Disney drops anchor at new ports.
By Arline Bleecker
August 4, 2002
Here's great news for Disney diehards: Disney Cruise Line recently introduced a new itinerary on the Magic that opens up the popular world of the western Caribbean.
The seven-night sailings -- which depart from Port Canaveral on alternate Saturdays, year round -- call at Key West, Grand Cayman, Cozumel and Disney's private island Castaway Cay, a stop routinely included on every Disney cruise.
Prior to debuting the new itinerary in mid-May, the line had offered weeklong cruises only to the eastern Caribbean. And no Mickey Mouse ship ever has made regularly scheduled calls to the southernmost city, though an unscheduled visit was made to Key West a few years back to skirt a hurricane.
If heading to Key West on a Disney ship sounds exciting to you, wait until you hear what Uncle Walt's cruise line has in store when you get there: On every Key West call, the Magic will remain docked through sunset, which means you can linger long enough to enjoy the city's signature revelry at the Mallory Square pier. (Many ships that visit Key West depart before the sun goes down.) Better yet, Magic's dockside berth is adjacent to Mallory pier -- so close to the festivities that you can watch them and the sunset from the ship's decks.
Other features of the new itinerary that weren't previously available to Disney cruisers include some of the western Caribbean's most sought-after shore excursions. On Cozumel, for instance, Disney offers a Tropical Jeep Safari Tour, which I have taken while on a cruise with another line. The tour is so jam-packed with fun and adventure I wished I could have done it twice. From Cozumel, you also can visit the Tulum ruins, opt for a "Mayan Frontier" horseback tour, or experience Xcaret, a fascinating ecological/archeological park. On Grand Cayman, a popular Stingray City snorkeling trip is offered.
If you've never before cruised to Grand Cayman, though, you may want to know about a dash of reality that hovers in the wings. Cayman is a tendering port, which means your ship will anchor offshore and muster its tenders to shuttle you from ship to shore and back. In inclement weather or when seas are somewhat rough there -- as they sometimes can be -- it's not always possible to visit the port. I've been on several ships that, on occasion, have had to forego a call there.
Disney dedicates four tenders to the job and expects their plentiful number -- plus organized queues, of which Disney is arguably the master -- will make tendering from Grand Cayman's south pier "a seamless experience," according to the cruise line. True enough, so long as Mother Nature doesn't have another say.
Disney has never before had a tendering port on its itineraries. In fact, Disney still is the only cruise line whose private island has its own dock. So the line is sort of cutting its teeth on the tendering bit. That's not cause for worry; just be prepared in case the Cayman call is cancelled.
What will Disney do if the tenders can't access Grand Cayman? At this writing, the itinerary still was so new that a spokesman said the eventuality hadn't arisen.
Magic's seven-night western Caribbean cruises start at $829, the same rate as its eastern Caribbean itinerary. Fares for children ages 3 to 12 sailing as third or fourth passengers in a cabin start at $399. For more information, call 1-888-325-2500.
By Arline Bleecker
August 4, 2002
Here's great news for Disney diehards: Disney Cruise Line recently introduced a new itinerary on the Magic that opens up the popular world of the western Caribbean.
The seven-night sailings -- which depart from Port Canaveral on alternate Saturdays, year round -- call at Key West, Grand Cayman, Cozumel and Disney's private island Castaway Cay, a stop routinely included on every Disney cruise.
Prior to debuting the new itinerary in mid-May, the line had offered weeklong cruises only to the eastern Caribbean. And no Mickey Mouse ship ever has made regularly scheduled calls to the southernmost city, though an unscheduled visit was made to Key West a few years back to skirt a hurricane.
If heading to Key West on a Disney ship sounds exciting to you, wait until you hear what Uncle Walt's cruise line has in store when you get there: On every Key West call, the Magic will remain docked through sunset, which means you can linger long enough to enjoy the city's signature revelry at the Mallory Square pier. (Many ships that visit Key West depart before the sun goes down.) Better yet, Magic's dockside berth is adjacent to Mallory pier -- so close to the festivities that you can watch them and the sunset from the ship's decks.
Other features of the new itinerary that weren't previously available to Disney cruisers include some of the western Caribbean's most sought-after shore excursions. On Cozumel, for instance, Disney offers a Tropical Jeep Safari Tour, which I have taken while on a cruise with another line. The tour is so jam-packed with fun and adventure I wished I could have done it twice. From Cozumel, you also can visit the Tulum ruins, opt for a "Mayan Frontier" horseback tour, or experience Xcaret, a fascinating ecological/archeological park. On Grand Cayman, a popular Stingray City snorkeling trip is offered.
If you've never before cruised to Grand Cayman, though, you may want to know about a dash of reality that hovers in the wings. Cayman is a tendering port, which means your ship will anchor offshore and muster its tenders to shuttle you from ship to shore and back. In inclement weather or when seas are somewhat rough there -- as they sometimes can be -- it's not always possible to visit the port. I've been on several ships that, on occasion, have had to forego a call there.
Disney dedicates four tenders to the job and expects their plentiful number -- plus organized queues, of which Disney is arguably the master -- will make tendering from Grand Cayman's south pier "a seamless experience," according to the cruise line. True enough, so long as Mother Nature doesn't have another say.
Disney has never before had a tendering port on its itineraries. In fact, Disney still is the only cruise line whose private island has its own dock. So the line is sort of cutting its teeth on the tendering bit. That's not cause for worry; just be prepared in case the Cayman call is cancelled.
What will Disney do if the tenders can't access Grand Cayman? At this writing, the itinerary still was so new that a spokesman said the eventuality hadn't arisen.
Magic's seven-night western Caribbean cruises start at $829, the same rate as its eastern Caribbean itinerary. Fares for children ages 3 to 12 sailing as third or fourth passengers in a cabin start at $399. For more information, call 1-888-325-2500.