Family entertainment
The Walt Disney Theatre stages three different shows during the cruise. Passengers are assigned a showtime for each evening, which corresponds with their dinner seating.
Arrive early as these shows are very popular. Performed in true Disney-style, they are not to be missed. The cinema’s films are also very varied. Studio Sea, a nightclub for the entire family, features music and entertainment that will take you into the early hours.
Disney Cruise Line is made up of the Disney Magic and its sister ship Disney Wonder. They are designed to provide areas and activities specifically for adults, families and children, creating the ultimate holiday experience for every member of the family. Travel Weekly art editor Flora and her four-year-old daughter Natalie took a four-day cruise on Disney Magic from Florida’s Port Canaveral to check out what’s on offer.
Castaway Cay
Disney’s very own Bahamian Island, complete with white sands and clear blue seas, is a tropical paradise. The secluded island is divided into three areas. The children’s Scuttle’s Cove is for all age groups who are supervised by counsellors from the kids’ clubs. Child pagers (see Kids’ clubs below) work on the island, which means that parents can go off and explore Serenity Bay Beach.
This part of the island is for adults only, ensuring you have a relaxing and peaceful time (unless your pager beeps, that is). There is also a family beach where you can hire a huge variety of beach toys, and join in activities such as snorkelling, sea cycling, kayaking and bike rides around the island. All these activities have to be pre-booked and paid for locally.
The island also has an area with several restaurants serving lunch and snacks, meaning that you do not have to go back to the ship to
The only drawback was that we had to return to the ship at 3.45pm, earlier than I would have liked.
The state rooms
The cabins were surprisingly big with an American king-size bed, a double sofa, toilet, separate bath and shower room, TV, minibar and all the mod cons you would expect to find in a five-star hotel. Room service was free and available 24hrs a day, which is handy for families with children that fall asleep early after a fun-packed Disney day.
The one downside to the rooms, which I found rather strange on a ship that is geared up for children, is that kids cannot reach the sinks to wash. A bin turned upside down came in handy both morning and night.
Food and
restaurants
All meals on board are included in the package and there are four restaurants, one of which is a child-free zone. Adults get a variety of courses and meals in each restaurant.
However, the children’s menus are the same in each restaurant and there isn’t much choice, although it’s worth knowing that the chef will make anything your kid may want to eat.
Evening meals are different every time, as you rotate through the different restaurants. Your table number remains the same, as does the team of waiters and your allocated dining time.
Adult facilities
There is plenty for adults to do in the evening, especially as the kids’ club is open until midnight. There are two nightclubs, a comedy club and a jazz club all exclusively for adults. There is also a cinema showing some films that haven’t even been released in the UK yet.
There are also many day activities, ranging from the adults-only Quiet Cove Pool to The Vista Spa and Salon. You must book treatments as soon as you board as they are justifiably popular.
Of course, there are a range of shops on board, but Nassau, one of the ports of call on the cruise, is a duty-free shopper’s paradise. The island is also popular with many Americans on the cruise, who take full advantage of its 24hr casinos.
Kids’ clubs
The kids’ clubs open from 9am-12 midnight and are supervised by over 50 counsellors. Once you have registered your child you are issued with a pager and your child is requested to wear a wrist band with a bar code on it. This is to ensure that if anything is wrong you can easily be contacted to pick up your child. The counsellors take great care of your kids and keep them busy all day.
Disney’s Oceaneer Club caters for children in the age groups of 3-5 year olds and 6-8 year olds, while the Oceaneer Lab takes on kids aged 9-10 and 11-12 years. Disney is very strict about enforcing these age groups – for example, there was a child aged five and three quarter years who was not allowed into the same group as his six-year-old friend.
Disney Magic: sold only in the UK as part of a one-week or 10-day land/sea package, with the first three or six nights spent in a Walt Disney resort in Orlando.
Virgin Holidays: one week, leaving August 12, 2000 costs £1,309 for adults and £654.50 per child. This includes admission to all Disney theme parks, accommodation and all transfers between airport, resort and the ship.