If I had to pick a “hot new thing” in the Disney travel world, it’d be Disney Cruise Line. Of course, DCL isn’t actually new (first sailing in 1998), but from 2022 to 2026 it’s expected their fleet will double from four ships to eight, with capacity more than doubling since these are bigger ships. This means that the basics of booking a Disney Cruise are more complicated than ever. So to get you started on your next Disney Cruise Line voyage, we’re presenting How To Pick Your First Disney Cruise. In this post we’ll talk through the different factors—including destinations, ships, themed days—and how they can impact your decision. Read out to learn all about picking your next Disney cruise!
But First…The DCL Website
The Disney Cruise Line website is an incredibly helpful resource. Its search functionality is powerful, with basic filters for date, destination, and departure port. If you click “More Filters”, you’ll also see the option to filter by themed cruises, ship, and length:
Things Every Disney Cruise HAs
This post isn’t meant to be a Disney Cruise Line pitch, but since we’re going to be talking about how to distinguish the different options, it makes sense to first establish what you can expect from every cruise.
Characters. Every Disney cruise has character greetings. The exact characters and outfits can vary, but you’ll always have an opportunity to meet some familiar friends.
Rotational Dining. The main (but not only) option for dining on Disney Cruise Line is rotational dining. They have three themed restaurants, and you’ll “rotate” through them night by night while your waitstaff moves with you (i.e. you’ll always have the same server).
Entertainment. Disney Cruise Line offers some of the best entertainment you’ll find on a cruise ship. There are usually three feature shows, comparable to or exceeding the quality of the shows you’d find in the theme parks.
Kids Clubs. All the ships have clubs for kids as young as 3, plus a nursery for younger kids (the nursery is not free, the clubs area).
Zero casinos. None of the Disney Cruise Line ships have casinos.
Picking Your Destination
This seems like the most natural place to start because it’s the most straightforward. If you want to book, for example, a 2024 Alaskan cruise with Disney, it’s going to be:
on the Disney Wonder (one of their ships)
in the summer
for 5 to 9 nights
departing from Vancouver.
There are different specific itineraries within those parameters, but you’re not going to get on the Disney Treasure for 3 nights to Alaska from San Diego. It’s just not an option at this moment.
Conversely, if you want to go “to the Caribbean”, you’ve got a ton of options. As for ships, the Magic, Dream, Wish, Treasure, and Fantasy all have itineraries scheduled in the Caribbean. You can find 3-night to 10-night itineraries. You can find itineraries that stop at either of Disney’s private ports (discussed more below).
Biking in vancouver
Ports of Call and Days at Sea
Each itinerary has an embarkation day—when you board the ship and it leaves—and a debarkation / disembarkation day, when you get off the ship for the last time. These are usually at the same port (i.e. it’s a round trip), but there are itineraries that depart from one port and finish at another.
You might put some consideration into your embarkation / debarkation ports. We spent a few days in Vancouver before our Alaskan cruise and loved it. Conversely, I’d probably only book a one night hotel stay before a cruise departing Fort Lauderdale (no offense to Fort Lauderdale, I can just easily visit it whenever I please, independent of cruising).
In between embarkation and debarkation there are basically two types of days. Port days are days when the ship docks at a port where you can get off the boat and sightsee or take part in (paid) excursions. These vary widely…
In Liverpool, for example, you can easily walk from the port into the city and spend the day sightseeing on your own. From Zeebrugge, Belgium, you’re about an hour from Brussels. The Skitine Ice Cap (Alaska) is often listed as a “port” but is really just a single excursion, getting on some smaller boats and see the glaciers up close. And then there are Disney’s private ports in the Caribbean, discussed more below.
Then there are days at sea. These are exactly what they sound like—days you’re on the boat without a stop at a port. The number of days at sea will vary by itinerary. Some don’t have any days at sea, though the embarkation day usually feels close to a day at sea if you’re on the boat early enough.
When seeking the balance that fits your trip, keep in mind that port excursions cost money. If you have a party of 3, and the itinerary has 5 ports, and you do a $200 excursion at each port, you’ve spent an additional $3000. Depending on the port, simply exploring the area for free might be an option. Or you might decide to just stay on the boat, which is sort of like an extra day at sea.
The Disney Dream at Castaway Cay
Disney’s Private Ports
Disney has two private ports. Castaway Cay is a full private island. There’s plenty of beach, along with bars, dining, water slides, and a mix of paid and free activities (snorkeling, bike rides, etc). Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point is a new private peninsula opening to guests in June 2024, presumably following much the same concept as Castaway Cay.
I don’t personally feel like Castaway Cay is a “must do” on its own. It isn’t a theme park or even a water park, to be clear. I’d prefer a cruise that stopped at it, sure, but when we went on the Wonder in Alaska I didn’t feel like we were “missing out” on Castaway Cay. Moreover, with the new ships like Wish and Treasure in the Caribbean now, you very well might feel you’d rather be onboard than on the private island at least some of the day (you’re welcome to stay on the ship during any port day, of course).
Picking From Disney’s Ships
Once you’ve narrowed down (or not) your destinations, you’ll need to consider which ship you want to be on. So far we’ve only been on two of the ships—the Dream and the Wonder. You can find plenty of expert content comparing all the ships, but we’ll highlight the major differences here.
The Disney Magic and Disney Wonder were the first two Disney Cruise Line ships. They debuted in 1998 and 1999, respectively. They have capacities of 2,700 each, making them significantly smaller than the other ships. I wouldn’t hesitate to travel on either of these ships. We traveled to Alaska on the Wonder and had an awesome time. But all things being equal I’d prefer one of the newer ships.
The Disney Wonder
The Disney Dream and and Disney Fantasy are the two second-generation ships. They debuted in 2011 and 2012 with capacities of 4,000 each. We’ve done several short cruises onboard the Disney Dream and loved it each time.
The Disney Dream
The Disney Wish is the newest ship, the first of the third generation. It debuted in 2022 with a capacity of 4,000. It will be followed by the Disney Treasure late 2024 and a third unnamed ship is expected in 2026.
Finally, the Disney Adventure is expected to debut in 2025. This ship is unique in that it was bought partially completed as part of a bankruptcy sale.
As noted above different ships travel on different itineraries, so you won’t always have your choice of ship. That said, if you have flexibility, here are some things to think about.
Itinerary Length, Days at Sea, and Ship Choice. When we were on the Dream, it was on 3-night Bahamas cruises. With Nassau one day and Castaway Cay the next, there were no full days at sea to just enjoy the ship. Probably the toughest thing about how Disney allocates its ships is that the longer itineraries (Alaska, Europe) tend to get the older, smaller ships. Of course if I have to spend a day on a boat, I’d usually prefer it be newer and bigger, but that’s just not always an option.
Newer isn’t always better. Read reviews of the ships you’re considering, particularly when they’re brand new. Some of the staff on the Disney Wonder have been working that ship and those itineraries for years. When a ship first debuts, there are going to be growing pains.
Bigger vs. More Intimate. Some people prefer the older, smaller ships because they feel “more intimate.” Personally I can’t tell the difference between 2,700 people and 4,000 people, but I understand some people can.
Bars, Restaurants, Pools, Water Slides. This is sort of a catchall, but…the different ships have different things. So if you saw the Star Wars bar and just have to visit it, don’t book a cruise on the Fantasy. It’s on the Wish.
Staterooms. The ships have different combinations of stateroom configurations and themed suites. I can’t imagine I’d pick an itinerary based just on getting some specific themed suite or room, but you’re not me, so maybe you will.
Themed Cruises
Disney Cruise Line currently offers four special “themed” options, available on select itineraries. Pixar Day at Sea takes one of the days at sea from the cruise and transforms it into a Pixar celebration. Marvel Day at Sea does the same thing, but with Marvel. Touring Plans has a relatively recent report on Marvel Day at Sea.
The Halloween on the High Seas and Very Merrytime Cruises, by contrast, transform the experience for the entirety of the cruise. You’ll have characters in special outfits, holiday themed activities, and unique entertainment. We’ve done both of these and enjoyed them a lot, but again you’ll have to account for how much time you’ll actually be on the ship when considering whether the premium pricing is worth it.
Itinerary Length
Disney Cruise Line itineraries are measured by number of nights from embarkation to debarkation. So, a 7 night cruise will have an embarkation day, a debarkation day, and six full days in between.
For planning purposes, you should know debarkation day is basically only for getting off the ship. You’ll have breakfast, but basically nothing else on the ship is going to be open, and you’ll usually be off by around 9AM.
Beyond that, much of what we had to say about itinerary length has been said above. I had a great time aboard the Disney Wonder, but I don’t know that I’d need a longer trip than the 7-night trip we took. Conversely, I imagine a lot of kids get off the Wish feeling like they had no time in the kids’ clubs because their parents kept taking them off the boat to play with sand and stuff.
If you’re departing from Port Canaveral, about an hour from Walt Disney World, you might consider whether you want to visit Disney World before or after your cruise. Maybe instead of a 7-night cruise, you can do a 3-night cruise with a 4-night Disney World stay, for example.
Finally, some people book back-to-back cruises on the same ship, with debarkation on the first itinerary immediately followed (the same day) by embarkation on the second itinerary. In this case, you’ll still have to get off the ship and then back on.