A Weekend on the Disney Dream

My family and I just returned from a quick weekend aboard Disney’s newest ship, the Disney Dream.  If you’re traveling with children, or are a Disney fan of any age, then I know you’re going to love the Dream!

While the ship is 40% larger than the other ships in Disney’s fleet (Magic and Wonder), it’s still about half the size of the Allure of the Seas.  That being said, I want to note that three days is still not enough time to really experience everything the ship has to offer!

While I could go on and on about all the great things on this ship, I’m going to highlight the features of the Disney Dream that really make it unique among cruise ships.    

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To begin with, you know your cruise is going to be different when the ship doesn't even have a "regular" horn blast at sail away...

What else is unique about the Disney Dream?

• Disney characters appear for many meet and greet opportunities throughout the cruise.
• There is no casino (true for all Disney ships).
• Animated artwork is found throughout the ship.  You think it’s a painting, but when you walk up to it, the picture begins to move!

• The AquaDuck!  It’s a 765 foot long water roller coaster, and definitely one of the best waterslides at sea.  This was a huge hit with my 10 and 7 year old.  (Parents, please note that children must be at least 42" to ride in a tube with an adult or older sibling, and 54" to ride alone.)
  

• Soda and fountain drinks are included.  Even though I only drink water, I liked the idea of the sodas being included.  On other lines, you’re forced to pay extra per soda, or to buy a “soda card” to let you have unlimited fountain drinks for your cruise.  This is just a nice touch from Disney that alleviates some of the “nickel and diming” that’s common on mainstream cruise lines these days.
• Rotational Dining: you keep the same team of dining room servers throughout your cruise, but you eat in a different dining room each night.  There are 3 dining rooms, so you won’t repeat any of them on a 3 night cruise.  Note: it's better to book a 4 night cruise, so you can experience each dining room once, and then eat in Palo or Remy (adults-only specialty restaurant) without having to miss out on one of the dining room experiences.
  
• Animator’s Palate: while on the topic of dining, Animator’s Palate has to be one of the most unique dining experiences.  Paintings on the wall turn out to be LED screens with an underwater scene from Finding Nemo.  Crush, the sea turtle (as well as other characters) swim by, and actually interact with guests at the tables!

• Kids programs aren’t separated into very narrowed-down age groups (which is the norm for cruise ship programs).  For 3-10 year olds, there is the Oceaneer Club and Oceaneer Lab, filled with more activities than you could imagine.  While the Club is more geared towards 3-6 year olds, and the Lab for 7-10 year olds, kids are free to roam to any activity they want, whenever they want, with whomever they want.  If you have siblings or friends who aren’t the same age but want to stay together, they can.  If kids don’t want to participate in the structured activity going on at the time, they are free to do whatever else they’d like.  Hey, it's their vacation too!
• Fireworks!  No other cruise line has a regularly scheduled fireworks display on every single sailing.  One night, there was a pirate themed deck party (pirate bandanas supplied by Disney), ending in a fun fireworks display right off the side of the ship!
• Midship Detective Agency – this is a fantastic interactive scavenger-hunt experience that sends you around the ship finding clues to solve a mystery in Disney style. 

Aside from all of this, there is a Mickey waterslide for the kids, a mini-golf course, basketball and sports courts, two family pools, a giant LCD screen by the pool for watching movies, and a 3D movie theater with first-run films (we saw Cars 2 and The Help).

Service was first-rate, the entertainment was fun (and suitable for the whole family!), and the food was pretty good too!  So, what did we like the best?

The Adults' Favorites: 

• Palo, one of 2 adults-only specialty restaurants
  
• unique interactive experiences like Animator’s Palate and enchanted art
  
• friendly and attentive staff
  
• AquaDuck (it's not just for kids!)

The "Big Kids" Favorites (ages 7 and 10):

• AquaDuck
  
• Oceaneer Lab
  
• Midship Detective Agency
  

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The "Little Kids" Favorites (ages 2 and 3):

• evening shows, especially “The Golden Mickeys”
• seeing characters around the ship
• Mickey Ice Cream Bars for dessert!

Stay tuned for a series of posts that compare the Allure of the Seas to the Disney Dream when it comes to kids programs, private islands, dining, and more!