If you're like me, dreaming of warm beaches, adventurous excursions, a break from planning and cooking meals all set among a background of Disney magic including random encounters with Mickey and friends, superb customer service and magical entertainment, then it seems like a no-brainer, a Disney Cruise is definitely worth it for the perfect family vacation. I WANT TO BOOK ONE JUST TYPING THIS.
But there are weirdos out there. Weirdos like my husband who balked at the concept when I first introduced it. I believe it went something like, "I don't want to be stuck on a ship....FREEDOM!" He was concerned about feeling bored and overscheduled. In general, it went against his desire to preserve trip spontaneity. Alas, he loves me, so he wasn't hard to convince, but he was skeptical. Let's just say, I boarded Mickey's ship thinking it would probably be my first, and last Disney Cruise.
Spoiler Alert since I already gave it with the title. He LOVED it and we are already plotting our next trip on the high seas with Mickey. Here are the top 10 reasons my hubby now says our Disney Cruise was his most relaxing vacation ever! This post may help you convince your significant other or help you determine if a Disney Cruise is worth it for your family.
Carefree Dining
This should come as no surprise, but the food is delicious and ample! From buffets and counter service to impressive dinners and adult exclusive dining you can eat what you want, when you want. We loved never having to plot or plan what we were going to do for meals. We could fully enjoy our vacation activities and then just show up when we were hungry. This is especially awesome with kids; we never packed a single snack all trip. It was glorious.
Floating Hotel Room
My husband and I both love to travel. Having kids hasn't changed our passion, but it has changed how we pursue it. We saw a real future in cruise travel because it would allow us to explore and sample new destinations all while unpacking once in our floating hotel room. Backpacking around Europe with kids sounds about as good as the time I took my toddler to Gettysburg (that one was for hubby) but put us on a ship and sprinkle in Disney magic at the end of the sight-seeing day and you've got a real recipe for success!
Adult Time
We love to experience travels with our kids and prefer to vacation with them most of the time. That said, we did find the kids club amenities to be a huge asset to our trip. I had heard reports of parents saying their children went into the kids club and never wanted to leave. Honestly, this wasn't the case for our kiddos. They enjoyed the scheduled activities within the clubs (Stitch's Space Goo and Pluto's Pajama Party were big hits!) but they mostly spent time with us. We did check them in a couple of times on the ship and that gave us time to enjoy much need date time. We soaked up sun in the adult only pool with delicious drinks and took a few spins on the walking deck. Our favorite was checking them in for a couple of hours in the afternoon on Castaway Cay (Disney's Private Island) we had a chance to take bikes on a spin around the island and visit the adult only beach area which was a thing of dreams!!
Cocktail/Drink Classes
We aren't frequent drinkers, but we like a good cocktail (for me) bourbon (for him) when we are living our best lives on vacation! Disney offers an array of classes to suit most palettes. We did a mixology class and had a blast learning a few new recipes and sampling along the way. It was a great way to interact with our fellow cruisers and cap off a long day in the sun. I highly recommend perusing the add-on options for your cruise and selecting a few to make your trip special.
Ocean Views and Mini Golf
We had an ocean view room with a giant porthole, and we cherished taking breaks throughout the day by curling up in our porthole with a good book or watching our kids play toys while staring out at the ocean. There is something so good for the soul about being bombarded by stunning views. We had a particularly memorable night playing a family round of mini golf as the ship sailed off from Jamaica. We had the most gorgeous view sailing along the coast as the sun set while we giggled of our lackluster golf skills.
24-7 Food and Drinks
Yes, I have food listed twice. In addition to traditional meal food options, we were so impressed by the availability of food all day. If you have kids, you know the plight of a typical family vcation. Packing the snack bag, doling out snacks and carting them with you to all destinations. We felt invigorated by the freedom from snack duty! Kid 1 gets hungry, we grab unlimited soft-serve ice cream (try the mango chocolate swirl!!) Kid 2 gets hungry before late dinner seating? No problem, 24-7 room service to the rescue. It was the first vacation we have ever been on where we did not have to plan, pack or prepare for the appetites of our children. Plus, my husband is a soda addict and was a huge fan of the unlimited access to soda machines on the pool deck.
Excursions=Adventure
We are pretty active vacationers. I have heard of cruisers that choose to skip ports and stay on the ship. We opted to get off at each stop. This was a good choice for us. It gave us the perfect mix of active, adventurous days, followed by relaxing evenings on the ship. We had stops in Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Jamaica and Castaway Cay. We did a mix of independent activities and Disney Excursions. Both were excellent, of course the risk of going on your own is fear of missing the ship. This is rare, but can happen, so consider carefully. We had some incredibly memorable moments like swimming in the ocean with hundreds of wild sting rays. We held starfish safely under the water, relaxed on beaches with turquoise waters, interacted with dolphins and climbed up a waterfall. We interacted with locals when we shopped in the markets and took our daughter on her first snorkeling experience. For us, we learned that itinerary is a big factor in our cruising choices. We want to get off the ship and explore.
Built-in Entertainment
This is one of the components that my husband most dreaded. he had a vision of shuffleboard (though we did play that) and mandatory group activities which is torture for his introverted soul. What he didn't expect was amazing Broadway style evening shows. We cracked up at Aladdin, sang along to Frozen and got teary eyed during Disney's Believe. We were awed by the action and fireworks at sea during Pirate Night and the boys even took in a cinematic showing of Ant Man at sea. This may have been the best part of our sea days and ship time. There were so many different activities it was easy for us to review the navigator and select things to do. We could divide and conquer when interests diverted, and we could easily hop back to the room for breaks as needed. For example, my husband and daughter went to several Disney Animation classes while my son and I visited characters or enjoyed the splash pad called Nemo's Reef. It was the perfect option for us as I tend to be a more go-go-go vacationer while my husband prefers down time during his day. I hear some people find down time to be relaxing.....weirdos. The Disney Cruise had something for everyone, and we were never bored, but also felt there was room to relax.
Disney Characters
This is one of the things that sets a Disney Cruise apart from other cruise lines. As a parent, there aren't many things more magical than seeing your kids dance with Mickey and Minnie or show their muscles to Captain America or tell Tiana she is their FAVORITE princess. We have been Disney park fans for years, but the cruise character interaction is on another level. Our first day on the cruise we were hunting for our room and ran into Pluto. Throughout our trip we did official meet and greets but were delighted most by spontaneous interactions and by the different "dance parties" and activities where kids got to spend time with characters in the kids club. They got to make slime WITH Stitch. These moments brought out the kid in all of us and the Marvel fan in my husband.
Exceptional Service
I had heard people rave about Disney Cruise customer service and they weren't lying! We were incredibly impressed by our room attendant who set-up the kids' toys in cute scenes each day and made the sweetest animal towel sculptures for us. Every staff member we encountered was top notch. Our serving team was especially incredible. Dining with two small kids can be, I'll say, interesting. The servers made it a delight. They entertained our kids with magic tricks and activities. They gave us tips for each port, they brought our son's food out early so he could eat and fall asleep since we had late dining. They even set up a chair bed one night for our little guy to sleep in so I could eat without him in my arms. They encouraged our kids to try new foods and our daughter learned she liked shrimp and salmon. They went above and beyond every single evening to ensure our family had the best dining experience. When I asked my husband why he loved the cruise so much he summed it up saying, "it was just so easy!" It had all the components of a vacation we love but was so much more relaxing.
And that's how my hesitant hubby became a Disney Cruise convert. Our family can't wait to get back on the seas with Disney Cruise Line. Disney Cruise Line just unveiled its Summer 2025 itineraries. Book your Happiest Places Travel consultation today! What is your dream Disney Cruise Itinerary?
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