Let’s take a trip on the Disney Wonder

From enchanting dining experiences to magical encounters with beloved characters, the Disney Wonder offers a voyage filled with wonder and joy for all ages.

In my previous post, I gave a more generic overview about the Disney Cruise. Today, I wanted to go over my specific experience on the Disney Wonder a few months ago.

This year my husband turned 40 years old. And I wanted to surprise him with a get-together with some of his closest friends and family, and I thought what better way than to celebrate on a cruise. I have been on the Royal Caribbean pre-kids and the Disney Cruise post-kids. I will share with you below a few tidbits as to why I love Disney cruises.

Now, the Disney Wonder is one of the older ships. It is actually the second ship that was built in 1999 for the fleet. However, despite the older age and smaller size in comparison to the newer ships, like the Disney Fantasy or the Disney Wish, no one can deny the magic you feel the moment you step onboard the ship.

Now I would definitely recommend arriving at the city where the ship leaves from at least 1 day prior to departure. This way, you do not have to worry about plane delays and potentially missing your ship departure time. Once the ship leaves the port, it will not stop and turn around to allow you to board it. And you would have then wasted thousands of dollars on a vacation.

Our ship was departing out of San Diego and we went on a 5 night Baja Cruise that made 2 stops at Ensenada, Mexico and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, before returning back to its original departure point in San Diego. We had roughly 20 people in our group. My family arrived two days prior to the cruise to allow us some time to relax, explore the city, and also to surprise my husband with his friends and family at our timeshare. Now, the actual planning started almost a year prior back in 2022. And unbeknownst to my husband, I had a running group text thread among those going for roughly a year. I also scheduled this cruise with the assistance of a travel agent because 1)they gave me onboard credit, and 2) I wanted to make sure my group of 20 were all taken care of from planning to departure.

The morning of the cruise, I had everyone come to our timeshare, a few hours before we had to check out. I gave specific instructions for them to all meet in the lobby before heading to our room. There were a few close calls. It did not help that my husband left the timeshare in the morning to get his cup of coffee. But if you can imagine, a combination of 13 adults/kids, huddled in the cramped hallway, banging on the door, and then my husband opening the door, to see and hear them all say “Happy Birthday.” I hope he enjoyed it.

So after the initial shock, hugs, and catching up with one another, we all departed the timeshare and reconvened at the port of San Diego a few hours later. The port is, well to say it kindly, a bit disorganized. If you have been to Disney’s Port of Fort Lauderdale, it is nothing like that. You won’t go through giant Mickey Ears, and the lines are long. But just remember to bring your ID, have the Disney Cruise app already downloaded onto your cell phone, your luggage tags on each luggage piece to give to the porters, and you should not have any issues. And do not arrive early to the port. When you check in for your Disney Cruise a few months prior, they will give you a Port Arrival Time (PAT). If you try to get to the Port earlier than that time, they will not let you on the ship. For instance, if your PAT is noon, and you come at 11:30 am, they will not let you onto the ship until noon. So, enjoy your breakfast that morning, take it easy and just arrive on time.

Now when it is your time to board the ship, the staff at the entrance will ask for the Family name. Most people just say their last name. However, you can pretty much say anything. For instance, you can say The Avengers, The Mickey Mouse fan club, The Incredibles. I think you get my drift. They will then announce it in the atrium when you walk onto the ship and the other staff members will clap for you as you come aboard.

I would recommend you pack a day bag for the first of your cruise. Once you give your luggages to the porters, you may not see it again until dinner time. So remember to pack a change of clothes, your toiletries, your ID’s, and any medications you may need in that day bag. We also like to wear our swimsuits under our clothes so that we can head straight to the pools and slides once we go aboard.

Now, you’ve boarded the ship. It’s still in port because there are guests still arriving. The ship leaves around 4 pm and it’s 1 pm. If you’re like me, you skipped breakfast because you knew there is a huge buffet and you’re now starving. So, what do you do? You have 2 options. You can head to the buffet at Cabanas or you can go to one of your rotational dining rooms (it will tell you on the Disney Cruise app which one is open) to eat. This time, we opted for the buffet. Although busy and bustling with people, I found the buffet to be quite filling, good and an overall good start to the cruise.

After we had our fill and dipped our toes a little in the splash zone and the pools, we got a text that our room was ready. So, off we went, in search of our cabin. Being a family of 5, we did not fit in one ocean view room or an inside stateroom. We could have opted for 2 ocean view rooms or 1 family veranda cabin. We chose the latter. Since society was still overcoming the COVID pandemic at the time of booking back in 2022, we wanted to ensure that we would at least have access to fresh air, if they put us in lockdown. And even if there was no pandemic to worry about, I feel we made an appropriate choice. Although we did not spend a ton of time on the balcony, it was nice having the ability to smell that ocean air and see the ship leave and arrive into the different ports without having to walk up 2 flights of stairs. We also had a connected room with my in-laws and we asked housekeeping to remove the divider between our 2 balconies and created a mega balcony. Having grandma and papa right next door made it very convenient with our 3 kids. The other thing that Disney does really well with regards to the accommodations is the split bathroom concept. On other cruise ships, it’s just one bathroom that has a tiny capsule shower, a toilet and a sink. However, on a Disney cruise, there is one room that has a toilet and sink and another bathroom next door that has the tub and sink. I love this because 1)having a tub makes it so easy when you have small children and 2) the split bathroom concept means 2 people could get ready at the same time in the morning. The only downside was that, because the ship is older and smaller than the newer ships, we definitely felt the ship rocking and creaking at night. Luckily, I brought a sound machine that I blasted when it was bedtime and brought dramamine and ginger chews, in case anyone felt nauseous.

With regards to the food, we loved it. We had 8 kids with us. For most nights, the kids sat at one long table, while the adults were able to dine in semi-quiet at the other. The quality is always good. If you have money to splurge, I would recommend adult dining at Palo. My husband and I did the Palo Brunch. It used to be a specialty buffet brunch. However, when COVID emerged, they changed it to a menu that you can order off of. To be honest, I do not miss the buffet brunch. And on the day you are scheduled to eat dinner at Animator’s Palate, do not be late. In fact, try to come early. Just head this word of advice, you do not want to miss it.

In terms of entertainment, I love anything Disney. I felt the 3 shows were amazing. A pro tip: You can bring any Disney souvenir popcorn bucket (i.e. from Disneyland and/or Disneyworld), and they will fill it up for you at the refill price. I may or may not have brought 4 popcorn buckets onboard.

I could go on and on about why I love Disney and Disney cruises, but that would end up being pages and pages of words, and I have probably written too much anyway. In comparing the different cruise lines, I have to say I do prefer the Disney Cruise over the others, especially when the kids come along. I just wish Disney was cheaper. We would definitely be going on more Disney adventures if it was more cost effective. But the one thing that I loved in particular about this cruise was that we were able to share it with some of our beloved friends and family. And those experiences…..are truly priceless.

Thank you all for reading my ramblings.

Until Next Time,