Wrapping up 7 days on the fantasy Christmas cruise. Few thoughts I figured I’d share.

• the food was better than last year (they attributed last year to not being back to full staff after COVID) but not as good as I remember it being in 2019. My sister is basically a vegetarian and she hated almost everything she got. However, my steaks were generally cooked close to temp (med rare) so I was pretty pleased. I think the menu could use a facelift though but I doubt we ever see it.

• the detective game you play around the ship is extraordinarily fun with your kids. Just a terrific scavenger hunt kind of game.

• the amount of characters is just overwhelming and if you have kids it’s damn near worth the price of the cruise just for the interactions you get with them. All of it was fabulous.

• the shows are magnificent. Nothing to even add there.

• kids clubs and nursery are also primo. My oldest couldn’t get enough of the kid’s club.

• the amount of disgusting people on these cruises always turns me off and makes me not want to cruise again. I get you want to watch the frozen play but when your child is hacking up a storm in a crowded theater please be a decent human and leave. My 15 month old was crying during believe tonight because he was exhausted so off to bed we went. Sucks I missed it but that’s being a parent and letting others enjoy the show.

• why do they charge for theater popcorn when you can get snacks almost anywhere on the ship for free? My guess is if it were free, people would just be dumping it everywhere.

• castaway is fun but it’s just a beach. If you grew up around beaches it’s not a big deal honestly. But if you are from like Nebraska I could see why you’d love it.

• watching Empire Strikes Back on the tunnel vision while eating a slice of mediocre pizza at 11:30 pm rules.

• the drink seminars are a major ripoff. Did 3 this time and likely never again. I get that you are also paying for a lesson but come on. Give me more to drink than that for that price. *edit: I guess this is more about the old fashioned class. We enjoyed the rum and bourbon class this week. I think the increased cost bothered me.

For those that have sailed out of Galveston and used a private transfer service, can you tell me who you used, price, and what your experience was like?

My family is getting in a day before our cruise starts so I was going to have us take the free hotel shuttle back to the airport and then do the Disney shuttle, not if I can find private transportation that’s around the same price and has good reviews I might do that simply to not have to drag my young kids back to the airport just to get on another shuttle.

Thank you!!

Me and my family are going to be on the Fantasy leaving out of Port Canaveral in May. We've been on one DCL cruise before on the Magic out of Fort Lauderdale, and that time we stayed at a hotel close to the airport. We used the hotel shuttle in the morning to get back to the airport and then used the Disney shuttle to take to the port. I liked the added convenience of having Disney transportation take our bags from the stop at the port, and I think we'd like to use Disney's shuttle for our May cruise.

I'm wondering if we should stay at a hotel closer to MCO airport and catch Disney's shuttle from MCO, or if we should stay at one of the Disney resorts instead. The Disney resorts seem to be about $100-150 more than the hotels closer to the airport. But, is it worth it for the ease of having pickup right at the hotel? Anyone who has done one or both of these options and have an opinion on which way to go?

If I pre-book a length of cruise rainforest pass, am I able to cancel and convert to a single day pass if those are available once on the ship?

Does anyone know why there’s a virtual queue on the website? I just want to check some cruise options for next year and the website has been putting me in a virtual queue instead of just showing me cruise results

My mom will be celebrating her 60th birthday next year and I want to treat her to a short cruise. It will be her first time. Do you recommend the 5night Vancouver to San Diego that only has 1 day at port? Im worried of the rough waters on this route especially if it's her first time. Or should we just do Mexico, stopping at Catalina and Ensenada? I did this before and loved it. Thanks in advance!

DCL just announced the 50% of required deposit offer is back starting today. It doesn’t save you money on the cruise total itself, but it can be nice to put 10% down instead of 20% to start. The offer is going through March 14, 2025. Details and eligible sailings here: https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/special-offers/half-off-cruise-deposit/

As this is a new ship sailing from Singapore, is it okay to tip (mostly for room service) with Singapore dollar (SGD)?

A month ago, I applied to work at Disney Cruise Line because I have experience working on cruise ships with Royal Caribbean International. I passed the first interview, uploaded my documents to the Disney DOC platform, and had a second interview that went exceptionally well. The interviewer was impressed with my experience and knowledge, and she was very optimistic that I would secure a position with the company.

However, after that interview, I didn’t hear back until I received an email informing me that I had been rejected. The reason: current policies do not allow Venezuelan nationals to work at Disney Cruise Line or Disneyland.

This news broke my heart. I had heard so many amazing things about working for DCL and was genuinely excited about becoming part of Disney. It’s devastating to know that, despite meeting the qualifications and having the necessary experience, my nationality was the deciding factor for my rejection.

I have always admired Disney for its inclusivity and commitment to diversity, but this situation makes me feel deeply discriminated against and saddened. It’s even more painful to see that other companies in the cruise industry, and beyond, are open to hiring Venezuelans, while Disney, with all its inclusive image, is not.

How feasible is it to go on a 4-night Bahamian Disney cruise with two small children solo? My 1 year old is very easy going but sometimes has trouble falling asleep in a new place. My 6 year old is still adjusting to have a brother and not having all the focus on her. Is it feasible to manage a cruise on my own? I could also possibly bring my parents.

Are Beer Mug Tokens transferrable from ship to ship?

Looking to book my first DCL cruise. Thank you in advance for the help.

What did DCL offer on Black Friday for a sale?

Anyone know what the historical offer is during Christmas?

Finally, any benefit of booking with a Disney travel agent?

Thank you!

I am hoping to bring a Neso Grande (https://www.neso.com/products/neso-grande) beach tent for use at Castaway and Lookout Cays on our upcoming cruise. It is a 9’ x 9’ canopy tent and packs down to a 19.5” x 6” x 6” size. Is this permitted to be packed with my luggage? And will there be room at the beaches for each Cay to use this?

Does anyone know when DCL officially gives you credit/changes your Castaway status upon cruise completion?

Cruise #10 is happening soon, which will make me platinum. Cruise #11 platinum activities booking window opens well before cruise #10 embarks, but the gold booking window opens the day after we get off of cruise #10 (which is really that evening). Will I be good to start booking the minute I step foot off the ship or do you think I’ll be with the golds on the activities booking window?

I just booked a last minute marvel at sea cruise on the dream and I’m trying to figure out the best day to go to Remi. From the activities it looks like day 2 is pirate night and day 5 is at sea so I’m assuming that’s the marvel menu. For the remaining 3 nights what do the menus typically look like? I’ve been on the Fantasy a couple times and the Wish once but I’m not sure if the dream has the same menus as the Fantasy or if they are different especially on a 5 night vs a 7.

Thank you!!

Is anyone from the Boston area traveling on the Wish before Christmas? I need something from the gift shop.

The Disney Adventure will be the most unique ship in the DCL fleet.

If it is not already in the works, Disney should do a series or NatGeo feature on the Adventure.

Everything from her initial acquisition, through her transformation, and into her maiden voyage.

It’s quite an interesting journey and would be fascinating to watch. (Personally, I rewatch the Making of the Wish over and over and over again).

Let’s see if we can manifest this and garner enough attention for someone at Disney to agree with us.

Are motorized scooters utilized a lot on the ships like they are at the parks? We recently started going to Disney World and were shocked by the amount of inexperienced scooter drivers.

We are a family of 2 adults + 1 child. Looking at the rooms available, we are a little confused with the prices.

2 adults + 1 child room is so much more expensive!

3 adults room is cheaper than 2a + 2c room.

So are we allowed to book the 3 adults room instead? Are there any differences that we should know, such as kids amenities in room, etc.?

Thanks for any advice!

For an upcoming sailing, I have 2 rooms booked for a total of 5 people.

Our reservations are linked so from what I understand, both rooms will be seated together.

Does anyone know, though, if I put a request for private table on both reservations, does that still keep us at the same table? Or would that split the rooms up potentially?

My ultimate goal is to have my party of 5 together at a private table.

Thanks!

Hello,

I've started to see the social media clips from some of the Disney Treasure preview cruises.

How do these work?

I've seen some tag with #hosted - does Disney pay for their full cruise?

I understand some things are unavailable but are paid restaurants available ?

Also it seems like there was a few ones with lesser known YouTubers or influencers - does anyone know how DCL picks who comes on?

One clip said it's just around 50% capacity and the ones I've seen all seem to have the deluxe family verandah rooms.

Just very curious about the whole thing.

Thank You,

My family will be going on our first DCL cruise next fall. My mom usually does NCL, and she requires wheelchair assistance to embark and disembark but uses her walker once she’s on board. I saw where we were able to select that option on the app, but how does it actually work? On NCL, for example, we selected our boarding time at check-in, but once we actually got to the port that was irrelevant because they took those who needed assistance first, along with everyone in the party (so we all got on early). Disembarking was a little more chaotic because her luggage was part of the early group with the other people needing assistance, but we were in a later group and my mom just ended up waiting around with us all morning.

How does this work on DCL? We’re sailing out of Port Everglades if that matters.

Long story short: my brother and his family as well as my sister and her family are booked for a cruise sailing the end of June of next year. As a Christmas gift I would like to surprise them with an onboard gift when they get to their rooms. The website for ordering these gifts seems to be...not good? Attempting to add any items to the cart results in "We're working on it. This page is temporarily unavailable." They've been working on it for at least two weeks based on my personal experience.

Has anyone else had this much trouble ordering onboard gifts online? Is there an alternate way to do this? A search of this subreddit didn't return any horror stories similar to mine.

somehow, the garden view is more expensive than the ocean view. Why is this so? Garden view is nicer than ocean view? Any advice on which is better with a 4-year-old?

Friends and family got the disney cruise fever and we already booked our 2nd cruise!

Now to look for flights. 😅

Booked the Disney Adventure cruise and I have no idea if I picked a good room location since it's my first time to book a Disney cruise.

Is the area in the picture a good location? Traveling with my partner and 2 kids.

Hi, we're doing the the 4-night DCL cruise out of San Diego in March, with a stop at Catalina. Anyone have any strong recommendations? Strong opinions on activities to avoid? We're looking at the "glass bottom boat" or "undersea expedition," has anyone been on these? TIA

https://preview.redd.it/0j0abkue1x5e1.png?width=1054&format=png&auto=webp&s=0586319d53f5cdf86ab0bfea38fbfd0e370ae566