Disney Cruise Part 3: Around the Ship

We tried to take a lot of pictures of different places on the ship, but looking through tem now, I realize we didn't get as many as we probably should have.  Kids in windows...

You can barely see a dark spot to the left of this splash, but it was a whale!  Sadly, this was the best photo I could get of it.  We saw whales a couple of times, but never very close up.

The first sunrise from our veranda

The main lobby - a cool glass sculpture/chandelier thing and double staircase:

There was a phenomenal kids area where you can drop off the kids and they can run around a play and do their own thing while the parents go to a show or take a nap or whatever.  I wondered if the kids would get bored of it after a while, but they never did.  They weren’t there all the time, but they were always excited to go, and they never really asked to be picked up.  They can stay til midnight if they want to.  They have electronic wristbands (like house arrest monitors – ha ha) so only the right parents can check them in and out, and they have GPS in them in case a kid gets lost.  Each stateroom also had two "wave phones" - kind of older model cell phones that work on the ship so you can call or text each other if you're doing separate things and trying to meet up, or if the kids need you for something while they're in te kid's lab.  They came in handy.

They didn’t allow photos in the kids’ areas, but I got one from the drop off area.  You can kind of see all the crazy lights and big screens & stuff in there.  There are separate areas for younger kids and older kids, and then the teens and tweens have their own areas on a whole different deck.  There were all kinds of games, toys, computers, books, beanbags, movies, and a couple of play structures.  They also had organized activities like crafts, science experiments, cooking classes, games, character appearances… those kids kept busy!

Of course the whole ship is very family-friendly, but there are also some adults-only areas, like little night clubs and the spa, a little café, and one pool is only for adults.  Disney is one of the few cruise lines without a casino on board, so we liked that a lot.  There was plenty of alcohol flowing, but we really didn’t have to deal with obnoxious drunks or partiers.  It was a good environment.

There were two full-sized theaters where we watched some movies and some really good musical productions.  I thought these would be cheesy & wasn’t too excited to see them, but they’re full-on productions with very impressive stage props and effects, and the acting/dancing was really good.  It’s something we’d really enjoy even if we weren’t trapped in the middle of the ocean!  This photo is from about halfway up the rows.

There were a few small lounge areas where you can relax and listen to piano players or bands or play with board games, and some larger studio-type areas where they had comedians and game shows and karaoke.

This was fun - one night we planned to go to a karaoke thing with another family, and when we got there, they had ordered virgin drinks for Rob and me (strawberry daiquiri and banana colada...mmmmm) and Cokes for the kids!  Here they are fueling up...

One thing we liked about the adult entertainment - Not "adult entertainment" if you know what I mean... everything was pretty clean, the comedians didn't curse all through their acts, and even if something was a little racy, it would be considered "Disney Dirty".  Not sleazy or creepy.  This was from a little skit some of the crew members did on the last night.

On the top deck, they have a sports court with basketball hoops and soccer goals, all surrounded with netting so you don’t lose your ball into the ocean!  There were also foosball tables, air hockey, and ping pong tables.  There was an arcade that we never even used.

This is a little clip of us walking through the "Route 66" part of the ship. I thought it was a cool area.

There’s a shallow pool in the shape of Mickey Mouse, with a cute slide and a splash pad for the little kids, and there’s a four-foot deep family pool that they can slide a deck over when they do big parties.



 

Robbie watching a bit of Toy Story and eating ice cream by the family pool.  This is the one they can cover with the deck.

 



Every night with turndown service, they leave a "navigator" in your room - a sheet outlining all the activities for the next day.  You can be as busy or as lasy as you like!