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3 Day Disney Cruise Review (Is it worth it?)

Mickey ears on cruise ship

Are you considering booking a Disney Cruise vacation with a 3-day itinerary? Maybe you’re afraid 3-night cruises are too short.

Is a 3-day Disney cruise even worth it? Some experienced Disney cruisers will tell you that they would never cruise for less than 7 days and that a longer cruise is always the way to go. That may be true for some, but not everyone has the budget for an extensive Disney cruise vacation.

Maybe you aren’t able to take off work for a long enough period of time to enjoy a week-long cruise. Or perhaps you are worried a cruise isn’t the right type of vacation for your family, and you don’t want to commit to a long itinerary. Regardless of your reasoning for choosing a 3 day Disney cruise, it’s important to note that you will still receive the same amazing service, experience, and activities as those families sailing on Disney Cruise Line’s longer itineraries.

The post below will review my family’s time on a 3 day Disney cruise so that you can see all the reasons why we think a 3-night cruise is totally worth it! We’ll compare prices for short cruises vs long itineraries, and we will discuss the family-friendly entertainment that you’ll enjoy while cruising with Disney .

Disney 3 Day Cruise Price

Let’s be honest, a trip with Disney Cruise Line isn’t the cheapest way to travel. But like many things in travel, you get what you pay for. And the quality Disney provides makes up for the cost. If you are looking for a budget friendly way to sail on Disney cruise ships, the three-day cruises are typically cheaper than those with longer itineraries.

You can really trim down the extra costs by traveling on one of these shorter itineraries, especially if your sail dates aren’t during peak season. For example, my family’s 3-night Disney cruise on the Disney Fantasy was much more budget friendly than the longer cruises we have taken with Disney and other cruise lines.

Disney cruise ship, water slide, and toddler on beach with text overlay "Is a 3 Night Disney Cruise worth it?"

When you calculate excursions, tips, and items you buy onboard, this statement becomes even more accurate. There are several factors that go into the total price of a Disney cruise. Once you are aware of all the costs, you can possibly tweak your budget to save in some areas while maybe even splurging in others!

So, how much does a 3 day Disney cruise cost? In addition to the price you pay for booking your Disney Cruise stateroom, you will want to budget for some additional costs. We will cover these in more detail below, so you can better determine how much a 3 day Disney cruise vacation will cost you.

Port Adventures

Port Adventures (also known as shore excursions ) are those activities that you experience while you’re off the ship and while visiting ports of call. Many of Disney Cruise Line’s 3 day cruises are Bahamian cruises that visit Nassau and Castaway Cay. So, your port adventures would include the experiences you booked for those port stops.

For example, if you chose to book tickets to the Atlantis resort in the Bahamas, you would include this activity in your budget for port adventures . The total cost of a Disney cruise can largely depend on the shore excursions you book. If you’re looking to save money, Castaway Cay is a great place to stop on your Disney cruise.

Castaway Cay beach

Since Castaway Cay is Disney’s private island in the Bahamas, you can enjoy the beaches and many activities at no additional charge to your cruise fare. In fact, this is how my family and I saved on one of our 3-night Disney cruises. We booked a 3 day cruise that was classified as a double dip to Castaway Cay . This means we visited the private island twice on our cruise!

Since we chose to spend our two days on Castaway Cay just hanging out at the beach, this port didn’t cost us any additional money. Even if you aren’t able to find a double dip cruise, a 3 day Disney cruise only has time to visit a couple of ports. Therefore, you shouldn’t need to budget a ton of more money to pay for excursions on the islands you are visiting.

Another additional cost you will want to consider when budgeting for your 3 night Disney cruise is gratuities. Guests vacationing with DCL are charged $14.50 a day per person for gratuities. So, if you are traveling as a family of four, you would spend $58 per day on gratuities alone. This means that the total amount of gratuities at the end of a 3 night cruise would be $174 for a family of four.

Disney Fantasy cruise ship

When you compare this to the gratuity amount after a 7-night cruise, you can really see how much money you save on shorter itineraries. The gratuities for a family of four on a seven-night cruise totals $406, which is quite a bit more than the Disney 3-day cruise tip amount. As you can see, if you extend your cruise length, that tip money can add up quickly!

Additional Purchases

The more days and nights you spend on the Disney ship, the more you may feel enticed to make additional purchases. For example, when my family and I travel with Disney Cruise Line, we often spend extra money on things like popcorn for the live shows, adult beverages, and keepsakes from the gift shops.

Port Canaveral Disney Cruise Line terminal

These little items can add up, but the final bill for them typically isn’t that extravagant after only 3 days. On the contrary, if you make these little purchases each day for seven days, your final bill may end up coming with a bit of sticker shock.

If you’re someone who likes to plan and stay organized with your vacations, you’ll love this printable Disney cruise planner I created. While planning my family’s last cruise, I designed graphic organizers and spreadsheets for each step of the planning process.

↓↓ Visit My Etsy Shop ↓↓

Disney Cruise Planner

Originally, I created this printable cruise planner for my own personal use. However, I ended up making it “pretty” and deciding to share it with my readers. The 30+ page cruise planner includes organized sheets for the following:

  • hotel, flight, and transportation price comparisons
  • list of essentials for packing plus blank packing list
  • trip budget including many of the items discussed above
  • fish extender planner
  • planning timeline so you know what to do when

This planner also includes my daily itinerary complete with outfit planners. This REALLY helps in the packing process!

3 Day Cruise (but 4 Night Vacation)

As we discuss whether or not a 3 day Disney cruise is worth it, it’s important to point out that your vacation will (more than likely) be longer than three nights. If you are flying into the port for your cruise, I HIGHLY recommend getting there at least the day before embarkation day . Even if your travel party ends up making it to the ship, you will want to know your luggage has plenty of time to get there as well.

Flying into your departure port (at least) a day early allows for delayed flights, lost luggage, etc. This extra time allowance also extends your three-night cruise into a 4-night vacation! Similarly, you can extend your cruise vacation by adding an extra day to the end of your cruise.

Epcot ball and monorail

Sometimes flight times and prices don’t work out to fly home immediately after you leave the ship. Instead, you may consider booking a hotel room for the day you disembark the cruise ship. This way you have more flexibility with flight times on the following day. This is an especially appealing idea if your Disney cruise sails out of Port Canaveral, Florida.

Since Port Canaveral is less than an hour’s drive to Walt Disney World, you could get off the cruise ship and arrive at a Disney resort by late morning. It is much easier to say goodbye to your Disney cruise vacation when you know you have Disney World to look forward to!

3 Day Disney Cruise Activities

One of the reasons many families are nervous to book a 3 day cruise is that they are afraid they won’t have time to enjoy the Disney ship. From personal experience, I have to share that even though a 3-night Disney cruise is a shorter itinerary, you will still have plenty of time to experience the activities available on board. Now, don’t get me wrong. You definitely won’t get to see and do all the things that are offered on your cruise.

BUT cruisers say that very same thing about 7-night cruises! No matter how long you choose to sail, you will always feel like you missed some sort of activity or entertainment option. However, you spend so much time enjoying the activities you do get to experience that those options you missed really don’t matter in the end.

Oceaneer Club on the Disney Magic

Our advice when planning a 3 day cruise is to go in super prepared. I like to look at personal navigators from prior cruises to see which activities are offered on a 3 day itinerary. From there, you can decide which activities are the most important to your family. More than likely, you won’t have a problem making time for each one.

As an example of what your schedule may look like and how much time you need for activities, I’m going to share my family’s first few hours onboard the ship for our 3-night cruise to the Bahamas. Once we embarked on the first day at around 11:30, we had time to complete all of the following activities before we even set sail:

  • meet Disney characters
  • buffet lunch at Cabanas
  • swim in ship pools
  • unpack and organize stateroom
  • visit guest services to request a stroller
  • order snacks from room service

Additionally, I want to include that Disney 3 day cruises feature the same magical experiences as longer cruises, including Pirate Night, Broadway style shows, character meet and greets, fireworks, swimming pools, and more!

Ways to Save Money

As mentioned above, many of the 3 day cruise itineraries visit the Bahamas. This means that you more than likely would be making a stop at Castaway Cay during your cruise. Being able to experience this beautiful private island in the Bahamas is reason enough to book a Disney cruise.

Castaway Cay Beach

Since guests do not have to pay an additional fee to use the beaches and many of the activities on Castaway Cay, this island is the perfect port of call for budget conscious travelers. The buffet lunch on Castaway Cay is even included in your cruise fare!

If you’re looking for an additional way to save money on a Disney Cruise Line vacation, you can book a future cruise onboard for a discount. This way your next Disney cruise vacation can be a longer, pricier one with possibly a less expensive price tag. Disney Cruise Line offers 10% off the price of your next cruise if booked onboard, which can add up to a significant discount.

Concierge Stateroom Disney Magic

I like to scope out the upcoming cruise itineraries before sailing so I have an idea of what I would like to book once onboard. If you decide not to take the cruise you booked onboard, you can cancel it and get a refund on your deposit as long as you are inside the cancellation window. So, it’s really a win-win situation!

There are a few restrictions on this deal, including that you must sail within 24 months of the onboard booking. If you aren’t sure which cruise to book on board, you can purchase a “placeholder” for $250. This holds the onboard booking deal until you choose the cruise to apply it to.

Also, you may receive a discount on TWO staterooms as long as you put down a deposit on each. (These two staterooms must be booked on the same future cruise.) So, you can entice your family or friends to join you the next time around, and everyone can save money!

Final Review of 3 Day Disney Cruise

We hope you can tell just how much we love sailing with Disney Cruise Line. The cost and time commitments associated with longer cruises aren’t always feasible for every family. So, if you have been holding back booking a Disney 3 day cruise because you weren’t sure if it was worth it, we totally think it is!

Although we prefer a 5 night cruise or longer, my family and I would never hesitate to take a 3-night cruise with DCL. No matter which of the Disney ships you choose to book (Disney Wish, Disney Magic, Disney Wonder, Disney Magic, or Disney Fantasy), you will truly have the time of your lives!

After your trip, come back and give us your feedback! Do you think a 3 day Disney cruise is worth it or not? Comment below to share with us!

Shari is an experienced planner and organizer for Disney vacations, cruising, and U.S. travel. Her family vacation information, reviews, and tips provide insight for moms and dads everywhere. You can read more about her story, including her journey through breast cancer, in the about me page.

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Hey, great read. I’m looking at the 2 or 3 night cruise from Sydney or Melbourne. On the 2 night cruise would it be worth it?

I’m so glad you enjoyed the article. A Disney cruise out of Australia sounds like an amazing experience! Personally, I think a 2 night cruise would be worth it for the same reasons mentioned above. Even though it’s not a long trip, you still get to enjoy the pools, shows, dining, and activities. Once onboard, you can book a second cruise for a discount and try a longer one then!

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Posted on Last updated: March 14, 2024 Categories Disney Travel

By: Author Kate

My Ultimate Guide to the Pros and Cons of a Disney Cruise

This post may contain affiliate links.

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We recently returned from a 3-night Bahamas cruise aboard the Disney Dream. Our family had a blast, and it is a trip we will remember for a long time! Coming back though, I was reflecting on my Disney cruise experience and wondered, are Disney Cruises really worth the cost?

Let’s not kid ourselves, these trips are expensive! There seems to be no such thing as a discounted Disney cruise or a Disney cruise deal. I found that our trip cost easily 2-3x the cost of other cruises! I’m not sure if all the Disney extras were really worth the inflated price.

At the end of the day, my Disney Cruise advice to others is to wait until your kids are older to splurge on Disney! It seems the best age for a Disney cruise is likely between ages 5-12 when Disney mania is prime, and kids are more independent!

Although we did REALLY enjoy the awesome infant babysitting service on our cruise, I’m not sure we got out as much as we put in.

Every family is different though and every family values different things on vacation. When I was researching Disney dream cruise reviews I read a lot of blogs and I hope this review of the pros and cons will be helpful to others.  

Here is my list of the pros and cons of a Disney Cruise:

3 night disney cruise review

Disney Cruise on Your Horizon? Get a Quote from a Disney Travel Agent now!

My Disney Cruise Experience

Pros of a disney cruise:, your kids will have a good time.

The kids will have a blast. ESPECIALLY if they like Disney Characters . My two sons were 10 months and 3 years old when we went on our cruise.

My eldest son does like Star Wars and Mickey but he wasn’t very interested in Princesses or other characters. In fact, he was mostly petrified of them.

R2D2 in the kids club was the highlight for him. He still talks about it months later! Pirate night was also great fun! (Don’t forget to bring a pirate costume!)  I don’t think it’s possible for a kid to have a bad time on the Disney cruise.

The staff will certainly bend over backward to put a smile on your child’s face. Oh, and did I mention? Unlimited ice cream = guaranteed good time.

Disney Cruise Child Care

HUGE pro: They have child minding for children under age 3! This one is HUGE. This is basically the entire reason I booked the cruise and it is something we took advantage of.

Of note, this service does cost extra (for under age 3), but given the price of the cruise, it was small in comparison. The ladies at the Small World Nursery were experienced with babies and infants. I never worried at all when I dropped off my son.

When I picked up our 8-month old I got detailed reports on how he had done. The sitters were able to detail what he ate, if he slept, and what he enjoyed playing with. I felt comfortable knowing that the sitters were attentive to all of the babies needs.

My older son who was 3 was also allowed to attend the small world nursery and I much preferred the individualized attention he got there.

One nice feature is that you can use your portable cruise phone to contact the Nursery while you are away to check up on your kids. I really loved this feature and it came in handy one day when my son was grumpy!

We left our infant son at the nursery by himself when we went to Castaway Cay. Babies who like to crawl + Sand are generally a tough combo! It was nice to have some one-on-one time with our older son who loved the beach at this age!

We also booked one night at Remy and it was great to be able to have a mommy-daddy date on board.

Check out all my tips for bringing a baby on a Disney cruise here!

The pros and cons of a disney cruise

The staff love kids!

The staff are wonderful and cater to children. Every single staff on the Disney cruise, right down to the housekeepers are good with kids. Clearly, it’s in the job requirement.

The servers in the restaurants go out of their way to win over your little ones. Our server had jokes, paper airplanes , and other games ready for my three-year-old at every meal. This extra mile service was definitely appreciated when my son was a bit grumpy and the servers worked hard to cheer him up.

Thinking of heading to Disney World instead? Check out my ultimate guide to doing Disney for the first time!

Disney’s Remy Restaurant is the best!

The adults-only restaurants are amazing, seriously AMAZING! We booked one night at Remy and it was literally the best meal I have ever had in my entire life. We are not novice diners either. The service was exceptional, the food delicious and the wine pairings were great as well.

Again, this was another (significant) added cost, although it was worth every penny! It did make me think twice about the whole cost of the cruise.

If you have one ‘treat’ on the cruise I would absolutely recommend dinner reservations at Remy! You won’t’ be disappointed!

Wondering what to pack on vacation with little ones? Check out my ultimate packing guide for a beach vacation with a baby.

Pros and cons of Disney cruise

We always use a travel agent when we book a Disney vacation. A certified Disney vacation planner does not cost extra and they often know insider deals and tips! Get a Quote Now!

Cons of a Disney Cruise:

They aren’t cheap.

This is obviously the biggest drawback to the cruise. I spent more on this 3-night vacation than I would normally spend on 7 nights at an all-inclusive resort.

I have only been on one other cruise line, NCL, and I went on it without kids, so I don’t have a great comparison to other cruises. It’s worth saying that I found my NCL cruise to be of similar quality in terms of service, food, and amenities. The only thing missing was the “Disney-ness”

I haven’t been on a Royal Carribean cruise , but I’ve heard from many friends that they compare to Disney for a fraction of the cost. We may just have to try this cruise line next.

Thinking of a family cruise? Read our review of the best cruises for kids!

There are lines everywhere.

If you want to meet a character on a Disney cruise expect to get in line. This drove me CRAZY. I do not understand why they don’t have at least one meal where the characters walk around freely and come to your table. Update: As per the comments below this does happen on longer cruises, which is great!

Although getting on and off the cruise at the various ports went better than expected, I still can’t shake that feeling of being herded on a cruise.

I’m not the only one who has had concerns about lines on the Disney cruise either. This is a definite drawback of cruising in general and is probably not specific to Disney.

Wondering whether to book a Disney cruise? Read my unbiased review of our 3-night cruise aboard the Disney Dream here to help you with your planning. A list of pros and cons of a Disney Cruise. #disney #disneycruise #disneycruiseline #disneycruisebahamas #disneycruisetoddlers #disneycruisebaby #disneytips #disneycruisetips #disneydream #disneydreamreviews

The food at the main restaurants is ok.

I really wasn’t that impressed with the Disney cruise dining options . The breakfast buffet was quite good, but I found the dinners at the sit-down restaurants to be only ok.

The food felt a bit like cafeteria food. It was clearly pre-made for mass serving, as evidenced by the fact it took over 20 minutes for them to actually make the pureed food for my infant son.

Perhaps it was related to my expectations because everyone I knew RAVED about the food on the Disney cruise. It was definitely not anything special to me.  I prefer a nice buffet at an all-inclusive any day!

One thing I will note, that I have heard from several of my mom friends, is that Disney does a great job with food allergies. Certainly, this attention to detail is paramount when you have a child with an allergy, so that’s a huge plus.

Check out Smart Mouse Travel’s Disney Cruise Food Allergy Guide. She has some great tips!

For the best food, I prefer a trip to Disney World itself. There are so many great options and the food at Disney World is delicious! Check out my guide to the hardest disney dining reservations for more tips.

The pool is RIDICULOUSLY crowded.

There are two small Mickey Shaped pools on the main deck. The kids are crammed into these pools like sardines. Literally. Kids who could normally swim had to wear lifejackets in the deep pool because there was no room to hold onto the edge.

Of course, the kids really didn’t seem to care. They were all having a blast!

I found it less pleasant for the adults trying to watch their little ones though. I’ve heard from some others who have read this blog that the crowds are much less on longer cruises.

So if you are looking for a quieter cruise, choose a longer cruise, and consider a destination less popular with young families like Alaska or the Panama canal.

The adults-only pool, which we lounged at when the kids were at the kids club was much more relaxing. I at least appreciated that there was a quieter place to sneak off to and escape the chaos of the main pool area.

Pros and cons of disney cruise: crowded pool

Don’t forget your floatie! Check out our guide to the best baby and toddler floaties for your next vacation

So, are they worth it?

Overall, Disney Cruises are a nice splurge, especially if your kids (and you) LOVE Disney. We are just starting to get into the Disney Movies, Walt Disney, and all the Disney Magic in our house.

When my kids are older, and will really enjoy the kids club more I may book again and take advantage of the R&R for me and my hubby. For now, I think that Disney doesn’t offer quite enough to make me convinced it’s worth the $$$ again.

Wondering how to book your next cruise vacation? Whether you want to book Disney or another cruise line, we recommend an experienced travel agent. Travel agents book your vacation at no cost to you and can help you plan a magical vacation for the entire family! Get a Quote Now!

What do you think? What did you love about your cruise? Do you have a Disney Dream review? I welcome all your comments below!

3 night disney cruise review

Pin for Later!

Wondering whether to book a Disney cruise? Read my unbiased review of our 3-night cruise aboard the Disney Dream here to help you with your planning. A list of pros and cons of a Disney Cruise. #disney #disneycruise #disneycruiseline #disneycruisebahamas #disneycruisetoddlers #disneycruisebaby #disneytips #disneycruisetips #disneydream #disneydreamreviews

Sunday 3rd of September 2017

We leave for our 5th cruise on Friday and our first one was when my kids were 10 months and 3 years and we have gone every year since. As they get older they are mush more enjoyable, but we have done 2 Carnival cruises and they just don't have the same feel as Disney. With Carnival I felt like they were better for either college kids or retired aged people that like to gamble. Disney cruises are worth the money to me because I know my kids will have fun at the kids camps while we can do adult stuff around the ship. As far as lines, the longer cruises have characters that just walk around the ship and there aren't usually lines for them. Also, when your kids are in the camps, the characters go in and play with them which makes it much more personal than Disney World. Helping Peter Pan find his shadow, hula dancing with Stitch, or learning to be a super hero with Captain America. We have also been to Disney World 5 times and it is so much fun but not half as relaxing as the cruise.

Wednesday 6th of September 2017

Wow! Thanks for the detailed response! I think a longer cruise sounds great!!! I've heard that really helps with the lines. Glad you enjoyed your ???? cruise!!!

Thursday 31st of August 2017

Hi! Loved reading you post! We have been on 3 Disney cruises and one Carvial cruise. We have a 10 year old boy and an 11 year old girl. We purposely waited until they were 7 and 8 to try a Disney Cruise. I'm so glad we did because if not, my feelings would be identical to yours. Seriously, you'll be back in a few years and you'll enjoy it SO much more (and your kids will too)! Also, you get a little more value with the longer cruises and it's even more relaxing.

Thanks Sara! Yes I definitely think I will go back when my kids are older and can really take advantage of all things Disney! I've heard that the repositioning cruises are actually the best value, might consider that in a few years! Thanks for dropping by :)

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Home » Cruise » Disney Cruise Line » Disney Wish » Disney Wish 3-Day Bahamas Cruise Review

Disney Wish 3-Day Bahamas Cruise Review

In our signature day-by-day Disney Wish Bahamas cruise review, we detail our 3 days onboard this new Disney Cruise Line ship.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

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Ship overview.

Disney Wish is Disney Cruise Line’s 5th ship. This 144K gross ton vessel is DCL’s first new ship in over a decade and now the largest ship in the fleet. Carrying up to 4,000 passengers, this brand new vessel features a number of new dining concepts, onboard amenities, and one-of-a-kind features that kids and adults alike will enjoy.

While the rotational dining concept remains on Disney Wish, the cruise line has reimagined the three dining venues. Each new restaurant has its own story to tell.

Named for the year The Walt Disney Company was founded, 1923 celebrates the golden age of animation. World of Marvel is the first Marvel cinematic dining adventure, where guests play an interactive role in an Avengers mission with the use of digital screens and special effects. Finally, there’s Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure. This dining room brings the Frozen characters to life to celebrate the engagement of Queen Anna and Kristoff with plenty of music and fun.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

Disney Wish also features new specialty restaurants and casual dining spots. Palo Steakhouse and Enchante are the upscale, adult-only restaurants that do come at an up-charge. The Mickey and Friends Festival of Foods is a new pool deck favorite. This open-air eatery features five themed food stalls including the new Mickey’s Smokestack Barbecue and Donald’s Cantina. Disney Wish is the first in the DCL fleet to offer dedicated quick-service venues for barbeque and Mexican-inspired fare.

In terms of entertainment, there’s plenty for everyone to love. There are three Disney-themed production shows in the Walt Disney Theater along with many other activities occurring at the various lounges around the ship. From character meet & greets, to live music, to parties and games- like the Pirates Rockin’ Parlay Party on the pool deck or the Incredi-Games in the Hero Zone, it will be tough to fit it all in on these short cruises.

When it comes to the pool deck, families have more pools and more deck space than ever before. The ship features six family pools staggered among tiered decks and surrounded by lounge chairs. There’s also the new Toy Story Splash Zone for the little ones and the first of its kind water attraction at sea, the AquaMouse. As guests wind their way through the tubing suspended high above the pool deck, they will be immersed in The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse animated shorts, complete with show scenes, lighting, and special effects.  

What's Included on Disney Wish

The children’s areas on Disney Wish are spectacular too. The Disney’s Oceaneer Club features a number of well-themed play areas. These include the Fairytale Hall, Marvel Superhero Academy, Star Wars Cargo Bay, Walt Disney Imagineering Lab, and Mickey and Minnie’s Captain Deck. Here, your kids will have endless opportunities for fun. They can engage in storytelling, arts and crafts, dress-up, toys and games, watching Disney movies, and so much more.

As we mentioned before, adults will love Disney Wish too . Of course, there is the adult-only Quiet Cove. This area features an 18+ sundeck, a whirlpool, an infinity pool, a bar, and a cafe. There’s also the newly located Senses Spa. The Senses Spa features your typical beauty treatments as well as tranquil relaxation areas with plush loungers and swings, including the new outdoor space at the bow of the ship. You can also rejuvenate in the Rainforest room thermal suite. This area features a sauna, steam room, cold room, heated loungers, and more.

Of course, there’s plenty of adult-themed fun on the bar front as well. Perhaps, the most anticipated is the Star Wars: Hyperspace Lounge with galactically inspired drinks and scenery. There’s also the Princess and the Frog themed bar, The Bayou, with a variety of cocktails and even beignets. If that’s not enough, there’s Nightingale’s piano bar, Keg & Compass pub, and many other bars throughout the ship.

Top Activities for Adults on Disney Wish

Finally, all guests sailing on Disney Wish are sure to be enchanted by the Grand Hall. The 3-story Grand Hall is truly your castle at sea. With a grand staircase, the starry chandelier, and a life-sized Cinderella statue, the décor is opulent. This area even evolves throughout the day from a gathering space to a theater through the use of special effects, culminating the evening with a special Kiss Goodnight light show.

Now, we have just returned from a sailing on this brand new ship and want to share all the Disney magic with you in our exclusive Disney Wish 3-day Bahamas cruise review.

EXCLUSIVE SAVINGS: Get Deals on Disney Wish Cruises!

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review – Day 1

Against our own advice.

Due to a family obligation, we flew into Orlando on the morning of this Disney Wish Bahamas cruise review. Against our own advice, we were up at the crack of dawn to drive to the airport. Thankfully, there were no flight delays, so we arrived at the MCO airport by 8 AM.

Prior to the cruise, we completed our online check-in in the Disney Cruise Line Navigator app. This included choosing a port arrival time. The earliest time slot available was 12:15 PM.

Since this was our first Disney cruise, and we had read that DCL is strict with these arrival times, we inquired about a cruise line transfer from the airport. We learned that the first shuttle was scheduled to depart for the cruise terminal around 9 AM for a cost of just $39 per person. Thus, we hopped on this opportunity in hopes of boarding the ship a bit earlier.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

Taking the approximately hour bus ride to the Disney Cruise Line terminal in Port Canaveral, we arrived around 10 AM. Here, we waited outside for an additional 15 minutes or so before being allowed to enter the terminal.

We were through security and the check-in process quickly. We then proceeded to wait in the terminal for over an hour before any guests were allowed onto the ship. Our boarding group 2 was called at 11:50 AM.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

Now, we were finally ready to get our first look at the brand new Disney Wish.

Our First Look at Disney Wish

Like usual, we started our Disney Wish ship tour all the way at the top on deck 14. For the next 2.5 hours, we tried to cover as much ground as possible before the areas became too congested with other passengers.

From the several pools and outdoor spaces, to the kids club, and the spa, we couldn’t help but love all the public spaces we had seen so far.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

Around 2:30 PM, we decided it was time to take a break for some lunch. Heading to the Mickey and Friends Festival of Foods on deck 11, we opted to try some of the new offerings on Disney Wish. This outdoor food hall is the first to offer BBQ and Mexican quick-service dishes.

We both ended up sampling some tacos from Donald’s Cantina. Our selections were warm and filling. For those that have cruised on Royal Caribbean, we would say the food was a step above the similar El Loco Fresh.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

Now that we were nourished, it was time for some mandatory items on our check list, like Muster Drill. This safety briefing is even easier on DCL than some other cruise lines.

First, we needed to visit our muster station, which was the Marvel dining room, where we simply scanned a QR code to check-in. Once checked in, all we had to do was watch a safety video on the app and listen to the Captain’s announcement and sounding of the emergency alarms prior to sail away.

After 3 PM at this point, we finally made our way to deck 8 to check out our stateroom. For this Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review, we booked a guarantee deluxe oceanview stateroom with verandah. A couple weeks out from our sailing, we were assigned cabin 8194.

What's Included on Disney Wish

This balcony cabin was located all the way aft on the ship and was actually an accessible cabin with plenty of space. We took a few moments here to collect photos and video of this stateroom and drop off our carry on bags.

Our First Evening Onboard Disney Wish

Wanting to make the most of our short amount of time on the ship, we headed back out to continue exploring, but first coffee. Caffeine was going to be essential to get through this long day!

After checking out more of the indoor bars and lounges, we jaunted back up to the pool deck prior to 4:30 PM for the sail away party.

In typical Disney fashion, this sail away party consisted of a magical celebration with appearances by the Fairy Godmother, Captain Minnie and Mickey, and many of your other favorite characters.

With lots of singing, dancing, and the signature Disney ship horn sounding, it was time to set off on our adventure.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

Staying as long as we could, we headed back to the room slightly after 5 PM. With a 5:45 PM dining time, we needed to freshen up and make a costume change before dinner.

Disney Wish continues the Disney rotational dining concept. For those unfamiliar with this concept, guests rotate between three dining venues during the cruise. The waitstaff also rotate, so you can keep the same table number and wait team each evening.

However, Disney Wish does offer three brand new restaurant concepts, each with a unique menu and story to tell. Tonight, we were assigned to 1923. This restaurant pays tribute to the golden age of Hollywood with props, sketches, and other retro decor.

Dinner and Drinks on Disney Wish

Upon checking in at the restaurant, we were escorted to a table for six on the Roy Disney (starboard) side of the venue. Yes, Disney Cruise Line is seating guests with other parties! While we typically prefer a table to ourselves, we did not make a big deal over it as it was only for three days.

Here, we met our waitstaff of Marvin and Jhoni. This team was personable and timely with taking orders and explaining the menus. However, we did have an issue where we were charged for the entire table’s drinks. After visiting Guest Services three times, the issue never got resolved!

3 night disney cruise review

To start, we ordered a couple cocktails. I went with a cosmo, while the hubby ordered the signature Riverside Old Fashioned. How can you go wrong with a drink that is topped with bacon?

For appetizers, we sampled three dishes off the menu. The pear and tatsoi salad, burrata and prosciutto, and spiced ahi tuna. All three dishes were pretty average when compared to other cruise lines’ main dining room selections.

In terms of entrees, I opted for the Riverside Roasted Chicken. The chicken dish was a generous portion and was more on par with a dish from a specialty steakhouse on other cruise lines. Don ordered the Peppered Filet Mignon. This entrée was cooked to the perfect medium rare temperature and had just the right amount of seasoning.

3 night disney cruise review

His Apple Cheesecake dessert was also a hit. Overall, the trend was that the desserts on DCL shined over other cruise lines.

Following our approximately two hour dinner, we made a dash to the Mickey’s Main Sail shop to purchase some mandatory Disney Wish inaugural merchandise. Apparently, we weren’t the only ones as the store was packed.

Scoring a spirit jersey, inaugural t-shirt, and obligatory ship ornament, Don waited in the check out line while I headed to the theater to secure seats for tonight’s show.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

The 8:30 PM show was busy, so we had to deter from our typical portside theater seats. Disney Seas the Adventure is an approximately 40 minute revue show featuring Captain Minnie, Goofy, and some of your other favorite Disney characters. This felt like a show you would see in a Disney theme park. While fun, it certainly wasn’t a Broadway quality performance.

After the show in the Walt Disney Theater, we made our way to the Bayou. This Princess and the Frog themed bar on deck 3 has dazzling décor and a specialty cocktail menu. The venue exudes a New Orleans vibe, right down to the drink menu with cocktails like a hurricane. While enjoying the atmosphere and cocktails, we listened to a set by the Wishers. This 3-piece band played a variety of Disney classics.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

Wanting to see and do as much as we could during our three days onboard the ship, we moved on to the next venue around 10:15 PM.

Luna’s is a small two-story theater that hosts adult-only entertainment in the evenings. Tonight’s activity was DCL’s version of the Love and Marriage game show, Match Your Mate. This game show is always fun to watch.

Going strong since 2:30 AM, we had to call it a night when this show ended just after 11 PM.

Tomorrow was our first port of call in Nassau, Bahamas.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review – Day 2

Staying on the ship today.

Day 2 of this Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review was a scheduled port stop in Nassau, Bahamas. Like most of our cruises, we decided to stay on the ship today. There is a lot to see and do on the new Disney Wish, and we wanted to make the most of it.

Up at 6:30 AM, hubby made the usual morning run for photos and videos, returning to the cabin with some lattes.

The ship was cleared around 9 AM; although, it felt like very few passengers got off the ship. This meant that the outdoor decks were still very busy. In fact, the AquaMouse line was over an hour long by mid-morning.

3 night disney cruise review

Our first order of business for the day was to test out the Marceline Market for breakfast. This buffet on Disney Wish offers a variety of selections, as well as both indoor and outdoor seating. At the very back of the venue is an omelet station. Of course, I had to put Disney Wish to the omelet test. And, I have to say that it was better than most cruise lines. The hubby sampled some eggs, quiche, and sausage which he thought were good also.

A Busy Morning Onboard Disney Wish

After breakfast, we spent the next few hours walking around the ship, continuing to capture photos and videos. The weather was hot and sunny, so there were plenty of cruisers enjoying the pools and outdoor amenities. The nice thing about Disney Wish is that there are a number of pools and lounge spaces dispersed throughout the outdoor decks.

The Chip and Dale pool on deck 14 forward is a quieter space away from the other six main pools on decks 11 and 12. Not to mention, there is the Toy Story Splash Zone on deck 12 forward for the little ones and the adult-only Quiet Cove on deck 13.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

Around noon time, we made our first drink stop of the day at Wheezy’s Freezies. Located near the kids splash zone, this venue serves up sno-cones and dole whip treats. Of course, we opted for an adult version of dole whip with some rum.

Relaxing in the shade for a bit, it was time to test out more of the stations at the Festival of Foods for lunch. Don grabbed some barbecue from Mickey’s Smokestack, while I grabbed chicken tenders and fries from Goofy’s Grill. We also sampled a slice of pizza from Daisy’s Pizza Pies.

The food items here were all served warm and freshly prepared. We really liked this casual food spot, and it was a clear winner over the buffet. Everything we sampled was good and better than many casual spots on other cruise lines when comparing the BBQ, grill, and cantina; however, Princess and Virgin definitely have better pizza.

3 night disney cruise review

Having enough of the heat, we made our way back inside to grab some afternoon lattes before retreating to our cabin. We spent the next couple hours working and enjoying the air conditioning until dinner time.

Worlds of Marvel for Dinner

Night 2 of this Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review took us to the Worlds of Marvel for dinner. This dining rotation is assigned to guests based on their staterooms.

Arriving on time, we were escorted to table 411 once again, with our same tablemates and waitstaff. With Avengers theming, digital screens, and even a Quantum Core on every table, we were ready for tonight’s adventure.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

To begin the evening, we each ordered a drink from the specialty menu. I ordered the Stinger, and Don ordered the Widow’s Bite. Both drinks were well-balanced.

For appetizers, I started with the potato soup and iceberg wedge salad. The hubby ordered the bao bun and fried shrimp. Of the four selections, only the jumbo fried shrimp was a standout dish.

The entrees too were just average. Don ordered the ribeye steak, and I did the chicken schnitzel. Neither dish was very flavorful. However, once again, the desserts were great. We sampled the PYM doughnut sundae, key lime pie, and cheesecake byte and enjoyed all three of them.

3 night disney cruise review

Without giving too much of the experience away, there is a story that unfolds with Ant Man and The Wasp during dinner. The characters may even make a special appearance to thank you for helping to save the day.

While I am not a Marvel fan, even the hubby was not a fan of the interactive show as he thought it did nothing to enhance the dining experience. Personally, this was our least favorite of the three dining venues.

Let’s Make the Jump to Hyperspace

Out of dinner in about two hours again this evening, we continued our “drink around the ship”. Given the Aladdin production in the main theater was not ready for our sailing, there was no show tonight.

First up on this tour was the Star Wars: Hyperspace Lounge. This Lounge is popular (and small), so it requires reservations. During our sailing, we made a reservation in the Triton Lounge upon boarding the ship for this evening at 8:30 PM. Of note, we have been reading that this experience is now available to book in the app once on the Disney WiFi.

3 night disney cruise review

A reservation allows guests to spend 45 minutes in this venue, which is plenty of time to enjoy the scenery and drinks. We sampled the Berken’s Flow and the Chancellor, which were good but on the pricey side.

Honestly, we were expecting a bit more from this venue. After seeing the elaborately themed Star Wars: Cargo Bay kids area, the Hyperspace Lounge didn’t measure up. Still, it is a fun and complimentary experience for adults to enjoy on Disney Wish (drinks will incur a charge).

Next up was Nightingale’s. This piano bar is located nearby on deck 3. Featuring a specialty menu of wines and champagne, this Cinderella-inspired bar has a modern design with a piano and large chandelier as the focal point. Unfortunately though, there was no live music when we visited this venue.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

While there were plenty of nighttime activities and character meet and greets, it did feel like live music was a bit lacking.

Yo Ho, A Pirate’s Life For Me

Still, we enjoyed our drinks for the next 30 minutes or so before making our way outside for the Pirate’s Rockin’ Parlay Party at 10:15 PM. Playing some classic rock songs, the two lead singers and cast of dancers put on a good show. The short fireworks display at the end of the performance was a perfect way to close out the party.

This is a fun activity for all ages and should not be missed. If you want to step it up a notch, pack some pirate attire for the festivities.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

After the party, we headed back inside to pop into one more bar, the Keg & Compass. This nautically-themed pub on deck 5 features a menu with a few craft brews available exclusively on Disney Wish. Unfortunately though, they were all sold out by the time we visited the venue. Still, it is a casual spot to relax with some friends.

The Keg & Compass also offers an a la carte food menu. During our visit, we did not see anyone order any of these food items.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

Approaching midnight, we exited to the Grand Hall to watch the chandelier show. Given it was pirates night, the short light show featured a musical excerpt of Pirate’s Life from Peter Pan.

Exhausted from two long days, we needed to get some rest. Tomorrow was already our final day of this Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review – Day 3

A visit to castaway cay.

Day 3 of this Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review was our second port stop of this short cruise. Today, we were visiting Disney Cruise Line’s private island in the Bahamas. This was our first time at Castaway Cay. Still, with so much to see and do around the ship, we decided to go ashore for only a couple hours in the morning.

We figured that we could get our remaining photos and videos of the ship minus some of the crowds in the afternoon. After all, we will be returning in October. So, we will have more time to relax and enjoy Castaway Cay then.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

Up by 7 AM, we did a bit of work in the morning before heading ashore around 9 AM. We spent about 2.5 hours exploring all the island has to offer. Not realizing how far of a walk it was, we made the trek out to Serenity Bay, the adults only area of the island. Needless to say, we took the shuttle back though.

For those who are not familiar with Castaway Cay, this private retreat in the Bahamas is available only to DCL guests.

The resort has plenty of sandy beachfront, a stingray adventure, a snorkeling lagoon, a small children’s waterpark, bike rentals, beach sports, games, and more. There is also Scuttle’s Cove, the kid’s programming on the island.

3 night disney cruise review

Not to mention, there are cabanas available to rent, plenty of bars to quench your thirst, shops, and two BBQ lunch spots. The island lunch is complimentary and includes grill items like hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, and ribs, along with sides and desserts.

While the food looked tempting, we wanted to fully test out the options on the ship. Thus, we made our way back onboard around noon time.

Checking Out the AquaMouse

After dropping off some gear and getting our air conditioning fix in the cabin, we decided to test out the offerings at Marceline Market for lunch. In general, we are not big fans of buffets, and that held true for this lunch buffet on Disney Wish.

While there was a seafood section in the back, the rest of the stations included many heavier options that we don’t typically eat at lunchtime. Further, there were no real options to customize salads or sandwiches as much of the selections were pre-made. Even the chicken tenders at the kid’s section of the buffet were not as fresh as those at the outdoor Festival of Foods.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

Feeling a bit overheated from the island, I decided to go back to the cabin to rest up while the hubby took on the AquaMouse. The quoted wait time was 30 minutes; though, he ended up waiting close to an hour as the ride broke down for a 15-minute period.

The AquaMouse is another signature feature that did not live up to our expectations. More than half of the ride was the conveyor belt lift to the top, and even the rest of the experience was not all that exciting. In our opinion, some of the waterslides on other contemporary cruise lines surpass the AquaMouse on the fun scale.

For the First Time in Forever

Back in the stateroom, we did some work for a couple hours before getting ready for our final dinner of the cruise. Tonight, we were experiencing Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure.

While the food in 1923 was better, we would say this was the best overall dining experience.

3 night disney cruise review

Of course, we started our dining adventure with some cocktails. I went with the Frozen Fractals, and Don went with the Ice Harvester. While some tablemates thought the drinks were too sweet, we enjoyed them.

For starters, we sampled the ham and cheese tart, koldtbord (seafood board), and fields of greens salad between the two of us. The ham and cheese tart was the winner in this category. Many other cruisers raved about the baked scallops, but Don is allergic so wasn’t able to try it.

Our entrees consisted of the juniper spiced chicken and the Arendelle kjottkake (Norwegian meatballs and gravy). Both of these dishes were pretty average main dining room selections.

3 night disney cruise review

Finally, our dessert selections were the apple cake, Norwegian pancake roulade, and Elsa’s Coronation sundae. The apple cake was the best, as the Norwegian pancake had a very odd presentation.

The premise of the show is that guests are attending an engagement party for Anna and Kristoff. Thus, there’ll be music, there’ll be fun. There is even a special appearance by Olaf! We would liken this to a character dining experience in the Disney parks, with the characters walking around to the tables for photos during dinner.

In comparison to the Marvel show, this one felt more appropriately paired with dinner to provide a bit of fun without being overly distracting.

Our Final Night on Disney Wish

Following dinner, it was on to the final show of the cruise in the main theater. The Little Mermaid is a 60-minute, Broadway-style adaptation of the original film. The singing, dancing, and stage set made for a great performance, even if we thought the ending deviated a bit too much from the original film.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

This is definitely a show that you won’t want to miss when cruising on Disney Wish.

After the show, we ascended up to the Rose to complete our drink around the ship. This elegant bar is situated on deck 12 near the two specialty restaurants. The venue also features a signature cocktail menu. I tried Plant & Fleurs while hubby ordered Mrs. Tea on the recommendation of the waitress. Overall, the drinks on Disney Wish were always well-balanced and expertly prepared.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

It’s too bad Disney Cruise Line does not offer a drink package though, as the costs can add up pretty quickly.

While we had made another reservation for the Hyperspace Lounge at 11 PM tonight, we decided to close out the evening at our favorite bar on the ship instead, The Bayou.

Here, we enjoyed two espresso martinis while listening to the pianist, Alex, perform an 80’s set. While I enjoyed all the Disney theming throughout the cruise, Don was glad to hear something other than Disney music tonight.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

When the set ended at 11:30 PM, we finished up our drinks and headed to the Grand Hall to watch the Kiss Goodnight lightshow at midnight. This was a magical way to end our Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review.

BOOK NOW: Get Exclusive Rates on Disney Wish!

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review – Disembarkation

Sea ya real soon.

Alas, our Disney Wish 3-Day Bahamas Cruise Review was already over. However, that didn’t mean our Disney fun was ending just yet. Today, we would be disembarking the ship and heading back to Orlando. We would be spending the next few days at the theme parks.

We were able to score a great deal on the Animal Kingdom Lodge hotel, one on my bucket list for a while. So, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

Up at 5:45 AM, we got showered and ready then finished up our packing.

After pricing out Ubers, we decided to book a transfer through the cruise line to our Disney hotel as it was going to be the cheaper option. We were told that we needed to disembark the ship by 7:45 AM. So, we skipped breakfast and completed self-assist disembarkation.

Exiting our stateroom, we were able to score an empty elevator down to the Grand Hall without any issues. It then took about 30 minutes to go from scanning off the ship, through CBP, and loaded onto a bus.

Actually, we were mislead when booking this transfer, as we were under the assumption that there would be multiple buses with the last one departing the cruise terminal at 9 AM. However, we proceeded to sit on the bus for the next hour along with some other unhappy guests.

Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

Finally, we were en route at 9 AM. We arrived at the Animal Kingdom Lodge around 11 AM as we made stops at three other hotels first.

Being our first Disney cruise, we really enjoyed the Disney Wish and can’t wait to get back onboard to experience even more of what this new cruise ship has to offer. In fact, we have another trip already booked for October!

In the meantime, we have a couple busy and exciting months ahead. Stay tuned as we set sail on Oceania Marina, Norwegian Prima, and Valiant Lady this summer.

Did you enjoy our Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review? Do you have plans to sail on this brand new Disney Cruise Line ship? Drop us an anchor below to share your DCL cruise reviews!

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Disney Wish Bahamas Cruise Review

DB & The Princess

Welcome Aboard! We are Don and Heidi, the husband and wife travel team behind EatSleepCruise.com. We took our first cruise vacation together 13 years ago and have been hooked ever since. Follow along as we share our travel tips, cruise reviews, information on ports of call, and the latest cruise news to help you plan the ultimate cruise vacation. Are you ready to embark on your journey to “sea the world, one port at a time”?

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3-Night Bahamas Disney Cruise Line Report

3 night disney cruise review

Our cruise report from the Disney Dream’s 3-night Bahamas itinerary covers a lot of topics, from Disney Cruise Line v. Walt Disney World, to whether Nassau is worth visiting, to the quality of entertainment and dining aboard the ship.

This report details our day by day experience aboard the Disney Dream as we departed Port Canaveral, headed to Nassau, Bahamas, followed by Castaway Cay (Disney’s private island), and everything we did along the way. Over the course of cruise report, we share some of our strategy for making the most of the experience, thoughts on the daily schedule, dining, shows, random anecdotes, and opinions of what we did.

If you don’t care what we have to say, that’s cool, too, as the cruise report include hundreds of photos of the Disney Dream, Nassau, and Castaway Cay. Among these photos are sunset shots from the ship, food photos of everything we ate on Disney Cruise Line, and more.

This trip report is written in a way that (we hope!) allows you to join us vicariously, but also numerous details for those of you debating whether Disney Cruise Line might be worth the money to you, or those who are planning your own cruises. (Spoiler alert: we had a great time on the cruise. Double spoiler alert: there are a couple photos of Olaf in it. You’re welcome .)

You can click on each link below to read through the cruise report. As to some of our past trip reports, this is a pretty quick read…

Part 1 — Destination: Relaxation Part 2 — Stopping in Nassau, Bahamas Part 3 — An Amazing Day at Castaway Cay! Part 4 — Overall Thoughts & Walt Disney World v. Disney Cruise Line

If you just can’t get enough trip report fun, “Like” the DisneyTouristBlog Facebook Fan Page to see more photos and video from our past (and future) trips, including our next cruise aboard the Disney Magic! If you’re new to our trip reports, make sure to check out The Brickers’ Disney Trip Reports page for more of our adventures around the world of Disney.

Planning to set sail aboard one of the Disney Cruise Line ships? Read our comprehensive Disney Cruise Line Guide to prepare for your trip, plan entertainment and other activities, and learn what to expect from your Disney cruise!

YOUR THOUGHTS

Have you ever set sail aboard Disney Cruise Like? What did you think of the experience? Which of the ships is your favorite? Ever done a land and sea cruise with Walt Disney World followed by Disney Cruise Line? Thoughts on dining aboard the Disney Dream? Any thoughts on Nassau, Castaway Cay, other ports, entertainment, or anything else we’ve covered in this cruise report? Any other Disney Cruise Line tips to add or recommendations? If you have questions or thoughts, please share them below and we’ll try to respond!

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Written by Tom Bricker

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I can say that at dinner I asked for a Mickey bar and they were more than happy to oblige. 😉

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I just got off the Disney Wish. I was prepared not to like Disney's newest cruise ship, but I loved our $5,300 3-night trip.

  •  My family of four did a three-night sailing on the Disney Wish in July for $5,300.
  • We've been on eight Disney cruises , and I heard a few negative reviews of the Wish before boarding.
  • But I loved the new ship, especially the themed adult lounges and fun new deck layout. 

Insider Today

My family of four recently did a three-night sailing from Port Canaveral, Florida, to the Bahamas on Disney's newest cruise ship, the Wish . 

We've been on eight Disney Cruises as a family, and I follow several cruise blogs and podcasts, so I consider myself an expert-level Disney cruiser . Before this trip, I'd read and heard enough Wish reviews to give me the impression I wouldn't like the new ship.

Our decision to sail on the Wish was last-minute. We booked a $5,300 voyage and boarded the ship with no reservations or excursions and no plans other than to explore.

Luckily, I ended up being wrong about pretty much everything I thought I'd dislike about the ship.

I was super impressed by the new Grand Hall on the Wish.

3 night disney cruise review

Disney's first ship, the Magic , set sail back in 1998, so embarking on the Wish, which had its maiden voyage in July 2022, was quite the upgrade. Passengers are immersed in everything new and dazzling on the Wish as soon as they enter the Grand Hall.

The other Disney ships have a central atrium where guests embark and are welcomed aboard. But the Wish's Grand Hall is open and airy — more of a multipurpose space with a stage and balcony.

The only criticism I had was that the welcome-aboard announcement from the crew could've been better. Whereas the other ships had a gauntlet of crew members clapping and cheering, there was only one crew member on the Wish's welcoming committee and little fanfare.

You won't miss this if you've never sailed with Disney before . But if you have, you'll probably notice a difference.

Our room also felt shiny and new.

3 night disney cruise review

We booked an ocean-view stateroom with a veranda for our cruise on the Wish. 

There were upgraded touches in the stateroom , such as a larger TV screen and robes, compared to the older ships. 

The Wish doesn't have any midship elevators, but it didn't end up being an issue for us.

3 night disney cruise review

All the other Disney ships have three elevator spots, forward (front of ship), aft (back of ship), and midship (middle of ship). Despite being Disney's largest ship, the Wish has no midship elevators.

I thought this might be inconvenient, but there are 16 elevators total, eight aft and eight forward, so the lack of midship elevators didn't actually bother me. We were OK with the extra walking as we take the stairs as often as possible anyway. 

What was annoying was the sensor-button panel on the elevators. If someone got too close to the buttons, the elevator would select them, causing most elevators we rode to stop at every floor. It was like having that kid who pushes all the buttons on your elevator every trip.

We're really familiar with the layout of the other Disney ships, so this took some getting used to.

3 night disney cruise review

The Disney Wish is the fleet's first Triton Class ship, meaning it has a different layout from Disney's previous ships in the Magic and Dream classes. After three sailings on the Wonder, two on the Magic, and two on the Dream, we had those deck plans down pat. 

Because of this, I had to spend time discovering where things were located instead of immediately knowing my way around. But it actually ended up being part of the fun and not a negative experience. 

I'd heard complaints of a lack of adult-only entertainment, but that wasn't my experience.

3 night disney cruise review

All the other Disney ships have a bar-and-lounge district that's off-limits to anyone under 18 after 7 p.m. 

On the Wish, the highly themed Nightingale's, Bayou, Rose, and Star Wars Hyperspace lounges were dotted throughout the ship versus being in an adult-only section. But the fact that kids were passing through didn't bother me.

Plus, there was still the adult-only pool deck and two adult-only dining venues if you wanted to escape.

The dining rooms may have been a little more crowded, but it didn't really bother us.

3 night disney cruise review

The three main dining rooms on the Wish are Arendelle, Worlds of Marvel, and 1923.

Before our trip, I'd heard fellow travelers complaining of big crowds, with the tables placed uncomfortably close together. Our sailing was near capacity, and the dining rooms were indeed crowded, but that's typical of all other Disney cruises we've been on.

The tables felt closer together than they've been on other ships, but it wasn't uncomfortable and didn't hamper our dining experience .

We loved the food at the new restaurants , especially the filet at 1923, but we'd probably skip Worlds of Marvel next time. The digital show is such a huge part of dinner, and although it was cute, I wouldn't want to sit through it again.

There were fun added amenities and entertainment options on the ship.

3 night disney cruise review

The Pirate's Rockin' Parlay Party on the deck was a great entertainment addition, and the infinity pool in the Quiet Cove area was pretty sweet, even if it was always full of people.

The kid's clubs , especially the Oceaneer Club for kids 3 through 12, were next-level fantastic. I thought the teen and tween clubs were elevated, too, but my 13-year-olds said they liked one on the Magic better. 

My family loved our trip on the Wish, and we'd definitely sail on it again.

3 night disney cruise review

The Wish isn't my top Disney Cruise Line pick — that's always going to be the Wonder — but I loved the ship and would book again if the itinerary and rates lined up with our travel needs .

If you're hesitant to book because of a negative review you saw online, I say go for it and try it for yourself. 

3 night disney cruise review

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LiveFrugaLee

All Aboard! 4 Days 3 Nights on the Disney Wish – Disney Cruise Line Review

A lot of people have been asking, “How was the Disney Cruise?!”

I told them I’d write a blog post about it soon. There’s a lot to cover, and there’s a lot I won’t cover because we just didn’t have time to do it all!

Those who read my blog know I try to be very transparent, especially with finances. I’ll try to give you an idea of how much everything costs in case you decide to sail with Disney Cruise Line.

Which ship did you sail on?

We were on the Disney Wish for 3 nights and 4 days . The Disney Wish had its maiden voyage in the summer of 2022. It’s currently Disney’s newest ship.

This was our itinerary for our cruise:

We actually didn’t disembark at Nassau to make the most of our time on the ship. We got off the ship at Castaway Cay (pronounced “key”).

3 night disney cruise review

What is Castaway Cay?

Castaway Cay is Disney’s private island in the Bahamas. It has an interesting history. Before Disney bought the island, the island was used as a base of operations by Pablo Escobar (of cartel and Narcos [Netflix] fame). If you run the Castaway Cay 5k, you actually run on the airstrip.

This island is worth getting off at (as opposed to staying on the ship). It’s basically a really long beach, and there are plenty of beach chairs. The water is clear, and occasionally, we saw schools of fish swimming around our legs.

For those who want to be more active, there are other paid activities you can do (e.g. stingray encounter, snorkeling, biking, etc.). You can also run the Castaway Cay 5k (for free). The 5k is no longer organized, so you just start and finish at the 5k sign when you want and pick up your medal at the finish. I ran it with my friend Eric, but we didn’t know we were supposed to run the loop twice, so we were about a mile short.

3 night disney cruise review

How much did it cost?

For 2 adults and 2 children (7yo and 4yo), the cruise itself was $2,974.76. To be clear, we got an inside stateroom (no window) , but the room was still really nice. We decided to book with a travel agent ( Michelle Shumate of Fairy Godmother Travel ), and the experience was awesome. She provided us with a lot of information and was responsive to all of our questions, so we felt totally prepared. She provided us with an onboard credit as well. I would highly recommend her if you are booking a trip to Disney / Disney Cruise. It doesn’t cost you anything extra, and you always have an expert to answer all your questions and email you about important things. ( UPDATE: I joined Fairy Godmother Travel because of my positive experience using Michelle as a travel agent (3 times). I can now help you book travel too! )

We paid a $500 deposit upfront and paid the remaining balance a little before the trip.

The room, food, room service, and entertainment is included in the price. Gratuities were an additional $174 ($14.50 per person per day). They give you a sheet with perforated slips for the head server ($15), server ($57), assistant server ($45), and stateroom host ($57) with the preset amounts. You can always tip more if you want. They provide envelopes for each person, and you put the slip into the envelope and give it to each person on the last night.

Alcoholic beverages, special drinks, photography, excursions, internet, and special activities are not included.

I think we ended up spending about $700-$800 on extras. I paid $24 twice for two 24-hour periods of internet (for work). We paid ~$200 for our daughter to do the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. We paid ~$230 for unlimited access to all the photos Disney took for us. $174 was for the gratuities.

We also put a $250 refundable deposit on our next Disney Cruise. If you put a deposit down while on the cruise, you get 10% off your next cruise if you sail within 24 months. If you don’t book, the deposit is refundable.

All in all, I think we spent a little under $4,000 on things related to the cruise for our family of 4.

How was the food?

Overall, the food was excellent. Generally, we did breakfast and lunch on our own time, but we attended the scheduled dinners at the themed restaurants: Marvel, Arendelle, and 1923. We often ate on the 11th deck at Marceline Market, which is an expansive buffet.

The servers at dinner were excellent. On the last night, I wasn’t feeling great so I stayed in my room. The server walked all the way over to my room and delivered the food to me. Room service is free anyway, but this was our dinner server.

I learned from a friend that you can order any entree from any restaurant, even if it’s not on the menu. I ordered the Chilean Sea Bass from Arendelle a couple times. You can also order as many entrees, desserts, and appetizers as you want. It’s all included!

There are two seatings for dinner every night. We had the earlier 5:45 seating. You can show up later than 5:45 if you want, but I would try to get there before 6:30 so they have time to set up for the later seating.

Dinner was quite the experience at Marvel and Arendelle. At Marvel, it’s an interactive experience. At Arendelle, there’s live entertainment in the middle of the dining room, and some of the characters walk around and greet you during dinner.

I didn’t take many food pics, but it was good!

How was the service?

The service was excellent. Our stateroom host cleaned our room every day, opened and closed the sofa bed and ceiling bed, cleaned our bathroom, and gave us new towels.

We did room service a couple times, and they were always pretty fast. The dinner servers were very attentive and put in a lot of effort.

Overall, we experienced the level of service you would expect from Disney.

How was the entertainment?

Each night, there were two shows. If you had the early dinner, you can go to the later show (I think it was at 8:30). If you had the later dinner, you could go to the earlier show.

The shows were top notch Broadway-style shows. The first night was Disney Seas the Adventure, the second night was The Little Mermaid, and the last night was Aladdin. For me, these shows were one of the highlights of the trip. I would not miss these. I don’t have any photos or videos of the shows because any sort of recording is not allowed.

What do the kids do?

On Disney cruises, there is the Disney Oceaneer Club , which is basically a kids club (no adults allowed). They give the kids a wristband to check in and check out. You can drop off your kids and pick them up as late as midnight. The area is huge, and there are plenty of different rooms for the kids to explore and play. There are lots of Disney staff entertaining and playing with the kids.

We didn’t get to drop them off as often as they liked because there were just so many things to do.

The day we were docked at Nassau, the kids played in the pools on the main deck. We also got to try out the Aqua Mouse , which is a giant water slide that soars above the periphery of the ship.

How is luggage handled?

For the boarding process, Disney will have already mailed you luggage tags. When you arrive at the port (Cruise Terminal #8 for Disney at Port Canaveral), a porter will help you with the bags. You leave it with the porter on the sidewalk there, and they will magically appear in front of your stateroom door sometime before 4pm.

For the disembarking process, you will need to have your bags packed by 10:30pm the night before . You leave the bags with a different tag (provided in your stateroom) outside your stateroom. You can keep small bags or any bags you need with you.

How are the rooms?

We had an inside stateroom. It wasn’t huge, but it was well-designed, especially the bathroom. There was a small combination tub/shower in the bathroom. The handle for the shower had two knobs, one to control the temperature and one to control the water pressure. The glass shower door opened inside and out. There were two levels of light in the bathroom (night and regular) so you don’t disturb others if you have to get up in the middle of the night. There is a queen bed, a sofa bed, and a pull-down bed that your host packs and unpacks for you every day while you’re out. There’s a TV in each room with Disney movies and shows. There’s space to put your clothes and space under the bed to leave your luggage. There’s a safe to keep your valuables in.

Some of our friends with bigger families had adjoining rooms. The larger rooms also have a split bathroom, so one person can shower while another person uses the toilet.

3 night disney cruise review

I didn’t know, but it’s a thing to put your names on the doors with magnets. My wife made ours, but everyone has different styles or ways to do it.

3 night disney cruise review

Was it worth it?

Yes, to me, it was totally worth the experience and the memories for us and the kids. I think it will be something that the kids remember as a happy memory. I’ve also been on Royal Caribbean cruises, and they are nice too and a bit cheaper. I had a pleasant experience with both cruise lines. Since I have younger children, I think the Disney experience was worth paying the premium. The kids club is also a nice place to drop off your kids if you want some time without the kids.

Do you get to meet Disney characters?

Yes! There are many opportunities to meet many of the Disney characters and take pictures with them. They are all around the ship at different times, and some will also be part of your dinner entertainment.

I took more video than photos, so if you want to see more, check out my reels on Instagram @realtordannylee and give me a follow. I do wish I took some more photos, but I was trying to enjoy my time there and enjoy the food.

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2 thoughts on “All Aboard! 4 Days 3 Nights on the Disney Wish – Disney Cruise Line Review”

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The Traveling Twin Mama

The Traveling Twin Mama

Honest Disney Wish Cruise Review from a First-Time Disney Goer

Marquita’s Travels contains affiliate links and is a member of Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. If you make a purchase using one of these Amazon links, I may receive compensation at no extra cost to you. Read my disclaimer for more information.

As my twin boys started approaching 5, they began to ask to go to Disney World, as well as to go on “a big boat”, aka a cruise. Well, despite my travels to almost 40 countries, I have never been to Disney, and I have only been on one cruise. And honestly, I was absolutely okay if that never changed.

So when my kids made their birthday request, I thought of going with Disney Cruise Line, as that would “kill two birds with one stone”. We opted for the Disney Wish as it is their newest ship, which set sail in July 2022, and is still in its inaugural sail. And one thing I do know about Disney, is they know how to make things nice.

And that’s exactly what I was looking for. Because if I’m spending my money and taking my PTO, there has to be something in it for me. And boy was there! So let’s get into my honest review of the enchanting Disney Wish Cruise Line.

Disney Wish Cruise Review

3 night disney cruise review

As we embarked upon the Disney Wish cruise ship, all of my nervousness and fears disappeared. The ship was absolutely stunning- the grand hall is pristine and massive, giving views of decks 3, 4, and 5. We felt as if we were walking into a magical wonderland as the hosts announced our entry to the crowd.

Immediately after our name was called, the kids received a Disney Wish Wand and we were off to explore all of the amazing adventures of the boat as it was an “open house” of the various areas of the boat while the staterooms were still getting ready.

Let’s just say the open house did not disappoint. There were so many spaces, restaurants, and bars that even after 2 hours of exploring, we probably only saw half, maybe three-quarters, of the ship. From that moment on, I knew that I was in for a good time.

Disney Wish Kid-Only Activities

Since we were sailing on a Disney Cruise Line ship, I knew there would be plenty for kids to do. But I was actually surprised by how many, and how many of them were kids only- which my kids loved.

Disney’s Oceaneer Club (Deck 2 and 3)

3 night disney cruise review

Let me just say, Disney’s Oceaneer Club was probably the highlight of the cruise for both my boys and myself. I couldn’t leave a better review for Disney Wish Oceanner Club, if I wanted to!

My boys absolutely LOVED going to the Oceaneer Club, which is curated for potty-trained kids ages 3 to 12. The kids have the option to enter the Oceaneer Club via a curved, clear slide that immediately places them in front of a handwashing station. At the entrance of the slide are crew members checking kids in via their wristbands, while additional crew members are at the bottom of the slide ensuring everyone properly washes their hands.

The slide is located right off the Grand Hall on Deck 3, with the actual club being located on Deck 2.

During the open house, parents were allowed in. After that, it becomes kids only, and boy did my almost 5-year-old boys love the idea of having their independence. They would gleam with pride about how they were able to explore and play, without their parents in tow.

For safety reasons, each child’s wristband has an RFID chip inside that only works within the Oceanner Club. Thus, when we went to pick them up, we had to give them our secret code (despite them seeing our pictures on the screen), and they could see exactly which room each kid was in. This made for a quick and efficient pickup.

Now, let’s get into all of the spaces within Disney Wish Oceaneer Club.

Marvel Super Hero Academy

3 night disney cruise review

Upon walking into the Marvel Super Hero Academy inside of the Oceaneer Club, you immediately felt like you were transported into a scene similar to the lab in Black Panther. There the superhero recruits are able to train and prepare themselves for battle. They can design their own superhero suit and test out their skills in an animation-type video game that projects their image, and skills on a large LCD screen. The kids absolutely got a thrill out of this.

Oh, and your kiddos shouldn’t be surprised if Ant-Man, Black Panther, and other Marvel characters make an appearance to ensure they are trained properly.

Star Wars: Cargo Bay

The design and feel of Star Wars: Cargo Bay is definitely from another galaxy. Throughout the dim room, which is lit by a variety of buttons and interactive activities on the walls, are creatures and animals from across the galaxy, ready to be cared for by the animal handlers.

Needless to say, upon entry, my boys immediately started touching each and every button on the wall, while proceeding to “examine” the creatures to decipher what type of animal they may be. I’m sure my boys stayed in this room for a while as there was such a variation of creatures to study, both hidden and in plain sight. And they received help, from Chewbacca himself!

Mickey and Minnie Captain’s Deck

Have a little one like me that loves playgrounds and needs to be physically active to get the wiggles out? Mickey and Minnie Captain’s Deck is for them! The space is filled with a variety of small slides, obstacles to climb through, and other activities that can keep your kiddo busy for hours.

Plus, my kids mentioned a dance party with Mickey and Minnie.

Walt Disney Imagineering Lab

This is where the “Disney magic” happens. Little Disney Imagineers are able to try their hand at creating the Disney world-known magic with hands-on activities and experiments. And Mickey may just stop by to help in the creation.

Fairytale Hall

Amongst the hallways that connect the various rooms within the Oceaneers Club is Fairytale Hall. “The Hall” is made up of three areas, Repunzel’s Art Studio, A Frozen themed room, and Belle’s Library. Each room has a variety of tables and chairs for kids to sit and do interactive activities, as well as play and listen to stories from their favorite characters.

Our Review of the Disney Wish Oceaneer Club

We absolutely loved the Disney Wish Oceaneer Club! Besides how seriously they took kids’ safety, with the ability to message us on the app, secret pickup password, and the RFID bands, I loved how late they stayed open. The Disney Wish Oceaneer Club is open from 9 AM to Midnight!

This gave my husband and me the freedom of having time to ourselves without feeling guilty about not being with our kids. Because believe me, we would pick up our kids from the Oceaneer Club around 1140 PM nightly, and they would ask us why we came so early. They were literally having the time of their lives!

Other Kids Clubs besides Disney Oceaneer

Have kiddos outside of the 4-12 years old age group? Don’t worry, there’s plenty to keep kids of all ages entertained upon the Disney Wish.

It’s a Small World Nursery (Deck 2)

3 night disney cruise review

The nursery is perfect for little ones 6 months to 3 years old. There are plenty of toys and activities for little ones to do here. In fact, my boys started to play with some of the toys here during the open house.

If your little one starts to get tired, no worries as they have cribs. Plus Disney trained counselors are in the room to ensure everyone’s safety.

Edge (Deck 5)

Having a 12-year-old niece, I already know she would give the Oceaneer’s Club the side-eye because there’s no way she wants to hang out with her preschool-age cousins the entire cruise.

The Edge would have been her saving grace. Specifically curated for tweens 11-14, this space located on Deck 5, is designed as a New York City loft of sorts, with colorful, “Instagram-able” wall art. Tweens can come to hang with friends, enjoy time alone on their devices, as well as participate in the various activities offered by the club.

Vibe (Deck 12)

Similar to Edge, Vibe is a hangout destination for teenagers 14 to 17 which flaunts Instagram-worthy backdrops, including floor-to-ceiling windows with limitless views of the ocean, neon signs, and classic Parisian architecture with a retro twist. This is a great location for teens to watch movies, play their beloved video games, meet new friends, and participate in programming.

The Hideaway (Deck 12)

We can’t forget about The Hideaway. The Hideaway is for young adults 18-20 years old, technically old enough to go to the same adult-only activities with their parents, but way too cool to do so. Here cruisers can participate in karaoke, show off their dance moves as it’s outfitted with a dance floor and DJ booth, or just relax in this cute and fun location.

The Hideaway is also used as a flexible venue space. Being located next to Vibe, it can be opened as a teen club or even cut off for tween-only activities. On the daily itinerary, there was always something going on at The Hideaway, so much so that it made me interested in stopping by to join in on the fun.

Disney Wish Kid-Only Pools and Slides

Toy story splash zone (deck 12).

3 night disney cruise review

Splash pads are always a hit for younger kiddos. Now imagine a splash pad designed after their favorite Toy Story characters and is located on a cruise ship! It’s definitely as cool as it sounds.

Toy Story Splash Zone is outfitted with two slides including one decorated after Woody’s Round-Up and another after Pizza Planet. Plus various statues including Woody, Buzz, Bullseye, Jessie, and Zurg- many of which shoot out water. To ensure the little ones are thoroughly entertained, there are various interactive elements to keep their little hands and minds busy.

Guests must be under the age of 6 and accompanied by an adult (which they strictly enforce).

Slide-a-saurus Rex Waterslide (Deck 12)

Continuing with the Toy Story theme, Slide-a-saurus Rex Waterslide, adjacent to the Splash Zone, is a bright yellow, double-loop waterslide. This slide is for preschoolers and kindergarteners as it has a height requirement of 38 inches. I did notice parents with some smaller kids, so it’s technically not kid-only if your little one needs a little adult support to enjoy the slide.

The interesting thing about this slide is participants have to climb about 30 or more, enclosed stairs to get on the slide. There are cameras at the entrance of the slide which allows the operator, who is located downstairs, outside of the slide, to change the “green/red” sign to indicate when it’s safe to enter the slide (basically when the kid ahead of them is down the slide).

One of my twins loved the slide, while the other called it “slow”. But he did just get off of the AquaMouse slide, which is for everyone, and wraps around the circumference of the ship.

Our Review of Kids-Only Activities Onboard the Disney Wish

I thought there were a good amount of kids-only activities, especially for my boy’s age, 5. They were young enough to go to Toy Story Splash Zone and Slide-a-saurus Rex Waterslide but old enough to enjoy the Oceaneer’s Club, unsupervised.

For my boys, the Toy Story Splash Zone and Slide-a-saurus Rex Waterslide were fun but if I’m going to leave an honest review about the Disney Wish water activities, I must say my boys were entertained for less than 1 hour. Plus an adult had to accompany them in the Splash Zone.

But the Oceaneer’s Club. I think it won all of our hearts.

Not only did the Oceaneer’s Club have a variety of rooms with character appearances, but they also had special events with the characters. For example, my boys did a scavenger hunt with Captain Hook and a dance party with Mickey and Minnie.

The smiles on their faces every time they went to the kid’s club were absolutely priceless. Plus, it gave mommy and daddy the opportunity to enjoy some kid-free time, without guilt (because we knew our boys were having a blast!)

Family-Friendly Disney Wish Pools and Slides

3 night disney cruise review

Disney Wish Pools On Deck 11 and 12 Midship

Instead of having a few, larger-sized pools which may get fairly crowded, the Disney Wish has six pools in the family area on decks 11 and 12, all with varying depths and sizes. My kids personally loved Mickey’s Pool (deck 11) which is the largest pool and sits right in front of Funnel Vision, a large LCD screen that features different Disney movies and shows.

Swim and a movie anyone?

Likewise, deck 11 has 3 additional pools including Minnie’s pool, Daisy’s Pool, and Pluto’s Pool. All of these have views of the Funnel Vision so if Mickey’s Pool is too crowded, no worries, you have other options. Plus you can also make your way to Donald’s Pool or Goofy’s Pool, both on deck 12.

If my boys weren’t in Mickey’s Pool, you could find them in Donald’s or Goofy’s as they were the smaller pools.

Disney Wish AquaMouse Review

As previously mentioned, AquaMouse wraps around the upper deck of the ship, a breathtaking 760 feet long! One of the twins was extremely excited when he learned that he was indeed tall enough to pass the 42″ height requirement to ride with an adult (48″ to ride alone). The waterslide combines water elements like jets and water blasters with two animated shorts, accompanied by music.

And AquaMouse moves fast!

The other twin and I thought we had time to relax in one of the pools before my husband and his brother would be done. However, before we could get our big toes into the water, they were coming behind us saying how great the waterslide was.

Note to the wise, the line for AquaMouse can be long. My family went while everyone was at Castaway Cay; thus, waiting in line for only about 5 minutes. WIN!

Our Review of Family-Friendly Disney Wish Pools and Slides

I’m not a huge fan of crowds; thus, having pool options made me much more comfortable with exploring the pool area. Also being able to relax in a pool while watching some of your favorite Disney Movies was such a bonus for both kids and adults alike.

And for the parents like me, that may not actually get in the water, there is a spread of lounge chairs by each pool, so you can be close to your little one who is in the pool while you are sunbathing and sipping on your favorite cocktail. Do note that the majority, if not all of the pools are not covered so it can get very hot! I went to deck 13 which had some covered, comfy loungers to get a bit of a reprieve from the sun while my husband and sons splashed away.

Do note that we personally went to the pool area while the ship was docked in Castaway Cay, so the crowd was limited and we could freely explore each pool. I’d highly recommend doing the same if you don’t like crowds. The closer time gets to leaving the port, the more crowded the pool area gets.

Although the pool area was nicely laid out and offered variety, I’m grateful there were other kid and family-friendly entertainment as I don’t think the water activities alone would’ve entertained our family for the entire cruise.

Family-Friendly Disney Wish Entertainment

3 night disney cruise review

The family-friendly entertainment on the Disney Wish Cruise is basically endless. We skipped going to Castaway Cay on the last full day so we had more time to explore all the boat had to offer. Despite the additional time, we still only explored a fraction of the family-friendly entertainment Disney Wish provided.

Disney Wish Stage Show Performances

If you love Broadway-style performances, then expect to be fully entertained with the 3 Broadway-style shows offered on the cruise- “Disney Aladdin”, “The Little Mermaid”, and “Disney Seas the Adventure”. All 3 performances take place in the Walt Disney Theater, a 1200+ seat amphitheater that spans over 3 decks, worthy of the grandeur you will experience.

On embarkment day, you can experience “Disney Seas the Adventure” which includes appearances from Mickey, Goofy, Princess Tiana, and other Disney and Pixar characters. The remaining evenings offer two shows nightly, either “Disney Aladdin” and/or “The Little Mermaid” around 7 pm and 9 pm. Be sure to check the Disney Navigator App to confirm show offerings, days, and times.

“Disney Aladdin- A Musical Spectacular” is a crowd favorite. It’s a perfectly executed reimagined musical comedy featuring our beloved Aladdin, Genie, Princess Jasmine, and more. You’ll be wowed by the set exclusively designed for the Disney Wish and the profound musical renditions of “A Whole New World” and other musical favorites from the classical Disney animation.

Similarly, “Disney The Little Mermaid” is specifically curated for Disney Wish based on the original Broadway adaption from the Disney Animation Film in 1989. The script is reimagined and includes wonderfully executed storytelling, state-of-the-art visual production, and world-class musical production of some of our favorite Little Mermaid songs like “Under the Sea”.

Disney Wish Atrium Live Entertainment

Fitting all of the Broadway-style performances is basically impossible if you want to do the sit-down dinners and/or take advantage of some of the adult-only evening activities. That’s why we were so happy they had live entertainment at the atrium throughout the evenings.

The singing and performances were excellent. Upon approaching the atrium you could witness kids dancing freely with their parents with smiles so big that they could fill the room. The ambiance it created was indeed something special.

Pirates Rockin’ Parlay Party and Fireworks

The live performances don’t stop at the Walt Dinsey Theater or the Atrium. On the last evening, there’s a Pirates Rockin’ Parlay Party and Fireworks show. Well, actually two of them. The first one is earlier in the evening around 730 pm, without fireworks, and the ultimate show with fireworks is closer to 1015 pm.

At first, we were going to pass on going to the party because honestly, after dinner it’s time to drop off the kids at the Oceaneers Club so we can have some adult time. But everyone on the cruise was hyping up the party, and more or less dressed for the pirate theme.

Needless to say, I’m glad that we didn’t miss it. Mickey and the crew’s performance was spectacular! And Captain Hook and the storyline did not disappoint. After the show, was a dance party. The kids had the time of their lives.

Later that evening, after dropping the kids at the Oceaneers Club, my husband and I made it to the fireworks show. I must say, it was pretty impressive.

Wonderland Cinema and Never Land Cinema

Located on deck 4, near the concession stand, are Wonderland and Never Land Cinema. These boutique theaters offer Dolby Atmos 3D audio along with comfy, oversized seats, and beautiful theme-specific decor. Both theaters offer a variety of Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Lucasfilm movies throughout the day.

My boys thought it was so cool to watch a Disney movie on a Disney cruise with yummy, freshly popped popcorn.

Looking to burn some energy with your kids, indoors? Be sure to head to Hero Zone, a climate-controlled, indoor multifunctional sports area, which can be found on deck 12. Guests can enjoy sports like basketball to table games like air hockey and foosball. There is scheduled free time to play, as well as scheduled events.

Also, be sure to check out The Incredibles Incredi-Games. An Incredibles-themed, inflatable obstacle course. Guests must be 40″ to participate and wear socks.

Our Review of Disney Wish Family-Friendly Entertainment

Honestly, I don’t think one family can possibly experience all of the entertainment that Disney Wish has to offer in a single sail, especially on the 3-day sail option, which we did. There is literally SO MUCH TO DO!

If you have to prioritize some of the entertainment, it would be the live entertainment and the Pirate Party. Both truly make the experience special for the entire family.

Disney Wish Character Meet and Greet Review

3 night disney cruise review

The Disney Wish Character Meet and Greet was one of the key reasons why we went on the cruise. My boys wanted to meet Mickey and his friends. And boy did they!

I absolutely loved how many opportunities were provided to meet characters- both during the day and in the evenings. The Navigator App lists the character meet and greet times, so you can plan accordingly. The most challenging part is multiple characters’ meet and greets occur simultaneously, making it challenging to do two within the 30-minute timeframe of each meet and greet.

The good news is, you are not waiting in line for long. I think the longest we waited was about 10-15 minutes if that. Plus, the character meets and greets go beyond Mickey and Minnie. Some additional characters include Donald, Daisy, Goofy, Moana, Cinderella, and so many more!

Disney Wish Adult-Only Experiences

3 night disney cruise review

I’m going to be honest, when we booked the Disney Wish Cruise, I kept asking myself “what’s in it for me?” My thought of a Disney cruise was Mickey and his friends, and nothing else. But boy, was I wrong. I was pleasantly surprised by all of the adult-only experiences on the Dish Wish Cruise Line.

Disney Wish Adult-Only Activities Review

When I logged into the Disney cruise line navigator app, I was pleasantly surprised to see all of the adult-only activities offered. From cocktail and spirit classes to nightly entertainment.

My husband and I took a reserved whiskey class. This was such a cool experience. The instructor chose 4 high-end whiskeys for us to sample and learn about their history. The class was intimate with only 5 participants, and an instructor whose knowledge of whiskey was impressive!

Similarly, they offered wine, champagne, cocktail making, and other classes. Most of the classes were scheduled at night, which is perfect as the Oceaneers Club stays open until midnight. Do note that there is an additional fee to participate in these types of classes.

But don’t fret, there are nightly activities that are free of charge as well. We particularly loved the “Match Your Mate” where they choose 3 couples from the audience. They separated each couple, asking one individual questions about their relationship, while the other individual was out of the room. Once the couple was reunited, they had to “match their mate.”

The laughs were endless. And the chemistry of the hosts was outstanding, top tier.

Additional adult-only activities include silent DJ parties, music trivia, and other game-show types of activities. Be sure to check your Disney Navigator App for the dates and time options.

Disney Wish Adult-Only Zones Review

Located on deck 13, Quiet Cove is the adult-only pool area. And it’s not just any pool area, it screams comfort and luxury. It contains Disney Cruise Line’s first infinity pool, as well as 2 whirlpools, a bar, a restaurant, and beautiful, comfy loungers.

Be sure to drop the kids off at the kid’s club so you can have some adult time in Quiet Cove.

Disney Wish Spa, Fitness Center, and Salons

So I knew that cruises had spas and fitness centers. But no way did I think they would be so nice and luxurious, especially on a Disney Cruise.

Senses Spa and Salon

I’ve been to a lot of spas in my life and Senses Spa is top-tier. Not only do they offer a wide range of services, including a Medispa doctor, but the ambiance is also breathtaking! During the open house, we were able to see two of the couples’ massage rooms. Romance overload.

Each couples’ massage room had beautiful, large hot tubs and top-of-the-line massage tables. I was highly impressed. If there was space in the budget and schedule, I most definitely would’ve opted for a couples massage in this room.

Similarly, The Rainforest Room is the epitome of relaxation. It’s an indoor/outdoor experience with a dry sauna, steam rooms, whirlpools, amazingly comfortable loungers, floor-to-ceiling windows, and unobstructed views of the ocean. In order to access Disney Wish Rainforest Room, you have to purchase a day pass. On our cruise, you actually had to purchase a day pass for all 3 days, no single-day passes were available.

Senses Fitness Center

I am a sucker for a beautiful gym with high-end equipment. So when I saw Senses Fitness Center, I knew I had to sneak a moment for myself so that I could work out. Not only is the equipment top-tier, but there are also two separate studios. One for yoga-like classes and another for spin classes. Do note that some of the classes have a fee.

And can you believe it, I purchased shoe insoles at the fitness center? They do a foot test and recommend insoles that help with joint pressure.

Untangled Salon and Hook’s Barbery

Never would I have thought that a cruise would have salons aboard- Untangled Salon for women and Hook’s Barbery for men. Untangled offers hair services, manicures, and pedicures, as well as lash lifts in a beautiful Rapunzel-theme ambiance. Likewise, Hook’s Barbery features heavy leather barber chairs as well as manicure and pedicure stations. We actually did our whiskey tasting at Hook’s Barbery, where they revealed the hidden high-end whiskey bar.

Disney Wish Lounges and Bars Review

3 night disney cruise review

Another thing that I was pleasantly surprised about on the Disney Wish was the number of bars available throughout the ship. There are over a dozen bars on the Disney Wish. Yes, more than 12.

Below are some of them:

The Bayou (Deck 3)

Living in New Orleans (NOLA) for the last decade, The Bayou most definitely gives old NOLA, speakeasy vibes from Princess and The Frog. It’s located in the center of the boat, without any walls. So it’s great for people-watching!

Nightingale’s (Deck 3)

This Cinderealla-inspired piano bar is located next to the slide which leads to the Oceaneers Club. Depending on how the day has gone with your kiddos, you may or may not want to stop here for champagne, wine, or craft cocktail after dropping your little ones off.

Preludes (Deck 3)

Heading to experience a Broadway-style show at the Walt Disney Theater or a movie at one of the cinemas? Stop by Preludes to grab a drink or popcorn before heading in.

Star Wars: Hyperspace Lounge (Deck 3)

Have you heard of the $5000 cocktail on the Disney Wish? Well, that’s at Hyperspace Lounge, decorated as a luxurious starcruiser. And don’t worry, all drinks aren’t $5000. Most are very reasonably priced.

Do note, a reservation is required.

Wishing Star Cafe (Deck 4)

This was one of my favorite cafes to stop for a coffee or drink on the cruise. Similar to Bayou, it’s located near the center of the ship, without walls. Great for people watching without necessarily being in the center of things.

Luna’s Libations (Deck 4)

As previously mentioned, several of the adults-only activities like game shows and silent DJ party takes place at the Luna Theater. And what type of adult-only activity would it be without a bar? Luna’s Libations not only offers great drinks but also popcorn. A 2-for-1 special in my book!

Keg & Compass (Deck 5)

Think upscale sports bar. Keg & Compass offers unique craft beers, cocktails, wine, and even an a la carte food menu, which includes wings, German pretzels, fish and chips, and more yumminess.

Enchanted Sword Cafe (Deck 5)

Similar to Wishing Star Cafe, grab a coffee, pressed drink, or cocktail while on the 5th deck.

The Lookout (Deck 11)

Located by Mickey and Friends Festival of Foods quick-service stations, The Lookout has a good selection of beer, wine, frozen cocktails, and liquor. Perfect when grabbing a meal or chilling at the pool.

Pool Bar (Deck 11)

I mean, what’s a pool without a bar? The Pool Bar only offers beer, wine, and water. Luckily for me, who loves tequila, The Lookout is right there as well.

Marceline Market Cafe (Deck 11)

Similar to The Lookout, Marceling Market Cafe offers an opportunity for guests to grab a coffee or adult beverage while grabbing food at the Marceline Market. I had an awesome coffee Old Fashioned with my breakfast one day. Delish!

The Rose (Deck 12)

Located at the entrance of the adult-only restaurants Palo Steakhouse and Enchante, The Rose is an elegant, upscale lounge. This is the perfect place to grab a drink and ocean view if you’re feeling fancy.

Cove Cafe and Bar (Deck 13)

Although two separate entities, with Cove Cafe inside with coffee, teas, and treats, and Cove Bar outside with beer, wine, and cocktails. When in Quiet Cove, an adult-only area, be sure to grab a drink.

Currents (Deck 14)

Look, after spending a few hours at Toy Story Splash Zone and Slide-a-saurus Rex Waterslide, this mama was in need of an adult beverage. Currents to the rescue as it’s located on a deck above the kid-only water activities and has large, comfy lounge chairs.

Would I go on Disney Wish Without Kids?

Surprisingly, I would go on Disney Wish without my kids because this cruise exudes luxury. The only downside is that most of the adult-only activities that piqued my interest like spa treatments, and adult-only restaurants, cost extra. So I’m not sure if my budget would like it.

Disney Wish Food Review

Disney Wish Food Review- rack of lamb at 1923 restaurant

The first thing my husband did when researching the cruise was, after checking the cost, looked at a Disney Wish food review. Because he refused to pay that much for a cruise that only had lackluster food. The good thing about Disney Wish Cruise is there’s something for everyone, with a variety of restaurants and food options.

Disney Wish Mickey’s Festival of Foods (Deck 11) Review

Mickey’s Festival of Food is a quick-service, food court-style “restaurant” with 5 themed food stations, including Mickey’s Smokestack Barbeque, Donald’s Cantina, Daisy’s Pizza Pie, Goofy’s Grill, Sweet Minnie’s Ice Cream. Feel free to grab a bite for lunch, dinner, or anytime throughout the day.

It’s conveniently located around the perimeter of the pool area. So you can easily plan to grab a bite before/after a swim or sit by the numerous tables that offer ocean views.

Touring such a large cruise ship on the first day, definitely worked up our appetite. So we headed to Mickey’s Festival of Food while we waited for our room to be ready. I was impressed by the overall quality and freshness of the food. My family had Mickey’s Smokestack Barbeque and loved the pork and baked beans. I’m pretty sure if one of my twins was giving a Disney Wish food review, Mickey’s Smokestack Barbeque would rank the highest.

I had a burrito bowl at Donald’s Cantina, which was pretty yummy. Despite the food being tasty, most of Mickey’s Festival of Food options were the more fast-food type of options (outside of the BBQ). And personally, my belly wouldn’t allow 3 days of this type of food without some punishment in return. So, I was grateful for the other restaurant options on Disney Wish.

Disney Wish Marceline Market (Deck 11) Review

Steps away from Mickey’s Festival of Food is its higher-class big brother, Marceline Market. It’s also buffet-style with a plethora of food stations that severe a variety of food. Like all of the food options on the Disney Wish Cruise, there is a hand washing/sanitizing station upon entrance and the food is served by the staff.

Marceline Market is open for breakfast and lunch for buffet-style serving and a sit-down dinner. We had both breakfast and lunch here and they were the best meals that I had on the Disney Cruise, especially the lunch. What I loved about the Marceline Market on the Disney Wish Cruise is they had food options from all around the world.

Breakfast ranged from the standard American breakfast with Mickey Mouse-shaped pancakes with eggs, to European cheeses and croissants, and also Asian breakfast items like congee. There was literally something for everyone.

And not to be outdone, the lunch options were phenomenal. This was literally the meal that stood out in my head. There were so many options, that I ended up having three plates so I could taste the variety of options. My plates consisted of Mediterranean-grilled style lamb and chicken, perfectly roasted vegetables, Indian style curry, and rice, lightly sauteed shrimp on a bed of salad and quinoa, along with a flourless cake and ice cream.

Oh, and did I mention we enjoyed this meal while taking in the breathtaking views of Castaway Cay as we were sitting in the outdoor dining area of Marceline Market.

Disney Rotational Dining Review

3 night disney cruise review

There was so much hype around the rotational dining on the Disney Wish Cruise, we couldn’t wait to experience all three options: Arendelle: A Frozne Dining Adventure, 1923, and Worlds of Marvel. So much so, we planned our cruise outfits accordingly.

Please note that all rotation dining experiences are included.

Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure

On our first night of the cruise, we were assigned dinner at Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure. A dinner themed after the Disney animated musical, Frozen. And boy did the performance not disappoint!

When you first enter the dining area, you see the stage set in the middle, which made me immediately question where we were seated in relation to the stage. There are 2-3 rows of immediate seating around the entire circumference of the stage. We were not seated in that area but in the larger loop that’s separated from the immediate seating by an aisle.

Thus, I was concerned that we weren’t going to be able to see or hear the performance. From where we were seated, we could see the stage relatively well. It was a bit harder to hear the performance but we didn’t have to worry about that for long, because they took the show on the road.

All of the characters made their way throughout the dining hall, ensuring that each table had time to interact with them. And my boys LOVED meeting Elsa and Olaf as they wished them a happy birthday.

The menu was appropriately Nordic-themed, featuring split pea soup (which was delicious), chilled asparagus, roasted pork tenderloin, pan-seared seabass, and more! The food was tasty (not amazing) and the service was excellent.

Little did I know, the same servers rotate with you nightly- creating a great opportunity to bond.

1923 gives an old-world Hollywood vibe based on the year that The Walt Disney Company was founded in California. The mix of wood and brown leather gave it a very elegant feel. Plus, we were fortunate to be seated in front of one of the oversized windows with an uninhibited view of the sunset over the ocean. Hands down, best ambiance (at least for an adult) of the rotational dining options.

Of course, the menu had to complement the elegance of the theme. With a rack of lamb, filet mignon, duck confit, ahi tuna, and other higher-end food choices. I was hoping that this would be my favorite meal of the cruise.

My honest Disney Wish 1923 food review is the food unfortunately did not live up to the hype, for me. I ordered the rack of lamb and my husband had the filet mignon. Neither was as flavorful and tender as we were hoping.

Worlds of Marvel

3 night disney cruise review

My boys LOVE Marvel, I mean LOVE IT!

Their faces lit from ear to ear as we walked into the Worlds of Marvel restaurant and they noticed that each table had an interactive Quantaum core and the walls were furnished with large screen TVs. The excitement continued to grow throughout the evening as they helped Ant-Man and The Wasp save the day against an unexpected villain.

Oh, and we cannot forget the real-life cameo of Spiderman who walked through the restaurant hugging and hi-fiving kiddos. The smile on my kid’s face could not be erased if you’d try.

The menu selection takes the theme after the various homes of our favorite Marvel characters, including the like of Wakanda, Africa, New York City, and Sokovia in Eastern Europe. As much as I wanted to love my chicken schnitzel, I just didn’t. It was rather flavorless to me. My husband had the beef tenderloin and he thought it was just okay.

Disney Wish Adult-Only Restaurants

I swear the Imagineers of the Disney Wish thought of everything, including high-end adult-only restaurants. Between Palo Steakhouse and Enchanté by Chef Arnaud Lallement adults have the option to enjoy dinner or Sunday brunch (at Enchanté by Chef Arnaud Lallement) sans kiddos.

Palo combines the best of both worlds, Italian cuisine, and steaks. If you’re a steak lover, you won’t be disappointed by the options, including some of the best steak cuts in the world like Japanese Kobe, Australian wagyu, and more!

If you’re looking for the ultimate opulence that Disney Wish has to offer, you must have dinner at Enchanté by Chef Arnaud Lallement, a three-Michelin-starred chef. The curated menu gives you three dining options: Collection- a seasonally based menu curated with the best meats and options available, Passion- a six-course dining experience, or a la carte.

Please note that reservations are required for adult-only dining experiences and incur an additional fee.

Our Review of the Food on the Disney Wish

The dining options on the Disney Wish are plentiful. There is literally an option for everyone with the rotational dining experiences featuring both vegetarian and kids menus. Similar to the entertainment offered on the cruise ship, there are so many options that it’s impossible for anyone to dine at them all in a single voyage upon the Disney Wish.

If I had to give Disney Wish restaurants a review on the dining experiences, I’d rate the ambiance and entertainment factor an A+. Everyone was thoroughly entertained and loved the ambiance of each venue.

Unfortunately, I’d have to leave a review regarding the taste of the food on The Disney Wish a B, maybe a B-. I really wanted to love the food but the only dining experience that had me leaving with the happy tummy dance was the Marceline Market. The food in the rotational restaurants was blander than I’d like- but that’s my personal taste. Some people thought the food was excellent.

Disney Wish Stateroom Review

3 night disney cruise review

The Disney Wish has 4 main categories of staterooms: inside, oceanview, verandah, and concierge. Both oceanview and verandah staterooms have both deluxe oceanview staterooms and deluxe family oceanview staterooms. The difference between the two is the deluxe oceanview staterooms fit 3-4 and the deluxe family oceanview staterooms fit 4-5.

We originally booked a deluxe oceanview stateroom with a verandah and we lucked up and got upgraded to a deluxe family oceanview stateroom (I think because our travel advisor booked the cruise for us- as we have NO status with Disney). And man were we impressed.

The room was pretty spacious with a king-size bed, a couch that converts to a bed, a bed in the ceiling that converts to a bunk bed along with the couch bed, and a Murphy bed. It’s pretty cool how you leave for the day to explore the ship or The Bahamas and return to your stateroom prepped for the night’s rest.

Similarly, the bathrooms were well thought out as the shower and toilet were separated. Great for when toddlers need to go potty last minute while someone else is taking a shower.

Honestly, I can’t think of anything that I would improve my review of the staterooms on the Disney Wish. The beds were extremely comfortable, including the boys’ which came with bed rails. Everything was pretty spacious to be on a cruise, including our verandah.

Disney Wish Itinerary Review 

We took the 3 night Disney Wish Cruise which docked in Nassau, Bahamas, and Castaway Cay, a Disney-owned Bahamian Island. This was the best option for our family as it left on a Friday and came back on a Monday, reducing the number of days the boys would miss school. Plus, we didn’t know what we were getting into, so we wanted to put our toe in the water before taking a deep dive.

My honest review, I think the 3-night Disney Wish cruise is too short of an itinerary, especially to enjoy the destinations and the ship itself. In fact, we chose to skip Castaway Cay so that we could explore some of the ship’s water activities. And personally, I thought we made the right decision. Because I’m paying the premium of being on a Disney Cruise not to necessarily go to a nice beach with water activities but to enjoy the ship and the premium entertainment the cruise ship offers.

With that said, we left feeling like we only tasted a small portion of what Disney Wish provides. Not necessarily disappointment, but more wishing we had more time. Thus, if you have the option to take the 4-night cruise, I’d recommend that option so you can explore and do more.

Overall Disney Wish Review 

3 night disney cruise review

I’m shocked to say it, but the Disney Wish Cruise exceeded my expectations! It literally was beyond anything I could’ve imagined. The cruise ship itself was beautiful, modern, and well-thought-out.

I personally loved how there was an endless amount of activities to do, no matter the time of the day. There’s literally no opportunity for your kids to say the dreaded “I’m bored”, while on the Disney Wish.

And to my pleasant surprise, the entertainment wasn’t just for kids. So much so I want to go back to the Disney Wish so I can explore the adult-only options like the Quiet Cove, spa, adult-only Sunday brunch, and more of the lounges.

The main thing I would change would be the flavor of the food at the rotational dining options. Personally, I thought the food was a bit flavorless. Like, pass me the salt and pepper, please. However, I didn’t feel that way at Mickey’s Festival of Foods or Marceline Market.

Since there was a variety of tasty food options outside of rotational dining and my boys enjoyed the ambiance and entertainment of said dinners, I didn’t leave the cruise feeling hungry or extremely disappointed.

We all left the cruise very sad that it was over, desiring just a few more hours to explore the cruise ship and soak in the Disney magic.

Disney Wish Cruise Review FAQ

3 night disney cruise review

What are the Transportation Options to Port Canaveral for Disney Wish?

We flew into Orlando on a pretty good flight deal from our hometown, New Orleans. We initially were going to rent a car so we could explore Orlando and park at Port Canaveral. The drive from Orlando to Port Canaveral is about 90 minutes. There is the option to either park at the Port Canaveral cruise terminal for $17 per day or use off-site parking options for about half the price.

Since my husband’s family drove to Orlando from Miami , we skipped getting the rental car because they were able to drive us around Orlando and to the Port Canaveral cruise terminal. To return back to the airport, we looked into two options: shuttle or ride-share service.

The size of your party will determine the best transportation option to/from Port Canaveral. The shuttle from MCO airport to Port Canaveral cost $25 per person, one-way, or $50 roundtrip. If you aren’t flying in the day of the cruise (which I highly recommend flying in at least the day before), and there are only 2 or 3 of you, you’re going to want a shuttle that picks you up from your lodging accommodations .

Do note that those shuttles’ rates are per person. If you have four people, as we did, it may be cheaper and more convenient to take a private shuttle service , especially if your entire party can’t fit into a single ride-share service vehicle.

Since there were four of us, we were able to comfortably fit into a Uber, car seats and all. Our one-way from Port Canaveral to Orlando Airport (MCO) was $78.66.

What’s Free on the Disney Wish Cruise?

Unlike most cruises, soft drinks, Powerade, and Vitamin Water are free on Disney Wish. In fact, Mickey’s Festival of Friends has self-serve stations for guests to get soft drinks and water at their leisure. Similarly, room service is free on Disney Wish.

Oh, we can’t forget the free catalog of Disney movies on television. I don’t know but there’s something special about laying in your comfy bed watching a Disney movie on a Disney cruise.

Can you Bring Alcohol On Board the Disney Wish?

3 night disney cruise review

Surprisingly, yes! Guests 21 and older can bring 2 unopen bottles of 750ml of wine or champagne on board during embarkation day, in a carry-on. Please note there is a $25 corkage fee if you choose to bring your own wine to a restaurant or lounge.

Personally, we brought 4 bottles of wine (2 per adult); however, we ended up only drinking 2 bottles because the drinks onboard were fairly reasonable, starting at $6-$8, and up (and I’m more of a tequila girl when relaxing at the pool).

How is the Embarkation and Disembarkation Process on the Disney Wish?

Disney wish embarkation process.

In the weeks leading up to the cruise, you will get the opportunity to choose a timeframe that you’d like to check-in. Check-in on the Disney Wish starts at 11. And embarkation begins around noon. Although we choose to check in at 1, we ended up arriving a little after 11. And I’m glad we did.

The check-in process was super easy and quick. We waited in line to check in for less than 5 minutes, causing us to get to the waiting area before the gangway a little after 12. We waited there for 10 minutes or so before we were called to embark on the cruise ship!

After a few welcome pictures with the Disney Wish background, we were on the gangway, and on our way to embark on the Disney Wish!

Disney Wish Disembarkation Process

Disembarkation on the Disney Wish can start as early as 730 AM, especially if you carry your own luggage off the ship. For those who use the porter service, you will be given character luggage tags to indicate when you can disembark. All luggage taken by the porter service must be set outside of the stateroom door the evening prior to disembarkation.

If you don’t like waiting in line, disembarking early is the best way to go.

We’re not early risers, especially on vacation, so we skipped the early morning disembarkation breakfast scheduled around 7 AM and disembarked closer to 830 AM. And there was a crowd!

If you used the porter service, you can grab your luggage and head to border control. This is what took the longest amount of time. We stood in line for about 30 minutes, waiting to get to the border control agent so we could officially disembark the cruise ship.

How much did the Disney Wish Cruise cost us?

3 night disney cruise review

Of course, the cost of the Disney Wish will vary based on the stateroom category, when you decide to go, and how far in advance you booked. Our particular cruise was sold out (which it appears most of them are) and we only booked it 6 weeks in advance or so.

For 2 adults and 2 kids, with a verandah stateroom, our Disney Wish cruise cost $3885. On board, we spent about an additional $1000 with the tip package, unlimited photo package, Pirate night dress-up sessions in bibbidi bobbidi boutique, reserve whiskey sessions, etc.

In total, including 4 flights from New Orleans , an excursion when we docked in Nassau , and transportation, we spent around $6250 to make our Disney Wish dreams come true.

Would We Sail on the Disney Wish Again?

Definitely. To my pleasant surprise, there was so much to do on the cruise ship I feel like we only scratched the surface. Plus the planning was significantly easier than most family vacations.

I’m sure another Disney Cruise is in our future, especially the Disney Magic since it sails from our hometown, New Orleans. But if we sail the Disney Wish again, which the likelihood is high, I’d probably skip disembarking at the ports, at least for the full day. This way we can have more time to explore all the cruise ship has to offer.

Disney Wish Review Tips & Tricks

3 night disney cruise review

Book Desired Activities Early

We didn’t book our cruise until 6 weeks before our embarkation day. At that time, there were already activities sold out, i.e. the Sunday brunch. Thus, I recommend, if an activity has piqued your interest, book it.

If necessary, you can always cancel or reschedule when on the boat.

The Early Bird Gets The Worm

If you don’t like lines or crowds, embark and disembark the ship as early as possible. Embarking early is fairly easy because that starts around noon. That gives your more time during the open house to explore the ship, with fewer people aboard.

Dress The Part

One of the cutest things about the Disney Cruise is seeing everyone dressed in their favorite Disney, Marvel, or Pixar characters, especially the kiddos. And the pirate night is next level. Some of the pirate costumes were out of sight!

Bring Lanyards

As a novice cruiser, I failed to realize how important it was to have a lanyard to hold our stateroom key card. You need it for everything. To get on/off the cruise ship, to purchase anything, to check your kiddos in and out of the Oceaneer’s Club, etc.

Let’s just say we lost a card more than once. Luckily they didn’t charge us for new ones.

✔️ Explore Disney-themed Lanyards ✔️

Disney Cruise Stateroom Door Magnets

Another thing I didn’t realize was a thing, stateroom door magnets . It’s a cute way to decorate your stateroom but an even easier way to help you (and your young kiddos) identify which stateroom is yours.

✔️ Explore Disney-themed Stateroom Door Magnets ✔️

Bring an Autograph Book

So many kiddos had books or items that the Disney characters could sign. What a cute souvenir! I most definitely will be doing this for our next Disney cruise.

✔️ Explore Disney-themed Autograph Books ✔️

Is the Disney Wish Unlimited Photo Package Worth It?

Yes! Each day there are numerous, unique opportunities to get your photo snagged with your family and or favorite characters. Varying from themed backgrounds, to dinner, and even just walking around the cruise ship, there are endless opportunities to capture your time on Disney Wish.

Plus the individual cost of photos is relatively expensive. And since so many are taken, you may end up spending around the cost of the unlimited package, on a few pictures.

Focus on the Cruise Ship rather than The Bahamas

When paying for a Disney Cruise, you’re paying for the amenities of the cruise ship, not necessarily the destinations it docks at, The Bahamas for the Disney Wish. I personally recommend not spending the entire time the ship is docked to explore Nassau or Castaway Cay. This is the perfect time to take advantage of the water activities and other entertainment that gets crowded when everyone is on the cruise ship.

Did Disney Wish make me want to go to Disney World?

No. The Disney Wish felt like a curated Disney experience. Outside of disembarkation, we literally didn’t wait longer than about 10 minutes for anything, including character meets & greets. The service was A+ and the overall experience was top-tier.

I can’t imagine having the same experience with tens of thousands of people, in the Orlando sun. However, I am interested in giving Disneyland Paris and Disneyland Tokyo a try.

Conclusion: Disney Wish Cruise Line Review

Overall, Disney Wish exceeded all of our expectations!

We were pleasantly surprised by the number of activities available for just kids, adults-only, and families. There was literally something for everyone. So much so, we can’t wait to go again!

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Disney Cruise Lines Review – Disney Dream 3-Night Bahamas

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disney dream cruise review mama cheaps

In 2014 we cruised with Disney Cruise Lines for the very first time. We enjoyed a 3 night Disney Magic sailing from Florida with a then 5 year old and 5 month old. We knew as we disembarked that ship that it would be the first of many Disney Cruises we would enjoy. The service, the accommodations, the entertainment, the food – ALL were top notch.

This year we found ourselves on our 2nd Disney cruise, this time aboard the larger Disney Dream. Please make sure you make it to the bottom of this review post where I share our thoughts when comparing the two ships.

Embarkation

As I mentioned above, we sailed on the Disney Dream this year. The Dream is one of two larger ships in the Disney Cruise Line fleet (the other large ship being the Fantasy). The Dream has undergone some renovations since our cruise, including the addition of a Sweets Shop (modeled after the movie Wreck-It Ralph) and some Star Wars themes are now on display in the Oceaneer Club (Kids’ Club).

We cruised in February this year, boarding the ship on February 20th. Our 3-night cruise ran from Friday to Monday. We enjoyed a few days at the parks prior to cruising (the opposite of what we did last year). The weather was gorgeous during our entire cruise. It was warm but not super hot and we lucked out and had clear blue skies.

We drove from PA to FL and drove from the parks on a Thursday to Cocoa Beach, FL. While last year we surprised our kids with the Disney trip, this year they knew where we were going (er, at least, Lily did. LOL Landon was about 16 months old on this trip so besides getting excited to see Mickey, I doubt he actually “got it.”) We spent Thursday night at the Country Inn and Suites (9009 Astronaut Blvd, Cape Canaveral, FL 32920) which was literally right down the road from the cruise ship terminal.

Our boarding time was around noon but since we were cruising concierge level this year (more expensive but came with many perks), I knew we would be among the first cruisers on the ship so we aimed to arrive at the port late morning.

We arrived at the port and just like the year before, everything was entirely seamless. We had to show our passports to gain entry into the parking area. You can park in the parking garage or in a closer priority lot that is literally right next to the ship. We tried the priority lot last year and thought the convenience was well worth the up-charge. I believe it was about $20 more to park in this lot versus the parking garage across the street.

Disney Dream Cruise 002

The First Few Hours

There are a few things you should do as soon as you board a Disney Cruise Ship . We took care of those things immediately after we got on the ship.

Then there are a few ticketed events on the Disney Dream including 2 character meet and greets (during our cruise anyway). On our cruise there was a Princess Gathering (3 princesses, see below) and a Frozen meet and greet with Anna and Elsa. Both events required tickets which can be secured immediately after you board at the Port Excursions Desk.

Disney Cruise Princess Gathering Tickets

After that it was time to explore the ship! We stopped into the Concierge Lounge to meet our Concierge team. Read an in-depth review of those services here .

disney dream hallway deck 12

When you board the ship, lunch is available immediately up in Cabanas, the buffet restaurant. We did make it there for lunch eventually but were too excited to check out the other areas first. We passed by the Walt Disney Theatre where a nightly show is performed.

Walt Disney Theatre

We ran into Belle who was only too happy to stop and chat with the kids for a few minutes.

belle

I fell in love with the decor on the Dream the second I set foot on the ship.  Beautifully decorated with some of the most intricate details does not even begin to explain it.  I tend to think cruise ships have tacky decor.  I could not have felt more different about the Dream.  It was absolutely STUNNING.

disney dream chandelier

Cabin (#12506, Forward, Deck 12, 1-Bedroom Suite)

I wrote an entire review post of cabin 12506 . Check it out to see a bunch more pictures than the ones below!

Last year we stayed in a Deluxe Family Stateroom with Verandah .

disney dream suite bedroom

A fun fact: When you’re on a Disney Cruise, the tv in your cabin plays Disney movies. ALL SORTS OF DISNEY MOVIES. At any given time, we were able to find popular flicks like Tangled, Wreck-It Ralph, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Finding Nemo, Mary Poppins, The Lion King and more on tv. In addition to ABC, Disney Channel, Disney Junior and ABC Fam, there were also some newer movies for adults. Saving Mr. Banks, for instance, was available on demand when we cruised.

Ship Features

It’s hard to know where to begin! First of all, keep in mind, the Dream is a larger ship than the Magic or the Wonder. HOWEVER, it didn’t really seem that they had a ton more features. Definitely some, yes, but instead it seemed like the bigger size simply accommodated more passengers. More cabins, bigger restaurants, bigger theatre, bigger kids’ club, you get the idea.

Adults Only Area – In addition to standard features like a spa, gym, jogging track, etc, the Dream has some really fun spots that are well worth checking out. On the very front of the ship is an adults-only area. There is a pool and lounge area, along with a little coffee shop called Cove Cafe.

Pools, Toddler Splash Zone and AquaDuck Water Ride – A big drawback that we have found on other cruise ships is a huge lack of water entertainment for the non-potty trained kids. Disney is the complete opposite! Not only is there a fun kid pool with an elaborate splash-area and twisting water slide for young children, there is a toddler splash zone specifically for anyone in a swim diaper.

Bob and I both took Lily for separate rides on the AquaDuck – it was REALLY fun!

There is a huge movie screen on the funnel by the pool that plays Disney movies all day and all night!

pool

The Dream has a photography area where you can look for pictures taken of your fam throughout the trip. There are a couple of gift shops brimming with Disney merchandise. The prices in the gift shop didn’t appear to be too inflated (if at all) than what you’d pay at the parks. One store is pretty much a giant Disney store with plush, character toys, dresses, etc. The other store has all sorts of DCL branded merch.

O.M.Gee. By far, the food that we had on the Magic rivaled some of the finest restaurants that we have ever dined at. The Dream DID NOT disappoint. The food was absolutely delicious. From the buffet to the options for adult-only, reservation-only gourmet dining, we were never so happy to pack on a few extra pounds. LOL

There are a bunch of places to eat on the ship.

Quick Eats – For quick food on-the-go try Frozone Treats for Smoothies – by the kids’ pool area. Also near the pool is ice cream at Eye Scream and Flo’s Cafe which serves burgers, chicken tenders, pizza, fresh fruit, salads and sandwich wraps..

You can stop at Preludes before entering the Walt Disney Theatre to grab popcorn (flavored or fresh-popped butter), drinks, etc.

Room Service – Available 24 hours a day (except on the last night of your cruise), if you’re hungry, just pick up the phone! We ordered from room service a couple of times and it always came quickly. Don’t forget to tip your waiter a couple dollars – it’s always appreciated! Hot tip: You know those premium Mickey Mouse ice cream bars that are all the rage in the parks? You can order ’em from room service even though they’re not on the menu. FOR FREE. :D Hotter tip: Order a Mickey bar and 2 of the Big Island Extra-Large Chocolate Chip Cookies. Put the Mickey bar between the cookies for an INCREDIBLE ice cream sandwich!!

mickey ice cream bar

Here is a pic of the Room Service Menu on the Disney Dream. Pic was taken Feb 2015.

disney cruise room service menu

Fine Dining – The Dream has two fine dining restaurant, Palo and Remy. For $85 (Remy, French Cuisine) or $35 (Palo, Italian Cuisine) per adult (gratuity INCLUDED), you can enjoy a swanky dinner (some sailings now offering brunch as well). We made reservations months in advance for brunch at Palo on the day our shipped docked at Nassau.

We were so very excited for this lunch. Lunch at Palo was the very first time that we enjoyed a kid-free dinner TOGETHER away from home since before Landon was born! We dropped Lily off at the kids’ club and then dropped Landon at the It’s A Small World Nursery. He cried when we left which made me feel terrible. I hoped and prayed that he’d rally!

Our lunch at Palo was luxurious, succulent, mouthwatering and everything in between. I had tilapia which tasted better than any seafood I have ever eaten in my life. Bob had veal which he made me try – it literally melted in my mouth. I don’t know how, but we saved a little room for dessert which was served in buffet form. IN.CREDIBLE.

Appetizers (buffet form):

Palo appetizers

Main Course:

palo tilapia

We made it through brunch, through dessert and were JUST about to have some strong and tasty espresso when this popped up on our wave phone. LOL Check please! We went and grabbed Landon, took him back to our cabin and got him down for a nap. But yes, Palo, UNBELIEVABLE. We both felt that it was worth every single penny.

wave phone

Table Service Meals – There are 3 different restaurants on the Dream. On your first night on the ship, you head to your assigned restaurant (main seating or late seating). We chose main seating at 5:45 pm because last year Lily fell asleep by the end of a couple late seating meals. You are rotated through the three restaurants during your trip and your waitstaff (waiter, assistant waiter, head waiter) travel with you! We loved this. It gave us the chance to check out each unique restaurant on the ship while enjoying the camaraderie that comes with having consistent waitstaff each night. For the kids – each night the kids can choose from the same menu of kid-friendly foods.

Animator’s Palate:

animators palate entrance

We were so excited to eat dinner at AP because it was our very favorite restaurant on the Magic. A word of warning, the experience at AP on the Dream was nothing like the Magic. It was fun, it was entertaining, the food was good. But by the end of dessert at AP on the Magic, the music and lights were swelling, Mickey appeared, cheering, excitement. On the Dream, the set up is VERY similar to that of the Turtle Talk with Crush show at Epcot Center. Crush (turtle from Finding Nemo) and other characters from that movie swim around the restaurant via big screens. They interact with different tables. It’s very fun but we just kept waiting for “something more” thanks to the year before on the Magic. In fact, as we sat there on the Dream, Bob and I were saying to each other, “Is that it? Do we leave? Or are we going to miss some sort of finale?” Nope, no finale. So I’m sorry to say, we were not fans of AP on the Dream. It was so much more exciting on the Magic.

animators palette

We ended up at Animator’s Palate on Pirate Night, so the kids were all decked out in their best pirate finery. I also succumbed to a total upsell – a few bucks for this light-up fairy straw. LOL

Disney Dream Cruise 053

That being said, let’s talk about food.

Here is the menu from Animator’s Palate:

animators palatte menu

I had the Creamy Butternut Squash Soup, Black Truffle Pasta Purseittes, Herb Crusted Veal Chop

butternut squash soup

For dessert I had the “Make Your Own Pie.” I wasn’t all too impressed with it. It definitely sounded cooler than it was.

animators palate dessert menu

Royal Palace: Dinner in the Royal Palace Restaurant was inspired by Cinderella (note the Pumpkin Coach bread basket!) and featured French Cuisine.

royal palace

I devoured the Breaded and Deep Fried Brie (with an orange and cranberry chutney). YUM!

brie

Next up was some Leek and Potato Soup followed by Lobster Macaroni.

leek and potato soup

For dessert, it was a delicious Strawberry Shortcake Sundae.

strawberry shortcake sundae

Lily had her first Mickey bar of the cruise. It came complete with sprinkles to decorate.

mickey bar

Enchanted Garden: The third and final restaurant in dinner rotation on the Dream was called the Enchanted Garden.

This restaurant was on our last night of the cruise. Lily wanted to hang out with her new BFF in the Kids’ Club all night and Landon was about ready for bed. Bob and I still had to pack up most of our stuff so we opted for in-room dining since we had the suite and that is a perk that comes with the bigger cabin.

I did snap a pic of the menu. I had the Lobster Ravioli, Applewood Smoked Bacon Wild Mushroom Tart, Heirloom Tomato Soup, Slow Roasted Prime Rib and an Apple Cinnamon Crunch Sundae.

enchanted garden menu

Itinerary – 3 Night Bahamas

Since our cruise was so short, we didn’t get a traditional “day at sea” that most 4+ night cruises have on their itinerary. Instead we made a stop each day before returning to Port Canaveral on Day 4.

Nassau – Meh. Blech. We aren’t fond of Nassau. It’s ridiculously crime-ridden and can even be dangerous if you wander on your own. We have stopped in Nassau on other cruises – been there, done that, don’t ever feel the need to do it again. Also, we were on a DISNEY CRUISE and weren’t going to get a day at sea to play on the ship. So that’s what we did! We stayed on the ship and Lily enjoyed the kids’ club, swimming in the pool and more. We ate our delicious brunch at Palo. The ship was only partially full as many of our fellow cruisers were off the ship.

Disney does offer a bunch of Port Adventures for Nassau, so if you’re looking for a beach day, day trip to Atlantis Resort, etc etc, there are plenty of choices for you to choose from.

Castaway Cay (Disney’s private island paradise) – Okay, picture it: sandy beaches dotted with umbrellas, gorgeous (clear!) turquoise water, just ready to be swam, snorkled and floated in…slight warm breeze, sun shining down. That was our day on Castaway Cay (Cay is pronounced “Key” btw). We had perfect weather for a day on the beach. Our ship had a nice long port of call in Castaway Cay – from about 9 am until 5 pm.

You get off the ship and walk a short distance to a tram stop. The tram takes you to the family beach where you can find loungers, chairs, umbrellas and a beach paradise that’s yours for the day. The island has a tiny post office (cash only!) and a couple of shops selling Castaway Cay branded merch, sand toys and other beach supplies, etc.

castaway cay

Floats, tubes, bikes, snorkel equipment and more can be rented for the day if you so desire. Castaway Cay even has an extension of kids’ club, called Scuttle’s Cove. Kids can stay and play as they wish. There are organized games and activities for them to enjoy all day long. There is also a splash area just for toddlers.

castaway cay

You are handed a beach towel as you get off of the ship so there’s no need to bring one of your own. You can return your towel before you re-board.

Castaway Cay is comprised of three different beach areas. There is a large sprawling family beach where most people settle in for the day. A little further down the beach there is a roped off area with family cabanas that can be rented for the day. The fee is rather steep for these cabanas but the perks are pretty amazing. They can be split between multiple families and are very hard to attain because they are so popular.

Set back behind the family cabanas is another set of cabanas on an adult-only beach.

Your day on Castaway Cay can be entirely cashless – EXCEPT for the post office which is cash-only. Purchases in the gift shops and beach equipment rentals can all be charged using your Key to the World cards. Lunch is served for several hours midday at two different locations on the island. All food and drinks (even soda!) are included, except for alcohol. The spread for lunch was great – it’s a typical summer picnic spread. Burgers, hot dogs, chicken, various salads and some delicious desserts.

corona bucket

Of course, the whole day that you spend on Castaway Cay is with your Disney cruise ship docked in the background. This works as a great backdrop for your pictures!

castaway cay

Entertainment

In the large Walt Disney Theatre there is a Broadway-esque show each evening. Your showtime depends on what dinner seating you have. Late seating for dinner watches the show first, then they go to dinner. Main seating for dinner eats first, then goes to the show.

Believe it or not, we didn’t make it to a single show. HOWEVER, we DID catch 2 out of 3 in our ROOM on the TV! They broadcast every show live in your cabin television! So yup, Golden Mickeys… in bed.. with popcorn and hot chocolate. Awesome!

golden mickeys

Also on the ship was a movie theater that played first run Disney movies. The Buena Vista Theatre was playing several throughout our cruise. Daily showtimes are plastered all over the ship – on your daily schedule, on the ship’s app, outside the theatre, even on your stateroom tv.

We caught most of Into the Woods one night while Landon snoozed next to us in the stroller and Lily partied in kids’ club!

into the woods

Pirate Night

Oh, how fun! On most of their Caribbean sailings, Disney cruise ships have a pirate night. This night was so much fun, we couldn’t help but get into the spirit. I brought a pirate dress and boots from home for Lily. Landon wore a pirate costume that I picked up the fall before at a JBF sale!

mickey pirate

On pirate night you will see every single level of pirate-wear on your fellow cruisers. There will be hardcore-in-complete-pirate-regalia kids and adults down to people wearing nothing pirate-themed. You can choose your comfort level and go with it.

When you stop into your cabin after turndown service on pirate night, you will find a Mickey-pirate-themed bandana for everyone. Look for various picture opps with Disney characters in pirate garb on Pirate Night! We saw Captain Hook, Jake, Minnie and Mickey as we walked around.

mickey pirate

There is a Pirate Deck Party after the 2nd dinner seating. The party starts around 9:45 pm and there is music and dancing with various Disney characters up by the pool. Right around 10:15 pm there is a fireworks display right off the side of the ship!! Stand midship (by the pool or above it), in front of the smoke stack, to have the best vantage spot for the fireworks. This party and the fireworks are late, but worth it. We made it to the fireworks and then headed straight to bed.

disney cruise fireworks

Character Experiences

One of the huge (HUGE) bonuses of a Disney Cruise is that there are character meet and greets all day/night long!  You get plenty of advanced warning regarding where and when you can find specific characters, which makes it easier to plan for your kids’ (or your!) favorites. Look on the daily Navigator schedule (paper or app format) to see exactly when and where characters will be.  For characters that Lily was REALLY REALLY hoping to meet, we got in line about 10 minutes or so before the meet and greet was scheduled to begin and never had trouble getting to meet anyone.

Don’t forget that (on the Dream at least) SOME of these events are ticketed events.  Get your tickets AS SOON AS you board at the Port Excursions Desk.

tiana

Youth Activities and It’s a Small World Nursery

Like other cruise lines, Disney offers an extensive program for all ages – babies through teens can find activities and facilities that cater specifically to them.  Landon spent a couple of hours in the nursery and the staff was SO wonderful to him!  Even when he got upset and was ready for his nap – they notified us and did their best to snuggle him and get him to smile and calm down.  The nursery needs to be reserved ahead of time (you can actually book time from home up to a few months before you cruise).  The nursery comes with an extra fee – $9 an hour for the first child in a family, $8 for each additional child.  The nursery will take kids up to age 3.

Lily, on the other hand, thoroughly enjoyed some time in the kids’ club.  There are two huge play areas in the Youth Activities zone – the Oceaneer’s Lab was very hands on and jam-packed with educational crafts, presentations, etc.  Kids can learn about animation, work on a craft activity, use computers and more.  Lily especially loved the crafts and the organized games and activities.

Over on the other side is the Oceaneer’s Club which has several different themed areas – Monsters Inc, Pixie Hollow, Finding Nemo and Toy Story.  There are computers, dress up costumes, art activities, counselor-led games and more.

On our first day on the ship, we got Lily her identification bracelet for the youth activities.  This bracelet held more than met the eye – it actually contained a tracking piece that allowed the counselors to CONSTANTLY monitor kids’ whereabouts for safety, current location, etc. When we went to pick her up from her activity the counselor could immediately pull up her current location within the kids’ area so that we knew where to go get her from.  It was a fantastic piece of added security.  Make sure you return your bracelet before getting off of the ship – otherwise your shipboard account will be charged a fee for keeping it.

oceaneers club

Debarkation

If we thought gettiing on the ship was a easy, getting off the ship was a complete cakewalk.  We had to put our checked luggage outside of our cabin by 10:30 the night before where it was collected for debarking.  On the last morning on the ship, we ate breakfast in the Concierge Lounge.  Each of the three main dining restaurants are also open for breakfast that morning.

After that, it was time to leave.  Getting off the ship was simple and organized.  You simply walk off the ship, scanning your ship card as you leave. When we made our way down to the baggage claim area, we were met by friendly porter who offered assistance with our bags.  He helped to gather and transport our luggage through customs and right to our car.  This service probably saved us about an hour of luggage hauling.  (Don’t forget to tip your porter!  Customary tips are $2-$4 per bag, at your discretion.)

Final Thoughts

Just like our first Disney Cruise, our second was just amazing.  I can’t believe how many activities and how much fun we were able to pack into three nights on board.  There was so much to do, all the time.  We were never bored and our only complaint was wishing that we had more time on the ship.  Three nights is a great way to experience the magic of a DCL vacation but I will warn you, it will leave you begging for more!

Magic Vs. Dream

My answer might surprise you.  But I have thought long and hard about my take on both ships.  I asked Bob for his input too and he agreed with my line of thinking.

The food was great on both ships.  The service was great on both ships.  The accommodations were great on both ships.  The same could be said for the entertainment, itinerary and amenities.

But at the end of the day, if I had to choose one ship over the other, I think the Magic won over the Dream.  Not by much, but yes, the we liked the Magic better.  There were a couple of reasons.  First of all, the Dream is a bigger ship.  It also carries many more passengers.  While our wait staff in the dining rooms was lovely and polite and friendly, we never developed a real rapport with them because they didn’t spend much time at our table.  Our food took a long time to arrive each night (punctuated by Landon melting down from exhaustion as bedtime crept closer and closer).  It seemed like the waitstaff was spread thinner than on the Magic and waiting on more people, giving them less time to interact with us.

I already described our disappointment with Animator’s Palate on the Dream.  Don’t get me wrong – it was cool.  But AP on the Magic was so INSANELY OMG AWESOME that AP on the Dream was simply underwhelming after that.

Would we cruise on the Dream again?  Yes, emphatically YES.  We most definitely would.  Even though we liked some things better on the Magic, the Dream was still a gorgeous, fun, well-run ship and we would certainly return!

This trip was in no way, shape, or form sponsored by Disney.  It was funded by our own piggy bank and all opinions are 100% our own.

Other posts you might enjoy…

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8 Cool Things to Do on Your Disney Cruise

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6 Things to Do Immediately After Boarding a Disney Cruise Ship

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Disney Cruise Lines Review – Magic 3-Night Bahamas from Port Canaveral (with a Kid and a Baby!)

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Disney Visa Gave Me a $677 Gift Card… Here’s How!

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How to Get a BUNCH of Character Autographs on a Disney Cruise… Without Standing in a SINGLE LINE!

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2 thoughts on “Disney Cruise Lines Review – Disney Dream 3-Night Bahamas”

thanks for such a great post! We are getting ready for a cruise. Can you tell me what days were the princess gathering and the Elsa/Anna meet and greet? I want to plan around them a little for our 4 year old princess. We appreciate the insights.

On our 3-night aboard the Dream, both meet and greets were the same day. They were the first full day of our cruise, which was also the day we docked in Nassau. We were able to get morning tickets for both, so we did the princess greet first, then hopped over to the Frozen location and were #2 in line. We waited about 30 minutes for that start time and were in and out in no time. Have fun!!

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Disney Cruise Mom Blog

I am a mom who loves all things Disney, but especially Disney Cruises! I enjoy sharing everything I have learned and hope that it will help others plan their own vacations.

Guest Trip Report: August 6, 2021 3 Night on the Disney Magic from Southampton

August 19, 2021 by Disney Cruise Mom 2 Comments

I am so excited to finally be able to bring you some trip reports! It’s been a long 18 months but cruising has finally restarted and Molly was kind enough to share her recent 3 night cruise on the Magic from Southampton! This was one of the UK Staycation “cruises to nowhere” which are only open to residents of the UK.  She sailed on August 6, 2021 and she has so much information to share.  Let’s get started!

Guest Trip Report: 3 Night on the Disney Magic from Southampton, England

I booked this cruise a few months back, and was lucky enough to be able to book a day ahead of the general public (as a silver Castaway Club member). There were 4 ports availabl: Liverpool, Southampton, London Tilbury, and Newcastle, and sailings were 2, 3 or 4 nights. 

When booking, we were torn between the 3 or 4 night sailing from Southampton. Prices swayed us, and we decided on a 3 night itinerary, in a GTY Deluxe Oceanview stateroom. Immediate excitement kicked in – this would be my first trip since Disney in 2019, before pandemic times! 

 Know Before You Go

Keep in mind that the following information applies ONLY to the UK Staycation at Sea sailings as of 8/6/2021.  Requirements are constantly changing, and the US sailings out of Port Canaveral on the Disney Dream and Fantasy have a completely different set of requirements.  Please visit the Disney Cruise Line website for the most current sailing requirements.

In order to sail, all guests over the age of 18 must be fully vaccinated against COVID. Guests under 18 are not required to be vaccinated, however they must provide a negative PCR test taken up to 5 days before travel. This must be at the guest’s expense, and an average cost was around £70. Once at the port, all guests must also take a rapid antigen test, which is paid for by Disney. 

Disney has implemented a rule that masks must be worn in all indoor areas, unless in our stateroom or actively eating or drinking. There is also a virtual queuing system set up on the navigator app for things such as using the pool, and character experiences.*

There have also been a lot of changes in terms of what Disney is doing to promote super-duper hygiene, such as enhanced cleaning, especially focusing on high touch areas, and removing loose soft furnishings from rooms. 

*Update:  a week before my sailing Disney changed this rule, to just having an onboard queuing system

Onboard Activities 

I was able to browse our onboard activities 90 days prior to sailing, and at this time, most activities had availability! 

Of course the options aren’t as numerous as a usual cruise, but those that were available are:

Photo Packages

Disney Dreams Show in the Walt Disney theatre **

Shutters Portrait Studio 

Youth Activities **

Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique  

Royal Court Tea

Various alcohol tastings *

*note – whilst the legal age to drink alcohol in the UK is 18, the age on the cruise is still 21.

**these activities were only bookable during the 30 day window, and did not cost anything but had to be reserved in advance. 

I decided to take advantage of the sea days and book all of the activities I haven’t had time for on previous cruises! I booked a mixology class ($25), and Palo brunch ($45).

Interesting fact: the ship will still charge in USD. Disney has introduced a 2% on board credit for all charges to stateroom accounts that are paid using credit cards to cover the conversion rate. 

Initially when I booked, there was an assumption that Senses Spa would be closed.  But, a few weeks later, spa sessions opened up and all were available to book (although some did sell out pretty fast!). 

No treatments were longer than 1 hour, and there were no facial options. 

I booked a Swedish massage, and and also a hot stone massage. The Rainforest Room will also be open, however this can only be reserved once onboard. 

Some of the notable restrictions for the spa is that masks must be worn throughout the treatment, and shower facilities are not available, so we must arrive ready for our treatment. 

Proof of Vaccination 

As I mentioned above, all adults (18+) must be fully vaccinated in order to sail. We had to upload proof of vaccination from 33 days out from travelling. 

To do this, I had to create an account with a third party called Prenetics, and set up a profile for each person, and upload an image of our vaccine cards/certificates. These were approved within a few hours. 

Online Check in Day 

Online check in opened 30 days before our sailing, at 5 am UK time (I think this would be midnight EST). I set my alarm and woke up bright and early. Luckily, I had prepared the night before and had photographs of my travel party, and our IDs in advance. 

I was checked in within 17 minutes, but I hear from others that the website crashed shortly after this! 

To check in I needed to provide name, date of birth and contact details for everyone in my travel party. One person could do this, so I did it for both myself and my mum. Because it’s a UK sailing, we were able to use our drivers licence for ID instead of a passport, and had to upload photos of each of these. 

We then had to upload a passport style photo for security and identification. 

Then it prompted us to upload payment details for onboard account, however you are able to select cash if you prefer, or come back to this later  (which is what I decided to do, to expedite the process when I knew the site would be busy!)

Due to the pandemic, the port arrival times are very strict for these sailings. I was super lucky and able to select the earliest port arrival time of 12:45, and group 2 for boarding. I was emailed a port arrival time document that I had to print and take with me on the day of sailing. 

I was also able book our Walt Disney Theatre arrival time*. There are 4 showings of Disney Dreams during our 3 night sailing: an early and late show on the first and third night. Disney implemented a rule that we are only able to book one show per sailing, and actively encouraged people to make sure the show time corresponded with their dinner seating . I’m booked on the late dinner seating, so reserved the early show which starts at 5:45. The arrival times are staggered, so I could select a 5:00, 5:15, or 5:30 arrival. 

*Disney removed this system a week before my sailing

The kids and youth clubs were also available to book on this day, however I’m travelling with my mum so we didn’t need to do this. 

Other things I had to arrange prior to sailing:

Travel Insurance

Despite not technically leaving the UK, Disney really encouraged purchasing travel insurance for the trip. Due to it only being 3 nights, and not leaving the UK,  this wasn’t a big expense at all and I think cost me less than £10 for an individual adult. 

Pre-sail Hotel 

I live around 2.5 hours drive from the port, so we decided to stay the night before in the city. We booked to stay at the Ibis Southampton Central. This was in a convenient location, had parking available for the night, and was a reasonable cost. We opted to add breakfast as we didn’t know what time we would be able to board, or if Cabanas would be open.

Cruise Parking 

One thing I LOVE about these sailings is the convenience of being able to drive to them! Southampton port is particularly great, because the terminal has its own car park that is RIGHT next to the ship! We paid £56 for the sailing, and the booking experience was super simple and easy. 

Room Allocation

We booked a GTY room which meant we didn’t get to choose our stateroom number, but that we would be guaranteed at least a category 9B or above. We booked Oceanview, and then our room was assigned around 2 weeks prior to sailing and it was upgraded to a category 6A Deluxe Verandah room! 

Also around a week prior to sailing, Disney sent an email announcement explaining that we no longer needed to book seating for the musical, nor would there be a virtual queuing system for the pool. I think this is because of the easing of restrictions in England. It also looked like Disney released more rooms at this time too! 

Two days before sailing Disney also announced that there would be an additional show on our sailing (WOO!), so now we will also be able to see Tangled the Musical in addition to Disney Dreams. 

Day 1 – Travelling to Southampton

We weren’t in any rush to get to Southampton, so we packed up and left at around 3:15. Southampton is usually around a 2.5 hour drive from home, but we hit a little traffic because of the horrendous weather, and arrived at the Ibis Southampton Central at 6:00.

Check in was quick, and we paid the £10 charge to park for the night. Our room was very basic, but functional and comfortable. It’s around a 1 minute drive to the port in the morning, so location is perfect.

For dinner we went in to the West Quay Shopping Center and ate at Ed’s Easy Diner. The food was really good! It felt quite strange going out, as it’s the first time my mum and I have been out in England since practically all COVID restrictions had been lifted. Masks aren’t required anymore, but we chose to wear them still to be cautious.

After dinner and an amazing milkshake we headed back to our room for a good night sleep. Our good night sleep was disturbed slightly by the fire alarm going off in the hotel. Someone a few rooms down had set it off in their room. It was quickly fixed and we managed to get some sleep! Breakfast in the hotel tomorrow before boarding the ship! YAY!

Up Next:   Day 1 – Boarding the Disney Magic!

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August 20, 2021 at 1:41 pm

I’ve missed reading trip reports! Can’t wait to see the other posts!

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August 22, 2021 at 7:37 am

Thanks Trisha! I am so excited to be doing them again!

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Disney Dream Deck Plans & Reviews

3 night disney cruise review

Disney Dream

3 night disney cruise review

Activities & entertainment

  • Connect@Sea *
  • Disney's Oceaneer Club
  • Vibe Interior
  • Disney's Oceaneer Lab
  • It's A Small World Nursery
  • Nemo's Reef
  • Couples Villa *
  • Senses Fitness Area
  • Mickey Slide
  • Senses Spa & Salon *
  • Senses Treatment Salons *
  • Senses Rainforest Room *
  • Satellite Falls
  • Goofy's Sports Deck
  • Character Events
  • Fitness Classes
  • Arts and Crafts Classes
  • Deck Parties
  • Nightly Live Music
  • Scavenger Hunts
  • Dance Parties
  • Extensive Kids Programs
  • Pin Trading
  • Sing-Alongs
  • Video Game Competitions
  • Adults-Only Events
  • Hot Tubs (4)
  • Waterslides (2)
  • Walt Disney Theatre
  • Buena Vista Theatre
  • Disney Movies Onboard
  • Enchanted Garden - International
  • Preludes - Movie Snacks *
  • Royal Palace - French & American
  • Animator's Palate - West Coast Fusion
  • Pink - Wine & Champagne *
  • The District - Piano Bar *
  • Pub 687 - Sports bar *
  • Skyline - Cocktail Bar *
  • Vista Café - Coffee Bar *
  • District Lounge - Piano Bar *
  • Cove Bar - Coffee Bar *
  • Eye Scream /Frozone Treats - Ice Cream
  • Beverage Station - Soft Drinks
  • Vanellope's Sweets and Treats - Sweets *
  • Flo's Café: Luigi's Pizza /Tow-Mater's Grill /Fillmore's Favorites - Fast Food
  • Beverage Station
  • Cove Café - Coffee Bar *
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FinanceBuzz

FinanceBuzz

15 Reasons Disney Has the Best Cruises (According to a Cruise Expert)

Posted: February 24, 2024 | Last updated: February 24, 2024

<p> If you’re looking for ways to <a href="https://financebuzz.com/ways-to-travel-more?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=1&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=step+up+your+travel+game&synd_backlink_position=1&synd_slug=ways-to-travel-more">step up your travel game</a>, booking a Disney cruise may just be the perfect way to do it. </p> <p> There are many perks, financially and otherwise, to booking cruises in general, including affordable all-inclusive deals and all-you-can-eat dining options. </p><p>However, in many ways, a Disney Cruise might just give you the most bang for your buck. Here are 15 reasons Disney cruises are better than the rest, according to our cruise expert.</p> <p>  <a href="https://financebuzz.com/top-travel-credit-cards?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=1&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=Earn+Points+and+Miles%3A+Find+the+best+travel+credit+card+for+nearly+free+travel&synd_backlink_position=2&synd_slug=top-travel-credit-cards"><b>Earn Points and Miles:</b> Find the best travel credit card for nearly free travel</a>  </p>

If you’re looking for ways to step up your travel game , booking a Disney cruise may just be the perfect way to do it.

There are many perks, financially and otherwise, to booking cruises in general, including affordable all-inclusive deals and all-you-can-eat dining options. 

However, in many ways, a Disney Cruise might just give you the most bang for your buck. Here are 15 reasons Disney cruises are better than the rest, according to our cruise expert.

Earn Points and Miles: Find the best travel credit card for nearly free travel

<p> Disney cruises are like two vacations in one. The onboard vacation and the vacation you get to enjoy when you get to your destination. </p> <p> If you're on a cruise to somewhere like the Caribbean, that may include a stop at Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay. </p> <p> Disney excursions make it simple to package all of your vacation spending into one purchase and <a href="https://financebuzz.com/seniors-throw-money-away-tp?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=2&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=stop+wasting+money&synd_backlink_position=3&synd_slug=seniors-throw-money-away-tp">stop wasting money</a> on things like dining, drinks, and detours while traveling since these can all be included. </p> <p>  <p class=""><a href="https://financebuzz.com/tax-debt-jump?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=2&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=Do+you+owe+the+IRS++over+%2410K%3F+Ask+this+company+to+help+you+eliminate+your+late+tax+debt.&synd_backlink_position=4&synd_slug=tax-debt-jump"><b>Do you owe the IRS over $10K?</b> Ask this company to help you eliminate your late tax debt.</a></p>  </p>

They have a private island

Disney cruises are like two vacations in one. The onboard vacation and the vacation you get to enjoy when you get to your destination.

If you're on a cruise to somewhere like the Caribbean, that may include a stop at Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay.

Disney excursions make it simple to package all of your vacation spending into one purchase and stop wasting money on things like dining, drinks, and detours while traveling since these can all be included.

Are you a homeowner? Don't let unexpected home repairs drain your bank account.

<p> Families on Disney cruises often come back with stories about the incredible childcare options.</p><p>Noting their kids are often ecstatic to hang out in the decked-out kid-sitting areas and happy to give their parents some kid-free time. Our on-staff cruise expert also noted that the childcare staff are top-notch:</p> <p> “We took our son for the first time when he was 11 months old, and one of the added benefits was the ‘It’s a Small World’ nursery,” she explained. “...the counselors were incredible with babies, and he was able to go down to bed while we spent time with adults.” </p>

Access to awesome childcare

Families on Disney cruises often come back with stories about the incredible childcare options.

Noting their kids are often ecstatic to hang out in the decked-out kid-sitting areas and happy to give their parents some kid-free time. Our on-staff cruise expert also noted that the childcare staff are top-notch:

“We took our son for the first time when he was 11 months old, and one of the added benefits was the ‘It’s a Small World’ nursery,” she explained. “...the counselors were incredible with babies, and he was able to go down to bed while we spent time with adults.”

<p> Disney cruises are known for their incredible food (more on that later), but the rotating dining experience sets it apart from other cruise lines. </p> <p> To ensure each guest gets to enjoy all the delicious dining the cruise has to offer, your party will be rotated to a different restaurant on board each night.  </p> <p> The best part is your servers, who will learn all your preferences and then rotate with you throughout the cruise! </p> <p>  <a href="https://financebuzz.com/money-moves-after-40?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=4&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=Grow+Your+%24%24%3A+11+brilliant+ways+to+build+wealth+after+40&synd_backlink_position=5&synd_slug=money-moves-after-40"><b>Grow Your $$:</b> 11 brilliant ways to build wealth after 40</a>  </p>

A rotating dining experience

Disney cruises are known for their incredible food (more on that later), but the rotating dining experience sets it apart from other cruise lines.

To ensure each guest gets to enjoy all the delicious dining the cruise has to offer, your party will be rotated to a different restaurant on board each night.

The best part is your servers, who will learn all your preferences and then rotate with you throughout the cruise!

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<p> This one should be obvious — as most other cruise lines don’t also happen to be world-class entertainment companies.  </p> <p> Disney owns Marvel, Lucasfilm, Pixar, and many more companies, in addition to having a massive cast of beloved characters of its own.  </p> <p> So, guests can expect a huge array of entertainment options, from Broadway-style shows to movie screenings to character dinners.  </p>

Incredible entertainment options

This one should be obvious — as most other cruise lines don’t also happen to be world-class entertainment companies.

Disney owns Marvel, Lucasfilm, Pixar, and many more companies, in addition to having a massive cast of beloved characters of its own.

So, guests can expect a huge array of entertainment options, from Broadway-style shows to movie screenings to character dinners.

<p> Disney cruises are not just for families with children; guests can expect plenty of adults-only areas where they can grab a cocktail, mingle, and more. </p> <p> “They know how to cater to adults,” our cruise expert said. “There are sectioned-off portions of the cruise ships for adults 21 and up. They have fantastic food, drinks, and entertainment.” </p>

Adults-only areas/events

Disney cruises are not just for families with children; guests can expect plenty of adults-only areas where they can grab a cocktail, mingle, and more.

“They know how to cater to adults,” our cruise expert said. “There are sectioned-off portions of the cruise ships for adults 21 and up. They have fantastic food, drinks, and entertainment.”

<p> Circling back to the food, many cruise ships pride themselves on having great dining options, but it isn’t easy to outdo Disney.  </p> <p> From character cafes and steakhouses to pizzerias and juice bars, you can find food to please even the pickiest of eaters on a Disney cruise.  </p> <p>  <a href="https://financebuzz.com/retire-early-quiz?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=7&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=Retire+Sooner%3A+Take+this+quiz+to+see+if+you+can+retire+early&synd_backlink_position=6&synd_slug=retire-early-quiz"><b>Retire Sooner:</b> Take this quiz to see if you can retire early</a>  </p>

Top-notch food

Circling back to the food, many cruise ships pride themselves on having great dining options, but it isn’t easy to outdo Disney.

From character cafes and steakhouses to pizzerias and juice bars, you can find food to please even the pickiest of eaters on a Disney cruise.

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<p> Anyone who's ever stayed at a Disney hotel knows that hospitality is something the company does right. Cruisers can expect the same luxuries when they’re on board. </p> <p> From spacious staterooms, which are designed with families in mind and include extra storage, to top-notch customer service. Guests can expect to live in luxury for their days and nights on board.  </p>

The ‘luxury’ experience

Anyone who's ever stayed at a Disney hotel knows that hospitality is something the company does right. Cruisers can expect the same luxuries when they’re on board.

From spacious staterooms, which are designed with families in mind and include extra storage, to top-notch customer service. Guests can expect to live in luxury for their days and nights on board.

<p> Disney is constantly changing their onboard itineraries so guests (and return visitors) can do something new every day.  </p> <p> From holiday-themed parties to an evolving line-up of amazing shows, cruisers can expect plenty to do both on board and when they dock at their destination.  </p>

Stacked itineraries

Disney is constantly changing their onboard itineraries so guests (and return visitors) can do something new every day.

From holiday-themed parties to an evolving line-up of amazing shows, cruisers can expect plenty to do both on board and when they dock at their destination.

<p> You’re not likely to score a dinner with Cinderella on your typical Carnival cruise ship (unless a fellow passenger is very into cosplaying) — but you can on a Disney cruise. </p> <p> Many families shell out big bucks to get character meals at Disney parks, but on one of the cruises, you can sign up for these meals as part of your package. </p> <p>  <a href="https://financebuzz.com/southwest-booking-secrets-55mp?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=10&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=9+nearly+secret+things+to+do+if+you+fly+Southwest&synd_backlink_position=7&synd_slug=southwest-booking-secrets-55mp">9 nearly secret things to do if you fly Southwest</a>  </p>

Dining with characters

You’re not likely to score a dinner with Cinderella on your typical Carnival cruise ship (unless a fellow passenger is very into cosplaying) — but you can on a Disney cruise.

Many families shell out big bucks to get character meals at Disney parks, but on one of the cruises, you can sign up for these meals as part of your package.

9 nearly secret things to do if you fly Southwest

<p> Trying to sample all the sweets during a visit to a Disney park may put you out a few hundred bucks (and give you quite the stomach ache). </p> <p> There are so many great sweets on Disney cruises, from their nightly dessert specials to onboard cafes and sweet shops.  </p> <p> To keep your stomach happy, you can spread your sweet eating throughout the trip. </p>

So many desserts

Trying to sample all the sweets during a visit to a Disney park may put you out a few hundred bucks (and give you quite the stomach ache).

There are so many great sweets on Disney cruises, from their nightly dessert specials to onboard cafes and sweet shops.

To keep your stomach happy, you can spread your sweet eating throughout the trip.

<p> You may be out of luck on a typical cruise if you miss dinner. </p><p>But, on Disney cruises, you can get fresh, made-to-order dishes delivered to your stateroom 24 hours a day. There’s no shame in midnight snacking on a Disney cruise.</p>

Room service 24/7

You may be out of luck on a typical cruise if you miss dinner. 

But, on Disney cruises, you can get fresh, made-to-order dishes delivered to your stateroom 24 hours a day. There’s no shame in midnight snacking on a Disney cruise.

<p> Disney cruise lines know their audience, so they screen Disney favorites and more recent releases throughout the days in their onboard Buena Vista Theatre. </p> <p> If you’re lucky, you may even get to catch a new film premiere while you’re out at sea. </p> <p>  <a href="https://financebuzz.com/top-travel-credit-cards?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=13&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=Earn+Points+and+Miles%3A+Find+the+best+travel+credit+card+for+nearly+free+travel&synd_backlink_position=8&synd_slug=top-travel-credit-cards"><b>Earn Points and Miles:</b> Find the best travel credit card for nearly free travel</a>  </p>

Disney films on rotation

Disney cruise lines know their audience, so they screen Disney favorites and more recent releases throughout the days in their onboard Buena Vista Theatre.

If you’re lucky, you may even get to catch a new film premiere while you’re out at sea.

<p> Most cruises have activities guests can participate in once they dock at their destination, but in typical Disney fashion, the list of activities and add-ons feels almost endless. </p> <p> Most Port Adventures cost extra, but many of these thrills are well worth the splurge.  </p> <p> For example, on the Bahamas cruises, Port Adventures includes everything from bike and snorkel rentals and Adventure Jeep rides to wildlife conservation visits and swimming with dolphins.  </p>

Incredible Port Adventures

Most cruises have activities guests can participate in once they dock at their destination, but in typical Disney fashion, the list of activities and add-ons feels almost endless.

Most Port Adventures cost extra, but many of these thrills are well worth the splurge.

For example, on the Bahamas cruises, Port Adventures includes everything from bike and snorkel rentals and Adventure Jeep rides to wildlife conservation visits and swimming with dolphins.

<p> Many people opt for cruise vacations because paying for an all-inclusive package makes the booking process simple — and doing it with the help of a travel agent makes it even simpler. </p> <p> You may think working with a travel agent is a luxury beyond your means, but if you’re going to Disney <em>or</em> on a Disney cruise, you can use one for free.  </p> <p> Disney pays agents a commission, so you, the customer, don’t have to pay a thing to get an expert’s help.  </p>

Travel agents come for free

Many people opt for cruise vacations because paying for an all-inclusive package makes the booking process simple — and doing it with the help of a travel agent makes it even simpler.

You may think working with a travel agent is a luxury beyond your means, but if you’re going to Disney or on a Disney cruise, you can use one for free.

Disney pays agents a commission, so you, the customer, don’t have to pay a thing to get an expert’s help.

<p> Disney parks host some epic parties throughout the year, but planning vacations around them can be quite expensive.  </p> <p> If you want to experience a Disney party and <a href="https://financebuzz.com/lazy-money-moves-55mp?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=16&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=keep+more+money+in+your+wallet&synd_backlink_position=9&synd_slug=lazy-money-moves-55mp">keep more money in your wallet</a>, a Disney cruise is the perfect way to do it. </p> <p> Guests can expect character-packed parties on board throughout the year as well as incredible holiday-themed soirées around Halloween, Christmas, and more.  </p>

Onboard parties

Disney parks host some epic parties throughout the year, but planning vacations around them can be quite expensive.

If you want to experience a Disney party and  keep more money in your wallet , a Disney cruise is the perfect way to do it.

Guests can expect character-packed parties on board throughout the year as well as incredible holiday-themed soirées around Halloween, Christmas, and more.

<p> While many cruise ships have their charms, there’s something, dare we say, <em>magical</em> about a Disney cruise.  </p> <p> Aside from going everywhere — from the Mediterranean to the Panama Canal — Disney goes above and beyond to make these vacations shine.  </p> <p> Plus, if you use the right credit card, you can <a href="https://financebuzz.com/top-travel-credit-cards?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=17&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=earn+travel+rewards&synd_backlink_position=10&synd_slug=top-travel-credit-cards">earn travel rewards</a> while you relax at sea. </p> <p>  <p><b>More from FinanceBuzz:</b></p> <ul> <li><a href="https://financebuzz.com/supplement-income-55mp?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=17&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=7+things+to+do+if+you%27re+scraping+by+financially.&synd_backlink_position=11&synd_slug=supplement-income-55mp">7 things to do if you're scraping by financially.</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.financebuzz.com/shopper-hacks-Costco-55mp?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=17&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=6+genius+hacks+Costco+shoppers+should+know.&synd_backlink_position=12&synd_slug=shopper-hacks-Costco-55mp">6 genius hacks Costco shoppers should know.</a></li> <li><a href="https://financebuzz.com/retire-early-quiz?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=17&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=Can+you+retire+early%3F+Take+this+quiz+and+find+out.&synd_backlink_position=13&synd_slug=retire-early-quiz">Can you retire early? Take this quiz and find out.</a></li> <li><a href="https://financebuzz.com/choice-home-warranty-jump?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=feed&synd_slide=17&synd_postid=16429&synd_backlink_title=Are+you+a+homeowner%3F+Get+a+protection+plan+on+all+your+appliances.&synd_backlink_position=14&synd_slug=choice-home-warranty-jump">Are you a homeowner? Get a protection plan on all your appliances.</a></li> </ul>  </p>

Bottom line

While many cruise ships have their charms, there’s something, dare we say, magical about a Disney cruise.

Aside from going everywhere — from the Mediterranean to the Panama Canal — Disney goes above and beyond to make these vacations shine.

Plus, if you use the right credit card, you can earn travel rewards while you relax at sea.

More from FinanceBuzz:

  • 7 things to do if you're scraping by financially.
  • 6 genius hacks Costco shoppers should know.
  • Can you retire early? Take this quiz and find out.
  • Are you a homeowner? Get a protection plan on all your appliances.

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The Disney Cruise Line Blog

An unofficial disney cruise line news, information, weather, and photo blog..

The Disney Cruise Line Blog

Personal Navigators: 3-Night Baja Cruise on Disney Wonder – Itinerary A – October 9, 2022

Personal Navigators, and other details from the Halloween on the High Seas  3-Night Baja Cruise on Disney Wonder – Itinerary A . The  Disney Wonder  set sail from  San Diego, California  on October 9, 2022. There are  additional  Personal Navigators from other sailings of this same itinerary for comparison. 

Map Wonder 3 Night Baja Itinerary A

Day 1 – October 9, 2022 –  San Diego, California

Guests Onboard : 4:45 pm

Attire : Cruise Casual

Dinner Menus :

  • Triton’s :  Triton’s
  • Animator’s Palate :  Animators Palate
  • Tiana’s Place :  Tiana’s Place – Mardi Gras

Evening Entertainment :

  • Walt Disney Theatre Production –  The Golden Mickeys

Day 2 – October 10, 2022 – At Sea

Attire : Halloween/Pirate or Cruise Casual

  • Walt Disney Theatre Production –  Frozen, A Musical Spectacular

Day 3 – October 11, 2022 –  Ensenada, Mexico

Guests Ashore : 8:30 am  Guests Onboard : 4:45 pm

  • Walt Disney Theatre Production –  Disney Dreams – An Enchanted Classic

Buena Vista Theatre Movies

  • Hocus Pocus
  • Hocus Pocus 2

If you have any navigators you would be willing to share, please send me an email. If you would rather upload the files you can use our  upload form .

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Disney Cruise Line vs. Royal Caribbean: Which family-friendly cruise line is for you?

Erica Silverstein

If you're planning a cruise vacation with kids, you're likely focused on two brands: Disney Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean.

While other cruise lines cater to families, these two lines top the charts. Royal Caribbean is known for its humongous ships that are chock-full of family-friendly attractions, from waterslides and ice skating shows to huge kids clubs and adults-only solariums and sun decks. Disney is always top of mind for a family getaway, and the characters, quality of entertainment and family-focused service you're used to in its parks and hotels carry over onto its cruise ships.

For cruise news, reviews and tips, sign up for TPG's cruise newsletter .

How do you make a decision when your vacation choice falls to Disney Cruise Line versus Royal Caribbean? The cruise lines are different in many ways — discover what sets the lines apart to determine which is the best for you.

Size of ships

3 night disney cruise review

Royal Caribbean is known for having some of the largest cruise ships in the world , including the 250,800-ton, 7,600-passenger titleholder, Icon of the Seas . Its Freedom, Quantum and Oasis Class ships are no joke either. Freedom Class ships measure roughly 156,000 tons and carry upward of 4,500 passengers at maximum capacity, Quantum Class ships measure 169,000 tons and accommodate 5,000 passengers, and Oasis Class ships measure a bit more than 225,000 tons and carry between 6,600 and 7,000 passengers.

As befitting their size, these ships are full of attractions and entertainment options, a range of cabins and suites at varying price points and multiple dining and drinking establishments.

The fleet does include smaller ships among its 28 vessels. The Vision and Radiance Class ships carry around 2,500 passengers when full. However, these ships lack many of the family-friendly attractions that Royal Caribbean is known for, and are also the vessels the line sends on longer voyages or based in secondary home ports, such as San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Baltimore. On many of these smaller ships, you'll find more adults, though all will have kids clubs and welcome families.

Related: The 7 classes of Royal Caribbean cruise ships, explained

Disney Cruise Line has a much smaller fleet with only five ships (soon to be six by late 2024). These ships come in three sizes: the 83,000-ton Disney Magic and Disney Wonder carry 2,713 passengers at maximum capacity; the 130,000-ton Disney Dream and Fantasy carry 4,000; and the 144,000-ton Disney Wish (and its soon-to-debut sister, Disney Treasure ) can also accommodate 4,000. That puts its larger ships on par with Royal Caribbean's Freedom Class.

Unlike Royal Caribbean, Disney's smaller ships still bring all the Disney magic, including waterslides, family-friendly dining options and all the Disney character and princess encounters you could wish for.

Related: The 3 types of Disney Cruise Line ships, explained

Cabins and suites

3 night disney cruise review

Both Royal Caribbean and Disney Cruise Line ships offer a range of cabin and suite categories, so travelers can choose the amount of space, layout and price point that works for them.

Both cruise lines divide cabins generally into windowless inside cabins (on both lines, certain ships have digital screens that simulate windows, displaying video from outside the ship), ocean-view rooms with porthole or picture windows that do not open, balcony cabins with private verandas and suites with extra space and VIP amenities.

Both lines offer top-level cabins and suites with access to exclusive lounges and deck space and the services of a concierge. You can find these Concierge-level rooms on all Disney cruise ships, but Royal Caribbean's Suite Class is only offered on its newest classes of ships (Icon, Oasis and Quantum).

All of Disney Cruise Line's cabins were designed with families in mind. Most have a split bath design, with a sink and toilet in one room and a tub-shower combo and sink in another. They have room-dividing curtains and plenty of extra berths, with sofabeds and pulldown bunks. Royal Caribbean does have some family cabins fleetwide, especially on Icon of the Seas, but the majority of its rooms were not created with families of three and four in mind.

3 night disney cruise review

Royal Caribbean is your line if you're looking for over-the-top suites on the biggest ships. The collection includes stunning two-floor suites, including the Ultimate Family Townhouse and Ultimate Family Suite on Icon and Oasis Class ships which are a kid's dream accommodation.

Royal Caribbean also has some quirky cabins you might find fun, including ocean-view and balcony rooms that look onto the open-air, interior "neighborhoods" on Oasis and Icon Class ships, such as the fun-loving Boardwalk, leafy Central Park and kid-friendly Surfside. Icon of the Seas has new Infinite Balcony cabins, which have extra interior space and a glass wall that rolls down halfway (like a car window) to bring fresh air into the room.

Related: Royal Caribbean cruise ship cabin and suite guide: Everything you want to know

Food and drink

3 night disney cruise review

Neither Royal Caribbean nor Disney Cruise Line is known for amazing food across the board; however, both have restaurants that will wow you.

When comparing Disney Cruise Line versus Royal Caribbean on dining, Royal Caribbean is your best bet, especially on its larger ships, if you want a lot of dining variety and don't mind paying extra for certain meals. Disney Cruise Line is the winner for family-focused restaurants and some amazing adults-only restaurants.

All Royal Caribbean ships include three meals a day in its multideck, banquet-style main dining rooms and Windjammer Marketplace buffets. Ships will also have a couple of additional included venues for snacks and fast-casual meals, such as cafes (with extra-fee coffee), Sorrento's pizza and El Loco Fresh for Mexican fare.

If you're willing to pay, you'll find nearly everything you could wish for: sushi and hibachi, steak, seafood, Italian, Southern, Johnny Rockets, pub fare and inventive dishes created using molecular gastronomy. Suite Class guests have access to an elevated, intimate dining room called Coastal Kitchen.

Related: The ultimate guide to cruise ship food and dining

Disney Cruise Line takes a completely different approach to dining. Each of its ships features three included sit-down restaurants, and passengers are given a schedule of which venue to visit on which night. Your waiters rotate through the dining rooms with you, so they can get to know your preferences. The eateries are often themed to Disney movies or characters and might have a stage show or other entertainment as part of the fun.

In addition, a buffet is open for breakfast and lunch, along with all-day dining at poolside, grab-n-go venues for things like pizza, burgers and sandwiches.

Adults can seek a quieter, more romantic meal in Disney's various adults-only, extra-fee restaurants, including the Italian Palo and the French Remy or Enchante. At $50 per person, Palo is a great value for brunch and dinner with all-you-can-eat options from an extensive menu, all of very high quality. On the flip side, Remy and Enchante are among the most expensive specialty restaurants at sea.

Both cruise lines offer room service , but Disney's is included in the fare, while you have to pay extra on Royal Caribbean.

Kids activities

3 night disney cruise review

Both cruise lines excel at entertaining kids (especially on Royal Caribbean's bigger and newer ships), but the lines take different approaches here as well. To start, both Disney Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean have large kids clubs on their ships, with separate spaces for kids and teens, as well as extra-fee nurseries for the littlest cruisers.

Disney's Oceaneer Club and Lab are expansive play spaces themed to Disney, Pixar and "Star Wars" characters. You can play in Andy's Room from "Toy Story" or fly the Millennium Falcon in a "Star Wars" simulation. Activities range from arts and crafts and science experiments (like making goop) to playing video games or digital entertainment on the Magic Play Floor. Tweens and teens each have separate hangouts with lots of games and hangout space.

3 night disney cruise review

On Royal Caribbean ships, teens and tweens share a hangout, and the cruise line is experimenting with new programming to host activities around the ship for this picky age group. Kids still congregate in Adventure Ocean with multipurpose spaces for sports, games and crafts and plenty of high-tech entertainment. Newer ships have separate artist's studios, theaters, science labs and game space.

And, of course, both cruise lines plan kid and family activities around the ship, outside of the drop-off kids programming in the clubs. On Disney Cruise Line, families can take photos with their favorite characters and princesses, enjoy family trivia and karaoke, and attend events like a Pirate Night deck show or dance parties in the main atrium. Royal Caribbean might offer a family festival with games and face painting or field day-style competitions.

Related: 5 best cruise lines for families

Onboard attractions

3 night disney cruise review

Disney might be a wiz at theme parks, but no cruise line does onboard attractions better than Royal Caribbean. Look to its biggest, newest ships for wow-factor attractions, including a FlowRider surf simulator , waterslides (including a six-slide water park on Icon of the Seas) and giant dry slides, escape room, ice skating rinks, laser tag pop-ups, bumper cars (on Quantum Class ships), zip lines, rock climbing walls and sky diving simulators.

However, its Vision and Radiance Class ships take a more traditional, pared-down approach to onboard attractions, focusing on pools and hot tubs, the casino and the spa. Choose your ship carefully if you have certain whiz-bang attractions on your to-do list.

Disney Cruise Line ships will have a water ride or slide or two, indoor and poolside movie theaters and a spa, but don't expect the over-the-top attractions of a Royal Caribbean ship. The line focuses more on activities than attractions and lazy days by the pool.

Related: The 10 wildest attractions you'll find on a cruise ship

Entertainment

3 night disney cruise review

When you compare the entertainment of Royal Caribbean vs. Disney Cruise Line, you're not going to get a clear winner. Both lines excel at entertainment but — this won't surprise you — the two lines have different strengths when it comes to onboard shows.

Disney Cruise Line knows how to turn out high-quality shows, and each ship will offer three original Broadway-style musicals in its onboard theater. Some of them are musical versions of favorite animated classics, such as "Beauty and the Beast" and "Tangled." Other shows combine characters and songs from the Disney playbook to create original shows, like "The Golden Mickeys."

Disney is also known for captivating top-deck events, such as its Pirate Night shows, complete with fireworks, rappelling pirates and Mickey and friends dressed in their pirate best. Its ships run classic Disney movies on its poolside screen and first-run shows from the entire Disney portfolio in the indoor movie theaters. Adult entertainment in the lounges at night might include interactive game shows, karaoke, live music or even a solo show from a cast member.

Royal Caribbean also gets high marks for its stage shows, which range from shortened versions of Broadway musicals to original song-and-dance revues. Some ships have separate clubs where guest comedians perform, ice rinks for original Ice Capades-style shows and AquaTheaters for innovative acrobatic-diving-dancing performances. Expect high-tech effects, including the use of robotics, to enhance the entertainment.

The cruise line employs numerous musicians, including pianists who perform at the Schooner Bar, Dueling Pianos bar and even in the elevator and other unexpected locations (you never know where the Stowaway Pianist will appear). Ships with Royal Promenades host festive parades, dance parties and midnight balloon drops.

Who is on board?

3 night disney cruise review

Disney Cruise Line unsurprisingly attracts a lot of families, especially families with little kids in that princess-worshipping sweet spot, as well as multigenerational families. However, the line also attracts its fair share of adult couples, friends and families with grown children. It's not uncommon to find couples celebrating an onboard wedding or their honeymoon.

What most of these Disney passengers share is a love of the brand, whether that's the characters and movies or Disney's obsession with high-quality entertainment. Also, Disney cruises don't come cheap, so families tend to be well off, or they've saved for years for a special trip.

Related: 5 reasons why Disney cruises aren't just for kids

Royal Caribbean sees a larger variety of passengers across its fleet due to multifaceted ships and a wide range of cruise fares. You'll find families with kids of all ages (including adult ones), couples celebrating milestones from weddings to retirements, and lots of bachelor and bachelorette parties, spring breakers and girlfriend getaway groups. Who is on board will vary depending on the ship, the time of year and the length and destination of the cruise.

If you want a more adult environment, look for smaller or older ships, longer itineraries and off-peak travel times. If you want to find families, look for weeklong cruises sailing during school breaks. The party crowd and younger friend groups gravitate toward the super-short three- or four-night or weekend itineraries.

Related: The best Royal Caribbean cruise ship for every type of traveler

Itineraries and pricing

3 night disney cruise review

Disney Cruise Line ships mainly sail to the Caribbean and Bahamas on weeklong or shorter sailings. Three- and four-night cruises from Florida home ports, especially Port Canaveral, are ideal for tacking onto short visits to Disney World in Orlando.

Disney Wonder is the cruise line's Pacific-based ship. It sails to Mexico, Alaska, Australia and New Zealand, the South Pacific and Hawaii (the latter as repositioning cruises). Disney Dream is the line's transatlantic ship. It sails to the Caribbean and Bahamas from Florida, but also crosses the ocean to offer European cruises (Mediterranean, Norwegian fjords, Western Europe).

Disney has previously offered Bermuda and Canada/New England cruises from northeastern U.S. home ports but does not currently have any on its schedule.

Related: The ultimate guide to Disney Cruise Line ships and itineraries

With a much larger fleet, Royal Caribbean has a much more diverse itinerary roster, but its focus is mainly the Caribbean, the Bahamas and Europe. In the summer, the line might base a dozen ships in the islands, half as many in Europe and four in Alaska, with the rest sailing to places like Bermuda, Canada and New England, Mexico and Asia. It can offer ship and itinerary options within one cruise region at the same time, whereas Disney might only have one ship sailing one route.

Royal Caribbean also offers cruises to the South Pacific, Pacific Northwest, Australia and New Zealand, Hawaii and Panama Canal, as well as transatlantic and transpacific crossings to move ships to new home ports.

You'll also have a wider selection of departure ports in the U.S. with Royal Caribbean. Its ships sail from secondary home ports, such as Baltimore, Boston, Cape Liberty (Bayonne, New Jersey), Galveston, New Orleans and Tampa, as well as the major Florida ports, Los Angeles, Seattle and Vancouver.

Related: The ultimate guide to Royal Caribbean cruise ships and itineraries

3 night disney cruise review

Perhaps because Disney Cruise Line has far fewer ships to fill than Royal Caribbean, its prices are generally much higher on similar itineraries. For example, at press time, the cheapest seven-night Caribbean cruise you can book on Disney Cruise Line starts at $1,449 per person, based on double occupancy and not including taxes and fees. Royal Caribbean's cheapest weeklong cruise starts at $377 per person.

However, Royal Caribbean's newest ships are very much in demand, and pricing can rival Disney's. The cheapest seven-night cruise on the line's recently debuted Icon of the Seas starts at $1,723 per person; its 2025-arriving sister Star of the Seas isn't much more affordable, with rates starting at $1,677.

Bottom line: Disney Cruise Line vs. Royal Caribbean

If you're looking at Disney Cruise Line versus Royal Caribbean for your next vacation at sea, you can't go wrong with either line.

Choose Disney Cruise Line if you're a huge Disney fan or are traveling with kids who are. Choose that line if you prefer smaller ships that are still kid-focused but offer plenty of adults-only spaces. Finally, book a Disney if you can afford the high fares and if your preferred destination and travel dates match up with the line's more limited schedule.

Choose Royal Caribbean if you like big ships and cruises that appeal to all ages and interests or if you're looking for smaller ships and are fine with older ships and more traditional onboard activities. If you need a wide variety of itineraries to choose from, are looking to cruise to more far-flung destinations or need options for affordable rooms or a wide selection of suites, Royal Caribbean is the line for you.

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Polka Dots and Pixie Dust

Disney Wish Disney Cruise Line Review

Disney Wish Disney Cruise Line Review

The Disney Wish Cruise ship is Disney Cruise Line’s most ambitious. With a new attraction at sea, new restaurants, lounges, stage shows, and entertainment, there is no shortage of magic to be had. We were recently fortunate enough to sail on Disney Cruise Line’s newest ship, the Disney Wish ! The Disney Wish began sailing in July 2022.  Hurricane Ian impacted our cruise, which caused our trip to go from a 4-night sailing to a 6-night sailing. So we ended up having a lot more time on the ship than we had originally anticipated, so we got pretty familiar with it. Here’s our full review of Disney Cruise Line’s newest ship, the Disney Wish!

The Disney Wish Cruise Ship has a lot to offer. If you’re a first-time cruiser with Disney Cruise Line, be sure to take a look at our tips if this is your first Disney Cruise . Since the Wish has sparked many a family to take their first Disney cruise, it’s important to go prepared, because these cruises aren’t like any other. Check out the full Disney Wish Cruise Guide for all the details on where to find everything on board. 

And if you’re a seasoned Disney Cruiser, ready to try out a world of enchantment onboard the Disney Wish, you’re in for a few surprises! So many things onboard were different from the other Disney Cruise Ships we’ve sailed before. And if you’re like us it would have helped to know those things ahead of time! Check out the 10 Ways we found that a Disney Wish Cruise is Different . 

Okay, let’s dive into the nitty gritty of our Disney Wish Review! 

Disney Wish Review

  • 1 Disney Wish Inaugural Sailings
  • 2 Disney Wish Food Review
  • 3 Disney Wish Stateroom Review
  • 4 Disney Wish Ship Review 
  • 5 Disney Wish Entertainment Review 
  • 6 Disney Wish Itinerary Review 
  • 7 Overall Disney Wish Review

Disney Wish Inaugural Sailings

The Disney Wish Inaugural sailings started with the Maiden Voyage in July 2022 and will proceed throughout the rest of the inaugural year. A note on inaugural sailings though. They always tend to be more crowded and there are often changes made along the way. So if you see something that’s different than what you’ve seen online, don’t be surprised. A good example is the Frozen Ever After restaurant. In the media previews and even a few of the first sailings, Olaf was part of the show. However, during our sailing in September 2022, he had been removed from the show due to malfunctioning. When we asked our server about it, he actually said he didn’t know if Olaf would ever return. 

Another example is the menus in the rotational dining lineup. Some items had changed even between July and September. So you may have seen someone get a ribeye for their steak dinner, but by the time you sail, it could have changed to a tenderloin. This is all really common during the inaugural year, so just remember that everything may not be as it was shared online. Basically, be ok with being flexible!

1923 Walt disney Side

Disney Wish Food Review

A lot of people go on a Disney Cruise for the food! So let’s talk about it! Overall, the food was pretty much on par with the standard we are used to seeing on Disney Cruise ships. Maybe a little better. We’ll break down each category of dining and dive a little deeper. But just know that if you’re sailing on the Disney Wish, you can expect the same great food you are used to having on Disney Cruise Line. 

Marceline Market Review

Marceline Market is the ship’s staple fast-casual restaurant. If you’re familiar with Disney Cruise Line, it’s similar to Cabanas. However, it is not a self-serve buffet like Cabanas. The cast members serve you at different stations throughout the restaurant in an assembly-line-style fashion. You can still eat as much as you’d like, but it is much more portion-controlled. The atmosphere in here can be chaotic at times and depending what time you eat, the lines can get very long. So, plan to eat in the slower times of the day or be sure to bring a lot of patience with you. 

We ate here for breakfast and lunch, and the food was good. We felt that Marceline had more interesting options and the food stalls felt a little more like complete meals. I do think the quality was also a bit better. The scrambled eggs at breakfast are still a no for me here, but everything else we had was great! Also just like Cabanas, you can choose to eat inside or outside. 

Unlike Cabanas, Marceline Market that has coffee and alcoholic beverages available for purchase.  

Also unlike Cabanas, Marceline Market is not yet serving dinner. The press release for the Disney Wish stated that it would serve made to order entrees at dinner just like Cabanas does, however I have not yet seen a single cruiser mention that this has been the case on their sailing. And it wasn’t on ours either. So maybe in the future this will be something that is available. But it’s just not yet!

Festival of Foods on the Disney Wish

Mickey’s Festival of Foods Review

Mickey’s Festival of Foods was the real showstopper for us. We don’t really eat fast food, so we generally tend to avoid the quick service counters onboard Disney Cruise ships aside from the chicken tenders; but we were glad we tried these! This area contains 6 small restaurants serving barbeque, pizza, build your own tacos, ice cream, burgers and chicken tenders. You can also get coffee, cocktails, and beers at The Lookout. 

We tried every restaurant in this area except for The Lookout, and everything we had was good! I have to say this is a huge improvement for quick service restaurants onboard a Disney Cruise ship. The food tasted fresh and like it was made with higher quality ingredients than we had had on previous Disney cruises.  Our pizza was even fired up right in front of us! The lines for these counters can get very long during the lunch hour. So if you’re looking to avoid that, I highly recommend trying to time your food break a little earlier or later than everyone else. 

Another change that this area brings to Disney Cruise Line is that the ice cream is no longer self-serve. Personally, I think this is a positive change! Sure the line can get long at times, but in the past, the ice cream machines were always a mess. And now, you can just get perfect ice cream swirls instead. 

Rotational Dining on the Disney Wish Review 

There are 3 rotational dining venues on the Disney Wish: 1923 , World of Marvel, and Arendelle.  Overall, we enjoyed all of these choices and thought the variety kept things interesting each day. The menus weren’t really anything out of the ordinary, but the food was good as always. And our server always did a great job making recommendations. Check out how Disney Cruise Rotational Dining works.  

Coffee Shops on the Disney Wish Review

Can you believe that there are 6 places to get coffee onboard the Disney Wish! Crazy, right?! When compared to just the two on the larger Disney Cruise ships, and only one on the smaller ships, this is pretty impressive.  They are also spread out around the ship, which is great because it helps keep the congestion down a bit.  On Deck three, you’ll find The Bayou, which serves coffee until around noon. Wishing Star Cafe is located on deck 4 and is also a bar. Enchanted Sword is on deck 5.  And it’s basically set up the same as the Wishing Star Cafe. Inside of Marceline Market, you’ll find Marceline Cafe, which serves specialty coffees and alcohol. The Lookout offers coffee drinks in the Festival of Foods lineup on deck 11, and is also a bar. And Cove Cafe is on deck 13, and is set up like other Cove Cafes on the other Disney Cruise ships. They also offer alcoholic beverages as well. 

We tried coffees at every coffee shop except The Lookout and generally they were all great! We had the best service at The Bayou and Wishing Star Cafe, but this will really depend on who is working those locations during your sailing.  One thing that is somewhat notable is that all of the coffee shops had the ability to print coffee art for you. That’s not usually the case on the other ships. In the past, Cove Cafe has been the only coffee shop able to do this onboard; but you can tell Disney Cruise Line is trying to really up its Instagrammable moments on this ship. 

Why are there no pastry cases onboard the Disney Wish?

One big disappointment on the Disney Wish: none of the coffee shops have a pastry case. Why? We don’t know! But we wish we did. We actually asked just to be sure.  You can get a pastry in Marceline Market in the morning and have that with your coffee, but otherwise you are out of luck.  And you can settle for beignets with your coffee at The Bayou, but the beignets will cost you extra. 

Cove Cafe at Disney Wish

Lounges and Bars on the Disney Wish

One of our favorite parts of any Disney Cruise is the Disney Cruise Lounges . Beautifully themed, Disney Cruise Line really tried to step up their game in the presentation of these new drinks. Many are available with the use of the smoke gun, which I imagine is likely because they can’t use dry ice for the effect. The smoke didn’t really add anything in flavor that I could tell. But it was a nice touch! It’s a pretty quick effect but it’s fun while it lasts. 

The Disney Wish has plenty of lounges onboard! Our favorite ended up being Nightingales not only for the ambiance but also because we ended up meeting the most wonderful bartender, Marvy Lee. She was absolutely fantastic and was one reason we kept going back! There are also nightly piano shows that last around 45 minutes to an hour. But this space is small, so if you plan to see these, make sure to arrive a little early. Nightingale’s is located on Deck 3, and I was a little worried that it would be really noisy due to the atrium, but it’s actually soundproof! The ambiance here is calm, so I think that was a great choice to soundproof this lounge so that those inside could enjoy the music being played there.

We also very much enjoyed The Rose, which is a bit higher scale, and the details inside are absolutely incredible! Hyperspace Lounge had a great lineup of drinks, and we really appreciated the fact that they actually had a mocktail that could be appealing to someone over the age of 8. 

Cons of the Lounges and Bars onboard The Disney Wish

While we really enjoyed these new spaces, there are of course some cons which we need to mention. Many of the lounges onboard are a bit small. That’s not usually a problem unless there is live entertainment and then they can fill up pretty quickly. The Bayou is a gorgeous space, but with its open-air constructs, it can get pretty noisy if there’s a lot going on, or if people start lining up for the evening show.  And even though we loved Hyperspace Lounge, it can get pretty loud in there! Currents, which is a bar that can be found on all of the Disney Ships, looks directly over the Toy Story Splash Area which we found to be an odd choice. In the past, it was usually near the adult pool. So putting it overlooking a kids play area just seemed weird. 

One complaint that we had about the bars and lounges is that there aren’t really any non-alcoholic drinks on the menus that are actually geared toward adults. We would love to see more inclusive menu items from Disney Cruise Line so that those who are avoiding alcohol for whatever reason can also enjoy these spaces. On the Disney Fantasy, The Meridian actually carried Seedlip Nonalcoholic Gin, and we’d love to see more Disney Cruise Line ships follow suit.  The constant supply of “mocktails” that include ice cream really gets old and we’d love to see more inventive choices for those who don’t drink. 

Disney Wish Stateroom Review

The Disney Wish has 1254 staterooms. 877 of these have a verandah, making it the category with the most rooms.  These rooms have an updated look from other ships in the Disney Cruise Line fleet and we will discuss the pros and cons below. 

Disney Wish Stateroom Pros

There is no denying that the staterooms onboard the Disney Wish are stunning. They are more updated, bright, and airy than the staterooms on the four other Disney Cruise ships. And you can tell that Disney is trying to really make a statement with these rooms. Each deck has a designated theme. We were on deck 6, so our theme was Cinderella. Absolutely gorgeous throughout! The artwork, the small details and the aesthetic of these rooms are just fantastic. Just like the staterooms on the other ships, the bathrooms are split into two rooms: one for the shower and one for the toilet.  This makes getting ready and showering super convenient.  When compared to the staterooms on the other Disney Ships, these really take the cake. Check out out review of the Disney Wish Verandah Stateroom . 

Disney Wish Stateroom Cons

However, as we love to give an honest opinion, we do have to point out a few flaws. First of all, let’s start with our exact room. We stayed in 6162 and we would NEVER recommend this room to anyone. Directly below our stateroom, there were emergency lifeboats. Not only are these super ugly and really kind of take away the beauty of having a verandah, but they also got a bit noisy during the couple of nights we had rougher seas. Which meant they kept us awake a bit. Not great. 

Also, if you’re someone who loves to unpack your luggage during your cruise, you won’t find much drawer space.  The desk area has one drawer and as far as where you can store clothing, that’s the only actual drawer.  There are shelves that are hidden in a closet, which is nice, but one shelf is for your life vest and another for the safe. This leaves you with just a few shelves, so if you are traveling with a larger party, there may not be enough space.  There is closet space, but again, this doesn’t leave much room for stuff that needs to be folded or things like socks and undergarments. 

Disney Wish Review

Disney Wish Ship Review 

If you’ve been interested at all in the Disney Wish, then you’ve likely seen plenty of photos! From heavy media coverage to large amounts of Disney bloggers and Instagrammers taking a cruise on the Disney Wish, there are lots of pictures to be seen. The Disney Wish is beautiful.  The details are absolutely stunning, especially if you take the time to look for them. The ship is light and bright, while also being warm and welcoming. 

Disney Wish Review

The Details of the Disney Wish

The details are really where the Disney Wish shines. A lot of thought and care was put into the creative aspect of the Disney Wish and it shows. Imagineers did an incredible job of representing Disney IP while also maintaining an elegant aesthetic, and not being too in your face Disney. The Disney touches are subtle enough that some people may not even notice them. But are a delight for those who do! 

Layout of the Disney Wish

There’s one thing that is important to remember if you are a big Disney Cruise fan. This is an entirely new class of ship. Not only is it bigger than any of the other Disney Cruise ships, but the layout is also a bit different. If you love the familiarity of the other boats, forget all of that before you board the Disney Wish. This is a different ship altogether and you really just need to be ok with that! The layout is definitely more confusing, as it is less linear and has more curves. This leaves a lot of blind spots which can make things a bit confusing because you may turn to see a gray wall with no indication of which way to go. 

The layout fell quite flat for us. Not only is it more confusing, but there are a lot of spaces that just kind of don’t make sense. I’m sure they make sense to someone , but to the average cruiser, it just feels weird. Sadly, we heard lots of complaining during this cruise and a lot of it had to do with the layout and certain spaces on the ship.  For example, Currents Bar is directly overlooking the Toy Story Splash pad. Why though? We couldn’t figure this design decision, along with many others, while exploring the ship. The layout just doesn’t flow well and had me asking so many questions. 

Deck 4 on the Disney Wish

A big pain point for us, and many other cruisers, is the complete dismantling of deck 4. If you’re a runner or a walker, or even just someone who enjoyed hanging out in the loungers on deck 4, this is going to take some adjusting. Deck 4 is not a continuous deck like it is on the other boats. Instead, it is very disjointed and broken up by stairs.  One end of deck 4 is completely blocked off to guests, so to get from one side of deck 4 to the other side, you need to actually go through the ship, which is why you’d need to go up the stairs if you wanted to complete the loop.  I’m guessing this may have something to do with engineering or mechanical needs, but it’s still very inconvenient, especially for those who are used to certain routines on the Disney ships. 

The Running Loop on Deck 4 of the Disney Wish

Runners… this means you’ll either have to be ok with running stairs multiple times, running to one end of the deck and turning around, or you’ll have to resign to running on the dreadmill…..err I mean treadmill.  The path takes you along one side of deck 4, then up the stairs to deck 5, and then up again to deck 6, where you will find the promenade and the hull of the ship. We did enjoy being able to see the front of the Disney Wish, but just wish it wasn’t such a hassle to get there.  So there’s not really a running loop like there is on the other boats. Which is really a shame for those who have come to appreciate it!

Aside from not having one continuous loop for deck 4, there are also almost no loungers. This is something that could be easily fixed by just adding more, but it was a shame to see almost no seating in an area that is pretty popular on other Disney Cruise Line ships. There are loungers on deck 5, but we only saw 3 in total, again bringing us to ask why.  All of that being said though, at least deck 4 still has the beloved shuffleboard games. 

Pools on the Disney Wish

There are a lot of pools on the Disney Wish! On deck 11/12, there are actually 6 smaller pools instead of one large one that we are used to. There’s also a small waterfall pool on deck 12 called Trixie’s Falls and a quiet pool on deck 14 named Chip and Dale’s Pool. These pools are all available for families. And they’re all quite little. We didn’t use the pools while we were onboard, and I don’t feel like a lot of other people did either. Between intermittently bad weather and well, the pools just being very little, I didn’t see a ton of people using them. 

The adult only area has an infinity pool that overlooks the ocean, but again it is tiny. There is also a Quiet Cove Whirlpool closer to the front of the adult only area on deck 13. And two smaller hot tubs by the infinity pool. A lot of people complained about this and it’s easy to see why.  For such a large ship, they really should have had bigger pool areas. 

Adult Only Spaces on the Disney Wish

The adult only spaces on the Disney Wish have been hotly discussed since the media previews. A few things we’d like to mention first. Many people were saying there is generally no seating on the adult only deck. And this is really just not the case. The entire area on deck 13 aft is 18+. And deck 13 is not continuous like previous adult only spaces are, so you really have to specifically wander to that area to get there. It’s very out of the way and I saw no children in this section at all, which is definitely different than the other cruise ships.  Probably because it’s pretty inconvenient. And we never had a hard time finding a seat there. Shaded areas can also be found on deck 13. You just have to be willing to walk around the other side of the deck to find them. 

The adult pool as we mentioned is far too small. And a lot of the other adult only spaces, including The Rose, Nightingale’s and even The Bayou are smaller, but we never noticed any of them to be too small. Unless there was an activity, but we’ll chat about that more below. 

Lord Leopold on the Disney Wish Cruise

Disney Wish Entertainment Review 

Entertainment on the Disney Wish is still new, and a little lacking, but with it being in its inaugural year, this doesn’t come as much of a surprise.  We are hoping as the ship gets a bit older, the entertainment improves. Even the funnel vision screen often had nothing on it, which is odd because it usually plays continuous movies and well on the Wish, it just didn’t. 

Disney Wish Activities and Spaces

The activities onboard the Disney Wish are pretty similar as the other cruise ships, although slightly lacking. This could be because the ship is new, or because the itineraries are short. Generally, the best activities are on longer voyages, or at least voyages with more days at sea. That being said, the activity spaces were not our favorite. They’re, well, not good. Even if you take away any comparison between ships, the fact is that these spaces are either too small for what they are hosting, or they are just awkward. Why they felt the need to get rid of D Lounge is beyond me, but it wasn’t a great choice. 

Spaces for activities on the Disney Wish

Triton Lounge, Keg & Compass, and The Bayou are all activity spaces and well, they’re all too small. With the exception of Keg & Compass, which generally tended to hold sports trivia, these other spaces are just not big enough for what they are hosting. Not only were people sitting on the floor for things like trivia and crafts, but also, those people felt lucky to even have room to sit on the floor. If you didn’t show up early, then you probably weren’t going to be able to get in. We hope they can do something about this because in its current state, the activities are just too big for these rooms. 

Luna Lounge is another activity space that is…. just ok? It’s two stories, which sounds great in theory but in reality, it makes things tough. There is a huge screen at the front of the room that spans the two stories, so depending on where you are sitting, you may not be able to see much. Generally things like Bingo and Karaoke were being held here and as the voyage went on, more things were added to this space.

Aside from Bingo, the activities that were hosted in here, due to the technology that was required for them were generally not the most popular activities. The whole thing just didn’t seem like the most well thought out plan. Which sadly makes attending some of these activities a little on the difficult side. 

Disney Wish Broadway Performances 

On the Disney Wish, you’ll get three Broadway style shows.  Seas the Adventure is a shorter show, and was cute, with a little forced IP in my opinion.  Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy Disney characters as much as anyone when they make sense. Overall, it’s a cute show and we did like it. And it’s only a half an hour. 

Aladdin is the second show you’ll see and is the same show that you’ll see on the Disney Fantasy . This show is fantastic! The effects, the songs, the choreography, all incredible. Highly recommend seeing this one. 

The third show is exclusive to the Disney Wish, The Little Mermaid.  This show was also quite good and a must see in my opinion. Especially since you won’t be able to see it anywhere else! 

Pirate Night Onboard the Disney Wish

Pirate Night on the Disney Wish was very similar to other Pirate Nights we’ve experienced. The menu was the same, and Mickey’s Pirates in the Caribbean was still as fun as ever. Characters get dressed in their pirate-y best.  And you can catch them all throughout the night to get photos and interact with them. 

The Rocking Parlay Pirate Party was a huge miss for us though.  The talent is great. But the storyline is really meh. If you love 80’s rock bands, then you’ll probably love this! But it just wasn’t for us. It really seemed to play to a certain demographic, and well I don’t think we are in that demographic.  We were happy to see that Captain Jack Sparrow still showed up, but I think we all agreed that we all prefer previous pirate night shows. 

There was also no late-night buffet on our cruise for Pirate Night like there usually is at Cabanas. We don’t usually attend this because we are still full from dinner at this point, but it’s important to note because I know a lot of people who look forward to this. 

Live Entertainment in the Atrium on the Disney Wish

One thing we felt was very lacking onboard the Disney Wish was the live entertainment in the atrium. In the past, we’ve always enjoyed these shows on other ships. During this sailing, there was only one instance where there was live music in the atrium at all. We don’t know if this is just because it’s still a fairly new ship and they’re still working out the details. Or if the Wish just won’t have live entertainment as much as the other ships? We’re hoping it’s the former. We missed this!

Other live entertainment was available in The Bayou and Nightingale’s on select nights. So if you’re hoping for some fun piano or guitar music, be sure to check the navigator to see when they’ll be playing!

Disney Wish Cruise Guide

Disney Wish Itinerary Review 

The Disney Wish currently only sails to the Bahamas. Castaway Cay and Nassau are the ports that this ship sails to. And you can choose between a 3 night and a 4-night sailing. We have a feeling that after the first year or two, they will open up longer itineraries. The first couple of years are really just about getting as many cruisers on the ship, so shorter itineraries work well for that! Or so we’ve been told.  I feel like this ship large enough that longer itineraries in the future would make sense.  Once completed, I believe the Disney Wish is supposed to be sailing to Disney’s new private island, Lighthouse Point, which will likely make for longer voyages. But for now, if you are able, we definitely recommend the 4-night instead of the 3-night cruise. The ship is just so large, that if you have no days at sea, it almost makes more sense to take a less expensive cruise on an older ship that is going to the same destination. 

Adult Deck on the Disney Wish

Overall Disney Wish Review

The Disney Wish is truly a sight to behold. This ship really shines with the details that the Imagineers have instilled all around it. With its gorgeous aesthetic and details that make us swoon, we just wish it was more functional. However, I feel like everything was more difficult on the Disney Wish. Usually, life feels like a breeze on a Disney cruise! But with all of the little things that were missing or altered, this was definitely a different Disney Cruising experience.  It wasn’t bad by any means! Any time you can spend on a Disney Cruise is a blessing. But everything felt a little harder. Yes, we are fully aware this is a first world problem. But we have to be honest about the cruise experience, since that’s what this post is about.  As guests who have been on all of the Disney ships, and can generally navigate layouts pretty well, the fact that we kept getting lost was a little annoying. 

The food was great, but the cast and crew are really what make any Disney Cruise ship fabulous and they definitely did with this one! We highly recommend taking some time to talk or get to know the crew onboard your ship as we feel it makes all the difference. They can offer you helpful tips that can make your trip more enjoyable. 

Did we love the Disney Wish?

While we did end up loving this ship, I actually don’t think we would have if not for the extended days of being on our cruise. Having that extra time to get to know the ship really helped us learn more about it and have a greater appreciation for her. Not knowing when you’ll be returning from sea is an interesting situation, but definitely gave us more time to explore than the average cruiser. Our Disney Wish review would likely have been different if we had only sailed the original intended itinerary.  It takes some time to learn the layout, which still has us asking questions, as it doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense.  If you only plan to sail for 3 nights, you will most likely miss a lot. Even the 4-night cruises won’t give you enough time to fully enjoy all this ship has to offer.

The layout of the ship was one of the biggest issues we had with the ship itself. And leaves me questioning if whoever designed this actually has ever been on a Disney Cruise? After some research, I found out, that no she had not. A lot of the spaces just don’t make sense. And neither does the layout. And some of the things that were changed, well if it’s not broke, don’t fix it. 

Would we sail on the Disney Wish again?

We won’t likely be seeking out sailing on the Disney Wish in the near future, mostly because of her limited itineraries. The layout of the ship leaves a lot to be desired, and since you can find a less expensive Disney Cruise on another ship going to the same destination, we’d likely choose that over sailing on the Wish again any time soon. But we very much enjoyed this ship and very much appreciated how well we were treated on this unplanned extended voyage. The cast and crew are always the real magic on any Disney Cruise vacation. Remember that and any Disney Cruise vacation can be wonderful regardless of what ship you’re on. 

Is the Disney Wish worth the cost?

“Worth it” is always a “it depends” answer for us. But with that being said, just be aware that cruises on the Disney Wish are currently more expensive than other cruises with similar itineraries. And on top of that, there is really only destination the Disney Wish is sailing: the Bahamas and Castaway Cay. So in our opinion, we would actually say no in this case. However, for many people, the Disney Wish was the ship that made them want to try Disney Cruises in the first place. And if that’s you, then it might be worth it!

What is the best part of the ship to stay on the Disney Wish?

Since the Disney Wish currently only sails to the Bahamas and Castaway Cay, the starboard side will be the best side for anyone wanting that iconic view of the island. For the best central location, we are fans of midship on decks 7 or 8.  And if you’re trying to avoid seasickness, we recommend lower decks if possible and again, midship.  For those who want to be really close to the elevators, there are only two sets to choose from. And for those guests, we’d recommend choosing a room closer to the forward. 

Are there rides on the Disney Wish?

There aren’t rides in the traditional sense like you’d see at the Disney Parks. But there is the Aquamouse! The Aquamouse is a waterslide ride that incorporates storytelling from the animated world of Mickey Mouse.  

Does the Disney Wish include alcohol?

Nope! None of the Disney Cruises currently include alcohol, unless you sail concierge, which includes alcohol in the concierge lounge. Disney also doesn’t currently have any drinks packages for alcohol either. And all alcoholic beverages are purchased separately. 

We hope our Disney Wish review has been helpful! Have you sailed on this new ship yet? Let us know what you thought of it!

Disney Wish Cruise Line Review

Melanie Renee

Melanie Renee is a photographer, writer, designer and mom. Visiting Disney destinations since 2010, she is also an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner. When she's not creating her next coffee recipe, or designing apparel at Polka Dot Pixie Shop, she's seeking beautiful sunsets and planning her next trip .

  • Melanie Renee https://www.polkadotsandpixiedust.com/author/melanniee/ Dahlia Lounge at Coronado Springs
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3-Night Bahamian Cruise from Port Canaveral

What's included in the price of a disney cruise.

Broadway-Quality Shows

Pools, Waterslides & Recreation

Spacious Staterooms

Upscale, Casual & 24-Hour In-Room Dining

Adult-Exclusive Activities

Clubs for Kids, Tweens & Teens

Cruise Itinerary

  • Be a part of the magic at Walt Disney World Resort
  • Take an out-of-this-world tour of Kennedy Space Center
  • Window-shop and take in the scenic surf-side sights at Cocoa Beach
  • Swim with dolphins at Atlantis, Paradise Island
  • View coral reefs and exotic fish from a semi-submarine
  • Ascend the Queen’s Staircase to Fort Fincastle
  • Bring the family together for swimming, snorkeling, biking, kayaking and more
  • Kids can ride 2 winding waterslides and socialize inside exclusive clubs
  • At a private beach, adults sip on cocktails, sunbathe and enjoy massages

IMAGES

  1. 3 Great Reasons To Try A 3-Night Starter Cruise On The Disney Cruise Line

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  2. Reasons a 3 Night Disney Cruise Is Worth It • Mom's Plan-it Vacation

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  3. 3 Day Disney Cruise Review (Is it worth it?)

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  4. A Peek Into a 3-Night Disney Cruise-Part 3 of 3

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  5. Reasons a 3 Night Disney Cruise Is Worth It • Mom's Plan-it Vacation Blog

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VIDEO

  1. Welcome Aboard the Disney Wish!

  2. Surprising the kids with a Disney Cruise

  3. 7-Night Disney Fantasy Cruise Vacation Part 2

  4. Disney Cruise Day 2

  5. DISNEY CRUISE VLOG DAY 1

  6. Disney Wish Embarkation Day 🚢

COMMENTS

  1. 3 Day Disney Cruise Review (Is it worth it?)

    Gratuities. Another additional cost you will want to consider when budgeting for your 3 night Disney cruise is gratuities. Guests vacationing with DCL are charged $14.50 a day per person for gratuities. So, if you are traveling as a family of four, you would spend $58 per day on gratuities alone. This means that the total amount of gratuities ...

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  4. 3-Night Bahamas Disney Cruise Line Report

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  5. Family Went on Disney Wish Cruise, Worth It for $5,300 + Photos

    Aug 14, 2023, 4:36 AM PDT. My family has been on multiple Disney cruises. Jill Robbins. My family of four did a three-night sailing on the Disney Wish in July for $5,300. We've been on eight ...

  6. All Aboard! 4 Days 3 Nights on the Disney Wish

    For 2 adults and 2 children (7yo and 4yo), the cruise itself was $2,974.76. To be clear, we got an inside stateroom (no window), but the room was still really nice. We decided to book with a travel agent ( Michelle Shumate of Fairy Godmother Travel ), and the experience was awesome.

  7. 3 nights Disney Cruise to Bahamas on Dream

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  9. Honest Disney Wish Cruise Review from a First-Time Disney Goer

    Disney Wish Itinerary Review. We took the 3 night Disney Wish Cruise which docked in Nassau, Bahamas, and Castaway Cay, a Disney-owned Bahamian Island. This was the best option for our family as it left on a Friday and came back on a Monday, reducing the number of days the boys would miss school.

  10. Our Disney Dream 3 Night Cruise Review +TIPS!

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  11. 3 Day Disney Cruise to Bahamas Review

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  12. Disney Magic Cruise: Expert Review (2023)

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  14. Disney Cruise Lines Review

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  15. Guest Trip Report: August 6, 2021 3 Night on the Disney Magic from

    Guest Trip Report: 3 Night on the Disney Magic from Southampton, England. I booked this cruise a few months back, and was lucky enough to be able to book a day ahead of the general public (as a silver Castaway Club member). There were 4 ports availabl: Liverpool, Southampton, London Tilbury, and Newcastle, and sailings were 2, 3 or 4 nights.

  16. Disney Dream

    A Disappointing Voyage with Disney Dream. Our family eagerly anticipated a magical vacation aboard the Disney Dream, destined for Nassau and Castaway Cay. Unfortunately, the experience was far from enchanting, feeling more scheduled and transactional than magical. The reliance on the Disney Cruise App for managing every….

  17. Disney Cruises

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  18. 3-Night Bahamian Cruise from Port Canaveral

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  19. Personal Navigators: Disney Wish 3-Night Bahamian Cruise from Port

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  20. Tropical Cruises for 3- to 4-Nights to the Bahamas

    3- or 4-Night Cruises to The Bahamas from Port Canaveral. Cast off from Port Canaveral, Florida—just an hour from Walt Disney World Resort—to historic Nassau in The Bahamas and Disney Castaway Cay, our private island paradise, featuring recreation and fun for the entire family. For even more fun, a day at sea is available on 4-night voyages.

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  24. Disney Cruise Line vs. Royal Caribbean: Which family-friendly cruise

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  25. Disney Wish Disney Cruise Line Review

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  26. What's New

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