bucation

After boarding at the Port Canaveral terminal and exploring the ship a bit, we decided to make our way to the adults only area known as “The Cove.” To our surprise, we found The Cove abandoned. We had the pool, bar, and both lower and upper decks of lounge chairs all to ourselves. We cannot express how delightful it was to spend so much time during our cruise in The Cove. Throughout our cruise, The Cove bar and pool was our own private paradise. Disney Cruise Line really has a nice balance of adults only, teen clubs, kids clubs, and other activities to keep everyone happy. 

Our stateroom, 9608 was on the ninth floor truly in the center of the ship. We reserved a Deluxe Family Oceanview Room with Verandah, Category 4A. If the price is right, we highly recommend reserving this category stateroom. We were conveniently located between the midship and aft staircase. The location of our stateroom was convenient to both the midship elevators, which allowed quick access to The Cove, but our stateroom was also a short walking distance from the ship’s aft staircase which ascended to the entrance of Cabanas, the Disney Dream’s breezy breakfast, lunch and dinner buffet. Our verandah was also a nice retreat during the busier times on the ships upper decks. Our verandah was the perfect way to take in the spectacular views and fresh vitamin sea. We cannot praise our stateroom host enough for his excellent service and attention to detail. Wijaya went above and beyond during our time on the Disney Dream.

The Disney Dream’s Senses Fitness area located on deck twelve, forward, offers the same state of the art equipment that you will find in a number of the Walt Disney World Deluxe Resorts as well as Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort. Senses Fitness Area also offers a number of free and a la carte fitness classes with complimentary abdominal and yoga classes offered during each of our morning visits, and these classes are sure to help you show last night’s dinner who’s boss! 

One thing worth noting is that we were completely unaware of the family style dining that takes place on Disney Cruise Lines. Unfortunately we were seated with a group that was not enjoying their time onboard, to say the least. One of the lovely couples we met during our cruise recommended we not waste another second of our trip as unhappy diners. In result, we went to guest relations where they made this change for us. For the rest of our cruise we were seated at a private table which was a dream! 

Disney Cruise Line’s dinner service, at least in our experience, does not include any major productions or fanfare during your dinner seating. If you plan to dine at the Royal Palace to see Disney princesses, you will be highly disappointed. Unlike Cinderella’s Royal Table in the Magic Kingdom, there were no characters, and there was no song and dance during dinner service at any of our meals. For us, this was a nice change from the norm of other cruise lines. 

The Buccaneer Blast Fireworks at Sea show is the perfect example of how Disney Cruise Line pulls out all of the stops with its daily entertainment. From deck parties to Broadway style shows that rival those in its parks, Disney certainly knows how to put on a show. There is truly nothing like the Fireworks at Sea show, and this alone is completely worth every penny. 

We truly believe the purchase and development of Castaway Cay is one of the best decisions the Walt Disney Company has ever made. We were so glad our cruise itinerary included a stop at Castaway Cay. The island is perfectly laid out with endless activities, and there is a flawless balance between family and adult where one does not impede on the other. The only down side was that we eventually had to leave this perfect island in the sun that had as wanting to sign up as permanent residents by the time our day had ended! 

Although we've enjoyed our time aboard other cruise lines in the past, we can say without a doubt that the level of service we received, the amount of included onboard amenities, the quality of food offerings, and the unique dining opportunities with rotational dining on the Disney Dream far surpassed any of our experiences on other lines. Our Disney Cruise Line experience was truly a dream come true. For all of these reasons and so much more, Disney Cruise Line has made repeat cruisers out of us and we are very much looking forward to our future sailings with DCL.

For a far more detailed review, including photographs and video, of our time on the Disney Dream, please visit our website at: www.bucation.com