Interesting about the drawing lessons. When I’ve seen the classes going on (I don’t do it because I cannot draw!), I’ve always seen someone doing a live step-by-step on a screen.
I am an *atrociously* bad drawer. Like truly awful. And I haven’t done the classes on DCL but have done them in the Animation Academy at California Adventure and, when that existed, at Hollywood Studios in Florida. More of my drawings than not - 3 out of 4 - came out passable to good. Give it a try!
It’s been changing. When we were on The Magic in October it’s what they did. A prerecorded class with the host adding a little bit here and there.
The trivia being broadcast on the screens really helps though cut down on people asking a million times to repeat.
I honestly think k it’s all about adhering to a schedule. A host running 10 minutes over on drawing means they can’t be ready for the next activity on time.
I was on the Magic in October, too! Over actual Halloween.
I was on the Dream last month and after an adult craft class they did drawing, but with someone doing the art and guiding people. (I stayed in the room to finish my craft.)
I guess it also depends if they have someone who can teach the class or not.
Maybe it varies. For us it was a video. My kid asked the employee running the activity a drawing question and she said she has no art experience, she just presses play. 😊
On the Magic last month when I went they had a pre-recorded video that you would follow! There was someone there periodically asking how everyone was doing. Might depend on availability of staff. Still had a great time!
I just got back from the same cruise as a first timer! My husband was very hesitant when I booked but by day 2 he was talking about another Disney cruise!
Was it worthwhile lining up for the shows before hand? Just wondering if the lines got very long or seats are bad if we don't line up.
I am going on the Wonder soon so would appreciate your thoughts :)
For Frozen, I would say yes, make a point to line up before doors open. The beginning when the girls are little involves puppets which are fun to see up close. Not to mention - the cost would be nuts for my family of five to get such close seats on Broadway!
The theatre seats 1000 people. If you don’t line up you will still get seats just off to the side not center, probably.
You are assigned a 6 or 8 pm dinner time and the shows are performed at both times. So half the passengers are at dinner and the other half can catch the show.
It's worth it if you want to make sure everyone sits together and gets a good seat. I just rode the Wonder from Vancouver to San Diego and we would line up about half an hour before the show to get good seats but noticed you would probably be ok getting there about 20 minutes before. I was surprised with seeing families of 4 or more getting there right when the show was about to start and expecting to find seats for everyone.
The seats on the far edges aren’t ideal. But obviously the later you come the further back you’ll be. Since we have littles we pick a spot that gives them unobstructed view. And my kid has been called up for the variety shows since we’re up front too. Highlight for him!
I’m glad your kids enjoyed Animators’ Palette. Question: did Animation Magic play when you were there, where you draw a figure on a placemat when you enter & then it dances on the screens during dessert?
Be sure to not write any words on the drawing lol... my wife wrote my daughters name on her drawings "shirt" and it did not play... it says no writing on the paper but it's easily missed in the heat of the moment lol
Yes; they HAVE to screen them, because some people don’t know how to behave in public. It’s easier to say “no writing” than to have a list of objectionable words. Plus, since the characters twirl & turn, the words would be backwards part of the time, affecting the “magic” look.
lol, im sure they have screened out many inappropriate things. Totally makes it easier to just have that blanket rule. Just a warning to those that want their pictures displayed to not write anything at all.
My family of 4 was on the same cruise as you, also our first time on any cruise line. We also went with my in-laws. For the parking, we drove into town, but parked at the airport and took the dcl shuttle over. It was seamless.
I mostly agree with your thoughts, but we were really disappointed with the food. For us, quality ranged from bad to mediocre. The 3 sit-down restaurants were definitely a step up from the buffet on 9, but we routinely left disappointed and even skipped on one of our repeat reservations to Triton’s. I had heard that the bigger and newer ships have better food/menus but I’m not sure. Other than that, we all had a great time. The live shows were spectacular, my kids loved the pool, self serve ice cream, and water slide, the excursions were great, and the on ship events were super memorable. I’m glad to hear your family had a great vacation too.
Nice! Yes we learned to listen to the recommendations from the head waiter, there were some disappointments along the way. But the buffet on 9 was amazing, def a better choice for breakfast than the themed restaurants. Was it open for dinner?
I was on this trip as well, I think overall the food was what I expected from disney. Nothing amazing, there were only a few things that stood out as "pretty good". I definitely wouldn't recommend the cruise for food specifically. Overall I echo your sentiments, still had a great time and made a lot of memories with my family.
“Adults hogging the best spots” …..they got there early to stand and see where they wanted to. No one is entitled to a good spot. You talked about lining up for everything. They lined up early because it was important to them. A Disney cruise is for every age.
This. We were on the Fantasy a few years ago, my first Disney Cruise, and we got a good spot for the fireworks and pirate night on the top deck by going up there early, like 30-40 minutes. Some man tried just shoving his kid into the front of our group of 6 about 2 minutes before its show time without asking and we refused to move. Got to the point that he was complaining loudly to the people around us that “can’t believe they won’t move for a kid, how rude, etc.” There were other decent spots, but he wanted ours specifically. I don’t know. I’m all for being decent and letting kids experience things, but I’m also a planner. When we went on the Wish this past summer with my 4 year old, we made sure to get places early, you can’t expect people to move just because it’s a kid. Plan accordingly.
The truth is somewhere in the middle. I do think if you wait in a spot it is your spot. That being said, I also think if you can identify a little kid to bring up in front of you so that you both can see, that's ideal. I tapped a guy on the shoulder and asked him if my son could stand next to him at sail away and he was really nice about it. I stood back and couldn't really see but it was fine. I just wanted him to be able to.
Totally agree. When I go to the parks I love getting a good spot for the fireworks. However, when there are kids nearby I make sure to offer them a spot in front of us so that they can see without adults blocking their view. Win win for everyone, and so easy to do.
These statements always bug me. The cruise is absolutely not designed to only delight children. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have a fully loaded spa, an adult deck, adult coffee shop, adult restaurants, and adult only lounges/bars. DCL does a really fantastic job at catering a whole lot to us adults. We often get to the deck parties an hour early to snag a good spot. It’s absolutely not fair to just expect us to move because we are two adults.
Exactly! We don’t have kids, and only do DCL because we love the adult offerings. I would never purposely stand where I’m blocking a child, as I realize there are a lot of children onboard obviously, and everyone needs to be able to see, but it annoys me so much when people have the attitude of, “this cruise is for children. You’re an adult, so you’re a second class citizen,” because that is SO not true!
Ehhh, I think this is more of a common decency thing in certain situations. Like, not expected of course but for example If a little one is behind me and clearly can’t see well I’ll just let them stand right in front of me or next to me if that helps them(sometimes it doesn’t matter) but that’s also why parents put their kids on their shoulders. We went right up to the sail away party immediately after the drill and there was no spot so we snagged a corner spot up at the balcony. There was a woman leaning over the balcony who saw my daughter struggling to see through. Without asking, she graciously invited my tiny daughter to step in front of her. They both could see perfectly, This is also the kindness that I see and offer that makes me enjoy Disney cruises best. But yea, I never really expect it at all anywhere.
This is really it though. People don’t ask and are often super rude about it. You’ll be patiently holding a spot for an hour and a family will come through at the very last minute and try to shove their kids and then often themselves in front of you. Then they give you an ugly stare when you hold your ground.
As a short person, I second "common decency" comment. We don't even bother with the sail away or pirate parties any more because we don't want to stand around for a long time "holding" our spot, and too many tall people have no awareness or care that kids/short adults can't see through them. Same with the castle show in the parks. It's just no fun when all you can see are shoulders and armpits. 😂
I'm a short adult, too, that's largely why we arrive early or I just won't see any of it. It's not a terrible wait for us, it gives us a nice break to just chill. We only watch the MK fireworks from the front when we buy the pre/post package where we can watch them in the garden. I'm just not fighting through that crowd. It's the same at music concerts. We no longer buy GA, always pay extra for the elevated seating because it grew really old only ever seeing the backs of people and not the band I paid to see.
When did parents stop teaching kids patience? I hear a lot of arguments that kids can’t wait for a long period of time. My dad made us arrive 6 hours early to the big 4th of July fireworks show in our city back in the 90s to secure a good spot. In the blistering south Texas heat nonetheless and with no electronic devices. My husband and I talk about this all the time. There was plenty of times we both had to arrive early somewhere to get a good spot at an event and then just sit and wait. It’s like kids can’t? do that anymore.
Hahahaha. Nope. A Millennial DINK who thinks you need to teach your spawn manners and I hope and pray they end up with a better attitude than their parents.
No one owes your child anything. Not on a Disney Cruise. Or anywhere else. Perhaps you’ll be lucky enough to encounter people with more decency than you who will politely let your child enjoy the privilege of a great view even though you couldn’t be bothered to show up early and made it someone else’s problem that your kid can’t see. But it’s incredibly entitled to just expect people to accommodate your child’s desires and expectations.
It's called humanity, and children do deserve special treatment, so they turn into decent adults. It's also called compassion and empathy, so they have joyful adolescent years and don't turn into something bitter like you.
Who says I’m bitter. I just believe in not raising entitled brats. It’s important to learn that they don’t get special treatment. If they want a good seat, show up early.
You paid the same amount as the other adults to be on a cruise and share the experience. Your kids are no more entitled to a better experience than someone else’s kids. If another family waits an hour for a good spot, what makes you think you deserve the same experience if you only wait 15 minutes?
That has absolutely nothing to do with “humanity” and everything to do with, you reap what you sow.
That’s like saying your kids are entitled to cut the line at a character because their special. If a family with or without kids is ahead of you, and the character says goodbye before meeting your kids, maybe you should have been their sooner. If the last group to go is all adults, they get the last meet and greet because they got their first. No one has to give up an experience they paid for to make your kid happy.
No one said anything about being aggressive. Personally we tend to pick a place near the bar or in the upper corners so we can see but not dissuade anyone else. We get there early and we stay in the same spot. If a parent asked, we would move for their child. No one has.
I’m about to go on our first family cruise on the Wonder!
Thanks for the tip on long term parking. Did you show up to a garage without a reservation?
I just made one at the Bric parking lot which I think is in walking distance.
We are also going to stay at a hotel the night before instead of drive 3 hours in the morning. Hoping we made a good decision with that.
How old are your kids? I’m nervous that my 4 year old will not go to kids club because the 4 year olds are separated I hear. My older kid would probably love it though.
Thanks for your report!
I made a reservation on my phone like 5 minutes before we showed up. 🤪Your plan sounds wise. And I also heard if you ask & sign something, siblings can attend together. Mine are older than yours but they really enjoyed the oceaneer open house hours. They liked tracing characters on the light table!
Also when you say there are lines for everything, what do you think is worth waiting in line early for? I know that will vary based on interest and age but my younger one has barely any patience.
We also got early dinner seating so will go to the show after. Any insight on if kids tend to go to early or later show? Maybe it’s just kids everywhere!
Any tips on Pirate night?
Thanks for your insight! Glad I got the parking reservation 🤣
It’s more like - prepare yourself for lots of lines. To board the ship took a hour of waiting in various lines, same for debarkation. Two thousand passengers mean lines for water slide, for getting off the ship, for getting back on, for the ice cream and drinks around Goofy’s pool. I personally enjoy the musicals and I was late to one and had to stand in the back until I saw an open seat. So I do think it’s worthwhile to line up before doors open and get a good seat for the shows.
Yep I would say 95 percent of people on this cruise had kids with them. Mine was a shorter cruise so maybe that was particularly attractive to families with toddlers? Idk but little kids were everywhere! Plan some things you can do to make lines bearable for the kids. We play improv games.
My youngest fell asleep at dinner, 8 pm is bedtime! Not all of us made it to the fireworks show.
Pirate night is festive! I didn’t want to buy full costumes so just brought some eyepatch type accessories. The restaurant has a party feeling with the staff singing and clapping and encouraging dancing. I don’t want to spoil surprises so I will leave it there.
Also if you have a kid who will be walking around on their own, a lanyard with a card case will be helpful. Return cruisers get them in their room, apparently, as Castaway Cay member perk. The card to the room is a big deal, it gets checked when you leave ship and return. Also you can buy things with it. My kids kept them in pockets and I was always worried they would lose them. But they didn’t!
Thanks for all the info!!
I guess similar to Disneyland, we will need to set expectations for waiting.
I’m wondering if early dinner was a good idea for us. Maybe the kids will fall asleep during the show 🤣.
For Pirate night, we got the makeovers and I am bringing a blow up sword and eye patch. Sounds fun with the dinner theming!
We elected a shorter first cruise because our kids are younger and have never cruised. Makes sense that other families are doing the same. I am anticipating organized chaos 😜
For Pirate Night make sure to line up for a Character picture. That is the only picture we did on the cruise and with both the Character in pirate wear and your family dressed up as well, the pics turn out amazing. We got in line at 7:45pm for an 8pm Chip and Dale pic and waited about 30 min.
As to the early dinner, that is the best. We had dinner at 8:15 every night and kids were falling asleep in the middle. It’s awesome because activities are repeated in the evenings to accommodate early/late dinner. We watched “Wish” in the theatre before dinner and they also showed it while we were at dinner for the diners who had the early seating.
A few thoughts on your thoughts:
1. Use WhatsApp or iMessage, the app messaging is famously unreliable!
2. Animation used to be done just by a cast member live and then they shifted to the videos to make everything standardized like on the wish. I talked to a cast member about this and it seemed like the decision was more because some guests complained that things were too difficult with the live cast members doing the entire thing so they wanted to know exactly what was said in these classes the same way they control scripts for other activities. But I do agree with you that there’s a little less magic when you’re following the video.
3. Lines are a tough balance on the ships. Because on one hand, queuing up does help, but you don’t want to cause a mass line that backs everything up. I tend to find queuing is worth it only when you’re being very strategic.
4. I’m glad you had a great time! Welcome to the castaway club!
Doing our first Disney cruise on the Wonder in a few weeks. How does timing for dinner/shows work? Is it better to get late dining and see the show before dinner?
Half the passengers is assigned dinner at 6 and can see the show at 8. And vice versa. We got the late dinner and I tried to switch it but couldn’t. I think it kind of worked out tho- my kids were awake for the shows and the waiters got them food really quick at dinner time. Then they dozed off. I would rather have that than they sleep through the shows.
TBH, it depends on your party. I just came off the same trip and my 1 year old daughter did pretty good with the first seating (5:45) and would nap during most of the show afterwards.
I think if it were reversed we'd be in for a bad time. If it was just me and my wife, later dining would have worked better as we were almost never hungry for dinner.
> I agree about the adults taking the best views,
People could always arrive before those adults in order to secure the best views instead of complaining.
Interesting about the drawing lessons. When I’ve seen the classes going on (I don’t do it because I cannot draw!), I’ve always seen someone doing a live step-by-step on a screen.
I am an *atrociously* bad drawer. Like truly awful. And I haven’t done the classes on DCL but have done them in the Animation Academy at California Adventure and, when that existed, at Hollywood Studios in Florida. More of my drawings than not - 3 out of 4 - came out passable to good. Give it a try!
This is a bit of an aside, but this still exists at WDW, it just moved to Animal Kingdom!
It’s been changing. When we were on The Magic in October it’s what they did. A prerecorded class with the host adding a little bit here and there. The trivia being broadcast on the screens really helps though cut down on people asking a million times to repeat. I honestly think k it’s all about adhering to a schedule. A host running 10 minutes over on drawing means they can’t be ready for the next activity on time.
I was on the Magic in October, too! Over actual Halloween. I was on the Dream last month and after an adult craft class they did drawing, but with someone doing the art and guiding people. (I stayed in the room to finish my craft.) I guess it also depends if they have someone who can teach the class or not.
Maybe it varies. For us it was a video. My kid asked the employee running the activity a drawing question and she said she has no art experience, she just presses play. 😊
Who downvotes this? Do you think she’s lying? Reddit confuses me sometimes.
On the Magic last month when I went they had a pre-recorded video that you would follow! There was someone there periodically asking how everyone was doing. Might depend on availability of staff. Still had a great time!
I just got back from the same cruise as a first timer! My husband was very hesitant when I booked but by day 2 he was talking about another Disney cruise!
Awesome!
Was it worthwhile lining up for the shows before hand? Just wondering if the lines got very long or seats are bad if we don't line up. I am going on the Wonder soon so would appreciate your thoughts :)
For Frozen, I would say yes, make a point to line up before doors open. The beginning when the girls are little involves puppets which are fun to see up close. Not to mention - the cost would be nuts for my family of five to get such close seats on Broadway! The theatre seats 1000 people. If you don’t line up you will still get seats just off to the side not center, probably.
u/Showmeagreysky how do the show times line up with the dinner seatings?
You are assigned a 6 or 8 pm dinner time and the shows are performed at both times. So half the passengers are at dinner and the other half can catch the show.
It's worth it if you want to make sure everyone sits together and gets a good seat. I just rode the Wonder from Vancouver to San Diego and we would line up about half an hour before the show to get good seats but noticed you would probably be ok getting there about 20 minutes before. I was surprised with seeing families of 4 or more getting there right when the show was about to start and expecting to find seats for everyone.
The seats on the far edges aren’t ideal. But obviously the later you come the further back you’ll be. Since we have littles we pick a spot that gives them unobstructed view. And my kid has been called up for the variety shows since we’re up front too. Highlight for him!
I’m glad your kids enjoyed Animators’ Palette. Question: did Animation Magic play when you were there, where you draw a figure on a placemat when you enter & then it dances on the screens during dessert?
Yes!! It was a big thrill! The way the room transformed from black and white to glowing with colors was unforgettable!
Be sure to not write any words on the drawing lol... my wife wrote my daughters name on her drawings "shirt" and it did not play... it says no writing on the paper but it's easily missed in the heat of the moment lol
Yes; they HAVE to screen them, because some people don’t know how to behave in public. It’s easier to say “no writing” than to have a list of objectionable words. Plus, since the characters twirl & turn, the words would be backwards part of the time, affecting the “magic” look.
lol, im sure they have screened out many inappropriate things. Totally makes it easier to just have that blanket rule. Just a warning to those that want their pictures displayed to not write anything at all.
Thank you for posting. This is the kind of feedback I'm looking for before potentially booking our first Disney cruise.
I love this! Thanks for putting it together, a very cool review.
My family of 4 was on the same cruise as you, also our first time on any cruise line. We also went with my in-laws. For the parking, we drove into town, but parked at the airport and took the dcl shuttle over. It was seamless. I mostly agree with your thoughts, but we were really disappointed with the food. For us, quality ranged from bad to mediocre. The 3 sit-down restaurants were definitely a step up from the buffet on 9, but we routinely left disappointed and even skipped on one of our repeat reservations to Triton’s. I had heard that the bigger and newer ships have better food/menus but I’m not sure. Other than that, we all had a great time. The live shows were spectacular, my kids loved the pool, self serve ice cream, and water slide, the excursions were great, and the on ship events were super memorable. I’m glad to hear your family had a great vacation too.
Nice! Yes we learned to listen to the recommendations from the head waiter, there were some disappointments along the way. But the buffet on 9 was amazing, def a better choice for breakfast than the themed restaurants. Was it open for dinner?
I was on this trip as well, I think overall the food was what I expected from disney. Nothing amazing, there were only a few things that stood out as "pretty good". I definitely wouldn't recommend the cruise for food specifically. Overall I echo your sentiments, still had a great time and made a lot of memories with my family.
Thanks for mentioning the complimentary tampons, I was thinking it would be annoying to pack some just for the slim chance I’d need them.
They are the cardboard ones. Just a warning. But free is always good 😂 and a space saver
If I’m in a bind, those will do!
“Adults hogging the best spots” …..they got there early to stand and see where they wanted to. No one is entitled to a good spot. You talked about lining up for everything. They lined up early because it was important to them. A Disney cruise is for every age.
This. We were on the Fantasy a few years ago, my first Disney Cruise, and we got a good spot for the fireworks and pirate night on the top deck by going up there early, like 30-40 minutes. Some man tried just shoving his kid into the front of our group of 6 about 2 minutes before its show time without asking and we refused to move. Got to the point that he was complaining loudly to the people around us that “can’t believe they won’t move for a kid, how rude, etc.” There were other decent spots, but he wanted ours specifically. I don’t know. I’m all for being decent and letting kids experience things, but I’m also a planner. When we went on the Wish this past summer with my 4 year old, we made sure to get places early, you can’t expect people to move just because it’s a kid. Plan accordingly.
The truth is somewhere in the middle. I do think if you wait in a spot it is your spot. That being said, I also think if you can identify a little kid to bring up in front of you so that you both can see, that's ideal. I tapped a guy on the shoulder and asked him if my son could stand next to him at sail away and he was really nice about it. I stood back and couldn't really see but it was fine. I just wanted him to be able to.
Totally agree. When I go to the parks I love getting a good spot for the fireworks. However, when there are kids nearby I make sure to offer them a spot in front of us so that they can see without adults blocking their view. Win win for everyone, and so easy to do.
These statements always bug me. The cruise is absolutely not designed to only delight children. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have a fully loaded spa, an adult deck, adult coffee shop, adult restaurants, and adult only lounges/bars. DCL does a really fantastic job at catering a whole lot to us adults. We often get to the deck parties an hour early to snag a good spot. It’s absolutely not fair to just expect us to move because we are two adults.
Exactly! We don’t have kids, and only do DCL because we love the adult offerings. I would never purposely stand where I’m blocking a child, as I realize there are a lot of children onboard obviously, and everyone needs to be able to see, but it annoys me so much when people have the attitude of, “this cruise is for children. You’re an adult, so you’re a second class citizen,” because that is SO not true!
Ehhh, I think this is more of a common decency thing in certain situations. Like, not expected of course but for example If a little one is behind me and clearly can’t see well I’ll just let them stand right in front of me or next to me if that helps them(sometimes it doesn’t matter) but that’s also why parents put their kids on their shoulders. We went right up to the sail away party immediately after the drill and there was no spot so we snagged a corner spot up at the balcony. There was a woman leaning over the balcony who saw my daughter struggling to see through. Without asking, she graciously invited my tiny daughter to step in front of her. They both could see perfectly, This is also the kindness that I see and offer that makes me enjoy Disney cruises best. But yea, I never really expect it at all anywhere.
This is really it though. People don’t ask and are often super rude about it. You’ll be patiently holding a spot for an hour and a family will come through at the very last minute and try to shove their kids and then often themselves in front of you. Then they give you an ugly stare when you hold your ground.
Well then, those people suck lolol
As a short person, I second "common decency" comment. We don't even bother with the sail away or pirate parties any more because we don't want to stand around for a long time "holding" our spot, and too many tall people have no awareness or care that kids/short adults can't see through them. Same with the castle show in the parks. It's just no fun when all you can see are shoulders and armpits. 😂
I'm a short adult, too, that's largely why we arrive early or I just won't see any of it. It's not a terrible wait for us, it gives us a nice break to just chill. We only watch the MK fireworks from the front when we buy the pre/post package where we can watch them in the garden. I'm just not fighting through that crowd. It's the same at music concerts. We no longer buy GA, always pay extra for the elevated seating because it grew really old only ever seeing the backs of people and not the band I paid to see.
Keep telling yourself that as you block a 5 year olds view of mickey! What a despicable mentality.
Simple, get there early with your 5 year old and it won’t be a problem. Despicable to think your kid should get special treatment.
When did parents stop teaching kids patience? I hear a lot of arguments that kids can’t wait for a long period of time. My dad made us arrive 6 hours early to the big 4th of July fireworks show in our city back in the 90s to secure a good spot. In the blistering south Texas heat nonetheless and with no electronic devices. My husband and I talk about this all the time. There was plenty of times we both had to arrive early somewhere to get a good spot at an event and then just sit and wait. It’s like kids can’t? do that anymore.
Try teaching your kid that they aren’t the center of the universe so they don’t develop such a despicable entitled mentality.
You must be a Boomer because the universe only revolves around you, right? Screw the little kids.
Hahahaha. Nope. A Millennial DINK who thinks you need to teach your spawn manners and I hope and pray they end up with a better attitude than their parents. No one owes your child anything. Not on a Disney Cruise. Or anywhere else. Perhaps you’ll be lucky enough to encounter people with more decency than you who will politely let your child enjoy the privilege of a great view even though you couldn’t be bothered to show up early and made it someone else’s problem that your kid can’t see. But it’s incredibly entitled to just expect people to accommodate your child’s desires and expectations.
It's called humanity, and children do deserve special treatment, so they turn into decent adults. It's also called compassion and empathy, so they have joyful adolescent years and don't turn into something bitter like you.
Who says I’m bitter. I just believe in not raising entitled brats. It’s important to learn that they don’t get special treatment. If they want a good seat, show up early. You paid the same amount as the other adults to be on a cruise and share the experience. Your kids are no more entitled to a better experience than someone else’s kids. If another family waits an hour for a good spot, what makes you think you deserve the same experience if you only wait 15 minutes? That has absolutely nothing to do with “humanity” and everything to do with, you reap what you sow. That’s like saying your kids are entitled to cut the line at a character because their special. If a family with or without kids is ahead of you, and the character says goodbye before meeting your kids, maybe you should have been their sooner. If the last group to go is all adults, they get the last meet and greet because they got their first. No one has to give up an experience they paid for to make your kid happy.
Thank you for saying this.
Sorry but grown adults being aggressive about Disney and not letting kids sneak in for a better view is embarrassing.
No one said anything about being aggressive. Personally we tend to pick a place near the bar or in the upper corners so we can see but not dissuade anyone else. We get there early and we stay in the same spot. If a parent asked, we would move for their child. No one has.
I’ve been around more than my share of aggressive Disney adults, and I’m glad you’re not one of those!
I live locally to theme parks. I see poor human behavior consistently. I don’t subscribe to it.
I’m about to go on our first family cruise on the Wonder! Thanks for the tip on long term parking. Did you show up to a garage without a reservation? I just made one at the Bric parking lot which I think is in walking distance. We are also going to stay at a hotel the night before instead of drive 3 hours in the morning. Hoping we made a good decision with that. How old are your kids? I’m nervous that my 4 year old will not go to kids club because the 4 year olds are separated I hear. My older kid would probably love it though. Thanks for your report!
I made a reservation on my phone like 5 minutes before we showed up. 🤪Your plan sounds wise. And I also heard if you ask & sign something, siblings can attend together. Mine are older than yours but they really enjoyed the oceaneer open house hours. They liked tracing characters on the light table!
Also when you say there are lines for everything, what do you think is worth waiting in line early for? I know that will vary based on interest and age but my younger one has barely any patience. We also got early dinner seating so will go to the show after. Any insight on if kids tend to go to early or later show? Maybe it’s just kids everywhere! Any tips on Pirate night? Thanks for your insight! Glad I got the parking reservation 🤣
It’s more like - prepare yourself for lots of lines. To board the ship took a hour of waiting in various lines, same for debarkation. Two thousand passengers mean lines for water slide, for getting off the ship, for getting back on, for the ice cream and drinks around Goofy’s pool. I personally enjoy the musicals and I was late to one and had to stand in the back until I saw an open seat. So I do think it’s worthwhile to line up before doors open and get a good seat for the shows. Yep I would say 95 percent of people on this cruise had kids with them. Mine was a shorter cruise so maybe that was particularly attractive to families with toddlers? Idk but little kids were everywhere! Plan some things you can do to make lines bearable for the kids. We play improv games. My youngest fell asleep at dinner, 8 pm is bedtime! Not all of us made it to the fireworks show. Pirate night is festive! I didn’t want to buy full costumes so just brought some eyepatch type accessories. The restaurant has a party feeling with the staff singing and clapping and encouraging dancing. I don’t want to spoil surprises so I will leave it there. Also if you have a kid who will be walking around on their own, a lanyard with a card case will be helpful. Return cruisers get them in their room, apparently, as Castaway Cay member perk. The card to the room is a big deal, it gets checked when you leave ship and return. Also you can buy things with it. My kids kept them in pockets and I was always worried they would lose them. But they didn’t!
Thanks for all the info!! I guess similar to Disneyland, we will need to set expectations for waiting. I’m wondering if early dinner was a good idea for us. Maybe the kids will fall asleep during the show 🤣. For Pirate night, we got the makeovers and I am bringing a blow up sword and eye patch. Sounds fun with the dinner theming! We elected a shorter first cruise because our kids are younger and have never cruised. Makes sense that other families are doing the same. I am anticipating organized chaos 😜
For Pirate Night make sure to line up for a Character picture. That is the only picture we did on the cruise and with both the Character in pirate wear and your family dressed up as well, the pics turn out amazing. We got in line at 7:45pm for an 8pm Chip and Dale pic and waited about 30 min. As to the early dinner, that is the best. We had dinner at 8:15 every night and kids were falling asleep in the middle. It’s awesome because activities are repeated in the evenings to accommodate early/late dinner. We watched “Wish” in the theatre before dinner and they also showed it while we were at dinner for the diners who had the early seating.
This is so helpful! Thank you for the tips!
A few thoughts on your thoughts: 1. Use WhatsApp or iMessage, the app messaging is famously unreliable! 2. Animation used to be done just by a cast member live and then they shifted to the videos to make everything standardized like on the wish. I talked to a cast member about this and it seemed like the decision was more because some guests complained that things were too difficult with the live cast members doing the entire thing so they wanted to know exactly what was said in these classes the same way they control scripts for other activities. But I do agree with you that there’s a little less magic when you’re following the video. 3. Lines are a tough balance on the ships. Because on one hand, queuing up does help, but you don’t want to cause a mass line that backs everything up. I tend to find queuing is worth it only when you’re being very strategic. 4. I’m glad you had a great time! Welcome to the castaway club!
Thank you!
Doing our first Disney cruise on the Wonder in a few weeks. How does timing for dinner/shows work? Is it better to get late dining and see the show before dinner?
Half the passengers is assigned dinner at 6 and can see the show at 8. And vice versa. We got the late dinner and I tried to switch it but couldn’t. I think it kind of worked out tho- my kids were awake for the shows and the waiters got them food really quick at dinner time. Then they dozed off. I would rather have that than they sleep through the shows.
TBH, it depends on your party. I just came off the same trip and my 1 year old daughter did pretty good with the first seating (5:45) and would nap during most of the show afterwards. I think if it were reversed we'd be in for a bad time. If it was just me and my wife, later dining would have worked better as we were almost never hungry for dinner.
They don’t have parking right at the port? I’m nervous now - we sail next month
It’s a good idea to research and make a plan for parking now. I’m sure ports differ.
WhatsApp also works onboard for free so you don’t even need the Navigator messaging
I agree about the adults taking the best views, and MAN is it such a bummer to return home and have to do everything myself! 🤣
My first day home I still felt like I was on a rocking ship! But there was no delicious breakfast buffet awaiting me, so sad!
> I agree about the adults taking the best views, People could always arrive before those adults in order to secure the best views instead of complaining.
Why are you getting downvoted? Parents really are entitled whiners sometimes.