Disney Adventure Planning Thread

[TikiThunderPirates]

Just returned from crusing on the Adventure if anyone has any questions I'd be happy to try and answer them.

 

[jceric2002]

Just returned from crusing on the Adventure if anyone has any questions I'd be happy to try and answer them.

hi, i would like to ask the ff questions please

1) how is the BACHA coffee? as compared to Starbucks / Seattle's Best.... and is the FREE COFFEE also BACHA? is it any good? I know BACHA is expensive, but im looking for strong coffee... so i'm wondering if the free coffee is strong or mid

2) Can guests sneak into the Concierge Lounge? I saw on one video that from Level 16, all you have to do is climb some stairs and you're inside the lounge. There are no doors that require Card access, am i right? And since Lounge is open 24 hours, then anyone can just sneak it at 2 am to grab free drinks? NOT SAYING I'M PLANNING TO DO THIS, i am just wondering about their security features

3) If you're going for a swim, say going to the Infinity pool, is there a changing room near the pool? Or do you just wear your swim clothes under the Bathrobe and walk from your room to the pool?

4) Are there plentiful public toilets?

5) Can you go a Bar or Resto and just sit down for a while without ordering anything? Will they at least serve water?

6) Did you ride the Pym Quantum cars? if yes, how did you find it? Pls rate it 0 to 10

Thanks very much

 

[jceric2002]

Additional questions please

How does the UNLIMITED PHOTO PACKAGE work? Does it include going to the STUDIO for family pictures?
I understand they have random Character meet & greets at the Concierge Lounge? Are photographers present in the lounge too?

Thank you

 

[TikiThunderPirates]

hi, i would like to ask the ff questions please

1) how is the BACHA coffee? as compared to Starbucks / Seattle's Best.... and is the FREE COFFEE also BACHA? is it any good? I know BACHA is expensive, but im looking for strong coffee... so i'm wondering if the free coffee is strong or mid

So in my opinion rating is Starbucks than Bachas than Seattles Best than far below is Joffery's and far far far below is Nescafe. Not super strong but good, balanced flavor. Best cruise coffee in Disney’s fleet by a mile
Bacha's pour over coffee is included in all rooms with a kettle to make it yourself. The on deck drink station included coffee is not labeled, but tasted like it was also Bacha's. Bacha's also has a paid store/cafe onboard where you can get more varieties.

3) If you're going for a swim, say going to the Infinity pool, is there a changing room near the pool? Or do you just wear your swim clothes under the Bathrobe and walk from your room to the pool?

I did not see any changing rooms near the infinity pool, or notice any others around the ship There were regular bathrooms that you could change in if you wanted. Guests were just walking around in swimsuits including in stateroom decks back and forth to the pools. Bathrobe would be an option if you want a cover up, but not the norm from what I saw.

4) Are there plentiful public toilets?

There are plenty of toilets, but they are not always in the most obvious places, and they are not in the same places on each deck/area. There are 3 types of public toilets. A private room type, a door that says for all and opens into private single stalls with sinks outside, and traditional mens/women's. In my experience what type you get varied and it was easiest to just use the first one you stumbled on near the area you were in.

5) Can you go a Bar or Resto and just sit down for a while without ordering anything? Will they at least serve water?

The quick service sit down restaurants(O'hana, Gramma's etc) are very crowded and while they may not kick you out there are signs asking you not to linger so other people can get in and eat. It's also not a very fun place to dawdle. The bars are mainly in open areas where there is additional seating so you could easily sit nearby without ordering. I didn't ever try to go into a bar and not order and sit around so I can't answer what they would do.

6) Did you ride the Pym Quantum cars? if yes, how did you find it? Pls rate it 0 to 10

Yes I rode both the Pym Cars and the Galaxy Spin. Pym cars is a fun little go around. It's not fast, tiny and shouldn't be as fun as it was. Probably a solid 4. Roller Coaster is not operational so no rides on that.

Thanks very much

 

[TikiThunderPirates]

Additional questions please

How does the UNLIMITED PHOTO PACKAGE work? Does it include going to the STUDIO for family pictures?
I understand they have random Character meet & greets at the Concierge Lounge? Are photographers present in the lounge too?

Thank you

I didn't use the unlimited photo package so I can't comment. I only saw an assistant with the charters in the Concierge Lounge and did not see any photographers in that area. Plenty of photographers posted around the ship. Most people just took selfies so they were often not taking pictures (unless they were with a character)

The ship and its operations are brand new, and operations changed often. What I experienced may not be valid in 3 months or even 2 weeks. But it's how it worked when I cruised.

 

[jceric2002]

thank you so much for your replies, they are very helpful to our planning

 

[sentimental13]

Just returned from crusing on the Adventure if anyone has any questions I'd be happy to try and answer them.

What was the your experience with reserving things online like? I’m very curious about what you had to do before arrival vs. once on the ship.

Did you find a good way to get to port that you would do again?

We’re heading there this summer, so thank you!

 

[TikiThunderPirates]

What was the your experience with reserving things online like? I’m very curious about what you had to do before arrival vs. once on the ship.

Did you find a good way to get to port that you would do again?

We’re heading there this summer, so thank you!

Reserving things online before the cruise was limited to tastings, BBB, Premium dining, and if I remember correctly the Karaoke rooms.

Once onboard in person, you could also reserve any of those things not already fully booked, as well as character meet and greets, and for one cruise you could reserve quick service dining, the hero training game in the arcade, and first night shopping opportunities. The dining, shopping and the hero reservations went away on the next cruise. They were clearly trying to see what works and what doesn't. I was also automatically assigned a show reservation to the stage show Remember, which was not checked at the door either time. All the other shows were first come first serve, and in my experience I was able to walk up just a few minutes before the shows and get "good enough for me" viewing. People were camping out 45 minutes plus before the shows for front row especially for the Duffy show.

The Zero proof tasting (Mocktail) seminar sold out very quickly and was mostly filled with concierge guests who got first crack at booking it. The roller coaster was not working, so I can't speculate on how they will handle that,

Pym's and Galaxy rides during the day time are reservations only which you can book through the app on your first day (in my case the reservations appeared in the app after the Muster drill), and then again each morning. They don't post them at a specific time, leading me to have to check the app often to see what was posted for booking. From 5-9pm each evening the rides are queue only.

The character meets they were experimenting with allowing you to book for all the meet and greets available for the entire cruise on the first day of the cruise, and they next tried the option to have people book each day for that days meet and greets first thing each morning. It seemed they were experimenting with what works. I would expect to see some changes in all the advanced booking options as they test and adjust.

Your options to port are Disney transportation, the MRT, GRAB( Uber like) and a Taxi.

Disney transportation is for guests booked at their suggested hotels.
The MRT is easy to use, but hauling suitcases while allowed and done often, would be a hassle with lots of luggage, especially because the MRT station for the cruise port is probably about 0.5 miles away. It is on a covered sidewalk, but hauling bags that long way will be sweaty and hot work.
GRAB works, but you need to have an account set up, and you will need a local phone number and/or What's App to make it work. Also on debarkation morning the area of people waiting for a GRAB was over packed and looked like it was taking a while.
I used a Taxi both from my hotel to the cruise port and again from the port to the airport. My wait both times was very quick. Even at the port in the middle of a full cruise on debarkation morning my wait was around 15 mins or less. The cost from the Cruise terminal to the airport was around 25SGD (around 20USD). They also have a special stand for large taxi cabs (mini vans). That line looked a bit longer so if you can fit in a standard taxi that is my preference. Payment was with apps, cash or CC.

When I'm hauling luggage to or from a destination my goal is to get there with the least amount of hassle for the amount of dollars spent. Taxi fit that bill perfectly. I was in the airport with my bags checked in and exploring the Jewel 45 minutes after I left the cruise terminal.

 

[wendlle]

When I'm hauling luggage to or from a destination my goal is to get there with the least amount of hassle for the amount of dollars spent. Taxi fit that bill perfectly. I was in the airport with my bags checked in and exploring the Jewel 45 minutes after I left the cruise terminal.

How did you pay? I see you can use CC or cash. I rarely carry any cash and when overseas prefer to use my CC. Was this not an issue in the taxi? I know sometimes taxi's prefer cash and I'd rather not have it be awkward if I don't have any on hand.

 

[TikiThunderPirates]

How did you pay? I see you can use CC or cash. I rarely carry any cash and when overseas prefer to use my CC. Was this not an issue in the taxi? I know sometimes taxi's prefer cash and I'd rather not have it be awkward if I don't have any on hand.

I had cash on me, just in case, but I took multiple taxi rides during my time in Singapore and every single time I was able to pay with a CC with no issues.

 

[JAM9842]

Just returned from crusing on the Adventure if anyone has any questions I'd be happy to try and answer them.

Please tell us everything!

 

[TikiThunderPirates]

Please tell us everything!

It's a big ship; everything would take quite a while! Is there anything specific you're interested in?

 

[sentimental13]

It's a big ship; everything would take quite a while! Is there anything specific you're interested in?

Which shows filled up fast?

Which shows are "can't miss" experiences?

What one thing do you wish you had done differently?

What one thing are you delighted you did? Or a happy accident (something you didn't plan) that resulted in fun and joy?

 

[TikiThunderPirates]

Those are great questions!

Which shows filled up fast?

Top show to fill up fast was Duffy and Friends. Really though it's a show in an open garden area with plenty of standing room so you can walk up right before it starts and get an ok view. But if you want front row, 45 minutes before hand. All the theater shows had open seats in the balcony during my show times (you are assigned based on your dinner seating just like other DCL cruises) and you could walk up 10 minutes before hand and get a pretty good seat.

Moana fills up quickly simply because there aren't many seats in the way finders bay, but there are multiple shows. You could easily stand in the back and watch, but it's all in full sun so it's a blazing 15 minutes.

The fireworks is challenging because there is simply not enough deck space in the center of the ship, which is the prime spot to watch the fireworks, to hold all the passengers onboard. But all the passengers onboard want to attend!
Basically every other show onboard the ship has multiple showtimes, the fireworks happen once, and it's crowded. 15 minutes ahead of time can get you standing room on the edges. It's a sky show on the starboard side so as long as you can see the sky unobstructed midship you'll see well enough. People were camping out pretty far ahead to watch from the deck seating.

Which shows are "can't miss" experiences?

Can't miss. Well the Remember Show in the theater. This is the best show I've see on DCL. One of the best shows I've seen if it was located in a Disney Park. Avengers Assemble night time show on Deck 10 in the Imagination Garden.
It seems silly, but anything that interests you is a can't miss. Plenty of things I'll happily miss that many people have to attend. But I think those two shows are simply the big spectaculars onboard.

What one thing do you wish you had done differently?

I had to make some changes to some pre-booked experiences, and I wish I had just canceled sooner and not wasted my time trying to get answers/solutions from guest services. They were not fully prepared, not fully up to speed on everything on the ship, and did not have the knowledge or connections to even find out the correct answers.
My time onboard was valuable and I wish I had just canceled and moved on instead of trying to solve the issue.

What one thing are you delighted you did? Or a happy accident (something you didn't plan) that resulted in fun and joy?

Delighted: Hero Training Academy. I did this on the recommendation of someone else on the cruise. I assumed it was an inflatable obstacle course when I read its description in the app and never looked twice at it. It's actually a really easy group interactive video game you play on the floor. It's easy to understand, fun to play, no video game skill needed. Had a blast and did it a second time. I would have missed this if not for someone else talking it up on the cruise.
Happy accident was The Selfies with Duffy. The navigator app will list something like Selfies with Duffy or Princesses etc. The description says that the assigned characters will be on stage and you can come get a selfie with them.
Did no appeal to me so I never planned to go. I happened to be passing through the Imagination Garden one time when these were going on, and I snapped a picture. It's a great time to get photos of a bunch of characters together without a wait! It seemed silly but what a great idea!