The Unofficial Guide to the Disney Cruise Line 2024 (Unofficial Guides) - Softcover

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Erin Foster researched and responded to more than 11,000 guest questions as a charter member of the Disney Parks Moms Panel (now the planDisney Panel). Erin has visited Walt Disney World; Disneyland; Disneyland Paris; Hong Kong Disneyland; and the Disney Vacation Club properties at Hilton Head, South Carolina; Vero Beach, Florida; and Aulani in Hawaii. She has also taken Adventures by Disney (AbD) journeys to four continents, including AbD’s European river cruises. And, of course, she has been on many Disney Cruise Line sailings on the Magic, Wonder, Dream, Fantasy, and Wish. She was among the passengers on the maiden voyage of the Wish in 2022. Erin is a regular contributor to the blog at Touring Plans. When she isn’t traveling, you can find her attending theatrical performances in New York City.

Len Testa is coauthor of the Unofficial Guides series, covering Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Las Vegas, Universal Orlando, and Washington, D.C. While Len has published works in travel, computer science, and endocrinology, it’s widely acknowledged that he’s just the pretty face for a group of people way more talented than he is (and “pretty face” is a stretch at best). Len sends love to his daughter, Hannah.

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What’s NEW in The Unofficial Guide to the Disney Cruise Line 2024:

• Expanded coverage of the Disney Wish, including staterooms, dining, children’s activities, shopping, entertainment, and more
• Coverage of Disney’s second private island: Lighthouse Point
• Post-COVID changes to health and safety protocols
• News about DCL’s expanding fleet, including the brand-new Disney Treasure and two additional ships being built
• Reports on DCL’s new itineraries, including routes to Australia and the South Pacific
• News about changes to DCL’s loyalty rewards program, The Castaway Club
• What you need to know about Disney’s newest home port at Ft. Lauderdale

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Part 12: Port Adventures

Parasailing

Guests looking for a bird’s-eye view of paradise should check out this excursion. Floating hundreds of feet in the air, you’re the master of all you survey, or at least it seems that way for several minutes.

You board a speedboat and travel several hundred yards away from land. Then, in singles or pairs, you stand at the back of the boat and are harnessed to a line-bound parachute that slowly lets out until you and the parachute are 600–1,000 feet above the water. Enjoy panoramic views of your ship, Castaway Cay, and beyond.

Each excursion takes about 10 people onto the boat. There are no ride-alongs—every guest on the boat must pay. Your actual parasail event will last about 5–7 minutes. Depending on the number of other guests, the entire experience lasts 45 minutes–1 hour.

Open to guests age 8 and up, parasailing excursions cost $135 for both adults and kids. Guests must weigh between 90 and 375 pounds; those who weigh less than 90 pounds may be able to ride if they fly in tandem with another guest, but their combined weight may not exceed 375 pounds. Determination of single or tandem rides is at the discretion of the staff.

Kids under age 13 must be accompanied by a paying adult age 18 or older. Guests ages 13–17 may go on the excursion unaccompanied but must be escorted to the Marge’s Barges meeting area by an adult age 18 or older. All guests must sign a safety waiver.

You must leave your shoes on the dock and are strongly discouraged from wearing a hat or glasses during your sail; a storage area is provided on the boat for your personal belongings. Wheelchairs and other wheeled mobility devices cannot be accommodated.

No photography service is provided during the excursion—you’re welcome to bring your phone or a camera onto the boat, but you assume all liability if you lose it in the ocean.

Snorkeling

This is one of the least expensive, most rewarding shore excursions offered on a Disney cruise. We recommend it for every family. The cost is $22 for kids ages 5–9 for one day, $33 for two days; guests age 10 and up pay $38 for one day, $57 for two days.

First, find some chairs on the family beach, where you can store your stuff while you’re in the water. If possible, choose something near a vertical landmark such as a tree; it will be easier to find when you come back to shore.

Next, pick up your snorkeling gear at Gil’s Fins and Boats, a short walk from Scuttle’s Cove, the island’s first tram stop. You’ll be given a mask, a snorkel, fins, and an inflatable buoyancy vest to make swimming easier. Also pick up a blue-mesh gear bag, which makes it easier to haul your stuff back to your beach chairs.

Put on your vest before you get in the water, but don’t inflate it just yet. Wait until you’re in hip-high water to put on your flippers because it’s impossible to walk in them on shore (and they’ll get sandy). Don’t put your mask on until you get into the water.

If you’re snorkeling with younger children, plan on spending 10–15 minutes adjusting the fit of masks and vests. Inflate a kid’s vest by blowing into the vertical tube on the left side of the vest, adding just enough air to keep the top of the child’s head above water. (If you overinflate the vests, kids will have trouble getting their masks below the surface.) Also, practice using the flippers, which work best with slow, deliberate leg movements.

Once everyone’s gear is working, take one last look at the lagoon to get your bearings. Disney has placed orange-and-white buoys above the underwater sites, so head for those.

There usually aren’t a lot of fish in the first 30–40 yards nearest the shore, though it’s possible to see almost anything once you’re in the water. Fish species in the lagoon include yellowtail snapper, sergeant major, banded butterfly fish, blue tang, and barracuda.