at any other port when you have a Castaway Cay day on the itinerary for free.
The worst day of all on the cruise is your return to port day. Depending on your dining time, you may literally have to be off the ship around 7 AM. Don’t bother attending the debarkation presentation, but DO at least watch it on your stateroom TV, and DO fill out your customs forms ahead of time. Also, the porters who transport your bags to and from your car at Port Canaveral are completely worth the tip you owe them.
I could write multiple posts on Disney cruising and happily go into depth on a variety of topics – this was simply an overview. Disney cruises are NOT cheap, but you honestly get what you pay for. You can and will spend additional money once on the ship, but if you plan in advance and have enough willpower (I do not), you can generally pay for most of the trip before you ever get on board. I suggest at least the 4 night cruise to begin with, as 3 nights just is NOT enough. Disney truly does it right.
On the Disney cruise you can expect to receive top-notch service, great food, outstanding shows, and a beautiful, clean environment. The destinations we have visited have been fine, but you can have a wonderful trip without ever leaving the ship. Now, if we ever do Alaska or a European cruise, I expect that will change my perspective.
Let me try to outline the “Disney Cruise Experience” generically… The cruise terminal at Port Canaveral is beautiful. The magic begins there with televisions showing Disney cartoons and a character or two walking around as you wait to board.
When you board the ship, your family name is announced and the crew welcomes you aboard with applause. You can immediately enjoy lunch either on deck or in a restaurant inside. Oh the food! All your food is included, including soft drinks and tea. Even the majority of the room service choices are included. You dine in all three of the ship’s restaurants, but your wait staff, who you will adore by the end of the cruise, follows you from location to location each night. For breakfast or lunch, you can choose a buffet on deck or table service in a restaurant. If you order something you don’t care for, send it back and order something else. No problem! No additional charge! No grumpy face from your servers. In fact, if you appear to be dissatisfied with your choice, they will go above and beyond to encourage you to make another selection. You can also choose, for an additional charge, to dine in the adults’ only restaurant, where you will experience even BETTER service and food. If you have children under 18, they can enjoy the excellent kids’ clubs while you dine alone, for NO EXTRA CHARGE.
With all that food, you need a way to work it off. I suggest strolling around the deck each day. Or using the exercise equipment in the spa (no extra charge). Or taking an exercise class. Or playing basketball on deck. Or swimming. Or just sleep it off on a shaded deck chair! You will never get bored on a Disney cruise, even if you have multiple days at sea. We have taken a mixology class (an additional charge applies), towel folding class, cooking class, watched first run movies in the theater, and used the Rain Forest spa (also an additional fee – but so worth it).
The nightly musical shows are good, especially if you have seen all the Disney films. They also offer a variety of entertainment such as comedy acts, musical groups, ventriloquists, jugglers, and more. The great thing about Disney is they offer a “family friendly” version of their non-Disney shows at an earlier time and an “adult” version of them at a later time. If you like music, dancing, karaoke, trivia games, etc., then the bar/lounge area is for you. These areas are open to the entire family until around 9 PM each night, and then it is adults only.
On your port days, you can choose to stay on the ship, book a Disney excursion, book a private excursion through a third party vendor, or explore the port on your own. We have done all of the above and have had good or at least adequate experiences with all. Staying on board was our choice the 2nd time we visited Nassau, and we enjoyed a very quiet adult pool area while the majority of passengers left the ship. The 3rd party vendor excursion we took in St. Martin accomplished what we wanted it to, and the Disney excursion in St. Thomas was enjoyable and actually comparably priced. Prior to taking the cruise, I recommend researching your ports and the 3rd party vendor excursion options on the internet so you can decide which option is best for you and meets your budget.
The most amazing port of all is Disney’s private island in the Bahamas, Castaway Cay. We have been 3 times and loved it each time. On our first trip, we experienced the family beach, and I had a massage in a cabana on the adult beach (EXTRA CHARGE). On our second trip, we again did the family beach, but also rented bicycles to explore the island. On our most recent trip, we had all “adults,” so we spent all our time on the quiet adult beach, where we discovered they grill rib eye steaks for lunch. All your food is also included on the island. The beaches, water, and even the bathrooms are pristine. I would never bother paying for a beach excursion at any other port when you have a Castaway Cay day on the itinerary for free.
The worst day of all on the cruise is your return to port day. Depending on your dining time, you may literally have to be off the ship around 7 AM. Don’t bother attending the debarkation presentation, but DO at least watch it on your stateroom TV, and DO fill out your customs forms ahead of time. Also, the porters who transport your bags to and from your car at Port Canaveral are completely worth the tip you owe them.
I could write multiple posts on Disney cruising and happily go into depth on a variety of topics – this was simply an overview. Disney cruises are NOT cheap, but you honestly get what you pay for. You can and will spend additional money once on the ship, but if you plan in advance and have enough willpower (I do not), you can generally pay for most of the trip before you ever get on board. I suggest at least the 4 night cruise to begin with, as 3 nights just is NOT enough. Disney truly does it right.
By: Margaret Kelley