2025 EBTA on the Fantasy, Updated: Days 9 and 10

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The weather remained cold today, our fifth consecutive sea day and seventh day total of the cruise. We decided to have breakfast at Royal Court, knowing that our dining team would be there. Ratna was working as an expeditor in the back-of-house, and we weren’t put in Diego’s section, but he still helped us in addition to the assistant server assigned to our section. We were, however, put in Oscar’s section, and I was treated to an example of how he shines. I ordered an omelet and asked for hot sauce. Oscar said that he would take care of it for me. When the eggs arrived, I still didn’t have any hot sauce, and the assistant server explained that they only had pico de gallo in the kitchen, which he quickly brought out. Shortly after that, Oscar delivered sambal. I asked how he had managed to get sambal, since I’ve never seen it available. He told me that he has his connections, and he had gone up to Cabanas to get it from the kitchen. Shortly after that, the server delivered regular salsa. He was shocked to see the sambal and asked how I had gotten it. I explained that Oscar had brought it, and he and the assistant server seemed to be amused and impressed. Unfortunately, I had finished much of my omelet by that point, but it was an embarrassment of riches to have pico de gallo, salsa, and sambal, especially at a restaurant where frankly condiments are much harder to come by than any of its land-based counterparts.

We decided to return to another of Rob’s lectures. In this one, he spoke about his time at the opening of Disneyland Paris. It was no surprise that Rob’s stories remained dull; for example, he shared that he was in charge of transportation, much as he had been in Orlando, and at the park’s opening, his major responsibility was shuttling Don Johnson and Melanie Griffith to the golf course. He also had promised a real princess story, which turned out to be the time that Princess Di visited EPCOT with the two future princes. Rob’s responsibility? Finding a bathroom for them. His wife Debbie worked at the Kodak VIP lounge in the Imagination Pavilion at that time, so he arranged for the royal party to go to that bathroom. It wasn’t the story that any of us were hoping it might be, since it didn’t even sound like he met Princess Di. To his credit, at least he ended the story with a Jungle Cruise skipper-worthy pun (he was a former Jungle Cruise skipper, after all), stating that the women’s bathroom had only one stall, making it a royal flush.

We had a quick bite at Cabanas and then had our couples massage in a villa, so we didn’t want to eat too much food beforehand. The villas on the larger ships are really spacious, with their own shower, jacuzzi, and day bed of sorts looking out to the ocean. The massage package used to include fruit kabobs and chocolate-covered strawberries, but these have since been cut. Even worse, the major need for maintenance on the ship extended to the villas, as the jacuzzi’s water was only warm and not hot enough to make the cold outdoor temperatures bearable. The shower was also broken. The masseuses gave us a 20% discount, which basically comped the tip, and passes to go to the Rainforest room. However, the room was so unpleasantly crowded that we decided to skip it. The masseuses were fantastic, keeping the sales pitches to a minimum and actually following my instructions on what areas to avoid, which doesn’t happen as often as I would like. Getting a couples’ massage is always something that we enjoy doing and a highlight of the cruise; hopefully in dry dock they can get them working properly.

After the massage, we decided to try our first trivia session since there was a level 1 session taking place in La Piazza. I haven’t mentioned this before, but after never going on a cruise where someone had brought a service animal, there were quite a few dogs on this one. One young woman brought her dog to the trivia session, and I felt bad for the way it needed to squeeze into such a tight space under the bar. I missed my dogs, but they wouldn’t have been comfortable on this ship. Trivia is better on these larger ships because they are (presumably) randomly selected from a program, whereas on the smaller ships, the entertainment host reads from a binder, and since they seem to always start at the beginning, you hear the same questions year after year. Even though these questions were multiple choice, we were frequently stumped.

We were back in the Royal Court for dinner. Tonight’s menu was the only one where I ordered two entrees, the prime rib and the lobster tail. It was definitely a step up.

After dinner, we went to Ian Knauer’s cabaret show in the Tube. I enjoyed his song selection, which included songs from “Tarzan”; DW’s favorite, “Be Prepared; and “Proud of Your Boy.” Ian had a nice voice but was not strong enough at times to compete with the overly loud backing track. I regret forgetting to complain to Peter or Josh about how much better these cabaret sets would be if they had a live piano for accompaniment.

Tonight’s show in the Walt Disney theatre was a juggler that we had seen during our Panama Canal cruise more than 10 years ago. He was entertaining at that time, but jugglers are a half-step above ventriloquists for me, so we skipped it for the next season of “The Four Seasons.”

It was now the final sea day before land and Mother’s Day. After our exercise routine, we decided to try an early morning trivia, movie quotes, at the pub. This was our first regular trivia, and I had been hoping again for multiple choice, but once it started, it was clear that it was the usual open-ended responses. The trivia was not particularly well attended, given that the fifth of six total time changes had occurred the night before, and it was 9 in the morning. A guest at a neighboring table overheard us bemoaning how low our score would be and joked that he had faith in us, and I responded that his faith was misguided. He assured us that we could get 2/3 correct, but it proved to be especially hard for both of us, and I think we only ended up three correct answers (“Go ahead, make my day” was from “Sudden Impact,” not “Dirty Harry,” as we both had put down.) For those of you considering this trivia in the future, if you don’t know, as an example, that the quote, “Oh, you can milk just about anything with nipples... and I have nipples, Greg, could you milk me?,” comes from “Meet the Parents,” then you probably won’t get many more right answers than we did, since most of the quotes seemed to be about as obscure as this one. Unlike the level one session, at least this one didn’t have three teams tied for first place by getting them all right.

It was time for our second Palo brunch, which was the one that we had originally booked, and I had chosen the earliest time, so we got the closest tables to the windows. This proximity turned out to be especially important today because there were multiple sightings of whales and dolphins. I heard a woman scream when she saw a whale at what looked like just a few feet from the ship, and it turned out to be DW! Sacha added to the fun by pretending to call whales on an imaginary walkie-talkie to direct them to surface for us. For anyone doing this cruise in the future, make sure you book the earliest Palo brunch the day before you arrive at the Azores.

As for the food, I made the mistake of ordering blueberry pancakes instead of the waffles, and my first bite resulted in blueberry stains that took four times in the wash to get out, or mostly out at least. When I make pancakes, I use small, wild blueberries, but they use plump, juicy ones at Palo. Emboldened by the chef’s agreeing to make the ravioli with a different sauce, I asked Marie Ann if they could make the pizza with the coppa or salame, and it was delicious. It was like one of the best pepperoni-tasting pizzas I’ve ever had, and combined with the whale watching, it just reinforced my feeling about Palo being my favorite restaurant. I got the chicken parm for an entrée, which still isn’t my favorite. I think I would go with ravioli again with the red sauce if I was going to get an Italian entrée again. I ended with the panna cotta, which is just so light and delicious, and I love the pearls. Marie Ann indulged us with extra prosecco and croissants, the latter of which I brought down to Kristina for Mother’s Day.

One of DW’s favorite movies is “The Princess Bride,” so we went to see it at the Buena Vista after brunch. We arrived early enough so that we could stretch our legs over the railing from the seats in the row in front of the center pathway. For some reason, the theatre was especially cold this trip, so DW invariably brought a pillow and blanket. I asked Peter about the temperature, and he said they deliberately keep it cold so that it is comfortable when it gets crowded. It was true that during Rob’s lectures, when the theatre was at its most full, it was not uncomfortably cold as it was during the movies, which were sparsely attended when we went.

Dinner tonight was in Animator’s, and there was no show there tonight. On the Wonder, they play a nice gestalt-like game on the screens where they show landscapes of a movie or part of a character until it becomes obvious what they are showing. It would have been fun if the Fantasy had included something similar on this non-show night. The menu featured the deconstructed Greek salad which I keep getting even though I wish that it was the traditional version. It did have the retro chicken Kiev, though, which I’m always glad to order.

After dinner, we saw the Victrophonics in the Tube. On this cruise, the band’s Frankensteinian composition included Cruise Control, with one of the two guitar players relegated to the bass; the singer/piano-player who wasn’t Ellis; and the performers who play Aladdin and Jasmine in the headlining shows, who fronted the band. As I mentioned in my “Aladdin” review, and as I will mention in my “Believe” review, none of the mainstage performers on this cruise were strong singers, and these two were no exception. Was the Victrophonics’ whole greater than the sum of its mediocre parts? The swing arrangements for the Disney songs were infectious and after hearing the traditional versions so many times by this point in the cruise, it was much appreciated to hear them performed so differently. The problem was that the singers limited the band’s potential; in this iteration, it would have been a much better act had the songs remained instrumentals. The result was that we were glad to have seen them once but had no interest in seeing them again, either in the Tube or when they performed in the Walt Disney theatre toward the very end of the cruise.

Tonight’s show in the Walt Disney theatre was “Frozen.” This production is identical, as far as I can tell, to the one performed on the Wonder. If “Aladdin” is only as good as its Genie, then “Frozen” is only as good as its Anna, and in this case, the Anna was excellent. I much prefer DCL’s “Frozen” to the Broadway version because all of the latter’s new songs except two pales in comparison to the ones originally in the movie and as a result, they feel like fillers, slowing down the show. DCL’s “Frozen” is just the right length at 1:15.

Next installment: Land ho!

 

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We had breakfast this morning at Cabanas before disembarking for the Azores, and it was a complete madhouse, packed with everyone readying to get off the ship for the first time in a week. As cruise vacations are supposed to be relaxing, fighting crowds at Cabanas is really unpleasant and reminded me of how nice it was in the Haven on NCL for less than the price of a DCL verandah stateroom.

Unless the tour needs to be in a group format, like the Kauai movie tour and that island’s botanical gardens tour, we usually prefer to book through Tours by Local rather than going through Disney. Today’s tour was led by Jorge, who turned out to be a Portuguese Archie Bunker, minus the laughs. For example, when I asked about the impact of American expats, he launched into a tirade against Indians, of whom he blamed the former Portuguese prime minister of flooding the country and then filling the streets when they became homeless, and Germans, whom he accused of keeping to themselves and looking down on the natives. It became personally offensive when at one point during our visit of the Terra Nostra park, Jorge asked me in an accusing tone, “You’re Jewish, aren’t you?,” and then went into a rant about how the new owners of the park were Jewish and how Jews owned everything. Jorge also took us to a restaurant and bakery where he would get fed for free, which made me question if these were the best places to visit. When I asked him about it, he became defensive, saying, “Why shouldn’t I eat for free? I’m bringing them customers.”

Luckily, most of the tour was more enjoyable than these interactions. Our first stop was the Vila Franca Do Campo, where we were treated to some exceptional views following a good climb upstairs:



And a visit with the local wildlife there:



When we visited Terra Nostra, which was the only time we encountered a Disney port adventure, Jorge noticed that the water in the natural springs pool was not circulating through the various outlets due to maintenance. Jorge complained almost menacingly to a guard, saying that customers should have been informed if it was going to be closed for maintenance, and the outlets were turned back on as a result. The botanical gardens themselves weren’t especially interesting, with only camellias apparently in bloom, but swimming in the hot springs was fun, even if the locker rooms were not especially inviting, with no changing rooms. However, Jorge knew of a hidden cave of which other visitors were unaware:


We enjoyed a lunch of the island’s specialty, cozido das furnas, which consisted of various meats and potatoes cooked by the volcanic stones. It tasted like braised meats, with the flavor mostly coming from the au jus, served separately. Even though we ate only meat, the conversation focused on fish, including how locals manage to keep fish that they catch fresh for many days afterwards and how they reconstitute the cod that comes dried from Iceland.

We visited other springs where you could drink from faucets and a gift store where I bought jams of fruit previously unknown to me, cape gooseberry.

The day was somewhat rushed because none of the ports allowed for full-day visits. Dinner that night was our first of two dinners at Palo. I always start with the lamb ragu, which is my all-time favorite Bolognese sauce. My go-to entrée is the Dover sole fileted table-side. Marie Ann was only the second server I’ve had to perfectly debone it. We chose the chocolate souffle tonight knowing that we would order the amaretto souffle on the last night. My only complaint was that the ice cream was slightly freezer-burned, which was the only off note of the evening. Marie Ann again provided superlative service, surprising DW with a martini glass filled with the complimentary digestif.

Tonight’s show was a treat, a cabaret act with two true vocal powerhouses, Hiba Elchikhe and Bradley Gibson. Hiba’s Disney connection is being the first actress of Arab descent to play Jasmine, which she did in Australia; Bradley originated the role of Hercules at the Paper Mill Playhouse and previously played Simba on Broadway for two years. Hiba did not sing “Let It Go,” unfortunately, but her performance at the Royal Albert Hall is on YouTube, and her version was 100 times better than that of the actress who played Elsa on the cruise. Bradley’s voice similarly overshadowed that of the other guest artist, Ian Knauer. Both Hiba’s and Bradley’s vocals were strong enough to not be overpowered by the backing tracks.

Peter had promised a fourth Broadway-style production earlier in the cruise, and it turned out that he was referring to these performances. I mentioned to him that on the Panama Canal cruise, which was only a couple of days longer, they had an additional, fully-staged fourth show about the life of Walt Disney. Peter vaguely remembered it, saying, “I know; I saw it,” but confirmed that DCL will never again have a fourth fully staged show on longer cruises.

The next day was our second-to-last sea day. This morning on the track, I saw a man wearing, with no discernable irony, one of the most obnoxious t-shirts I’ve ever seen, apparently referencing his running club with serious frat vibes. The back read, “Don’t try this at home. We are trained professionals.” The front gave the name of his running club. Looking at his shirt that morning was happily my only unpleasant experience on the deck, aside from the morning when it was partially closed. To paraphrase Elsa, the wind and rain never bothered me anyway, just making me work a little harder, but this guy, or at least his shirt, was truly obnoxious.

This morning was the second and last time that the famous churro waffles were served. We missed them the first time because it was during one of our Palo brunches. This time, we were early to breakfast, with it being the sixth and last time change of the cruise, so Cabanas was still quiet. Perhaps I got a bad batch, but I found nothing compelling about these waffles. If they were deep fried, they lacked any crispiness. They just tasted like the regular Mickey waffles with cinnamon sprinkled on top. I’ll stick to my Palo waffles with apple compote.

After breakfast, we went to our last movie of the cruise, the recent bomb, “Snow White.” It was pretty dreadful, containing Pasek and Paul’s worst songs of their career, and it’s telling that they don’t even reference the movie on their webpage which lists presumably all of their other credits. The highlight of the movie for us was toward the end, when Snow White accuses the Evil Queen of murdering her father. A young girl behind us asked her mother, “What does murder mean?,” which caused many of us to chuckle and a guest sitting nearby to mutter, “I’d love to hear her answer.” Unfortunately, we never did.

Afterwards, we went to lunch at the Royal Court, and for the first time, there was a wait to be seated. I read that others didn’t consider the cruise to be crowded, but in my book, if you have to wait to be seated for lunch, then you are on a crowded cruise.

Later in the afternoon, Broadway guest artist Ian Knauer gave a talk about his career, complete with a slide deck. I much preferred this format to a Q&A, since I’m not sure that he would have received an hour’s worth of questions. He was very honest, I thought, in describing the challenges of having a long-term career in the theatre, acknowledging that he started by pitching himself as a song-and-dance man which, as he got older, gave way to selling himself as someone capable of understudying multiple roles in national tours, which he last did on Broadway in “Anastasia,” which closed in 2019. It bears repeating that he was an incredibly friendly and warm person, shaking hands with all of the guests before the show and thanking them for coming in a genuine manner. He ended his presentation with a Q&A, and I asked one of the last questions, which was given that he has worked extensively on DCL over the years, has he worked with any other performers or heard of other DCL performers who made the leap to Broadway. He thought about it for a bit and acknowledged that in his experience and conversation with other guest artists, he could not think of any DCL performers who had made it to Broadway. I guess that makes Jennifer Hudson the exception that proves the rule.

Tonight’s dinner was our last in the Royal Court. At this point on a cruise as long as this one, the menus become oppressive. The appetizers, soups, and salads are nothing if not familiar and repetitious (literally a smoked salmon appetizer on every single menu), and the entrees feature the nearly same selection of proteins with pretty much only the sauces and sides varying. I decided to switch it up by getting a cobb salad, which turned out to be delicious. I was really blown away by the dressing, and I asked Oscar if he could find out the ingredients. He told me that they no longer give out recipes, but he could and did get the ingredients for me. It was basically a green goddess dressing but oil- instead of mayo-based. I almost had it another night; it was that good. I guess Disney can still surprise you.

The show tonight was Chris Cox, who was advertised as a mind reader. He delivered a middling magic act with a huge dose of creepiness. At one point, he brought an attractive younger woman from the audience on stage, and the trick started with her drinking from a plastic bottle of water. He then drank from the same plastic bottle and acted as if he was getting weirdly turned on by drinking her back wash. His personality was truly unpleasant, and I can’t recall another magician which I would actively avoid ever seeing again.

Next: Lisbon and Cadiz