Top 10 First-Time Disney Cruise Line Tips
Planning to set sail in 2020 or beyond? These first-time Disney Cruise Line tips will help you with things you might not know about the Magic, Fantasy, Dream, and Wonder DCL ships. Most are mistakes we made–and learned from–on our first DCL vacation, but we’ve also updated and tweaked this list with new info, ideas & changes. (Updated October 31, 2019.)
If you’re a Castaway Club member or a seasoned Disney Cruise Line veteran, some of these may seem obvious. However, based on our conversations with our guests aboard the Disney Magic, things aren’t always quite as obvious as they might seem. If you’re planning to set sail aboard Disney Cruise Line, these updated tips should come in handy.
Fortunately, setting sail on the Disney Cruise Line is a far less complicated experience than visiting Walt Disney World, Disneyland, or other theme parks, so there’s not a ton you need to know to “do it right.” These 10 tips should at the very least set you on the right course…
Note that these tips all cover the experiences aboard the Disney Cruise Line ships themselves. If you’re looking for Disney’s Castaway Cay Tips, read this post. If you want something more comprehensive or less aimed at first timers, check out our 101 Great Disney Cruise Line Tips. That’s more of a deep dive and covers a range of things–including stuff you might not know even if you’re a Platinum Castaway Club Member!
Let’s take a look at the tips for having a great time your first time setting sail aboard the Disney Cruise Line…
Every Restaurant is All You Can Eat
One of the selling points of Disney Cruise Line is that soda is all-you-can-drink and there are places to grab food throughout the day without a surcharge. (As a point of clarification since we’ve met many people who call this “free,” it’s not free–it’s built into the cost of Disney Cruise Line, which costs more than other cruise ships in its class.) However, many people don’t know that meals at rotational restaurants are all-you-can-eat, in a way.
At these restaurants, you can order as many appetizers, entrees, and desserts as you want, make substitutions, etc. If you really like a particular appetizer or entree, order another! We did this at every meal, and always found the servers happy to oblige. Just remember, with great power comes great responsibility.
We don’t recommend ordering so much food that you only eat half of what’s on each plate. Ordering a half dozen lobster entrees for yourself might seem like a good idea, but it’s wasteful and probably won’t endear you to your server.
Tipping is Different
We read that tipping was different prior to our trip, and everything we read made it sound super complicated. It’s not. Basically, your onboard stateroom account is automatically charged a set amount towards the end of your cruise for housekeeping, your server, your assistant server, and the dining room manager, with envelopes also provided for the same so you can leave additional cash should you believe they deserve more. You can find out what the exact default amounts will be for your cruise with the Disney Cruise Line Blog Tip Calculator.
Should you want to tip less, you can go to Guest Services to change the amounts. We noticed fairly long lines at Guest Services the last night of our cruise, and assume this was why. We’re not going to get into the controversial area of recommended tips here, but our general advice is “don’t be an ass.” In the cruise industry, these tips are customary, and these positions in the crew depend upon them. If you vehemently disagree with the concept of tipping these positions, maybe you shouldn’t take a cruise.
I know I wouldn’t take a cruise if I hated being on a boat, and this type of tipping is as much a standard of cruising as cruises taking place aboard boats. Personally, I’m not a fan of the social construct of tipping (I feel that what’s now “standard” gratuity should be built into certain wages, as they are in most of the civilized world) for a variety of reasons, but until I can convince the rest of society to agree with me, I uphold my social obligation to tip.
Nightlife is Tame, But Fun
This one varies widely depending upon the Disney Cruise Line ship you’re sailing, and how full your cruise is, I think. On our cruise, “After Hours” was pretty much a ghost town every night after 11 p.m. This is partly to be understood. Unlike other ships, Disney Cruise Line caters to families, precluding many parents from participating in the night life scene.
Still, we highly recommend checking out the night life. We found that, while sparsely attended, it can be highly entertaining. Perhaps not in the way you’re thinking, though. While it can be fun in itself, what we found more fun was people watching. (Yes, we were those people in the corner, creepin’ on the people in da club!) Some of the guests who have the most fun in the clubs presumably haven’t been on the party scene in a while.
Pour copious amounts of alcohol on that, and you the fuel for an awesome fire. We had a blast just watching the partying, and we are 100% certain the partiers had fun doing the party. Regardless of whether you want to be a party animal or a creepy lurker like us, we bet you’ll have a good time.
Don’t Miss the Fireworks
If you’re comparing them to the fireworks at Walt Disney World, the fireworks on the Disney Cruise Line are going to disappoint you. They are relatively short by comparison, and not as large in scale.
But take a step back for a second. Walt Disney World fireworks are launched from the land. On Disney Cruise Line, you’re floating in the middle of the ocean, with a private fireworks show over the water. That’s pretty impressive, and watching them explode over the water as other ships blast their horns in the distance is a pretty cool experience.
Research Rooms
Frequent cruisers are very particular about their room, and for good reason: not all of the rooms in the same class are the same! At first blush, choosing a room seems pretty easy, since there’s inside, oceanview, and verandah. However, there are actually several “secret” verandah and porthole staterooms, as well as mini-suites and oversized rooms, all of which are priced in a lower tier.
In our case, we didn’t have the ability to pick a room, as we booked a last-minute, restricted fare “verandah or better” (VGT–there are also IGT and OGT restricted) room. The benefit of this was saving money during the off-season (since the ship wasn’t full, last minute deals were offered) and guaranteeing ourselves a verandah view room. As a side note, you also should give serious thought to which class of room to you want, and whether it’s worth the money to splurge and upgrade.
While a verandah is probably nice on longer cruises, we learned that it was an unnecessary luxury on a short cruise. By contrast, we’ve heard that a verandah is pretty much a must-do on an Alaskan cruise, due to the view of whales it might offer.
Palo is a Must Do
Some guests are likely to balk at the cost of Palo, wondering why they should pay extra for a meal when their normal rotational dining is “free.” Well, again, those meals aren’t free, they’re built into the cost of the cruise. Instead of looking at those as free and Palo as $25 per person, look at Palo as costing about 2% the total of your cruise (give or take depending upon the cruise’s actual cost). For a 2% increase in cost, does it not make sense to upgrade to a superb fine dining experience?!
We have a full Palo Dinner Review you can read if you need further convincing, but suffice to say, we fully believe that Palo is well worth the additional cost and highly recommend it for any couple looking for a romantic meal or foodies wanting a fine dining experience. The incredible service, atmosphere, and cuisine are all virtually unparalleled, and we now cannot imagine doing Disney Cruise Line without a meal at Palo.
Don’t Skip the Nightly Shows
If you look at reviews of the nightly shows, they vary widely. We’ve now seen nearly a dozen different productions aboard Disney Cruise Line, some multiple times. Our enjoyment of these shows has been all over the place–sometimes a show we don’t normally love can be elevated by a stellar cast. Other times, the reverse is true. (About the only show we’ve consistently disliked is Villains Tonight!)
The point is, it seems that no one can agree on which of these shows is awful, good, or great, and the only one who can determine whether you will like the shows is you. That requires you going to see the shows. Besides, if you’re going on a Disney cruise, you really ought to see the Disney entertainment on that cruise. The good news is that, regardless of what you think of the story of the show, production values and acting are top notch in all of the shows.
Use the Personal Navigator
If you’re like me and think your main option for entertainment on a cruise is lying around reading a book (more like falling asleep with a book on your face), boy, are you wrong! There are multiple, simultaneous options pretty much all day long. Granted, not everything is going to appeal to everyone, but you’ll probably never be wanting for anything to do while you’re on the cruise.
You’re provided a Personal Navigator each day with the schedule of events on it, but we recommend downloading the Personal Navigator App and using that. Even though we couldn’t use our phones on the cruise, we still carried them for the clock (who wears watches these days?!) and other apps. Of course, if you’re going to be in the pools a lot, maybe carrying around your phone isn’t such a good idea.
The Ship is Beautiful
The Disney Cruise Line ships are seriously beautiful. Seriously. Each of the ships has its own distinct features and design, but they’re all basically modern luxury ocean liners in the style of Art Deco or Art Nouveau. The details are stunning, from gorgeous chandeliers to handrails, the design of these ships is very thoughtful and meticulous.
If you’re a fan of these styles of architecture or themed design, take some time to explore the ship. Go in the movie theater when it’s not in use, wander around the main lobby, stare at that handmade chandelier. A big draw of Disney is in the parks’ highly immersive environments, and while Disney Cruise Line doesn’t isn’t necessarily thematically transportive (although it is literally transportive), the ship itself does make you feel a bit like you’re aboard a ship during the golden age of cruise ships.
People Sleep In
This is one of those seemingly obvious ones, but it’s clearly not that obvious given that the ship is particularly deserted in the early morning hours. I know I often harp on being up for the sunrise, and I realize people take cruises on vacation, but get up for the sunrise at least one morning!
There are very few people around, and seeing the sunrise on the open water is really a sight to behold. You can see and do a lot without worrying about other people in the early morning, so why not get up early during your day at sea, and go back to your stateroom in the middle of the day to take a nap?
Okay, that covers the first-time lessons for setting sail aboard Disney Cruise Line. As I’ve said before, I didn’t think I was a cruise person before, but the Disney Magic sold me on the Disney Cruise Line. Since that first cruise, we’ve done all of the ships, and eagerly await our next journey. It’s a totally different type of Disney experience than the theme parks, but the change of pace, relaxing, and service-oriented nature of Disney Cruise Line has us hooked!
Planning to set sail aboard one of the Disney Cruise Line ships? Read our comprehensive Disney Cruise Line Guide to prepare for your trip, plan entertainment and other activities, and learn what to expect from your Disney cruise! For info on specific ships, see our Disney Dream Ship Guide.
If you want personalized recommendations for Disney Cruise Line itineraries, ships, and more, click here to get a cruise quote from a no-fee Authorized Disney Vacation Planner. They can find you all of the current discounts, and help you plan the details of your cruise!
Your Thoughts
If you’ve cruised with Disney Cruise Line before, what first time “lessons” would you add so that people avoid common mistakes? Any other tips? Any questions? Do you agree or disagree with our first-time DCL tips? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
This must be expensive.
Not really Juan.
We did a Disney cruise for our honeymoon and loved it. Back then there were ‘land and sea’ packages and we did four days in Disney then the cruise. If I had to pick one piece of advice I’d say- if you are trying to do both the parks and a cruise save the parks for last. We were so tired after four straight days of running through the parks that we spent a huge portion of our cruise sleeping (in the sun without sunblock… Another lesson learned…). Definitely come to your cruise well rested because while it is relaxing, there are so many fun things to do that you want to be awake to experience. 🙂
Just wanted to add.. If your celebrating any kind of special occasion , be sure to add it into the special request when booking !! We went on our honeymoon and it was GREAT !!! we had a surprise just about every night at dinner ! Also got a cute Thank you card from the captain.
Thank you for the great tips! We are going on our first Disney cruise this Jan 31 from Orlando, to San Juan and St Martaan. I have questions about the excursions, if anyone can help? If we don’t book the Disney excursions, how do we go about booking on our own? And does the ship drop you within walking distance of a beach, or do we have to find transportation as well? Thanks!
About money for the cruise. Do you suggest bringing cash, credit cards or getting travelers checks? And how important is it to have a passport when going on the Bahamas Cruise? Thank you!!!
Just went on our first Disney Cruise April 17 2014 , it was for our Honeymoon. We didn’t have passports , you don’t really need one for the Bahamas cruise. But it doesn’t hurt to have one either , just in case you need to fly home in case of an emergency.
We used cash on board.. You just go to guest services and give then how ever much you want. They also give you a $300 credit. So we gave them $300 in cash , so we had a $600 limit. But it got confusing , we would go pay our bill and it was more then we thought , with how they added all the gratuities on as well as charging your shore adventures to your room the day you have them planned. (first cruise , so didn’t know how it worked) We have already booked another cruise for next April , we plan on using a Credit Card , just seem less confusing.
We also used cash on shore , didn’t really feel comfortable using credit cards. Hope this helped
Which dinner time is best for a family of 4 with two 7 year olds? We are torn on which to choose!
Rachel, you can change to a later dining if the early one doesn’t suit you, and vice versa. They are very accommodating. I did it without a problem.
Hello and thank you for all the great tips! We will be taking our first Disney cruise on the Dream in just a few weeks! We will be celebrating my son’s 8th birthday. Does Disney do anything special for a child’s birthday?
The getting up early is a good tip. We had coffee delivered each morning so we could sit on our verandah and watch the sunrise. After we got breakfast with the early birds, we did a round of putt putt and had the entire adult deck all to ourselves. We started doing naps the rest of the trip, just so we could get some quiet time before the ship awoke!
We are leaving on our first Disney cruise (Fantasy) on Saturday 8/2. I have a question about taking money and cameras on excursions where you will be going into the water, etc. One excursion is to Dunn’s River falls, hiking up the waterfalls. What do you do with your valuables? Is it safe to leave it with your driver/tour guide?
I have the same question –
What do people do with valuables when swimming in the Bahamas or Castaway?
Disney sells these compact plastic card holders on board (maybe $5) and you can stash your room key, which you also use to get on and off the ship when at a port of call, and a little bit of cash. It comes with a lanyard to wear around your neck. It’s all you need!
Our first Disney cruise was for our 25th anniversary. That was 15 cruises ago. We have gone with & without children. There is always something new to explore on all the ships. Each one is an adventure!
The Navigator is so valuable that I carry it around with me all day.
I enjoy the informative sessions they have with the chefs & the napkin & towel folding.
We have met some wonderful people, and the servers and your housekeeping staff will do anything possible to make your cruise experience the best possible.
If possible, don’t miss the adult entertainment after 10 p.m. in the adult district. The entertainers are excellent!!
I would love to take my 7 year-old daughter on a Disney Cruise, but it would just be the two of us. Everything I just read on this post sounds like all of the adults are couples. I would love to do some of the adult things and I know my daughter would want to do the kids club. Would it be weird or uncomfortable doing the adult things by myself? Have any single parents done this that could give me some advice/tips?
Hi Tammi,
I did the Alaskan cruise back in July with my 4 ½ granddaughter (our first). It was just her and I. I did not feel weird and was not uncomfortable. In fact, crew members were extra nice, from the cabin host to the servers at the BB Bluffet. They knew it was just her and I and they made sure we had everything we needed and they were always ready to help.
A few tips…
> I purchased the CD + Prints package online before our trip and received a discount and one free professional group character picture.
> When my GD was having her picture taken with the characters I too took pictures and video with my iPhone. It came in handy because I knew when a print was missing and was able to show them which one.
> The video captured all her interactions with each character, that the photographer didn’t.
> My granddaughter dressed up in a different costume every day onboard. Crew members oohed and awed over her and the characters were more interactive.
> The $13 tracking bracelet they put on your child for the camps is refundable if you bring it to guest services the night before disembarkation.
> Download the Navigator App to find out what is happening on the ship. You can favourite things that you would like to do and it will remind you. The app also allows you to see what is happening for the rest of the week (before the paper Navigator comes out).
> Joining a Fish Extender group is really fun. (You can find them on DisBoards).
BTW great blog,Tom.
Taking my son on his first Disney experience/cruise for his 8th bday surprise!!! Haven’t cruised in 12 yrs. Any tips, suggestions for our family of 3 would be soooooo welcome. TIA!!
Great site!
This was great information. We are traveling on the Dream this August and it is a first time for my husband 2 kids (age 4 and 8) and myself. Thank you, this was awesome!
Thank you for all the great tips! We are going on our first cruise, a Disney Alaskan Cruise, this coming July. Do you have any tips on the weather? Are we fine with wind breaker jackets or do we need our coats? Also, how dressy do we need to be for the “formal” and “semi-formal” evenings?
Thanks very much!
Hopefully someone else can answer this for you–we’ve yet to do an Alaskan cruise, but it does sound awesome! Have fun! 🙂
Hi, Karen,
Packing for an Alaskan cruise is an adventure unto itself! We were on the Wonder for the 7/1/13 sailing last summer and we encountered a variety of weather. It’s like packing for all four seasons.
– Pack a windbreaker AND a winter coat. When we left Vancouver it was in the 80’s, by the time we sailed into Tracy Arm Fjord temps were 50 degrees cooler, when we arrived in Ketchikan it was an unusually warm and sunny 84 degrees. Also, if your coat and windbreaker are water resistant that’s a definite plus.
– Water resistant sneakers or hiking shoes are recommended as well.
– We packed both short and long sleeve shirts as well as jeans and shorts. I was wearing shorts when we left Vancouver, jeans for the five days that followed and then shorts on the last day sailing back. Count on evenings being cool for the duration of the cruise.
– Formal evenings can be as dressy as you want them to be. You’ll typically see women in nice dresses and men with jackets and ties but men in tuxes and women in formal dresses is not uncommon. My son and I opted to rent tuxes last year but the year prior it was a jacket and tie for us both (Docker’s and a blazer will do the trick).
Other tips:
– BRING BINOCULARS! There is A LOT to see. On day two of the cruise we were blown away by the scenery and regretted not having binoculars. We remedied that by purchasing a pair on board (we had a $200 credit) but had we purchased a pair before the trip it would have cost less.
– BRING EXTRA MEMORY CARDS! Better yet, bring more than one camera! Total number of photos taken last year? 5,000 (yup, that’s three 0’s). While you’re at it, try to bring a real video camera. Phones take great video but lack the zoom and various features of a dedicated video camera.
– If you have a little girl in your party go to guest services and ask about the Princess Tea. You won’t find it posted anywhere and won’t be informed that one be held on board. My daughter loved every minute of it.
– Don’t miss the Sail Away Party!
– When the Wonder sails through Tracy Arm Fjord and arrives at the glacier head down to deck 4. Most people will be up on decks 9 and 10 but 4 offers great views and no crowds. Also, Disney characters will be wandering around deck 4 so getting a photo with one of them is also much easier since there are far fewer people (we encountered Goofy, Minnie, Donald and Mickey).
– Please be aware that there are no fireworks on Alaskan cruises due to environmental concerns.
– Also be aware that the sun sets VERY late.
You’re going to have a great time. Enjoy!
Awesome list of tips. Thanks for taking the time to type these all out! 🙂
Do you know if the Princess Tea is only on the Alaskan cruise or is it also on the Magic Bahamian cruise?
Hi
I’m a first timer and have a couple of questions.
Firstly, I’m a bit concerned about the mention of sea and motion sickness. I was lead to believe this didn’t happen but it seems it does. Is it common?
Secondly, how are the restaurants for healthy vegetarian foods?
Thanks
No clue about vegetarian options (Disney is normally pretty good about this, so I’d expect the same from Disney Cruise Line), but motion sickness, especially on the first night of the cruise, can be a problem. For her second cruise, my wife got one of the motion sickness patches and was totally fine. Have a great time!
Hi Diane – yes there are many healthy vegetarian foods. Talk to your servers on your first night. There goal is to make sure you have a fantastic food experience. Because they move with you during your evening dining experiences (except if you go to Palo or Remme), they will remember your preferences, likes and dislikes for the remainder of the cruise. The food places by the pools have great options. My granddaughter loves salad bars and made a salad every day at lunch (Fantasy October 2013).
I am a vegan and they had absolutely no trouble serving me wonderful food! There is at least one vegetarian meal on each menu and the wait staff would discuss the next day’s meal with me so that they could prepare for dinner. For breakfast and lunches the chefs would custom make me meals that weren’t on the menu, and some of those were the best meals I had on the whole trip (Grilled tofu on a bed of thinly cut veggies and pearl barley). When I said I didn’t want dessert one night because I was tired of fruit sorbet & berries, my waiter would not take no for an answer – he came back with the most amazing mocha truffles made with almond milk – people sitting next to me wanted to know how they could get them 🙂 Even at the quick serve stops, everyone was very helpful – the pizza maker made me my own cheese-less veggie pizza. At the breakfast buffet there is miso soup with mushrooms, and there is another station with all kinds of nuts and dried fruits. The servers would provide me soy milk to go along with it. There are veggie burgers and all the fruit & salad you can eat at Castaway Cay.
Under the “mydisneycruise” section of the DCL site (once you’ve booked) you are able to request vegetarian and fully vegan meals. Lactose free is also an option.
There are so many more tips left untold. We are going on our thirty something Disney cruise. Find the spa, plan to go to the movies. We watch all the Disney movies that we skipped for 6 months since they are on the ship. We love seeing the Prem”ear” movies at sea also.
Oh yeah, there are easily 100 tips that we could share–and we’ve only done 2 cruises so far. We just wanted to hit 10 “big” ones here. Thanks for adding a few! 🙂
These are some great first timer tips!
First though, I would like to comment on the tipping. I find that yes, there are long lines at guest services on the final night but I wouldn’t necessarily for gratuities. You do not have to pay extra for your servers or mousekeeping. I actually find people pay more though. The service is amazing! And unlike most cruises you have rotational dining and the same waiter’s every night! So you get to know them very well and vice versa! It’s truly fantastic! You’ll find a lot of return cruisers will print really cute/fun specific Disney Mousekeeping envelopes (google)!
Resources/Culture
Visit DisBoards.com, it’s a great website for all things Disney and there is a very very large forum dedicated to the Disney Cruises. Once you have signed up for your cruise you can go to your specific cruise and meet all your fellow cruisers and almost always they have created their own Facebook page which they have posted a link to. Here you can get tips and find out if people are doing Fish Extenders (kind of like a crafting secret santa, lots of fun for kids and adults). There is a lot to learn from here!
Culture!
Don’t forget to investigate the Fish Extending as mentioned above, but also decorating your door! As you go to and from your stateroom you’ll find many people have made magnets to decorate their door and it’s so much fun! This is your temporary home, personalize it for you and your family!
Don’t want to make this too long of a post, but take advantage of the uniqueness that is Disney. The rotational dining is my favorite! With the unique restaurants (you’ll love animators pallet on any of the four ships) with your personal waiters, to the fireworks (only cruise to have them and did you know Disney is considered a battle ship because the fireworks are explosive?), Funnel Vision the only huge movie screen outside on the deck by the sea! Great science, cause that screen looks so awesome…and so much more!
I have to say Disney is hands down the best cruise with great service, even if you don’t have kids! The only thing I will say, if your are seeking gambling/casino’s this is the only cruise that does not have that and Disney might not be the cruise for you!
Excellent tips–thanks for adding on. Good to know that those long lines at Guest Services aren’t all due to tip adjustments. Thanks!
Tom, as someone who waited in those lines the last night of the cruise to adjust our tip — upwards — I think I might see where the assumption is failing.
It’s easy to adjust your tip up by leaving cash in the envelope, as you say. But if you want to pay more and have it go on your credit card, as we did, the only way to make that adjustment is at Guest Services.
These were some of the best tips on the DCL I’ve come across, so many are generic ones I’ve heard over and over again being a seasoned disney alum, and almost all of these were ones I hadn’t thought of yet and were all extremely helpful. Can’t wait for our next cruise now!
P.s. amazing website, literally every time I have a question on anything disney planning, my question is always answered above and beyond here.
Thank you!
Boy I’m glad to find this site, going on Alaska cruise in early June 2014 and have learned a lot. We like doing research before we go and this helps.
I will be looking forward to tips on the Hawaii trip in 2015 that is next on the list.