Cruise Tips

Tips on the cruise.

As we get very close let’s discuss tips. What are yours?

Have extra capacity on camera, phone, memory card, for photos.

Bring ID and on line check in, and cruise booklet to port.

Read the navigator, promptly, in the terminal on embarkation, at night in your room.

The navigator is like a TV listing guide, food outlet opening times, shows and information and offers. 

Read the small print, there are many things to do.

Some bring a highlighter pen to ensure they do not miss anything.

Before embarking check, sign up locations for extra character meets, palo.

Your cruise card, opens your cabin , also is a charge card, also shows your dinner rotation, table number and muster location, for the drill.

Dinner rotation, Rotation ARL, RLA, and LAR. A is Animators, R Rapunzels, L Lumieres. 

Animators has a show (2 on cruises of 7 days): Rapunzels has a show. 

Get to dinner on time. Breakfast and lunch is open sitting. 

You will have a main server, advises in food takes food order.

You have an assistant server, helps main server, takes used places, looks after your drink orders.

Head server, looks after a group of tables and main servers, also special requests and complaints.

Restaurant manager overall in charge of head servers and service.

Tipping for servers is either pre paid or debited to your stateroom account per person, you can add more, or take away.

Tipping - see separate thread, but bars is automatically added, spa added, but palo and room service you choose, palo you get a charge slip to add, RS either cash or charge.

Explain the muster drill to children, like fire drill at school.

Wear sunscreen for muster drill, it’s hot on deck.

You have to decide if children can charge or not, I allowed mine to charge from a young age, it’s educational, but I told them, there was a daily limit, they stuck to it.

You can check charges by statement printout at guest services or on inter active TV.

Alternatively use the DCL App, it has menus, activities on it, and a quick route to the internet.

If you have the APP you can keep in touch on ship with it, with your family and also set up with anyone you know on ship.

Choose an embarkation plan, where to eat, restaurant or cabanas, both will be busy, but if you know where to go, you can head direct.

Cabanas if with children, maybe best to get a table and then one parent go with children to the serving stations, and they know your table, “ base” as it gets busy.

Cabanas serving stations repeat, ie at least both sides, but sometimes more, so choose one that’s not busy. 

Tell children what to do, where to go, if they got lost, stateroom, or guest services.

Plan menus, either up outside restaurants or on the APP, do this in advance as at the table you can have distractions, like children asking you things. Also read the children’s menus, they may choose the wrong thing, or miss something they like.

You can order off any menu, children off adults, adults off children’s.

You can, within reason, ask for extras, ie, can’t make your mind up on the dessert, choose two.

Photos can be taken of characters by you as well as their photographer and the CM who minds the characters.

Sometimes photographers are in port at famous places.

There are various photo packages available you can upgrade on the cruise, so keep receipts of any photo purchase.

In fact keep all paper receipts and check stateroom account regularly, mistakes occur, I have had charges on my bill. And it was a person, same deck, same surname who, “ forgot” his card at a bar. 

Pools have life jackets, ensure all young children use them.

There are lifeguards but the pools get very crowded keep an eye on excited children.

Pools have towels, rooms have towels, no need to bring. 

Food, there is deli, burgers, pizza, on deck 9 and soda station, but also for adults cove cafe has food. And a bar at night. 

Note you can ask for no salt on fries. Ship food has a lot of salt on it to preserve it. 

Room service opens with cabins opening at 1.30 and to midnight last night, except concierge.

Room service has extras, like Mickey ice cream bars.

Fountain soda, tea, normal coffee, tap water is free ( included) in restaurants and cabanas, but soda in a can, costs, soda from bars and room service costs. Bottled water costs. Some children’s smoothies at dinner cost, and the light up drinks, say pirate night, cost.

With so much food, children overdo it, keep the brakes on, try to ensure the evening meal with good food, vegetables etc is priority.

Do the evening shows. They are spectacular.

Stateroom, need anything, ask your host, extra hangers? Ice? Room service left overs removed? 

The laundry bag in the room isn’t free, ensure you leave it at the end if the cruise, same as wave phones.

The ships water from taps, faucets is fine to drink, also at soda station.

The ship sells water bottles, and drink packages like a wine package, if you have a bottle of wine a night, sign up for the wine package for a discount.

Internet has packages, again sign up first day, there typical is a small amount free if you sign up first day.

Switch off background APPs like home travel traffic news updates and automatic cloud photo back ups.

Room is made up at least twice a day, morning after getting up, and at night turndown service.

The bunk in the sky, the host will put away in the day, and out at night.

Listen for announcements, like guests ashore opened, or tenders starting. 

Identification required to get on and off, your cruise card, plus adults need photo ID.

Cove cafe has speciality coffees etc these all cost the advertised price.

Films are advertised, at set times, in cinema sometimes Walt Disney theatre, and in the pool screen and on demand in rooms. 

Get to all shows prompt or early they fill fast. 

You get small tickets in room, for booked, port adventures, booked character meets, and palo. The same style tickets are used for end of cruise tips, but do check the names on them are correct.

Bring card or paper for thank you notes. Servers, host, children’s club.

Shops are open when the ship is at sea, various goods, Disney toys apparel and small, items you may need, tablets, baby food, hygiene etc. 

Gold and platinum get a discount in the shops automatically.

Book your next cruise onboard for discounts and OBC. - you can transfer to a TA.

Pack flip flops water shoes for the pool deck, it gets very hot.

The morning alarm call is great, Mickey will call you.

Breakfast in room, room service is prompt and a good alarm clock.

Booze.

Disney Cruise Line Guests 21 years and older may bring a maximum of 2 bottles of unopened wine or champagne (no larger than 750 ml) or 6 beers (no larger than 12 ounces) on board at the beginning of the voyage and at each port of call. These beverages must be packed in carry-on (not checked) bags or luggage.

Guests wishing to consume wine or champagne that they have brought on board in one of the dining rooms will be charged a corking fee of $25.00 per bottle.

Bringing liquors and spirits on board is prohibited.

Do not miss the fireworks on pirate night, or the buffet.

Bring plug adapters for USA style plugs.