Secrets of the Disney Cruise Line

This article was written by Amanda Rose, an agent at Destinations in Florida Travel.

Planning a trip on the Disney Cruise Line can be a very tedious task! I know that before my own personal vacation I did more research on what is included, tips and FAQs! If the planning process is too overwhelming, you may always want to look into finding a Disney Planning Specialist (aka Disney Travel Agent) and let them help guide the way.

1. Deck 7 features a wonderful deck and overlook (known as Aft Overlook) that not many people know about – in fact, this deck on the Disney Cruise Line is almost always empty! To access this wonderful quiet getaway, walk all the way down the interior hallway to the access door at the very end. The door is labeled ‘Aft Outlook‘ and is open from 7am – 7pm each day.
2. Get all you can drink FREE soda/juice at the drink station on Deck 9 of the Disney Cruise Line Ships, rather than purchasing throughout the ships bars and room service on the Disney Cruise Line. Bringing a Bubba Keg or even a Disney Resort Refillable Mug is a great idea for all of those soda-lovers!
3. Character Signatures – Obtaining the signatures from all your favorite Disney Characters has never been so easy! Bring your object that you want signed (pillow cases, photo mattes, Vinylmation, Wedding Guest Book) along with some Sharpie markers to the Guest Services desk on your Disney Cruise Line ship and the item will be returned to your stateroom signed by many of your favorite characters!
4. Alcohol and beer CAN be brought on board! Disney Cruise Line allows guests to bring as much alcohol and beer aboard the ship as they can carry! And right there is the catch; you MUST carry the alcohol or beer on board in your carry-on luggage. Guests staying at a Walt Disney World Resort before their Disney Cruise may want to check out Garden Grocer, who will deliver alcohol right to the Resort for them. (Read more on the alcohol and beer policies for Disney Cruise Line)
5. Each night before bed, guests that are staying in a Concierge Stateroom receive a plate of cookies with milk. What many guests that are not staying in Concierge do not realize, is that you can receive the same plate of cookies and milk to be delivered at bedtime through Room Service (more information on Room Service).
6. Disney Cruise Line stateroom bathrooms have bathtubs in them! While the bathrooms may be small, they are still large enough to bathe a child in and can help save the sanity of many parents of children who refuse the shower!
7. The bathrooms in each of the Disney Cruise Line staterooms also have a clothesline in them! The clotheslines are a great asset for those that have been taking advantage of the water in the pools or at any of the ports! Great place to hang your bathing suits to dry!
8. Like the Walt Disney World Resorts, each stateroom on the Disney Cruise Line has a safe. While the safe is not large enough to fit your standard sized laptop computer – cameras, jewellery, passports and wallets can be left inside. The safe uses your ‘Key to the World’ card, so there is no need to remember numbers or carry extra keys around.
9. If you have little ones in your stateroom, ask your stateroom host/hostess to remove the little table and/or footstool. By removing either/both these items opens a large amount of space and gives your little one room to spread toys out and play.

Smoothies and floats are one of the items that are NOT complimentary on the Disney Cruise Line ships. A great tip for everyone that has a sweet tooth is to grab one of the larger cups at the complimentary soda drink station and fill your cup up half way with soft-serve ice cream (also FREE) and the other half with your favorite soda for a ‘float‘! (Extra note: there is also chocolate syrup next to the soft-serve ice cream machine, so you can even make your own sundae!)