The Walt Disney Company is famous for providing world renowned service to their customers. Disney Cruise Line is no different.
Prior to sailing on DCL, we heard stories of how well taken care of the guests were. But what we actually experienced was far more than we could have imagined.
At baseline, the Disney Cruise Line experience is top tier in the cruise industry. They go out of their way to make sure each guest has a truly phenomenal time on their cruise vacation. This presents itself in ways such as announcing your family’s name as you board the ship for the first time. Or the cast members at Guest Services helping to solve any problem- no matter how big or how small. Or your servers rotating through each restaurant with you for dinner- and by the end of the cruise, making you feel like you are woven into the fabric of their lives.
But it seems like it is impossible for DCL to stop there. They go above and beyond in everything they do, and make it look seamless.
These are the unbelievable Disney Cruise Line experiences that we have had over the course of our sailings.
Warning! Reading these stories may result in booking your own cruise so that you can experience them too!
1. Blankets
Our first cruise was aboard the Disney Dream. One night after dinner my husband, kids, and I wanted to go up to the pool deck to see what movie was playing on the funnel vision. It was cool and so dark that you could see all the stars in the sky.
There were not many guests up there that night, as they were partaking in other activities. We got comfortable on some deck chairs and sat back to watch The Muppets.
Out of nowhere came a cast member with blankets for the whole family. It seems like such a small thing, but it was actually a big act of kindness. The cast member could have simply ignored us or assumed that we were plenty warm on that cool night. Instead, he took his time to ascertain that we may be more comfortable with blankets. He was right, and at that moment we knew this was no ordinary cruise.
2. Toothbrush
Another wow moment for us also happened up on the pool deck. We were walking around looking for the perfect spot to lounge for the day. We passed a cast member holding a spray bottle of cleaner and a toothbrush, fervently scrubbing away at a spot on a lounge chair.
Y’all- I’m a clean freak and I don’t even go that hard at my own house!
My husband and I looked twice, and then looked at each other, eyes wide with surprise. Of course we expected the cruise ship to be clean, but this was next level. This is just one example of the attention to detail that is the norm on Disney Cruises.
3. Pancakes
My family is so grateful for the blessed life that we live. But parenting is hard! And tiring! The reason so many families take a vacation is to get a break from the everyday chores and activities that leave you drained by the end of the week. One of my favorite things about a Disney Cruise is that parents truly get that chance to relax and get some help that they may not have at home.
This was the case for us when we went to the Royal Court one morning for breakfast.
My son ordered pancakes and after they arrived, my husband got up and stood at the other side of the table to help cut them up. Suddenly, a server appeared and said, “No, you sit down. I will cut them.”
My husband did as he was told and we watched in awe as this pancake cutting ninja turned my son’s pancakes into a work of art. Of course he did not cut these into simple, everyday squares. Instead, he cut a border around the pancake, then turned this into triangles, flipped them over and it was a pancake sunshine!
I had never seen anything like this in my life. It was a true testament to how DCL aims to take care of parents and kids alike.
4. Palo
On the Fantasy, my husband and I had reservations for dinner at Palo. Palo is the adult-only restaurant that is perfect for a date night on the ship. Located on one of the upper decks, every seat has a beautiful view of the ocean.
That evening a storm was moving in. It was really cool to see the dark clouds and rain over the vastness of the Caribbean Sea.
Unfortunately, our son did not agree.
We had dropped him and his sister off at the Oceaneers Club before heading up to Palo. They were happily playing until my son caught a glimpse of the storm and became anxious. I then received a message through the Navigator app that asked us to use a ship phone to call the Oceaneers Club, as my son was requesting to be picked up.
We were only on our first course of dinner and leaving this early on would be less than ideal. But, we asked our server about using a ship phone. Soon the manager came over with a phone and asked what was going on. We explained the situation after which after which he promptly called the Oceaneers Club and said something along these lines-
“We have a lovely couple enjoying dinner at Palo. They were asked to call to get an update on their son…Ok, it sounds like he is doing better then?…Great. I trust that he will be ok. If anything else is needed please call me directly and I will get the phone to his parents.”
And just like that we were able to enjoy the rest of our dinner and the amazing Palo experience.
Of course we would have attended to our son if we thought he was absolutely beside himself. But getting a little worried about a storm was not out of the ordinary for him. We knew he was safe. The Palo manager knew he was safe. The Oceaneers Club was doing a fabulous job keeping him safe.
It just took one quick phone call from a calm and experienced manager for us to be able to finish our date night.
5. Sheets
I have read that if you ask, your room attendant will put character sheets on your kids’ beds for the duration of your cruise. While not required to have a perfectly good time, it does add a fun Disney touch to your stateroom.
I was pleasantly surprised when our room attendant on the Treasure did this without us asking. My daughter had Frozen sheets and my son had Cars.
When we were meeting our room attendant on the first day, she overheard my kids discussing how they were going to take turns sleeping on the top bunk by alternating nights. First night would be my daughter, second night my son, and so on.
This was an irrelevant conversation in my book (other than being proud that they came up with this compromise by themselves). But our room attendant took it to heart.
Wouldn’t you know that she switched those sheets between the top and bottom bunk for all seven days of our cruise?
We did not ask her to and we certainly didn’t expect her to. She took it upon herself to put in this extra work because she knew it would be meaningful to our kids.
They rewarded her with drawings, pictures that they colored, and a thank you note. We were rewarded with a small act of kindness that became a big cruise memory.
6. Playa del Carmen
The last amazing service experience that I will highlight happened when we arrived to Cozumel, Mexico. The ship was docked in the port. We were headed to breakfast before getting off the ship for our excursion to swim with dolphins.
We were walking along the pool deck to Marceline Market enjoying the beautiful views. My husband pointed out a body of land in the distance and wondered aloud what it was. Of course we had no way of knowing as we had never been there before.
I shrugged and would have been fine to keep walking, because, Hello- breakfast! But my husband, ever curious, stopped to ask a cast member who was stocking towels, if he knew what it was. He replied that he did not know.
Ok- on to breakfast. Marceline Market is the huge buffet restaurant that is open daily for breakfast and lunch. To say that it is busy is an understatement. There are guests everywhere- getting food, looking for tables, trying to keep track of their loved ones. Cast members are attending to food and drink stations, cleaning tables, and sometimes even helping carry plates of food!
My family found a table, took turns going up to get food, and finally got to eat. Who should then appear, but the cast member who we just spoke to on the pool deck about the mystery body of land. He approached us and said, “I found out what that land is. It is Playa del Carmen.”
Um, what? This sweet human went out of his way to learn what the land was and then come find us in the hundreds of people that were in Marceline Market that morning! Which meant he had to first remember what we looked like and then search for who knows how long until he got to our table.
When I tell this story, I joke that “no one cares about me that much back home”. (My mom didn’t find that funny). But what I mean by that is that level of care and service is typically the exception and not the norm.
I get it. We are all busy, on the go, and moving from one task to the next.
Disney gets this too. And that is why their extraordinary service and attention to detail is the gold standard. It is also why my family chooses to be repeat Disney Cruise Line guests.
What amazing service experiences have you had on your Disney Cruise? Please share below. We would love to hear about them!
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