Mississippi Manic Mom: My unsolicated review of the Disney Dream

I know so many people are interested in how our trip was! Well, I thought the best way to describe it was by blogging about our trip - the goods and bads, the highs and lows. I will try to hit on a little of everything, but if I forget something and you have a question, don't hesitate to ask!

First, if you have not been on a cruise, you must try it some day. It is a low stress vacation that causes you to just slow down and enjoy everything. If you do not have kids, then I suggest any of the three major carriers, Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Disney. But if you have kids, its a no brainer - Disney Cruise Line is definitely the way to travel.

We have been on all three. And each time, the next cruise was just a tad bit nicer. But this time, the Disney Dream blew the other two out of the water. Here are some reasons why.

A model of what our boat looked like.

Meeting Donald before we get on board!

Going through the Mickey Ears meant you were boarding the boat!

The Crew

I know every crew is trained and ready to be at your service. This is what they do for a living and some are working for tips. But on the Disney Dream the crew didn't cater to us as much as they catered to our kids. MJ was constantly called 'princess' and JJ was given any and everything he wanted. The wait staff, the room host, the porters, the deck hands - every one was so happy and more concerned that the kids were having a good time and were happy.

Disney has it figured out. They understand the importance of having the kids happy all the time. And this made our vacation that much more enjoyable. I was not stressing because my kids were not behaving in the dining rooms. I didn't care that MJ was making noise in the nightly shows. We felt like we fit in and belonged.

The Boat

The Dream is the newest of the Disney Cruise fleet, just turning one the week before we cruised. In March, The Disney Fantasy will set sail for the first time. The advantage of these newer boats was they have the amazing 'Aquaduck'. This water ride is like no other out there - a clear, enclosed tube that travels the boarder of midship at the highest point on the boat (at least the highest point for people). It travels out over the edge of the boat and then races back to where you can see the pools and the deck where everyone is having a great time. Fun for all of us - JJ went several times and myself, Brandon, and even my parents tried it out. MJ was the only that was too little for it. There's always our next trip!

JJ and Brandon going out over the side of the boat on the Aquaduck!

Nana & Paka riding the Aquaduck!

Since MJ couldn't ride on it (you had to be around 36" tall to ride), there was a full covered, out of the sun, splash park for kids birth through 8 years old. It was called Nemo's Reef, after the movie Finding Nemo. MJ had the best time running around and playing in there. She keeps asking to 'find Nemo'. This was also the ONLY place that kids that were not potty trained could go. I was thankful to have this are though because MJ had fun and stayed out of the way with most of the bigger kids.

MJ in Nemo's Reef!

JJ played in the Mickey Pool, which at its deepest was probably not over 3 feet. We never worried about him in the pool because it was mostly kids and he was plenty tall enough to just stand right now.

Oh - did I mention ALL the water features were HEATED. Yes - a must since we traveled in January!

On the 14th deck, 3 decks higher than the pool, there were sports activities. They had a 9-hole putt-putt course, soccer and golf simulators, a basketball court, and a Foosball table. JJ played putt-putt at least twice while we were there. Even though there were probably around 3,000 people on the boat, the lines for anything were never bad.

Putt-Putt on the Sports Deck

A little shuffle board before we leave Port Canaveral.

JJ playing in Andy's Room.

Back on the 5th deck there was the Oceaneer's Club, a club designed for 4 to 12 year olds that had 4 different rooms - Andy's Room (from Toy Story), The Laugh Floor (from Monster's Inc.), a Princess Forest, and Nemo's Submarine. The cool thing about this - it was off-limit to adults. We waited and did this the last day we were on there, but JJ was dropped off at the Club in the morning and we picked him back up around lunch time. So we had time off! And - he had a blast. They did 'boot camp' with the soldiers from Toy Story and even had exercise time with Minnie, Mickey, Goofy, and Donald. Kids could spend all day in there so adults could lay by the pool. It was really neat.

JJ playing in on the Laugh Floor.

Other than that - there were about 4 'clubs' for adults that would be exclusive to adults after 9pm. Other times you could walk through with your kids. They also had a family club - so kids could stay up and dance with their parents - called the D Lounge. Midship was beautiful - it had a staircase that would be the grand entrance of all characters when it was Meet and Greet time (more on this later). The shops were nice - not too little, but not too much either.

There were two theaters onboard - they had the Buena Vista movie theater that showed movies currently in the theater on land. Beauty and the Beast in 3D was showing on the boat, along with War Horse and The Help. We went and saw Cars 2 in 3D. JJ had never seen a 3D movie, so it was a great opportunity to try it out without having to pay for the expensive tickets.

The other theater, The Walt Disney Theater was for live performances. Neither theater had and restrictions on food and drink, which is awesome with kids. The live performances were similar to Broadway - video or photography were not allowed. We say Disney's Believe, the Golden Mickey's, and Villain's Tonight. They were impressive, with Disney quality costumes, sets, and acting. It was impressive. And the kids loved it.

Posing on the Golden Mickey!

There were other things on the boat (Spa, Fitness Center) but I didn't visit them! There were so many amazing things to do that I really can't wait to go back!

The Dining

I have been on other boats and have loved the experience of dining on a cruise. And you know what I'm going to say - the Disney Dream was that much better. We had two amazing servers, both from Eastern Asia, that made our kids their first priority. Their orders were taken with ours, but when our salad/appetizer came out of the kitchen, their hamburger or mac-n-cheese came out as well.

Animator's Palate

The 'Mickey' Bar. MJ figured out that this was the best thing, and ONLY ate these.

Winding down for some food with Tink.

Food was excellent. I had lamb chops one night that might have been the best I have ever had. There were 3 dining halls we visited. This is different than any other cruise we have been on. Instead of being at the same table every night, we rotated dining halls. These three dining halls, the Enchanted Garden (after the gardens of Versailles), the Royal Palace (after the palaces in Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty), and the Animators Palate (inspired by Disney animation), all had different themed menus. I felt more like I was in a restaurant than on a boat. We sat at table 10 every night - and our servers traveled with us. It kept the experience of eating fun - I looked forward to seeing what was coming next!

Meet and Greets

Every night we would get our Cruise Planner for the next day. There was an extensive schedule of all the activities and things to do onboard (or off with excursions). My kids were there to meet Mickey. Every day on the schedule was a list of Meet and Greet locations of the characters - from Mickey and Minnie, to Princesses, to Peter Pan, to Tinkerbell. There was a 15 minute window to meet them (and take your picture with them - personal cameras were encouraged!). If you got in line during that time period then you were able to meet that character, regardless of how long the line was. MJ wanted to meet the Princesses. I got in line at 840am for a 9-915am Princess Meet and Greet (this included Snow White, Belle, Cinderella, Ariel, Tiana, and Aurora). We got to finally see those Princesses at almost 10am, and the line didn't finish until almost noon. That was the worst case scenario. We were lucky one time and literally walked right up and was the first in line to meet Princess Minnie. The Princesses were the big thing on this boat - it was PRECIOUS seeing all the little girls in their outfits, all dolled up wanting to meet their favorite. All the characters roamed the boat too. JJ got to give a high-five to Donald one time, and my dad got his picture with Mickey while he was roaming the pool deck. They were VERY accessible.

Waiting in the Princess Line.

My favorite picture - sweet girl so excited to meet Snow White.

Tired at this point, but got the routine of sitting on the dresses for a picture.

Nana and MJ waiting for Princesses to walk by.

MJ and Princess Minnie.

MJ talking to Belle.

My favorite story about this is quick - but a must to share. MJ LOVED to meet everyone. She would be a trooper and stand in line so she could run up and give the biggest hugs to anyone. And she knew their names by the time we were on our last day. Every time she would run up and talk to Mickey, she'd ask "Where's Minnie?", or to Daisy she'd ask "Where's Donald?". She understood they went together. And she'd hug them and instantly start asking questions where the other was. So much fun.

I'm not sure what else to say. If you have kids under 7, I highly recommend this type of Disney experience. Both MJ and JJ would have been frustrated and exhausted with going to Disney World - walking and standing in long lines. This was more their speed and what they needed to experience. And more mine. Knowing that when MJ was tired, only one person had to go downstairs to the room to rest for a bit (did I mention On Demand Disney shows and movies?! We had Little Einsteins and Phineaus and Ferb fixes all week!).

Cannot wait until our next. If you have any questions, just let me know. I didn't talk about Disney's private island in the Bahamas, Castaway Cay. But if you can get a cruise that goes there - do it. BEAUTIFUL. I'll probably write an addendum to this in the future when I remember more of the fun times we had on the amazing Disney Dream!