Tips for First-Time Disney Cruisers

The first time I went on a Disney Cruise, I did not know exactly what to expect. I knew I would have fun, and I did some research online (such as reading cruise blogs :)), but there were still so many unknowns, and I did not fully know what to expect. I thought I would put together this list to help other first-timers, or even returning Disney cruisers, maximize the fun of their Disney Cruise vacation.

Tip #1: Before your cruise, know the dates when you can check in online and book onboard activities and excursions.

This is very important. We all know Disney experiences are popular, so you need to be ready to book them as soon as possible, or they could fill up. This even goes for online check-in. The earlier you check in your party online, the earlier the boarding time you will get for your cruise. Having an earlier boarding time gives you the option to get on the ship sooner, make any necessary requests with guest services, grab that first soft serve cone, and start having fun.

It is also important to know when your booking window opens for port excursions, casita rentals, adult dining, Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, and the Princess Gathering. These experiences, and more, can book up almost instantly, so make a note of the first day and time you are allowed to book onboard experiences so you can try to grab them. The date you can check in and book activities depends on your Castaway Club level, so make sure you have the correct date for your party.

If you would like a more detailed breakdown of the online check-in and activity booking windows by Castaway Club level, read this article I wrote specifically about that topic.

The Disney Cruise Line website where you can log in to check in or make reservations.

Tip #2: If you don’t get the booking you were hoping for before you depart, don’t give up.

Don’t give up if you missed booking an activity or excursion you were really hoping to get, or one that is especially important to your kids. You can keep checking back before you depart to see if any openings come up. When you get onboard (another important reason to try to get an early boarding time), go straight to Guest Services and see if there are any reservations available or if you can get put on a waiting list in case there are cancellations.

Some reservations are not released until guests get onboard, and sometimes groups cancel, so you might still get lucky and get a spot. To try to get a reservation at the adult dining locations, check the Disney Navigator app under “Dining Changes” or ask a crew member, because those requests are not always handled at Guest Services. Sometimes they are handled at the restaurants or another designated location. For spa reservations you can usually book those directly at the spa. If in doubt, ask a crew member where to go to make a specific type of reservation. We have found the crew to be extremely helpful and knowledgeable.

Tip #3: Pre-book the photo package and know what photo opportunities are available.

So I LOVE family pictures, and I also LOVE Disney, so put that together and I am always in. On my first Disney cruise, I did not know about all the photo opportunities on the ship, so I had the photo package, but I missed out on lots of chances to use it.

So here is a summary of what you get with your Disney Photo Package. The fun starts before you even board the ship. As you embark, there will be Disney photographers taking guests’ photos in front of a Disney Cruise backdrop. This is such a fun way to add to the excitement of embarkation, and it also makes a great souvenir.

There will also be Disney photographers out every evening taking family photos at different photo ops. There are usually about four themed backdrops to pose in front of each night, and they change every night. The best part is that they often match the theme of the movies and characters featured on the ship. So if you see the Beauty and the Beast musical, you can then get a photo with the enchanted rose. Or if Aladdin the musical, or other Aladdin theming, is featured on your ship, you can pose with an Aladdin-themed backdrop and even the magic lamp itself. There are also pirate-themed backdrops on Pirate Night and holiday-themed ones on holiday sailings.

Just like in the parks, you can also get Magic Shots, where the finished picture will feature fun digital enhancements. We have had characters that have been digitally added in, or photos that make it look like you are holding a character or blowing snow. It is really fun, and my family loves these Magic Shots.

You can also pose for pictures on the grand staircase, in front of the atrium statue, and above the atrium with a beautiful view behind you. Aside from the themed photo backdrops, Disney photographers will also be with characters to take your pictures. Sometimes we would find photographers with characters in the parks, but not all the time. On the ships, though, we have always had a photographer there to capture the character meet-and-greets. Photographers also come around during dinner in each of the dining rooms to take photos of your group in the restaurant.

Again, we have loved having this photo package. We always come home with at least a hundred awesome pictures, and they are such great souvenirs of the trip. You can ask crew members to take pictures on your own camera at the photo ops and when meeting characters, so you definitely do not have to buy the photo package. But we love the higher-quality pictures and the fun Magic Shots, and we have always felt like the photo package was a good overall value for what we got.

I do believe it is discounted if you buy it before you board the ship, so if you think you are going to use it, reserve it in advance.

Tip #4: Your room key is your key to everything. It is even your Key to the World.

After you board the ship and the staterooms are finished being prepared, you will be able to go to your room and find a room key for every guest in the room. The room keys are found in an envelope on the wall by your door. This key card is not only your room key, it is also your Key to the World Card. You will use it to pay for food and merchandise, you need to have it to get on and off the ship at ports, and of course, you use it as your room key.

Make sure not to lose it, because it is important. You can also use Disney MagicBands as a key to your room in some cases, and for other fun experiences on the ship, but you still need those key cards for port exit and reentry. Also, if you have an old card of some kind, bring it along with you, because you need to place a card in a slot to keep the lights on in your room. If you use your Key to the World Card for the lights, you may forget it and then have to make a frustrating trip back to your room to retrieve it.

Tip #5: Book a free phone call from a Disney friend.

Before you depart, you can go into your Disney Cruise Line account and schedule a free welcome aboard call from Mickey or a friend. This is a really fun little extra, especially for kids, before a sailing. It helps set the tone for all the magic they will experience onboard when they get a call from Mickey or Goofy to welcome them on the cruise. 

Tip #6: Download the Disney Cruise Line Navigator app.

Definitely make sure you have the Disney Cruise Line Navigator app ready to go for your trip. You can even use it before your sailing to make reservations and requests. Once on your cruise, you will find all the information you need in this app. You will be able to see the daily schedule for all the activities and entertainment, look ahead at the menus for meals, find information about the drink of the day, make reservations for activities, see the ship map, and view the photos you have had taken onboard as part of the Disney Cruise Line photo package, and so much more.

When looking at the daily activities and entertainment schedule, you can “heart” activities you are interested in. This way, instead of continually scrolling through all the activities each day, you can look at the shorter list of all your favorites. If you “heart” an activity or a piece of entertainment, the app will send you a reminder 15 minutes before the start time so you do not miss any of your plans.

The only downside to the app is that you cannot see the daily schedule at home ahead of time. This is hard for us planners who are eager to plan ahead. To see the schedule, you either need to be onboard the ship or, in some cases, in the cruise terminal. Fingers crossed you will be able to see the schedule while in the cruise terminal. That way, if you arrive early, you can use the time you are waiting to start checking out all the fun activities you will get to experience and start making plans for your cruise.

The Disney Cruise Line Navigator app.

Tip #7: Decorate your door.

Disney Cruise Line, as well as other cruise lines, has a fun tradition of passengers decorating their doors. I did not know anything about this until we were onboard our first Disney Cruise, so we mostly missed our chance to participate in this fun tradition. Luckily, our room hostess had a few fun magnets that she gave us, so we were able to add a couple of fun details to our stateroom door.

The stateroom doors are magnetic, so magnets are a great and easy way to decorate your door. But feel free to let your creativity flow. I have seen some very elaborate door decorations. A good tip is battery-operated lights, banners, ornaments, etc. can be hung using magnetic hooks on your door. Another fun idea is to hang a whiteboard so guests can leave messages, or you can write fun questions each day for guests to answer or vote on. I have also seen guests who have made magnets with a photo, the name of the ship and the dates of their past cruises and added them to their door as a fun record of all their sailings.

A sample of the magnets I have used to decorate our stateroom door. We used this for a Very Merrytime Christmas sailing.

Tip #8: Bring costumes for Pirate Night.

This falls into another mistake I made on my first Disney Cruise. I did not know a lot about Pirate Night, and I did not realize how many guests dress up as pirates, so I did not bring pirate costumes for my family. Disney Cruise Line gives every guest a pirate-themed bandana that will be left for you in your stateroom by your stateroom attendant, so we still had those to wear. However, getting into the pirate fun and dressing up in pirate costumes is another beloved Disney Cruise Line tradition that I personally think you should not miss.

Costumes can be as simple or elaborate as you like. Some people wear pirate-themed t-shirts, while others are dressed in convincing and elaborate costumes, so you can decide how all-in your family wants to go. There are also packages you can book at Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique to get made up as a pirate for Pirate Night. You certainly do not have to dress up, but everything that day is pirate-themed, from the trivia, crafts, and game shows to the photo backdrops, so it is fun to get in the spirit.

Some of my favorite photos from a Disney Cruise are of my family all dressed in pirate attire, striking pirate poses in front of the themed Pirate Night backdrops. So join the fun.

Tip #9: The kids’ clubs have open house times where the whole family can explore and enjoy the spaces together.

One of the highlights for many families on a Disney Cruise is the amazing kids’ clubs. There are some kids, however, like mine, who do not want to go to the kids’ club and be away from their parents. The first day you board the ship, there will be an open house at the kids’ club. The open house is a great chance for kids to check out the space and feel more comfortable before being dropped off by their parents.

Or, if like mine your kids are not really into the kids’ club, you can use it as a time to go enjoy the fun spaces and see all the themed areas together as a family. There are also other open houses throughout the sailing, but they often overlap with time you might be off the ship at a port, so my family plans to enjoy the open house on embarkation day on our next cruise.

Tip #10: Go early to get a good spot.

If you have experienced the Disney Parks, you will be no stranger to the idea of arriving early to secure a good spot for parades, performances, and character meet-and-greets. The same strategy can definitely be useful on a Disney Cruise. If getting prime viewing for deck parties, great seats for the musicals, and being near the front for character meet-and-greet lines is important to you, then definitely arrive early.

We have found that especially for deck parties, like the Sail-A-Wave Party, the Pirate Night deck party, and the holiday-themed deck parties, it can be difficult to get a good spot. We try to go about 25 to 30 minutes early to secure one. Sometimes we will send down a couple members of our family to save a spot, and then the others follow a few minutes later, which also works well.

We like to try to get a spot in the front row, right up at the railing, on the deck above the pool deck, so we can look down at the show, but there are also great spots on the pool level. Since we have kids and it is hard for them to see over other people, we really like getting that front-row spot if we can. But if you do not get there early, do not panic. We have always been able to find a spot, just not always one quite as good as the one we get if we arrive early.

Since one of our favorite parts of a Disney Cruise is the musicals, we also really like to get good seats for those. One thing I love about the Disney Theatre is that because it is a medium-sized theatre, you can see well from almost anywhere, but we still like to be near the front. So again, we head to the theatre maybe 15 to 30 minutes early. Sometimes we send most of our party to the seats while a couple people grab drinks and snacks for the show.

We have never sailed at a really busy time of year, such as during school holidays, so if you are on a very busy sailing, you may want to find spots even earlier. Lines for characters also start to form early, so if you do not want to be near the back and wait in those lines, arrive before the scheduled time so you can be closer to the front.

My kids are getting older, so we have not been visiting the characters as much, but on our first couple of Disney Cruises there were a lot of characters we wanted to meet. We would make sure to show up a few minutes early, and that helped a lot. Sometimes my husband or a grandparent would also go over to a second character while we finished meeting the first one to help speed things up for the kids, which was very helpful. I do not like to do that all the time because I hate for anyone to miss the character meet-and-greet, but you can decide what is right for your family.

These were great spot to watch the Pirate Night Deck party on the Disney Dream. We had to go early to get these spots, but it was worth it.

Tip #11: Have access to your bathing suit on embarkation day.

This tip may or may not apply to your family, but it has been very helpful for mine. We always wear bathing suits under our clothes when we board the ship, or you could also pack your bathing suits in your carry-on bags. The reason we do this is that the bags you check in and drop off for Disney to bring to your room are not necessarily going to be there waiting for you when you first get to your stateroom. It takes time for them to get everyone’s bags delivered. Also, depending on how early you board the ship, your room may not be ready yet, so having your bathing suits available is really helpful.

My family likes to dive right in and start the fun immediately. We are not great relaxers (well, I am pretty good at relaxing, but I save that for other times). So we often like to head to the pool deck right away and get some rides in on the waterslides before the crowds form. If we did not have our bathing suits handy, we would not be able to do that without access to our checked bags. So, if you think there is a chance your family is going to want some early time at the pool or on the waterslides, do not put all your bathing suits in your checked luggage.

Tip #12: Pools and slides close early before the muster drill.

This one is always a bummer, so I want to warn you about it so you are not caught off guard. On the first day of a Disney Cruise, you will be given a muster location where you would go in case of an emergency. Before the ship sails away, everyone has to go to that location at a given time (often around 4:00 or so) to go over all the safety information and practice in case of an emergency.

Now, I totally understand the importance of this, but it is always a bummer when you are all excited to get to the fun and then have to stop and go to your muster drill. Here is my extra warning: the pools and slides close a while before the muster drill so that they are all empty and everyone heads to their assigned location. We have been surprised at times by how early they closed, so be warned. If you want to get some slides in or take a dip in the pool before the muster drill, do not wait until right before it starts or you might be disappointed.

This is another great reason to try to get that early boarding time so you have more time to enjoy yourself before the muster drill. This is also why we come prepared to go straight to the pool deck with those bathing suits under our clothes.

Tip #13: If you love princesses, you will love the Princess Gathering.

So let me explain what the Princess Gathering is for all you new Disney cruisers. The Princess Gathering is a FREE experience that you need to book in advance. At the Princess Gathering, you get the opportunity to meet, get autographs from, and take pictures with four to five princesses. They have many gatherings throughout the cruise, but you do need to reserve a time in advance. You cannot just show up and get in line.

The nice thing about the Princess Gathering is that for waiting in one line, you get to cycle through the princesses and get multiple meet-and-greets. Lines do form early before your Princess Gathering start time, so go a bit early so you are not near the back of the pack. My kids loved this when they were smaller, and so did I. It allowed us to see a bunch of princesses at one time, and then we did not need to stress over making it to as many of the other character meet-and-greets.

Sometimes there are chances to meet the princesses separately where you do not need an advance booking, but that will take up more of your time and require you to plan around more meet-and-greets. The Princess Gathering is one of the last items that becomes available to pre-book. It is available for pre-booking 30 days in advance at midnight Eastern time, and you must have paid in full for your cruise to book it. So if meeting those princesses is a top priority, set a reminder and be on your computer right when the booking opens, or they might all be gone.

If you are not fortunate enough to get a booking, do not panic. Go to Guest Services when you board the ship, and sometimes they can find a way to accommodate you.

Tip #14: Bring autograph books, princess dresses, ears, and Disney attire.

I heard an expression the other day, “Commit to the bit,” and I thought it fit perfectly with my philosophy for a Disney Cruise. If you have booked a Disney Cruise, it is likely because you want to immerse yourself in Disney fun (or you have a spouse who wants to immerse themselves in Disney fun and you are supportive), so go all in and get in the spirit with all the Disney attire and accessories you can.

If your kids like dressing up in princess dresses, this is a great time to use them. It is adorable to be all dressed up in those princess dresses when going to the Princess Gathering or other meet-and-greets. It can also be fun to coordinate your princess attire when going to one of the amazing musicals or one of the themed dining experiences. It definitely adds to the fun.

We also like to bring our Mickey ears and autograph books. You will have lots of chances to get autographs at the character meet-and-greets, so do not forget to bring those onboard and have them with you. We also like to bring Disney t-shirts, shorts, or bathing suits so we stay in the Disney spirit even when we are in casual clothes or pool attire.

I also have a habit of coordinating our family a little with the outfits, and my husband is always a good sport.

Tip #15: Holiday offerings.

If you were exploring the Disney Cruise Line website, you may have seen sailings marked Halloween on the High Seas or Very Merrytime Cruises and not known exactly what that meant. So here is a quick rundown for you.

Halloween on the High Seas are Halloween-themed cruises offered on some sailings in September and throughout October. Very Merrytime Cruises are Christmas-themed cruises offered starting about the middle of November and continuing throughout December. I have been fortunate enough to sail one Halloween cruise and two Christmas cruises, and they are extra fun.

Each cruise features decorations around the ship, especially in the atrium area. The highlight of the décor is a beautiful grand Christmas tree or a fun and spooky Halloween tree. On the first night of the cruise, a special performance takes place with singing, dancing, and characters to light the Christmas tree, or a fun storytelling event to light the pumpkin tree. These are such fun ways to kick off the cruise and get in the holiday spirit.

Usually, one day on the cruise is designated as “Halloween” or “Christmas,” and all the activities that day are holiday-themed. Examples include holiday-themed trivia, crafts, movies, photo opportunities, and other fun. There is also a special deck party performance in the evening. The show features lots of characters and a little musical stage show that lasts about 30 minutes.

We really enjoy these extra shows and feel like they give us even more entertainment on our Disney cruise. Since we have not found that we pay much more for these cruises, it feels like bonus fun. On Halloween cruises, you can also bring costumes, dress up on Halloween night, and go to trick-or-treat stations around the ship. On Christmas cruises, you also get performances with carolers, story time with Mrs. Claus, and even a chance to meet Santa Claus himself.

So, if the timing works for your group, you may want to consider booking a holiday-themed cruise.

If you want a more detailed breakdown of what these holiday sailings offer, please check out my article on “What Is Offered on Halloween on the High Seas” and “How Merry Is a Merrytime Cruise?”

Tip #16: Don’t miss the Final Farewell.

On the last night of the cruise, there will be a special performance and gathering in the atrium called the Final Farewell or something similar depending on the ship. Tons of characters will arrive in the atrium and spread out, and guests will have about 15 to 20 minutes to go around and do as many last-minute meet-and-greets as they can. Sometimes autographs are not allowed at this time in order to help as many guests get a meet-and-greet as possible, but you can get a photo, a hug, and a quick hello.

So if you missed some characters earlier in the cruise, or you want a chance to say goodbye, this is a great opportunity to get lots of last-minute character visits. The lines are shorter than at most of the other meet-and-greets, so you can meet several characters during this time. Then everyone heads back to the stage area in the atrium, and the characters gather for a final song and farewell.

It is such a magical way to wrap up a great cruise, and I usually cry a little while remembering all the fun we have had.

All the Characters singing at the final farewell on the Disney Wonder.

Tip #17: Book a placeholder! You won’t regret it!

Here is my last tip for today. Before you disembark the ship, book a placeholder. In the app, you can pay $250 to buy a placeholder, which allows you to book a future Disney cruise and get at least 10% off that cruise. The $250 that you have paid will be applied to the cost of the future cruise you book. The best part is that the $250 is fully refundable if you do not end up using the placeholder, so you really have nothing to lose. You also have plenty of time to use it. You just need to apply it to a future sailing that departs no more than 24 months after you purchased it, which gives you lots of time to plan, book, and go on another cruise.

Recently, I have seen some special promotions that allowed a placeholder to give you 20% to 25% off select sailings, so the placeholder can be very valuable. There are a few extra rules to watch out for, so read the fine print. For example, one member of the original sailing party who was in the stateroom that bought the placeholder must be booked in the stateroom you are using the placeholder for. There are also some blackout dates, and suites and concierge are generally not included in placeholder bookings.

My husband and I have often each purchased a placeholder in case we need two staterooms. I believe the two placeholders must be used on the same future sailing. Do not forget to buy that placeholder before you get off the ship, because they will not let you retroactively buy it, even if you just recently got off the ship.

I know I fell in love with Disney cruising so much on my first cruise that one of the first things I did when I got home was start reading about other ships and planning another cruise, so I was very glad to have that placeholder. I hope you will love cruising so much that you, too, will be glad you have it. And if not, it is refundable.

Well, that is all the tips I have for you today. I am sure more will come to me, and I can always make another post. Until then,

Happy Sailing!