Just Back From 3 Days On Disney Dream

My family of GF, GM, M, F, and 6 and 3 year old grandchildren enjoyed our 3 days on Disney Dream. My wife and I have taken 13 cruises over the last decade on Celebrity, Carnival, and Royal Carribean. This was our second Disney cruise since we took our children on the Big Red Boat through Disney in the early 90's.

Embarcation: Arrived at the Park using Happy Limo service which picked us up at the Coronado Springs Resort at Walt Disney World at 10:00 a.m. We made one stop at a Publix near the port and arrived at the port at 11:15 a.m. We had done the on-line check-in and had our documents in order and entered the ship just before 12:00 p.m. We were boarding group 3 and they were boarding 1-17 at that time.

Room: We had rooms 2520 and 2522. The rooms are in a good location. Easy access to decks 3, 4, and 5 by stairs or elevator. The rooms were well designed with a lot of storage. The split bathrooms are a big help and the cabins had a connecting door. The porthole was wide enough to sit in and gave decent views of the water and land around the ship. We normally have a balcony, but did not miss it at all on this short 3 day cruise. Don't forget to keep a magntic strip card or your room key in the slot at the door to control the lights and electricity in the room.

Food: We enjoyed the food. It was well prepared and expertly presented by our wait staff. We did not eat in the speciality dining rooms. For you first time cruisers we learned that your dining room rotation schedule is written on your room key A-Animators Palace,-E- Enchanted Garden, and R-Royal Palace as well as your life boat assembly area. You will eat breakfast on the morning of debarcation in the same dining room that served your dinner the previous evening. Of course, Cabanas was also open for breakfast on the last morning.

Children's Program: Easy to sign up for, but you should do it on-line if possible to make sure your child gets into the program. Our 2 grandchildren used the program several times and enjoyed their time at the play area. They also enjoyed the pools and slides on deck 11.

The Shows: All based on Disney characters and traditional Disney themes. Well done productions, but not the nightclub Vegas style, that many cruise lines have gone to in their productions. The Disney shows are themed for all ages. We had a full production show each night.

Ports: Nassau and Castaway Cay have been discussed and review extensively on the Cruise Critic Boards and I have nothing new to add. We spent about 90 minutes in Nassau at the Straw Market and on the main shopping street near the port and spent several hours at the wonderful family beach on Castaway Beach. If you want a shady spot get there early!

Disney Cruises provided us with exactly what they promised, a fun and relaxing short cruise that my wife and I and my son and his family enjoyed alot. Disney still sets the Gold Standard in my mind for family cruising, especially if you have small children. Happy to answer questions if anyone has any. Happy Cruising.

Nice review.

One thing--you said to sign kids up for the kids club to make sure they got in, it was my understanding that children were guaranteed a spot in the club and DCL won't accept bookings if the clubs are full.

You still have to sign them up though

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You still have to sign them up though

 

 

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Obviously, but that wasn't my question.

Thanks for the report!

Nice review.

 

One thing--you said to sign kids up for the kids club to make sure they got in, it was my understanding that children were guaranteed a spot in the club and DCL won't accept bookings if the clubs are full.

Yes, you are correct. DCL will not accept bookings that will exceed the maximum number of kids allowed in the clubs (by age group).

Now, I have read reports that sometimes, the club might be extra busy and people arriving to drop off their child have been asked to return in "a little while".

Yes, you are correct. DCL will not accept bookings that will exceed the maximum number of kids allowed in the clubs (by age group).

 

 

 

Now, I have read reports that sometimes, the club might be extra busy and people arriving to drop off their child have been asked to return in "a little while".

Interesting, thanks Shmoo!

Nice review and I'm happy you all had a good time.

Thanks for your review.

Thanks for your review :D I'm sailing the Dream again in October and cannot wait I just love the ship so much!

What line / ship is your personal favorite?

(I've only sailed DCL but other lines are intriguing to me :))

[/font]. My wife and I consider Celebrity S-Class ships our cruise line of choice. We enjoy Celebrity M-Class ships second. We would recommend you try Celebrity for an adult cruise. Disney is our choice for cruises with children, with Royal Caribbean large ships is our second choice for children. Hope this information helps. Happy Cruising!

Thanks for the concise but thorough review.

We are also Celebrity (and Princess) cruisers who are taking our extended family on a Disney cruise next year.

I have 2 questions.

We've taken our daughters on several cruises when they were single and they LOVE the dinners and food. How did the food compare?

Also, we took them on one Big Red Boat cruise when they were younger. Did that make you a past Disney cruiser or did it not count?

Thanks!

Good Morning Chamima. Thanks for your kind words about my little review.

I believe the food on Disney and Celebrity are similar to each other in the Main Dining Room. We were on a three day cruise on so we did not eat in any specialty restaurants or the buffet or at the pool deck grill. My son and his family ate in the buffet for breakfast and thought it was good compared to their experience on Carnival, but they have never been on Celebrity. My wife and I ate our breakfast in whichever Main Dining Room was serving a breakfast that morning since we are early risers. Since Disney has the 3 dining room rotation you do have to keep track of which place is serving which meal and when. I would end by saying that the Disney dining experience was good, but it did not compare with our normal dining in Blu on Celebrity, especially the breakfasts. It did compare favorably with what I remember of our Main Dining Room meals on Celebrity, before we discovered Aqua Class and Blu.

My wife and I also took a Big Red Boat cruise on Premier Cruises with our children. Our voyage pre-dated the founding of the Disney Cruise Line. My memory is that all cruise arrangements, Walt Disney World stay etc. were booked through Disney, but my souvenier t-shirt still says I cruised on the Premier Cruise Ship Oceanic. ( Yes, I still have it!) No one mentioned our prior cruise in the preparations for our most recent Disney cruise and as far as I know our prior voyage did not count for anything. I also did not ask about this, so you might want to check with Disney Cruise Line if you believe this will give some advantage in your current travels on this cruiseline. Happy cruising!

Good Morning Chamima. Thanks for your kind words about my little review.

I believe the food on Disney and Celebrity are similar to each other in the Main Dining Room. We were on a three day cruise on so we did not eat in any specialty restaurants or the buffet or at the pool deck grill. My son and his family ate in the buffet for breakfast and thought it was good compared to their experience on Carnival, but they have never been on Celebrity. My wife and I ate our breakfast in whichever Main Dining Room was serving a breakfast that morning since we are early risers. Since Disney has the 3 dining room rotation you do have to keep track of which place is serving which meal and when. I would end by saying that the Disney dining experience was good, but it did not compare with our normal dining in Blu on Celebrity, especially the breakfasts. It did compare favorably with what I remember of our Main Dining Room meals on Celebrity, before we discovered Aqua Class and Blu.

My wife and I also took a Big Red Boat cruise on Premier Cruises with our children. Our voyage pre-dated the founding of the Disney Cruise Line. My memory is that all cruise arrangements, Walt Disney World stay etc. were booked through Disney, but my souvenier t-shirt still says I cruised on the Premier Cruise Ship Oceanic. ( Yes, I still have it!) No one mentioned our prior cruise in the preparations for our most recent Disney cruise and as far as I know our prior voyage did not count for anything. I also did not ask about this, so you might want to check with Disney Cruise Line if you believe this will give some advantage in your current travels on this cruiseline. Happy cruising!

Thanks for the quick response.

We also sail in Aqua class since we discovered it. We certainly don't expect that this will be anything like being in Blu! ;)

I see you'll be on the Eclipse next January. We sailed on her last February and will be doing so again this February. She's a beautiful ship.

Chamima. It will be our first time on Eclipse and our first 2 week cruise so we are looking forward to this cruise with great anticipation. We will be in Aqua Class again on this cruise. Glad to know you have sailed on Eclipse and had a good time. Hope you have a great time on your cruises in 2015.

My family of GF, GM, M, F, and 6 and 3 year old grandchildren enjoyed our 3 days on Disney Dream. We had done the on-line check-in and had our documents in order and entered the ship just before 12:00 p.m. We were boarding group 3 and they were boarding 1-17 at that time.

 

Children's Program: Easy to sign up for, but you should do it on-line if possible to make sure your child gets into the program. Our 2 grandchildren used the program several times and enjoyed their time at the play area. They also enjoyed the pools and slides on deck 11.

 

Disney still sets the Gold Standard in my mind for family cruising, especially if you have small children. Happy to answer questions if anyone has any. Happy Cruising.

 

Thank you for the super detailed review. Since you had your 3 year old grandchild with you, I have a question -- we will have our 4 year old grand-daughter with us - her first cruise and our first Disney sailing. What kind of programs/activities do they have for the little ones?

Now I need to pre-register online, as you did - just have to find the Disney link to start the process !

Appreciate any additional details.

Hello CruiseNut7. You are going to have a great time. Our 3 year old is pretty big for his age so he spent most of his time with his big brother. They talked about the Toy Story Room and Monsters Inc. room as where they did most of their activities. I know our youngest one enjoyed the visit from TinkerBell as he likes the Peter Pan story. The Disney Dream website under Oceaneer's club has a good description of the program area, the types of activities etc. They also mentioned they liked putting faces on the big Mr. Potato Head in one of the rooms. The staff did a great job of meeting our kids and getting them comfortable with the play area and they each spent time there during our three day cruise. Have a great cruise with your grand-daughter!

P.S. Our little one really liked the sail-away party with the Disney Characters so you might want to make sure you make that event.

We were on this sailing as well. Had a great time. Need to do a 7day next the 3 day way too short.

Jlk806 glad you had a good time as well. I agree that the 3 day is pretty short, but it was nice to look forward to the cruise at the end of our 4 days at Walt Disney World. I admit I was more excited about the cruise than the land portion, but my grandkids loved them both and that's why we do it! Happy Sailing.

Nice review.

Keith

Thanks Keith1010. My wife and I are back into our "regular" life, but are looking forward to our next cruise in January, 2015. At least it will not be as hot as central florida in June! Happy Cruising

What night was the fire works? I assume it was the Sea Day Night ???

Can you pls explain what you mean about the magnetic strip Card for the door - I am clueless as to what that even is. Thanks

Thanks for the concise but thorough review.

We are also Celebrity (and Princess) cruisers who are taking our extended family on a Disney cruise next year.

I have 2 questions.

We've taken our daughters on several cruises when they were single and they LOVE the dinners and food. How did the food compare?

Also, we took them on one Big Red Boat cruise when they were younger. Did that make you a past Disney cruiser or did it not count?

Thanks!

Big Red Boat cruises don't count towards DCL status.

Can you pls explain what you mean about the magnetic strip Card for the door - I am clueless as to what that even is. Thanks

It's one car like a credit card that is your room key, ID, charge card on the ship, etc,

On the new ships as you enter your room, you slot it in the slot and the power comes on, if you leave and take it the power goes off.

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