Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique "signature dresses" on ship?

[leannak]

Hi, my daughter absolutely DROOLED over the signature dresses she saw at Disney World. We saved up and she's now 11 but still dreams of her princess makeover. We are signing her up for her first and only Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutuque visit on our first ever Disney cruise (in Europe!). It looks like there are only crown and castle packages available. So I'm guessing the signature dresses are not on ship. Any recommendations? I was hoping to keep this all a surprise but perhaps I could bring her to the Disney store at the mall to pick out a dress and then just sign her up for the simple crown package on ship? I'm sure it's not as magical as choosing the dress as part of the experience and it's another big thing to pack and deal with and it ruins the surprise... but I don't know what my other options are.

 

[tinay]

They do have some signature dresses in stock, but it is not a guarantee that they will have it in the right size or design.

My friend's daughter (6) was set on having the signature Belle dress, but they didn't have it in her size... Then, she tried to find the Aurora dress, but that didn't come in the right size either... so she choose the Cinderella signature dress instead. She was definitely disappointed about the fact that she did not get her dress, but the cast members understood the situation and made the experience even more amazing for her.

It will definitely be hard to pack especially since you are going to Europe... but if she wants a specific dress, then it may be better to buy it before hand. Maybe you can hide it in the bottom of your suitcase or tell her thats what she is wearing for formal night.

However, if she is okay with any of the signature dresses or the regular dresses, then she should do the whole experience.

 

[DisneyPiPhi]

There were signature dresses on our Disney Wonder cruise in December.

 

[leannak]

There were no signature dresses at our local Disney Store and online there are only 3, and no Cinderella. They also appear to be sold out online. I might just pack a pretty formal dress for my daughter and have her hair, nails, etc. done.

It looks like the Crown (makeover only) and Castle (makeover and dress) packages on ship are both 45 minutes. I'm wondering if i can book just the crown package and buy her a special dress if they have one she loves. Will it be as special of an experience if we don't have a Castle package booked to include dress selection? Or should I book the Castle package and downgrade to the Crown package if they don't have a dress she likes. Is that even allowed??

Or maybe I'll look into getting a princess dress from Chasing Fireflies or somewhere that is pretty but (I think) fancier than the standard ones at the boutique. (Does Disney frown on that??)

Thanks for your help and patience with me - we have one shot at this experience and I don't want to disappoint this very sweet kid who has waited so very long.

 

[darnheather]

The Chasing Fireflies dresses are fantastic. Highly recommend.

 

[princessmommyx3]

For what’s it’s worth, I was on the Wonder a few weeks ago and they did have a fancy Cinderella dress in BBB (I can’t remember if they called it “signature” or not) that was $350. I asked because it was stunning and I could tell it must cost a ton.

 

[leannak]

I'm leaning toward buying a dress before we go. Something that ALLUDES to a princess but not with a character's picture on it, etc. That way I can make sure she likes it and it fits before we go. But is selecting the dress some big part of the process and she'll be missing out on part of the "fairy-godmother" makeover experience?

Also, I'm worried she'll feel self-conscious dressing like a princess at age 11 on a cruise. She wanted to do it in the parks but there you are more anonymous, right? On an 11-night cruise I think she's going to be making friends and I don't want her feeling like she's being judged for wanting to be a princess for a day. I'm a little worried I'll have signed her up for this and she'll be too embarrassed to go through with it. Do you think we'll see any other 11/12 year olds doing the BBB on ship???

 

[lklgoodman]

When my dd was 3-7 yrs old, she loved to dress up in different princess costumes. By the time she turned 8 yrs old, she pretty much didn't care about it anymore. She just turned 10 yrs old, she still likes to dress up for Halloween, but that's about it. Honestly, she wouldn't be caught dead going into BBB. We've been on 4 cruises, and I can only remember seeing 1 girl who looked over 8 yrs old who looked like she had been to BBB. It is mostly 3-6/7 yr olds who you will see running around with their hair done or wearing princess dresses. However, if you think your dd would like to do it, I would sign her up for it. I know you want it to be a surprise, but since you are so concerned about it, why not just ask her? If she doesn't want to do BBB you could still just get her a nice dress that she could wear for formal night, paint her fingernails yourself in your cabin, maybe let her wear a little make-up or get her a nice new necklace/earrings to wear. Do your own special make-over for a night. You could get her a really special piece of jewelry that could have more meaning to it and she could keep for years, for the same price as the BBB dress that she would outgrow.

 

[darnheather]

My daughter did love the BBB at 11.5 for our Princess Tea. I made her a princess style dress that she was ecstatic about. The two times she's done BBB I haven't felt she missed anything by not picking out a dress. It is a very fun experience and I think you should do it as she'll be too old for it far too soon. The Disney princesses will love talking to her about her fancy hair and dress so you might try to do it on a day when you have a meet and greet scheduled.