Is a Disney Cruise Worth It? My Honest Review

We’ve had over a week now to recover from our 7 day Disney Cruise in the Mediterranean, and we have been asked over and over— what did you think?  The answer?  It was fantastic.  It’s true, we knew we would probably love it before we went simply because we are Disney fans and our kids of all ages still beg for all of us to go Disney World together any chance that we can.  This trip was just Dave and me and our two youngest, Lily and Lola,who are 21 and 17.  Dave and I had not been on a cruise since our honeymoon almost 29 years ago, and our girls never had so we weren’t totally sure what to expect.  To be fair, the Disney aspect was a big part of the reason we chose this one.  And the second swaying factor was that we love Italy and wanted to see more of it.  So I’ll give you the details of what we loved, starting with the cruise itself and sharing the Ports of Call in the next post!

We sailed on the Dream, and it was a dream for us.  We stayed mid ship in a deluxe ocean-view cabin with a veranda.  This room sleeps 4 with a queen bed and a sofa that transforms to a twin bed along with a pull down top bunk which the cabin steward prepares each night (along with the surprise towel animal, of course!) The linens are high-quality, just as you get in a luxury Disney resort.

As expected, the cabins are close quarters, but still adequate, especially with a double bathroom, one with a sink and bathtub/shower and the other with a toilet and sink.  There is also a nice large dresser with drawers and mirror, a few outlets (standard American), and two full closets with hanging racks and a safe.  There is also another small set of drawers and shelves for storage and two small side tables mounted on the bed sides. Under the bed, there is more room to slide large suitcase underneath.  It’s a very well planned-out space!  The veranda has a sliding door with two chairs and a table, perfect for fresh air and amazing views.

The ship is decorated beautifully with hints of Disney everywhere you look!  Music all around the ship is also your favorite Disney tunes, and there is plenty of live music at different times of the day as well.  On the main swim deck, favorite Disney movies are playing all day as well.

The entertainment was also one of our favorite parts!  Family -friendly shows were performed each night and the Beauty and the Beast show was literally the best version of it we have ever seen! (We’ve even seen it on Broadway!)

The food is always a big question and it absolutely did not disappoint.  There are 3 main restaurants in which to eat, which your party is assigned to each night with the same wait staff that travels with you so you get to know them really well by the end of the week! There are other restaurants as well if you would like an even more elite dining experience at an added cost, but we definitely enjoyed the main three, The Enchanted Garden, the Animator’s Palate, and the Royal Table.

Each night, there is a different multi-course menu with a variety of amazing foods to choose from, and if ever there is anything you don’t like, you can get something else! But we loved everything!!  Too many wonderful options to name.

Our waiters were so fun and knew us by name from the first night.

As for breakfast and lunch, there is the Royal Table, which has full service from a nice menu, or there is the largest buffet dining area of the ship with sooo many choices, which vary each day!  The views are amazing and who can resist the favorite Mickey waffles!  (They even have a churro version)

The decor is so much to take in everywhere you look.

On pirate night, even the wait staff dresses up and there is a pirate party on the pool deck after dark with fireworks!

For meals and around the ship anytime, there is coffee, tea, water and soft drinks available, as well as ice cream.  Alcohol is extra in bars and on the menu, as well as specialty coffees.  I will add- as a family who does not drink alcohol,  we were happy that there are more separated lounges and bars where people can choose to drink so it’s more family-oriented and not everywhere you look like we have heard about other cruise lines.

Also– there is always room service if you are still hungry after all this!  It is included as well, and with room service, you can order Mickey ice cream bars right to your cabin!

The overall views from so many areas of the ship as well as fun activities like the mini golf and shuffleboard and character appearances all around made it that much more enjoyable!

One question we had was dress code– we brought regular casual dresses and pants and shorts to wear on the ship and at the ports.  There are two night to dress up, one they call formal and the other semi-formal.  So we dressed up more on those nights, but not everyone went all out.  There was a range from casual to very dressy.

We did not have any littles with us to try our kid’s club, but we visited it during some open house hours to see it and I my big girls loved it!

To wrap it up, we truly loved every moment on the ship!  Fortunately we had no issues, not even with sea-sickness, so it was an absolutely lovely time.  Please feel free to ask if you have other questions about the cruise and I will try to answer!  And stay tuned for the next post where I’ll share all about the ports of call!