Lighthouse Point to welcome guests in Summer 2024

[DisneyHead123]

There doesn’t need to be the beat-you-over-the-head level of theming seen on the Wish. I’m on a Disney cruise - I don’t need to be reminded of it every other step.

I’ve only seen the Wish via video so it’s difficult to tell how much theming there is. From what I can see, I like the level of theming but it’s very princess heavy, so those not into that look probably aren’t going to like it. I like it for one ship, so long as the others have different themes, which so far they will.

 

[HauntedPirate]

I’ve only seen the Wish via video so it’s difficult to tell how much theming there is. From what I can see, I like the level of theming but it’s very princess heavy, so those not into that look probably aren’t going to like it. I like it for one ship, so long as the others have different themes, which so far they will.

Theming on the Wish is very heavy-handed. It wasn’t my cup of tea. And the removal of Jimmy Buffett from the background music rotation and replaced by generic/instrumental Disney songs is unforgivable in my book.

 

[DisneyHead123]

Theming on the Wish is very heavy-handed. It wasn’t my cup of tea. And the removal of Jimmy Buffett from the background music rotation and replaced by generic/instrumental Disney songs is unforgivable in my book.

If I had to choose between too much theming and too little, my preference would be too much, so I do prefer the look of the Wish to the minimalistic neutral palette they favor in other places. But I understand others feel differently. I wonder if their audience is split down the middle on this, hence the different styles.

 

[HauntedPirate]

If I had to choose between too much theming and too little, my preference would be too much, so I do prefer the look of the Wish to the minimalistic neutral palette they favor in other places. But I understand others feel differently. I wonder if their audience is split down the middle on this, hence the different styles.

I'd say most of the Wish's audience has never sailed on a Disney cruise ship before and is wowed by it all. Like the parks, those of us with history know a rotten apple when we see it. Everything $lappie touched during his time as P&R head and CEO had one common theme - They are as subtle as a jackhammer. You are hit over the head and bombarded with "theme" every second, at every turn. Because there could be a chance that you've forgotten in the last 3 seconds.

 

[DisneyHead123]

I'd say most of the Wish's audience has never sailed on a Disney cruise ship before and is wowed by it all. Like the parks, those of us with history know a rotten apple when we see it. Everything $lappie touched during his time as P&R head and CEO had one common theme - They are as subtle as a jackhammer. You are hit over the head and bombarded with "theme" every second, at every turn. Because there could be a chance that you've forgotten in the last 3 seconds.

I think part of it is “IP” vs. “theme”. Personally I don’t mind the IP but I think if you counted up the themed elements in a place like Port Orleans Riverside and compared it to comparable parts of the Wish, they’re probably similar. It’s just that one Frozen painting in an otherwise plain room is really going to pop out at you, while several elements themed to the New Orleans backwoods blend more naturally.

Seems like they’re trying to compromise with things like the Fantasia suite and might end up pleasing no one. (What do I know though, maybe there’s a market for it.) While I know the official term is “animated films”, they’re still kind of… you know… cartoons. And there’s a reason the word “cartoony” exists as an adjective, because cartoons by their very nature are not typically subtle and refined. (I remember those arty, wispy watercolor cartoons people sometimes made when I was young and I pretty much hated them. I’m looking at you, The Snowman. Kids usually need sharper visual contrasts.)

 

[DCLcruiser]

There doesn’t need to be the beat-you-over-the-head level of theming seen on the Wish. I’m on a Disney cruise - I don’t need to be reminded of it every other step.

Yes. One of the benefits of the original ships was that they took an art-deco, pinnacle of cruising, style and added a dash of Disney. They felt upscale and familar at the same time.

 

[Haymarket]

Concept art, reality.

They'll probably add shade to the pier. Like this.

 

[Indy_UK]

Im not likely to do a Royal Cruise but Perfect Day does looks like a bunch of fun.

 

[Master Yoda]

Just got back from Lighthouse. My brief opinion is below.

Flys are still an issue that needs to be solved. They don't appear to be as bad as the day one videos but they are still an issue.

The menu is a little lacking. I did not go hungry, but there was nothing there that really wowed me.

The 1/2 mile pier is kind of a non issue at is really the only walking you have to do on the island. The golf carts for those that need them work well. I do however think they need to at minimum mark off a cart only lane on the pier. I saw half a dozen completely oblivious people (kids and adults) walk right in front of moving carts in a span of about 15 minutes.

The logistics of the island are very well done at least at the adult only end, but the rest of the island appears to be set up the same way. The bar and restaurants are 100' from the beach. You can go from water to bar in 120 seconds. The walking paths are great but a little more directional signage would be incredibly helpful.

The beach is better that Castaway. The sand is finer and the chairs are closer to the water. I was a little worried about snorkeling since there is no dedicated lagoon like at Castaway. Those fears were unfounded. The island is surrounded by a reef. The sand is fairly devoid of sea life, but the reef is loaded with it.

The "look" of the island is just going to take time for the planted vegetation to take and fill in

 

[peter11435]

Just got back from Lighthouse. My brief opinion is below.

Flys are still an issue that needs to be solved. They don't appear to be as bad as the day one videos but they are still an issue.

The menu is a little lacking. I did not go hungry, but there was nothing there that really wowed me.

The 1/2 mile pier is kind of a non issue at is really the only walking you have to do on the island. The golf carts for those that need them work well. I do however think they need to at minimum mark off a cart only lane on the pier. I saw half a dozen completely oblivious people (kids and adults) walk right in front of moving carts in a span of about 15 minutes.

The logistics of the island are very well done at least at the adult only end, but the rest of the island appears to be set up the same way. The bar and restaurants are 100' from the beach. You can go from water to bar in 120 seconds. The walking paths are great but a little more directional signage would be incredibly helpful.

The beach is better that Castaway. The sand is finer and the chairs are closer to the water. I was a little worried about snorkeling since there is no dedicated lagoon like at Castaway. Those fears were unfounded. The island is surrounded by a reef. The sand is fairly devoid of sea life, but the reef is loaded with it.

The "look" of the island is just going to take time for the planted vegetation to take and fill in

The issue seems to fluctuate sailing to sailing and based on location. I’m curious where you dined there. I visited about a week ago and only saw one fly but I know others on my sailing had different experiences.

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

The walking paths are great but a little more directional signage would be incredibly helpful.

Are all the walking trails and bike paths open now? Wandering/biking around the resort is one of our favorite things to do at Castaway.

We go in January and I wasn’t expecting anything other than the lighthouse trail to be open, if they have the biking trails open that would be a huge bonus for us.

 

[Master Yoda]

The issue seems to fluctuate sailing to sailing and based on location. I’m curious where you dined there. I visited about a week ago and only saw one fly but I know others on my sailing had different experiences.

We were at Serenity which was the adult only beach. The flys did not appear as bad as some of the videos I watched of the opening and the weeks that followed but it was still and issue and I am from Florida and rather use to bugs.

Are all the walking trails and bike paths open now? Wandering/biking around the resort is one of our favorite things to do at Castaway.

We go in January and I wasn’t expecting anything other than the lighthouse trail to be open, if they have the biking trails open that would be a huge bonus for us.

I do not believe so, but I could be wrong. I saw several signs stating that the trails were closed but the Navigator app featured the scavenger hunt that uses the trails front and center.

 

[peter11435]

We were at Serenity which was the adult only beach. The flys did not appear as bad as some of the videos I watched of the opening and the weeks that followed but it was still and issue and I am from Florida and rather use to bugs.

Interesting. We ate at True True BBQ and spent most of our time on the southern end of the island. But did walk through the serenity bay area and grabbed desert. Like I said we only saw one fly. I think maybe they might be worse on the northern side. Hopefully they will continue to improve on that issue.

 

[peter11435]

Are all the walking trails and bike paths open now? Wandering/biking around the resort is one of our favorite things to do at Castaway.

We go in January and I wasn’t expecting anything other than the lighthouse trail to be open, if they have the biking trails open that would be a huge bonus for us.

Most of the nature trail is open however there is still part of it closed. The bike path and bike rentals are not yet open.

 

[HauntedPirate]

Interesting. We ate at True True BBQ and spent most of our time on the southern end of the island. But did walk through the serenity bay area and grabbed desert. Like I said we only saw one fly. I think maybe they might be worse on the northern side. Hopefully they will continue to improve on that issue.

I can confirm the flies were an issue at Serenity BBQ. I saw quite a few people who brought fly fans and I was constantly moving something around to keep the flies off of our food. But I didn’t see a single fly where the food was being served, so it seems as if they’ve improved things there.

For the record, @Master Yoda and I were in the same cruise.

 

[Two Ears]

I'd say most of the Wish's audience has never sailed on a Disney cruise ship before and is wowed by it all. Like the parks, those of us with history know a rotten apple when we see it. Everything $lappie touched during his time as P&R head and CEO had one common theme - They are as subtle as a jackhammer. You are hit over the head and bombarded with "theme" every second, at every turn. Because there could be a chance that you've forgotten in the last 3 seconds.

I haven no idea what this post even means.

Disney wish is a better ship cos it has more magical disney experiences and immersion like the parks. This is what we want more of. I dont want subtle. Its boring.

 

[DisneyHead123]

I haven no idea what this post even means.

Disney wish is a better ship cos it has more magical disney experiences and immersion like the parks. This is what we want more of. I dont want subtle. Its boring.

Just my theory, but I think that “A lot of theming” vs. “A little theming” is probably the wrong metric. I said in an earlier comment - a place like Port Orleans can have a ton of theming but still come off as quite subtle because all of the theming is so harmonious. Whereas one random Frozen picture in rooms on the Wish stand out a fair bit, because a Frozen picture doesn’t seem to have a lot in common with the rest of those rooms.

My thought is that the right metric is probably “harmonious vs discordant”. I’m not entirely opposed to discordant elements. In pop culture slang, they can make things “pop”. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. It’s entirely possible for things to be too harmonious, so that our eyes just sweep over them without a second thought. Contradiction makes us think. But too many discordant elements become a cluttered mess. There’s a kind of yin yang balance to be found there, I think.

I haven’t seen the Wish in person but my understanding of the complaints are that the layout is a bit too discordant because there was a desire to mix retail spaces with themed spaces in the hope of promoting shopping. I agree with you that the extra theming on the Wish is cool, but I also agree with people complaining that being in a lounge that feels like it’s in a mall food court is an ambiance killer.

 

[Surfin' Tuna]

I haven no idea what this post even means.

Disney wish is a better ship cos it has more magical disney experiences and immersion like the parks. This is what we want more of. I dont want subtle. Its boring.

Is it possible the master shipbuilder has a new account?

 

[peter11435]

because there was a desire to mix retail spaces with themed spaces in the hope of promoting shopping.

Retail spaces on the Wish are generally in the same locations as the other ships. With the exception of moving one store to deck 5 all other shopping is the same as the rest of the fleet.

There’s definitely some layout oddities on the Wish (there are on the other four ships too you’re just used to those) but I wouldn’t say shopping locations has anything to do with them.

 

[DisneyHead123]

Retail spaces on the Wish are generally in the same locations as the other ships. With the exception of moving one store to deck 5 all other shopping is the same as the rest of the fleet.

There’s definitely some layout oddities on the Wish (there are on the other four ships too you’re just used to those) but I wouldn’t say shopping locations has anything to do with them.

I only know of this stuff via YouTube videos, but I thought what people really liked about the earlier ships was a “neighborhood” type setup with restaurants, bars, shops, etc. As in you went to the bars / lounges and it was like going to a Pleasure Island type district, everything was grouped together. Whereas now I’ve seen complaints that you’re in The Bayou and there are kids running around the perimeter and people rushing by shopping (I think it was The Bayou, I could be misremembering.)