Cruise review: our sailing on the Disney Dream
I wasn’t originally planning to write a detailed review of our cruise aboard the Disney Dream. First of all, our cruise route changed last minute due to a hurricane threatening Bermuda, our scheduled port of call. Instead, the cruise diverted to St. John, New Brunswick, Canada! This recently happened to another cruise in December, and it was so unexpected it was on the Canadian news. *Nobody* travels to St. John in the winter. We sailed at the end of October, so it wasn’t quit as frigid, but it was chilly and drizzling and dreary. It was definitely unexpected and not the “typical” Disney Dream experience.
Furthermore, because we are first time Disney cruisers, we did not book many extra on-board activities (both by choice and because many of the activities were full by the time our booking window opened). I thought maybe our experience would be a little too bare-bones.
But then I got to writing some of our other posts on tips for first time Disney cruisers, and I thought, what the heck, we still had quite the cruise, and I’ve certainly reviewed hotels with less.
Hopefully we can provide a window into our experience and a glimpse of what to expect if you’re considering, or have booked a cruise on the Disney Dream.
Our sailing
We booked a 5 day (4 nights) Halloween themed cruise aboard the Disney Dream, sailing out of New York City. Our destination was *supposed* to be Bermuda (but as we said above, we ended up in New Brunswick.)
The booking process
Booking the actually cruise was very easy. (We review this in detail in our tips before you sail post.) We booked directly through the Disney Cruise Line website, and were only required to pay a 20% deposit. Once you’ve made a reservation, you can access the details about your sailing through the website or through the DCL Navigator app. You can book on board activities and excursions ahead of time. You can also confirm details about your reservation, including dining times and any special requests.
What I liked:
The website and app were both pretty user friendly. I really liked the small Disney touches, such as the Disney themed countdown every time you access the app. There is a neat option for Mickey and friends to call your family before the cruise, which is a great way to get into the Disney spirit.
What I didn’t like:
I didn’t like the mad scramble to book activities and excursions. I found the rush to book and to check in stressful, and many passengers on our cruise were disappointed they were unable to book what they wanted.
Disney Cruise has a loyalty program, Castaway Club, where they more you sail the earlier you can access the various bookings. For first time cruisers, the options are very limited by the time your booking window opens (75 days prior to sailing), and many of the popular activities are already sold out.
I also did not like how check-in opens at 12 am. Midnight! Most cruisers want to check in as soon as they can, so they can snag an earlier Port Arrival Time (PAT). This means you can board the ship earlier and have more time to enjoy the amenities while it’s relatively quiet. I had to set an alarm to wake up at midnight!
The check in process
As first time cruisers, we were able to check in 30 days ahead of the cruise. It was fairly straightforward and took 10 mins or so for our family of 4 (minus having to wake up at midnight…)
You should have all your check-in documents prepared ahead of time. This includes a photo of all your travel documents, and a photo of each passenger, including kids, taken against a bland background. These must be scanned as JPG, PNG, or GIFs. The easiest thing to do is to keep everything in one folder, so you have quick access to it when checking in.
I learned about most of these requirements via a post by a veteran cruiser on our sailing’s Facebook page. The website does have a page on how to check in, but it isn’t as intuitive and doesn’t actively remind you when it’s time to check in.
Embarkation day
This was a great day! It only took us about an hour from when we arrived at the dock to when we were on the ship.
We took public transport to the dock (the NJ ferry!) and left our car at the ferry carpark. We heard from some passengers parking on site was tricky as there are limited spots, and it was 40 USD/day!
There were porters to collect our bags at the sidewalk entrance. Even through we did not use the luggage tags Disney sent us in the mail, tagging our luggage only took a few minutes. There was a steady line through check-in (including security, the actual check-in, and collecting your room cards/kids club bracelets), but it moved pretty quickly. The kids loved the Disney staff walking around with Mickey hands randomly giving out high fives.
Getting up at midnight to snag an early-ish Port Arrival Time (11:15am) paid off, as we had plenty of time to enjoy the ship while it wasn’t as crowded. We had their buffet lunch, rode the water slide a bunch of times, and swam in the pool. It was a good time to explore the ship and grab some pictures! There are characters around and about on embarkation day you can meet and take photos with. (At all other times during the cruise we had specific meet-and-greet times where you had to wait in line.)
Be sure to check out our post on Disney cruising tips for *during* the cruise!
What I liked:
Overall, boarding the cruise was way smoother than I expected.
Some may think that “Disney” is overhyped, but they really go out of their way to make you feel special. There are staff lining the entrance as you walk onto the ship, who announce your family’s arrival and clap as you board.
We *really* liked sailing out of New York City. We’ve only ever sailed out of Florida before, but I imagine sailing up the Hudson River is one of the most unique departures anywhere. We got fantastic views of NYC and New Jersey, and a perfect view of the Statue of Liberty at sunset. (Keep in mind for Disney, however, there are only 2 destinations out of NYC – Bermuda and Canada. Take your chances!)
What I didn’t like
The Sailing Away party on the deck. This was our first “deck party”, and we found the same issue with most of the other “parties” and on board activities that followed. You have to get into position at least 30 minutes ahead of the start time to get a good spot. We were on the upper deck – we had a good line of sight but we were far away, and it was harder for the kids to muster up enthusiasm.
Our stateroom
We booked a veranda room with a partially obstructed balcony (it really wasn’t obstructed at all). We had a queen sized bed, a single sofa bed, and a pull down bunk bed.
What I liked
I was very impressed with our stateroom. It was spacious, with a ton of storage space as well, and the bed was sooo comfortable. The kids loved their “bunk beds”, which our stateroom host set up every night while we were at dinner. I liked that there was a thick curtain divider between the two spaces, to give everything a little bit of privacy. It helped that we could keep the lights on on our side even after the kids were in bed.
What I really thought was ingenious were the cabin bathrooms. The Disney cruise bathrooms are divided into two spaces – one room with a shower/tub and sink, and the other with a toilet and sink. This made it easier for our family of 4 to do our business and not get in each other’s way. (Imagine – kid needing to use the bathroom while the husband is taking an extra long shower… :P)
I also liked the TV, which plays Disney channels and also has the day’s schedule and ship updates. The TV even reads “bedtime stories” for the kids. Big S and Lil S may have been a teensy bit too old for it, but they loved them anyway.
What I didn’t like
Nothing! There was a little bit of noise (and we were almost at the Aft end), but I don’t think it’s something you can ever entirely avoid on a cruise. The kids were completely zonked at the end of each day and the noise didn’t bother them at all.
The kids clubs
Oceaneer Club and Oceaneer Lab (ages 3-10)
Our kids are fairly independent, so they made good use of the kids club. They were there for several hours every day. There are many “open house” slots during the cruise where adults and parents can tour the club as well. The club is divided into 2 sections, the Oceaneer Club and Oceaneer Lab, and whichever section is open to the public will be closed to kids during that time. As far as we could tell, the “lab” is supposed to be the side where kids can do more crafts and projects, whereas the “club” side is more active play. Characters sporadically show up to greet the kids as the club.
You do not need to register for the kids club in advance. You can simply show up and drop your kids off. All kids can check themselves in, and kids over 8 can also check themselves out if the parents authorize it. (Depending on the parents, they either love or hate this option.) The staff can message you through the Navigator app if they need to connect with you about your kids.
The kids club has a small eating area, but the area has been closed off since COVID. If you want your kids to go to the kids club during mealtimes, you will need to feed them beforehand. (Room service is a good option. Flo’s Cafe on deck level serves quick grab pizza and grill options.)
What I liked
The themes! We loved how every room has a different theme. There is a Star Wars Millennium Falcon area, a Tinkerbell Pixie Hollow area, and Andy’s playroom. The rooms are so well done and had the kids running around with excitement.
The Oceaneer Club also has an interactive dance floor, which was really cool.
And (weird thing to like, I know) I was really impressed by the hand wash station. All kids must wash their hands before and after the kids club. It’s a timed, auto hand-wash station, and was really cool even I got excited about washing my hands.
What I didn’t like
The line ups to pick up your kids. Be prepared to wait in line to collect your kids. If it’s busy (eg. late afternoon, just before dinner or the start of the show), it can take more than half an hour.
Other kids clubs
For the 0-3 age group, there is It’s a Small World nursery. There is a fee for this service, 9.00 USD/hour, and you have to register for it either online or directly with the nursery.
For older kids, there is Edges (ages 11-14), and Vibe (ages 14-17). Vibe even has their own outdoor area and wading pool.
Pre-registered on board activities
As we mentioned before, we didn’t do a whole lot of on board activities we had to register for ahead of time. These activities include adult activities such as spa services, jewelry viewing events, and all kinds of alcohol tasting – from champagne, to whiskey, to rum, to wine. Kids activities include Royal Court Tea Party, and the Bibbiti Bobbiti Boutique (where you can get a makeover as a princess or pirate).
Part of the reason was because it was simply hard to find available activities by the time our booking window opened (for the kids activities, especially). These activities are also expensive – for example, the Royal Court Tea Party came with a hefty tag of 220 USD *per child*, and 69 USD per observing adult! What we realized, though, while we were on the cruise, was we were already busy enough without these extra activities in our schedule!
One idea if your child wants a princess makeover is simply to bring your own. Many kids already dress up as princesses during the cruise. In addition to their dress, you can add a tiara, some hair glitter, and some child-friendly makeup and give them their own makeover! We actually did bring all the supplies, but Lil S was so pre-occupied with other activities we never got around to dressing her up. I have also heard the Boutique will “pixie dust” your hair with sparkles if you simply walk in, but again, we never got around to this.
We did book the Royal Gathering ahead of time. (It is free, and booking opens the same time as check-in for 1st time cruisers.) It’s a good way to meet princesses, but by the time we attended this event, Lil S had already met most of the princesses on her own!
“No registration required” on board activities
Every day, the cruise had a fully packed schedule of activities that are free where you can simply show up and have a good time.
The D Lounge on deck 4 runs family friendly activities all day long, including Disney karaoke, Disney trivia, Disney bingo, and art and animation classes.
There are musical acts throughout the day in the atrium and lounge.
What (the kids) loved
The Midship Detective Agency! This was probably their favourite activity on the cruise. This is a scavenger hunt type activity where you get to solve a mystery. You get a case and a “badge”, and have to run around the cruise collecting clues. The clues are hidden in “digital art” frames scattered around the ship (mostly stairwells), which interact with you once you scan your badge. Eventually, you crack the case and solve the mystery, of course! There are 2 levels of difficulty – the kids could do the easy level entirely on their own, whereas they needed a bit of help for the harder level.
The family pool areas
As we ended up sailing to a place that was near freezing, we didn’t make quite a much use of the pool deck as we otherwise would have. The main thrill of the pool deck is Disney Dream’s waterslide, the Aquaduck, which goes around the entire deck and even over the side of the ship at one point. The height limit for this ride is 42 inches. The slide has 2 person tubes, so you can ride as 1 or 2 people.
There are 2 family friendly pools on Deck 11 – the Donald pool, and the Mickey pool, which is shallower. There is another corkscrew slide for kids here, propped up by Mickey’s hand. These pools are heated. Kids must be potty-trained to enjoy the pools. There is a splash area called Nemo’s Reef for kids under 8, and a small hot tub.
There is also a wading pool called Funnel Puddle on deck 12. Because it was generally cold, the kids had no desire to walk all the way over here in their swim gear.
What I liked
Luckily, the weather was exceptionally warm on our sailing away, for a fall day in NYC. We rode the Aquaduck repeatedly on embarkation day, because there was no line. It’s not a thrill ride, but it was fun, even for adults. Lil S also enjoyed the smaller Mickey corkscrew slide.
We liked how there is a giant screen (the Funnel Vision) at one end of the pool deck. It’s fun getting to be in the pool while watching movies.
What I did not like
The pools were quite small. Even when the pools were relatively quiet during our cruise (because cold), there were still enough people that it felt crowded.
The hot tubs were even smaller. I would say they might fit a maximum of 20 people, which is tiny for a cruise of 4 thousand.
The adult-only pool area
Because the kids spent so much time at the kids club, we had plenty of time to explore the adult only areas of the ship, too.
The adult pools are in the Forward area of Deck 11. Quiet Cove Pool is the main one, with a shallower sunbathing area and a deeper area. In the same location is an adults only hot tub. There is a bar (the Cove Bar) for beverages, and the Senses spa is right next door. There is a wading pool with a rain curtain on Deck 13, called Satellite Falls.
What I liked
It was quiet! There were only a handful of adults in this area, and we were able to swim and had our pick of loungers. (It wasn’t scorching the day we went, but it wasn’t cold, either.)
Sense Spa, Goofy SportsDeck, and Disney Dream Gym
We did’t even make it to the gym! But for those more dedicated, the Disney Dream Gym has a forward ship location and a great view, with standard gym equipment. It also offers fitness classes throughout the day.
We’re not spa people on the whole, but had we had a little more time traveling without kids, we would have liked to make use of the Spa’s Rainforest room. A day pass costs 39 USD, and gives you access to a bunch of saunas, scented showers, and hot tubs (that’s where all the ship’s hot tubs have gone!)
The SportsDeck is located on Deck 13, and has mini golf, a basketball court, and a few table tennis and foosball tables. It’s relatively low key compared to the activities offered by many other cruises. We found for most of the trip it was way to windy to enjoy the SportsDeck – the golf balls and table tennis balls would fly every which way. The SportsDeck also offers a virtual sports simulator for 20 USD/hour. This is a reservation only activity, and one of the one that were sold out by the time our booking window opened.
Walt Disney Theatre shows
We caught a different show almost every night on board our cruise. The shows on the Disney Dream are the same every sailing. The piece de resistance is their Beauty and the Beast retelling (based on the new Beauty and the Beast movie), which is 1.5 hours long. The other two shows are the Golden Mickeys (think Oscar vibes), and Believe, a story about a father who rediscovers magic and reconnects with his daughter. Even though they are unique stories, they make good use of familiar songs and characters. These are both 1 hour long.
There are 2 show times every night, to accommodate everyone’s dinner schedule.
There is a concession stand just outside the theatre, where you can purchase popcorn or drinks in a collectible souvenir.
What I liked
The shows were my favourite part of the cruise! The singing, dancing, costumes, and stage sets felt very Broadway-quality, and they even had acrobatics at every performance. The kids loved all the familiar songs, and how they were able to introduce so many beloved characters into their show’s own unique storyline. The shows are very family friendly, and the duration was just perfect for squirmy kids with short attention spans.
What I didn’t like
Like most of our activities, you have to think about arriving in advance. You can definitely snag a seat if you arrive at showtime – but if you want a good seat that is close and centre stage, you will have to get there up to 30 minutes before the show starts. There were a few interactive elements (bubbles, confetti) that our kids were disappointed to miss out on because they were not seated centre stage.
Big screen movies
Disney Dream has 2 big screens that play Disney movies throughout the day. First is the Funnel Vision we mentioned before, which is on the pool deck. This plays popular Disney movies, and you can access the movie schedule through the Navigator app. The cruise also has a movie theatre, the Bueno Vista Theatre, which usually only plays a few of Disney’s newest releases.
What I liked
We caught half of the live action Little Mermaid at the Bueno Vista theatre almost by chance, because Lil S did not want to do another detective mystery with her brother. We were surprised there were only a handful of other people watching, in a full-sized movie theatre! The seats were *very* generously sized and incredibly comfy, and they reclined. Definitely the most comfortable movie theatre I’ve ever visited.
We also liked Funnel Vision, where we could catch pieces of movies while swimming or having a snack on the pool deck.
Dinner rotation
Dinner is definitely the main event of the day. There are 2 dinner seating times, at 5:45pm and 8:00pm. There are 3 main dining rooms on the Disney Dream – the Animator’s Palate, Enchanted Garden, and Royal Palace. You are assigned a dining room every night, and you rotate through the different dining rooms with your serving staff. Animator’s Palate serves more contemporary/international fare, with lots of seafood options. Enchanted Garden and Royal Palace menus lean more toward traditional/French cuisine.
One or two of these restaurants will also be open for sit-down breakfast and lunch during the day.
What I liked
We liked the concept of the rotational dining. It’s a neat (and organized) way to experience all the different restaurants, but with the comfort of familiar staff who serve you every night.
Our favourite restaurant by far was Animator’s Palate, and we were lucky to experience it more than once. Animator’s Palate has the most visually engaging decor, with a bit of a retro vibe and amazing artwork. It also has these large screens where Finding Nemo characters flitter around and will actually interact with you. Animatronics? AI? Nobody knows, but it was very cool and the kids absolutely loved it. We also enjoyed the food here the most.
We liked the dedicated kids menu (which also doubles as a kids activity sheet). There are standard “kid friendly” choices, like pizza and chicken strips, and special features (eg. surf-and-turf) that are kids-size portions.
What I didn’t like
We found the other 2 restaurants a little bit underwhelming. Enchanted Garden is modelled after the Gardens of Versailles, while the Royal Palace features artwork of Disney princesses. I understand sometimes there are characters and live performances during dinner at these two restaurants, but in our experience it felt like having a regular meal. (Which is fine, but underwhelming for Disney!)
On the whole, we are not big eaters, and sometimes the dinner service felt a little overwhelming. You pick from a nightly menu of three courses, with bread service, appetizer, main course, and dessert. There is a “lighter fare” option for your main course, but sometimes our servers would bring out multiple main courses, as they didn’t want us to miss out on the features. The food was excellent, on the whole, but there was a *lot* of it, and a lot of food waste.
The dining service
Disney’s dining service deserves a special mention. Of your 4 main cruise staff, 3 are the dinner staff. You have a main server and an assistant server, and a head server, who overseas your entire dining room. Because the dinner staff rotate with you, you have the same servers your entire cruise.
What I liked
The service was outstanding. Our main and assistant server went out of their way to get to know the kids (even though the kids were tired by the end of the day). The servers knew exactly what drinks the kids liked, and would prepare it before we even arrived at our table. They even helped the kids cut up their food! After the main courses were served, the staff would perform little magic tricks to help entertain the kids. They give us as parents a chance to actually enjoy dinner, without worrying about the kids.
Other dining options
Other food options on the Disney Dream include Cabanas, a buffet style restaurant on Deck 11 that opens for breakfast and lunch. Mater’s Grill, Luigi’s Pizza, Fillmore’s Favourites – collectively known as Flo’s Cafe – is on Deck 11 as well. It is open during the day for a quick bite, and also late into the evening for your late-night munchies. Deck 11 is also home to the drink stations, and the soft serve ice-cream station Eye Scream Treats.
Room service is available 24 hours a day, included in your cruise fare!
There are 2 adult-only restaurants on the Disney Cruise, Palo – an Italian inspired restaurant, and Remy – a French inspired restaurant. You need to reserve a table ahead of time.
What I liked
Our kids don’t like waiting for food (or waiting in general), so we ate at Cabanas a lot. The buffet selection for both breakfast and lunch were excellent (including crab legs and cocktail shrimp at every lunch!) Cabanas can get crowded during peak hours – while you might have to wait a few minutes for a table, the buffet lines always moved smoothly.
Room service was fantastic. It definitely adds a little bit of luxury to your downtime! Our favourites were the infamous Mickey Mouse ice cream bars, and the cheese board while relaxing on the balcony.
The kids, of course, adored Eye Scream Treats. The station serves different flavours of soft-serve every day. We loved the good old-fashioned vanilla and chocolate, but the strawberry and banana were a hit, too.
What I didn’t like
We initially wanted to book an adult-only dinner at Palo to celebrate our anniversary. (We were married in Italy, so we felt this was fitting!) Unfortunately, all lunch and dinner reservations were already full by the time our booking window opened (75 days prior to cruising). The only option available was dinner on embarkation day, and we felt guilty about leaving the kids on our first day.
We did look at Remy as well, but the cost of enjoying a dinner at Remy was $135 per adult! We did not feel this was worth spending on top of an already expensive cruise. (Palo, on the other hand, is a much more reasonable $50 pp for brunch and dinner.)
Non-included food and drink options
Vanellope’s Sweats and Treats – Deck 11. This is a cute little shop selling tons of different specialty candy, cookies, and cupcakes which our kids would usually be begging to visit. With all the food they were already having, I don’t think they were tempted to visit Vanellope’s even once!
For specialty coffee – Cove Cafe and Vista Cafe. Because water, regular coffee, milk, juice, and soft drinks were always available and included, we did not feel the need to order any special drinks.
For alcoholic drinks – Frozone (specialty alcoholic smoothies/slushies!), Pink (champagne bar), Bon Voyage, Skyline Lounge, 687 Lounge, the District Lounge, Meridian Bar. By the adults only pool area you will find the Currents Bar and Cove Bar. Disney cruises do not have an all-inclusive drink package, although you can order wine and beer packages to be delivered to your stateroom. If you plan to drink, you can save a few dollars by choosing the Drink of the Day, or keep an eye on your schedule for happy hours that happen throughout the day.
*Disney cruises will allow passengers over 21 to bring their own alcohol on board. The limit is 2 bottles of wine/bubbly, or 6 bottles of beer when you embark *and* at each port of call. If you want to have your own wine with dinner, there is a $25 corking fee.
The shops
Disney Dream has 2 main souvenir shops: Mickey’s Mainsail and Sea Treasures. Be sure to pick up any souvenirs you want early in the cruise. We were looking to grab an ornament for our Christmas tree, but when we returned a few days later, many of them were sold out!
The ship also has a Tiffany and Co, and White Caps – where you can buy jewelry, perfume, and the finer things in life.
Up on the pool deck you will find Whozits and Whatzits, in case you have forgotten your swimsuit, sandals, sunglasses, or sunscreen.
The characters
We met a ton of characters on our Disney Dream Cruise! Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Goofy, Pluto, and Chip and Dale are available throughout the day for scheduled character meet and greets. These characters also host the main deck parties. For our cruise, we had a sailing away party, a pirate night party, and a Halloween party.
Lil S met a ton of Disney princesses. For our cruise, we had Rapunzel, Tiana, Belle, Cinderella, and Ariel. Princesses are available during character meet and greets, and also during the Royal Gathering, which you have to sign up for in advance. The only princess who was not at the Royal Gathering was Ariel.
Our cruise also had Stitch, one of our favourite characters, so that was a hit!
There are characters that show up at the kids’ club as well, but ours kids – who were there quite a bit – did not mention meeting any of them.
What I didn’t like
Meeting characters became a huge part of planning our day. While the ship didn’t feel crowded for most of the cruise, it seemed everywhere the characters were, most of the ship followed. For deck parties, you have to arrive at least 30 minutes ahead of time to get a good spot close to the stage. For character meet and greets, you had to line up at least 15 minutes before the character’s scheduled appearance. (Give it 30 minutes for popular characters such as Captain Jack Sparrow for Pirate Night.)
We were told you can run into characters wandering around the ship. Most of the time, they are on their way to or from a scheduled meet and greet, and their handlers will not stop them for photos. The only exception we found to this was on embarkation day, where the kids met Cinderella, Goofy, and Pluto just walking around.
Pirate Night
Most Disney Dream sailings have a Pirate Night. In the afternoon, many people will start getting into pirate gear. There is a pirate deck party, a pirate-themed dinner, and fireworks at night. The characters dress up as pirates for the evening, and even Captain Jack Sparrow makes an appearance. If you didn’t bring costumes, that’s okay – the cruise will give you accessories to help you get into the spirit. We all got bandanas.
These was one of those nights where unfortunately our detour greatly impacted the night. Our deck party was freezing (quite literally the temperature was near freezing), so that made it hard to get into the spirit. We were all on deck with our thickest coats and some kids came out wrapped in duvets. And because our port did not allow fireworks, we didn’t get to experience that, either. However, the kids didn’t seem too upset about it. It was fun to see the entire cruise get into the pirate spirit.
Halloween Night
We booked the Halloween on the High Seas sailing, so got to experience a specialty Halloween Night as well!
We enjoyed Halloween Night more than Pirate Night. Our stateroom host armed us all with Halloween treat bags, and we got to Trick or Treat in Cabanas. It’s a short route, but the staff were very generous with their candy and the kids made out like bandits. Mickey and crew also hosted a “Mousequerade” deck party. I think most of the cruisers enjoyed this because the characters actually rotated around the dance floor so you got to dance with them close up.
All the characters dress up for Halloween, but there were some cool characters that only showed up on Halloween night. Sanderson Sisters was a big hit (Minnie, Daisy, and Clarabel dress up as the Sanderson Sisters), but we skipped this as our kids have never seen the movie. We did get in line for Jack and Sally, which was a good 45 minute wait. Jack was one of the few characters we met who talks, and was my favourite character meet and greet.
Another Halloween activities we got to enjoy aboard our Halloween-on-the-High-Seas cruise was the lighting of the pumpkin tree. This was a gnarly life-sized jack-o-lantern-adorned tree in the atrium, and we got to hear ghostly stories about the tree’s origin and see all the jack-o-lanterns light up. The cruise itself is also decked out in fall/pumpkin decor. We loved the jack-o-lantern decals in the potholes.
Port excursions
Just a quick word on port excursions, because our initial plans didn’t pan out, for obvious reasons.
Our sailing only had 1 port of call, initially to Bermuda. There were some great options for port excursions, from more adventurous like shipwreck snorkelling, to beaching or even swimming with sea turtles. Unfortunately, as first time cruisers, a lot of the popular excursions were sold out when our booking window opened. Because Bermuda is small, it would have been very easy to hop into a taxi and make your way into town or to the beach on your own.
Diversion due to weather
We did not officially find out our ship was diverting until 2 days prior to sailing. It is in the cruise contract that ships are allowed to divert due to weather. In our case, DCL allowed passengers to cancel the cruise (we had some passengers rebook to a cruise sailing out of Florida!) We were also offered a 20% discount toward a future Disney Cruise – which was generous, as DCL was not contractually obligated to offer compensation.
There were some excursions that opened last minute for St. John, New Brunswick. Most of these were sightseeing tours around the downtown and waterfront, and the feedback we heard from our fellow passengers was not all that great. We spent 1-2 hours walking around the port and town, and that was more than enough for us. We love Canada, but small St. John on a weekend under a cloudy sky was a little… bleak.
The kids weren’t disappointed at all, though. They loved getting back on the ship and having more time to enjoy all the on board activities.
Overall, we had a great cruise, and the kids had an absolute blast. What I didn’t love about our experience was just the feeling of having to rush into line for everything, whether it be booking an activity or meeting a character. However, I can confidently say that even if you “miss out” on something, there is still plenty to do/eat/enjoy. If you make like Crush and go with the flow, you will have a magical time.
