@Gossamer I got back Thursday night, and just remembered this question. My siblings and friend and I had a great time. The only real downside was the weather. Florida and the Bahamas were having something like 25 year record lows. So that was depressing. But beyond that, it was wonderful.
Every evening, your “Daily Navigator” is slipped under your stateroom door. This lists every shipboard activity going on at all hours of the next day, grouped into Family, Child, Adult, and Teen. We were never bored. On the contrary, there were several instances during which we had to sacrifice one activity in order to do something else, because there’s just so much happening at all times.
We only did a 4-night cruise, and if I had it to do again, I’d choose a 7 night. By the time we finally started figuring out our way around the ship, it was time to leave. The ship was massive, basically a city on the water. Theatres, movie theatres, restaurants, clubs, shops, lounges, health center, bars, spas, gyms, everything you could want.
The ship was pretty well divided into adult/teen/child sections, and none of us ever felt inundated or overrun with kids. There is an adults only pool and hot tubs, and bars & lounges that are reserved for 18 and older, and many events that are geared towards adults. They have two dinner times (5:15 and 8:15pm), so those without kids can do the later seating and not have as many kids in the restaurant while we’re there.
SOOOOOO much food. Everywhere you turned, there was food. In addition to our scheduled dinners each night, there were three or four breakfast options, from a continental breakfast, to sit-down restaurants to buffets. Same thing for lunch for those who didn’t get off the ship while at port. And between meals, there were three counter-service options open pretty much at all times, serving sandwiches, wraps, salads, burgers, friends, hot dogs, pizza, chicken fingers, etc. Plus unlike other cruise lines, soft drinks, coffee, tea, and hot chocolate were all free, available from the beverage station on the top deck.
Our only less-than-positive experience on the cruise was our excursion at Nassau. We paid $160 to get to Atlantis hotel’s water park. It was really not worth that price. They had a couple nice ideas, but it was poorly implemented and so spread out that it seemed much bigger than it was. I would never do that again.
Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay (pronounced “key”) was awesome. Disney owns it, so it’s treated as an extension of the ship itself. Meaning that all the food and softdrinks are included there as well. Like the ship, it had separate areas for families, teens, and adults. The adult beach, “Serenity Bay”, is a good 5–10 minute tram ride away from the family beach. We also went parasailing while there, which was great, if a little short. And we rented tubes, snorkel gear, and bicycles. Next time we’ll probably rent paddle boats as we saw them and they looked like a lot of fun.
Some things we did/saw off the top of my head:
* Three different stage shows at night
* Showing of the still-in-theaters The Princess and the Frog. The cruise director noted that they’re the only cruise line that can show first-run movies, “Because we own them!”
* Bingo. Cash prize for the last session the last day was $4,700
* Trivia games
* Animation classes
* My friend watched a showing of Old Dogs in the movie theatre.
* Pirate Night themed dance party on the top deck, ending with fireworks (apparently also the only cruise line that shoots off fireworks while at sea)
* Showing of Pirates of the Caribbean on the top deck, outside, after the Pirates dance party. Like I said, it was cold, so they had house keeping bring up blankets and comforters for everyone. Plus the beverage station was still open, so the hot chocolate just kept on coming.
* Lots of Disney character meet-and-greets
* My friend and siblings all did at least one spa treatment/session
* My siblings did a wine tasting
* Napkin folding and Towel-animal folding demonstrations
My siblings have all cruised before, but not on Disney. This was the first cruise for myself and my friend. My sisters both said they’d do another Disney cruise if the opportunity presented itself. My friend and I put a deposit down (cancellable up to 75 days before sailing) for a cruise in 2011. My brother said that while he enjoyed it, he didn’t enjoy it as much as previous cruises, and probably wouldn’t do another Disney cruise. I asked him for some differences and he listed:
* He didn’t think the food was as good. I loved it, personally.
* No casinos on the ship or on Disney’s island
* The evening shows are, obviously, Disney-themed and decidedly kid-friendly.
* Less random silly contests. For example, our father apparently took 2nd place in a “Hairiest Man” contest in one cruise they took a while back. Not much along those lines.
Overall, it was a great experience, and I’m going to have to factor a cruise into my future vacation plans every year or two. Very highly recommended, regardless of your vacationing group make up. We saw everyone from families with toddlers and infants to teens to young adults like ourselves to elderly retirees, and all looked like they were having a great time.
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