Disney Cruise Line Adding 4 New Ships
Disney Cruise Line was not the focus of D23 Expo, but the company quickly made a major announcement–of fleet expansion with the addition of 4 new ships–that’ll have ripple effects for the parks and beyond. This post shares details, concept art, and everything we know, plus our commentary about this news.
This news was announced during the “Horizons: Disney Experiences Showcase” or Parks Panel presentation during the 2024 D23 Expo at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Disney Parks Chairman Josh D’Amaro offered a sneak peek at concept art for the future in addition and teased what was to come in a few years.
For those confused by the Disney Cruise Line fleet expansion, let’s start with that since it’s already in progress. The Disney Wish was the first Wish-class ship (hence the name of the class), and it debuted in 2022. It will be joined by the second ship, the Disney Treasure (aka Adventureland on the Ocean), which takes its maiden voyage on December 21, 2024.
Following that, the Disney Destiny will be the third ship in the class, setting sail in November 2025 (bookings open to the general public on September 12, 2024). This ship was actually just revealed prior to the 2024 D23 Expo as part of a multi-day event, and it might’ve gotten lost in the shuffle as a result. See our Disney Destiny Cruise Ship Reveal: Heroes vs. Villains for everything you need to know.
But wait, there’s more. In addition to this trio that was first announced years ago and has been underway for a while, there are two new-ish additions. The first of those is the Disney Adventure, the former Global Dream ship that Disney acquired partially completed in a fire sale. That’ll set sail out of Singapore starting in 2025 and has nothing to do with the rest–it’s colossal compared to the Wish-class.
Finally, there’s the new Disney cruise ship just announced for Oriental Land Company, which is the fourth in the Wish-class and will set sail in 2028/2029 out of Japan. Got all of that? Good. The 4 new ships are above and beyond all of that. None of the Wish-class or the Asian ships count towards that number. These are brand-new ships that were never previously discussed. But before we get to that, let’s quickly discuss the entertainment updates shared for Disney Cruise Line at the D23 Expo…
Your favorite Greek gladiator will take center stage onboard the Disney Destiny in an all-new Broadway-style show, “Disney Hercules,” when the ship sets sail in November 2025.
“Disney Hercules” is a lively retelling of the popular Walt Disney Animation Studios film by the same name and will feature the iconic music and larger-than-life characters we all know and love from the original movie, presented in an all-new way. Developed exclusively for the Disney Destiny, “Disney Hercules” will stay true to the story and spirit of the film while showcasing a bold, modern adaptation tailor-made for the stage.
The production of “Disney Hercules” will draw on the creative team’s extensive and diverse experience that ranges from theatre to pop music. Get ready for show-stopping musical numbers, incredible vocals, stunning visuals, immersive projection effects and so much more!
Like the film, the Muses will be the show’s storytellers and take you on the journey through this ancient tale of good vs. evil. The show will include all the beloved songs from the film–plus, the theatrical debut of heartfelt ballad “Shooting Star.” The new musical arrangements in “Disney Hercules” will emphasize the pop and gospel influences that make this soundtrack iconic to so many fans.
“Disney The Tale of Moana,” the Broadway-style show debuting on the Disney Treasure later this year, will bring Moana’s unforgettable coming-of-age adventures from the Walt Disney Animation Studios film to live audiences for the first time – and we’re sharing a first look from one of the key climactic moments from the production.
The scene depicts Moana as she takes her final stand against Te Kā, the fiery lava-wielding foe who will appear on stage as an incredible fifteen-foot-tall puppet, the largest puppet ever produced for a Disney Cruise Line show. “Disney The Tale of Moana” will also portray Moana’s courageous determination to restore the heart of Te Fiti and the resulting transformation of the Te Kā puppet into her true self, a stunning green goddess.
Audiences will see many of their favorite characters from the film reimagined as puppets, including a young version of Moana. The captivating array of puppetry is being developed for the show by Jeff Conover, creative director of puppetry and articulation for Disney Live Entertainment, and Michael Curry, whose previous credits include “The Lion King” on Broadway.
Okay, with that out of the way, let’s talk Disney Cruise Line fleet expansion…
Four is the magic number! Announced during the D23 Expo, Josh D’Amaro (with a little help from musical group All-4-One…who a certain blogger thought was Boyz II Men–the reveal makes a lot more sense with All-4-One!) revealed that four ships will be joining Disney Cruise Line’s ever-growing roster of award-winning ships sailing around the world.
These new Disney Cruise Line ships will arrive between 2027 and 2031.
Five ships are currently in the fleet, with four others already in the works. These new, four additional ships will bring the fleet to a total of 13, giving you 13 different opportunities to experience everything that Disney Cruise Line is known for. The ship names, designs, and exciting itineraries are still in development.
Turning to commentary, my biggest hope when it comes to these new cruise ships is that they’re preparing for the sunsetting of the original trio of Disney Cruise Line ships, which theoretically could happen in the 2030s.
I know D’Amaro said this will increase the fleet to 13 ships, but it doesn’t mean Disney Cruise Line will end the decade with the same number it starts the decade. This could be a way of future-proofing Disney Cruise Line and preparing for the day when those ships are retired.
It also could be simply expanding the ships and, by extension, the Disney brand to other regions of the world. A cruise ship is unlike a theme park in that regard–it can be relocated and target a specific audience in a specific region. That’s precisely what’s going to happen with the Singapore and Japan-based ships (even though a lot of Japanese fans already travel for Disney Cruise Line, it’s not the same thing).
Beyond that, this was honestly the most disappointing news of the night for me. I’m sorry DCL diehards, but as much as I enjoy Disney Cruise Line–and I do!–the only thing I could think about was the money these ships would cost.
This is a decent chunk of the $60 billion earmarked for Disney Experiences over the next decade, and will come at the expense of something that could instead be built at Walt Disney World or Disneyland. It’s not just that, either.
There are elements of the Wish-class ships that I really like, especially the Disney Treasure. I’m fairly confident that’s going to be my favorite ship of the trio–and perhaps of the entire fleet through 2025. That’s in large part because it’s drawing so much inspiration from the parks.
I was also excited for the Heroes vs. Villains duality of the Disney Destiny…but the reveal fell flat for me. It didn’t feel like they fully followed through on that compelling concept, but instead used it as a marketing device for a ship that sounds strikingly similar to the Wish and Treasure. It doesn’t actually lean heavily into heroes vs. villains or themes of good vs. evil, but instead uses franchises with heroes and villains. Hardly groundbreaking since that’s like 90% of Disney movies.
This is to say that I guess I’m concerned with the 4 new ships having a similar ‘sameness’ problem. Especially with the fleet getting that large, it’ll be more about the destinations and itineraries, and there won’t be as much of an incentive to differentiate their designs. But I’m personally not focused on the destinations–if I were, I’d simply go to those places.
I’m also concerned about oversaturation of Disney Cruise Line.
My expertise is much more limited when it comes to the cruise industry than theme parks, so I want to be careful to caveat this that I’m stepping outside my comfort zone. What I will say that this seems like a lot of expansion for Disney Cruise Line all at once, and without seeing the actual market appetite for more of its ships.
It’s one thing to have surveys and internal projections about consumer demand and brand power–it’s another entirely to commit to building ships. Especially 4 all at once. Especially before 4 of those even come on line. In terms of capacity, this should amount to roughly a tripling from today to 2031. That’s a lot.
The thing is, even if I were totally clueless about cruising, it’s nevertheless impossible for Disney to have foresight about what this expansion will do to their demand and pricing. It’s almost the equivalent of not just building Disney’s America in Virginia, but also a multi-park Texas Disney World…oh and Disneyland Brazil and Disneyland Jakarta, and DisneySky Guangzhou, too!
From that perspective, the approach to DCL fleet expansion doesn’t seem consistent with Disney’s normal methodical decision-making process. I thought that before with the announcement of the three new ships all at once, and this only reinforces that in a very large way.
Perceptions of cruising could change with younger generations, and there seems to be a tremendous amount of industry-wide expansion occurring in response to Baby Boomer demand–but that audience won’t be the primary demographic for cruising much longer.
But again, I don’t know much about the cruise business and its future. This could be totally off-base, and cruising could become more popular than ever with Millennials and younger generations. Regardless, it seems the industry has entered a phase of less-than measured growth without a high degree of certainty what the landscape (or seascape?) will look like a decade from now.
It also seems like this decision is being made against the backdrop of ongoing pent-up demand in the cruise industry. As should be obvious, those good times won’t last forever. We’ve already seen that happen at Walt Disney World and now Disneyland. But what is the new-normal consumer appetite for Disney Cruise Line? We don’t know, because the inevitable pullback has not yet happened there.
I’m positive Disney has taken the aberration of pent-up demand into account when making this decision. But again, they couldn’t possibly know what adding an additional half-dozen ships to the market will do to demand. Will it decrease due to a perceived drop in exclusivity? Will DCL become viewed as a more mainstream cruise line? Will pricing have to take a major hit?
I don’t pretend to be asking any questions Disney Cruise Line hasn’t already considered. The company employs an army of savvy people–far smarter than me–and utilizes sophisticated modeling–beyond the chicken scratch of which I’m capable. But again, they’re not clairvoyant. There is necessarily a large amount involved in this endeavor.
That’s what scares me. Over the years, we’ve seen Disney lose momentum with ESPN, jump headfirst into streaming, make missteps with the studios, etc. All of those decisions demonstrated a lack of foresight or miscalculation with risks. And in every such scenario, Parks & Resorts bailed them out. This worries me because I fear history repeating itself, and DCL having a few ships more than it actually needs.
Moreover, I have trepidation because I consider Disney Cruise Line to be Parks & Resorts’ best product. It has the highest guest service standards, maintenance, and attention to detail. While I love all of the parks, I think Disney Cruise Line is the best current exemplar of the fabled “Disney Difference” of the 1980s-1990s.
Others obviously agree with me, which is a big part of why they’re willing to pay premium prices for DCL. It’s not just for the characters, themed design, stage shows, or other entertainment. Part of the appeal is that attention to detail and service. Disney Cruise Line is a premium product charging premium prices.
Part of me worries that such rapid expansion will spread Disney Cruise Line’s talents too thin, and in the process, dilute the brand. I’m not suggesting that this will happen, or even that I expect it to happen. It’s just a concern, and not an unreasonable one given what can happen as business units go from their lean stage to a more bloated, larger scale. This has arguably already played out at the parks, but hopefully it doesn’t happen here. The advantage DCL has is being able to pull from a global labor pool, so there’s that.
Ultimately, most of the growth that has occurred with Disney Cruise Line so far has been for the positive. I may not love everything about the Wish-class ships, I do think Disney has learned some lessons as it has gained more experience in the cruise industry, allowing the company to iterate on past designs and make technical and functional improvements in the process. If that trend continues with these 4 new ships and Disney Cruise Line maintains its exceptional guest and soft services, the bar will be raised even further.
Planning to set sail aboard one of the DCL ships? Read our comprehensive Disney Cruise Line Guide to prepare for your voyage, plus plan entertainment, activities & excursions, and learn what to expect from your Disney cruise! For personalized planning & recommendations, 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
What do you think of Disney Cruise Line adding four new ships to its fleet in addition to the ones already in development? Are you simply excited, or do you share any of the same concerns as me? Have any name ideas for the new ships? Any other thoughts or ideas about this? If you have questions or thoughts, please share them below and we’ll try to respond!
There seems to be considerable confusion about the size of cruise lines, probably because many people are not aware that the biggest have different brands at different price points. Carnival has over 100 ships, across nearly ten brands including the middle price Holland America (not a luxury brand) and Seabourn (its luxury brand); Royal Caribbean with over 40 ships, and Norwegian with over 30 ships (including its luxury brand Oceania). There is thus plenty of room for a 13 ship fleet. The average life expectancy of cruise ships is actually around 30 years, so some retirement is is undoubtedly built in by DCL. We just returned from a Norway cruise on the Disney Dream (our fourth DCL cruise) — the experience, service, and especially the food were excellent and luxury class (though we were in the concierge level). I suspect as long as DCL keeps closer to the luxury end than the mid-price end, they will be very successful as they appear to be largely expanding their sailing footprint instead of simply duplicating capacity on existing routes.
I know Disney Cruise Line has a small fleet relative to the major players in cruising. But isn’t the size of the luxury brands what’s most instructive, since that’s where Disney is situated in terms of pricing?
Ultimately, I hope you’re right and my fears are entirely unfounded.
dcl diehard here. while i most definitely want to experience all the ships (behind, as we still have yet to do the Wish), my favorite ships remain the Magic and Wonder. the size is perfect, and i’m far from the only one who feels this way. my sincerest hope is that two of these newly announce ships are Magic class so that when the OGs inevitably sail off to the sunset that these will be there to take their place. not everyone wants the mega-ships, i hope dcl recognizes that they have a significant fanbase of the original ships.
Per “sunsetting of the original trio of Disney Cruise Line ships” — I believe the Magic and Wonder were the original duo of DCL ships, with the 2nd duo (Dream and Fantasy) setting sail over a decade later.
My biggest issue with DCL is the price, period! We started our cruising time back in 2011 and at that time one could afford to cruise with Disney. Spend a week at Disney World first then take the magic bus to the cruise terminal and go on a 7 day cruise. Did 2 years back to back like this. Loved it. Was a real vacation. Get a flight into Orlando, head to the Magic Bus to a ride to one of the resorts, spend a week living like a kid again, Magic bus to the terminal, cruise, Magic Bus to the airport and fly back home. Then came the price increases! Wife wanted to go to the Nordic Countries, priced Disney and then Princess. Disney JUST FOR THE CRUISE was 2 times what the entire cost of Princess was including air fare. Just could not justify that. Then Disney killed the Magic Bus and we haven’t been back since. Something really changed in the mid 2015’s and they have just killed it for us.
Disney cruise has really impressed me—it is just an all around better experience for families with kids than the theme parks, especially since the theme parks have gotten rid of or charges more for the family friendly features the used to have (magical express with luggage delivery, free and east to use fastpass, kids clubs at the monorail resorts). The cruises feel like an easier and more all-inclusive experience. I am excited that more ships will mean more itineraries for our family to explore.
100% agree. most definitely getting what you pay for. in recent years it doesn’t feel that way in the parks.
I’m more curious if they’re going to redesign the ships or if they will remain the same “wish class” ships as the other ones.
Otherwise I definitely agree with your sentiments, I was really counting on the fact that DCL was “done” for now and wouldn’t eat into the money they were promising on spending. This is not that.
We are massive DCL fans, but our already rabid fandom reached a fever pitch during the bleak Umbrella Bob era when the experience at the parks tanked while prices soared.
That said, I am EXTREMELY skeptical DCL will have a 13-ship fleet for any sustained period anytime soon. By contrast, Holland America Line has 11 and Celebrity has 16, and both have significantly larger shares of the American cruise market.
My firm belief is that the four new ships announced at D23 will be two replacements for the Magic and Wonder and two new ships. Once the four are put into the fleet (2031!) I believe the Magic and Wonder will go on a long, sad farewell season before being sent to the sweet happily ever after in the great blue beyond.
(Aka- sold to Margaritaville and used to take hammered college kids to and from Nassau until the keel literally falls apart)
As much as I’d love to see a larger DCL fleet, I can’t foresee half of the new ships not being replacements for the “OG two.”
I’ve seen references online to 25-30 for a cruise ship’s life, and that fits most of Holland America’s history. (In my experience, they’re the brand DCL should emulate in terms of quality.) That puts it right in the middle of a replacement for the first four ships. It doesn’t have to be an expansion, and there’s at least five years (from now) before they have to plan whether or not to make another purchase.
(No sense in making two buys of two ships when you know you need four.)
“Aka- sold to Margaritaville and used to take hammered college kids to and from Nassau until the keel literally falls apart”
I read this 5 minutes ago and I’m literally still laughing. It’s possibly the truest statement I’ve ever read. lol Well done, and thank you for the giggles!
“But what is the new-normal consumer appetite for Disney Cruise Line?”
This is the big question for me. As a millennial about to go on my third Disney cruise, DCL does seem to attract a different demographic. I’d never been interested in cruising until I tried one of the UK Staycation cruises when I couldn’t get to WDW. Since then, DCL has ramped up its marketing over here. My next cruise is another short UK sailing and the Facebook group is full of first time guests who’ve never been on a cruise ship before. There’s definitely potential for growth, they’re still one of the smallest cruise ship fleets. But is there enough demand for all of the ships on order when demand normalises?
Greetings from aboard the Disney Magic. 🙂
I am a long time parks fan but as my body has become increasingly unreliable, we’ve started spending more time and money on DCL (and are scaling back at WDW). I am wondering if Disney is thinking about how cruising might be more appealing as Americans become older, less fit, and less willing/able to tolerate long lines— especially those with the discretionary spending budget to pay for a multigenerational family vacation.
We have sailed all 5 ships and like them all— we like the Wish (but I can’t imagine spending 7 days on it, which is the main reason we haven’t booked the Treasure yet)…I am hoping that new ships won’t mean the end of the Magic and the Wonder, but I definitely do have concerns.
I have no interest in cruising, so I share your concerns that these could become a drag on the companies bottom line if they do not perform. But it does seem like everyone else in the world absolutely loves cruising and all the other brands are enlarging their fleets, so perhaps this will just be enough to meet demand. Who knows?
Maybe Disney’s answer to Epic Universe is a naval blockade?
This got an irl LOL out of me while I was reading this during a staff meeting at work. Well done!