Thinking of booking last minute cruise with toddler

[FSU Girl]

I’m thinking of booking a last minute cruise on the Wish. I’ve sailed on three other Disney cruises and would like to try the Wish, but I’ll have a toddler with me for the first time. So I’m not sure if it’ll be worth it. My last two cruises were concierge and I think this would be just a regular cruise so I don’t really remember how things work.

Is it easy to switch to early seating for dinner once on board? I’m sure it’s currently full. Our toddler is asleep before second dinner so that won’t work.

Is it easy to meet characters onboard? She loves meeting them at the parks.

Do they provide bed rails? She currently sleeps in a pack n play, but im hoping to transition her to a bed before this trip. She’s also still in diapers do they provide a diaper genie?

Anything else I’d need to know traveling with a 2 year old for the first time? I know she’ll only be able to go in the splash pad which is fine since she can’t swim anyway.

 

[dcassetta]

We sailed on the Wish last weekend. I do not know what the chances are of getting first seating dining, but if that is a priority I would go to Luna when you board. They opened for changes at 1pm and there was quite a line at that point.

Bed rails and diaper genies are available.

Lots of characters.

In the app there were several activities that specifically stated they were for toddlers. You can also visit the Kids club (there is only 1 for kids 3-12 on the Wish) during open house hours.

 

[Lillebelle]

For Small World Nursery, you need to have a reservation (it's not just a free-for-all like the older kids' clubs) and there is an hourly fee. You can book some amount of time online ahead of the cruise but they limit it (once you're on board I don't believe there's a limit).

If you think you might try leaving your toddler at the nursery, I highly recommend going to the open house with her on embarkation day so you can check out the space and meet the cast members there together. I don't think they do open houses the other days so definitely prioritize doing it day one if it's something you care about.

 

[MomOTwins]

We are on the Wish this friday. We booked about a month out because our Sept 30 cruise got cancelled due to the hurricane. Have been waitlisted for main dining but have not gotten it, so if we don’t get it we will be attempting the 1pm dining time change at luna (I plan to arrive at 12:15, as we too have a kid who would fall asleep at the table rather than stay up late. Will let you know how it goes.

 

[nikem3]

I’m thinking of booking a last minute cruise on the Wish. I’ve sailed on three other Disney cruises and would like to try the Wish, but I’ll have a toddler with me for the first time. So I’m not sure if it’ll be worth it. My last two cruises were concierge and I think this would be just a regular cruise so I don’t really remember how things work.

Is it easy to switch to early seating for dinner once on board? I’m sure it’s currently full. Our toddler is asleep before second dinner so that won’t work.

Is it easy to meet characters onboard? She loves meeting them at the parks.

Do they provide bed rails? She currently sleeps in a pack n play, but im hoping to transition her to a bed before this trip. She’s also still in diapers do they provide a diaper genie?

Anything else I’d need to know traveling with a 2 year old for the first time? I know she’ll only be able to go in the splash pad which is fine since she can’t swim anyway.

We traveled with our 16 month old in February and he had an absolute blast. We booked last minute and entered the early dinner wait list and got lucky to get early dinner. They do provide bed rails and it worked out perfectly for him. When we went, the small world nursery was closed, but he still had a lot of fun playing with the characters and playing in the splash pad (he spent hours almost every day playing here).

Also, every morning the Oceaneer club had an open house for an hour. We took advantage every morning and let him play in the Toy Story and Star Wars area which he had a blast doing.

We are going on another cruise in a few weeks and he is almost 2 now. It will be more crowded this time around, but we know he will have a blast and plan on doing similar stuff.

 

[gracefamilyvacation]

I have taken toddlers and it has always been worth it. A couple times by myself as DH could not get the time off while I could. Though a different cruise experience than without a toddler. Especially if you are on your own. But some last minute deals are worth it.

I leave Wednesday on the Dream back to back with only myself, a 10 mo old, and a 3 year old. (Trying a trip report to share). I am so excited for the time to just enjoy. No cooking, minimal cleaning, something to do just steps away.

You will have an amazing time!

The last time I took young kids who were not a baby or tween was 2012 and I took what was then 3 and 4 year old. The most challenge was when the both fell asleep at dinner and carrying them both to the cabin. Lol.

 

[Fuzzycaterpillar1]

I’m thinking of booking a last minute cruise on the Wish. I’ve sailed on three other Disney cruises and would like to try the Wish, but I’ll have a toddler with me for the first time. So I’m not sure if it’ll be worth it. My last two cruises were concierge and I think this would be just a regular cruise so I don’t really remember how things work.

Is it easy to switch to early seating for dinner once on board? I’m sure it’s currently full. Our toddler is asleep before second dinner so that won’t work.

Is it easy to meet characters onboard? She loves meeting them at the parks.

Do they provide bed rails? She currently sleeps in a pack n play, but im hoping to transition her to a bed before this trip. She’s also still in diapers do they provide a diaper genie?

Anything else I’d need to know traveling with a 2 year old for the first time? I know she’ll only be able to go in the splash pad which is fine since she can’t swim anyway.

Hi, we traveled with our then 11 month old and it was great. It should be easy to switch your dinner time if you keep checking the dcl app. We were suddenly given the option to change.

Small World Nursery does ask for reservations but they dont fill up and it's easy to do through the app. My son was there for a few hours and it's a lovely place with caring workers.

If you want a bed rail and diaper genie, you can request this through the app under Special Requests, or go to Guest Services when you first arrive on the ship.

Characters are everywhere on the ship, but according to the dcl website they pop up here the most:

All Disney Ships

Lobby Atrium

• Gangway

Disney's Oceaneer Lab

Disney's Oceaneer Club

Also, look for Character Greetings on these ships at these additional areas:

Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy

• Donald's Pool area

Disney Magic and Disney Wonder

• Deck 4, Midship

• Deck 4, Balcony Goofy's Pool Stage

 

[MomOTwins]

It should be easy to switch your dinner time if you keep checking the dcl app. We were suddenly given the option to change.

I can’t say I agree with this. I have been checking the app at least 20 times a day for 3 weeks without success. Maybe on the classic ships or less popular sailings but the wish seems to be sailing full pretty much every cruise.