Cruise Report w 8 year old girl on Disney Dream

[DCFamily]

This was our first cruise, Disney Dream (June 12, 2011). We have one daughter, age 8. These are the quick things I wish I would have known prior to travelling as well as some things that are good to note. Hope this is helpful.
**We hired a private car to take us from Orlando to the Port for $120 each way. Worth it. We got there EARLY. Worth it. We were second to board the ship and my husband and daughter were on the AquaDuct while I sipped a rum drink at 1:30pm!
**Every morning we had our daughter get her life jacket out and put it on. Then she folded it back up. We also had her show US the way to the location she was supposed to go to in an emergency. She knew her way and we felt better knowing she could get a lifejacket on herself quicker than we could ourselves.
**We had an oceanview suite w verandah. Worth every penny. Waking up and sipping coffee on the veranda was wonderful, same in the evening with wine. You can carry on wine and tequila and we did, so I could make Zilch packets (sugar free margarita's). It worked great, especially as we sat on the verandah.
**Palo was truly amazing and my husband and I are foodies. You MUST get the Latitude 46.5 drink. OMH. However, we dined there on the first night, which means our daughter didn't get to meet the other girl who was her dinner table mate until the second night and she went to the kids club alone the first night without knowing anyone. Next year, we will dine at Palo on the third night and let her meet a new friend at dinner the first night. Just a hint.
**Order room service coffee for your room (it is free) and you can wake up slowly, then go down to breakfast later.
**I packed too much. I lived in a swimsuit and sarong on the ship, at Castaway Cay and at Nassau. I wore a sundress to dinner each night. I literally never opened 2 suitcases of clothes. No need to pack beach towels, they hand them to you as you get off the ship for Castaway and Nassau.
**The gym is wonderful, use it often because the drinks are NOT expensive and they are fabulous and the bacon is sooooooo yummy.
**Elevators are ALWAYS packed, so use the stairs.
**We had to beg our daughter to spend time with us. Which means we had PLENTY of adult time on the adult side of the ship, the only place you can go and hear smooth jazz as opposed to Disney music.
**The kids clubs were so amazing. Thank god I remembered our family password (that I made up, but forgot) because they almost didnt let me in once! Ha! Very secure.
**Our daughter left dinner with her friend once to get a signature from a character and she got lost on the way back to the restaurant. We told her if she ever got lost to go to the Kids Club for help. She did and they directed her to the restaurant. It was easy and she was fine, but having that plan worked for us. We never worried about her going away from us to get in a line for a character but it is a bit confusing sometimes if you get turned around, so a plan is a good idea, assuming your child is mature enough to handle walking alone.
**Best place on the ship is the piano bar on the 14th deck, for a drink as the sun is going down. Never more than 4 other people in this place and the pianist was sooooo wonderful. This is a great place to go when you have no kids!
**Get to the sail away party on the 11th deck by 3pm if you can and get good seats.
**Castaway Cay was wonderful. My husband and daughter did parasailing and they LOVED it. Worth the money. We also bought the extreme get away package, it was nice but we never had time to use everything so just getting there and renting what you want is the best way to go as there were always extra snorkelling and floats around.
**Group excursions on Nassau totally made us feel like cattle. We did the dolphin encounter at blue lagoon. It was rushed and crowded. NOT my thing. Next year we will hire a private tour lead for just us, so we can enjoy it more and not feel like we are being rushed. Nassau is dirty and touristy, as you would expect......so the best bet is to stay on the boat and enjoy the quiet at the aqua duct! Save your money.
**The ship is beautiful and clean and everytime you go into the bathroom to so much as powder your nose, you will come back to a clean room. Amazing.
**We booked our next cruise before leaving the ship and saved over $900.

Enjoy!

 

[toy]

I loved your report. It feels like forever before we leave. Even though this is our third Disney cruise, you have some great tips I've never thought about. Having her go back to the kids club for help is a great idea. I also love the life jacket drills. I will definitely be adding this to our list.

 

[FirstTimeDC]

Thanks for sharing!

 

[divawife]

Our daughter left dinner with her friend once to get a signature from a character and she got lost on the way back to the restaurant. We told her if she ever got lost to go to the Kids Club for help. She did and they directed her to the restaurant.

This worries me that the kids club did not call you and merely sent her on her way alone. Doesn't sound so secure to me.

 

[DCFamily]

divawife,

I should have mentioned the context but didn't and I understand your concern. However, my daughter simply went to the Kids Club and asked them which level the restaurant was located. She was confused about that and not in any way lost or scared in the way my original post may have indicated. She wasn't crying, she was more matter of factly asking. I assume that if they thought she was lost they would have walked her down. Hope that helps.

I do think that what made the difference was that we sat her down the first day we got on the ship and went over with her aft, forward and mid, along with the many ways you can get lost and what to do exactly. This is normal for us to do with her, so she rarely gets frazzled. I imagine most kids would lose it, but we travel so often that she has an auto pilot for what to do in many situations.

I apologize for giving off an incorrect perception of the workers at the Kids Club. They were all amazing, informative, helpful and caring the entire time we interacted with them.

DCFamily

 

[divawife]

Thanks!

 

[amk922]

This worries me that the kids club did not call you and merely sent her on her way alone. Doesn't sound so secure to me.

We were recently on the Dream and I witnessed a cast member from another part of the boat who had found a young boy who was lost and couldn't find his family. She brought him straight to the kids club where they checked him in and tried to contact his family immediately. It seemed like his security was concern #1.