Great experience! ...but not worth the cost/value.
Disney Dream Cruise Review to Caribbean - Bahamas
3 Night Bahamas (Port Canaveral Roundtrip)
Sail date: December 16, 2016
Ship: Disney Dream
Cabin type: Balcony
Cabin number: 10035
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 7 years ago
Review summary
As a frequent cruiser on all cruise-lines, there is no comparison to Disney. This is my second time cruising on the Dream and the service, food, shows and atmosphere are the best experience on the seas.
However, for being 3 times the cost of other cruise lines I would have expected a much more careful experience. I want to emphasize that the majority of the crew members were outstanding, but I come from a company that prides itself on emulating the Disney brand's customer service. I was not impressed. We spent over $800 in the spa on services and received uninterested/bored greetings. It felt at times that we were not a new sale, so we were just taking up the crew's time. And we are very low-maintenance passengers.
Also, the food in the first day's restaurant was SO GOOD - Animator's Palate!! The other two restaurants made us long for our first night. The waiter staff was so friendly, funny and engaging. Even when we would have a new team for breakfast, we felt like our waiter was only serving us - what a great experience to start your day!
Finally, the stop at Castaway Cay was so relaxing. The beaches were immaculate, clean, and spacious. We stayed at the adult beach which was quite and relaxing and the waters were perfect. My only regret was that many of the activities that were recommended to us by our fellow experienced cruisers, were not listed on the activities schedule, nor on the app. So we missed out on several events (including the fireworks) that were not listed anywhere.....
The convenience and excitement of being on the Disney Dream (which is a gorgeous ship) was truly a Dream. The detail that goes into the ship is breath-taking and I would recommend that every cruise-goer tries it at least once. However, the price makes it a tough choice as to whether the investment is worth it. I believe with the new ships from other cruise lines, you can have ALMOST as good an experience at a third the cost.
Thank you Disney for having us and (asides from the Spa service) you are the standard for most companies :)
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Onboard Activities
Entertainment
Children's Programs
Service and Staff
Ship Quality
Cabin / Stateroom
Ship tip
Download the app!
Ports of call
Castaway Cay (Disney Private Island)
6 Comments
gsadan 7 years ago
Thank you and great questions! I totally didn't think about that regarding the spa - I believe it was called "Senses Spa" so you may be correct. Good call, not everyone can be Disney :)
Sorry for the confusion regarding my comment about activities. The individuals that told us about the events were on the ship with us. We didn't personally know them, they were just assigned at the same dinner table as us. They would tell us each night about activities they were planning on attending, such as the fireworks show, and then we would look on the app or schedule and couldn't find them listed anywhere. The next morning, we were a bit let down when they would rave about the events.
We should have probably inquired with the staff, but we tried to be as independent as possible.
Hope this helps and I would certainly recommend doing a Disney cruise at least one time - so good addition to your bucket list! My very first cruise several years ago was this same Disney Dream 3-day cruise (I think the first year it launched), and since then, it's been a unsuccessful search for a similar grand experience. Guess I got spoiled!
CrusinTim 7 years ago
Good review! I am wondering though, is the Spa owned and operated by a 3rd party as it is on other lines? That could be the reason for the lull in customer service there. Since this was only a 3 night cruise, is it possible that the activities you were expecting were not offered due to the length of the cruise? Did your friends cruise longer than 3 nights? Disney is on our bucket list.