Dreamin'....and needing some help!

[shimmerplanet]

We have an opportunity to go on a Disney Cruise over the summer. I'm thinking the 4 night Dream cruise and would like some feedback. My daughters are 8 & 13 - and I think will be great for this type of vacation. They both have favorite characters - who are available on this trip. Can you talk to me about character dining, teenage activities (I typically keep them close to me, but I'd like to know what there is to do. ) and excursions? I don't know that we'll get off the boat in the Bahamas, but I'm sure we will at Castaway Cay. What would you suggest NOT missing out on? ALL opinions are welcome and appreciated! Thank you!

[catrancher]

Do NOT think about it anymore. Go, go, go! Do it right now.

The only thing you'll find wrong with it is that 4 days will not be long enough.

What to do for kids and teenagers? More like what's not to do. They have their own clubs on the Dream that cater to specific age groups. Add to that the pools and, of course, the Aqua Duck and the only problem you'll have is getting them to go back to the stateroom at night to go to bed.

Dining is a rotational affair. There isn't any character dining per se. The way it works is your whole party (and possibly some additional folks depending on how big your party is) will be assigned to a table with your own servers. Both you and your entire table will rotate through one of the three main restaurants each night. Your servers go too. So, tonight you may eat in the Royal Palace but tomorrow night it will be Animator's Palete. The following night would be Enchanted Garden. But in all cases, you'll have the same servers so they become familiar with you and your preferences. There's also casual dining available too.

The characters are all over. All the time. It's not beyond the realm of possibility to run into Captain Mickey in the hallways. Additionally, there's usually something going on around dinner time in the main lobby area. On formal night, they have photographers set up and you can get pictures with almost all the characters. I've seen the princesses all sitting at one table in the lobby signing autographs and taking photos. You won't lack for character interaction. Not at all.

On Castaway Cay, there's a separate family beach, an adult beach, a teenage beach and a separate area just for the little kids. There's excursions you can sign up for (I went para-sailing one time there). It's just a wonderful place. IMHO, it's the best thing this side of heaven.

Quick story about one of our earlier cruises. It's only my DW and I who go. When you first board (around noon), Disney has a nice buffet lunch set out in one of the dining rooms. Well, my DW and I got our lunch and went and sat down at one of the tables. A nice family joined us (mom, dad, and a little girl). The little girl was extremely shy. I guess she was about 5. She kept hiding behind daddy. Mom and dad told us they were concerned about her. She wasn't very outgoing and they were afraid she wasn't going to enjoy the cruise. We told them not to worry. Take her to the Oceaneer Club or Oceaneer Lab and let Disney work their magic. They thanked us and went about their business. We ran into mom and dad again on almost the last night of the cruise in one of the night clubs and asked them how their daughter was doing. They enthusiastically thanked us for talking with them that first day. They said that after talking with us they had taken her immediately and registered her for the clubs and the only problem they now had is getting her out of them to go the stateroom and go to sleep. She was having the time of her life and mom and dad were so happy they just couldn't contain themselves.

So, that's it in a nutshell. At least all I can think of right now. If you've got more questions just ask. There's a couple of us on here who think a Disney Cruise is the best possible vacation experience you can have.

Oh, and by the way, our last cruise (the Dream) stopped in the Bahamas also. My DW and I just hopped a horse drawn carriage right outside the cruise terminal there. Took us all over Nassau. We really enjoyed it!

Tom (... don't forget the evening shows!)

[shimmerplanet]

AH-MAY-ZING!!! Thank you so incredibly much!! I'm going to call my travel agent this week to get set up for an appointment. The summer is a little expensive, but it's the best time for us to go so I'm just going to do it. You are the BEST and I appreciate your knowledge!

[catrancher]

Glad I could help!

Like I said before, you won't believe how wonderful a Disney cruise is!

Just to get feel for it, there's some DCL podcast videos here on the Disney Cruise line website. You may also want to fill out and order the planning DVD here. Both of these are great resources for learning about DCL cruises and all the activities. The DVD is especially good to use to surprise the kids. If you haven't told them about it yet, just order the DVD, don't tell them and pop it into the DVD player one night for family movie night. Then watch their faces!

Tom (... are you still here? Why aren't you talking to your travel agent? )

[catrancher]

The summer is a little expensive, but it's the best time for us to go so I'm just going to do it.

I just noticed you said summer. If you're planning on going this summer, you'll want to call your travel agent or book online immediately. The cruises are very popular and they fill up fast. If however, you're talking about waiting until summer next year (2013), you'll find that the fares are lower the farther out in advance you can book. My DW and I typically will book at least a year in advance and possibly more if we can.

Tom (... just something else to think about. )

[Slowhand]

I can`t add much to what Catrancher has so eloquently said but I agree that you MUST do a DCL cruise and I can guarantee that it won`t be your last one.
We are soon to venture on our 10th cruise with Disney, so you could say that we are well and truly hooked!

[shimmerplanet]

One last question - are the prices on Disney.com fairly standard? I know there are often ways to find discounts or coupons/special offers online or through other places. With it being a cruise, I wasn't sure about those same discounts.

[catrancher]

One last question - are the prices on Disney.com fairly standard? I know there are often ways to find discounts or coupons/special offers online or through other places. With it being a cruise, I wasn't sure about those same discounts.

I don't know for sure. I've always booked us directly through the DCL web site. I just checked and you can book through sites like Travelocity or AAA. I'm sure there's others. How much of a price difference there is I don't know. I doubt if it's much. As popular as the Disney cruises are, I doubt they have to compromise much on the pricing. I'd suggest though that you check with your travel agent to see what they can do. Or, contact Johnie here on the forum. She's a Disney Travel agent and I'm pretty sure she can help with cruise bookings also.

Tom (... if you find them cheaper, let me know!)

[shimmerplanet]

Okay it's done! We leave in early June!

I don't know for sure. I've always booked us directly through the DCL web site. I just checked and you can book through sites like Travelocity or AAA. I'm sure there's others. How much of a price difference there is I don't know. I doubt if it's much. As popular as the Disney cruises are, I doubt they have to compromise much on the pricing. I'd suggest though that you check with your travel agent to see what they can do. Or, contact Johnie here on the forum. She's a Disney Travel agent and I'm pretty sure she can help with cruise bookings also.

Tom (... if you find them cheaper, let me know!)

[catrancher]

Okay it's done! We leave in early June!

Excellent! Congratulations! You're going to have such a marvelous time.

In the meantime, if you want to get more excited, here's a link to the Port Canaveral web cam. Right now, it appears that the camera is oriented to point out the channel toward the Atlantic. But sometimes (like when the Fantasy arrived) they have it oriented to point into the turning basin. You can get unbelievable views of the Disney ships as they enter or leave the port. Right now, according to the map below the camera, the Magic is in port.

Another thing you might be interested in. Based on where you are, will you be driving down to Port Canaveral? On our first DCL cruise, my DW and I drove down a few days in advance and stayed a night or two in St. Augustine before taking a casual drive down the coast to Port Canaveral on the day before our cruise. We then stayed the night in Port Canaveral and were right there on the morning of our cruise. Of course, the cruise terminal typically doesn't open till about 10:00 AM and we were ready long before that. So, we had to sit around and get ridiculously excited for a couple of hours. Wouldn't have missed it for the world!

Tom (... I'm soooo excited for you! )