Disney Cruise Line Tip Thread

What are the current rules about bringing your own alcohol onboard?

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What are the current rules about bringing your own alcohol onboard?

 

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Currently, you can bring on as much as you can carry. It's not permitted in checked luggage.

Does anyone have any tips for getting a good Disney Cruise Deal? We are a family of 5 and the costs for cruising is astronomical in relation to the other popular cruise lines. We are crazy Disney fanatics and visit every other year from New York. We get great deals for the resort.

Thanks everyone!

Does anyone have any tips for getting a good Disney Cruise Deal? We are a family of 5 and the costs for cruising is astronomical in relation to the other popular cruise lines. We are crazy Disney fanatics and visit every other year from New York. We get great deals for the resort.

 

Thanks everyone!

Find a Disney Cruise knowleable travel agent and let them stalk the prices for you. Two things I've discovered: 1) with the exception of last-minute deals to fill the ship, cruises tend to be cheapest on the day the new season is offered, so book on day one! 2) Sept seems to be less expensive than other months. Book late Sept to get as far from hurricane season as possible. I've done two cruises in Sept and had fantastic weather on both. Good luck!

P.S. I’ve also received a nice discount on a 4-night Disney Dream cruise through my workplace. They worked a deal with Disney that was only available for 48 hours. I jumped on it and was happy that it was legit and did not turn out to be a bait and switch. We even got upgraded!

Some updated tips from a recent cruiser....

1. Although surge protectors are now on the banned list, Guest Services does have some extension cords they will loan out. Also, note on your reservation that you need one for a CPAP, scooter, etc. and they can supply.

2. If your main concern is charging electronics, you can buy a multi-USB charger, which are allowed. These take only one plug and can charge multiple devices via USB.

3. Additional Wave Phones are available at Guest Services for rental. They are $3.50 per day and must be turned in at the desk at the end of your cruise, not left in your room.

4. Although over-the-door shoe hangers can no longer be used on stateroom doors, they can still be used. Buy a couple of heavy-duty suction cups at a hardware or craft store and use them to hang the organizer on a bathroom door or, if in a connecting room, on the connecting door.

5. Stop by Guest Services after boarding and pick up tickets for the character meeting with Anna and Elsa and for the Princess Gathering. They are free, but do require an assigned time.

6. If you are on one of the ships that requires a card in the wall slot to turn on lights, any plastic card will do. We usually use a key card from the hotel we stayed at the night before sailing, or even a used up gift card.

Disney is introducing a texting ability through it's app and soon the awful wave phones will be a thing of the past.

Disney is introducing a texting ability through it's app and soon the awful wave phones will be a thing of the past.

Do you know when that will go into effect?

Do you know when that will go into effect?

I don't, but I think it is starting with the Fantasy and then moving on to the other ships

Disney is introducing a texting ability through it's app and soon the awful wave phones will be a thing of the past.

The wave phones will not be gone too quickly... The texting ability will be among guests, wave phones will still be required for Kids Clubs to contact parents.

The wave phones will not be gone too quickly... The texting ability will be among guests, wave phones will still be required for Kids Clubs to contact parents.

I actually read that they will contact you on your phone too, but yes, I know it will take a while before they totally get rid of the phones and probably have them as back ups

Thanks everyone! These tips are so helpful.

I'm a little confused about breakfast and lunch. I understand lunch will probably occur on excursion days out at Nassau or Castaway Cay (for my cruise). But I'm not quite sure about the rest of it - - do we have breakfast reservations like our nightly dinners?

Any breakfast/lunch tips?

Thanks everyone! These tips are so helpful.

 

I'm a little confused about breakfast and lunch. I understand lunch will probably occur on excursion days out at Nassau or Castaway Cay (for my cruise). But I'm not quite sure about the rest of it - - do we have breakfast reservations like our nightly dinners?

 

Any breakfast/lunch tips?

The ship will still serve breakfast and lunch at the designated restaurants onboard regardless of being in port and no reservations until the last morning of the cruise when you will have early breakfast with early dining or late breakfast with late dining reservations, or Cabanas/Topsiders is open.

Breakfast choices are up to you for the rest of the cruise. Room service for a limited choice of cold foods, and drinks (no hot breakfast foods served), (Cabana's/Topsiders dependant on the ship), or a designated restaurant that will be assigned in your daily Navigator newsletter.

Tips, Cabanas/Topsiders is a self service buffet in the mornings and afternoons, so if you like that option of perusing all on offer, a good choice, and they have an omelet station and you can eat it outside if they have table available. The designated restaurant is more sit down and be served experience, so if that suits you better, a good choice as well.

If you are in a rush or want to take food back to your Stateroom, Cabanas, if you like a casual served breakfast, the designated restaurant.

ex techie

Several people have mentioned refillable mugs where do you get them?:)

Several people have mentioned refillable mugs where do you get them?:)

They don't have them on the ships. Some bring them from WDW. However you are not supposed to use them at the drink stations for sanitary reasons. You can fill a paper cup and then dump it into your own cup.

They still sell turves tumblers though right?

As jenseib said, they do require you to use their cup to fill your cup for hygiene reasons.

ex techie

They still sell turves tumblers though right?

 

As jenseib said, they do require you to use their cup to fill your cup for hygiene reasons.

 

ex techie

They probably still do in the gift shops.

Highly recommend one these for a cruise.

http://www.ianker.com/product/A2123111

We are planning our first Disney cruise ever. There will be four generations going, so I am very excited. There will be a few taking their very first cruise ever.

I would really like some information on the Disney Wonder or Dream, if anyone can help me I would appreciate it. Any thing you could tell me would be great.

Thank You

We are planning our first Disney cruise ever. There will be four generations going, so I am very excited. There will be a few taking their very first cruise ever.

 

I would really like some information on the Disney Wonder or Dream, if anyone can help me I would appreciate it. Any thing you could tell me would be great.

 

Thank You

The Disney ships are amazing .. The dinner and brunch at Palos is awesome but only for adults 18 and older. The kids clubs are great for the little ones. Tons of activities and bring your autograph books or an item as the characters are onboard with many opportunities to get signatures. Castaway cay has the greatest cabanas with shade for older adults and stocked. You need to made reservations online. If you go concierge level, they can help you otherwise pay your cruise off early to be able to book these events as soon as it opens for you. There's fireworks and a pirate party on the Caribbean cruises. There is FE groups that you can sign up for and its works like secret Santa with a stocking outside your cabin door. The shows are fabulous and we love the rotation between all the dining rooms. The wonder is the smaller ship and the Dream has more features like magic portholes on inside cabins. If you can, go for a 7 day cruise over a short 3-4 day cruise. You will love it! We went this past February without any kids... We had met tons of people ahead of time and were at a table for 10 of all adults 40+ yrs old. Tons of families and magic!

Thank You so much for the information. It looks like it is going to be the Wonder, so I will focus specifically on that ship. I am hoping the cabins are a decent size.

Disney has some of the biggest cabins for cruise ships. We love getting a veranda and ordering free room service. They will even deliver Mickey Mouse ice cream bars and warm cookies! The buffet by the pool has shrimp and crab legs daily! Lots of free food options!

We are planning our first Disney cruise ever. There will be four generations going, so I am very excited. There will be a few taking their very first cruise ever.

I would really like some information on the Disney Wonder or Dream, if anyone can help me I would appreciate it. Any thing you could tell me would be great.

Thank You

In my signature I have two trip reports of the Dream (also Disney world is included in those) and one review of a tour I did of the dream.

Please advise if any or all of these are still effective tips at this date. It was posted on page one of this thread in 2008, and I went back to 2014 looking to see if any updates could be found, assuming more updates would be necessary.

Thanks!

1. Early arrival gets an early boarding pass number.

2. The terminal opens 10 a.m.

3. Boarding starts around 11:30 to noon.

4. Keep a camera with you at ALL times, even in the terminal. characters will appear there for photos. There is an outdoor viewing area of the ship for photos.

5 Check in at kid's club table while waiting to board the ship. it saves you time on the ship.

6. Take a few ones. Some for room service tips and some to tip porters who take your bags at the termnal. $1 per bag is customary.

7. Take small bills for the islands. Many small shops don't have change.

8. If you're going to use your credit card on the islands, call your CC company first and tell them or you will have to wait on a phone call to OK all your purchases. This is a big hassle and can take 30 minutes or more.

9. Most shops who take credit cards require a $20 minimum purchase.

10 Take a camera to dinner each night, surprises happen all the time. You won't be alone. You will even see camcorders at dinner.

11. Arrive at all shows 20 minutes early for good seats.

12. Arrive at character meets 10 minutes early.

13 Princess meets arrive 15 minutes early.

14. On Castaway Cay if you want your photo taken with Captain Jack Sparrow, do NOT ride the tram to the beach area. It does NOT stop near him. You must walk in to the beach. The signs say 20 minute walk in it takes us 10 minutes. He will be along the way in the sand and the photos have the flying Dutchman behind you, great photo! Check the Navigator for times that he will be there.

15 There are characters along the way to the beach, it's OK to ride the tram for this. The lines are short and move quickly so it is a great opportunity to see characters without lines. Check the Navigator for times and places.

16 Characters also appear at the gazebo near Cookies BBQ on the island during the day.

17 The adult only beach has it's own area for lunch they often have steaks or lobster there as a special treat for the grown ups. But Cookies BBQ by family beach has more variety of other foods.

18 Dont miss the good-bye late the last night in the atrium. ALL of the characters will line up on the stairs and will pose for photos for you. This farwell party is really nice and fun.

19 Check for photos every day at shutters. Buy a package deal and save $$ if you don't buy enough photos for the package deal they will refund you the difference at the end of your cruise. If you buy a photo and then decide the next day you see one you want more, just bring back the one you bought and the receipt and tell them you want to exchange it and they will be happy to do this for you.

20. You can order warm chocolate chip cookies or Mickey ice cream bars from room service even though it is not on the menu. The warm cookies are available in the evenings only.

(Don't forget the milk for heaven's sake, there's an extra charge for it. Host Mick)

21. Bring 2 white pillowcases or a matte style picture frame in a zip lock baggie with water proof markers and leave at guest services desk and ask for it to be autographed and it will be returned to you the last night all signed by the characters. I also add a card with my name and room number on it just in case their card gets lost. I like to use dark colored markers, the light colors don't show up as well.

22. If you need to change dining times or make a Palos reservation go to Wave Bands club directly upon boarding to take care of this. The sooner you do it the better your chances of getting what you want.

23. If you have kids, leave a wake up call and then let them answer the phone. It will surprise them because Mickey will be on the phone telling them it is time to get up.

24 Afternoon matinees of the shows are great to see. They are the exact same show, they leave out nothing but it is less crowded and kids aren't as tired, plus it makes for a more leisurely evening. No need to rush to or from the shows due to your dinner time.

25. Pop is free in all restaurants and at the drink station on deck 9. But if you order it from waiter or buy it at a lounge or bar you will be charged for it plus a gratuity.

26. Stop by the drink station and grab a drink to take with you to the shows or movies instead of buying a can of pop there. If you want a snack, stop and grab pizza or hot dogs or fruit on deck 9 to take it with you. Again save money over buying a bunch of snacks for the kids.

27. At dinner kids can order from both the kid's or adult menus.

28. No need to book floats and bikes ahead of time for Castaway Cay. They have tons of them. Wait until you get there to make sure you're really going to need the floats or have time to ride the bikes before renting them. We always just walk up and do it at the beach.

29. If you want to do the banana boat ride or the ski-doo (eco tour) I would book them ahead of time. They do often have last minute openings so dont be afraid to ask when you arrive if you didn't book it and decided you'd like to do it.

30. If you rent bikes there are 2 nice trails just off the runway. The first one will have an observation tower. It has a great view of the island and ship. Bring your camera for this!! While up in the tower be sure and look around the base area of the tower. There are some whimsical things to see there too.

31. All the trails have ice cold water in big yellow barrels in wooden framed stands, so there's no need to carry your own unless you want to.

32. Find a cruise meets thread for your cruise and post there to get acquianted with others on your cruise.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=451

#21 - No more autographs done by characters through guest services. You can get them signed if you get into the character meets. New Liquor rules.. 2 bottles of wine per person .. No hard alcohol and no little bottles. I think you can bring one six pack of beer but check DCL website.

14. On Castaway Cay if you want your photo taken with Captain Jack Sparrow, do NOT ride the tram to the beach area. It does NOT stop near him. You must walk in to the beach. The signs say 20 minute walk in it takes us 10 minutes. He will be along the way in the sand and the photos have the flying Dutchman behind you, great photo! Check the Navigator for times that he will be there.

The Flying Dutchman is no longer at Castaway Cay. :(

15 There are characters along the way to the beach, it's OK to ride the tram for this. The lines are short and move quickly so it is a great opportunity to see characters without lines. Check the Navigator for times and places.

Even better is to see those characters just before or after lunch. They have lines at the beginning of the day as everyone gets off the tram and sees them, but by lunchtime they're just hanging around with nothing to do.

21. Bring 2 white pillowcases or a matte style picture frame in a zip lock baggie with water proof markers and leave at guest services desk and ask for it to be autographed and it will be returned to you the last night all signed by the characters. I also add a card with my name and room number on it just in case their card gets lost. I like to use dark colored markers, the light colors don't show up as well.

They don't do this any longer.

27. At dinner kids can order from both the kid's or adult menus.

And adults can order from the kids' menu. Did I mention that they have Mickey head ice cream bars on the kids' menu? The same ones people rave about at the parks and pay $$$ for?

Also, this works at lunch too.