Potential First Disney Cruise 2024

[nlenguyen]

Hello!
I have never done a Disney Cruise, only done one cruise before on Carnival. Thinking of doing a booking in 2024. For first time Disney Cruiser what would you recommend being the best itinerary? We are located in Arizona but often go to Florida and would not mind traveling there. Probably would go around February-March time frame.

 

[Youneek1]

Hello!
I have never done a Disney Cruise, only done one cruise before on Carnival. Thinking of doing a booking in 2024. For first time Disney Cruiser what would you recommend being the best itinerary? We are located in Arizona but often go to Florida and would not mind traveling there. Probably would go around February-March time frame.

Hello from a fellow Arizonan. We have cruised 5 times on Disney, both out of Port Canaveral and San Diego. I will say without a doubt, I prefer sailing from Florida if choosing between FL and CA. Since we don't have water or beaches here, that tends to be our big draw and I love Castway Cay. I enjoy Eastern Caribbean more than Western Caribbean, but honestly for us as long as we go to CC, then we are happy. We tend to have spring break in early to mid March, and the water can be kind of cold still for us that time of year, but it's no worse than getting into the unheated pools in the Valley at the end of April - if that helps. Some people recommend a shorter first cruise, but we have found that if it is not at least 5 days, it's not really worth it for us.

 

[Marc D]

For us, like PP, the quintessential DCL cruise sails from PC and includes a stop at CC. The other stops are ‘nice to have’ but not required. That being said, our favorite other DCL stop is Grand Cayman. It is a tender port, which is rare, and it offers the best snorkeling port adventures.

 

[Clarkson U]

I would recommend a 7 night Western Caribbean sailing out of Port Canaveral and sailing on the Fantasy. That should get you on a good ship, with stops at Castaway, Grand Cayman, Cozumel and Jamaica. It’s the right mix of port days and sea days in my own opinion and flying into Orlando usually brings plenty of good flight options for most people. Enjoy and good luck with your decision .

 

[Cheburashka]

Choose a cruise that stops at Castaway Cay.

 

[nlenguyen]

For us, like PP, the quintessential DCL cruise sails from PC and includes a stop at CC. The other stops are ‘nice to have’ but not required. That being said, our favorite other DCL stop is Grand Cayman. It is a tender port, which is rare, and it offers the best snorkeling port adventures.

That is what I would love to do. I really want to go on the dream or fantasy

 

[nlenguyen]

Is the food on CC included on the cruise?

 

[Marc D]

Is the food on CC included on the cruise?

Yes, outside of alcoholic beverages. Lunch is a BBQ buffet.

 

[MomOTwins]

I would choose one of the 4 or 5-night cruises on the Dream. A full week is too long/expensive and too many sea days if you haven’t done it before and might not like it (yes I know several people who hated Disney cruise—for obvious reasons those people don’t post here but it does happen). The Dream stops at Castaway Cay and is a good ship in terms of entertainment and activities.

 

[disneyfaninaz]

Fellow Arizonan here! We did our first cruise on the Disney Magic out of Florida in March way back when . The weather was perfect!

We have since sailed with Disney out of many different ports.

Our first cruise was a 7 night Western Caribbean with a stop at Castaway Cay. It was a great way to get our "feet wet" with cruising. We felt a 3 or 4 night would be too short to really get the hang of it. We are glad we started off doing 7 nights. If you can find an itinerary with a stop at Castaway Cay, that would be an ideal first cruise.

 

[lklgoodman]

We've done 8 cruises, all have been 7 night cruises. We like the 7 night cruises because they have activities that are not offered on the shorter cruises. If you plan on booking shore excursions through Disney, go to their website to see what they offer at the different ports for any cruises you are considering. The water in the Caribbean will be warmer than the water in the Bahamas during that time of year.