disney cruise early dining time

Family Travel

My Advice on Disney Cruise Early vs. Late Dining Time

Disney Cruise Line has long been synonymous with unparalleled family vacations, offering a perfect blend of entertainment, relaxation, and exploration. When it comes to dining, Disney takes the experience to a whole new level with excellent service, delicious food, and enchanting character interactions.

So you may wonder, how to choose between Disney cruise early vs late dining time. I’m here to guide you! We recently found ourselves facing a similar debate and I’m excited to guide you the pros and cons of each seating based on our experience as a family with three kids and a grandparent on 5 night voyage.

Disney Cruise Line’s approach to onboard dining is nothing short of extraordinary. Join us as we dive into the magical world of Disney Cruise Line’s dining options, sharing our experiences, tips, and all the delightful surprises that await you and your family. We recently went on the Disney Dream with our family, my mom, and friends.

Whether planning a future voyage or simply craving a taste of the Disney Cruise culinary experience, this blog post is your invitation to savor the flavors and stories of a family adventure at sea. Follow along to see the pros and cons of each dining option to help guide you to pick the best time for your family .

Pro Tip: If you are traveling with babies and toddlers, you want to ensure you are booked on the first seating of the night.

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• Family Matching Shirts
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• Pirate night supplies

Disney Dining

Disney Cruise Ships operate rotational dining on their ships. It may seem odd, but I liked the process. You start at one specific restaurant on night 1 and meet your servers. The crew will stay with you throughout your magical vacation. Your family or vacation group will rotate between all the Disney restaurants, and your servers follow you. This is very helpful as they learn about food allergies, drink preferences, and how to serve you best. Also, you have the same table number for the entire trip.

There are themed restaurants such as Animator’s Palate and the Royal Palace. The different restaurants have its unique cruise fare so you can try new things at no additional charge. If someone were torn between two appetizers on our trip, our wait staff would bring us both to try. The head server can assist with any questions you have about the menu as well.

Main Seating

On cruises in the Americas, the early seating is 5:45 and ideal for young children with early bedtimes. Before tucking in those little ones, you can still enjoy a delicious meal with fantastic service. Or, if your kids are a little older or have later bedtimes, you can enjoy dinner before heading to the night’s show. 

Pro Tip: If you are traveling with babies and toddlers, you want to ensure you are booked on the first seating of the night. FYI- this is a popular dinner spot, so consider booking your trip well in advance. We waited a bit to confirm our reservation, and by the time we paid, all the early dinner spots were gone. In the long run, we loved the later dinner, but it was a good lesson learned. 

As a side note, the early dinner on European cruises starts at 6 pm.

Second Seating 

The second dinner slot on the Disney Cruise line typically starts at 8 pm on cruises in the Western Hemisphere and 8:30 pm in Europe. On our first Disney cruises, we were novices and ended up with late seating by accident. We ended up loving the late dinner option for several reasons. In case you wondered, we traveled with 5, 8, and 10-year-olds.

First, early dinner cuts into your afternoon exploring the ship or excursions. For instance, the pool deck emptied by late afternoon as families prepared for early dinner.  Luckily, we had plenty of space to spread out in the pool and the best chair options to watch the kids or Disney movies on the big screen. The hot tub wasn’t packed, and the water slide line diminished greatly. 

In addition, an early dinner would shorten your time on Castaway Cay. We boarded the ship in the last 15 minutes and still had time to play on the main pool deck. If we had early dinner, we would have missed some activities, such as snorkeling on Disney’s private island. 

If you have older kids, late dinner is the way to go. If they are hungry in the late afternoon, grab something from the quick service before it closes or order free room service to carry over till the big meal.

Lastly, we loved the option of the early show. We could stay on the pool deck, shower, and make it in time. We also would split if some didn’t want the show, then they could keep playing while others attended it. Finally, we appreciated that our dinner crew wasn’t rushed to get us out before the next wave of guests came in for dinner. 

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Dining Tips

When do you know your dining rotation.

On the cruise, you can log into the Disney Navigator App and see your table number and nightly rotation. You will also be able to check the menus too.  If you travel with a group, your entire group will move together if your reservations are linked.

Changing your Dining time

If you miss your preferred dinner slot, immediately get on the waitlist and check frequently. It may not change before you board. As you wait to check in for the cruise, you can start to access the chat features on the Disney cruise app. Try reaching out to guest services and requesting a change. 

If you can’t secure the early seating, consider time zones, too- our cruise left out of Miami. We live on the East Coast, so there is no time change for us, but if you live further west, a later dinner may be an easier transition for your kids.

Main Dining Restaurants on each Disney Ship

🚢Disney Dream- Animator’s Palate, Enchanted Garden and Royal Palace 

🚢Disney Magic- Animator’s Palate, Lumiere’s and Rapunzel’s Royal Table

🚢Disney Wonder- Tiana’s Place, Animator’s Palate, and Triton’s

🚢Disney Fantasy- Royal Court, Enchanted Garden, and Animator’s Palate 

🚢Disney Wish – 1923, Worlds of Marvel, and Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure.

Room Service

If you are exhausted from your day at sea or your little ones need an earlier bedtime, consider ordering room service. In particular, squeezing those in with younger kids may be difficult if you want to enjoy the earlier show or pirate night. Order room service to ensure you can soak in all the Disney magic before bedtime! There’s no additional fee for room service, so take advantage of this great amenity.

FAQ: Disney Cruise Early vs. Late Dining Time

🚢 is there a dress code.

Some other cruise lines host a formal night at sea, but not Disney. In my experience, the dress code was a wide range. Some families dress nicely in summer attire of dresses, button-up shirts, and polos, while others are very informal. On Pirate night, the majority are in some costume. 

We wore beachy attire for dinner. My mom, daughter, and I were in dresses for many nights while my boys and husband wore polos with shorts. The dining rooms are cooler, so bring a light jacket if you get cold easily.

One afternoon, we visited Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique for my five year old daughter, so she came to dinner all dolled up as a beautiful Belle. If you are on the fence about splurging on the experience, check out my review of this magical transformation .

🚢 Is there additional costs at dinner?

The main additional cost is in alcoholic beverages. They have signature drinks for each restaurant, and I found the prices very affordable.

You can opt for some meals or the Royal tea at an additional cost.

🚢 Do you tip the wait staff?

At the end of the cruise, each room is given small envelopes to tip all crew that served them. This would include your crew for meals as well as housekeeping. We had our kids give the tips to our wait staff at the end of the last meal. Typically, your servers are phenomenal, and you will want to tip them.

🚢 Can kids attend the kids club during meals?

You can feed your child separately and send them to the kids’ club if you prefer a quiet meal. Also, many kids love the Oceaneer Lab and want to spend hours there.

🚢 Can you bring alcohol on board?

Guests 21 and older can bring an unopened 6-pack of beer or two unopened bottles of wine on board. You can do this at the trip’s start and at each port of call.

In Conclusion: My Advice on Disney Cruise Early vs. Late Dining Time

In conclusion, deciding between early and late seating on a Disney cruise is a personal choice that can greatly influence your family’s dining experience. Whether you opt for the convenience of an early dinner that allows for post-meal activities or prefer the flexibility of later seating, both options offer exceptional Disney service and culinary delights. Ultimately, the best choice depends on your family’s unique preferences and daily schedule.

Regardless of your decision, the memories you create together while sailing the high seas with Disney will undoubtedly be magical, filled with enchantment, and unforgettable for years to come. So, go ahead and select the dining time that suits your family best, and prepare for a voyage full of adventures and bonding moments that will last a lifetime. I hope my guide on Disney Cruise Early vs. Late Dining Time helps you plan your next great adventure.  

⭐Disney Resources⭐ Is a Disney Cruise worth it? Best Ages for a Disney Cruise My Guide On Disney’s Rotational Dining Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique on a Disney Cruise Best Shoes for Disney for Families Best Disney Shoes for Women

Rebecca is a wife, mom of 3, and avid traveler. She loves to plan trips for her family to exciting places in the US, Canada, the Caribbean, and Europe. In addition, she loves to help family and friends plan their next great adventure. Most hate the planning and research process, and that is her passion. When she isn't traveling, she's a high school US History teacher in an Atlanta suburb.

Disney cruise food: The ultimate guide to restaurants and dining on board

One of the best things about a cruise is the food, especially if you're sailing on Disney Cruise Line .

From the oldest Disney ship, Disney Magic , to the newest, Disney Wish , the cruise line has continued to raise the bar when it comes to dining on a cruise ship. One thing that makes Disney cruise dining stand out among its competitors is the line's rotational dining program. Throughout a sailing, guests rotate dinners through three main Disney cruise restaurants, and their service team moves with them.

For cruise news, reviews and tips, sign up for TPG's cruise newsletter .

Along with the three main dining rooms across each ship, each Disney Cruise Line vessel also has an abundance of complimentary casual dining spots, at least one adults-only specialty restaurant and some lounges that offer food at an extra cost. With so many choices across the fleet, it can be confusing to know which restaurants are on which Disney ships.

Our Disney cruise food guide has all you need to know about dining options across the cruise line's fleet, including where to find them and whether they cost extra or are included in your fare. We also answer some of the most popular questions about dining and food on Disney Cruise Line.

Disney's rotational dining restaurants

Enchanted garden.

Included and a la carte; rotational dining; breakfast, lunch and dinner

Imagine stepping into a restaurant that's bright with light from the sun and is inspired by the gardens of Versailles. That's exactly what Enchanted Garden is. The venue is one of the rotational dining restaurants on Disney Fantasy and Disney Dream .

Dinner at Enchanted Garden is three courses, with appetizers like lobster ravioli or a curried carrot and apple soup. The sea bass on the entree menu is a favorite of mine and is always cooked to perfection. Polish off the meal with a piece of chocolate torte or a banana sundae.

On every ship fleetwide, sit-down breakfast and lunch are served in one of the rotational dining restaurants daily. Which restaurant hosts breakfast and which hosts lunch varies by itinerary, and they can be the same venue for each meal or different for breakfast and lunch.

Related: The ultimate guide to Disney Cruise Line ships and itineraries

The menus are typically set menus and do not change based on the host venue. On disembarkation day, your family will dine in the final restaurant of your set rotation, whether you ate dinner there or not. All breakfast menus on the final morning are the same across the ship's rotational dining options.

For breakfast, try one of the made-to-order omelets or Mickey-shaped waffles, all served by a team of helpful waiters and waitresses. Then, for lunch, menus feature soups, sandwiches, full entrees and desserts over three courses. Breakfast and lunch are both open seating, so you don't have to wait for a certain time or your assigned dinner table to be open to enjoy a meal.

Available on : Disney Fantasy and Dream

Animator's Palate

Disney Cruise Line's signature rotational dining restaurant is Animator's Palate, which can be found on the four oldest Disney ships. On Disney Magic and Disney Wonder , the restaurant is covered in black-and-white sketches of popular Disney and Pixar characters. On Disney's larger ships, Disney Fantasy and Disney Dream, the space is themed after an animator's studio, complete with maquettes, light boxes and computer workstations.

While enjoying the ambience, you can indulge in a menu filled with Asian and California fusion dishes. One of the most popular, and my favorite dish on the menu, is the black truffle pasta purseittes tossed in a creamy Champagne sauce. For something sweet after dinner, try the creme brulee or opt for a classic Mickey ice cream bar, which can be ordered at any of the rotational dining options fleetwide even though it's not listed on the menu.

Depending on which ship you're on, you have the chance to see three different shows inside Animator's Palate. On Disney Magic (on seven-night sailings or longer) and Disney Fantasy, you can draw your own character and, just before dessert, everyone's drawings are animated and come to life on screens near your seat.

On Disney Magic and Disney Wonder, "Drawn to Magic" shows off characters going from rough sketches to full-color animations. At the end of the show, Sorcerer Mickey stops by to say hello. If you're sailing on Disney Dream or Disney Fantasy, you'll also be able to join in the fun of "Undersea Magic," where Crush, from the Pixar movie "Finding Nemo," swims through the video screens around the room and stops to have conversations with various diners.

Available on : Disney Magic, Wonder, Dream and Fantasy

Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure

Get ready to belt out "Let It Go" for the millionth time at Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure . This rotational dining restaurant on Disney Wish highlights Norwegian-inspired dishes. One highlight of the menu is Elsa's Royal Baked Scallops, which is scallops in a tarragon bisque loaded into a crock that's topped with puff pastry and baked to golden brown perfection. If your sweet tooth is as big as Anna and Elsa's, you can indulge in desserts like butter cake, apple cake or a mint chocolate chip sundae.

The dinner experience also includes a mealtime show. Anna, Elsa, Kristoff and Olaf make their way around the restaurant to meet guests and perform songs from "Frozen" on stage. A highlight is when Elsa's "ice magic" from the movie lights up the dining room through fiber optics in the ceiling. Kids can join in the final celebration and march around the restaurant conga line-style as they wave flags and sing along to "Love is an Open Door" with the dining room service team.

Available on : Disney Wish

Lumiere's

"Beauty and the Beast" fans will love dining in the restaurant named after the candelabra in the film. When you walk into Lumiere's, you'll notice more nods to the animated classic, including glass domes covering red roses and a large mural that shows the iconic ballroom scene from the fan-favorite movie.

This restaurant is part of the rotational dining program on Disney Magic, and a four-course, French-inspired meal is waiting for you. Highlights of the menu include a bacon and mushroom tart, French onion soup, roasted duck breast and creme brulee.

Additionally, breakfast and dinner are served here for those who want a more relaxing meal. Breakfast is fairly basic, with options like made-to-order omelets and pancakes. The lunch menu rotates daily and is a three-course meal.

Available on : Disney Magic

Disney Wish's 1923 is one of the best rotational dining options across Disney Cruise Line. The restaurant is named after the year that The Walt Disney Company was founded and celebrates animation through glass-encased shadow boxes of sketches and maquettes of Disney characters.

The restaurant is divided into two dining rooms named after Walt and his brother Roy, though both serve the same menu, which celebrates California cuisine. My favorite dishes include the seared tuna appetizer, grilled filet entree and the churros with caramel dipping sauce. This is a great spot for a steakhouse date night, too, so if you have kids, drop them off in the kids club and enjoy a meal to yourself without having to pay extra for Palo Steakhouse.

Related: Disney cruise tips, tricks, secrets and extra magic to unlock when setting sail with Mickey

Located just off the Grand Hall, 1923 also offers a waiter-served breakfast and lunch every sailing day. Menus for both can be seen on the Disney Cruise Line app or by asking a crew member at the restaurant. Be sure to ask for a seat near a window because the views are usually incredible.

Rapunzel's Royal Table

My favorite rotational dining restaurant on Disney Magic is Rapunzel's Royal Table, which is themed after the Disney movie "Tangled." The restaurant features dinner and a show. Enjoy a meal while being entertained by Rapunzel, Flynn Rider, the thugs and ruffians from The Snuggly Duckling and a live band, who are all celebrating Rapunzel's birthday.

Dinner here is one of the best on the ship, with dishes like beef and portobello mushroom ravioli, sea bass with Champagne-truffle vinaigrette, and pesto pasta with seared scallops. Of course, no birthday party is complete without dessert, and the menu is filled with options like creme brulee cheesecake and chocolate cake.

Royal Court

The fine dining option for rotational dining on Disney Fantasy is Royal Court. The restaurant serves a French-inspired menu for dinner with dishes like lobster and shrimp cocktail, wild boar tenderloin and peanut butter mousse — which just happens to be my favorite combination of courses to order here.

The dining room is also open for breakfast and lunch for table service meals in a beautiful atmosphere. The breakfast menu is the standard fare, though do look out for the pastry plate that is walked around by a server and try one of the sweet cinnamon rolls. Lunch is a three-course meal with a rotating menu throughout the cruise.

Available on : Disney Fantasy

Royal Palace

Cruisers looking for a spot to enjoy a meal at a leisurely pace will love Royal Palace. The restaurant is part of Disney's rotational dining service for dinner but is also open for breakfast and lunch. Dinner is a four-course meal inspired by French cuisine with dishes like spinach souffle, rack of lamb and creme brulee.

Breakfast is fairly basic with traditional morning options, but it's always nice to be served rather than fight others at the buffet line. Lunch is a three-course meal where the menu changes daily, so be sure to check the cruise line app for the most up-to-date menus once you board the ship.

Available on : Disney Dream

Tiana's Place

Exclusive to Disney Wonder is Tiana's Place, part of the rotational dining roster on the ship. The restaurant is themed after the Disney animated movie "The Princess and the Frog," with a menu that highlights Creole and Cajun cooking. While enjoying your dinner, you'll also be entertained by a live jazz band playing songs from the movie and other instrumental melodies.

Of course, no dinner at a New Orleans-themed restaurant on a Disney ship is complete without seeing the Bayou princess herself, Tiana. She swings by nightly and gets everyone out of their seats to parade around the restaurant with servers just like a parade through the French Quarter.

Available on : Disney Wonder

Triton's

The last of the rotational dining options on Disney Wonder is Triton's, which is the ship's fine dining option among the rotational dining restaurants. The art deco-style restaurant is themed after "The Little Mermaid," with a mural of Ariel and King Triton, plus a bronze statue of Ariel just outside the restaurant.

Breakfast here is fairly basic but more relaxing than hitting the buffet line. Menu options include omelets, French toast and fruit. The three-course lunch menu is a nice alternative if you're looking for a table-service lunch.

Related: How much does a Disney cruise really cost?

Dinner features French and American fare with dishes like duck confit and escargot for starters, then roasted lamb shank or lobster macaroni and cheese for entrees. One thing not to miss when it's on the menu is the Grand Marnier souffle, which is my favorite dessert across the entire Disney Cruise Line fleet.

Worlds of Marvel

Fans of the Avengers and other Marvel characters will love dining in Worlds of Marvel . The meal starts with your hosts, Ant-Man and the Wasp, explaining what the interactive quantum core on your table is for. Then, throughout the meal, you'll work with Marvel superheroes to save the ship from an impending villain.

The menu at Worlds of Marvel is themed after the different fictional and real locations featured in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, like Wakanda, New York and Sokovia. Highlights of the menu include a pork belly bao bun, chicken schnitzel and a lamb shawarma salad. If you're looking for a vegetarian option, the ricotta gnocchi with fontina cheese and pesto sauces is a delightful plate.

Extra-fee specialty dining on Disney Cruise Line

Enchante by chef arnaud lallement.

Extra cost; adults-only; brunch, dinner and dessert

Adults looking for a culinary wonderland on Disney Wish will want to make reservations for the French-inspired dining experience, Enchante by Chef Arnaud Lallement , whose restaurant L'Assiette Champenoise in Reims, France, has three Michelin stars.

For all three meal services — brunch, dinner and dessert — ingredients are sourced from around the world, and no two menus are ever the same. Dinner is a fine dining experience that can take upward of three hours, so you might miss the evening show in the Walt Disney Theater. Schedule your dinner with care if there's a show you don't want to miss.

The Champagne brunch at Enchante is a prix-fixe meal paired with a glass of Champagne, while Just Desserts is a five-course dessert menu served with some of the best coffee on the ship.

Related: 7 reasons you should treat yourself to a cruise ship specialty restaurant

Pricing for brunch, dinner and dessert starts at $80, $135 and $60, respectively, for a prix-fixe meal. There is also an a la carte menu for brunch and dinner.

Extra cost; adults-only; brunch and dinner

Drop your kids off at the Oceaneer Club or Oceaneer Lab and head to Palo, an adults-only Italian restaurant on four Disney ships. The restaurant is named after the poles used by gondoliers in Venice. Walking into Palo, you'll notice the panoramic windows looking to the ocean that offer spectacular sunset views.

Dinner at the restaurant can be done as an a la carte meal where you pay for each item or a set cost prix-fixe menu for $50. I prefer to do the a la carte menu because it has more options. Plus, most of the dishes are shared among family or friends, so choosing this option makes it so I can try more things. The a la carte menu is also the only way to try the restaurant's iconic potato gnocchi, which is tossed in a fresh basil pesto sauce.

Related: The best $50 you can spend on a Disney cruise

No matter which you choose, be sure to get the signature Palo chocolate souffle with vanilla bean gelato for dessert.

Brunch is a more casual affair than dinner but no less delicious at $50. Brunch at Palo is one of my favorite things to do on Disney Cruise Line, and the meal service is offered on all ships on most sea days. If you don't have a sea day on your itinerary, brunch might be served on a port day. On a recent cruise, I made a reservation for brunch at Palo when the ship was docked in Nassau, Bahamas.

Brunch starts with a glass of prosecco or a mimosa, then your choice of antipasti plates. I suggest taking a few people with you to brunch so you can try a few of the dishes on the menu, though one not to miss is the chicken Parmesan that's served with risotto. Another favorite is the lasagna, which is the perfect size for everyone to get a few bites before moving on to something else. The almond croissants are heavenly. If you eat your first almond croissant in a hurry, just ask your server if they can bring you another one.

Additionally, Platinum- and Pearl-level Castaway Club members get one free dinner at Palo per sailing for everyone sharing their cabin.

Available on : Disney Wonder, Magic, Fantasy and Dream

Palo Steakhouse

While the four older Disney Cruise Line ships have Palo, Disney Wish has a new variation of the popular adults-only restaurant called Palo Steakhouse. The ocean-facing restaurant serves dinner nightly and brunch on most sea days and the occasional port day.

The dinner menu is similar to that of Palo on the other Disney ships, with a prix-fixe dinner starting at $50 and an a la carte option. The a la carte menu emphasizes steaks, with American prime cuts, Australian wagyu and Japanese Kobe and Miyazaki beef you can pair with one of five sauces. If you ask, you can also get a sauce flight to try all of the options with your steak.

Do not overlook the dessert menu. While the classic chocolate souffle is available, the carrot cake with lemon cream cheese frosting is an exquisite end to a meal.

Brunch, which is also $50, is the same menu across the fleet, so you can get your favorite items here while overlooking the ocean in an elegant setting.

Additionally, Platinum- and Pearl-level Castaway Club members get one free dinner at Palo Steakhouse per sailing to share with everyone in their cabin.

Adults looking for an upscale meal without kids will want to book Remy on Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy. The adults-only French restaurant is themed after the Pixar movie "Ratatouille," and eagle-eyed diners will even spot the little chef made of glass perched in the dining room. The menus here are curated by chef Scott Hunnel from Walt Disney World's Victoria & Albert's and chef Arnaud Lallement.

The dinner service starts with a complimentary Champagne cocktail called "Collette" after the female chef in "Ratatouille." The tasting menu does change seasonally, so no matter when you go, you'll find something new to try. After your meal, a cheese trolley comes around to serve a selection of cheeses from France along with accompaniments. Finish off your meal with coffee and dessert. The prix-fixe menu at Remy is $135, and there's also an a la carte menu.

Related: 11 ways to save money on a Disney cruise

On four-night or longer sailings, Remy also offers brunch and a dessert event, which are $80 and $65, respectively. Brunch at Remy is prix fixe with dishes like lobster cannelloni and sea bass, plus a glass of Champagne and a dessert. Those with a sweet tooth will want to try the dessert service where a five-course dessert menu is served with coffee. During the sweet meal, Remy's executive chef and pastry chef will talk about the history of each dessert and how it's made.

Available on : Disney Dream and Fantasy

Olaf's Royal Picnic

Extra cost; character experience

For even more "Frozen" fun on Disney Wish, kids can spend time with their favorite characters from the movie at Olaf's Royal Picnic, an extra-cost lunch and character experience. The event, which isn't a true picnic, takes place inside Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure and features a two-course meal, one savory and one sweet. While enjoying lunch at one of the restaurant tables, kids and their accompanying adults can sing along to "Frozen" songs and meet Anna, Elsa, Kristoff and Olaf.

For kids ages 3 to 12, pricing for the event is $220 and includes lunch and a goodie bag filled with gifts like an Olaf hat, a mandolin and a plush troll doll. Adult meals are $69.

Royal Court Royal Tea

Extra cost; character experience; tea party

If your kids love tea parties and Disney princesses, you might want to book one of the Royal Court Royal Tea experiences on a Disney cruise. The tea party is for young cruisers ages 3 to 12, though a parent will have to accompany their children.

During the tea party, kids can choose from a selection of teas and pair their drinks with one sweet and one savory course. A Royal hostess and pastry chef tell stories, dance and sing with the group before welcoming in a few Disney princesses. Each child will receive an assortment of gifts as a keepsake after the event.

Pricing is $220 for kids ages 3 to 12 and $69 for adults. Kids ages 13 to 17 years old who attend with a younger sibling will be charged the adult price.

Available on : Disney Magic, Wonder, Fantasy and Dream

Casual Disney cruise dining options and snacks

Included; buffet; breakfast and lunch

Cabanas is Disney's buffet on its older ships, with 10 food stations in a beach-themed space. For breakfast, you can get everything from eggs and hash browns to Mickey-shaped waffles and fruit. Typically, once per cruise, the buffet will also offer churro Mickey waffles, which are a sweet take on the traditional breakfast dish.

For lunch, you can try out a variety of salads, sandwiches and pizzas. If you're looking for something heartier, try the carving station near the back of the buffet. The classic kids menu options of macaroni and cheese and chicken strips are readily available as well. Be sure to find the towering piles of crab legs and poached shrimp that grace the buffet line as well.

Marceline Market

Marceline Market is named after Walt Disney's hometown of Marceline, Missouri. The food hall-style buffet serves breakfast and lunch.

The casual eatery has a variety of breakfast options, including an omelet station, Asian favorites like congee and fried rice, and a kids station with pancakes and Mickey-shaped waffles. Lunch is a bigger deal here with a carving station, a salad bar, an international station where I've had great Indian food and a dessert bar.

One thing to note about Marceline Market versus Cabanas on the other Disney ships is that at Marceline Market, crew members often fill up your plate for you and then pass it over the glass food guards. This process makes the buffet a little easier and healthier than the self-serve option.

The buffet has both inside and outside seating, so on warm sea days, take your plate outside to enjoy the view of the ship's wake.

Mickey & Friends Festival of Foods

Included; lunch, dinner and snacks

Near Disney Wish's main pool is Mickey & Friends Festival of Foods. This outdoor open-air concept is made up of five smaller quick-service windows dishing out barbecue, pizza, burgers, tacos and ice cream. My favorite is Donald's Cantina, which is a make-your-own Tex-Mex spot with plenty of base, protein and topping options, along with a nearby salsa and hot sauce bar.

One big bonus to this location is that it's open until 6 p.m., so if you don't want to deal with one of the main dining rooms for dinner, you can come here early for a casual meal.

Flo's Cafe

Included; lunch and snacks

If you're out by the pool and in need of a quick lunch or a snack, stop by Flo's Cafe, which is made up of three different "Cars"-themed windows serving cruise classics like burgers, pizza, salad and chicken tenders.

Pinocchio's Pizzeria

Included; casual dining; snacks and lunch

If you're looking for a hot slice of pizza, look no further than Pinocchio's Pizzeria. The menu is small, with only a few pie choices, including cheese, pepperoni and vegetarian. That said, the pizza is always hot and fresh, making this a great poolside snack while watching a movie on the funnel TV.

Available on : Disney Wonder and Magic

Pete's Broiler Bites

Included; casual dining; lunch, dinner and snacks

If Cabanas is too busy or you just want a quick meal, head to Pete's Broiler Bites. The outdoor grill has a menu filled with American classics like burgers, hot dogs, brats and chicken tenders, all of which can be served with crispy fries. This is a hot spot on sea days for quick snacks and meals at lunchtime, so go during off times for a shorter wait.

Daisy's De-Lites

Included; casual dining; snacks

You'll find Daisy's De-Lites near the pool on Disney Magic and Disney Wonder. The casual counter-service spot has a nice selection of salads, sandwiches, wraps and fruit. I like to grab a wrap and some fruit to take with me to watch a movie on the funnel or in the cinemas on the ship.

Duck-In Diner

Outside on the pool deck of Disney Magic, Duck-In Diner dishes out lunch and snacks to hungry cruisers. The menu here is a fun mix of American favorites like burgers and dogs, plus Middle Eastern-inspired shawarma wrapped in a warm pita. I love the shawarma because you can see it rotating on a vertical spit right behind the counter and load up your sandwich with your favorite toppings.

Eye Scream Treats

Included; snacks

One of my favorite things about a cruise is the unlimited soft serve ice cream. At Eye Scream Treats, you can get as many ice cream cones or cups as you want throughout your sailing. The flavors do change daily, so check out what's mixing in the machines each day.

Extra-fee snacks

Extra cost; snacks

Just outside the Walt Disney Theater is a snack bar where you can get candy, popcorn and drinks before a show or movie. Before you even get to Preludes, you will smell the freshly popped popcorn, which can be served in a souvenir popcorn bucket. If you bring your bucket back to Preludes, you can enjoy discounted popcorn refills throughout your cruise. Buckets that are brought on board from other cruises or from a Disney Park are not available for refills at the discounted price.

Available : Fleetwide

Frozone Treats

While most food and snacks on Disney Cruise Line are included, some options are not, including Frozone Treats. This small snack stand whips up poolside smoothies for an extra cost that can be charged to your onboard bill.

Available on : Disney Magic, Fantasy and Dream

Sweet on You

Sweet on You is the adorable ice cream shop on Disney Fantasy. The snack shop has a variety of ice cream and gelatos that can be paired with 32 different toppings. There's also a whole case of baked goods, including cookies and cupcakes, and confections like truffles and candy. Each of the treats is an additional cost that can be charged to your cabin with your room key.

Senses Juice Bar

After a hard workout or time in the steam room, nothing is more refreshing than a fresh juice or smoothie. At Senses Juice Bar, you can get blended drinks made with fruit and veggies, then take them over to a small cafe table to look out onto the ocean or port of call while you enjoy your drink.

Vanellope's Sweets & Treats

Get a sugar rush at Vanellope's Sweets & Treats, which is themed after the movie "Wreck-It Ralph." The extra-cost snack shop has everything from gelato in crispy waffle cones to baked goodies and candy.

Inside Out: Joyful Sweets

Even though there are plenty of snacks and sweets available as part of your cruise fare, you might want to pop into Inside Out: Joyful Sweets to treat yourself to a sugary splurge. The sweet shop is where you can find hand-scooped gelato and ice cream in a variety of flavors. The shop is also known for its "Memory Orbs" cupcakes that pay tribute to the main characters in the Pixar movie "Inside Out."

Wheezy's Freezies

Wheezy's Freezies is the onboard smoothie shop on Disney Wish. Indulge in fruity drinks for an extra fee.

Room Service

Included and a la carte; breakfast, lunch and dinner

Unlike many other cruise lines that charge for room service, Disney Cruise Line still includes room service in its fares. In the morning, continental breakfast offerings can be delivered to your room from 7 to 10 a.m. To get breakfast, you will need to fill out one of the request cards in your room and leave it hanging on the door the night before your meal. Alternatively, you can call room service from your cabin phone to order in the morning.

For lunch and dinner, the menu is filled with sandwiches, salads, soups and desserts. If there are chicken wings listed on the menu, I implore you to get them. I always get an order after a day at Castaway Cay, Disney's private island, and the wings consistently arrive hot and crispy.

Don't forget that you can order Mickey's Premium Ice Cream Bars from room service even though the sweet treat is not on the menu. I love ordering one of these on a sea day to enjoy while taking in the view of the ocean from the balcony of my room.

Frequently asked Disney Cruise Line questions

How does rotational dining work?

You will be assigned a rotational dining restaurant for each night of your cruise. You will move through all three main dining rooms throughout your cruise and more than once on sailings longer than three nights. Your service team will move with you, and your table number will remain the same each night. At booking, you will select either main dining (5:45 p.m.) or late dining (8:15 p.m.) for your dining time. Your selected time will always be the opposite of the time you are slated to see the show inside the Walt Disney Theater.

Do I need reservations for specialty restaurants?

Yes, reservations are highlight recommended for all of the adults-only specialty restaurants fleetwide. Reservations can be made online as early as 123 days prior to your embarkation day, depending on your level within Disney's loyalty program called Castaway Club.

It's best to make reservations as early as possible so you know you have a guaranteed table at the time slot that you want. Some reservations for Palo, Palo Steakhouse, Remy and Enchante might be available to book once you're on board, but it's not guaranteed.

What drinks are included with my cruise fare?

Most drinks are included with your overall Disney cruise cost. These include drip coffee, juice, soda from soda machines, tap water, milk, tea and lemonade. The exceptions are alcoholic drinks, canned sodas from bars, bottled water and smoothies, which are purchased individually and charged to your folio.

Related: Disney cruise drink packages: How to save on beer, wine, cocktails and coffee

Bottom line

Disney Cruise Line offers a wide variety of dining options to please everyone from picky kids to epicurean adults. With treats like unlimited ice cream available near the pool, chicken tenders and fries to munch on while watching a movie and build-your-own taco bowls available on various ships, you'll always find something tasty.

Families enjoy rotational dining because they can try out different restaurants each night while sticking with the waiters who quickly get to know everyone and learn their preferences. Adults will find that the restaurants reserved just for them dish out some of the best meals on the ship in an inviting atmosphere.

Planning a cruise? Start with these stories:

• The 5 most desirable cabin locations on any cruise ship
• A beginners guide to picking a cruise line
• The 8 worst cabin locations on any cruise ship
• The ultimate guide to what to pack for a cruise
• A quick guide to the most popular cruise lines
• 21 tips and tricks that will make your cruise go smoothly
• 15 ways cruisers waste money
• The ultimate guide to choosing a cruise ship cabin

How Does Dining on Disney Cruise Line Work?

By: Author Carrie Ann Karstunen

Posted on Published: July 8, 2021  - Last updated: November 21, 2022

Are you planning your first Disney cruise? Cruisers new to DCL often have lots of questions about how dining on Disney Cruise Line works.

I’ll answer all of the most commonly asked questions about meals on a Disney cruise —everything from handling food allergies, to how seating arrangements work, to requesting extra dessert at dinner.

What food and drinks are included in my Disney cruise fare?

All Disney cruise ships offer three Main Dining restaurants that are complimentary for all passengers. But you’re not limited to eating in the MDR if you don’t want to pay extra for your meals and snacks!

You’ll also find quick-service dining options for a poolside meal, a buffet that becomes a table-service restaurant at dinner, and 24-hour room service, all for free!

Every ship also has upscale specialty dining restaurants along with elevated snack options available for an added charge.

To find out what complimentary and for-a-fee dining options will be available on your cruise, check DCL’s dining venue list and select your specific ship from the drop-down menu.

Soft drinks served at meals and at each ship’s beverage station are also included in your cruise fare.

What is rotational dining on a Disney cruise?

If you’ve sailed before on other cruise lines, you’ll notice that DCL does things a bit differently when it comes to dinner. Disney cruises use a concept called rotational dining, where guests receive a personalized dining schedule on embarkation day. You’ll be assigned to either early or late dining, and your schedule shows which restaurant you’ll dine at each evening.

Rotational dining is Disney’s way of making sure each guest has a chance to try each of the three Main Dining restaurants while on board.

Each evening, you and your tablemates will rotate to a different themed restaurant. Plus, your servers rotate with you! This way, the service staff gets to know your preferences while you experience the unique atmosphere of each dining venue.

Disney Cruise Line doesn’t offer a version of “anytime dining” in their main dining rooms. However, if your set dinner time interferes with your plans on any day, you can always eat at an alternative dining venue or make reservations for a specialty restaurant.

Be sure to let your server know if you’ve made other dining plans—they’ll usually delay service for the rest of the table if they think you’re just running late.

Will I have to sit with strangers at dinner? Can I request a private table?

DCL’s standard policy is to seat guests from the same stateroom together at dinner in the Main Dining venues. If you have friends or family sailing with you but in a different cabin, you can absolutely ask to sit together. Just be sure to request this when you book your cruise, or let your travel agent know.

Disney staff aim to fill the dining tables, which generally seat four, six, or eight. If you have a smaller party, they’ll usually seat you with other guests. They do try to match dining groups—seating adults without children together and matching families with other similarly-aged families.

Although they generally do a great job of matching guests for dinner, occasionally they get it wrong and you’ll find yourself sitting with someone you can’t stand. Just let the Head Server know, and they often can make alternate arrangements.

Don’t like the idea of eating with people you don’t know? You can request a private table for dinner. Just call DCL or tell your travel agent, and the cruise line will try to honor your request.

What time is dinner served on Disney cruise ships?

Each evening on a Disney cruise, there are two seatings for dinner, the main or early seating, and the second or late seating. The early seating begins sometime between 5:45 PM and 6:15 PM (exact times vary based on itinerary). The late seating begins between 8:00 PM and 8:30 PM.

Your assigned seating time (along with an alphabetical code for the order of your dining rotation) will be noted on the dining tickets you’ll find in your stateroom on embarkation day.

Want to change your seating time for your cruise? You can submit a request through DCL’s  Planning Center .

Do the rotational dining venues offer entertainment at dinner?

Several—but not all—of the complimentary restaurants offer entertainment at dinner.

Inspired by Tangled , Rapunzel’s Royal Table on Disney Magic features lively singing and dancing from a band of musicians. You’ll enjoy appearances from Tangled characters like Flynn Rider, the Snuggly Duckling Thugs, and of course Rapunzel herself.

At Tiana’s Place on Disney Wonder , the Crawfish Crooners perform New Orleans-style jazz numbers during your meal. Louis the trumpet-playing alligator joins in on the fun, and Tiana is on hand to greet her guests and sing a few of her favorite songs.

Animator’s Palate , inspired by animation from Disney and Pixar films, is available on all Disney ships. Depending on the ship, each Animator’s Palate features a different show during dinner. On Disney Dream , diners can interact with a digital Crush the sea turtle from Finding Nemo .

On Disney Magic , Fantasy , and Wonder , guests at Animator’s Palate are treated to a montage of Disney and Pixar clips. The show’s finale features the theme song from Fantasmic , with a visit from Sorcerer Mickey who dances and mingles with passengers.

Are there other character dining experiences available on a Disney cruise?

Disney fans (especially the littlest ones) love character dining, and you can book even more character experiences to enjoy at mealtime.

Is your kid obsessed with Disney princesses? Royal Court Royal Tea , designed for children aged 3 to 12 is offered on all Disney cruise ships. Adults are welcome, but they must be accompanied by a child! Cinderella, Belle, and Ariel host this beautifully presented tea party, where guests can enjoy small sandwiches and pastries.

Royal Tea is a bit of a splurge, but your child will also receive several high-quality gifts during the hour-long experience (you can choose between princess-themed and knight-themed gifts).

If your Disney cruise is seven nights or longer, the family can enjoy a character breakfast, and it’s free! Disney Junior Breakfasts are usually scheduled twice a week on sea days . Space is limited, so you do need to request tickets in advance through your Disney Cruise Personalizer online or via the Disney Cruise Line Navigator app.

Geared toward little cruisers, the characters you might see include Sofia The First, Doc McStuffins, Jake, and Vampirina. Of course, Mickey Mouse will also be there to meet the family.

Is room service available on a Disney cruise?

Although many cruise lines now charge a fee for room service, DCL offers complimentary round-the-clock meal delivery right to your stateroom.

You can order meals or snacks at any time, although lunch and dinner options are unavailable during the breakfast hours of 7 to 10 AM. Room service is available until 1:30 AM on the last day of your cruise.

Certain snacks and beverages do have an additional charge, and tips aren’t included (a dollar per meal is just fine).

Do Disney ships have a buffet?

Most Disney Cruise Line ships feature Cabanas , a buffet-style restaurant that offers more than ten diverse food stations for breakfast and lunch. At dinnertime, Cabanas converts to a table-service restaurant with menu options cooked to order.

For breakfast, Cabanas serves classic American breakfast fare to start the day. Enjoy made-to-order omelets, scrambled eggs, sausages, hash browns, Mickey-shaped waffles, muffins, fruit, cereal, and more.

The lunch offerings at Cabanas include salads, soups, burgers, sandwiches, steak, chicken, seafood, and pizza, along with a range of sweet dessert treats.

If you’d like to skip your scheduled restaurant at dinner, you can eat alfresco or choose an indoor oceanview table at Cabanas. The menu features signature dishes from the Main Dining restaurants, plus their own exclusives.

For an additional charge, you can order cocktails and specialty drinks from the full-service Clam Bar .

Cabanas has plenty of kid-friendly options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You’ll find classic children’s food favorites to satisfy picky eaters of any age.

The new Disney Wish ship, launched in July 2022, replaces Cabanas with a new buffet concept called Marceline Market .

Marceline Market is a food hall with ten stalls, all inspired by marketplaces around the world. Cruisers can enjoy a variety of food options, including American favorites and comfort foods, international specialties, and vegetarian and vegan fare.

Which restaurants serve breakfast and lunch on Disney cruise ships?

In addition to the buffet and the various quick-service restaurants on board each Disney ship, some of the Main Dining restaurants also serve breakfast and lunch daily, including:

• Disney Dream :  Royal Palace  and  Enchanted Garden
• Disney Fantasy :  Royal Court  and  Enchanted Garden
• Disney Magic :  Lumiere’s
• Disney Wonder :  Triton’s
• Disney Wish : 1923

Check your Personal Navigator daily newsletter or the Disney Cruise Line Navigator app on board for specific breakfast and lunch times.

Are all the restaurants on Disney cruise ships kid-friendly?

All of the Main Dining restaurants you’ll visit in your rotation are kid-friendly, along with Cabanas and all of the quick-service food venues. However, the specialty restaurants are all adults-only. All guests at these added-charge restaurants must be 18 or over.

Adults-only dining venues on Disney ships include:

• Remy (on Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy )
• Palo (on all DCL ships)
• Palo Steakhouse (on Disney Wish )
• Enchanté by Chef Arnaud Lallement (on Disney Wish )

What’s the difference between the Main Dining restaurants and the specialty restaurants on DCL?

The food served in Disney’s Main Dining restaurants tends to be excellent, with a variety of options for all palates. But the adults-only specialty restaurants on Disney cruises elevate the cuisine, service, and ambiance to a much higher level.

Foodies and those seeking a reprieve from the often noisy atmosphere you’ll experience with rotational dining might want to consider booking dinner or brunch at a specialty restaurant. It’s not cheap—but many Disney cruisers agree that the experience, as well as the food, are well worth the money.

Remy is DCL’s ultra-luxe gourmet French dining venue featuring a menu co-curated by Chef Arnaud Lallement (of France’s three-Michelin-starred L’Assiette Champenoise) and Chef Scott Hunnel of Victoria & Albert’s at Walt Disney World. The décor is loosely inspired by Ratatouille , but you won’t find costumed rat characters—it’s an elegant experience, perfect for a romantic dinner or special occasion.

• Dinner:  $125 per person
• Remy Champagne Brunch:  $75 per person (add $30 per person when you include the Champagne pairing)
• Remy Dessert Experience:  $60 per person (add $25 per person when you include the wine pairing)
• Petites Assiettes de Remy:  $50 per person (includes one wine pairing per course) 
• Remy Wine Pairing Experience:  $105 per person

Palo , Disney’s upscale Italian restaurant, takes its name from the colorful poles lining the canals of Venice. Within Palo’s sophisticated atmosphere, diners can enjoy a memorable experience savoring Northern Italian specialties and classic reserve wines.

• Prix fixe dinner: $45 per person (add $59 per person when you include the wine pairing)
• À la carte menu: Priced by item (add $59 per person when you include the wine pairing)
• Brunch:  $45 per person

Palo Steakhouse takes the well-loved Palo concept of authentic Italian dining and combines it with the refinement of a modern steakhouse. Beauty and the Beast ‘s Cogsworth is the inspiration for this new restaurant.

• Prix fixe dinner: $45 per person. (add $70 per person when you include the wine pairing)
• À la carte menu: Priced by item (add $70 per person when you include the wine pairing)

Enchanté by Chef Arnaud Lallement is another luxurious Disney dining experience curated by the renowned French chef. Inspired by everyone’s favorite candelabra maître d’, Lumiere, diners at Enchanté can expect to be surrounded by elegant, romantic design details.

• Enchanté Dinner Collection: $195 per person
• Champagne Journey: $140
• Passion (six courses): $125 per person (add $115 per person when you include the wine pairing)
• À la carte menu: Priced by item (add $115 per person when you include the wine pairing)
• Brunch:  $75 per person

How do I make reservations for Disney Cruise Line specialty restaurants?

As long as you’ve paid for your cruise in full, you’ll be able to make reservations in advance depending on your Castaway Club level. You can see what dates and times are available, as well as book your reservation, in your online cruise planner.

Here’s how far in advance of sailing you can make specialty dining reservations:

• Platinum Castaway Club (completed at least 10 DCL cruises): 120 days in advance
• Gold Castaway Club (completed at least 5 DCL cruises): 105 days in advance
• Silver Castaway Club (completed at least 1 DCL cruise): 90 days in advance
• New DCL cruisers : 75 days in advance.

Guests staying in concierge level staterooms can always make reservations 120 days in advance. Just be sure to reach out to your shoreside concierge prior to that 120-day mark so they can help you with booking.

Will restaurants on a Disney cruise accommodate food allergies or special diets?

If you have a food allergy or intolerance, let your Head Server know soon after you arrive on embarkation day.

Guests with severe or life-threatening food allergies should contact DCL’s Special Services team at (407) 566-3602 well before sailing.

Servers and kitchen staff on Disney cruises are well-trained to handle food allergies, but they don’t have separate kitchens to prepare allergen-free items.

For guests who follow a special diet for medical, lifestyle, or religious reasons, all of the table-service restaurants offer gluten-free, vegetarian, no sugar added, dairy-free, and “lighter note” offerings on the menu.

Other special diet options, including kosher meals, are available by advance request. Let your travel agent know what kind of special meals you’ll need, or call Disney Cruise Line well before your sailing date to discuss your options.

You may also like: How to Eat Whole30 (ish) on a Cruise

Is there a limit to how much food I can order at the dining venues?

When you’re eating in one of the rotational dining restaurants or at a quick-service spot, feel free to order as much food as you can eat! Maybe you’d like to order an extra appetizer (or two!) for the table so you can all share. And yes, if you have a sweet tooth, you can absolutely order two desserts.

This goes for the main course as well! For cruisers with hearty appetites, you can definitely order two entrées if you’re feeling ravenous.

In the for-a-fee specialty restaurants, you can generally ask for an extra starter or dessert if you’re ordering from the prix-fixe menu. Some cruisers have had luck ordering additional main courses, but many others haven’t. It seems to be a YMMV situation!

However, when ordering from the à la carte menu at any of the specialty restaurants, you’ll be charged for each item you order.

You may also like: What New Cruisers Don’t Know About Cruise Food & Drinks

Do restaurants on Disney ships have a dress code?

In the Main Dining restaurants, the dress code is “cruise casual”, so shorts and tees are allowed. Swimwear isn’t allowed in the dining rooms, and (at least officially) tank tops are banned. However, dining staff don’t tend to turn away women wearing dressy tanks, sleeveless tops, or tank-style dresses. Male passengers won’t be allowed in if they show up in a tank top.

Although cruise casual is the official minimum dress code, most passengers tend to dress up a bit for dinner.

On most Disney sailings, one night will be themed as Pirate Night . That evening the restaurant servers, dressed in pirate costumes, will bring you Caribbean-inspired food. Many guests like to join in on the fun, wearing their own pirate-themed outfits to dinner.

You’ll also have at least one optional dress-up night (seven-night sailings have one formal and one semi-formal night). DCL recommends dress pants with a jacket or a suit for men, and a dress or pantsuit for women.

Learn more: What to Wear on Formal Night on a Cruise

For adults-only restaurants, like Palo, Remy, and Enchanté the dress code is a little more strict to maintain an elegant atmosphere.

Disney Cruise Line used to have very specific dress codes for each adult dining venue. However, in June 2022 the cruise line relaxed the rules.

Per DCL, the new dress code states: “ Formal or semi-formal attire is recommended. Dress casual attire with a polished look is permitted (such as dress pants, jeans in good condition, collared shirts and blouses and lifestyle shoes). Clothing such as T-shirts, swimwear and sports attire is not permitted. “

Can I bring my own food on a Disney cruise ship?

With all the options available for dining on Disney Cruise Line, many people wouldn’t even think of bringing their own food on a DCL ship. But for parents of especially picky kids, or adults who can’t imagine being without their favorite snacks, this is a question that comes up fairly often.

Parents of babies eating solid foods also wonder if they’ll be allowed to take the specific jarred baby food their child enjoys onto the ship.

Disney has specific rules surrounding food items, as well as food prep and storage items that guests can and can’t take on the ship.

You can bring:

• Nonperishable foods in sealed, original packaging. (All items must either be consumed prior to returning to your home port or remain unopened.)
• Breast milk (in your carry-on luggage only).
• Coolers no larger than 12″ x 12″ x 12″ only for storing medications, baby food or items related to dietary restrictions (in your carry-on luggage only).

 You may not bring:

• Homemade, pre-cooked, or perishable foods or open food containers.
• Ice chests or coolers, except as noted above.
• Electrical appliances such as rice cookers, hot plates, coffee makers, blenders, bottle sterilizers, and bottle warmers (each ship has a limited number of approved bottle warmers and bottle sterilizers available—request these through Guest Services)

More resources for your Disney cruise

• Where Do Disney Cruises Go?
• Disney Wish: Everything You Need to Know About DCL’s Newest Cruise Ship
• How to Have the Best Embarkation Day on a Cruise

What do you think about dining on Disney Cruise Line? Or is your first sailing coming up and you still have questions about how dining works on DCL cruises? Let me know in the comments below!

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Tips for Disney Cruise: Our Advice

You’re booking your first-ever Disney Cruise.  Congratulations!  You’ve probably already covered the basics such as where does the Disney Cruise go and how long will it be… but now you’re no doubt seeking advice on just about everything else.  We’d like to help.  Everyone who’s been on a cruise has their favorite tips about unlimited ice cream, ordering two entrees at dinner, taking a day at the spa, and so forth — so we though we’d offer a few tips that you might not otherwise think of.  Consider these our “not so obvious” tips for Disney Cruise Line passengers.

Choose your Dining Time Wisely

Most dining onboard a Disney Cruise is at your leisure… show up at any time during the restaurant’s operating hours and enjoy a meal.  But dinner is the exception.

You might have heard that Disney uses a system called  rotational dining for dinner service.  You are scheduled at a different restaurant each night of the cruise, and the same service team is at that restaurant every night.  In other words, the same waiter or waitress will be with you every night for dinner, regardless of the restaurant you’re scheduled in.

When you book your cruise, you’ll be asked to pick the time you want to have dinner each night of the cruise.  You can choose either first seating (main dining, around 5:45 PM), or second seating (late dining, around 8:15).  the exact times may vary slightly by sailing.  This choice is important because you’ll be tied to it for the duration of the cruise… you can’t pick 5:45 on the first night and 8:15 on the second night.

Disney Cruise Dining Time Considerations

Early or late — which to pick?  Normally you might think the decision would be as easy as just deciding what time of day you want to eat.  But there are other factors to consider:

• What effect will your choice have on the rest of your day’s meals?  If you’re eating dinner at 5:45, what does that mean for when you’ll need to have breakfast and lunch each day so you’re hungry at dinner time?
• How does your dinner time match up with port visit times?  On an Alaska Cruise , for instance, early dining might mean you have to be back onboard the ship an hour or so before the “all aboard” time just to make your scheduled dinner — meaning you’re missing out on time in port.  You can see scheduled port times on your itinerary page on the Disney cruise website.
• Your dinner time is directly correlated to the time you’ll have breakfast on the morning your cruise ends. To expedite getting everyone off the ship at the end of the cruise, everyone has breakfast at the same restaurant their rotational dinner was assigned for the prior night.  Have early dining? You’ll end up having breakfast REALLY early on the last morning of the cruise… around 6:30AM-7:00AM.  Those with the later dinner seating get to sleep in just a bit, with breakfast closer to 8:00AM on the last morning.
• What effect will early or late dining have on your kids?  If they’ll be staying up late on the cruise, the late dining time is probably no big deal (bonus: your dinner servers can expedite serving kids during late dinner, then the Youth Club counselors will drop by to take kids off to the clubs while you finish your dinner at a leisurely pace).  If, on the other hand, your kids are zonked out by 8PM, then early dining is the way to go.
• Do you prefer to have dinner then a show — or a show then dinner?  Each night’s big Broadway-style live entertainment is presented twice — once at around 5:30PM (for people who will be dining during the second dinner seating), and again at 8:30 (for people who dined during the first dinner seating).  If your showtime is important to you, choose your dinner time accordingly.
• Do you plan to spend a lot of time in the nightclubs onboard the ship?  If so, early dining will let you get your meal out of the way by the time things start to heat up.
• Remember that many people end up — well — overeating on a cruise.  Maybe having later dinner is better if you’re gorging on breakfast and lunch; or maybe you need to eat earlier so you have time to digest before bedtime.

Whichever you choose, you can always snack during the off hours to make up for any minor hungriness that might pop up in between meals.  And if there’s one time that works for  most of your cruise but not for one particular night, you can always eat dinner at a different location such as Cabanas or Marceline Market on your own schedule.

Know When To Book Onboard Experiences

Once you’ve booked your cruise and selected a dining time, you’ll probably begin thinking about when you can book onboard experiences.  These can include your scheduled port arrival time (when you’re allowed to board the ship for the very first time at the start of the cruise), adult-exclusive premium dining experiences, spa/salon treatments, port adventures ( shore excursions ), cabanas at Castaway Cay, and other activities.

Disney Cruise Line uses its Castaway Club (frequent traveler) program to determine when you can book.  Sadly, first-time cruisers are the last to book these experiences — 75 days in advance of the first day of your cruise (unless you happen to be staying in a Concierge-level room).

Because people who have sailed with Disney in the past (or are staying in Concierge Level) have booking priority upwards of 120 days in advance of sailing, first-time cruisers might find some of the most popular experiences such as Palo Brunch may be sold out by the time you can book.

Do your research ahead of time — book as soon as you’re allowed — and have alternate plans ready in case your first choice isn’t available.  If you’re not able to get what you want, check again when you get onboard.  People’s plans change all the time, so you might happen upon an unexpected opening.

An important note: regardless of when your booking date rolls around, you won’t be able to proceed with any onboard bookings if there’s an outstanding balance on your cruise fare. Plan ahead to make sure you’ve paid in full  before your onboard activity date occurs.

Save Money with an Onboard Credit

Speaking of onboard activities, here’s a great way to save money on them — get your travel agent to pay for your onboard activities!

Confused?  Here’s what we mean:

Life onboard the ship is mostly cashless — all of your onboard purchases (alcohol, premium dining, port adventures, gratuities/tips, etc.) are charged back to an in-room account, and you must pay off that account at the end of the cruise.

To entice you to book through them, some travel agents (such our partner The Vacationeer ) will pay a certain amount towards that in-room account on your behalf.  They call this an onboard credit .  It won’t reduce your cruise fare (the amount you pay to get on the ship), but it will give you a bit of cash to splurge with once you’re onboard.  That’s why many people consider a travel agent to be the best place to book a Disney Cruise .

The amount you get is directly related to the cost of your cruise and how it is booked.   The Vacationeer offers onboard credits of up to $1,000 for people who book a Disney cruise directly through them — and up to $500 for cruises that are transferred to them after being booked elsewhere.

If you already have a reservation and want an onboard credit, act quickly!  You typically have only 30 days after you make the reservation to transfer it to a travel agency so you can get the credit.  The cruise also must still have an outstanding balance — it can’t be paid in full.

Be Prepared for Your Final Night

On the final night of your cruise, you’ll be asked to pack your bags early and set them outside your room.  Your stateroom hostess will move them to the hold of the ship, where they’ll be offloaded and waiting for you inside the terminal as you debark (get off the ship) the next morning.

Sounds easy enough – but it can be a bit trickier than you might think. First, plan ahead based on when you’re asked to place the bags outside; it’s usually no later than say 10PM, which can be problematic if you have late seating for dinner.  So you might end up packing your stuff up a bit earlier than expected, which can make dressing up for the evening a bit trickier.

You also need to make sure you don’t pack away anything you need for the next 12 or so hours — but be prepared to schlep it off the ship yourself.  Think contacts, medicines, toiletries, baby supplies, jackets — and of course undies, shirts, pants, and shoes.  Forget one of those and… well, as the old comic strips used to note, “it may be comedy for you folks but it’s tragedy for me.”

Most cruisers pack their “big” bag up and send it away, using their airline carry-on as their last night’s luggage.

Be Smart With Your Flights

If you’re not fortunate enough to live within driving distance of a port, you’re likely going to be flying in.

We recommend that you NEVER plan your flight on the same day that your cruise begins. One missed connection or flight delay, and you’ve quite literally missed the boat (though they prefer you call it a “ship”).  It’s well worth the cost of one night’s hotel stay to not be sitting in the airport terminal, watching the minutes tick by, sweating if you’re going to make it to the port on time.  Plus you’ll be well-rested and can start your cruise out right.

As for returning home, it’s much less risky to fly out on the same day your cruise ends .  Just make sure you allow enough time to exit the ship, clear customs, and travel from the cruise port to the airport (Port Canaveral, FL is about an hour away from the Orlando airport).  Disney Cruise Line will often publish guidance for your cruise such as “we recommend you book your flight home no earlier than X:00 PM”.

In a Rush? Use Express Walk-Off.

Not that anyone really  wants to get off of the ship at the end of the cruise, but sometimes you might be in a hurry to do so.  Maybe your flight time is a bit too soon for comfort, or you just have other obligations to attend to.

In our prior tips, we discussed luggage handling on the final night of the cruise and your final morning’s breakfast; using Express Walk-Off throws both of those concepts completely out the porthole.

If you’re doing Express Walk-Off, there are two essential things to understand:

• You’ll be completely responsible for getting your luggage off the ship.  Don’t put your bags outside of your room the night before, because they won’t be offloaded in time to meet you at the terminal.
• You’ll be long gone by the time breakfast is served.  You can still grab a quick (and not very substantial) continental breakfast at Cabanas or Marceline Market, but eggs and bacon will elude you.

On the final morning of the cruise, you’ll hear an announcement — likely around 6:30 or 7:00 AM — that Express Walk-Off passengers are clear to go ashore.  That’s your cue to grab your bags and disembark.  Don’t stick around — head off the ship right away, clear Customs, and go on about your day.  Lollygag about and you’ll miss your opportunity, leaving you caught up in the crush of everyone else leaving the ship.

We hope our tips have helped you prepare for your Disney Cruise. For even more information, see  Cruising with Disney: A Complete Guide for First Time Cruisers . Bon Voyage!

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• Plan Your Trip

How To Change Dining Time On Disney Cruise

Published: December 10, 2023

Modified: December 28, 2023

by Marieann Nunnally

• Travel Tips

Introduction

Welcome to the world of Disney cruises, where dreams come true and magical memories are made. As you embark on your Disney cruise adventure, you may find yourself wanting to make changes to your dining arrangements, particularly the dining time. Whether it’s to accommodate your schedule, preferences, or special occasions, Disney Cruise Line understands the importance of flexibility when it comes to dining. In this article, we will guide you through the steps to change your dining time on a Disney cruise, ensuring that you have a seamless and enjoyable experience.

Disney Cruise Line offers a rotational dining system, which means that guests have the opportunity to dine in different themed restaurants throughout their cruise vacation. Each night, you and your family will be assigned a specific dining time and restaurant, allowing you to experience the unique ambiance and culinary delights of each venue. However, if you find that your assigned dining time doesn’t align with your plans or preferences, don’t worry – Disney Cruise Line provides several options for you to change your dining time.

Understanding the Dining Time Policy on Disney Cruise

Before we dive into the steps to change your dining time on a Disney cruise, let’s first understand the dining time policy. Disney Cruise Line offers two main dining times: an early seating and a late seating. The early seating usually starts at around 5:45 PM, while the late seating typically begins at around 8:15 PM. These times may vary slightly depending on the specific cruise itinerary.

The dining time you are assigned to is based on factors such as your cabin category, the number of guests in your party, and any specific requests you may have made during the booking process. The assigned dining time will determine when you need to be at the designated restaurant for your meal each night.

It’s important to note that the dining time policy is in place to ensure efficient service and to accommodate the various activities and entertainment offered on the cruise. It also allows the dining team to provide personalized and attentive service to all guests.

However, if you have circumstances that require a change in your assigned dining time, Disney Cruise Line provides options for you to make adjustments. Whether you need an earlier dining time to accommodate young children or a later dining time to enjoy evening activities, there are solutions available to meet your needs.

Steps to Change Your Dining Time on Disney Cruise

If you find that your assigned dining time on a Disney cruise doesn’t fit your schedule or preferences, there are several steps you can take to make a change. Disney Cruise Line understands that flexibility is important in creating a memorable vacation experience for guests. Here are the options available to you:

Option 1: Contact Disney Cruise Line Before the Cruise

If you have a specific dining time request in mind before your cruise, it’s advisable to contact Disney Cruise Line directly to make the change. You can reach out to their customer service team and provide them with your reservation details. They will do their best to accommodate your request based on availability. It’s important to note that dining time changes are subject to availability, so it’s best to make the request as early as possible to increase your chances of success.

Option 2: Request a Dining Time Change Onboard

If you didn’t request a dining time change prior to your cruise, don’t worry – you still have the opportunity to make a change once onboard. Head to the Guest Services desk and inquire about changing your dining time. The staff will assist you in finding available options and making the necessary adjustments. Keep in mind that availability may be limited, so it’s recommended to make this request as soon as possible after boarding the ship.

Option 3: Speak with the Dining Room Manager

If the first two options didn’t yield the desired result, you can speak directly with the Dining Room Manager onboard. Explain your situation and any special considerations you may have. The Dining Room Manager has the authority to make dining time changes, depending on availability and the specific circumstances. They will do their best to accommodate your request and ensure that you enjoy your dining experience to the fullest.

Remember, flexibility is key when it comes to changing your dining time on a Disney cruise. It’s important to approach the process with a positive attitude and an understanding that availability may be limited. Whether you choose to make the request before your cruise or once onboard, Disney Cruise Line is committed to creating magical experiences for their guests and will make every effort to accommodate your needs.

If you have a specific dining time request in mind before your Disney cruise, it’s recommended to contact Disney Cruise Line directly to make the change. By reaching out to their customer service team, you can provide them with your reservation details and discuss your desired dining time. Disney Cruise Line understands the importance of accommodating guests’ preferences and will do their best to fulfill your request, based on availability.

When contacting Disney Cruise Line, be prepared to provide them with information such as your reservation number, sailing date, and the names of all guests in your party. This will help them locate your booking quickly and efficiently. Additionally, communicate your reasons for the desired dining time change, whether it’s to align with other activities, accommodate young children, or celebrate a special occasion.

It’s important to keep in mind that dining time changes are subject to availability. Disney Cruise Line allocates a certain number of seats for each dining time, and once those seats are filled, it may not be possible to make a change. Therefore, it’s best to make your request as early as possible to increase your chances of success.

When speaking with a Disney Cruise Line representative, maintain a polite and friendly demeanor. They are there to assist you and will appreciate your understanding and cooperation. If your desired dining time is not available, ask if there are any alternative options or if you can be placed on a waitlist in case a spot becomes available closer to your sailing date.

Once your dining time change request is processed, Disney Cruise Line will update your reservation and provide you with the details of your new dining time. It’s essential to review these details carefully to ensure that they align with your preferences and plans.

By contacting Disney Cruise Line before your cruise, you can proactively make a change to your dining time and have peace of mind knowing that your preferences are taken into account. This option allows you to start your cruise with the dining arrangements that best suit your needs, ensuring a enjoyable and stress-free experience.

If you haven’t made a dining time change request before your Disney cruise, don’t worry – you still have the opportunity to make a change once onboard the ship. Disney Cruise Line understands that plans can change, and they have systems in place to accommodate guest requests. To request a dining time change onboard, follow these steps:

• Once you board the ship, head to the Guest Services desk. This is usually located in the atrium or lobby area of the ship.
• Approach one of the friendly Guest Services staff members and let them know that you would like to request a dining time change.
• Provide them with your reservation details, including your cabin number, sailing date, and names of all guests in your party. This information will help them locate your booking quickly.
• Explain your reasons for wanting to change your dining time. Whether it’s to better align with your schedule, accommodate young children, or enjoy evening activities, clearly communicate your needs to the staff member.
• The Guest Services staff will check for available dining time options and discuss them with you. They will do their best to find a suitable alternative that meets your preferences and availability.
• If a suitable dining time is available, they will make the necessary adjustments and update your reservation accordingly. They will provide you with the details of your new dining time.

It’s important to note that dining time changes remain subject to availability, even when requesting onboard. Some dining times may already be fully booked, especially during peak cruising seasons. Therefore, it’s advisable to make your request as soon as possible after boarding the ship to maximize the chances of securing your desired dining time.

Once your dining time change is confirmed, remember to review the details provided by the Guest Services staff. Ensure that the new dining time fits your schedule and preferences.

By requesting a dining time change onboard, you have the opportunity to make adjustments based on your current needs and preferences. The onboard staff is dedicated to creating magical experiences for guests, and they will make every effort to find a suitable alternative for you.

If you’ve tried the previous options without success or you have specific circumstances that require a dining time change, you can directly speak with the Dining Room Manager onboard the Disney cruise ship. The Dining Room Manager is responsible for overseeing the dining operations and can assist you in making a dining time change based on availability and your unique circumstances.

To speak with the Dining Room Manager and request a dining time change, follow these steps:

• During your cruise, approach one of the servers or head waiters in the restaurant where you are assigned to dine for the first night. Request to speak with the Dining Room Manager regarding a dining time change.
• Upon hearing your request, the server or head waiter will inform the Dining Room Manager, who will then come to your table to discuss your request in detail.
• Explain your reasons for wanting a dining time change and any specific considerations you have. Whether it’s to align with your young children’s schedule, attend evening activities, or accommodate special dietary needs, clearly communicate your requirements to the Dining Room Manager.
• The Dining Room Manager will check for available options and do their best to find a suitable alternative that meets your needs. They will consider factors such as availability of tables, guest flow, and the capacity of each dining venue.
• If a suitable dining time is available, the Dining Room Manager will make the necessary adjustments and update your reservation. They will provide you with the details of your new dining time.

It’s important to note that although the Dining Room Manager has the authority to make dining time changes, availability is still a key factor. Certain dining times may already be fully booked or have limited availability due to high demand. Therefore, it’s advisable to approach the Dining Room Manager as soon as possible during your cruise to increase your chances of obtaining your preferred dining time.

Once your dining time change is confirmed, review the details provided by the Dining Room Manager. Ensure that the new dining time aligns with your preferences and any other plans you may have.

By speaking directly with the Dining Room Manager, you have the opportunity to discuss your dining time change request in detail and address any specific considerations. Their expertise and understanding of the dining operations onboard will help to find a solution that suits your needs and ensures a pleasant dining experience for you and your party.

Important Considerations for Changing Dining Time

When requesting a dining time change on a Disney cruise, there are a few important considerations to keep in mind to ensure a smooth transition and delightful dining experience:

• Availability: Changing your dining time is subject to availability. Disney Cruise Line allocates a specific number of seats for each dining time, and once those seats are filled, it may not be possible to make a change. It’s best to make your request as early as possible to increase your chances of securing your desired dining time.
• Dining Room Rotation: If you are partaking in the rotational dining system, changing your dining time may also mean a change in the rotation of restaurants. Make sure you are aware of the new rotation of themed restaurants and the specific dining experiences they offer.
• Tablemates: Depending on the size of your party, a dining time change may also impact your tablemates. If you have specific preferences regarding tablemates or wish to dine with another party, communicate this with the appropriate staff member when making the dining time change request.
• Children’s Club Activities: If you are traveling with young children who participate in activities at the onboard children’s clubs, consider the timing of those activities when requesting a dining time change. You may want to ensure that your dining time does not clash with the timing of the children’s club activities.
• Special Requests: If you have any special dietary requirements or specific requests related to your dining experience, such as room decorations for a celebration, communicate these to the appropriate staff members when making the dining time change request. They will do their best to accommodate your requests and ensure a memorable experience.
• Flexibility: While Disney Cruise Line strives to fulfill guest requests, it’s important to approach the dining time change process with an open mind and flexibility. Availability may be limited, and it may be necessary to consider alternative dining options or be placed on a waitlist until a desired dining time becomes available.

By considering these important factors, you can navigate the dining time change process effectively and ensure an enjoyable dining experience onboard your Disney cruise.

Changing your dining time on a Disney cruise should not be a cause for stress or worry. Disney Cruise Line understands that guests may have varying schedules, preferences, and special considerations, and they strive to accommodate these needs. By following the options outlined in this article, you can take the necessary steps to change your dining time and ensure a seamless and enjoyable dining experience onboard.

From contacting Disney Cruise Line before your cruise to requesting a dining time change onboard or speaking with the Dining Room Manager directly, there are options available to cater to your specific requirements. Remember, availability may be limited, so it’s essential to make your request as early as possible to increase your chances of success.

When making a dining time change, it’s important to consider factors such as availability, the rotation of themed restaurants, tablemates, children’s club activities, special requests, and maintaining flexibility throughout the process. By being aware of these considerations, you can navigate the dining time change process effectively and ensure a delightful dining experience for you and your party.

As you embark on your Disney cruise adventure, take advantage of the opportunities to explore the unique dining experiences offered by Disney Cruise Line. From elegant fine dining to themed restaurants showcasing Disney magic, each venue has its own charm and culinary delights waiting to be savored.

Remember, dining on a Disney cruise is not just about the food – it’s an experience that brings families and friends together, creating lasting memories. By adjusting your dining time to suit your needs and preferences, you can make the most of your Disney cruise and fully immerse yourself in the magic and wonder that awaits you onboard.

So, whether it’s enjoying a fabulous dinner with your loved ones or raising a toast to a special occasion, don’t hesitate to request a dining time change on your Disney cruise. Discover the culinary delights and create unforgettable memories as you embark on this magical journey at sea.

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Disney Cruise Mom Blog

I am a mom who loves all things Disney, but especially Disney Cruises! I enjoy sharing everything I have learned and hope that it will help others plan their own vacations.

All About Dining on Disney Cruise Line

March 16, 2019 by Disney Cruise Mom 12 Comments

I recently had a request from a first-time cruiser to write a post about all of the dining options onboard, from the main dining rooms, to the adult-only restaurants, to room service, to snacks, and basically everything available to eat on the ships.  It can be a bit confusing for first-timers, especially knowing what is included in your cruise fare, what costs extra, and what you need to reserve in advance.  So, I’m going to attempt to share with you everything I know. It is a lot of information, so I am going to break the food options up by time of day: breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, and all day/other . Also, unless I specifically state that there is an extra charge for something, you can assume that it is included in your cruise fare.

Cabanas is the buffet restaurant at the back of the ship on the same deck as the pools (deck 9 for Magic & Wonder, deck 11 for Fantasy & Dream).  It is usually opens around 6:15 – 7:00, and closes around 10:30-10:45.  Check the daily navigator  or the navigator app for the times on each day of your sailing as they do usually vary by day. This is the largest variety you will find for breakfast.  It is also open on the final morning of your cruise, although that fact is not well advertised and many people do not know this.  This might be a good option for people who have early dining but do not want to have to be in the main dining room at 6:45-ish for their scheduled breakfast time on the final morning (more on this later).

Room Service

Room service is available every morning of the cruise, typically from 7:00 AM – 10:00 AM, except for the final morning when you disembark.  There are not hot items available, unless you are sailing concierge.  Here is the breakfast room service menu:

You can either call and place your order that morning, or fill out a card (found in the desk drawer) and hang it on your door the night before.

It is customary to tip $1 – $2 per item for room service.  You can either use cash, or write it on the receipt and charge it to your onboard account.  However, I often find that the CM who delivers does not have the receipt handy, but I’m sure if you ask, he/she will produce it.  But, because of this, I always bring lots of $1 bills as I find it quicker and easier to use cash.

Concierge guests can order from the menu above, or from the menu of whichever main dining room is serving breakfast that day, so hot items are included as well.  However, you can only order from this menu during the hours that the dining room is open for breakfast (usually around 8:00-10:00 – check the daily navigator).

Main Dining Room

Each day except for the final morning , there is 1 main dining room open for breakfast.  Check the daily navigator for location and hours, as they vary but are usually somewhere around 8:00-10:00.  On all ships except for the Dream, this is a table service meal.  Last I heard, Enchanted Garden on the Dream still had breakfast set up as a buffet, but with table service for your drinks.  Also, note that this buffet is much, much smaller in selection than Cabanas.

On the final morning of your cruise, you will be assigned a designated time for breakfast in the same main dining room that you ate dinner in the night before. You will have the same serving team that you had for dinner the entire cruise.  The times are usually 6:45 AM for early dining, and 8:15 AM for late dining.  If you do not want to be tied down to a certain time for breakfast on your final morning, there is also a buffet in Cabanas that you can visit at your leisure.

Daisy’s De Lights on deck 9 of the Wonder and Magic is usually open in the mornings and offers things like fruit, wraps, and pastries.

Concierge Lounge

The concierge lounge is open to concierge guests (you can read all about the benefits of concierge level here ) and will have a small breakfast spread available.  They also have an amazing coffee machine so be sure to check it out.

Palo is an adult-only restaurant (ages 18+) on all 4 ships.  They offer a brunch on sea days, usually between 10:00-12:30.  I have also heard that the Dream sometimes offers it on Nassau day on the 3 night itineraries, since there is no sea day.  You can read my review of Palo brunch here .  There is an upcharge of $40 per person (which includes 1 mimosa), and you should add gratuity on top of that (you can read my post about gratuities here ).  Platinum Castaway Club members (10+ sailings) receive 1 complimentary Palo meal (brunch or dinner) per sailing and it extends to everyone in the same stateroom as the Platinum member who is at least 18 years old.  This brunch consists of both a buffet and a small menu of made-to-order items.  You must have a reservation and should reserve this online in advance of your cruise .  If you are unable to do so, you can go to the designated location on the first day of your cruise and see if they have any availability.  The time and location for Palo reservations will be noted on the front page of the daily navigator that you get while checking in at the cruise terminal.  Palo has a dress code which you can read about here .

Remy is an adult-only (18+) restaurant, only on the Dream and Fantasy, and they offer brunch on sea days as well.  Remy differs from Palo in that it is a more upscale, gourmet experience, and is a multi-course set menu with an optional champagne pairing.  Like Palo, you must have a reservation and can reserve this online before your cruise.  The cost of brunch is $75 per person (plus gratuity ) and the optional champagne pairing is an additional $30 per person.  You can read my review of Remy brunch here .  Remy has a strict dress code which you can read about here .

Triton’s on the Wonder

There is occasionally a table service brunch in Triton’s on the Disney Wonder.  I don’t know the pattern of when they offer it, but it tends to be on a sea day from about 9:00-1:00.  Check your daily navigators, and no reservation is needed.

Cabanas is open every day for lunch from about 11:30-2:00.  This is the largest lunch selection you will find on the ship.  In addition to the standard American fare, each day they have a small section that alternates through different ethnic cuisines, such as Mexican, Asian, and Indian, and possibly more.

Room service is also an option for lunch, and it is the standard all-day menu with no additional options for concierge guests:

Note that most items are no extra charge, but there is an extra charge for the following: M&Ms, salted peanuts, buttered popcorn, salted cashews, wine, beer, juices, specialty coffees, sodas (which will come in cans), and bottled water.  An automatic gratuity of 15% will be added to sodas, bottled water, and alcohol.  As mentioned earlier, it is customary to tip $1 – $2 per item for delivery.

Each ship has quick-service counters on the pool deck that open around lunch time and stay open throughout the afternoon (and some of them stay open through the dinner hours – check the daily navigator).  Options include pizza, chicken tenders, fries, hot dogs, hamburgers, wraps, fruit, salads, sandwiches, daily specials, and more.  The Magic and Wonder also have a noodle bowl station and a Shawarma (gyro) station.  Note that I have occasionally found soft pretzels (regular and cream cheese-filled) at the pizza counter on the Wonder.

There is always one main dining room open for lunch, usually around 12:00-1:30.  It is table service and reservations are not required.

Main Dining Rooms

Dinner each night is served in the three main dining rooms (names of the dining rooms vary per ship). When you book your cruise, you’ll choose either early dining or late dining , usually at 5:45 & 8:15 PM (sometimes these times are slightly adjusted on certain itineraries). You’ll be assigned a dining rotation (written on your room key) and rotate through all of the restaurants throughout your cruise. Your serving team follows you to each restaurant, so that you have the same wait staff for the entire cruise. They’ll get to know your family, your likes and dislikes, and any food allergies. You have an assigned table reserved just for you every night, so no need to arrive early or wait in line.  You might be paired with others at your assigned table, so if having a private table is important to you, be sure and call DCL (or have your travel agent do it) a few weeks before you cruise to request it.  They will try to honor it, but there are no guarantees.  If you are unable to reserve the dining time that you want prior to your cruise, you can visit a designated location after boarding the ship (location & time will be on the front page of the daily navigator that you get while checking in at the cruise terminal) and see if they can change your dining time.  Sometimes they can, sometimes they can’t. There is a dress code (loosely enforced) which you can read about here .  Also note that dinners are a multi-course meal and usually take about 1.5 – 2 hours.  If you have young children who won’t make it this long at a dinner table, you can ask your server to bring out their food ASAP, and then you can either 1) participate in the dine & play program, available during the late seating, where a counselor from the Oceaneer’s Club will walk through the dining rooms and take kids who would like to go, 2) walk your child to the Oceaneer’s Club yourself (you will only be gone about 5 minutes), or 3) for children under age 3, reserve time in the nursery (additional fee of $9 per hour, reservations required).

Palo (all 4 ships) offers dinner nightly for those ages 18+.  There is an upcharge of $40 per person, and you should add gratuity on top of that (you can read my post about gratuities here ).  There is an optional wine pairing for an additional $59 per person.  Unlike brunch, there is not a buffet at dinner.  It is an upscale, multi-course Italian meal and you make selections from a menu.  Reservations are required, and can be made online prior to your cruise or after boarding (if space is still available).  Brunch tends to fill up faster than dinner.  Remember that Palo has a dress code which you can read about here .

Remy (ages 18+) is only on the Dream and Fantasy, and is steps above Palo in terms of cuisine and service.  It is a more fine-dining experience – some compare it to Victoria & Albert’s at the Grand Floridian.  There is an upcharge of $125 per person, and you should add gratuity on top of that.  There is an optional wine pairing for an additional $105 per person.  You can read a review of the Remy dinner experience here .  Remember that there is a dress code (strictly enforced) which you can read about here .  Once again, reservations are required, and can be made online prior to your cruise or after boarding (if space is still available).

Room service is also an option for dinner.

The quick-service counters on the pool deck are an option for dinner.  However, some of them close around 6:00-6:30, so be sure and check the navigator.  There is usually 1 that stays open until 9:30-10:00 (typically the burger/hot dog/chicken tenders one), and the pizza place usually closes around 6:00/6:30 but then opens again around 9:30 and stays open until around midnight.  Once again, these hours can change daily so plan ahead and check the hours earlier in the day if you know you may want to do this option for dinner.

Cabanas is open for dinner except on the first and last nights of a cruise, usually around 6:30 – 8:30.  But, it is not a buffet like at breakfast and lunch.  It is a table-service meal and you order from a menu that typically has a few selections from what the main dining rooms are serving that night, and a few unique selection.  The menu will be posted outside the restaurant so that you can check it out beforehand.  I have heard that the menu is the same every night, though I haven’t personally confirmed this.  This was the menu on the night we dined there on the Wonder:

 They will only have a small area of tables open so that the servers don’t have to walk so far.  No reservations are required, so this could be a good option for people who don’t want to eat dinner at their assigned time in the main dining room for whatever reason.  We ate dinner here once on our Panama Canal cruise, and you can read about the experience here .  I would say that dinner here is nothing special, but an acceptable option for table-service if you can’t/don’t want to eat in the MDR, Palo, or Remy.  Worth noting is that my husband thought his steak was far better than any steak he’s had in a main dining room, as they cook it to order just steps away from you instead of being mass-produced and having to sit a while before being served.

All Day/Other

Drink Station

The Magic and Wonder have a self-serve drink station aft, near Cabanas, on deck 9.  The Dream and Fantasy have 2 drink stations, both midship, on either side of the pool on deck 11.  There are fountain drinks, water, lemonade, coffee, hot tea, milk, and half & half available.  Note that plastic lids and straws have recently been removed from the ships.  If you have young kids and need help avoiding spills, I have a post that you can read here with some ideas for items you can bring along from home to make your life easier.

All 4 ships have a soft-serve ice cream station that is usually open from around 10:30 AM to around 11:00 PM.  There are cones next to the machines, or you can go to the drink station and get a cup if that’s what you prefer.  I have noticed that the Dream and Fantasy tend to always have chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, and banana available daily, while the Magic and Wonder tend always have chocolate and vanilla, but rotate the other 2 flavors throughout the cruise.  I can recall having mango, pina colada, banana, and blueberry.

Frozone Treats/Sulley’s Sips

Next to Eye Scream on all 4 ships, you will find Frozone Treats (Fantasy, Dream & Magic) and Sulley’s Sips (Wonder).  This is a counter that sells smoothies ($4-$5 range), bottled beer, and “Dole Whips” with or without rum for an extra charge.  The reason I used quotation marks is while the sign calls them a Dole Whip, reports are that they are not the same thing the sell in the parks.  People say that these are more like a Slurpee/slushie and not actually soft-serve.

All 4 ships have the Cove Cafe, and adult-only (18+) specialty coffee shop/bar next to the Quiet Cove Pool area.  All of the drinks here are an additional charge, but there is a small case of snacks that do not cost extra.  I have always been able to help myself, but I have heard reports of there being a sign asking you to ask a barista to fill your plate.  They do offer a rewards card that allows you to get your 6th drink for free.

The Dream & Fantasy also have the Vista Cafe on deck 4 in the atrium area.  It is similar to Cove Cafe, but is not adults-only. In addition to specialty coffee & alcoholic beverages (extra charge), it also has a case of snacks that are complimentary.

Vanellope’s/Sweet on You

The Dream and Fantasy have specialty gelato/ice cream/candy/pastry shops that are an extra charge.  On the Dream, it is called Vanellope’s and you can read my post about it here .  On the Fantasy, it is called Sweet on You.  They are both located near Cabanas on deck 11.  They both sell pretty much the same things, the only real difference is the theming.

Pompidou’s Dessert Experience at Remy

Remy offers a dessert experience at 3:30 PM on certain sea days on cruises of 4+ nights.  There is an upcharge of $60 per person plus gratuity , and an optional wine pairing for an additional $25 per person.  You can reserve a spot online before your cruise .  I have done this experience and you can read my review here .  There are 6 courses of desserts, and the chef and sommelier both explain each dessert/wine before it is served.  My advice is to only eat half of each dessert served, especially if doing the wine pairing, or you will leave with an unpleasant sugar coma and will more than likely not be hungry for dinner.  Remember that Remy has a dress code that is strictly enforced.

Just outside of the Walt Disney Theater on all 4 ships is the Preludes Bar.  It offers a full bar, popcorn, candy and cookies for an extra charge.  You can purchase items at the counter, or waitstaff will be walking throughout the theater before the show so that you can purchase from your seat.  It is open every evening during show times.

Each of the 4 ships has a pub venue that is open to all ages during the day, but only open to adults after 9:00 PM (O’Gills on the Magic & Fantasy, Crown & Fin on the Wonder, Pub 687 on the Dream).  There is a small menu with appetizer items for an extra charge, such as soft pretzels, tater tots, sliders, wings, etc.

If you are sailing concierge , the concierge lounge is open all day and has a constant supply of finger-foods and snack items available, a fancy coffee machine, as well as a complimentary happy hour every day from 5:00 – 10:00 PM.

Pirate Buffet

On sailings that have a pirate night, there is typically a pirate buffet in Cabanas after the fireworks from 10:30 – 11:15 PM.  It is not well advertised and a lot of people never know about it.  It is mentioned in the daily navigator under “Late Night Snacks”, and sometimes our servers will tell us about it at dinner.  Part of me wonders if this is intentional, as the entire ship descending on Cabanas at once (and from what I understand, they only use half of the space) can create a huge crowd.  I tried to go once on our Panama Canal cruise (trip report here ), but there was such a massive crowd trying to enter that we bailed.  This particular sailing had an enormous number of gold and platinum cruisers (i.e. more people who would know about the event from past sailings), which I believe probably led to the large crowd.  Normally I have not heard of crowds being an issue.

To read my other posts about dining, click here .

March 16, 2019 at 12:17 pm

Thanks for all the great information, especially about the options outside of the evening dinner rotation schedule. Two things I would like to add: first if you are adults traveling alone (no kids) and wish adult only companionship during dinner rotations just put in a request when making your cruise reservation. We have been fortunate to have great table mates everytime we do “Disney for adults”. Although not guaranteed our request has been completed on each cruise so far ( keeping our fingers crossed for our upcoming 11 night Northern Fjords cruise) Second, some evening rotation dinning locations have dinner shows, and offer different and multiple shows in same restaurant on longer cruises. You do not find out your dinner rotation until on the ship (it’s noted on your key to the world card) as to which restaurant is what night. We enjoy the dinner shows a lot. Again thanks for your comprehensive blog. I never take a trip on a Disney cruise without checking your blogs and comments.

March 17, 2019 at 7:31 am

Dear Diana, thank you so much for such a comprehensive review! You managed to clarify all possible questions for the potential first-time travellers, and not only 🙂 While reading, it came into my mind that the second round dinner isn’t such a bad thing if there is also a dine&play option. Did I get it right that it is available only at the second seating? We’ve been assign a second round, I think because I have two teenagers and DCL is assuming they can ‘carry on longer’. I was actually about to request a change as we’ll be on a severe jet-lag. But reading now it seems that the second round with dine&play entertainment option sounds quite nice. Any suggestion on this? And thanks a million for such a helpful post!

March 17, 2019 at 4:45 pm

As far as I know, dine & play only happens during 2nd seating but it is for kids to go to the Oceaneer’s Club (ages 3-12) and it sounds like your kids are older? For me personally, the late dining works better on port days as you will not be so rushed getting ready for dinner, and it also ensures that I am truly hungry for dinner (even if I eat a big lunch) and thus I enjoy it more. But, my kids prefer early so sometimes we do that too. You just have to weight the positives and negatives for your family.

March 18, 2019 at 10:24 am

We sailed on the Fantasy in July 2018 for 7 nights and had second seating. We had heard before our cruise that counselor would come through the dining room and were on the lookout for our 7 year old son . However, we never saw any come through. One night we did take him there since he wanted to do an activity that started during dinnertime. So not sure if this is really offered and if it is we didn’t see it during our cruise.

March 18, 2019 at 12:28 pm

Hi Tricia! I have only had late dining once, and did not see counselors walk through to get kids, but I wasn’t looking for it either. I have read other trip reports that say they did, so perhaps it is inconsistent. If you cruise again, I suggest asking the kids club counselors about it during the day when you are dropping off/picking up your kids and try to get the full scoop.

March 17, 2019 at 9:26 am

Thank you for such detailed information! We have only been on 1 Disney cruise…so far. The only negative we had on the last cruise was the last morning. We had 2nd dining so had to wait to eat at our assigned restaurant. The halls were SO crowded with so many people and luggage. Do you suggest eating Cabanas the last day to avoid the crowds? Or is there another tip to avoid that craziness on our next cruise? We are sailing on the Fantasy instead of the Wonder so I’m already concerned about the larger crowds. I know you have said before you don’t like crowds either. 🙂

March 17, 2019 at 12:08 pm

Hi Andrea! I think a good way to avoid crowds on the final morning would be to leave your luggage in your room and go to Cabanas. I have only done this once, but Cabanas was nearly empty. Just make sure you will be done and back to your room by around 8:00 as that is when they want your stuff out of your room (unless you are able to bring your stuff to Cabanas with you without too much trouble). As far as the atrium area and avoiding crowds there, I would think that leaving around 8:00-8:30 there would be smaller crowds (though I haven’t personally tried it). I have always left the ship as early as possible (for flight reasons) and there are so, so many people waiting to leave the ship right when they open the doors around 7:30. If you can, give those crowds some time to die down first.

March 17, 2019 at 1:32 pm

I agree, do express walk off (you take your own bags) and go to early breakfast at Cabanas. We’ve done it no problems, even met our steward in hall on way and told him we would be back before “out” time. Going back to room before leaving gives you one more chance to attend to needs before leaving the ship and miss the mass exit when the doors open.

November 10, 2021 at 10:45 am

Can concierge guests have room service from rapunzel’s table, animators palate and luminaries restaurant. Please answer ASAP

November 10, 2021 at 11:22 am

Before covid, this was available in come of the concierge rooms – only the one bedroom suites, two bedroom suites, and royal suites. It was not available in the concierge family staterooms. However, I do not know if they are currently doing this post-Covid.

November 10, 2021 at 10:57 am

Can concierge guests request an private table at rapunzel’s royal table. And have table in Rapunzel’s Royal Table was right in front of the stage. Please answer ASAP

November 10, 2021 at 11:20 am

Yes, you can make both of those requests and they will try to grant them but they do not guarantee it.

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Disney Cruise Advice: Tips & Tricks Onboard the Ship

LAST UPDATE: 2/14/24

On this page we have collected some useful Disney Cruise advice, tips, and tricks that can help you save time and have more fun while you are on a Disney Cruise. Read the advice below and you’ll have a much better idea what to expect, even if you’ve never been on a cruise before!

Thanks to Marjorie Treger and to MouseSavers.com readers Jeff Evernham and Aileen B, who contributed some great tips.

Disney Cruise Advice & Important Things to Know

Embarkation, first-day bag packing list, staterooms and what’s in them, knowing what’s going on & planning your day, oceaneer club and oceaneer lab, edge and vibe, port days/shore excursions, useful things to pack, things you don’t need to (or should not) pack, disney cruise wear, phone and internet.

• Spa: Treatments, Products & Fitness Center

Disembarkation

Additional tips & tricks, trip reports.

Other useful Disney Cruise information pages:

• For discounts and tips on saving money on the cruise itself , visit our Disney Cruise Discount page.
• For tips and tricks that will help you plan your cruise , visit the Planning Tips & Tricks for Disney Cruises page.
• For advice that will help you with excursions, tours and activities  while in port, visit the Tips & Discounts for Port Excursions page.

“Embarkation” means getting on the ship for the first time during your cruise; “disembarkation” or “debarkation” means getting off the ship at the end of your cruise.

“Port” is the left side of the ship as you face forward; “starboard” is the right side as you face forward. “Forward” is obvious; “aft” is the rear of the ship.

Cruise lines are required to ensure that every passenger knows the safety procedures and has been physically shown where they need to muster in case of emergency. A mandatory muster drill is held in the afternoon of embarkation day, usually around 4:00 pm. Everyone must attend in order to learn the location of your lifeboat station and other safety information. The drill takes 20 minutes or less and you do not have to bring your life jacket with you.

Make sure you turn off the cellular service on your phone while you’re at sea, so you don’t end up paying through the nose for “cellular at sea” service . There is a Disney Cruise Navigator app that you can use on most iPhones and Android phones without needing to pay for internet access. The Navigator app includes activity schedules and menus, and has a kind of text message feature that seems to work much better these days. We found that notifications were showing up quickly when people messaged using the app (our experience was with iPhone, we don’t know how well Android works).

“Cay” is pronounced “key” by locals – so unless you want to sound like a novice, remember this for Castaway Cay (Disney’s private island).

Disney asks you to select a P ort Arrival Time (PAT) when you do online check-in prior to your cruise. This arrival time was not rigidly enforced in the past, but lately, Disney has been enforcing people’s PATs pretty closely, especially during the early part of the boarding process. If you get to the terminal before 12:30, you will probably not be let in to the terminal until your time arrives. After 12:30 or so, Disney seems to just let people into the terminal as long as the check-in line isn’t completely full.

Bottom line: if you want to get on the ship as early as possible, definitely be ready to check in online on the morning your check-in opens! See below for when you can check in online:

• If you are staying at an official Walt Disney World resort or at Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport the night before your cruise, AND you booked that hotel as a package with the cruise, AND you are using Disney’s bus service to the port, your port arrival time is less important, and you may not even see an option to select one when you check in. From a Disney hotel, they’re going to assign you a bus, and generally you’ll just get there when you get there and the terminal staff will be ready to process and embark that whole busload of passengers. If you’re staying at the Hyatt, there will be multiple buses and you can take the first bus they’ll let you on. In either case, it’s rare to experience much wait no matter what your port arrival time is. But if you are offered the option to pick a port arrival time at checkin, pick the earliest reasonable time, just to be on the safe side. It can’t hurt, and it might save you some waiting.
• If you are staying in a concierge level stateroom or suite , you can check in and receive your port arrival time 40 days before embarkation day. That said, your shore-side concierge will likely offer to check you in on the first day you’re eligible, so effectively you can just let them handle it and they should get you the earliest arrival time (unless they know you won’t be arriving that early).
• If you are a Pearl member of the Castaway Club (25+ previous Disney cruises), you can check in and receive your port arrival time 40 days before embarkation day. 
• If you are a Platinum member of the Castaway Club (10-24 previous Disney cruises), you can check in and receive your port arrival time 38 days before embarkation day.
• If you are a Gold member of the Castaway Club (5-9 previous Disney cruises), you can check in and receive your port arrival time 35 days before embarkation day.
• If you are a Silver member of the Castaway Club (1-4 previous Disney cruises), you can check in and receive your port arrival time 33 days before embarkation day.
• If you have never before taken a Disney cruise, you can check in and receive your port arrival time 30 days before embarkation day.

When you arrive at Port Canaveral, you’ll hand off your bags to the dock workers. Tipping is theoretically optional, but it’s customary to tip them at least $1-$2 per bag, and we tend to tip on the high side for very helpful or friendly porters. Keep your carry-on/day bag with you. Get in line to go through check-in (during which time you’ll show your port arrival document several times), then get in line to go through security (you go through a metal detector and your carry-ons go through an x-ray).

The first people who will get on the ship are Group 1, which will usually be concierge level guests. Shortly after noon, announcements will be made for general boarding by group number. You’ll present your port arrival document as you board, have a family photo taken (or bypass the photo and get on the ship that much faster), and then your family will be announced as you arrive in the atrium of the ship. After that, the ship is yours!

Most people will head straight to lunch, and if you’re hungry, that’s a great idea. If you’ve brought your swimsuits in your day bag, this is a perfect time to enjoy the pool (or AquaDuck on the Dream or Fantasy and AquaMouse on the Wish), because the ship is still relatively empty and a lot of people will not have thought ahead. If you still need to make spa appointments, change your dinner rotation, sign up for shore excursions, book Palo, Remy or Enchanté, or book any specialty character meals or tea parties, now is the time to do that. You can also get your kids’ wristbands for the kids club. If it’s your first time on the ship, this is a good time to get a map and wander around familiarizing yourself with everything.

If you are a concierge level guest, there is a special concierge embarkation lunch, or you can go to the concierge lounge, where you can relax and enjoy a snack. You’ll be personally assisted with any bookings or changes you’d like to make (dining rotations, spa appointments, etc.)

At about 1:30-2:00, your room should be ready. Your bags will be delivered at some point in the afternoon (up until about 6:00 pm).

On the embarkation day, you won’t get access to your room until 1:30-2:00 pm, and you may not get all of your luggage until 6:00 pm (or occasionally even later), so its recommended you carry a bag that contains everything you’ll need between boarding the ship and dinner. If you want to swim or ride the AquaDuck or AquaMouse, for example, you will need all your swim stuff.

Here’s our checklist for packing our day bag. Some people like to use a rolling carry-on, but we prefer a small duffel. It’s your call; whatever you feel comfortable lugging around for an hour or two. You can also pack a small backpack for everyone to spread out the load.

• Flip-flops or water shoes (the deck can get hot )
• Reading material, iPad, videogames or other entertainment
• Camera, if you aren’t using your phone
• Medications you might need between noon and dinnertime
• Change of clothes for dinner, if what you wear to board the ship isn’t reasonable (though it almost certainly is fine, as long as it’s not a swimsuit).

The TV in your stateroom offers limited live TV programming, but a pretty extensive selection of Disney-owned movie and TV content. There is the Disney Channel, ABC and ESPN, all owned by Disney, plus some 24-hour news channels (MSNBC & Fox) and a small selection of basic cable channels. You can watch a huge variety of Disney movies and a few other family-friendly titles “on demand” (no extra charge).

Disney no longer provides the cordless Wave Phones; if you need to contact other members of your party, you are expected to use the Disney Navigator app on your phone. If you don’t have a compatible phone or don’t want to carry your phone, you have to fall back on the tried and true “let’s meet in XXX at YYY” or put a magnetic white board on your room door to exchange messages. Note that the kids club staff will only be able to contact you via the Navigator app, so if you don’t carry it around, you can’t be informed of issues with your kids.

Fire codes prevent cruise ships from having irons in staterooms, but irons are available for your use in the laundry rooms. Speaking of laundry, you can charge the cost of self-service laundry to your room key by swiping it through the readers on the washers and dryers.

Inside staterooms have no window (except the “ secret porthole ” rooms on the Wonder and Magic that are classified as inside but have an obstructed porthole). Inside staterooms on the Dream and Fantasy ships do have the “virtual porthole” that provides some light. It can be turned off with a switch by the bed. Bear in mind that on the Wonder, Magic and Wish (or on the Dream and Fantasy with the virtual porthole turned off), inside staterooms have no external light coming in to wake you up in the morning or give you a sense of what time it is. So if you’re anxious to get up and go in the morning, make sure you set an alarm or request a wake-up call.

A portable hair dryer can be found in a bag in the bathroom or in a desk drawer (call Guest Services if you can’t find it). It must be plugged into a European (220V) outlet at the desk. If you happen to be in a stateroom that also has a built-in hair dryer in the bathroom attached to the wall, we recommend leaving it alone; they don’t work well. Use the one in the drawer.

There is no longer a paper Navigator schedule given out in your stateroom, or even available from the front desk. You can only get the activity schedule via your phone or via the TV.

You can download the Navigator app for Apple or Android devices before you arrive at the embarkation port and then, once onboard, connect to the ship’s Wi-Fi network—complimentary for app use only. Downloading the app does not enable general-purpose internet access – you have to pay extra for that. In addition to giving you the ship’s daily schedule, the app has some information that isn’t in the paper Navigator, including menus for the various restaurants and some other useful tidbits. 

The Navigator app also has the all-aboard time and the local number of the ship’s agent, who is your contact if you have an emergency or are running late and might miss the ship (or have missed the ship). It’s not a bad idea to write those things down on a separate piece of paper to carry with you when you’re in port, just in case you lose your phone or the Navigator app gets flaky. If you have an emergency and don’t have your phone or the info on paper, you can call the port and ask them who the port agent is for your ship, and then call Disney’s port agent to let them know what’s happening.

The Navigator app now has a FREE text messaging feature. The messaging feature is available on all five ships. You do not need to buy a data plan to send messages to other people in your party, assuming they also have a device that can run the app. We didn’t really use it much in previous years because there could be 20-30 minutes between sending and message and the recipient getting a notification on their phone, but on our most recent cruise everything worked fine. Also, if you get the newer internet service that you can leave on all the time (currently available on the Wish, Magic, Dream and Fantasy) it will work with iMessage, WhatsApp and other messengers, and it will work with SMS text messaging if everyone’s phone has Wi-Fi cellular enabled.

Onboard Entertainment & Activities Tips

If you’re curious to know what movies will be shown on your sailing before you get on the ship, call  Disney Cruise customer service (800) 951-3532 about two weeks before your cruise and ask.

Want to ride the AquaDuck water coaster on the Dream or Fantasy or the AquaMouse on the Wish? MouseSavers.com reader Bill V has this tip: “If you enjoy the AquaDuck during the day, find an EVENING to ride it as well! Riding it at night, with the red-and-white lights strobing around the tube at each of the supports, is a completely different experience than the daytime, not to be missed! Also, the lines are truly non-existent if you go during dinner or show times, far shorter than even the times when most passengers are ashore when the ship is docked–my daughter rode it one evening over a dozen times in less than 90 minutes, usually walking on with no line whatsoever.” (This advice would apply to the AquaMouse on the Wish as well.)

Some special activities require advance sign-up at Guest Services. For instance, “Tea with Wendy,” (or “Tea with Alice” or some other character) is sometimes offered on some 7-night cruises, but has limited seating, and on cruises near Christmas, there is a build-your-own-gingerbread house activity, but they have a limited number of kits available. Check for those activities (they’ll generally be listed in the Navigator app) and sign up as soon as you can. Certain popular character meetings are also now requiring advance sign-up, usually on the first day.

Theater snacks : the theaters where the movies and shows are presented have concession stands selling expensive goodies such as canned sodas, bagged popcorn and candy, which can be charged to your room key. If you want to keep costs down, go up on the pool deck to the self-serve beverage station and get FREE sodas (or lemonade, tea, etc.) to bring into the show with you. You can also usually get FREE cookies from one of the counter-service locations on the pool deck and bring those along (or order cookies from room service, for only the cost of a tip). Concierge level guests on the Dream and Fantasy can get snacks, including cans of soda and sometimes popcorn, from the lounge. The snack bar at the theater has a refillable popcorn bucket that can be refilled for the rest of your cruise at a much cheaper price, so if you like popcorn, it’s a good idea to get one at the beginning of the cruise. Some people have brought popcorn buckets from previous cruises or from Walt Disney World and had them refilled, though that may or may not be official policy.

Embarkation Day

Once you’re onboard on embarkation day, you can eat lunch in one of three locations (or the concierge lunch if you’re in a concierge stateroom): the buffet, the pool deck food outlets (burgers, pizza, etc.) or a dining room (on the Magic, the primary lunch dining room is Lumiere’s; on the Wonder, it’s Triton’s; on the Dream and Fantasy, it’s Enchanted Garden; on the Wish, it’s been 1923 or Arendelle). The primary dining room lunch is a la carte with a normal lunch menu similar to the menu served on sea days. It has a tendency to fill up pretty quickly, so if you want to eat there, get on the ship as early as possible. There is also a lunch just for concierge guests in a different dining room.

Note that if you head for the inside dining room, you will encounter multiple crew members who will try to herd you to the buffet, which can handle more people. Just tell them you’d prefer the interior dining room. 

Breakfast and Lunch

During the cruise, there are usually two or three breakfast and lunch locations with different hours (check the Navigator app for hours). You can choose from one or more full-service restaurants with open seating (just show up when you want during opening hours, and they’ll seat you), or eat at the buffet.

Dinner Rotations

Your dinner arrangements — meaning your restaurant rotation schedule, and whether you have the early or late seating for dinner — are assigned before you embark on the cruise. You can find your restaurant rotation by checking the “My Plans” section of the Navigator app. It will also show your table number and seating time, as well as the recommended dress code and menu. If you have trouble using the app, Guest Services or any of the dining locations can help you get that information. 

If you want to change your seating or your restaurant rotation, do that as soon as you embark. The location on the ship where changes can be made will be listed in the Navigator app, or just go to Guest Services and they can point you in the right direction.

If you go to your assigned restaurant for dinner each night, your servers will be the same for every night of your cruise. On longer cruises they’ll get to know you, and may even have your “usual” beverage waiting for you at your table. If you are served something you don’t like, tell the servers and they’ll bring you something else. And if you want to indulge, they’ll be happy to bring you two desserts (or two appetizers, or even two entrees)! In true Disney style, if you have a special event you are celebrating, make sure your servers know. You will get appropriate special treatment (usually a special dessert, and perhaps some singing).

We recommend not rushing to dinner. If you show up five minutes or so after they begin seating you’ll walk right in. If you show up early you’ll just have to wait in line! Don’t wait too long, though: in order to get everyone served in a timely manner, each server really needs to get all the orders from all their tables at once. If you come too late, it throws off their timing, necessitating multiple extra trips to the kitchen and long delays for everyone. Also, if you won’t be at the regular rotation dinner one night, it’s helpful to tell your server or head server in advance, so they won’t wait for you to arrive to start service for the other tables.

We also recommend having the Navigator app open to your dinner reservation and table number the first time you arrive at each restaurant, so you can be seated more easily. But if you remember your table number, you can just tell the servers.  

Each restaurant has a “special” menu that is only offered at that restaurant, which will be used on one of the nights you visit each restaurant (the same night as the show, if there is one for that restaurant). On the other nights, you’ll get “standard” menus that are the same at all three restaurants (they change every night, but each of the three restaurants gets the same menu). 

Dinner Shows

The following restaurants have special shows and menus on one night of your cruise . These shows are one of the unique entertainment experiences on a Disney cruise, so try to see them if you can! Ask at Guest Services or ask your server which night it will be for your rotation. Move your Palo, Remy or Enchante reservations or change your dinner rotation if you have to. 

• Animator’s Palate (Magic, Wonder, Dream, Fantasy) — On the Magic & Wonder, this show allows everyone in the family to design a character and see it animated. It’s pretty neat! On the Dream & Fantasy, the show involves interacting with an animated character (Crush the sea turtle from Finding Nemo). On longer (7+ night) cruises on the Dream & Fantasy, they may also do a version of the “draw your own animated character” show on the second night you visit Animator’s Palate.
• Tiana’s Place (Wonder) — A rollicking dinner show with the characters and songs from The Princess & The Frog.
• Rapunzel’s Royal Table (Magic) — A fun musical show with characters and songs from Tangled.
• Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure (Wish) — An elaborate show where you’re a guest at an engagement party for Anna and Kristoff, hosted by Wandering Oaken. Enjoy songs and characters from the two Frozen movies.
• Worlds of Marvel (Wish) — A loud action spectacle involving Ant-Man and the Wasp (and some guest Marvel characters) takes place during dinner. Most of the action is ostensibly taking place elsewhere on the ship (you watch it on screens on the walls of the restaurant), but live-action Ant-Man and the Wasp appear near the end to wave at diners.

Premium Restaurants

If you enjoy fine dining, we definitely recommend making a reservation for Palo, Remy or Enchanté, particularly on a 4-night or longer cruise. There is a small extra cost (larger for Remy and Enchanté) but it is well worth it for the cuisine, the atmosphere, and the opportunity to enjoy a nice dinner without the kids. The Remy and Enchanté dinners are especially elaborate, and are similar to meals that cost much more at Michelin starred restaurants or Victoria & Albert’s at Walt Disney World. Palo can be found on all five Disney ships, though the menu is slightly different (and more steakhouse-oriented) on the Wish. Remy is only on the Dream and Fantasy, and Enchanté is only on the Wish.

Alternatively, consider booking the Palo, Enchanté or Remy brunch (offered usually only once or twice on most cruises). We find the premium brunches particularly fabulous and might even prefer them to dinner in Palo.

Palo, Remy and Enchanté are very popular, so book them as early as you can . If you’re not able to get a reservation in advance, check the Navigator app or ask a crew member to find the location where you can go and request a reservation onboard.

If you want to skip one of the regular rotation restaurants in order to dine in Palo, Remy or Enchanté, our suggestion is to call Disney to find out the dining rotations for your cruise and pick a night that is the second visit to a restaurant, since the first night is very likely to be that restaurant’s special menu (and will have a show, if there is a show at that restaurant). For example, if your rotation is “Enchanted Garden, Rapunzel’s Table, Rapunzel’s Table, Animator’s Palate”, pick the third night, since it is the most likely to be a “standard” menu.

Keep in mind that the dinner rotations and timing of Animator’s Palate, Tiana’s, Rapunzel’s, Marvel or Arendelle shows are subject to change, and in our experience the folks at the Disney call center don’t always have accurate information about when the show will happen. The people actually on the ship know, so if you want to be sure your premium dining doesn’t happen on a dinner show night, go to Guest Services or the dining reservation location listed in the Navigator app on the first day of your cruise and ask. If there’s a conflict, they can either reschedule your premium dinner or put you on a different main dining rotation.

Alternate Dining Options

There are always plenty of options for food: check the Navigator app to know which restaurants are open at what times.

In the past, Disney has opened up the buffet area (Cabanas or Marceline Market) for dinner on most nights of the cruise (usually all but the first night), but as a table-service venue, not a buffet. There’s no specific time, you just show up and choose from a limited menu that includes some of the same foods served in the main dining rooms (but without all the hoopla). Of late they haven’t been doing it, but all indications are that this is a temporary post-pandemic measure because of logistics issues, so it could restart any time. If you’d prefer a quieter dinner at your own dining time, ask if it’s an option on your cruise.

There are fast-food locations up on the pool deck, serving kid-friendly fast food. We think the burgers and other sandwiches on a bun are edible, and the mini-wraps are quite good. The pizza is not a highlight – the toppings are fine, but the crust is sub-par, except on the Wish, where it is pretty good. The Wish also has a barbeque window, and a Mexican food window with choose-your-own ingredient bowls, tacos and burritos (think Chipotle), and both of those options are quite good. The fruit is fruit; nothing wrong with it. The soft-serve ice cream is not very creamy, but it makes a nice snack on a hot day, and they usually rotate in some unusual flavors like mango or strawberry over the course of the cruise.

On most ships, there are some small snacks available most of the day. In the adult coffee bar, there have generally been free mini-desserts available during the day, and little antipasto nibbles during the evening, but we didn’t see them on the Wish. In the adult lounge area on the lower decks, there is usually a (small) hot snack buffet available for part of the evening, either in the pub or the hallway between the various lounges. Usually there’s something like a build-your-own nacho bar, plus some sort of hot savory like pigs in a blanket or egg rolls. Again, this little mini-buffet has not been present on the Wish. In the pub on each ship, there are about 4-6 extra-cost hot snacks & entrees you can order. Typically at least one of the pool deck food stations will be open until midnight, usually pizza. From midnight until breakfast time (6:30 or so) room service is the only food option.

On Alaska cruises, there have usually been some snacks on the front of the ship on the pool deck on the glacier-viewing day , including hot soup in small bread bowls, cookies and hot cocoa. They also usually do a special barbecue lunch that day on the deck behind the buffet, typically sausage, fish, and steak. Sometimes they have been known to serve elk or another Alaska specialty. Make sure you go out to the deck to check it out; we met many people who had no idea the cookout was happening and just ate regular buffet food instead of the fresh-grilled options just a few steps away.

Concierge guests have access to snacks and beverages (bottled water, soft drinks, coffee drinks) in the concierge lounge.

Kids’ Meals

There are kid’s menu options at all the table-service meals , but children are not limited to eating from those menus. Your servers will bring your kids whatever they want, including full adult appetizers, meals and desserts, and in fact if there’s something on the ship they can get or make, they’ll usually try to accommodate you even if it’s not on the menu. In other words, if all your kids want is french fries, that’s not a problem, assuming you’re OK with it.

It’s worth noting that asking your server to bring you something from another restaurant is not a trivial undertaking . They will almost certainly do it, because they really want guests to be happy, but don’t spring a request on them unless you really can’t find anything else for your kids to eat. And if possible, let the service staff know early if your child has specific food issues. If they know in advance that your child will only eat french fries and chicken fingers, they can have those ready each night.

If you have kids in the Oceaneer Club, they will be offered lunch and dinner if they are in the Club at the appropriate time. There are not usually a lot of choices, but what they’ll offer is going to be pretty simple and kid-friendly, like chicken nuggets and apple slices.

Two key things to be aware of: one, they usually don’t serve the kids dinner on the first night of the cruise (the day of embarkation). So if you have Palo or Remy reservations for that night, you’ll need to feed your kids yourself. Fortunately that’s easy: all you have to do is get food for the kids before or after your reservation from one of the fast-food restaurants on the pool deck. Two: be aware of when the kids are served. Meal times may be too early for your liking if you leave your kids in the Club.

Also, keep in mind that the Disney crew members will not make your kids sit down to eat. They will make sure every child is informed that food is being served, but they can’t and won’t make your children stop playing to eat, and there is one opportunity to eat for each mealtime. There are no snacks served in the club between meal times. It’s a good idea when you pick up your kids to check if they ate and if they are hungry.

Dine and Play Program

Please note : The Dine and Play program is temporarily suspended, but may return at any time. Ask about it onboard if you’re interested.

The Dine and Play program allows children to get their meals quicker and adults to check in a child for Youth Activities without leaving the dining room. The Dine and Play program is offered for families assigned to second dining, and is open to children ages 3-12. 

Here’s how it works: You arrive in the dining room and inform the server that your child would like to participate in Dine and Play. The dining room team brings the child’s meal first while serving the adults at a more leisurely pace.

About 45 minutes after seating begins, Youth Activities Counselors arrive in the dining room and sign in the child to Disney’s Oceaneer Club, eliminating the need for you to escort the child to Deck 5.

Adults are then able to enjoy the full dining experience with the knowledge that their children are having a great time in a safe, fun and comfortable environment.

Alternative approach: You can ask your server to feed the kids as fast as possible, and then have an adult walk them over to the kids club and check them in. It only takes a few minutes to get to the club and back. Some parents have told us their kids prefer this method over using Dine & Play, as you can get the kids to the club whenever they’re ready and there’s less waiting around.

Room Service

Room service is not a strong suit on Disney Cruise Line. The food, in our experience, is merely adequate. It is free (though a tip is welcomed) and convenient, though. Selection is mostly very basic and very middle-American: sandwiches, basic soups, chicken wings, a few salads, a cheese plate, burger, pizza or topped flatbreads. 

If the buffet or top deck restaurants are open, we suggest sending someone to the buffet or top deck instead of ordering room service . The selection in the buffet is much better and the food better prepared. The top deck restaurants have a more limited selection, but sending someone to the top deck for food has always resulted in hotter, fresher food when we’ve done it. That said, if you’re worn out, or come back really late from a port excursion, it’s nice to know they will bring you food any time.

Mickey bars (Mickey head shaped ice cream bars) and Smuckers Uncrustables (packaged peanut butter & jelly sandwiches) are not on the menu, but have usually been available on request.

Special orders are limited , but if you want something simple that is not on the menu, but is made with components used in items that are on the menu, such as a grilled cheese sandwich, plain salad without dressing, plain hamburger patty with no bun or just an order of french fries, they will usually make that for you on request.

Room service breakfast in the regular staterooms is a very basic Continental offering of various baked goods, cereal, milk, hot drinks and juice. There is nothing hot and no real protein, so if you like eggs and bacon in the morning, head for the buffet or whichever dining room is serving breakfast (it’s listed in the Disney Cruise Navigator app). We do sometimes use room service to get coffee delivered in the morning. Though lately we just have them deliver hot water, because we prefer the Starbucks Via packets to the ship’s reconstituted coffee product.

Guests in concierge staterooms and suites can order dinner from the rotation restaurants during regular dinner hours . Ask your concierge staff for a menu. All courses of your meal are brought at once, which doesn’t do good things for the quality of the meal, but it’s still better than the regular room service offerings. Concierge level guests can order hot breakfasts in their suites and staterooms during the cruise.

Many common beverages (including sodas) are available FREE most of the time , but there are situations where you could be charged for them. Here are the basic rules:

• The self-service drink station on the pool deck offers milk , juice , tea (hot or iced) , coffee, hot cocoa , lemonade, plain water and fountain sodas  at no extra charge 24 hours a day.
• The dining rooms (including Palo, Remy and Enchanté) offer milk , juice , tea (hot or iced) , coffee , hot cocoa ,  lemonade, plain water and fountain sodas  at no extra charge with meals. All other drinks can be ordered, but cost money.
• Castaway Cay offers milk , juice , tea (iced only) , lemonade, plain water and fountain sodas  for free. All other cold drinks (except iced espresso drinks) can be ordered at a bar, but cost money. No hot drinks are available. 
• Room service offers milk , juice , tea (hot or iced), plain water and  coffee free. All other drinks cost money. 
• All bars (including espresso bars) charge for all beverages , except plain tap water.
• Bottled water, canned and bottled soda and soft drinks , alcoholic beverages , mocktails , smoothies, shakes  and espresso drinks (and related drinks like chai lattes) always cost money no matter where you order them.
• The fountain sodas are all Coca-Cola products (which could change any time, but Coca-Cola has had a strong partnership with Disney for many years). The bars have a wider selection of canned and bottled beverages available, at a charge.

Consider bringing your own bottled water if you think you’ll drink a lot of it on shore excursions, Castaway Cay, etc. Bottled water on the ship or Castaway Cay is expensive. Consider packing a small carry-on suitcase with just bottled water. Then on the way home you’ll have room for all those things you didn’t plan to buy. (If you are staying on concierge level on the Dream or Fantasy, bottled water is provided in the lounge without cost.)

Disney allows each adult to bring up to two 750 ml bottles of wine or six 12 oz beers onboard at embarkation and at each port visited. Bottles must be sealed and they must be in your carry-on luggage.  Spirits (rum, vodka, whiskey, etc.) are not allowed (they will be confiscated and given back to you at disembarkation).

Sealed bottles or cans of non-alcoholic beverages can be carried on in any amount that will fit through the x-ray machines (carry-on bag sized, in other words). As for coolers, Disney officially says that you can only take aboard small (12″ x 12″ x 12″ max) soft-sided coolers for keeping things like insulin and breast milk cold. In practice, soft coolers can be any size that’s small enough to fit through the x-ray machine (again, basically the size of a carry-on bag), but no hard-sided or wheeled coolers.

Disney, like all other cruise lines, does not allow any beverages in checked bags , because checked baggage is stacked up and handled roughly during the loading process, which could cause containers of liquids to break and/or leak onto other people’s luggage. They do screen for those items. If they find disallowed items, the items will be confiscated and given back at the end of the cruise.

Coffee and Tea

Regular American-style coffee on Disney ships is unfortunately not good. The “drip” coffee they serve throughout the ship is made in a machine that looks vaguely like a coffee urn, but actually produces instant coffee on demand by mixing liquid concentrate and hot water. When it’s made in a properly-calibrated machine it tastes like OK instant coffee (not as good as Starbucks Via, but better than Folger’s Crystals). If the machine is out of calibration, it can be really weak or very strong.

If you like your coffee with cream and sugar or just aren’t picky about coffee, you may be fine with the reconstituted coffee . If you like quality coffee, you may want to order espresso drinks (at extra cost), which are available at most bars and sit-down restaurants and at the bar in the Wish, Dream & Fantasy’s buffets. You might also consider bringing Starbucks Via packets if you like them. In our experience the Via is much better than the reconstituted stuff.

If you’re a tea drinker, the news is better: there are a wide variety of Twinings tea bags (regular and herbal) at the main deck drink stations and in the dining rooms. And in the dining rooms, they almost always serve tea properly, with acceptably hot water and a small pitcher of milk upon request.

The iced tea served everywhere is unsweetened reconstituted iced tea from a soda machine (Fuze brand from Coca-Cola), but you can make your own iced tea by brewing fresh hot tea and adding ice and water, and that is much better. Our recipe: put two regular black tea bags in a cup of hot water, steep three minutes, stir in sugar if desired, then pour over a full cup of ice. Add water to taste.

Most bars on the ship have espresso machines , including the adults-only Cove Cafe on the pool deck and the all-ages Promenade Lounge on deck 3 (Wonder & Magic), Vista Café on deck 4 (Dream & Fantasy), and all bars and lounges on the Wish. Espresso is also available in the main dining rooms, the premium restaurants, and the Dream, Fantasy and Wish buffets. All espresso drinks cost extra, generally about the same price as on land. If you are a regular consumer of espresso drinks, be sure to get a coffee card. Each time you buy a latte, cappucino, etc. they will mark the card. Your sixth beverage is FREE! If you don’t fill your card during the cruise, hold onto it — it can be used on a future cruise, even on a different Disney ship!

Wine Packages and Refillable Beer Mug

Disney doesn’t have any “all you can drink” packages available. You don’t really need one for sodas, since they’re included (except at bars). Alcohol and other specialty beverages are always a la carte. There are, however, two programs that could save you some money (albeit with a few caveats).

Wine Packages

This is an opportunity to pre-pay for a certain number of bottles of wine, which you can enjoy at any of the sit-down restaurants. If you don’t finish one, you can get it recorked for the next night (and they’ll take it to the next restaurant in the rotation, or you can get it brought to you at Palo, Remy or Enchanté), or you can take it with you to your room. If you don’t end up drinking them all, you can take the remainder home. Your server will usually suggest buying one bottle per cruise night, but you can buy more or less if you like. The wines are all from a set list, which changes from time to time, and usually includes about 10-12 white wines and 8-10 red wines. There are two tiers, with the more expensive one including fancier bottles of wine. The wines on the list change regularly, but we think the choices are all pretty good, with a few real winners on each list. Disney pushes these packages aggressively: a brochure will be on the table your first night, and one of your servers will offer a sales pitch the first night.

We went to the trouble a few years ago to price out all the wines on the list and compare to the average cost per bottle from the packages . The price per bottle in the packages was about $2-3 cheaper than the average price of the bottles included in the package. However, the packages typically have only 5-7 selections that sell for more than the average price, and 12-15 selections that sell for less than the average price. So if you pick random bottles from the list, you’re very likely to end up spending more (or at least not much less) by buying the package. To come out ahead, you have to consistently order from the few bottles that are higher priced.

Frankly, our opinion is that it’s not worth the trouble, at least as a money-saving strategy . If buying your dinner wine in advance will help you relax, then go ahead; you certainly won’t lose much money unless you happen to always pick the cheapest wine on the list. And if you really love a particular wine or wines that you know are higher-priced, and you plan to only drink those, the plan will save you a few bucks per bottle.

Refillable Beer Mug

This is a large 21 oz glass souvenir beer mug that you can buy at any bar for $17 (last we checked). When you get it filled (at any bar or restaurant), you get 21 ounces for the price of a 16 ounce draft beer. One nice thing is that you don’t have to cart the mug around; they’ll give you a little token you can trade for a mug at any time. So you give the token to your server and get a mug of beer, and when you’re done you can give them the mug and ask for the token back. At the end of the cruise, just stop by any bar to get a nice clean mug to take home. The selection of draft beers is pretty good, and in addition to the standard American beers, there are always a few craft beers like Widmer or Full Sail and even sometimes a cider like Strongbow. (Disney Cruise Line advertises this as a 21 oz glass, but we heard from a reader who measured it and found it actually held 20 oz when filled to the rim.)

Purely as a money-saving strategy, it’s hard to get your money’s worth out of the mug unless you really like beer. However, if you like the idea of having a Disney Cruise Line souvenir beer mug, and the price seems reasonable, then the extra beer is basically FREE. Make sure to tell your spouse that when you buy it.

Disembarkation Day

Breakfast is served on the day of disembarkation. In fact, you’ll have an assigned restaurant and time for breakfast for disembarkation, or you can choose to eat at the buffet instead. It will be a much smaller selection than during the cruise: welcome back to the real world!

Regular guests do not have access to room service on disembarkation morning. Concierge level guests can order a standard Continental breakfast from room service on disembarkation morning.

Most kids find the Oceaneer Club and Oceaneer Lab, for ages 3-10, to be the best part of a Disney cruise. There is a lot to do, with great hands-on organized activities going on all the time.

Signing in and out is a relatively easy process considering what needs to be done to protect the children. However, you may have to wait in line either to drop them off or pick them up. Plan at least 5 minutes for the pick up or drop off process. If your children are 8 years old or older, they can be given the ability to sign themselves in and out on their own.

The Navigator app will tell you what’s happening and where your kids are at any given time. Check the app to see if your children will be out of the Club at the time you want to sign them out – for instance, they could be up on the deck playing basketball. Using the app to plan will save you a wasted trip. Also, when the kids are moving from one location to another, they will not allow you to sign them in or out, so there can be a 10-15 minute window where you have to wait.

You can keep your child signed in to the Oceaneer Club while at Castaway Cay. They will take the kids off the ship to special play areas for supervised games and activities throughout the day. If you do this, be sure to bring your phone with you. The Wi-Fi covers much of Castaway Cay and the app tends to work OK. But if you want your kids to join you for some time on the island, make sure you know their schedule of activities. They eat lunch fairly early, and are taken back to the ship before the beach closes.

Edge is the “tween” club for ages 11-14. Vibe is the teen club for ages 14-17. A 14-year-old can access both Edge and Vibe, but they will have to register for both. Disney will sometimes be slightly flexible about the age groups for these clubs, and will sometimes allow a child that is a little younger than the target age into the older teen club if they have space in the club your child wants to attend, especially if they have a friend or sibling in the older club. This is not guaranteed, but it’s worth asking.

The Disney Cruise offers many opportunities to meet characters . You will see most of the popular characters at some point or another on the Disney Cruise. Greeting times are available in the Navigator app. The lines for character greetings usually start forming about 15 minutes before the scheduled greeting time, so if you can get there 10 minutes beforehand, you won’t have a long wait once the characters arrive.

Some popular character meetings and meals may require advance booking . There’s no charge for the character meetings, but certain breakfasts or teas with characters may have an additional fee. You should book these as early as you can online; the bookings open on the same schedule as  booking excursions and Palo/Remy/Enchanté . You can also call or stop by guest services on the first day and ask about tickets; they may hold back some slots for onboard booking. Thanks to Sarah B and Rachel P for info.

Bring your kids’ Disney costumes, if they have any. The cruise is a great opportunity to get pictures of your daughter dressed as Belle with the “real” Belle herself, without her having to wear the costume all day.

If you’re on a 7-night cruise, you may have an assigned Character Breakfast on one of the days of the cruise. You’ll get a chance for photos with all the main Disney characters, including Mickey and Minnie!

Most of the character greetings will include a Disney professional photographer , so if your own photo doesn’t turn out you can still buy a memento from Shutters, the onboard photo location.

Read our tips, tricks and discounts on Port Excursions !

The list below is mostly based on reader suggestions. We have to admit, we have taken Disney cruises at various times without these, and everything went just fine. So don’t go too crazy with overpacking! But some of these are good ideas for specific needs.

• Water shoes – Always a good idea if you’ll be snorkeling or wading where there are coral reefs and sharp rocks. Also handy to protect your feet on hot sand, concrete or the pool deck; the sun can make the deck very hot and you’ll want some of these or some simple flip-flops while hanging around the pool. You can wear water shoes that are secure and not likely to come off on the AquaDuck, AquaMouse and AquaDunk, but flip-flops or water shoes that slip off easily will need to be stowed before riding.
• Safe Sea lotion – This is a lotion that protects against jellyfish, sea nettle, and seabather’s eruption , caused by jellyfish larvae that are sometimes called “sea lice.” There is actual independent research that backs this up – we’ve read it and are satisfied that it works. We want to reassure people that large jellyfish are kept out of the lagoon at Castaway Cay by netting under the water, so we’ve never heard of anyone getting a serious sting there, but people do occasionally get seabather’s eruption. At other beaches in the Bahamas and Caribbean jellyfish stings are not common, but they do happen. The peak season for jellyfish is summer (June-August) and they’re rare in winter. We actually had a very minor issue with seabather’s eruption on one trip to Castaway Cay (on some skin that didn’t have lotion; we failed to note that you need to apply some underneath the swimsuit for full protection), and we can attest that while it’s not the end of the world, it’s quite unpleasant and worth avoiding. Certainly the lotion is a cheap form of insurance, and there are formulations that include sunscreen, which you’ll need anyway. Another option is to bring some jellyfish after-sting gel  just in case, or some sources recommend hydrocortisone cream or antihistamine cream .
• Body Powder – If you’ve ever tried to wipe beach sand off your body, you know it tends to stick in an annoying manner. It turns out it sticks to your skin because of residual moisture, and if you just rub your skin with water-absorbent powder (i.e. scented cornstarch), the sand drops right off. We used to recommend a very useful little mitt that contained cornstarch-based body powder for wiping off sand. Apparently that mitt isn’t made any more, but you can get the same effect by just sprinkling the powder on a towel and wiping with that. Do make sure you’re getting plain cornstarch powder, or at least talc-free powder. Talc is not good to breathe.
• Robe – if you like to wear one in your room, you’ll need to bring your own unless you’re in a concierge room. Some people have had luck asking their stateroom attendant, but it’s not guaranteed they can get you one.
• Pop-up Hamper – We like the rectangular kind with a circular opening on the top, as opposed to the ones that look like a big round cloth-covered spring. The squarer ones seem to hold their shape better. They only weigh 8 ounces, fold down to a small circle, and fit nicely into hotel and stateroom closets.
• Dry box/case – Basically, a small waterproof box or pouch on a lanyard. Used by scuba divers and snorkelers, these are handy for any beach visit, because you can keep your ID and some money around your neck, instead of sticking valuables in your shoe and leaving them on the beach (yeah, everyone knows about THAT hiding place!)
• Clothespins – These have a variety of uses, from weighing down a shower curtain that wants to stick to you, to anchoring your beach towel to a lounge chair. You can clip your curtains together if you want to minimize light leakage in the morning. Oh, and you can use them to hang laundry up to dry, too (there’s a retractable clothesline in the bathtub).
• Night light – Particularly if you are staying in one of the Inside cabins on the Magic, Wonder or Wish, this is nice to have. It’s pitch black in those rooms when the lights are off. If you don’t want to use up a wall plug, you can get a USB light that plugs into an empty USB charger port. (It’ll also work in a laptop USB port, but not all laptops keep power to the USB ports when they go to sleep, so you’d want to check that first.) An LED flashlight or headlamp can also be handy if you need to get up in the middle of the night and don’t want to turn on lights.
• Magnets – The stateroom doors are metal (except for the doors in the concierge section of the Dream and Fantasy). You can stick magnets on them to decorate your door, and it makes it easier for your children (and you) to identify your room. Don’t bring anything you can’t bear to lose: these do get taken sometimes. Please note that you are not allowed to use any type of adhesive on your door, including removable gel adhesives that supposedly come off clean. You will be charged for any damage to the door.
• Multi-USB charger – When we have a lot of things to charge while travelling, normally we bring a  travel power strip , but as mentioned below, power strips are generally not allowed on Disney ships. Now we bring a multi-charger, which can charge 4 or more devices from one outlet. We’ve used Anker brand as well as Amazon Basics, and they’ve both been perfectly fine. You’ll need to also bring the USB cable for each device. We’d recommend getting at least a 40W model if you have anything more than just a phone or two. A 60W model typically has six outlets and might be just the thing if you have a lot of tablets and phones to charge, or you want a spare port to plug a USB night light into. Note that on the Magic and Wonder, they’ve installed a few more USA-type power outlets near the desk, and there are a couple of USB charging ports at the desk and on the alarm clock next to the bed. The Wish staterooms have tons of USB charging outlets at the desk and next to the bed, including two USB-C ports, so you can probably get by without a USB charger on that ship.
• Irons are NOT ALLOWED as they are a fire hazard. Fire is a huge danger on cruise ships. If you take an iron it will be confiscated from your luggage. Irons are available for your use in the laundry rooms.
• Rolls of quarters – In the past, these were needed for the self-service laundry onboard, but now you just swipe your room key for use of the washer, dryer, soap and dryer sheets. The cost is charged to your account.
• Over-the-door shoe organizer – Some people have used these to store toiletries or other small items. Disney now asks that you do NOT use them as they “scratch and/or disfigure stateroom doors and trim.” You will be charged for any damage.
• Seasickness medication – Unless you KNOW you get seasick on cruise ships, don’t bother bringing this. If you do get queasy, the ship’s health center or the guest services desk will give you FREE over the counter medication (generic meclizine, the ingredient in Bonine or non-drowsy Dramamine). If you get super-queasy the health center can get you prescription medication (for a fee).
• Beach towels – They are provided when you get off the ship on beach days.
• Power/outlet strip – These are not allowed on the ship. MouseSavers.com reader Christina N reports: “… they confiscated these from my bag and from others. They do not allow them as it blows circuits in the room.” Technically, they only ban extension cords, and power strips with surge protectors, but in practice people have reported having just about any kind of multi-outlet strip or adapter confiscated, because the people doing the screening don’t want to figure out whether your power strip is one of the “bad” ones. One thing not many people know is that there’s an open outlet behind the TV in most cabins on the Magic, Wonder, Dream and Fantasy. The TVs are on a pivoting arm, so it’s easy to pull them out and expose the spare plug. Many smartphones and smaller tablets can be charged through a USB cable connected to a laptop, so if you take a USB cable you’ll only need one outlet, to plug in the laptop. Or you might want to pack a multi-USB charger like the ones mentioned above. And over time Disney has been adding USB charging ports to the outlets near the desk, so you might not need a power strip depending on how many devices you have.
• Extension cords – the only extension cords allowed on the ship are ones you can borrow from Guest Services ($50 deposit required; refunded when you return the cord). There are a limited number and availability is first-come, first-served. If you need one for a CPAP or other medical device, one will be made available, but all of the ships now have a plug next to the bed, so you shouldn’t need an extension for a CPAP. On the Wish, there are US-style plugs next to one side of the bed, and a European plug on the other side. So if you have a CPAP or other device that goes next to the bed, and you really prefer to sleep on a specific side, make sure you have the correct plug adapter and your CPAP power supply handles both 110 and 220 volt current (almost all of them do, but you should check).
• Hairdryer (maybe) – Hairdryers are provided, but the ones provided might not be up to your standards. If you’re not picky, don’t bother packing one.
• High chair / booster seat – Both are provided on request in the dining room.
• Pack and play crib – These are provided onboard (request when booking your cruise).
• Stroller (maybe) – There are some strollers available to borrow onboard (deposit required) and on Castaway Cay. However, there are a limited number and it’s first-come, first-served. If you have a little one, it’s not a bad idea to bring a small umbrella stroller along.

During the day and most evenings on the Disney Cruise Line, you can wear casual clothing. At dinner, you are asked to stick to “cruise casual.” Most men wear a collared shirt (aloha shirts and golf/polo shirts are fine) and long pants (chinos or dress slacks) or nice shorts. Most women wear a skirt, dress, nice pants or dressy capris. Disney requests no swimwear or tank tops at dinner, but in practice, dressier tank-style tops will usually be acceptable. People who show up to the main dining rooms in swimsuits are almost always asked to change.

There are times when dressing up to some extent is either required or encouraged:

• When having dinner at Palo, Remy or Enchanté, the dress code is basically “business casual plus.” Men are required to wear long pants suitable for professional work (which could include “nice” jeans), collared shirts and dressier shoes. Some men wear suits or even tuxedos. Women can wear pretty much anything “nice” that isn’t swimwear, casual t-shirts, shorts or sportswear. Semi-formal or even formal wear would not be out of place. At Brunch or Tea at either restaurant, the dress code is “cruise casual,” which basically means no shorts, swimsuits, tank tops or flip-flops.
• On 4-night or longer cruises, there will be one or two “optional dress up” nights that you can interpret how you will. Dressing up is not required, but some folks will make an effort to change for dinner. On our most recent Disney cruises we’ve seen a handful of tuxedos on dress-up nights and a few dozen men wearing jackets. A fair number of women were dressed in nicer outfits. Lots and lots of people were just in normal “cruise casual” outfits, so if you don’t like to dress up don’t feel like you’re under any obligation to do so. On the other hand, if you like to dress up, it’s a great opportunity. The crew and the Disney characters will be in nicer clothes, there will be photo stations where you can get a picture of the whole family in nice outfits, and you won’t feel overdressed in a gown or tux.
• Some people like to wear dressy or semi-formal clothing on the nights when they dine in Lumiere’s (Magic), Triton’s (Wonder) or Royal Palace/Royal Court (Dream or Fantasy), since those are the restaurants with the fanciest theming but this is not by any means required.
• Similarly, a few people like to dress in 1920’s inspired clothes when dining in 1923 on the Disney Wish. This is just a fun thing to do and not in any way required.

Where to Buy Disney Cruise Wear

If you’re looking for Disney-themed casual cruise wear (aloha shirts, etc.), a good place to look is DisneyStore.com . Unfortunately they only offer resort wear on a seasonal basis (usually spring and summer), but even in the winter it’s always worth looking to see if they have anything in the sale section.

DisneyStore.com  carries a significant amount of Disney Cruise Line clothing and other logo merchandise as well.

• See current discounts and offers for DisneyStore.com.

Your phone should still be able to reach a tower on land as long as the ship is in port, but once you are at sea, we strongly advise you to turn off international roaming and data roaming, to avoid having your phone accidentally use the “Cellular@Sea” service, which is very expensive. You can (and should) leave wi-fi turned on, so you can use Disney’s Navigator App to see the current schedules and menus and so forth.

You can also use the Disney Navigator App on your own phone to send messages to other people in your party. To get message notifications as quickly as possible, make sure that notifications are enabled for the Disney Navigator app, as well as background updates. Basically in our experience, the Navigator app needs to have all permissions set to “on,” including Location, Bluetooth, Notifications, and Background Update. You can (and perhaps should) turn those off again once your cruise has ended.

If you absolutely must use your phone to call or text while at sea, service may be available on Disney ships through the “Cellular@Sea” service. It is a very expensive form of international roaming and the ship must be 8 to 10 miles out to sea before you can access it. Most phones will just connect to Cellular@Sea without needing any special setup, but be aware that the service includes phone, text messaging, and data . If your phone is set to auto-update, you could end up on the hook for a large data charge because it decided to download a 100MB game update or something. Definitely turn off your cellular data, or set it to not use cellular data when roaming.

US phones will work in most international ports if you have turned on international roaming. You might need to arrange with your provider for that feature to be turned on in advance, but most providers have it set up by default. Depending on your provider, roaming may be very expensive (potentially over $2 per minute, and $10 or more per megabyte of data). Check with your provider for special international roaming packages, which may save you money if you plan to use your phone a lot.

Wireless internet service is available on all Disney ships . All internet is over satellite, and you shouldn’t expect speeds or responsiveness similar to what you get on land, though it’s usually good enough to send messages and emails and use Facebook and other social media.

Internet service on Disney ships is paid for by the day, and is theoretically “unlimited .” It’s pretty fast for cruise ship internet, but still slower than most land-based systems. You’re sharing bandwidth with all the other passengers and crew, so right after you leave a port, expect the internet to crawl as everyone starts posting pictures of their excursions to social media. If you have cellular internet service that works in that country (and is reasonably priced), you may want to post your pictures before you leave port via cellular rather than via wi-fi. If your cellular is flaky, get to the top deck and walk over to the side of the ship closest to land. Alternatively, wait until dinner time, when the wi-fi speeds will pick up considerably.

Prices are (so far) pretty reasonable for cruise ship internet, with a basic single-device plan that lets you use Facebook and similar apps (but not email or web) for $16/day (when purchased for the whole cruise), a fancier plan that includes email and web (but no streaming) for $24/day, and a premium plan that includes music streaming for $34/day. Video streaming is not supported on any plan , so no Netflix or Hulu. Plans cost a little more if you only buy a plan for individual days rather than the whole cruise, and there is a small discount for adding additional devices.

Spa: Treatments, Products and Fitness Center

Spa treatments are very popular and fill up early , so book them as early as you can . If you’re not able to get an appointment before you embark, go to the Spa when you get onboard and you’ll probably be able to arrange one in person.

We don’t recommend having any spa treatments done on the first (embarkation) day , because people are touring the Spa all afternoon and evening, making it busy and not very relaxing. It’s a good day to set up your future appointments, but not as good for actually having treatments done.

The changing rooms in the spa have fluffy robes for your use. Sadly, the robes are all “one size fits most” and aren’t big enough for many people. You then can choose a locker that contains a clean pair of spa sandals. The lockers allow you to set your own combination for secure storage of your personal items. We don’t find the sandals they provide very comfortable (again, they’re “one size fits most”), so we just wear a clean pair of sandals or flip-flops to our spa appointment.

You can change into your robe in the open locker room or in one of the toilet cubicles. Once you’re in your robe and sandals, an attendant will escort you to a quiet waiting room, where you can enjoy some water while you wait for your treatment. After your treatment you’ll be escorted back to the locker room, where you can use one of the spacious showers if you wish. Basic toiletries, disposable combs, etc. are provided. On the Dream and Fantasy, there is a dry sauna in the locker room that you can enjoy after your treatment for no additional charge.

If you are considering a Cabana Massage on Castaway Cay, here are a few things to consider first:

• The cabanas are rustic. There is no running water in them, so your massage therapist cannot wash her hands during your treatment. There is no air conditioning (there is a ceiling fan) or heat so it can be unpleasantly hot in the summer and uncomfortably cool in the winter.
• Your feet and lower legs will almost certainly be covered with sand by the time you get to the cabana, and there’s really no facility for removing it. (There is an outdoor shower near the waiting area, but you’ll then proceed across the sand to the cabana… you’ll get sandy again, trust us.) So the sand inevitably becomes part of the treatment. How you feel about having sandy oil rubbed into your skin is a matter of preference. And remember, the massage oil dissolves any sunscreen you’re wearing, so you’ll need to reapply it afterward, which enters the mix with the sand.
• When you envision this experience, you might think you would be relaxing to the sound of the ocean waves. Nope. The cabanas are located right above the lounge chairs along the beach (though visually separated by some plants), so you will hear the chatter of people sitting right below you.
• The Cabana Massage is billed as featuring “breathtaking views of Serenity Bay.” Well, that’s true for the massage therapist, but you’ll be lying on a table, and you won’t see the scenery from there.
• The Cabana Massage is more expensive than a regular massage in the ship’s spa, yet in many ways you are getting less for your money. If you have a massage on the ship, you’ll have access to showers, a locker room, robes and sandals, etc. With the Cabana Massages, you get none of that.

The Rainforest

The Rainforest is a lovely, relaxing co-ed spa area on each ship.

• On the Magic and Wonder , the Rainforest includes three tiled steam rooms (each a different temperature), some open showers with different scented “rain” programs and a few heated loungers.
• On the Dream and Fantasy , the Rainforest has a dry sauna, a hot steam room and a hammam (a large, tiled steam room that is less hot than the regular steam room), four scented showers with multiple “rain” programs, numerous heated loungers with views of the sea and two hot tubs on a private deck overlooking the water.
• On the Wish , the Rainforest has a dry sauna, hammam, a cryotherapy (cold) room, showers with rain programs, heated loungers, and a nice sun deck ( much larger than the one on the Dream & Fantasy) with two hot tubs and plenty of sun beds. The sun deck is tucked into the nose of the ship, one deck below the promenade, so there’s no ocean view, but you can see the sky and relax in the sun or the shade according to your preference.

You can purchase a day pass or a longer pass for the length of your cruise. A limited number of passes are sold on each sailing. Tip: the Rainforest Room is closed until around 5 on embarkation day, so you won’t typically get a lot of usage on the first day of the cruise. You may find it’s a better deal just to pay day-by-day, or ask if you can buy a shorter pass. The single-day passes for the sea day(s) will go first, followed by the full-cruise passes. A pass for the Castaway Cay day or other port day might be available same day, and could be a good alternative if you’re not interested in that port.

When you want to use the Rainforest, just tell the front desk staff at the spa and they’ll give you a wristband that opens the door to the Rainforest area. They will hold your room key while you are in the Rainforest. You then proceed to the locker room, where you can choose a locker and get a robe and sandals, if desired. A swimsuit must be worn since the Rainforest is mixed-gender.

Towels and drinking water are provided.

The spas on the Disney ships are operated by Steiner, a huge British spa company that runs spas for cruise lines and resorts. The staff do a great job performing the spa treatments, but Steiner trains them to offer product upsells at every reasonable opportunity. The result is that they almost always give cruise passengers a sales pitch on spa products. The products themselves are fine, but they are expensive and getting a sales pitch after your relaxing treatment can be annoying.

You’ll be given a “health form” before your treatment, asking about various health issues. Any issues you write on that form are used to help them sell you stuff (“Oh, I see you have very dry skin. You should try this cream.”). For that reason, unless you have an allergy or injury that directly affects your treatment , we recommend leaving the form as blank as possible .

Some people have tried writing “no sales pitch” on the form, but that is frequently ignored. Here are some other approaches we’ve used with success:

• A polite and friendly “no thank you” when they start showing the products or going through their list of recommendations is our first line of defense. That’s often the end of it! But if they start offering a second sales pitch, we make a concerned/confused face, pause for a moment, and say, again politely, “I’m really not interested, thanks.” The subtext you want to get across is that by not paying attention to your clear and polite “no,” they’re running the risk of affecting your overall satisfaction, with all that implies about things like tips and guest comment cards. You don’t need to make this explicit; the concerned face and second “no” usually does the trick.
• If they start the sales pitch while we are getting a relaxation treatment such as a massage or wrap, we usually just stay silent. We keep our  eyes closed and don’t respond to questions. Usually they quit talking, because it becomes quite awkward for them. But if they persist, we say politely, “Sorry, I’m trying to relax, and silence really helps me with that. Thanks!”
• If we are getting a haircut or pedicure, it’s harder to ignore the sales pitch. So instead we act very enthusiastic about every product they are pushing. Usually they’ll use one or more of the products on us during the service. If they offer samples we take them, with sincere thanks. When we go to check out, there is always a big stack of “suggested” products at the front desk. When they ask us what we’ll be buying, we say “oh, I want to see how the stuff I tried today works out, so I’m not buying anything right now.”
• Remember that no matter what happens, you can always change your mind about the add-on products when you check out. Until you sign the purchase slip, you haven’t purchased anything. Just say, “after thinking it over, I don’t need any products right now. Could you take these off the bill? Thanks.”

Fitness Center

A well-equipped Fitness Center can be accessed through the Spa on all of the ships. It’s usually open from early morning to fairly late – check the Navigator for specific hours. There is no charge to use the Fitness Center. The locker rooms, sauna and showers for the Fitness Center are shared with the Spa. Towels, robes and water are provided, and you can borrow an iPod shuffle if you don’t have your own iPod with you.

You never are expected to add any extra tip over and above the automatic gratuity amounts, which are listed below . You may , if you wish, add more, and you can even adjust certain tips down if you feel it’s warranted. Many people add extra gratuities purely because the service staff on a Disney cruise are extremely helpful and work very hard, but again, no one should ever make you feel like you are required to tip more.

Disney provides suggested tip amounts for the crew members who will assist you throughout the week: your server (takes your food orders for each dinner), assistant server (takes your drink orders at each dinner and delivers the food), head server (in charge of the overall dinner experience, special dietary requests and special occasions), and stateroom host/hostess (takes care of your room). As on all cruise lines, tips are the primary source of income for people working in these positions.

The suggested gratuities for your servers and stateroom host are automatically added to your stateroom bill. If you want to adjust the amount, you can go to Guest Services. Toward the end of the cruise you will be provided with slips indicating the tip amounts, which you can present to your servers during your last dinner on the cruise and leave in your room for your stateroom host. (They will get the money in their accounts whether you give them the slips or not, it’s purely a symbolic way of thanking them for their service. Don’t feel you need to do it if you don’t enjoy that kind of interaction.)

If you are staying in a concierge room, a separate form is provided to add tip for the concierge staff, with a suggested “average” tip amount. You can use your discretion to adjust it up or down based on how much help they provided your family. 

If you dine at Palo, Remy or Enchanté, many people add an additional tip to the per-person charge, though the basic charge is considered by Disney to cover the gratuity.

An automatic gratuity is added to all beverages ordered in bars and lounges; soft drinks, alcoholic beverages and bottled water from room service; and alcoholic beverages/smoothies/bottled water ordered in the dining room. There will also be a line where you can add an additional tip at your discretion.

You can add room service tips to your room bill. Even if your order costs nothing, you’ll be asked to sign a slip, and there is a space for tips on that slip. A dollar or two per item ordered is pretty common, but entirely optional.

You are allowed to give tips to crew members in cash, if you like, and they’re happy to take it in any major currency. If you have a meaningful amount of foreign currency (more than a few dollars worth) after your cruise that you’re unlikely to use anytime in the near future, feel free to leave it for your room host in addition to the automatic gratuity; they’ll be happy to get it.

As the skippers say on the world-famous Jungle Cruise, “You all have been outstanding on this cruise, but now I need you out standing on the dock!” Sadly, your cruise will eventually have to end, and Disney needs to get a few thousand people and their bags off the ship in the space of about 3 hours, so “efficiency” is the word of the day.

A few days before the end of your cruise you should be reminded to check the disembarkation instructions in the Navigator app , and you might get a paper form listing your specific disembarkation instructions. Disembarkation can feel very complicated and rushed, but it’s not that bad once you know how it works.

The first important decision is whether you want Disney to take your big luggage off the ship for you. If you have a lot of bags, or they’re unwieldy, you probably are going to want to have the bags moved for you, but if you can handle your own bags in one trip, that makes things immensely less complicated. These days we always choose to handle our own bags, but there are times we wonder whether it’d be easier to have Disney do it, usually when we’re wrestling our big roller bags down the gangplank. It’s worth trying it both ways if you go on multiple cruises, because you never can tell which one will feel easiest for you.

Whether or not you handle your own bags, you’re supposed to be completely out of your room on the final morning by 8:00 am so they can start cleaning and resetting it for the next guests (sometimes this time can change depending on the disembarkation port – check the sheet they give you or the app to make sure). This can make things logistically complicated, since if you want to do a table-service breakfast, it will be on a fixed schedule based on whether you are on the early or late dinner seating. The first breakfast seating starts early enough to get done before 8:00 am, but the later one does not. So if you plan to do table-service breakfast and you’re on late seating, you will have to take your luggage with you. Most people on late seating line up their bags in the hallway leading to the dining room. Don’t worry, no one will take your bags; your fellow guests are all far too tired. You can take smaller bags into the dining room and park them next to the table as long as they aren’t in the servers’ way. If you are planning an early breakfast in the buffet or you’re having sit-down breakfast on the earlier seating, you can just leave your bags in your room and then come back and retrieve them by 8:00 am.

Option 1: Disney Handles Your Bags

If you decide to have Disney haul your big bags to the terminal, then you’ll need to put most of your bags out the night before (typically by 10:30 pm – check the app to make sure). You need to hang on to at least one or two small bags to hold the stuff you can’t pack early, like toiletries and your pajamas. Make sure not to pack the clothes you’ll need to wear the next morning! You’ll get a set of luggage tags to put on the bags you’re putting out, and there will be a guide showing roughly when each group of bags will be ready to pick up in the terminal. For example, if you have bag tag “Donald Duck”, the sheet might say that your bags will be ready between 8:30-8:45 am. If you need to leave early to catch an flight or something, make sure you’ve got the earliest time they can give you. You can go to Guest Services to change your bag group if needed. On disembarkation morning, they will make periodic announcements about every 15 minutes, as each set of bags gets delivered to the terminal. They ask that you not leave the ship until your bag group gets called.

If you’re out of the room, but they still haven’t called your bag group, you’ll need to find somewhere to wait . In our experience, the lounges in the adult area of the ship are the most likely to have empty seats available, especially the main adult show lounge on the Magic, Wonder, Dream & Fantasy (Fathoms/Azure/Evolution/The Tube). Those are on deck 3, so you can just walk to the atrium when your group is called. On the Wish, there are fewer options on deck 3, so you may end up needing to go to another deck or sit on the floor. On the other hand, if you’re still in the dining room when they call your bag group, there’s not really any harm in waiting until you finish breakfast to disembark, assuming you don’t have transportation waiting for you. Typically they want everyone off by 9:30 am or so, so that’s your hard deadline.

When you get into the terminal, if you’re in a hurry, it’s not a bad idea to ask for a porter’s help. They’re usually lined up in the luggage area with carts, and they know the terminal well and will know if there’s any shortcuts or faster ways to get you into a cab or shuttle. They work for tips, and a typical tip is $1-2 per bag; more if they go above and beyond.

If you booked Disney’s transfers to Walt Disney World or the airport, then the timing is much more fixed. They will assign you a time to get off, and you really need to get off at that time so they can get you on the right bus. Arrange your breakfast plans accordingly.

Option 2: You Handle Your Own Bags

If you’re handling your own bags, there’s not really much you have to do the night before to prepare . Get mostly packed up the night before. Finish packing on the morning of disembarkation, get breakfast if you like, and then just leave the ship. You can leave any time after the ship is cleared, which will be 15-30 minutes after the ship is docked. They won’t necessarily announce to the whole ship that disembarkation has begun, because it’ll happen as early as 6-6:30 in the morning and they don’t want to wake everyone up with an announcement. If you can see that the ship is docked, just head down to deck 3 and wait for them to start letting folks off.

Skip the talks, except for the nature talks on the Alaska cruises, which can be excellent. The shopping talk is just a “rah-rah” for certain shops that are paying a marketing fee, and you might get a few coupons for free (junky) souvenirs. Both the shopping and disembarkation talks are replayed on the television repeatedly. Don’t waste your vacation time attending these lectures in person.

Read additional tips specific to the Disney Dream (which will also apply to the Fantasy) .

So what’s it really like to take a Disney cruise? Here are a few different perspectives on the experience:

• A look at what’s new and different on the Disney Wish , from a preview sailing in July 2022.
• A comparison of taking three cruises on three different ships in a six-month span between March and August 2014. It was rough, but somebody had to do it.
• Taking a cruise on the Disney Fantasy with a baby and a 3 ½-year-old , May 2012.
• First-hand report on the  Disney Fantasy  from March 2012: what’s new and different? See photos and learn more!
•   First impressions of the Disney Dream , from a preview sailing in January 2011.
• In summer 2007, friends of MouseSavers.com Ann and Danilo V wrote a travel blog about taking their 5 children to Europe for the summer. At the end of their trip they took a Disney Mediterranean cruise (10 nights roundtrip from Barcelona) in a Category 3 and a Category 4 stateroom. Then they did the 14-night Transatlantic cruise on the Disney Magic in the Walt Disney Suite!

These 10 tips for Disney Cruise first timers ensure a magical experience

I f you're reading this, you are probably getting ready to go on your first Disney Cruise or searching for tips on how to get ready for your first Disney Cruise. You may be researching and figuring out whether a Disney Cruise is right for you. You've come to the right place. 

I've been on seven Disney cruises with numbers eight and nine booked. Here are my best tips. 

Here are 10 things you need to know about how to get ready for your first Disney cruise

1. download the disney cruise line navigator app.

Go to iTunes or Google Play Store for the free Disney Cruise Line Navigator app. Make sure everyone else in your travel party does the same. 

You'll use the app while preparing to cruise and board the ship. Once you embark, you'll be able to use the messaging feature to communicate with other members of your group, even if you don't purchase the onboard WiFi package. The app will also give you access to other onboard information, including entertainment schedules and dinner menus. 

2. Reserve onboard activities early

One of the reasons a Disney Cruise is so awesome is all  that is included . There are a few things you'll have to reserve in advance and a few extras you'll have to pay for that aren't included in the price of your cruise. These include spa treatments, shore excursions, and specialty dining, like Palo and Remy.

First-time Disney cruisers can book activities and special experiences 75 days out. You will want to book these activities at midnight Florida time on the first-day bookings are open for you. I know that sounds a little crazy, but everything fills up quickly. The higher Castaway Club levels and concierge level cabins will have an earlier booking window, so some things will already be full, even if you're an ultra-early bird. 

Packing for a cruise and feeling overwhelmed?  Here are 20 cruise packing checklists for you to check out!

3. Check-in early

You can check in online for your Disney Cruise 30 days before embarkation. Again, you'll need to check in at midnight Florida time, right at the 30-day mark. Early check-in means earlier boarding time and more time to enjoy the vacation you've paid for versus sitting in the port's waiting area. 

Boarding groups and port arrival times are staggered, so don't snooze on doing your online check-in.

4. Schedule the Character Call – Possibly the most fun part of getting ready for your Disney Cruise

You can schedule a free, pre-recorded call from a Disney character to generate excitement about your upcoming cruise or reveal the fact that there is a cruise in your family’s near future. This is fun…and no, Mickey and Minnie don’t talk back but this gets everyone pumped up about going on a Disney Cruise.

5. Record the moment you walk onto the ship

This might be a spoiler but I wish someone had told me this part. When you walk onto the ship for the first time, record your experience or ask the family ahead of you to do it. Or the family behind you. Just make sure the video is rolling because it's magical. 

When we stepped on board the ship, the Cast Member inside asked us our family’s last name. “Robbins,” we said without questioning why. I mean…it seemed like a simple enough question.

“ Please welcome aboard the Robbins Family .”

This was shouted into a microphone and all the crew standing nearby clapped and cheered as we crossed the threshold. I almost cried. This immediately set the tone for the entire cruise and now I know what it feels like to be visiting royalty.

6. Prepare to Party Like a Pirate

Most Disney Cruises include a pirate night. Pirate night includes special themed menus in the dining room, beloved Disney characters in pirate costumes, and on-deck entertainment. 

The pirate show has music, characters, and dancing. Disney's newest ship, the Disney Wish , has an 80's rock-themed pirate show but to date, the other ships have a good versus evil pirate show where Captain Hook tries to take over the ship and Captain Mickey comes to the rescue. Disney is the only cruise line that does fireworks at sea.*

One of the most fun things about the pirate night is seeing how many guests dress in pirate costumes. Disney Cruise Line also sells a variety of pirate costumes and accessories. 

*Alaska sailing does not have fireworks at sea and usually has a Frozen-themed  deck party instead of a pirate party.

7. Decorate Your Door with fun, decorations from Etsy

Shouting out loud and proud is fun on any cruise but the design of the Disney Cruise Line's magnetic stateroom doors gives you so many fun options. The round porthole design on the door is a fun space to decorate around. The door design on the Disney Wish is shaped differently so keep that in mind if you're ordering door decorations that rely on that round design. 

8. Join the Facebook group for your cruise

The odds are excellent that someone has started a Facebook group for the passengers sailing on your cruise. Find them by searching for the name of the ship and the date of the sailing. 

These are unofficial groups, usually managed by experienced cruisers, not by Disney. It's not unusual for the group admins to be travel agents or travel content creators. These are usually drama-free online gathering spots to ask questions and make friends with other passengers before your cruise. 

9. Learn About Fish Extender Gift Exchanges

Fish extender gift exchanges are unofficial gift exchanges organized by passengers. These are typically organized within the cruise's Facebook group. 

Fish Extenders are named for the small metal fish* outside stateroom doors that are used as a mailbox for any paperwork the cruise staff wants to distribute to you during your cruise. Most guests participating in a Fish Extender gift exchange will have some sort of Disney-themed handmade holder for other passengers to put their gifts in. If you don't want to make your own, Etsy sells them. 

*On the Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy , Fish is on the port side and Seahorses are on the starboard side, but the concept is the same.

10. Make a must-do list

Do you want to have a massage on the beach? Dine Palo? Take a selfie with Minnie Mouse in her pirate costume. There is so much on a Disney Cruise and the time will fly. Jot down a list of things you'll be disappointed not to experience. 

It's hard to do everything on a single cruise, so don't stress yourself out trying. 

9. Book your next cruise on board

Book on board and receive 10 percent off a future cruise. The deposit is minimal and you don't have to book your cruise or pick your date. Your $200 deposit can be applied against a future cruise that must be completed within the next two years. Make sure you read the fine print because some restrictions do apply. 

Disney Cruise Line doesn't offer a ton of sales or discounts so if you're having fun and see yourself doing another Disney Cruise in the next two years, booking the placeholder is pretty low risk. You'll get your deposit back if you don't book during the allotted time. 

Related post: Best Disney Cruise Tips

10. Don’t compare Disney to any other cruise line

I will tell you that a Disney Cruise will spoil you for any other cruise line. A Disney Cruise is an experience all its own. If you’re an experienced cruiser, you’ll have some insider info that will help you rock your first Disney Cruise. But, a Disney Cruise is just different. It’s special. It’s magical.

It’s like that crazy roller coaster ride where you get off, laugh, and immediately say “Let’s go again.” It’s just like that.

You might also like:

14 things that are awesome about a Disney Cruise

1o tips to help you get the most out of Castaway Cay

Ultimate Disney Cruise Pack List

The post These 10 tips for Disney Cruise first timers ensure a magical experience appeared first on Ripped Jeans & Bifocals .

Rotational Dining on a Disney Cruise: What You Should Know

Are you curious about how Disney Cruise rotational dining works? Even if you are an avid cruiser with other cruise lines, the rotational dining method that Disney Cruise Line ships use may seem confusing at first. 

My family and I really enjoy the way Disney Cruise Line allows you to rotate between main dining rooms throughout your cruise. This way, you get to experience all the themed restaurants on the cruise ship. Each dining space is wonderfully unique, and it is fun to spend time in each of the different restaurants.

If you’re wondering about how the Disney Cruise rotational dining system works, we’ve got you covered! In this post, I will explain what you need to know about rotational dining, and I will provide some dining tips and hacks to aid in your planning process!

When do you find out your dining rotation?

Disney Cruise Line used to print guests’ dining rotations on the Key to the World Card . Once you received this card during check in at the cruise terminal, you could determine what your dining rotation was.

However, DCL has changed the way they are doing this. At the time of this writing, guests can find out their dining rotation on embarkation day . Once you are inside the cruise terminal or onboard the ship, just login to the Disney Cruise Line Navigator App. Your dining rotation will be listed along with the menu for each restaurant.

How does the Disney cruise dining rotation work?

Each Disney cruise ship has three main dining rooms. You rotate between these dining rooms throughout the duration of your cruise. The main dining restaurants on the Disney ships are as follows:

• Disney Dream – Animator’s Palate, Enchanted Garden, Royal Palace
• Disney Fantasy – Animator’s Palate, Enchanted Garden, Royal Court
• Disney Magic – Animator’s Palate, Rapunzel’s Royal Table, Lumiere’s
• Disney Wonder – Animator’s Palate, Tiana’s Place, Triton’s
• Disney Wish – 1923, Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure, Worlds of Marvel

So, if you sail on a 3 night itinerary, you would visit each dining room once. If you sail on a longer itinerary, you will visit one or more restaurants multiple times, depending on the length of your cruise.

That being said, even though you may eat in the same dining room, the experience is completely different. For example, my family and I ate in Animator’s Palate on the Disney Magic during nights 2 AND 3 of a 5 night Disney cruise from Miami . During night 2, we had the regular dining menu for Animator’s Palate, and we experienced the special Sorcerer Mickey show. 

We were also assigned to Animator’s Palate on night 3, but this was Pirate Night. Therefore, we had a special Pirate Night menu, and the servers provided entertainment to go along with this theme. So, even if you visit the same restaurant multiple times, you’ll get to enjoy a unique experience with a different menu at each visit.

Main Dining Room Servers 

During dinner on your first night, you will meet your wait staff, which includes your server, assistant server, and head server. These three individuals will rotate dining rooms with you throughout the cruise. In addition, if your family has been seated with other travelers, they will also move with you and your servers through the same dining rotation during your trip.

This means that even though you may be dining in a new location each night, your serving team will remain the same. The assistant server is typically the first to arrive at your table each evening, and he/she will take your drink order. The server is the one who takes your food order, and the head server is kind of like the manager. He/she walks around making sure everything is running smoothly. 

Disney Cruise Dining Times

Before I get into the details about your dining time, I want to start from the beginning with the Disney cruise booking process . When you initially book your cruise with DCL, you will be prompted to choose between Main Seating and Second Seating. 

Main Dining Time

Depending on the ship and itinerary you choose, Main Seating should take place at around 5:45 PM. Since the Broadway style shows on the ship tend to start at around 6:15 and 8:30, those who dine at the early time would go to the later show.

↓↓ Visit My Etsy Shop ↓↓

I’m going to give you a heads up that the Main Seating time fills up fast and is often “sold out” unless you book your cruise far in advance. But, if you continue reading below, I will give you some tips for getting into the Main Seating time.

Late Dining Time

The Second Seating dining time usually begins at around 8:15 PM. Now, if you are cruising with a toddler or small kids, you may be thinking there is no way your family can eat at 8:15 at night. I totally agree with you! So, I’m going to explain a few ways to make this late dining time work for you. 

First, consider the time zone in which you will be sailing. The Disney cruise itineraries that visit the Bahamas and Caribbean typically follow Eastern Time. Therefore, if you live in the Central Time Zone, 8:15 PM is really only 7:15 for you. 

If you think your family can handle this second seating time, I’ve actually heard that people prefer it. The dinners are a lot less rushed and much more quiet. Also, if you eat during Second Seating, you get to attend the earlier live show in the theater. The theater during this show time can often be much less crowded as well. 

Changing Rotational Dining Times

If the time zone trick still doesn’t make the Second Seating assignment work for you, these are the steps you can take to change your Disney Cruise dining time:

Get on the Waitlist

After you finish booking your cruise, call Disney Cruise Line and ask to be placed on the waitlist for Main Seating. They will tell you that this is not guaranteed. Also, they do not (in our experience) send an email confirmation about your request. 

Because I am a planning/control freak, I always call DCL again a few weeks later just to clarify that I’m actually on this waitlist. Once you have done this, Disney will sometimes (eventually) move you to Main Seating before you sail. Again, they won’t email you to let you know. Instead, we have always found out by just logging into our online account, and seeing that one day it magically says Main Seating. 

Check the App Often

This brings me to my next solution. Because I’m a crazy planner, I tend to check my account on the Disney Cruise Navigator App daily. On my most recent cruise with DCL, Main Seating randomly became available on the app about 30 days before we were scheduled to set sail. 

I just happened to log in one morning and see this option. So, make sure you check your account on the app regularly so you don’t miss Main Seating if it opens. I don’t think it was available for very long. 

Make Changes Onboard

If you have done all of these things and they did not work, you can go to the dining changes meeting after you board the ship. When you check in on embarkation day, you will receive a Personal Navigator explaining the cruise schedule for this first day. 

This Personal Navigator will list a meeting time and location for those who need to make dining changes. You just show up to the location during the time listed and wait in line until it’s your turn. Once you are able to speak to the crew member in charge, he/she may be able to add you to the Main Seating time right then. 

Disney Cruise Dining Tips

If you’re a first time cruiser, these are some of my top Disney Cruise Line dining tips:

Request a High Chair/Booster Seat

If you are traveling with a baby or toddler, you can request a high chair or booster seat in your account on the Navigator App. 

Food Allergy

You can make a note of certain food allergies and preferences (like vegetarian) directly on the app. I will note here that my husband has a gluten intolerance and was able to tell the dining servers once we were onboard the ship. They easily accommodated his allergy, even on Castaway Cay.

Kid’s Menu Requests

The kid’s menu rotates kid-friendly favorites like chicken fingers, hamburgers, pasta, macaroni & cheese, etc. Your kids are welcome to order off of the adult menu as well. And your servers can take care of simple menu changes for you. For example, both of my girls asked for broccoli as their side item each night even if it wasn’t listed. 

Ask Your Servers

If you’re not sure what to order, just ask your serving team! They always give great recommendations since they know the menus so well!

Seating Arrangements

If you are concerned about the seating arrangements and eating with strangers, call DCL before your cruise to request a private dining table. **Note that Disney Cruise Line now allows guests to request a private table in the DCL Navigator App prior to sailing.

Dinner Attire

You will see all kinds of outfits in the dining rooms onboard, so you really can’t go wrong no matter how fancy or casual (within reason) you want to dress. Just make sure to take a cardigan or jacket with you if you tend to get cold because the dining rooms can be quite chilly. You can find the official dress code for the dining venues on the Disney Cruise ships here .

Dining Rotation Request

Some Disney Cruise Line guests prefer specific dining rotations during their trip. This could be due to many factors, including a desire to be seated in one of the “fancier” dining rooms on formal night. In other words, some families prefer to eat at Enchanted Garden or Royal Court rather than at Animator’s Palate when in formal wear.

Additionally, sometimes cruisers have a favorite dining room that they don’t want to miss during the trip. If those guests booked Palo or another activity that conflicted with their main dining time, they may want to request a rotation that allows them to still visit their favorite restaurant on another night.

Although my family and I have never requested a specific Disney cruise dining rotation, it is something that others consider. If this is important to you, just call DCL to make a note of your request. Similar to other requests, it is not guaranteed. However, they will try to work with you.

Final Thoughts on Disney Cruise Dining Rotations

Overall, I really enjoy the concept of rotational dining. It’s nice to visit multiple dining rooms on your cruise, especially since Disney is so great at theming these spaces. My family and I also really love the dinner entertainment that is provided at certain venues.

The live music and dancing help keep the kids (and sometimes toddlers) entertained throughout the meal. Whether you are planning your first Disney cruise or you’ve enjoyed Disney’s rotational dining experience on other ships, we hope you enjoy all the themed dining venues onboard!

I hope this helped explain how Disney cruise rotational dining works! Comment below to let me know how you feel about rotating restaurants!

Shari is an experienced planner and organizer for Disney vacations, cruising, and U.S. travel. Her family vacation information, reviews, and tips provide insight for moms and dads everywhere. You can read more about her story, including her journey through breast cancer, in the about me page.

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Are the rotational dinners including?

Yes, the rotational dinners are included in your initial cruise fare. Hope you have a great trip!

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Family Travel with a Celiac Momma & a Sprinkle of Pixie Dust

Moving your Dining Time on Disney Cruise Line

The how to’s of moving your dining time on Disney Cruise Line. I also discuss your options if your move is delayed until after the cruise starts, or if it never occurs. You will never have to worry about not eating if you can’t have your preferred dining time on Disney Cruise Line. This article specifically deals with going from late seating to first seating (main) but it could be used in reverse if there was a need.

I’ve been scheduled for late dining but needed early for 4 Disney Cruises within the past 2 and a half years. In all 4 cases I’ve eventually been successful in my request to move to early dining. For the first 2 cruises I booked REALLY last minute- the week before for one trip, and 3 or 4 weeks before for the other trip. I put my request in my reservation both times to be placed on the wait list. Both cruises were 7 nights on the Fantasy. For the second cruise, which was this past summer, we were moved before we set sail! I was actually able to log into my account and see that I was moved several days before we cruised. What a nice feeling!

On the first cruise, we weren’t moved to early dining before setting sail. I had booked this cruise one week before we sailed and I put a request in (wait list) for early seating, which was not granted. Upon boarding the ship I had to go to the designated area to request a seating change, in this case it was the Royal Court dining room just off the entrance. I was like 15th on the list as we didn’t board until around 2:45 pm. I was told I would be notified that night about getting moved – they really didn’t notify us. Since we weren’t notified, or moved, we just ordered room service and ate in the room. The whole thing was disappointing.

In the future if we aren’t moved before the cruise starts, we will just eat quick service outside on the pool deck. Disney offers sandwiches, pizza, salads, etc. They even have high chairs in the seating area outside the quick service stands for my little guy. That would have worked out much better, which is why I am no longer concerned if my dining time doesn’t get moved right away, or ever. On the cruise mentioned above, we were ultimately moved to first seating by the morning of the second day. They notified us around 10 am. The plan for the future if we aren’t moved is to eat at Cabanas (the buffet which turns into a table service restaurant at night) for the nights they are open. Cabanas isn’t available the first or last night of the cruise. On those nights, we would just eat quick service.

Our third Disney cruise was booked 4 weeks before departure and as a result we were once again forced into second seating for dinner which just wouldn’t work with my toddler. [Dinner would have started a half hour after his bedtime.] We were placed on a wait list and I am very happy to report that our request was approved and we were moved into main/early dining before the start of the cruise. [I was able to confirm this by logging into my account and reviewing the cruise details . Under the cruise details it indicated we were in main dining.] I received this information about 3 days before the cruise. This took so much stress away for that first day. Had I not secured main dining before the cruise we would have had to go to the designated area the first day of the cruise to make the request one more time. My kiddo is sleeping before the second service begins, so that seating is just not an option right now for my family. But like I said, with the other options. I am just not worried at all anymore about being moved.

Finally, for our fourth Disney cruise, which was during a busy winter week, we were once again forced into late dining. We booked that particular cruise about 6 months before the cruise. Luckily for us, we were moved into early seating before we were even able to do on board check-in. Once again I noticed this by logging into the system and seeing we were in main dining. Disney does not send any notification if you are moved before the start of the cruise.

Those were our experiences. If you have any questions about how this works, feel free to ask me in the comments.

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Author: Christy P

Christy is a Mom, Wife, Travel Planner, Attorney, Podcast Enthusiast & Co-Host (DCL Podcast) and a sometimes blogger. She writes about family travel, gluten free travel, and life as a travel addict. Her motto is "work hard to play harder!" Whatever you do, don't forget to Pack Your Pixie Dust. View all posts by Christy P

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Disney Cruise How to Change Your Dinner Seating Time

Disney Cruise has two dining times for their  rotational dinner service . Early or main dining is around 5:45, and second or late dining is usually around 8:15, depending on your cruise. You can choose your dining time when you book; the default dining is second. If you want early dining, choose it when you book your cruise. 

If you get put in the wrong dining time, you can change the time under your reservations on the  Disney Cruise Line website  or the DCL app. You will find Dining under your reservation on the website. On the website, you can choose to change seating, and you will see the available seatings.

Changing Your Reservation on the Website

If the dinner seating time you want is at capacity, you can join the waitlist for your desired time. You used to need to call DCL to get added to the wait list or have your travel agent do it, and now you can do it yourself. If you get on the waitlist before your paid-in-full date, PIF, odds are pretty good that you will get switched.

Changing Your Reservation on the App

On the app you will choose View All under Next Steps.

Like on the website, you can change your seating time. Click edit, and you will see your choice of available times. Like on the website, you can join the waitlist if your preferred time is unavailable.

You will see the change on your reservation when your request is granted.  DCL  will not contact you about your change in dinner seating time. If you don’t get your dining change before you embark on your cruise, all hope is not lost. Check the navigator app. They will have information about where you can go to change your seating time. They will do their best to get you your preferred time. 

We always choose late dining, which means we don’t have to rush back from the port to make dining and late dining quieter than early. If you prefer to linger over dinner, it is much easier to do so on the later dinner seating.

Make sure you make any  special requests  you have for dining on the app or the website. You can choose a private table or a quiet space. And if you have any dietary needs, you can make them there.

Check out our  how to guide to checking in  for your cruise. Did you know the check-in dates are now based on your  Castaway Club status ?

This post may contain affiliate links. Meaning, that if you make a purchase through my links, I will earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support of this site.

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• Search forums
• Disney Cruise Line
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Main seating waitlist

• Thread starter TwinsDadG
• Start date Jun 19, 2022

Earning My Ears

• Jun 19, 2022

DIS Veteran

TwinsDadG said: Hi all! We’re coming back for our post-pandemic cruise - and our first on the Fantasy - in March 2023. We have two cabins, one for us and our 4 year old twins and another for my parents (6 passengers total across 2 cabins, reservations linked). I was surprised that Main was already fully booked this far out! How likely are we to clear the waitlist? 8:15 is late for our kids! Click to expand...

MamaMermaid

aka WALTSGIRL

MamaMermaid said: We sail July 2nd... we've been on a waitlist forever. Not looking good for us. We have a 4 year old and I'm really upset. Click to expand...

Peter pan’s shoes

We’re on 7/30 from Dover. Our waitlist request came through sometime in the last 2 weeks. I just noticed it a couple days ago. We’ve been able to change it on board before.  

Mouseketeer

We were wait listed on our two sailings too but we were automatically moved to early dining for one. After experiencing both with DS 7 at the time, and DD 5, we found that we actually enjoyed the late one better. There's always food options late afternoon for small snacks and enforcing nap time isn't too hard when the kids are well entertained in club and at the pool. The small downtime in the afternoon to have a glass of wine maybe read a book, it was sooo relaxing. We never felt rushed to leave the pool to get dressed for dinner after either. And the kids did better overall with a nap, attitude wise, even DS. Don't despair if you get late dining, if you're willing to work around it you may be surprised to find you enjoy it better too.  

Question anything the facts don't support.

Carohs said: We were wait listed on our two sailings too but we were automatically moved to early dining for one. After experiencing both with DS 7 at the time, and DD 5, we found that we actually enjoyed the late one better. There's always food options late afternoon for small snacks and enforcing nap time isn't too hard when the kids are well entertained in club and at the pool. The small downtime in the afternoon to have a glass of wine maybe read a book, it was sooo relaxing. We never felt rushed to leave the pool to get dressed for dinner after either. And the kids did better overall with a nap, attitude wise, even DS. Don't despair if you get late dining, if you're willing to work around it you may be surprised to find you enjoy it better too. Click to expand...

<font color=teal>I may not be Peter's Tink, but I'

We booked right around 90 days out for our August cruise. Waitlisted. Medical issues would have prevented me from getting to use the dining rooms for dinner if we had late seating. They couldn’t help other than to put a note on my waitlisting. I kept checking multiple times a day and it was just magically available for me to switch at some point. I would check constantly and hope for the best.  

n2mm said: you can contact dining while you’re in the terminal now. There is a chat feature too. Just sign onto the dcl app as soon as you’re in the terminal and contact guest services/dining. Click to expand...

Disneyland_emily

You should be able to put yourself on the waitlist on your reservation now.. We typically book late & have always cleared the waitlist. For our July Wish B2B we cleared about a month ago.  

• Jun 20, 2022

I was originally supposed to be on the Wish, however, my sailing was cancelled. We immediately signed up for the 7/2 cruise and we were assigned the 2nd dining. I have a 4 year old and a 6 year old and was pretty disappointed, but requested to be put on the waitlist. The cruise is less than two weeks away and we are still on the waitlist. Really hopeful that we will get switched once we are onboard, but have never had to do that option.  

Chrislovesdisney

We cruise 7/11 and haven’t cleared the waiting list yet. I scheduled all our onboard activities around the later dining, so I may just cancel the waitlist. It’s not so much the later time to eat, per se, it’s going to bed on a full stomach that I‘m not sure about!  

drstrange said: The cruise is less than two weeks away and we are still on the waitlist. Really hopeful that we will get switched once we are onboard, but have never had to do that option. Click to expand...

• Jun 23, 2022

meliscan said: Try emailing guest services. That is what worked for me. We were on the main dining waitlist for almost a year. We were a party of 4 with 3 of us Gold and it took an email to guest services to clear us 3 weeks before the cruise. Click to expand...

• Jun 24, 2022

MamaMermaid said: I did email via the Contact Us on their website. Is there a real email you used? FWIW, we are platinum and gold. Click to expand...

meliscan said: Here is the email address I used: [email protected] Click to expand...

JellyBeansHome

• Jun 25, 2022

Could someone tell me how to put ourselves on the wait list? The only option I saw online was to use the Contact Us form  

JellyBeansHome said: Could someone tell me how to put ourselves on the wait list? The only option I saw online was to use the Contact Us form Click to expand...

pittsburghmarc

We just disembarked the fantasy which was 90% full with 3300 guests. Our party of 5 was originally on the waitlist, but we moved to first seating two weeks prior to our cruise.  

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Disney Cruise Line in a Jiffy: What is a Server?

When eating in Disney Cruise Line’s main rotational restaurants , you will be tended to by a serving team of three people: the server, the assistant server, and the head server.

The server is your main waiter, he or she will take your order, make sure that your food arrives properly at your table, and often amuse you with games or stories at the end of your meal. The assistant server is primarily tasked with your beverages, bread service, and clearing the table between courses. He or she will make sure that your favorite drinks get to the table when you do and that your water is always topped up. The head server is sometimes a mystery to DCL guests. You may or may not see the head server at your table, but he or she is working behind the scenes to make sure that the entire dining room runs smoothly. Don’t like your table? Don’t like the other party you’re sitting with? Need to move from the late seating to the early seating? All this will be handled by the head server.

In several of the DCL restaurants, the serving team will also play a minor role in some of the evening’s entertainment.

If you’re on a quick two or three-night sailing you may only have cursory interactions with your serving team. But if you’re on a sailing of a week or more, you might form a lovely bond with your servers. In all cases, you’re expected to tip each server at the minimum prescribed level . Many guests choose to tip more.

Disney Cruise Line in a Jiffy is an offshoot of our “ Disney in a Minute ” posts, “In a Jiffy” posts are bite-sized nuggets of information that can better help you understand a Disney term or planning topic, but here we focus on all thing Disney Cruise Line (DCL). Have a question about a DCL term that is unfamiliar to you? Suggest it here for an upcoming segment.

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Erin Foster

Erin Foster is an original member of the Walt Disney World Moms Panel (now PlanDisney), a regular contributor to TouringPlans.com, and co-author of The Unofficial Guide to Disney Cruise Line. She's been to WDW, DL, DL Paris, Hong Kong Disneyland, Aulani, DVC Vero Beach, and DVC Hilton Head. She's a Platinum DCL cruiser and veteran of 10 Adventures by Disney trips. Erin lives near New York City, where she can often be found indulging in her other obsession - Broadway theater.

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Disney Cruise Main Dining Time

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There are two dining times on a Disney cruise for the restaurants. When you book your Disney Cruise you will be asked if you want main dining or late dining.

This dining time relates to the time that you dine in one of the rotational dining restaurants. On each Disney ship there are 3 rotational dining restaurants.

You will dine in each restaurant at least once. Your Servers will come with you to each restaurant – so you get to experience all the different restaurants, but you will have your familiar serving team with you.

What Time is Disney Cruise Main Dining?

On most of the Disney ships and sailings the main dining time is 5.45 pm each day. Late dining will be at 8.15 pm.

However, on select sailings the main dining time will be 6.00 pm every day. Cruises from Europe tend to have this later main dining time. This includes the British Isles sailings from Dover, Mediterranean cruises and the Northern European cruises.

Which Dining Time Should I Choose?

Main dining is the most popular seating time on a Disney Cruise. The reason for this is that Disney Cruises has a lot of guests who are sailing with young children.

Most children do best if they eat earlier in the evening rather than later. This is a huge reason as to why main dining is more sought after than late dining.

Therefore, if you have young children you probably do not want to be waiting until after 8 pm to eat your dinner. It may work if you have a child who goes to bed late or you are suffering the effects of jet lag.

What If Main Dining is Not Available?

It may be that when you book your cruise it is saying that you can’t book main dining as all the slots are filled. This is another reason to book as soon as you know you want to sail.

What if you really want early dining but only second seating is left online? Don’t give up! There may still be a way that you can be moved to the main dining seating. Call Disney cruise lines directly or have your travel agent do that if you are using one.

Then it will be marked on your booking that you want to chance dining times. It is not guaranteed, but Disney always does their best.

When you check in at the port you will see your dining time and dining rotation noted on your Key to the World.

You can see from the picture below that the time is written on there and there are also letters which represent which order you will go to the rotational dining restaurants.

If you still haven’t been allocated the main dining time look at your Navigator’s or ask a Cast Member where you need to go to see the dining team to request a change.

You are not guaranteed to be able to change your dining time to main dining. The last time we were on the Wonder there were almost 200 groups on the list wanting to change, but they will definitely do their best.

Usually there won’t be a problem if you want to change to late dining though.

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What If I am Stuck with Late Seating on My Disney Cruise?

I actually highly recommend and prefer late seating. I don’t have young children any more as my youngest is a teenager, so the eating time doesn’t matter any more for me.

However, I prefer it because I like to see the early show, or enjoy the pool or the Rainforest Room for longer. If you have early dining you have to start getting prepared for dinner by 5.20 pm (and we are really quick to get ready). This is too early for me to think about leaving the pool – and generally you can have the adult pool pretty much to yourself around 5.30.

If you have late dining you finish around 9.15 at the earliest, usually around 9.30. Sometimes on main dining, you can feel a little rushed. Your dining team does have to get ready for the next seating so you don’t necessarily feel as though you can linger too long after the dessert has been served.

What if you have young children and you have no alternative but late seating? Fortunately, Disney thinks of everything to make your life easier!

At around 9.15 pm each evening the Kids Counselors will stand at the back of each restaurant and you can check your kids into the Oceaneer’s Lab or Club. Ask your servers to bring the food out for the kids first so they will finish before you do.

This means that you can enjoy your desserts in peace and the adults can spend some time together at dinner without the children.

Main Dining Breakfast on Disembarkation Day

No one wants to think about disembarkation day, but that day always comes. On your final day you can go to a rotational dining restaurant for your breakfast.

The rotational dining room you will go to for breakfast will be the one that you went to the evening before. So if you were at Animator’s Palate on your final night, that is where your final breakfast will be.

The disembarkation breakfast has two dining times just like dinner. Usually Animator’s Palate, which is on all the ships, will be the earliest at 7.00 am. The other 2 restaurants will be at 7.15 am.

If you were on Late Dining your Animator’s Palate breakfast will be at 8.15 am. The other restaurants will have breakfast starting at 8.30 am.

Therefore if you are not an early riser, that is a good reason to ask for late dining. Cove Cafe is open from 6.30 am to 9.00 am on debarkation morning. Cabanas is also open.

Do you prefer main dining time on a Disney Cruise?

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Alison Meacham is the founder of EverythingMouse Disney Blog. For over 15 years she has shared her love of Disney Parks, Disney Cruises and Universal Orlando.  In over 30 years of Disney Travel she has spent countless months in Disney Parks and has sailed on over 45 cruises. A British native and now a United States resident she splits her time between California, Florida and the UK. And spends a serious amount of time sailing the seven seas. She helps over 200,000 people per month follow their Disney travel dreams.

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12 of the BEST Birthday Restaurants at Disney World

Ready to turn another year older at Disney World?

There’s something inherently fun about celebrating a birthday at Walt Disney World. The rides, the shows, the “Happy Birthday” button, all of it can make a birthday magical for everyone from child to adult. Another benefit? The birthday meal.

Depending what kind you want, Disney World offers a slew of options.   If you’re planning on a birthday dinner at Walt Disney World, you first need to decide what kind of birthday dinner you want to have. From there, you can narrow it down to the best location.

FUN Birthday Atmosphere

These restaurants offer a fun, whimsical atmosphere to enjoy your birthday.  

Whispering Canyon Cafe , located at the Wilderness Lodge hotel, provides an all-care-to-enjoy country-style meal. However, the highlight of the restaurant are the severs who have a tendency to “sass” their customers under normal circumstances. Imagine what they’ll do to someone celebrating their birthday.  

Similarly, the servers at the 50’s Prime Time Cafe are known for scolding their family members… err we mean customers all at the behest of Mom in the kitchen. This 50’s sitcom-themed eatery offers “home cooked” style meals in a kitschy television set-like environment. Once again, imagine the big deal the whole “family” will make celebrating a birthday.  

Moving on to a completely different “fun” kind of atmosphere, how about celebrating a birthday in regal style at Cinderella’s Royal Table . This meal, complete with Disney characters and hearty foods will make you feel like birthday royalty.

Casual Atmosphere

If you’re looking for a dining experience on the more casual side for your birthday, Beaches &  Cream at the Beach Club Resort is the cure for what ails you. The burgers at this retro, diner-esque restaurant are quite good, but the real star is the Kitchen Sink sundae. Imagine having THAT in place of a birthday cake?

EPCOT Fine Dining

If you want a more traditional restaurant experience with an emphasis on food, but want to remain in the parks, you should set your sights on EPCOT.  

If you’re wearing for a traditional steak option, there’s none better than Le Cellier . Located in EPCOT’s Canada pavilion, this steakhouse is one of the best restaurants in all of WDW. And since it’s your birthday, splurge on a delicious steak with a side of poutine fires.  

If you’re feeling a tad more adventurous, slide over to the Japan pavilion instead for a meal at Teppan Edo . “In the communal ritual of Teppan-yaki-style cooking, skillful chefs chop and stir-fry dishes on grills at your table. Select from steak, chicken, seafood and vegetable entrées, which are served with Udon noodles and steamed rice.”

A Birthday Night Out at Disney Springs  

If you’d rather avoid the theme parks altogether and instead spend your birthday hanging out at Disney Springs, there are countless dining options to enjoy.  

The Boathouse might be our favorite dining sport at Disney Springs from an ambiance and atmosphere standpoint, and has the perfect vibe for a laidback birthday dinner on the water.

Chef Art Smith’s Homecomin’ at Disney Springs combines the celebrity chef concept with a down home, comfort food menu that emphasizes Florida’s traditional culinary dishes.  

Birthday Disney Hotel Staycation

If you’re planning do a Disney birthday getaway, why not consider a hotel staycation at one of the property’s resorts?

We’re grouping the California Grill and Topolino’s Terrace together, as both of them offer similar options for a marvelous birthday dinner: a gourmet meal, rooftop views from their respective hotels (The Contemporary and The Riviera).

The biggest bonus, as long as your reservation is timed right, is a fantastic perspective on the fireworks from either the Magic Kingdom (from California Grill or EPCOT (from Topolino’s).

If you’d rather settle down with mother nature over fireworks, Sanaa at the Animal Kingdom Lodge offers delicious Indian-inspired cuisine and access to the resort’s gorgeous savanas full of real animals.  

The ULTIMATE Splurge

If you want to go all out – and we mean ALL OUT – for your birthday, go for Victoria and Albert’s . The most upscale restaurant at Disney World, this Grand Floridian restaurant was awarded a coveted Michelin Star earlier this year, a first for a Disney-owned restaurant.

These are just some of the countless birthday dinner options at Walt Disney World. Stay tuned to AllEars for more Disney dining tips.  

The FIRST Theme Park Restaurant To Receive MICHELIN Star Is Hiding in a Disney World HOTEL

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Which of these restaurants would you choose to spend your birthday at? Let us know in the comments below.  

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