My friend Courtney recently went on her first Disney Cruise and she is sharing her experience with all of us!
We were able to book “Kids Sail FREE” and decided to check out the Disney Magic. We had not sailed from Galveston before and no clue what to expect. We popped the address for the Port in our iPhone Maps and off we went. Once we got near the port, we could see The Disney Magic. She is really big!
We entered the Port Drop off (Terminal B) and a Disney Crew Member met us at our van. I quickly unloaded the kids while he and my hubby unloaded and tagged all of our “checked” bags. I went inside with the girls and our two carry ons, while hubby took the van to park and rode the shuttle back. Parking for the duration of the cruise was $45.
Right inside the doors was a great back drop to snap a few photos, so I did that with the kids. There is also a bathroom in that area, so we opted to all “try” as we didn’t know what to expect after we went thru security.
We were given that sweet Disney greeting by a kind older man, who was wearing a Mickey hand as we entered the security line. That line moved very quickly. We needed our ID’s and birth certificates to get thru that line. Our carry on bags had to go thru a scan and we walked thru metal detectors. (Much more laid back then at airports!) We were then told to head to the document verification line. I went to get in that line (and there was NO waiting) while hubby and kids ran over to get a quick picture with Minnie Mouse. It had no line to wait either!
At the counter, I gave my cruise agreement (which I printed before we left) and all of our ID’s. He called the kids over so we could take a picture of us for their computer systems. He then printed out our Key to the World cards and told us we were in boarding group 6. We then moved over to get into the childcare check in line. This was a very long line. We had pre checked the kids in, but needed to get their wristbands. The wristbands are needed to check them into childcare. As we were waiting in this line, we heard them starting to board and decided that we would check them in on board instead.
They called our number and we went to the area marked and headed to get on the ship! During this line, a Disney Photographer takes your family photo with a nice back drop right before you get on the ship. We had to hand our key to the world cards and get them scanned one last time before we could board.
We were on the walk way when we saw Mickey Mouse! He hugged our girls and we were the only kids in sight…so we followed him on the ramp…my kids loved this. Once we got to the entrance of the ship, they stopped us and asked our names. We told them and WOW, did they give us the best Disney welcome ever!
We quickly made our way to Parrot Cay to enjoy lunch! This was a HUGE buffet. My kids were shocked to see so many choices and so much food. They had an area set up for kid friendly food. We got full tummies, then headed to the childcare areas to check them out. There was NO line and we were able to get their check-in bracelets easily. It was open house and the kids were able to tour all over the Club and the Lab. They loved both areas and wanted to stay and play. We promised them that they could come back later in the day.
We then went up to Deck 9 and took a tour of the pools and went inside to tour the Spa. This area smells so relaxing and I really wish we could have bought a of the packages and enjoyed that area. The fitness center is also in that area, which we planned to use each day.
By this time our stateroom was ready (1:30PM) and we went to check out our room. We were happy to see our luggage was already delivered and Steve and I quickly unpacked and put everything away. There is a little desk with 4 drawers, and a cabinet that opens. There is a rolling storage area (that we didn’t end up needed). There is another taller dresser with 4 drawers, as well as two night stands with one drawer each on them. We hung a lot of stuff up, so we had plenty of drawer space. The closet was big enough to store our luggage, and we kept shoes in the cubby holes thru out the room. The bathroom storage areas was small, but big enough for our needs.
At 3, we went up to Deck 9 and let the kids swim in the Mickey pool for a little bit. We met up with our Fish Extender friends for a few minutes before heading to our designated boat drill location. This was a bit confusing. Ask someone as soon as you get on board where to be at, and at what time. There wasn’t anything obvious that told us…we asked to get all of the information.
We went back to swim after this and stayed there thru the sail away party! That was so much fun and the kids got to enjoy their first self serve ice cream cones.
We then got ready for dinner, ate and then dropped the kids off in childcare. I’ll be posting more about the dinner experience as well. Steve and I enjoyed the adult only Piano Bar and a margarita, then went shopping in the gift shop. We got an ornament for our tree. It’s in the shape of our cruise ship and cost us around $14, which they charged to our room. (Just needed our Key to the World card to check out!)
Steve and I then enjoyed the hot tub for 30 minutes. We had to 100% to ourselves!!
We picked up the kids at 10:30 and headed back to our room on the 8th floor. There were chocolates and an adorable towel animal waiting for us. All of the beds were turned down and ready for us. How inviting! We called it a night!
Stay tuned for the Day 2 trip report!
Meredith says
I love the play by play! I can’t wait to read more. We are cruising in November and I love reading all the details. Hot tub with your husband while the kids were in childcare sounds like heaven!
Mandi says
My daughter and I sailed last week on the Magic too! It was our first cruise and we LOVED it. We definitely want to go again!
Julie says
Thanks for sharing! We are going on our first ever cruise out of Galveston on Disney Magic in 3 weeks! It’s nice to have a bit of a preview of what to expect….
Tracy says
What a wonderful description. I felt like I was almost there. Can’t wait to read about Day 2.
Shawna says
Can’t wait to read more about your trip! My family and I went on the Disney Wonder about 4 yrs ago and had a BLAST. It was one of the best vacations we ever had. I want to go on another one SO bad.
Kathie M says
Thanks for sharing! Can’t wait to hear about the rest of your adventure!
Courtney G says
Wow!! Thanks for sharing one day of your trip review! I cant wait to read more… we leave for our first Disney Cruise in a few months!
kristina says
What a great Disney welcome! I can’t wait to see the rest of your trip! What fun!