Eastern - Star Wars Cruise on Fantasy

[harrowgirl]

We are doing one of the Eastern Cruises with the Star Wars Day on the Fantasy in January. We've cruised with Disney twice before, but this is our first time on the Fantasy, and it has been 6 years since our last cruise so I know things have changed?

Which night is Star Wars Day? Is it day 2, 3 or 6? Any ideas on which night would be the pirate night?

Trying to start thinking about dining reservations at Palo. Is brunch better or dinner?

Is there somewhere that summarizes what I need to book/do before I get on the ship?
- book excursions (likely won't be doing anything - but do I need to book anything for Castaway Cay?)
- Book Palo
- Book spa if interested
- enroll kids in kids' club - do I need to pick times for that ahead of time or is it drop in?


What is the deal with character experiences? We used to just line up, but is it now a ticket based system?

 

[Sytrace]

We are doing one of the Eastern Cruises with the Star Wars Day on the Fantasy in January. We've cruised with Disney twice before, but this is our first time on the Fantasy, and it has been 6 years since our last cruise so I know things have changed?

Which night is Star Wars Day? Is it day 2, 3 or 6? Any ideas on which night would be the pirate night?

Trying to start thinking about dining reservations at Palo. Is brunch better or dinner?

Is there somewhere that summarizes what I need to book/do before I get on the ship?
- book excursions (likely won't be doing anything - but do I need to book anything for Castaway Cay?)
- Book Palo
- Book spa if interested
- enroll kids in kids' club - do I need to pick times for that ahead of time or is it drop in?


What is the deal with character experiences? We used to just line up, but is it now a ticket based system?

When your online check in date opens at 90 days out from the cruise ( as you are a Silver CC member) you will be able to do the following:
1. See what day the Star Wars day is.
2. See what day Pirate night is
3. Book Palo brunch or dinner (some people like Brunch, some like dinner) But personally we didn't care for Palo .
4. Book Excursions, onboard activities (this includes Princess meet and greets and Character breakfast, BBB, Simulator times, Spa appts etc.
5. Enroll in kids clubs if kids clubs.
6. There are some things to book ahead of time at CC (excursions, floats, bikes etc.... But there is also the ability to just get off the ship and hang out.

 

[harrowgirl]

Thank you!

I feel like such a rookie!

Our last cruise almost 6 years ago was a complete disaster (kids were a mess - only 7 months and 2.5 and we didn't get the help from family onboard we thought we'd get) so I really want this to go well!

 

[Sytrace]

I understand... just relax and start thinking about the type of excursions you want to do (if any) in the ports you will be visiting.
For example, do you like beaches? Hiking/walking, historical based, adventure...etc.
Since we live in Florida and get to the beach often, I tend to choose more historical or walking type of tours. But that is just me.

I think the kids club registration has changed a bit based on age of the child. When my kids got old enough to go to Edge and Vibe, we no longer had to pre-register them and they could sign themselves in and out.
Take that into consideration when you go to do your online check in and if you don't see it as an option...don't worry about it.
There are a couple of really great threads on here about Palo and the menu that you might want to check out to help with deciding if Brunch or Dinner would work better for you.

 

[Dug720]

If you want Remy, book that ahead as well.

 

[chunkymonkey]

I was on the Western Caribbean Star Wars Day at Sea this year in Feb. Trip Report link here and in my signature.

For us, Star Wars Day was Day 5. I'm not sure about your itinerary since it's eastern. Our "pirate night" was on night 3, but it was only characters and a show, there was no themed meal or fireworks. We did Remy brunch on our first sea day which was Day 2, we skipped Pirate night to have dinner at Remy on Day 3, and we did Palo brunch on our last sea day which was Day 6. I would not book anything for Star Wars Day as the whole day is filled with activities for both adults and kids plus all the characters roam around randomly. Unless, of course you don't like Star Wars, then I guess it wouldn't matter!

The characters that are listed in the navigator each day you just line up for. There are a few ticketed events which you can now book online I think when your window opens up. I believe these are Anna and Elsa, the Disney Jr Character Breakfast, and Princess Gathering, but not entirely sure. They introduced the online ticketing after our cruise so we still had to stop at the port adventures desk.

It was a fantastic cruise. If you like the spa definitely get a pass to the Rainforest room, especially if the kids are in the club. I spent a bit of time every day there and it was so relaxing! The couples pass for the week is cheaper than the individual pass, or you can get daily passes too (I saw these in the form for in-room gifts and amenities online so you may have to book these ahead of time).

As for the kids clubs, sorry we don't have kids so don't have much to report, but I will say the kids clubs are awesome! We went to an open house and it looked like a lot of fun! I do remember however that my brother and sister in-law signed up our niece for the kids club while at Port Canaveral when we checked in, right before boarding the ship. She got a magic band to use when in the club.

I hope you all have a great time on this cruise! I'm really curious to see what they do for next year and what they have changed from this year. I'd love to go on another SWDAS cruise but perhaps not for a few years. Please report back if you can!