Tips for an Adult Disney Cruise

[webcreatrix]

Has anyone taken a Disney cruise as adults? I am a Disney adult, my sister not so much, but we LOVE cruising and will be sailing on the Magic in 2024. Would love to hear your tips and suggestions related to the adult areas of the ship, shows, drinks, bars, entertainment!

 

[SeanSD]

We have done 4 Disney cruises as an adult couple. We like the adult pool, Cove Cafe, Rainforest Room, Palo brunch, adult areas are fun during day for trivias (kids allowed but usually older in those) and at night adult areas are adult only with trivia or music. Many people do beverage tastings also. Plenty to do as adults!!

We still do the Broadway shows, Aquaduck, (haven’t done Aquadunk yet) and deck shows with all the kids, character photos, etc.

 

[where's_my_prince]

Hi Disney adult (30) here who travels with her sister
My sister (26) has fallen in love with Disney cruising almost as much as I have! We’ve been going on 2 a year since the pandemic reopening! And we have so much together, there’s so much to do!

 

[auntlynne]

I don’t consider anything on a Disney cruise to be what people refer to as “adult,” other than for purposes of drinking. The only thing pushing beyond PG-13 is Match Your Mate (basically the Newlywed Game). Thirty minutes. If it’s PG-13, it‘s Pirates of the Caribbean or Marvel movies.

Not that I mind this - it’s what I expect from having grown up watching Sunday night Walt Disney.

 

[Karin1984]

Know that one of you will sleep on a sleeper sofa (unless you go for separate rooms or a 2 bedroom). They are comfortable, but something to keep in mind.

If you do not drink alcohol, but think the mocktails on the menu are too much aimed at children, ask a bar tender to be creative and make you something of menu. Most of them can make you the most delicious things.

This is my report from the Magic, transatlantic, last year. Great experiences in Keys.
https://www.disboards.com/threads/t...-to-new-york-18-30-sep.3897742/#post-64342220

And on the Wonder the best mocktails were found in the Cadillac Lounge.

 

[sponica]

We honeymooned on the Dream in 2014, even though it is a cruise line geared towards families, it's also really easy to not see kids.

Do the second seating.

Get the drink of the day on the first day!

I will say my husband was not a Disney person when we met, I turned him into one. He had just as much fun as I did waiting in character lines and meeting characters. I left dinner early on pirate night to make sure I met Donald.

 

[cedricandsophie]

We have been on 20 plus dcl cruises and always bring out scout disabled daughter and her best friend. We never see them during the day because they are out and about on their own so it’s like traveling as adults only. We love the cove area and spend our days there reading. We rarely get off the ship. We do movies and my husband still loves the Disney shows before dinner, me not so much. So I’ll go for a cocktail while the show is on. We like the piano bar and the late night entertainment although not a fan of silent disco…we would love a band to dance to. We do late dining. We also frequently do trivia. There is more than enough for us to do.

 

[kittylady1972]

Last October we did a 5-night out of Miami on the Dream as a 50+ adult couple, and we had 4 other adult couples join us. We had the BEST time and they are all still talking about it, despite some not even being Disney people.

We all dressed up for Pirate night and HotHS, entered the adult costume contest, spent countless hours at the adults only pool, hit the adult clubs at night for the evening entertainment, attended several trivia events and happy hours, did the silent dance party, did a few drinking events around the ship (not everybody, but a few did and enjoyed them) and created some super fun memories. This year we discussed doing another group cruise on another line, but our thoughts were if the line wasn't Disney it would be geared more for all adults and the adult areas might be more crowded. Our only complaint was that the food and the dining service were WAY below par (this was our 5th Disney cruise, but first for most of the others so we know what it CAN and SHOULD be) but we had so much fun that it was just something to laugh about later.

I highly recommend it. We are still thinking of doing one again this year, likely on Disney.

Edited to add: I see you are asking for tips...definitely don't miss the trivia if you are into that. We showed up a little early each time, grabbed food from one of the counter service areas to snack on (for free) and enjoyed it. If you do enjoy some evening cocktails, find out where the happy hours are and what times and hit those. There is also usually evening food/buffets near the adults only areas...don't miss those, some were good some were just okay. We loved all of the adult shows and entertainment, nothing was every terrible long and try to participate...usually at least one member of our group was willing to participate in stuff or try to and it made it that much more fun. The adults only area pools are great for hanging out during the day, we met some great people there. We went to the upper deck in the evening to see the fireworks. All in all, just HAVE FUN!

 

[dwg]

The have been on several cruises as an adult couple. The Magic is a good choice for adults. it didn't feel overly crowded. No problem getting lounge chairs for relaxing in the adult pool area. If I remember the Dream also had a nice adult pool area. I can not recommend the adult pool area on the Wish. It felt like it was an after thought that was squeezed onto the rear of the ship. We walked through the area to find the Quiet Cove Cafe and was very disappointed in the set up. It was very crowded and the ship was only 3/4 full.

I can also say that while I have heard others complain they wouldn't go on a cruise with a lot of kids on the ship, I never felt that having a ship full of children was a problem on the Disney Cruise.

 

[JWelch62]

My wife and I have done several DCL cruises without our kids (Now 27 and 20). We've never had an issue with kids. I joke that you don't have to see any kids if you don't want to. That's a bit of hyperbole, but you really don't have to interact with children if you spend a lot of time in the 18+ zones. Also, we really don't mind the children.

If you really want to minimize the number of children, and you have the ability, take a longer cruise during school. For example, the panama canal crossings typically have the least amount of children on board.

 

[Mitura]

On our first cruise with our kids, I was standing next to a gentleman who perhaps had too much to drink and it was only 5:00 pm. Being naïve I asked how he could be tipsy with his kids on board. And that gentleman explained, that he had no kids with him, and that he had been on numerous cruises, Disney and non-Disney. He said Disney was the best for adults since Disney knows how to separate the kids from the adults, leaving the adults to have their own great vacation.

Ever since then I did notice this. Kids have great spaces and are separate from the adults. As an adult myself, I have found tons and tons to do on the ship from Art of the Theme (ship tour), movies, shows, relaxing by the adult pool, gym, walking track, yoga at the adult beach, silent DJ at the club, adult material magicians and comedians in the clubs and just relaxing. And I don't drink. So there are numerous alcohol classes and tastings in addition to the above.

Its a great vacation. Enjoy!

 

[kiford]

We've done 12 DCL cruises as adults (number 13 is booked). Definitely second seating at dinner. We've always been seated at tables with adults-only. We've met several people that way who we keep in touch with and one couple we now routinely travel with and visit. We've done several cruises together on DCL with them.

There may be some adult-only activities on board like cooking demos (and you get a small glass of wine to pair with the tasting), trivia, wine/alcohol tastings (chocolate and liquor is fabulous), etc. Check the Navigator app for those.

Some of lounges after 9 pm (or 8 pm?) are adult-only.

Spend time at the adult-only pool area and the Cove Cafe (one of our favourite places).

Usually we find that the show on the first night is a compilation of Disney music and characters. Not that we haven't enjoyed it, but it's our least favourite of the shows. If you have late dining, you'll have the early show and it is going to have fewer children. They are definitely PG and Disney shows but they are extremely well done, well staged and enjoyable.

Some of the lounges may have more adult-oriented activities later in the evening, though DCL is by no means a late night party ship.

You don't say what your itinerary is or how long but if you take excursions through DCL, do check and see if they have adult-only excursions. We will often opt for those or for those that are of lesser interest to children.

Consider dining at Palo one night and/or for brunch (depends on your length of cruise and itinerary).

 

[tlovesdis]

My BFF and I (50+ adults) just did our first DCL cruise on the Dream end of April. We had an amazing time! We did tastings, hung out at the adult only pool and satellite falls, we played trivia, tired out some of the bars, played bingo, and ended up meeting two other adults only groups (we were seated at dinner together) that we hung out with the whole time and we have all booked a second cruise together! There is so much to do!!!

 

[Unvoiced_Apollo]

I sailed the Magic in 2021 for my first cruise. It was sadly during pandemic protocols. I chose it before the pandemic because I love Tangled. On Tangled night, they used to decorate O'Gills as the Snuggly Duckling. I don't if they brought it back or if they ever will. But if they do, that's something to look out for.

 

[john1012a]

We did adults only once and it was great. We did a lot of trivia and hit the adult entertainment after 9pm. Trying again on the Wish in July.
Our time at castaway cay was great as we finally got to Serenity Bay.

We always do second dining.
Always get the drink of the day

we bought the romance package that included the take home robes, worth it

 

[shananigans]

I’ve done an adult cruise on the Wonder. It was the most fun! Planned another for my birthday this Oct/Nov. we were concierge and didn’t do any of the shows, just enjoyed dinner and brunch at Palo, which was super fun!

We enjoyed the fun at the adult only clubs at night. We also had a fun adult only excursion in Ensenada, wine and shopping tour and that was fun.

 

[webcreatrix]

Thank you so much! We are not opposed to children. We're grammas and mimis and love kids! We're also Jeepers and will love hiding ducks!

I just wasn't sure how much Disney would have for entertainment for adults. It sounds like there is plenty and now I am just so excited! We like cocktails, trivia, bingo, piano bar and music entertainment, and will definitely also participate in some spa activities and theater shows.

We've both sailed Carnival multiple times, and while it's fun, I feel like the last few cruises I've taken, food and service has gone WAY downhill, and now that I'm in my 50's I can afford a Disney cruise. I love Disney food and am hoping for much better food and service than the cruise we just got off of in May.

We're sailing out of Galveston, April 14-20th to San Juan PR, stopping in Cozumel, Grand Cayman, and Falmouth. We are going to LOVE dressing up as pirates!!!

 

[cwis]

DW and I sail as adults only (we're DINKs). We have done cruises on other lines as well (MSC) and we didn't feel any inconvenience sailing Disney. Big bonus point for the mouse: the adult-only open decks, pools and hot tubs. I don't know any other lines that do this (tell me if you know).

And no, despite how people might look at you oddly, an “adult only” cruise doesn't mean you'll have to drink a lot and engage with dubious activities with fellow cruisers. We do drink but on the very responsible scale (like at most one or two glasses a day) and it's actually one of my biggest selling point for Disney that alcohol is paid for. This ensure you won't see “puke puddles” on the deck after sunset (if you're sailed other lines, you know).

What we like the most? the relaxed atmosphere, the trivias (don't miss them!), specialty dining (we try to do every brunch/dinner at every restaurant of the cruise on every vacation). DW likes port adventures (they cater for the american market so you're sure to have water, AC, and a nice guide that will work above and beyond in the hope for tips).

Last but not least, when thing will go wrong (and you know that every vacation something goes wrong), you'd better be on a Disney Cruise to get things fixed. Whatever the issue, Disney's cast members and crew members can be trusted for making things right!

Feel free to ask if you have more questions in mind!

 

[loislane]

How exciting!
DH and I have done 2 adults only cruises, with our 3rd DCL booked for next summer. (We're also booked on NCL for another cruise, but I'm less excited about that one. LOL)

Trivia is super fun so definitely look for that if trivia is your thing. We also did a learn to draw class that was fun. Bingo, Match your Mate (omg was it ever hysterical on our cruise. One participant had people cheering for him and chanting his name at dinner THE NEXT NIGHT!).

For meals, don't forget that one of the MDRs will be open for breakfast if you'd rather avoid the buffet at Cabanas.
Do you have a balcony? I think my favorite thing on our last cruise was starting the morning with room service coffee/pastries on the balcony.

 

[CarolynFH]

Do you have a balcony? I think my favorite thing on our last cruise was starting the morning with room service coffee/pastries on the balcony.

DH and I will be sailing in a veranda cabin on the Magic and like to have coffee (actually like to have breakfast!) before we get dressed, so I’m very interested in the coffee on the balcony idea. Can you wait until you wake up to order it, or do you put in an order the night before?