Perhaps only Disney could pull off something like this.
The entertainment giant Monday announced it had arranged exclusive access to the famed Catherine Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia to hold a series of Royal Balls for passengers on upcoming
Disney Cruise Line voyages.
And, yes, Cinderella will be on hand.
The unusual private functions at the historic summer residence of Russia's imperial family, which will take place in the evenings after the palace closes to tourists, will include live musicians and "royal courtiers" in period costumes and powdered wigs who will lead passengers in song and dance, the company says.
Some cruise lines have offered special events at the palace before, but never one quite like this. Disney princesses such as Cinderella, Snow White and Belle will arrive at the palace by horse-drawn carriages to lead the for-a-charge event, which will take place in the palace's gilded Grand Ballroom.
The exclusive-to-Disney offering is just one of several unusual family-friendly shore excursions the line announced Monday as it prepares to expand its sailings in Europe.
During port calls in Tunis (a stop on Disney's new Mediterranean cruises), the line will offer families the option of taking part in a "treasure hunt" that requires stops at several sites to find clues. Passengers will visit a traditional Tunisian house, learn about the origin of the area from a local storyteller, receive a hand-painted henna tattoo, bargain with local merchants for a keepsake water vessel, sip freshly prepared mint tea and get their name written in Arabic as a souvenir, the line says.
On other excursions, in another unusual new twist, Disney will have youth counselors from the ship on hand to direct special activities for children.
During a tour of Florence, for example, after seeing the city highlights, children break off with ship counselors to spend an hour creating a traditional Italian fresco painting while their parents spend more time touring the historic Palazzo Vecchio.
Disney has not yet released prices for the new excursions.
I read it on my iTouch) after it closes to the general public. All the Princesses will be there (my daughter will LOVE this!!) and they will have period costumes doing "song & dance". Who wants to start placing bets on the price per person? 
