I’m sitting in the silence of the morning on my first Disney cruise, knowing I’m about to disembark. My back is to the wall of Cove Cafe- the 18+ only coffee shop on board and all I can think is what do I want you to know?

Honestly, right now? My first tip- enjoy the coffee. It’s surprisingly good. I’m not a big Joeffery’s fan so that says a lot. We’ll get to that later though.

If you are a Disney World/Land fanatic and want to experience a Disney cruise- this is your go to guide for cruising with the Mouse. Let’s get to it!

What Makes a Disney Cruise Different

Even if you’ve done a different cruise line, there are things that make Disney cruises shine compared to the rest. Every liner is different and I want you to be prepared for your first Disney cruise! Here are a few tips and ticks:

Fish Extenders

When Disney decided to create a cruise line, they added fishes outside of each stateroom in order to be able to leave paper notes to their guests. But Disney people being who they are decided to take it a bit further. Then you get people like me: someone who is on their first Disney cruise and has no idea what a fish extender is.

These fish extenders are basically bags that have pockets for each person in your group. You can get on a facebook group and connect with other people who bring small gifts with them and exchange them. 

A couple of things that we found to be helpful:

• Please do not bring more stickers- everyone gives them out and its almost too much. We did save some from our gifts to give to others but we found the gifts like: games, stuff for pirates night, bracelets, and ducks. Another great one for adults are health packets, bottle openers, and water flavoring packets.
• The next time we cruise, we plan to put our fish extender gifts in small bags and add a sticker that says “From your friends at cabin XYZ” or “You’ve been Pixy dusted by cabin XYZ”
• We also plan to give our fish extenders a bit more pizzazz when we sail again.

Door Magnets

Door magnets are a way to express yourself and I’d hate for you to miss out on your first Disney cruise. We saw everything from fancy wooden ones that lit up to one that counted how many eye screams that cabin had during the trip. 

We bought our Door Magnets from Etsy shops- I’m also including some pictures of our favorite magnets from other staterooms.

Disney Character Meet and Greets

There are set times on the app  and the wait lines can be a bit long but the actual time is not terrible.

Plus you can get far more up close and personal at events (as in, you’re not standing ten thousand feets away from Mickey during a castle show) and its not surprising to find them walking around the ship. For our first Disney cruise, we were super excited about this!

The option to see Disney movies that are in theater on the ship

Right before we went on our first cruise the new live action Lilo and Stitch came out. Someone told me they were going to be showing it on the cruise and I was so grateful because it means I didn’t shell out that thirty-plus dollars to go see it at home before I cruised. Instead we got to watch it in one of the two theaters on board, with minimal other people.

Trading Pins

Many people will have trading pins outside their door and they typically have a trading activity on the at sea day. I wish I would have known this because I opted to leave all my pins at home. First Disney cruise (rookie) mistake!

In addition, if this is really your jam, you can post that you want to do this and its possible to meet up on your own as well. Meet new Disney friends!

This is a Family Friendly Cruise

While this should be obvious, it’s something worth noting. They do have an adults only area but many of the events are tailored to families. If you are like me and single (with adult kids) and still want to enjoy the family atmosphere- it might be worth it to reach out on the Facebook groups and make some friends before you embark on your first Disney cruise.

Pre-Preparation

Where to Stay on the Boat

Okay so I want to clarify that our first Disney cruise was onboard the Disney Magic, which is the oldest cruise line they have. Therefore, this might be slightly different depending on which one you are on. 

This was, honestly, one of the more disappointing aspects of our first Disney cruise. We got a verandah room- but our room had a big concrete area covering our view of the ocean unless we stood up. For reference, our room number was 7632. 

You can see in the picture where that room was roughly located. Next to it are rooms that have big circles and a little alcove area to sit in. While it’s nice for meals, my preference would be for one of the rooms closer to the middle area of the boat so that way we would of had a see-through balcony in order to sit in our chairs and watch the water while we sailed. 

Protection Plan

I highly recommend getting the protection plan. We booked the room in February for our first Disney cruise in June and thought “oh, we don’t need the protection plan”. About two weeks before though we had a scare. Mom thought she was going to not be able to go with us simply because we didn’t book the protection plan as well.

We have already put our down payment on our next cruise and because its a year out- I’m paying the small extra to make sure that I get the refund if something happens.

What Identification You Need 

This depends on where you are going. We went to the Bahamas on our first Disney cruise and we could have gotten away with just having a photo id and birth certificate but Breanna and I decided to go all the way and get our passports.

Next year, when we go to Italy, that will be the requirement since our port is in a different country. 

Figure Out Your Phone Data Plan

This is fairly simple: just call your carrier and ask them about international travel. This was included in my plan for where we were so I didn’t have too many issues when we were docked. On board our first Disney cruise there was no data service but I opted for the internet because I can’t live without you all!

You can also look into esims (like Airalo, Nomad, or Saily) which allows you to switch between different mobile network providers without physically swapping SIM cards. Like with my plan, this works well when you’re docked but not necessarily when you’re in the middle of nowhere (aka, out at sea).

Think About Money Exchange

Actually, no, don’t. I say this because Disney cruise lines will exchange your money at the going rate for no extra cost. When Nevaeh took her first international trip, we spent hours and too much money exchanging it for her so this is definitely a perk!

What to Pack for the Trip

If you are anything like me this become a big stress on your first Disney cruise. Heck, I’m not even the type that brings multiple shoes on a typical trip and I brought four pairs on this five-day cruise!

• Pack clothes for Theme nights. We all wore purple for Rapunzels and of course, decked out for pirates night. Now I have a goal of buying a particular dress for animator’s palace next go round.
• Magic Band+ was worth it times 10,000 in my opinion. I think they were underrated from all our research. I was able to do everything without having to pull out my key to the world card every single time. Just be sure to have it out when you get to Cape Canaveral because they activate it before you get on the boat.
• Small bills for adding additional tips for the head waiter, your server, the assistant server, and the people who clean your rooms.
• A Water Bottle. It helps conserve on trash when it comes to refilling your cup multiple times a day.
• GoPro Okay, this one isn’t required but if you are going down a slide, hitting the aquaduck, or just want to get that perfect picture in the crystal blue waters of the bahamas, it’s a must.
• A good hair dryer. If you have a nice hair dryer (I recommend this one), the two on ship will have you drying your hair for hours. Just bring yours.
• Laundry Detergent Sheets. Your clothes are bound to get wet- and if you’re wild like Nevaeh and me and run the 5K, sweaty. Being able to wash and dry them to keep them from smelling musty is key.
• Sunscreen. I recommend bringing two bottles because you’re going to be reapplying a good portion of the day.
• Bring your own alcohol. 

Download the App

Closer to when your first Disney cruise embarks, your app will be vital. Before sail date, you can make payments, schedule excursions (see next point), and keep up with your countdown. 

Once the cruise begins, you will use it to communicate with your people, find out what’s happening (and believe me, they will add new fun things), and get maps of the ship as well as the places you stop at.

We found our cruise photos on the app. But, in all honesty, our favorite feature was looking at the dinner menu.

Booking Any Excursions

We didn’t do any excursions on our first Disney cruise but I know we probably will for the next one.

These excursions, called port adventures, open up at different times for different people. For first time cruisers, it’s 75 days in advance.

Once your booking window opens, log into the app or website and head straight to “My Plans.” You’ll be able to see a list of available excursions for each port, including prices, age requirements, physical demands, and timing. Some of them are half-day, while others will take up most of your port day—so think about how much downtime you want.

Travel to Your Port Destination at least a Day Before

This helps cut down on stress levels of having something happen right before your first Disney cruise and then you don’t arrive at port on time. We opted for a day at Disney- enjoying our hotel and some light shopping at Disney Springs before a good rest, breakfast, and the hour drive from the hotel to Port Canaveral.

Ground Transportation 

It worked really well for us to get a Lyft from Disney World/Orlando to Port Canaveral. Here’s the breakdown of why we chose this option:

• Mears Transportation: $90 round trip x 4 people = $360
• Uber: $150 one way = $300 
• Lyft: $100 one way= $200

Essentially that gave us an extra $100-$160 to enjoy how we saw fit on our trip. 

Once Your On the Ship

Waiting for your room to open

It didn’t take long for us. Our onboarding time was two o’clock. We got there at one and was on the ship by about one thirty. They told us our room wouldn’t be ready until four but by the time we got our first buffet lunch finished, the room was ready and all but one bag was waiting for us. We got so lucky on our first Disney cruise and I’m hoping we can keep that up!

Elevator Issues

As long as your patient, this is not even an issue. They are VERY small on the Magic- says they fit twelve but for adults six is probably the maximum; however, they come and go quickly enough that you are not waiting super long. I also recommend using the stairs if you’re only doing a couple of flights. You will get there faster overall. 

Photo Pass

Don’t stress about this. We could not figure out how to buy the package to save our lives at the beginning of our first Disney cruise. At the end of the trip, we were able to get on the app and purchase the ones we wanted.

Wear Sandals

Going barefoot on decks nine and ten is not advisable- neither is doing so in the non-sand areas of Castaway and Lighthouse Cay. If anyone has figured out how to walk the boat deck to get to the slides without burning your feet, please let me know.

Eating on the cruise

breakfast

We ate at Cabanas every morning of our cruise because it was quick to get the food and the menu was fairly similar to what was being served where they were doing sit down breakfast. The girls started out strong but by day 5 were becoming very picky and choosy. I, however, stuck with the same thing basically the entire time: one sausage, one piece of bacon, half a Denver omelette (I cut it at the station using the tongs incase anyone else wanted it), sautéed mushrooms, an open-faced grilled tomato, and a small piece of starch of some sort- muesli was my go-to.

Might be bad to say but I am typically not a fan of the mickey waffles-they are too dense and taste fake to me; that being said: do NOT skip out on the churro waffles. For our first Disney cruise, they brought this out on day four.

Also, I personally think you should prepare to get a specialty coffee every morning. Totally worth it. I think between the four of us, we ended up getting three free coffees on this cruise (they had a buy five get one free punch card).

lunch

We ate lunch between noon and one every day and with a late dinner (at 8:15) you would find us at deck nine picking up a slice of pizza (which was very mid) and possibly an eye scream around five to hold us over.

snacks

The eye scream is their ice cream. The first day its just vanilla and chocolate but as the days progress, there is a specialty flavor each day. Nevaeh said her favorite one was the pineapple flavor on day three when we were in Lookout Cay, mom’s was the mango on day two, and Bre’s was the mint.

Also, get your popcorn bucket on day one and get refills throughout the trip. Maybe you’re not a popcorn fan and you love salty snacks. Bring chips on your first Disney cruise.

dinner

It is now 8:40 PM and about two hours ago my mom, the girls, and I talked about how much we missed our servers. So, here is my first piece of advice: get to know the servers on your first Disney cruise- and everyone thereafter, for that matter. They are wonderful people who work hard and love what they do.

*** Olivar, Marco, and Putu (our stateroom host) we love y’all!

Dinners are fairly big portions. Last night, mom and I took back basically a whole plate of the same dish- we should have shared.

If they offer the chilled mango soup- GET IT. I repeat- get it. Nevaeh said it’s basically a smoothie in a bowl but either way- de.lic.ous.

Specialty dinners: We liked dressing up for the dinners and our favorite night was animators palate.

Things to Do on the Ship

We had a very relaxing cruise and didn’t do that many on board activities aside from watching Lilo and Stitch, one epic night of karaoke and several craft activities. Every activity we went to was fairly quiet, so don’t stress about the crowds. There was nothing that overlapped either, mainly because we were fairly certain of what we wanted to do. Our only complaint about activities on board is that there was a lot of things that were for teens and tweens that we wish would have been opened (or at least created for) adults as well, such as video gaming competitions.

You don’t know what activities will be offered or when until you are onboard the ship and, again, I highly recommend downloading the app in order to know what’s happening.

There were longer lines to meet certain characters but the lines moved fairly quickly. It definitely felt like it was moving faster than at the parks. If crowds are a concern, the three things I would avoid are the Sail-a-Wave deck party at the beginning of the cruise, Pirates night, and the final goodbye. In addition, it would be best to go to the pool during a port morning when everyone else is sight seeing.

For those that want to be more active on their first Disney cruise, they do have a basketball court and an area to play games such as foosball. They have a yellow slide which was enough of a thrill for me but the aquadunk… It is a floor drop ride that is fast and Nevaeh said she was never able to catch her bearings. Opening her eyes or catching her breath was a no go. She is our resident trill seeker and she said it was not an experience she wanted to repeat. However, if you’re an Adeline junkie, this might be your thing, I did see plenty of people who went back again and again.

And at least she can say she did it.

Room Info

Upon initial entrance to our first Disney cruise room, I was worried that we wouldn’t have enough space; however, since everyone kept their stuff tidied up, it gets more comfortable. There is a turn down trundle bunk bed where the couch is. Best part? Housekeeping will turn down your room in the evening while you’re at dinner and make the beds in the morning once they know you’re out for a while. They are also very friendly.

The toilet and shower rooms are separate and both have a sink- this is great for getting everyone ready, and there was quite a bit of storage available in the room. Everyone in our group had two or three drawers to themselves. A big heads up as well that you can put suitcases under the main bed.

The beds are comfortable- the top bunk is fairly close to the ceiling so heads up for older kids. Also there is a reading light in the top bunk area that has a blue light on it when off. This is fine for families that are used to having a night light but if you like it pitch dark, maybe bring some electrical tape. 

One big thing to note on your first Disney cruise, at least if you’re going on the Magic, is that there are very few outlets. You will definitely need to bring some approved extension boxes. We had one and it really helped. You can also space out when you have what charging (ie. charge your phone at night, and your Apple Watch when you’re getting ready in the morning).

Wrapping Up Our First Disney Cruise Recommendations

First questions first: Are you ready to book your Disney cruise? You can do so here.

Want more great travel advice? Check that out here!

The biggest recommendation? Do some research but don’t stress too much. Have fun- it’s Disney magic. And if you’re like us- that means literally!