Disney Cruise line hacks.

Attitude is the difference between ordeal and adventure 

Bob Bitchin

Planning

Planning in advance is important for most cruises but Disney cruises need perfect planning if you want to truly maximize your Disney dollar. Here are a few hacks that will make your cruise much more enjoyable.

Book at least 75 days in advance: If you are a First-Time guest, this is when the online booking engine opens for you. This will allow the best chance of booking your choice immediately. Some guests wait until midnight exactly to get what they want first. 

If you are a repeat guest, use the menu below to determine your best time window for booking.

ONLINE BOOKING OPENS FOR SHORE EXCURSIONS, DINING AND ON BOARD ACTIVITIES.

• First-Time Guests 75 days prior to sail date

• Silver Castaway Club Member 90 days prior to sail date

• Gold Castaway Club Member 105 days prior to sail date

• Platinum Castaway Club Member 120 days prior to sail date

• Concierge Guests 120 days prior to sail date

Arrive at the Port early

The earlier arrive, The lower boarding number you will receive which means the earlier you will get on board the ship. 

I’ve boarded ships at 11am and at 3pm and I can tell you, getting on the ship before noon really feels like an extra day. 

Remember, rooms don’t tend to open until a little later so I would recommend a backpack and wearing bathing suits under your cloths so that you and your kids or spouse can enjoy some pool time. 

Once onboard 

My must do’s once onboard go like this: First I find out from guest services where I can adjust my dining preferences (table size, time or allergy requests). After I take care of that I head up to Palo/Remy and amend my reservation to the best possible day. 

Basically if I’m on a 4 day cruise, I want to be able to go to all 3 main restaurants once and then to either palo or remy once and basically the same principle applies on a 7 day. Let me tell you this, the adult dining is not to be missed on DCL, it is fantastic!

Finally, I head to lunch! Enchanted garden on dream/fantasy and cabanas on the magic/wonder.

After lunch I like to sit by the pool and relax until muster time. Usually rooms are not ready until about 1:30pm so I pack up a backpack and fill it with sunscreen, bathing suits, pool towel clips and a waterproof phone case. Most of these items can be found HERE

Tip: dress your kids in bathing suits and a T-shirt on embarkation morning. Ladies, wear a swimsuit under your clothes and bring a backpack for your husbands to change in to a bathing suit as well. 

Be Prepared

The Disney cruise ships are mostly like other cruise ships, that being said I would recommend bringing the essential top 10 cruise items that make cruising way easier. If you don’t remember what they are you can always read my famous article on them found HERE

Also make sure you download the Disney navigator app before embarking on your next Disney Cruise. This app is very intuitive and informative and will make your cruising experience a whole lot better. 

Pirate night

On every Disney Cruise they have a Pirate Night, it’s basically a big pirate themed deck party. A bandana is provided to everyone free of charge in your stateroom the night of the party. If you would like to go crazy you can purchase extra pirate gear on board the ship or you can go wild (and save money) by bringing costumes from home! It will cost you a lot less than purchasing pirate gear offered in the ship’s gift shop.

Castaway Cay (Disney’s Private Island)

This is the number one reason most cruisers return to Disney Cruise Line. The highly sought after heaven like island in the Bahamas built from the ground up by Disney. I can’t say much other than the word perfection. 

I would be there waiting at the gangway to be the first person on this island. Lots to do and explore in a day and perfect for adults, families and even singles. Some of the best near shore snorkeling that I’ve seen as well. 

Again, make sure you bring a backpack with all the essentials in to the island. There are ships on the island for last minute supplies but as you can imagine they are pricey.