Wish Cruise

[auntlynne]

[edited to remove a rant which detracted from the positive review and reviewer.]

 

[JulieBeeRN]

Were you in a 1 bedroom? I saw a picture the other day and it looked like the bed was against the wall and you would have to climb over it. Hoping it was just a weird angle bc I haven’t seen that before.

Also, thank you for sharing your experience. We’ve only sailed once on the Dream and this is our first concierge cruise. The negative reviews were making me worried and I actually looked into switching to the Dream but it doesn’t work in our schedule.

 

[auntlynne]

So glad to hear a positive review. You also sound as though you are a rather positive person, which is refreshing.

I understand pools being uncovered - aren’t most DCL pools? But did you think there was enough shade on the upper decks? the videos make it look like shaded areas are lacking - or is it just more sunny areas available than the other ships?

Waiting for MDR - DCL told us a long time ago not to get their early and line up, as you have an assigned table. I don’t think I have ever waited more than a minute to be escorted to my table on the first night In each venue. After that, I just walk myself to the table.

I am guessing the Dole Whip you mentioned on deck was in the Concierge area? That would be the one aspect I would certainly appreciate. (Although deconstructed Caesar salad in the CL on the Dream was so good I ate it everyday).

Have a great time in the Haven.

 

[Southern Pirate]

One benefit about DCL was always that it was great for everyone, and not a totally different experience based on whether you're concierge or not like on NCL. DCL changing to be more like NCL is not an improvement. It's a negative for most guests.

Look at it this way, there are perks that yo PAY FOR when you travel concierge. These perks are available to everyone who travels concierge. They are not a secret. If these perks are what you want, then pay to travel concierge. If it is something you don't want then don't travel concierge. It is a choice. There is no need to argue over it.

 

[Southern Pirate]

I do also wonder (and this is just a thought) if part of the issue is that many people on this board are Disney Cruise vets, people who have sailed on at least a couple of Disney Cruises. Not all, but many. I think whenever there is change, it can be easy for people who have made tons of memories on old versions of something to perceive the change as "not as good as the original". PLEASE know that this is not a criticism or a slam: it's human nature. I'm just speaking anecdotally when I say that I've had several clients sail on the Wish in the last couple of weeks, all of whom were newbies or on their second Disney Cruise...and they LOVED the Wish. Like LOVED LOVED LOVED it. THIS is going to be the ship they think of when they think Disney...it's going to be THIER norm, the one they love best, the one they made memories on. Yes I know it's more complicated than that, and I agree that there are some things the Wish could improve on. But I also think views are sometimes a little skewed by nostalgia.

We have sailed many times with DCL in fact we were on the Dream just a month before the Wish. The only similarities between the two ships is they both float. We love each ship for different reasons but having a choice is always a good thing, right.

 

[Southern Pirate]

Thanks for sharing. We are sailing concierge on the Wish in October and I am curious about what time you started boarding the ship since you arrived early?

We were in the port lounge at 10:45 and boarded the ship sometime around 11:45 I think. It really didn't seem like we waited very long in the lounge. There were nice people to talk with, a lot of them first time concierge guests.

 

[Southern Pirate]

Absolutely agree with this and firmly believe this is the intentional direction Disney Experiences segment is heading under Bob Paychek. He basically said so as much himself when they released Q1 earnings earlier this year. Value guests still have the second Tuesday of September (his words) but because their physical experiences have a limited inventory (unlike Disney+) their objective is to maximize the value of that inventory. This is the justification for Genie+ LL, so guests willing to pay for it can have a more "bespoke" experience (his word, not mine).

So on Wish they increased the # of staterooms by 4 over the Dream/Fantasy but almost doubled the # of concierge rooms. Increasing the concierge clientele marginalizes the non-concierge loyalty program guests (platinum have plenty of difficulty booking anything on Wish because concierge books first). Another perk they used to offer (e.g. $45 credit towards Palo brunch (which they would accept even though it wasn't in the official list of perks) or dinner) basically goes away because they can't book it. Arriving anytime at the port for platinum still not available even though most testing is being done before the day of embarkation, so platinum needs to deal with the 30 day midnight check-in fiasco with a first time cruiser. Disney (not just DCL) just doesn't care. They firmly believe there are enough people out there to soak up the inventory if the repeat cruisers don't want to book again.

It's a conscious choice and so far the board seems to back Bob's strategy, even if Wall St. doesn't.

You do realize that this ship was started in 2016 and Bob was not even around then.

 

[Southern Pirate]

Our family has sailed DCL Concierge and NCL Haven - we are on the Wish next week. You may be correct in that the Wish Concierge lounge appears more Havenish. However, based on other cruise criteria it is comparing apples to oranges - both lines seem to have a niche Where they stand out.

And although we have more DCL cruises under our belt, the Haven experience is overall more inclusive and fas less expensive than a similar DCL concierge one.

The expense is something I did notice. Our 5 day cruise on DCL Dream cost almost as much as our 15 day cruise on NCL

 

[Southern Pirate]

I was also on this 3 day cruise. It was our second Disney cruise and the food was amazing! For dinner we showed up 5-10 minutes late and avoided the long lines.

I love steak and each MDR had a featured steak that was way above the other ships. We normally go a shore for lunch on Castaway Cay but decided to eat lunch on board so we could sample as much as we could. The 5-10 min delay sounds like a good idea.

 

[CastawayCayLover]

You do realize that this ship was started in 2016 and Bob was not even around then.

Check his christening speech. According to him, he’s been involved in this project since the beginning.

 

[Southern Pirate]

But probably not your Diet Dr Pepper Cherry?

no, but I brought sugar free cherry syrup and made my own with the diet cokes.

 

[Southern Pirate]

Were you in a 1 bedroom? I saw a picture the other day and it looked like the bed was against the wall and you would have to climb over it. Hoping it was just a weird angle bc I haven’t seen that before.

Also, thank you for sharing your experience. We’ve only sailed once on the Dream and this is our first concierge cruise. The negative reviews were making me worried and I actually looked into switching to the Dream but it doesn’t work in our schedule.

The bed does leave about a 2 foot gap between it and the wall. My wife didn't like it but by the 2nd dayshe was passing through it without a problem.

 

[Lia917]

no, but I brought sugar free cherry syrup and made my own with the diet cokes.

Brilliant! Taking note of that!!!

 

[Southern Pirate]

Check his christening speech. According to him, he’s been involved in this project since the begi

So let me get this straight, you are saying the Bob Chapek over saw the design and construction of the Wish while he was only over the Parks? If that is true what did Anthony Connelly, who was the president of DCL, do?

 

[CastawayCayLover]

So let me get this straight, you are saying the Bob Chapek over saw the design and construction of the Wish while he was only over the Parks? If that is true what did Anthony Connelly, who was the president of DCL, do?

Do you think Connelly was in Germany watching every weld? Wasn't DCL part of the Parks segment that Chapek was also part of? Do you think DCL operates in a vacuum, they do their own financing, branding, merchandising, imagineering, etc. etc.?

 

[abendler]

I was also on this 3-night sailing and agree with you! Given it being our first ever cruise and the negative reviews, I was a little nervous, but we absolutely loved it. We went in knowing that there may be some issues/kinks that needed to be worked out and didn't notice anything other than the 3 p.m. show of The Little Mermaid as OP mentioned.

The only minor disappointing thing was that I was told the Pirate-night would not be on our 3-night Wish sailing via email, but they did have it on the second night. No biggie, but I like to be prepared and now know to bring the kids' pirate gear just in case for future sailings.

 

[Kwami]

The only minor disappointing thing was that I was told the Pirate-night would not be on our 3-night Wish sailing via email, but they did have it on the second night. No biggie, but I like to be prepared and now know to bring the kids' pirate gear just in case for future sailings.

The person that responded to your email was probably thinking of the pirate night menu rather than the show and fireworks. All of the 3/4-night Bahamas cruises from Port Canaveral have a pirate night.

 

[auntlynne]

no, but I brought sugar free cherry syrup and made my own with the diet cokes.

Brilliant! Taking note of that!!!

I was thinking Brillant! too.

Castaway Day lunch onboard - one of the MDRs or CL? This might be a nice alternative to steak at Serenity Bay.

 

[Southern Pirate]

Do you think Connelly was in Germany watching every weld? Wasn't DCL part of the Parks segment that Chapek was also part of? Do you think DCL operates in a vacuum, they do their own financing, branding, merchandising, imagineering, etc. etc.?

You obviously have to much invested in blaming someone. I just want to let others know, I enjoyed my cruise and the ship was beautiful.

 

[Southern Pirate]

I was thinking Brillant! too.

Castaway Day lunch onboard - one of the MDRs or CL? This might be a nice alternative to steak at Serenity Bay.

We started around the pool area and sampling but when we hit the bbq, it was over. The pulled pork was a little dry but you could fix it with bbq sauce. The brisket was very good and the mac&cheese wasn't the soupy versions from other ships. I ended up with 3 plates.