First time on a Disney Cruise: what do I need to reserve before the cruise?

[disneysophie]

I am going on my first Disney cruise in January.... what must I reserve or book beforehand? Any shows, characters, experiences? Please help! I know nothing about Disney cruising.

Thanks!

 

[jdb in AZ]

I am going on my first Disney cruise in January.... what must I reserve or book beforehand? Any shows, characters, experiences? Please help! I know nothing about Disney cruising.

Thanks!

75 days before your cruise you can book shore excursions and character meet and greet. You don't need reservations for shows -- you just show up. You can also book Palo brunch or dinner. If you're on the Dream or the Fantasy you can book Remy, but Palo and Remy are up-charge adult-only restaurants.

 

[MSPeeler]

I am going on my first Disney cruise in January.... what must I reserve or book beforehand? Any shows, characters, experiences? Please help! I know nothing about Disney cruising.

Thanks!

What ship/itinerary?

On the Fantasy MerryTime 7-night Western Caribbean , I have these listed to "reserve" for myself when my On-line booking window opens for an idea:

• Character Breakfast
• Frozen Gathering Meet and Greet
• Princess Gathering Meet and Greet
• Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique for my daughter and 2 sons
• Castaway Cay Family Beach Cabana if available
• Gingerbread House (not even sure if this is something I do online or onboard, so I wrote it down, LOL)

You may also like to book Spa Activites, Palo or Remy fine dining, and Port Adventures of coarse. You can see more about those on Disney's website.

 

[dcassetta]

The above list is a good one. If you have a toddler, you might also want to reserve nursery time.

 

[disneysophie]

Dream 3 night

 

[disneysophie]

What ship/itinerary?

On the Fantasy MerryTime 7-night Western Caribbean , I have these listed to "reserve" for myself when my On-line booking window opens for an idea:

• Character Breakfast
• Frozen Gathering Meet and Greet
• Princess Gathering Meet and Greet
• Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique for my daughter and 2 sons
• Castaway Cay Family Beach Cabana if available
• Gingerbread House (not even sure if this is something I do online or onboard, so I wrote it down, LOL)

You may also like to book Spa Activites, Palo or Remy fine dining, and Port Adventures of coarse. You can see more about those on Disney's website.

What ship/itinerary?

On the Fantasy MerryTime 7-night Western Caribbean , I have these listed to "reserve" for myself when my On-line booking window opens for an idea:

• Character Breakfast
• Frozen Gathering Meet and Greet
• Princess Gathering Meet and Greet
• Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique for my daughter and 2 sons
• Castaway Cay Family Beach Cabana if available
• Gingerbread House (not even sure if this is something I do online or onboard, so I wrote it down, LOL)

You may also like to book Spa Activites, Palo or Remy fine dining, and Port Adventures of coarse. You can see more about those on Disney's website.

Dream 3 night

 

[disneysophie]

The above list is a good one. If you have a toddler, you might also want to reserve nursery time.

What is nursery time? I have a 2, 4, 7 and 11 year old

 

[MSPeeler]

What is nursery time? I have a 2, 4, 7 and 11 year old

Nursery is “babysitting” for children under 3 years old. You are required to reserve time, it isn’t like the kids club where you can just drop off anytime you want to. It also isn’t free.
https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/onboard-activities/its-a-small-world-childrens-nursery/

The older kids will have secured programming in the oceaneer club and oceaneer lab. The 11 years old can goto both Club/Lab and the Tween Club called “Edge”.
https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/onboard-activities/list/youth-clubs/

Past navigators are here for cruises like yours if you want to get an idea of what to expect: just look for one with your itinerary. Of coarse the movies and shows will most likely be different at the time of your sailing, but you’ll get familiar with the layout. (FYI: Not all cruises have navigators listed, scroll past all the dates listed and look for
“Personal Navigators
Here are some Personal Navigators from past sailings of this itinerary to aid in your cruise planning.”)
https://disneycruiselineblog.com/cruise-planning/itineraries/?ship=3

 

[MomOTwins]

Just wanted to note that there are only two character meet and greets you can reserve in advance--princesses and frozen--but that does not mean those are the only meet and greets. There are plenty of meet and greets on board with various characters and you'll get a navigator printout that shows the times and locations (or you can view it in the disney cruise phone app) but of all of those are just walk up -- no reservation.

Another thing you can reserve in advance for the kids is the princess, knight, or pirate makeover at the bibbity boppety boutique. We did the pirate makeover with our boys (we brought our own costumes and just paid for the makeup and accessory package, which is cheaper) for pirate night and it was really fun!.

There are also various adult-only activities you can reserve for yourself or husband if you plan to babysit for one another or if you are planning to put the little one in the nursery and let the kids play in the clubs. Those are all at an extra charge. Those are: dinner or brunch at the adult only restaurants; various alcoholic drink tastings/classes; or the spa.

 

[dvcdisney]

Everyone has provided a great list.

I just wanted to reiterate that once you can book activities, you will be able to see your choices (excursions, spa, Palo/Remy and events) for each day to make it a little easier to plan. Registrations for children's programs are done during Online Check In. I find the website generally very easy to navigate. Just pay close attention to cancellation deadlines for these:

For Port Adventures: reservations must be canceled at least 3 days prior to the cruise departure date. After that time all reservations are final and non-refundable.
For Spa & Salon facilities: appointments must be canceled 24 hours in advance to avoid a 50% cancellation charge.
For Babysitting: reservations must be canceled at least 4 hours in advance to avoid a 50% cancellation charge. Guests who fail to arrive for a reservation without canceling will be charged the full cost of the time reserved.