photoj
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Jun 5, 2005
- Messages
- 35
We just got back from our first Disney cruise and thought I'd share my thoughts as a newbie. I was worried after reading some early reviews of the Dream, but we were very happy our vacation. We took our 16-month-old son and would highly recommend cruising with a baby.
Highlights
- the ship really is beautiful. We loved just walking around and checking out all the different areas. We had a balcony room and it was lovely. The bed was so comfy and the double bathrooms are great.
- the kids club are truly amazing. We didn't use the nursery, but frequently went to the Oceaneers' Club daily with our son. He LOVED Andy's room. The kids were having a blast and I can't wait to go back when our son is older. I would not hesitate to leave my son there. An FYI for parents who want to use the nursery. We asked if we could go in and stay with our son for a bit, but they didn't allow that because it upsets the other kids. I'm sure that's not an issue for most folks, but our guy is a little sensitive so we opted not to use their service.
- the staff were so helpful and friendly. A great example of service: on Castaway Cay I asked a CM about whether they had milk for my son. He explained they don't have milk on the island, however he would see if he could help. They had milk sent from the ship just for us! Amazing. Also my husband got a bad wood sliver in his foot walking on the dock. The staff were so helpful and gave us a ride to first aid. Later several staff stopped to ask us how he was doing and apologized repeatedly. We also loved how staff were constantly interacting with our son, they seemed to really like kids.
- there were so many opportunities to interact with characters. Sometimes the lines were long, but other times we had them almost to ourselves. For example the character dance was packed and a little nutty, but when we went to morning wake-up at the D Lounge it was only us and one other family. In general we found the morning the best time to enjoy the ship without crowds.
- the interactive pictures are really cool. Our son asked to see them over and over. We also saw lots of families enjoying the detective agency game, which seemed like a lot of fun.
- the one show we saw, Villians, was amazing. I wish we could have attended more, but we had to work around my son's schedule. I do wish Disney offered in-room babysitting as we would have felt more comfortable putting our son to bed and then going out. But we just took turns going out, my husband went to the movies one night and I had a massage the next.
- I loved the free pop. Our last cruise we had to pay and it was felt like a money grab. The booze prices were also very reasonable on board.
A few complaints
- our room cleaning was a bit spotty. The carpet was dirty the day we boarded and there was hair in the tub. The next day a cleaning sponge was left in our sink. The next day it was a bottle of cleaning fluid. Dirty plates were left and two used glasses weren't replaced the entire trip.
- I wish there were more early dinner options. Our son was so tired by the end of the day, so we only made it to two of four dinners. I was very disappointed to miss the gourmet dinners. Cabanas didn't open until 6:30, which meant we could only grab some fries and burgers by the pool if my son need to eat earlier. It would have been nice if there was some fresh fruit or yogurt available to grab quickly. We did room service one night, but it took about 45 minutes, which is a long time for a little person.
- I was worried the boat would seem crowded...and it really did on the sea day. The pool deck was way too busy for our tastes. The pools were packed with kids. And the kids clubs were just as nutty. I didn't feel comfortable letting my son run around the atrium or pool deck on the sea day because it was just way too busy. I think next time we will look at going on one of the smaller boats.
- disembarkation was chaotic and the lines were very long. We were very grateful to discover a shorter line for non-US citizens. I felt bad for parents dealing with tired, bored children in that mess.
I read some people were upset by the delay at Nassau because of the fire. I think the captain totally made the right call. In fact I'm surprised people were let off at all as the fire raged for hours. We spent the day on our balcony watching it burn.
Overall we had an amazing trip and would sail with Disney again without question. I'm happy to answer any questions.
Highlights
- the ship really is beautiful. We loved just walking around and checking out all the different areas. We had a balcony room and it was lovely. The bed was so comfy and the double bathrooms are great.
- the kids club are truly amazing. We didn't use the nursery, but frequently went to the Oceaneers' Club daily with our son. He LOVED Andy's room. The kids were having a blast and I can't wait to go back when our son is older. I would not hesitate to leave my son there. An FYI for parents who want to use the nursery. We asked if we could go in and stay with our son for a bit, but they didn't allow that because it upsets the other kids. I'm sure that's not an issue for most folks, but our guy is a little sensitive so we opted not to use their service.
- the staff were so helpful and friendly. A great example of service: on Castaway Cay I asked a CM about whether they had milk for my son. He explained they don't have milk on the island, however he would see if he could help. They had milk sent from the ship just for us! Amazing. Also my husband got a bad wood sliver in his foot walking on the dock. The staff were so helpful and gave us a ride to first aid. Later several staff stopped to ask us how he was doing and apologized repeatedly. We also loved how staff were constantly interacting with our son, they seemed to really like kids.
- there were so many opportunities to interact with characters. Sometimes the lines were long, but other times we had them almost to ourselves. For example the character dance was packed and a little nutty, but when we went to morning wake-up at the D Lounge it was only us and one other family. In general we found the morning the best time to enjoy the ship without crowds.
- the interactive pictures are really cool. Our son asked to see them over and over. We also saw lots of families enjoying the detective agency game, which seemed like a lot of fun.
- the one show we saw, Villians, was amazing. I wish we could have attended more, but we had to work around my son's schedule. I do wish Disney offered in-room babysitting as we would have felt more comfortable putting our son to bed and then going out. But we just took turns going out, my husband went to the movies one night and I had a massage the next.
- I loved the free pop. Our last cruise we had to pay and it was felt like a money grab. The booze prices were also very reasonable on board.
A few complaints
- our room cleaning was a bit spotty. The carpet was dirty the day we boarded and there was hair in the tub. The next day a cleaning sponge was left in our sink. The next day it was a bottle of cleaning fluid. Dirty plates were left and two used glasses weren't replaced the entire trip.
- I wish there were more early dinner options. Our son was so tired by the end of the day, so we only made it to two of four dinners. I was very disappointed to miss the gourmet dinners. Cabanas didn't open until 6:30, which meant we could only grab some fries and burgers by the pool if my son need to eat earlier. It would have been nice if there was some fresh fruit or yogurt available to grab quickly. We did room service one night, but it took about 45 minutes, which is a long time for a little person.
- I was worried the boat would seem crowded...and it really did on the sea day. The pool deck was way too busy for our tastes. The pools were packed with kids. And the kids clubs were just as nutty. I didn't feel comfortable letting my son run around the atrium or pool deck on the sea day because it was just way too busy. I think next time we will look at going on one of the smaller boats.
- disembarkation was chaotic and the lines were very long. We were very grateful to discover a shorter line for non-US citizens. I felt bad for parents dealing with tired, bored children in that mess.
I read some people were upset by the delay at Nassau because of the fire. I think the captain totally made the right call. In fact I'm surprised people were let off at all as the fire raged for hours. We spent the day on our balcony watching it burn.
Overall we had an amazing trip and would sail with Disney again without question. I'm happy to answer any questions.
