On July 30, 1998, the Disney Magic set sail for the first time and the Seven Seas were never the same. Paying homage to the grand era of the luxury ocean liner, the ships of Disney Cruise Line (DCL) pamper voyagers with state-of-the-art amenities, world-class service and Disney's famous pixie dust on every deck en route to a variety of enchanting ports of call. Disney Cruise Line isn't just the perfect choice for your tadpole's first trip out to sea. These ships cater to frogs of all ages and feature restaurants, nightclubs, shops and recreational facilities that are sure to make your vacation one you'll never froget!
Meet the Disney Cruise Line Fleet
Disney Cruise Line currently operates four ships — the Magic class, Disney Magic and Disney Wonder, and the Dream class, Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy — with a fifth on the way in 2022 — the first of the Triton class, Disney Wish — and two more setting sail in 2024 and 2025, respectively. Every ship features Wi-Fi in staterooms and public spaces, allowing guests to surf the web at sea and stay connected to their fellow frogs back on land. These ships are also the only place on the water where you'll find first-run feature films, including films in 3D, with movies premiering the same day at sea as they're released on land. Every ship also boasts an entire deck of space dedicated to age-specific tadpole activities and swimming pools that are heated when the temperature drops below 75 degrees Fahrenheit. While those are already some frogtastic features, every ship is magically unique, so let's break them down and get to know the fleet a little better!
Disney Magic / Godmother: Patricia Disney / Home Port: Dover, South East England
- The Disney Magic is constructed in the Art Deco style, characterized by geometric designs and bold, solid colors. (Same as Disney Dream.)
- Sorcerer Mickey is painted on the bow, a statue of Helmsman Mickey is in the atrium and a statue of Goofy hangs from the aft.
- Part of the ship was constructed in Ancona, Italy then towed 100 miles to meet the stern in Marghera (just outside Venice) to be perfectly joined and welded together.
- Measuring 964 feet in length, it's longer than Main Street, U.S.A. at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World. (Same as Disney Wonder.)
- The ship's anchor weighs 28,200 pounds — equivalent to three full-grown elephants!
- 30 percent of its 875 staterooms are inside and 70 percent of staterooms are outside — 229 with an ocean view and 384 with a verandah (including 22 suites)! (Same as Disney Wonder.)
- There are 10 family areas are on board, including D Lounge, the Wide World of Sports deck and the AquaDunk; seven youth areas including "it's a small world" nursery!, Disney's Oceaneer Club and Vibe teen club; and eight adult areas including Senses Spa & Salon, Quiet Cove Pool and O'Gills Pub.
- There are eight dining options, including Rapunzel's Royal Table for main dining, Palo for adult-exclusive specialty dining and Cabanas for casual dining.
Disney Wonder / Godmother: Tinker Bell / Home Port: New Orleans, Louisiana
- The Disney Wonder is constructed in the art nouveau style, featuring organic influences and curved patterns. (Same as Disney Fantasy.)
- Steamboat Willie is painted on the bow, a statue of Ariel is in the atrium and statues of Donald Duck and his nephews hang from the aft.
- It made its maiden voyage Aug. 15, 1999.
- The Disney Wonder has one crew member for every three guests, totaling about 950 crew members from more than 86 different nationalities. (Same as Disney Magic.)
- It's the only ship in the fleet with "Frozen, a Musical Spectacular" and Tiana's Place restaurant.
- Exclusively on cruises to Alaska, frogs can experience the Pixar Pals Party, a magical musical celebration starring some favorite friends from the Disney·Pixar films.
- There are 10 family areas including the AquaLab interactive play area, the Twist 'n' Spout water slide and Goofy's Pool family pool; six youth areas including Disney's Oceaneer Lab, Edge tween club and Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique; and eight adult areas including Cove Café, Crown & Fin Pub and Cadillac Lounge.
- There are eight dining options, including Animator's Palate for main dining, Triton's for main dining and Pete's Boiler Bites for quick service.
Disney Dream / Godmother: Jennifer Hudson / Home Port: Port Canaveral, Florida
- Captain Mickey is painted on the bow, a statue of Admiral Donald is in the atrium and a statue of Sorcerer Mickey hangs from the aft.
- It made its maiden voyage Jan. 26, 2011.
- At 1,115 feet, the Disney Dream is longer than the height of the Eiffel Tower in Paris and longer than the height of New York City’s famous Chrysler Building. (Same as Disney Fantasy.)
- 12 percent of staterooms are inside and 88 percent of staterooms are outside — 199 with an ocean view and 901 with a verandah (including 21 suites)! (Same as Disney Fantasy.)
- Each inside stateroom has a “virtual” porthole showing rolling waves and Disney characters swimming by all in HD. (Same as Disney Fantasy.)
- The Disney Dream is home to the AquaDuck, the first-ever water roller coaster at sea!
- There are 11 family areas including Vanellope's Sweets and Treats, Goofy's Sports Deck and Nemo's Reef water-play area; six youth areas including "it's a small world" nursery!, Disney's Oceaneer Club and Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique; and 15 adult areas including The District, Skyline bar and Pink: Wine and Champagne Bar
- There are 12 dining options, including Enchanted Garden for main dining, Remy for adult-exclusive fine dining and Flo's Cafe for quick service.
Disney Fantasy / Godmother: Mariah Carey / Home Port: Port Canaveral, Florida
- Sorcerer Mickey is painted on the bow, a statue of Mademoiselle Minnie is in the atrium and statues of Dumbo and Timothy Q. Mouse hang from the aft.
- It made its maiden voyage March 31, 2012.
- While every ship's whistle performs the first seven notes of "When You Wish Upon a Star," the Disney Fantasy plays measures of "Yo Ho (A Pirate's Life For Me)," "It's a Small World," "Be Our Guest," "Hi Diddle Dee Dee (An Actor's Life For Me)," and "A Dream Is a Wish." (Same as Disney Dream.)
- The ship's main entrance hall has a huge chandelier that's able to perform about 30 different lighting cues. According to Disney, it's a "one-of-a-kind work of art evoking a peacock in stained glass and more than 60,000 clear Swarovski crystal beads."
- At 130,000 gross tons, the Disney Fantasy is more than 500 times heavier than the Statue of Liberty.
- Themed after the iconic Mickey Mouse cartoon shorts, frogs can indulge in everything from hand-crafted gelato and ice cream to decadent treats and specialty sundaes at the old-fashioned ice cream parlor, Sweet on You.
- There are 11 family areas including Mickey's Pool, Mickey's Mainsail retail shop and the AquaDuck water coaster; six youth areas including Disney's Oceaneer Lab, "it's a small world" nursery! and Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique; and 13 adult areas including Ooh La La, The Tube and La Piazza
- There are 13 dining options, including Royal Court for main dining, Eye Scream for ice cream and Frozone Treats for smoothies.
(Artist Rendering of Disney Wish Stateroom)
Setting sail June 9, 2022, is the fifth ship in the DCL fleet, the Disney Wish. Its godmother is Abigail Disney and its home port will also be Port Canaveral, Florida. This beauty has Captain Minnie painted on the bow, a statue of Cinderella in the atrium and a statue of Rapunzel hanging from the aft. The 1,254 staterooms include 53 concierge staterooms and 23 concierge suites, 1,113 outside staterooms — 948 of which have verandahs and 185 of which have an ocean view — and 121 inside staterooms. The Disney Wish will feature restaurants, immersive spaces and experiences themed to Disney, Marvel, Star Wars and Pixar characters and adventures, plus the first-ever Disney attraction at sea. It's worth diving into more of the amazing details about this enchanting ship — hop over to our full blog post for more!
Disney Cruise Line Industry Firsts
Among these impressive features, Disney Cruise Line has racked up some notable firsts for the cruise line industry. DCL was the first cruise line to:
- Design staterooms with a family-friendly bath-and-a-half
- Have a fireworks display at sea
- Provide guests with complimentary use of Wave Phones for onboard communications
- Offer free soft drinks any time of the day or night
- Implement an innovative rotational dining concept where guests dine in a different venue each evening, accompanied by their same serving team
- Bring The Muppets to a cruise ship
- Allow guests to become animators and see their own drawings magically come to life and dance on screen
- Offer exclusive spaces just for tweens and teens
- Have a dock at the line’s private island
That private island is Castaway Cay, a 1,000-acre private island with turquoise waters, powdery white sand beaches and swaying palm trees that is exclusive to Disney Cruise Line guests and a favored stop on all Bahamian and Caribbean itineraries. Here you'll have access to:
- 20 premium 325-square-foot private, furnished cabanas on beaches exclusively for families and adults, respectively
- Open-air massages with an ocean view, a yoga class and a bar at the secluded, adults-only beach, Serenity Bay
- Two water play areas
- A teens-only activity area
- A wide array of activities including stingray interactions, glass-bottom boat tours, parasailing, fishing, swimming, kayaking, water sports and more, including the Castaway Cay 5K
The island also features free childcare supervised by Disney counselors and surprises from Disney characters, including special meet-and-greets, photo opportunities and dance parties.
Disney Cruise Line Future Destinations
Starting in August 2021, the Disney Magic will set sail on UK staycation cruises from Southampton for UK residents only and the Disney Dream will set sail on Bahamian cruises from Port Canaveral.
In fall 2021, Disney Cruise Line returnedd to favorite destinations on a variety of itineraries, including sailings to the Caribbean, the Bahamas, Mexico, Bermuda and Canada. Throughout the season, families can enjoy an extra sprinkling of holiday fun with itineraries featuring Halloween on the High Seas and Very Merrytime Cruises across the entire fleet.
In early 2022, Disney Cruise Line returns to Hawaii and other favorite tropical destinations to delight families with one-of-a-kind vacations at sea. Adventure abounds during 10-night Hawaiian Islands cruises and sailings to the Bahamas, Caribbean and Mexico, departing from coast-to-coast home ports including New Orleans, Galveston, San Diego, Miami and Port Canaveral.
This Frog Fam is incredibly excited to get back out on the water! Have you been on a Disney Cruise ship before? What's your favorite ship and why? Let us know in the comments below.
Related: Explore the Enchanting Details Aboard the Disney Wish, Setting Sail Summer 2022
Hoppy planning!
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