Disney Cruise FAQ's

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Disneyfalcon

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I have another question about tips. I tried searching, but was not successful!

We booked a brunch at Palo and I'm not sure how to handle the tip for the server(s) there since they won't be our regular dinner servers. Do we tip at the end of the meal or do we add the tip to the rest at the end of the cruise? I am sure we'll be adding to the automatic tips at the end of the week!

Should you wish to tip your Palo server, you do so at the end of the meal.

MichWolv is correct. They will bring you a receipt to sign at the end of your meal acknowledging the Palo charge. You can add a tip then. :)
 

VAMickeyFan

New Member
What do you all think of the Fantasy for a couple with no kids? We are obviously big Disney fans, but we want to have a good, fun time overall. Are the bars and clubs for adults actually used at night? How popular are the adult only places? I read somewhere that there may be a casino coming in...which ship?
 

ChuckElias

Well-Known Member
What do you all think of the Fantasy for a couple with no kids?
I've never done it, but we almost always meet at least one couple who are there without kids. I would do it in a heartbeat, but I'm kind of addicted, so my opinion might not be exactly objective.

We are obviously big Disney fans, but we want to have a good, fun time overall. Are the bars and clubs for adults actually used at night? How popular are the adult only places?
The bars and clubs are definitely used at night. I've spent a lot of time in the sports bars (Diversions/O'Gills) and they get a lot of traffic in the evenings. On the newer ships, the larger club spaces are used for the "adults only" versions of the juggler/comedian/ventriloquist, etc performances. There's also dancing in at least one club every night, usually with a band, but sometimes with a DJ. And there's also at least one bar with a quieter setting, maybe piano music or just quiet music playing in the background. (I really like Sessions/Cadillac Lounge on the classic ships. Well, it's not Sessions anymore, but hopefully, you still understand the point.)

The point is that there is a lot of night life up to about midnight or 1 am most nights.

I read somewhere that there may be a casino coming in...which ship?
Jeez, I hope not. I'd be really surprised if they added a casino. They make a really big point about being a family cruise line and NOT having a casino. I can't imagine that they'd add one. Plus with no new ships on the horizon, they would have to add one to an existing ship in a dry-dock. I guess that's do-able, but they'd have to take the space from somewhere, and I don't know where that would be. Please no casino!!
 
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VAMickeyFan

New Member
So there is a comedian/comedy act on board? I figured there would be great Disney inspired performances, but thats good to hear. Thats what we enjoyed the most on Carnival.
 

Disneyfalcon

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
So there is a comedian/comedy act on board? I figured there would be great Disney inspired performances, but thats good to hear. Thats what we enjoyed the most on Carnival.

There are several variety acts on longer cruises. They usually do a family show and adult show, and sometimes a show in the main theater as well. We have enjoyed 90% of them. There were a few duds over the years, but not many!
 

Andrew C

You know what's funny?
What do you all think of the Fantasy for a couple with no kids? We are obviously big Disney fans, but we want to have a good, fun time overall. Are the bars and clubs for adults actually used at night? How popular are the adult only places? I read somewhere that there may be a casino coming in...which ship?

I was on the Fantasy a couple of years ago with no kids. Probably the most utilized adult area/club at night from what I can remember was The Tube, which is their dance/night club. It was pretty cool. I remember they also did a few events there where you get on stage and answer questions with a team, etc. However, we probably spent most of our time at night either at La Piazza or Skyline. La Piazza was usually pretty slow (which we liked sometimes) but Skyline was usually busy. Also night time trivia events at O'Gill's Pub.

It would have been hard for us to NOT have a good time!
 

Tom

Beta Return
What do you all think of the Fantasy for a couple with no kids? We are obviously big Disney fans, but we want to have a good, fun time overall. Are the bars and clubs for adults actually used at night? How popular are the adult only places? I read somewhere that there may be a casino coming in...which ship?

We sailed on the Fantasy in 2012 and the Dream about a month ago - and it's just my wife and I. We're not dancers/clubbers/drinkers and we still had a great time on both ships.
 

englanddg

One Little Spark...
What do you all think of the Fantasy for a couple with no kids? We are obviously big Disney fans, but we want to have a good, fun time overall. Are the bars and clubs for adults actually used at night? How popular are the adult only places? I read somewhere that there may be a casino coming in...which ship?
Yes, the adult clubs are used at night, but I don't recall them ever being packed out (I walked by them a lot due to staying in the aft of the ship). The irish pub on the Fantasy ran various activities like Video Game contests (they'd plug up an xbox and do various things, from golf to guitar hero).

I doubt there will ever be a casino on the Disney boats.
 

fltink

Active Member
My husband and I did 12 DCL trips without kids. (We only recently had additions to our family!) The thing that you have to remember is that Disney is PHENOMENAL at entertaining ALL ages. If you enjoy going to the parks as adults, you'll enjoy the ships as adults tenfold! Just don't go expecting a typical "party-ship" environment. No casino, no massive amounts of booze and drunken Guests, no wildly inappropriate stage acts. (All of this is a GOOD thing, if you ask me!) Granted, in the clubs at night, the adult-only cabaret style shows can get a touch risqué, but all entertainers seem to know where the line is onboard DCL.

One really nice change that they made to the newer ships is that the clubs are actually a little smaller and more compact. Seems like it would be a negative, but it's not. See, I don't know about all of you, but one thing I always disliked about Wavebands and Rockin' Bar D is that when they aren't super busy, (typically any time after 11pm), the dance floor dwindles down to just a few people. Because the clubs are so large, it makes them seem totally empty and dull. The clubs on the Fantasy and Dream tend to look pretty full, even with only a few parties inside, so they are more welcoming and exciting.

Also, since the Dream and Fantasy were built after Disney was able to look at what people liked and disliked about the Magic and Wonder, the newer ships have a lot of great enhancements for the adult only areas. The spas are gorgeous, there's more tucked away, private spots to lounge, both indoors and out, and the club areas are great! Not to mention, Remy, which is not available on the older ships.

Don't get me wrong..... I LOVE the Magic and Wonder. In fact, I may even go so far as to say that The Magic is my favorite ship! But I would say that for a couple, don't hesitate to book the Fantasy! She's got plenty to offer! ENJOY!
 
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VAMickeyFan

New Member
Thanks for your input everyone...I may be taking the plunge today and booking early! Do any of you ever get concerned cruising the Atlantic during peak hurricane season (Aug-Sept?) The nature of my job really only allows me to cruise during those months, I guess maybe October too but by then it'll be too cold to enjoy properly.
 

Disneyfalcon

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Thanks for your input everyone...I may be taking the plunge today and booking early! Do any of you ever get concerned cruising the Atlantic during peak hurricane season (Aug-Sept?) The nature of my job really only allows me to cruise during those months, I guess maybe October too but by then it'll be too cold to enjoy properly.

You're taking a risk, but the captains are very good at avoiding hurricanes. I've cruises in August and September multiple times and we've always had great cruises. Once we were surrounded by one hurricane and two tropical storms and our itinerary changed a couple of times, but we still made it everywhere and had great weather most of the time. There have been exceptions where the storms did seriously affect cruises (like hurricane Sandy), but those are rare.

Get insurance, be prepared for the worst, but odds are better that you'll be great. :)
 

Ralphlaw

Well-Known Member
There are several variety acts on longer cruises. They usually do a family show and adult show, and sometimes a show in the main theater as well. We have enjoyed 90% of them. There were a few duds over the years, but not many!

The other acts have always been good, and still quite clean even for the "adult" show. John Charles is hilarious, and talented. He plays guitar, sings, and takes requests. We've seen him on 3 cruises, and actually had breakfast with him once. One of our favorites. Buckets & Boards is wonderful as well. And several others I can't recall the names of right now. They're all worth seeing.

I don't think Disney cruises are the best places for singles, but I would guess that if you meet Mr. or Ms. Wonderful on a Disney cruise, your life will be pretty good thereafter. Definitely the creepiness factor is essentially gone on a Disney Cruise. No topless top decks. No chain smoking gamblers in a casino. No 50ish sleazemen hitting on your teenage daughter.
 

Disneyfalcon

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
The other acts have always been good, and still quite clean even for the "adult" show. John Charles is hilarious, and talented. He plays guitar, sings, and takes requests. We've seen him on 3 cruises, and actually had breakfast with him once. One of our favorites. Buckets & Boards is wonderful as well. And several others I can't recall the names of right now. They're all worth seeing.

I don't think Disney cruises are the best places for singles, but I would guess that if you meet Mr. or Ms. Wonderful on a Disney cruise, your life will be pretty good thereafter. Definitely the creepiness factor is essentially gone on a Disney Cruise. No topless top decks. No chain smoking gamblers in a casino. No 50ish sleazemen hitting on your teenage daughter.

Oh I do like John Charles! We've seen him a few times! :)
 

fltink

Active Member
Thanks for your input everyone...I may be taking the plunge today and booking early! Do any of you ever get concerned cruising the Atlantic during peak hurricane season (Aug-Sept?) The nature of my job really only allows me to cruise during those months, I guess maybe October too but by then it'll be too cold to enjoy properly.

We almost always cruise in September. We love it! Pricing is usually better since it's not as popular of a month for families, and it's hurricane season. The weather is still warm, if not, HOT and we rarely have run into rain. The ships have fantastic weather technology and are very good at navigating through storms. In fact, I have a picture that I took on one September cruise. There were dark clouds and obvious rainfall on both the port and the starboard side of the ship in the distance, yet we were sailing under sunny skies and were completely dry. It was pretty funny!

The only thing I would advise about cruising in hurricane season is don't do it if you really have your heart set on your ports of call. If there is unavoidable weather near one of your ports that poses a threat, it is possible that you may have to either have an extra day at sea, or, on rare occasion, go to an alternate port. No problem for my family, of course, since we'd be fine with boarding the ship and never stepping off of it for a solid week! :eek:) But it might not work for everyone.
 

VAMickeyFan

New Member
And of course, if they HAVE to cancel a cruise, we get refunded, right?

I hate buying travel insurance. I don't think I'll need it as we fly from DC to ORL, so hurricane weather shouldnt cancel a flight and we'd be getting in early anyway. If the cruise is cancelled and they give us a refund, for me I don't see the reason to buy insurance.

I kind of do have my heart set on Sint Maarten actually. Just the August/Sept cruises are more in line with what I would want to pay.
 

DisneyJoe

Well-Known Member
And of course, if they HAVE to cancel a cruise, we get refunded, right?

It would be EXTREMELY rare for them to cancel a cruise due to weather since they can avoid most storms.

Insurance for a cruise is highly recommended because you are traveling internationally - a medical evacuation alone from an island or the ship itself can run you thousands of dollars.
 

djpoore94

Well-Known Member
We sail in 9 days so this will hopefully be my last question!

I was looking over the suggested packing list on my "Prearrival Guide" and it says that medications must be in the original container. Between prescriptions and supplements for me and DH that would be about 15 medication bottle, some of them huge Costco size bottles. Do they really all need to stay in the original containers? We usually just fill our day-at-a-time pill cases when we travel.
 

Brian & Jill

Well-Known Member
We sail in 9 days so this will hopefully be my last question!

I was looking over the suggested packing list on my "Prearrival Guide" and it says that medications must be in the original container. Between prescriptions and supplements for me and DH that would be about 15 medication bottle, some of them huge Costco size bottles. Do they really all need to stay in the original containers? We usually just fill our day-at-a-time pill cases when we travel.
First thing first we are on the same cruise. Second we put our meds in day-at-a-time pill case on our other DCL cruises along with our Tylenol that is in a travel container not the bottle. IMO you should be fine.;)
 

Maggie Mae

Active Member
Hi all! I am going to assume there are no embroidery machines on board to personalize mickey ears, however, are there cruise specific ears available on board? I figured there would be pirate ears, but are there any with a captains hat or the ship on it? TIA
 
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