My family and I recently set sail a board the Disney Cruise Line ship the Disney Dream for a four night Very Merrytime Christmas themed cruise to the Bahamas. I wanted to give MY opinion of sailing Disney versus other cruise lines. Specifically we have sailed on Carnival Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean Cruise Line.
I’ll state upfront that I paid for this cruise in full, this was not a “perk” of my travel agent gig. So my opinion and views are my own, honest and unbiased.
Disney Cruise Line is famous for service, the private island Castaway Cay and of course – CHARACTERS! I was able to experience all three of these during our sailing.
But let’s get down to the nitty-gritty, what everyone is wanting to know – Is it worth it? Are the Disney cruises that much better than any other line? Worth is hard to define and what may be worth it’s weight in gold to one person is worth nothing to another.
So let’s start with what sets the Disney Cruise Line apart from others for families:
- A wide range of entertainment featuring Broadway-caliber production shows;
- Extra space and storage, sitting areas and split bathrooms in the staterooms;
- A private island with an adults only beach, a family beach, beach chairs and umbrellas plus lunch;
- Trained counselors and immersive kids clubs;
- Multiple dining options, 24 hour room service and buffets;
- Adult exclusive spaces with a pool plus an adults only night-time district.
Now, in reading that you may say, aren’t most of those offered on other cruise lines? Yes and no. Let’s dig a little deeper.
Evening Shows
One of the things that really blew me away on the Disney Dream was the night-time entertainment. When they say Broadway-caliber, they mean it. We were able to see all three shows offered on our cruise – The Golden Mickeys, Beauty and The Beast and Believe. They were all phenomenal, out of this world great. When it comes to evening entertainment this really knocked it out of the park for our family.
By far the entertainment on the Disney Dream was better than the live shows we’ve experienced on other cruise lines.
Stateroom Bathroom and Space
Another “way to go” on Disney’s part would be the split bathrooms in the Deluxe stateroom categories and above. Plus, can we talk about an actual bathtub? The split-bathroom is a game changer for families. One holds a sink and toilet, the other a sink and bathtub/shower. This allows multiple family members to be getting ready for activities at once. When you have up to 5 people in one stateroom that extra sink and changing space comes in handy. Plus, a bathtub is awesome for families with small children still needing to take a bath versus a shower.
Having that split-bathroom was great, far better than the normal all in one on other lines with a bathroom floor that may also serve as the shower floor. Cruise line staterooms are not known for large bathroom spaces.
As for the extra storage space and sitting area, we’ve had similar spaces on other lines. All of our luggage did slide right under the queen bed and there were two large closets but I didn’t feel any more organized than any other cruise.
Private Island
Ok, I totally get the love of Castaway Cay. The ship docks right at the island, no tender boat/shuttle, and everything you need is there – food, fun and sun. It’s beautiful and well manicured.
Only one ship is in port at a time at Castaway Cay so you definitely aren’t fighting for chairs and umbrellas, they are plentiful. You can even take a tram from the ship to different stops around the island. You don’t even have to walk! (Well, you still have to get to the stops.)
Float, bicycle and snorkeling rentals are available to book prior to your visit but they are also available on the island for the same price. There is a huge water play area, a great snorkeling beach with submerged “Disney” touches and more. The island is also home to several private Cabanas that can be rented ahead of time, and when I say ahead of time I mean you almost need to be a Platinum Castaway Cay member (quick explanation is you’ve sailed with Disney many, many times) to even think about snagging one of those. The Cabanas are on separate roped off beach area and you have a great home base for your family.
The adults area was beautiful and the food options in that area were far better than the options on the family side, plus live entertainment and let’s face it, quiet.
One thing that does stand out to me is that there is also a kids club on Castaway Cay. It was great for parents wanting to run the Castaway Cay 5K that is only open to those 10 years and up and it’s a blast for kids.
We’ve been on a private island with Norwegian and in the overall scheme of things it’s similar. What I did like was that the beach chairs and umbrellas were very plentiful, the food was great and there were not long lines for anything.
Kids Clubs
Ok, to be upfront our son is 15 years old and he did not visit VIBE which would have been his age appropriate club on the ship. I can also honestly say even when he was 7 years old he wouldn’t have gone to a kids club.
Some kids get on a Disney ship and say see you later to their parents and only come to the cabin to sleep. There are multiple activities in each club every day of the cruise. Special get-togethers, special fun areas for older kids including a small private pool, as well as lunch and dinner times. The restaurants even serve the children earlier than the adults (if you want them to) so the kids can leave and hit the clubs. All of the kids clubs are free of charge. There is a nursery on board that does require an extra fee for kids 6 months to 3 years old.
I can’t personally speak to the kid’s activities or the clubs themselves on Disney Cruise Line or other lines as we’ve never taken advantage of them but I know families that have used the clubs on Disney ships love them and trust them with their children. I mean who wouldn’t want to play in Andy’s Room, dance on a light up floor or do science experiments?
Dining Options
Each Disney ship has three dining rooms on board. The Disney Dream included Enchanted Garden, Animators Palette and Royal Palace. With Disney’s unique rotational dining you visit a different dining room each night, repeating them depending on the number of nights you are sailing. We dined in Animators Palette our first night followed by Enchanted Garden and then Royal Palace our last two nights. To me this is a stroke of genius. You get to experience different venues and menus but the kicker is that your wait staff rotates through the dining rooms with you. It’s great! The wait staff really goes all out for the kids though. Ours played games and did magic tricks. Our server even cut up steaks!
We did order room service one afternoon. It was prompt and good quality. The best thing? You can order Mickey Mouse ice cream bars, just like the ones from the parks.
The buffet option, Cabanas, was great too. We dined there for breakfast and once for lunch. Standard options and good quality.
My overall thoughts on the dining, excluding the rotational dining, was that it really wasn’t much different than other cruise lines.
Adult Exclusive Spaces
Disney cruise ships offer adults only spaces for both indoor and outdoor fun. There is an adults only pool as well as small cafe on the Disney Dream as well as a full deck for those 18 and up with cushioned loungers and more. There are also multiple bars and clubs on the Disney ships that are used for family activities through the day but turn into adults only locations after 9 p.m. There are also two adults only restaurants on board the Disney Dream – Remy and Palo. Those two can also be found on the Disney Fantasy. The Disney Wonder and Disney Magic both have Palo only.
My husband and I took a quick walk through of the adult pool area and upper deck and I enjoyed a delicious coffee (with a bonus Mickey Mouse on top) from the Cove Cafe. All of the areas were very nice. I’ll say the Cove Cafe was as quiet as could be and quite heavenly compared to the family pool deck area. I could have stayed in there for hours. Definitely a great space for adults to escape or even do a little work if you needed.
The nightclubs and bars were awesome too. Great theming and decorations. We signed up for a Chocolate and Liquor Tasting (additional fee required) that was held in Pink! Such a beautiful space with tons of theming and very inviting. There are special touches in each of the areas including the Meridian and Skyline on the Dream. See photos below.
In cruising we haven’t spent a large part of time in the nightclubs or bars as we normally are traveling with our son. We did cruise as a couple on the Carnival Sunshine in 2018 and enjoyed their Serenity adults only spaces as well as their night clubs for fun comedy shows and karaoke. I think that Disney does take an advantage here with the nightclubs and bars in terms of theme but the adults only space was small. I think it would safe to say that most taking a Disney cruise are there for family time and fun with the kids so I don’t think this would be a deal breaker for me.
Summary and Final Thoughts
Disney Cruise Line ships offer a beautiful atmosphere, great family activities and delicious food. It offers kids clubs that are above and beyond that will cause kids to cry when they must leave, and the adults may just do the same leaving the adults only areas. Castaway Cay makes you feel as though you’ve washed up on an exotic island that includes everything you need and more. The staterooms are wonderful and the split bathrooms are family friendly.
Characters are also a big draw for Disney Cruise Line cruises. Characters were available often for scheduled meet and greets as well as pop up characters that walked the ship at different times.
We’ll go back to “Is it worth it?”.
For my family (including that sometimes moody teenager), which visits Walt Disney World sometimes more than once a year, I think my answer is no. Would the answer be different if we had a younger child(ren)? Yes. Would the answer be different if we didn’t have access to Walt Disney World or had never visited the theme parks? Yes.
With many of the other cruise lines offering more “activities” for teens such as rock climbing walls, ice skating arenas, ropes courses and now even race cars, I think other cruise lines may be a better option for families with teens.
I would highly recommend Disney Cruise Lines to families who have children 12 and under or those who are looking for that Disney magic and service that we all know.
To book a Disney Cruise Line cruise, or any other line, contact me by calling 304-993-0292 or by email at Betsy@MagicalAdventuresTravel.com.
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Betsy Walker Travels 