Caribbean Travel Dreams Blog

Disney Cruise Line, "Disney Wonder" – 4 night Cruise 5/28-6/1/06
Nassau, Castaway Cay & Day at Sea

This was my 4th DCL sailing.  I sailed with my 23 year old daughter (celebrating her college graduation) along with 6 other adult friends onboard Disney Wonder, so we only experienced the “adult only” activities on this sailing.   We splurged on a balcony stateroom, which was wonderful, even for the short cruise. 

Staterooms:  Room 5626.  Large stateroom, plenty of closet and storage space (steamer trunk with shelves, large closet, drawers); split bathroom (toilet & sink; shower/tub & sink).  Balcony was semi-private, average size with 2 chairs/table. Small “cooling box” (fridge) took a while to chill, but nice to have.  Sitting area with a privacy curtain to separate the sleeping area.  Bathroom amenities – shampoo/conditioner, lotion, bars of soap (replaced daily); hairdryer.

Dining:  DCL’s rotation dining is unique.  Dine each night in a different themed dining room (Animator’s Palate, Parrot Cay, Triton’s), with your serving staff following right along.  Food was tasty and plentiful, lots of choices.  Our favorite for theming was Animator’s Palate (room changes color throughout dinner to Disney music).  The “climax” is the highlight of Animator’s Palate.  We had breakfast each day at Beach Blanket Buffet, standard breakfast buffet fare.

Palo’s, the adult/reservations only specialty dining room, is not to be missed .  ($10 per person does not include gratuities for the server.) Even though we were unable to pre-reserve online before sailing, we had no problem getting a reservation for our party of 8 for both dinner and champagne brunch.  Service and food were EXCELLENT.  Our server for both dinner & brunch, Joost, was a pleasure.  We were treated to more than enough to satisfy our appetites, and the food was spectacular.  Not to be missed .. the chocolate soufflé.

Pirate’s night offers special menus and a special pirate party/show/fireworks.  This is the night we dined in Palo’s.  We missed most of the pirate show, but the fireworks over the sea were beautiful.

Complimentary soft drinks/iced tea/lemonade/coffee/tea available all day in the pool areas. 

Entertainment:  The shows onboard DCL are broadway-style, not a bad seat in the house.  One evening was a variety show with magician/ventriloquist, which we missed.  The entertainment crew were lively and fun, and their final “skit” the last night was great.  If you’ve cruised before, you won’t be surprised by the entertainment scheduled:  newlywed game/”crazy legs” contest/lip synching & dancing contests/70’s, 80’s,60’s nights.  Still fun to watch, and the staff works hard to make everyone have a good time.  Plenty of family activities scheduled, too, but we were in “adult mode” on this cruise.

There is no casino on the ship.  Bingo is the closest you’ll get to gambling onboard.  There is an internet café.  We purchased the special $39.99 for unlimited access the entire cruise.  A variety of first-run movies are shown in the movie theater onboard.

Adult Areas:  We spent our pool time at Quiet Cove, the adult only pool.  Walking through the family areas was quite a contrast to our low-key music piped in … Goofy’s pool had a lot of music/action; Mickey’s pool all the “little guys”.  We did have a visit from Daisy & Donald Duck at Quiet Cove, but that’s the extent of our being “Disneyfied” at Quiet Cove.   At night, the nightclubs in Beat Street are isolated from the children’s areas.  We had late dining and ended up spending a couple of nights hanging out in Cadillac Lounge, sipping Chocolate Wrap martinis, listening to the piano man.  Most activities were held in Wavebands, the “disco”. There is a house band and a DJ, but not much going on in the disco once the entertainment crew left. 

Castaway Cay:  Disney’s truly private island, also has an adult only area , Serenity Cove.  We lounged the entire day on Serenity Cove, floating on the water & sipping the drink specials of the day … beautiful beach.  A lot more action going on in the family beach area, but we were perfectly happy!

Nassau:  We scheduled a quick site inspection of Breezes Bahamas.  Moderate property, needs some updating.  Rooms nice sized.  We then headed over to Sandals Royal Caribbean for a site inspection, delivery of some donations to a local charity, and ended up spending the day at SRB till heading back to the ship around 5PM.  Beautiful property, large, nice beach & private island.  Day passes are available to purchase for Sandals Royal Caribbean and Breezes so you can spend the day at these all-inclusive resorts rather than do a shore excursion.  A great alternative.

All in all, DCL has something for everyone.  Our sailing was full of children, but you’d never know it from our standpoint.  The adult areas do an excellent job of giving the adults their private time.  I’ve sailed with my son previously, and I can also say the children’s programs are probably the best I’ve experienced. 

Contact Pattie Mitchell, Authorized Disney  Vacation Planner and Graduate of the "College of Disney Knowledge" for yourDisney Cruise Vacation ... we know DCL!
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