Category: Disney Cruise Lines

Disney Cruises are back!!

Disney Cruise Lines

Exciting news!!

Today, Disney Cruise Lines announced that they will start cruising again with the Bahamian sailings on August 9th!

Also, the 3 and 4 night cruises on the Disney Dream in Aug and early September will be replacing the Nassau stop with a stop at Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay instead. So, if you’re lucky enough to have a booking on those sailings, you will get two stops at Castaway Cay now! So lucky! That island is awesome!

If you have a cruise booked for the next few months, you should’ve gotten an email from Disney Cruise Lines explaining some upcoming changes. Make sure to know before you go.

We can’t wait to sail again soon! I’ll post a trip recap of one of our last cruises next.

Email me if you want to chat more about Disney cruises.

In case you missed it…

All Disney Parks Castles

New things are being announced and existing things are changing literally every day at the Disney parks. It’s hard to keep up. Here’s a quick summary for you, at least of some of the big things as of mid June. There are too many to list every single thing.

  • Disneyland Paris has finally reopened, so all Disney Parks around the world are now open.
  • Disneyland California has reopened to out of state guests too.
  • Most important: Park reservations are still needed in all parks, in addition to your park ticket, and they do run out fast! Check for availability before you buy your park tickets or lock in hotel or flights incase you need to adjust your dates based on availability.
  • PhotoPass photographers are now allowed to use your phone/camera to take pictures for you again. Though, there is also a relatively new 1 day PhotoPass plan if you want a limited, cheaper plan.
  • They are no longer providing free MagicBands for resort guests. You can still buy them for $10+, or use a previous one though.
  • For Disney World FL, you can set up Mobile Pass on your phone now, like a digital version of your MagicBand, if you don’t want to wear a MagicBand. It can be stored in your digital wallet and tied to an Apple watch so you can scan that instead of your phone everywhere where you’d scan your magic band.
  • Disney World FL advanced dining reservations now start booking at 60 days before your check-in date.
  • Disney World FL nighttime shows are returning on July 1st at Magic Kingdom, “Happily Ever After”, and Epcot, “Epcot Forever”.
  • Disney World FL announced the Boo Bash after party event, which replaces the Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party this year. Tix on sale now.
  • Disney World FL has announced events opening Oct 1st for the Magic Kingdom 50th Anniversary – Magic Kingdom “Disney Enchantment” nighttime show, Epcot “Harmonious” nighttime show and new Remy ride, Animal Kingdom “Kite Tails” daytime show.
  • Many favorite restaurants and resorts are finally re-opening again.
  • All previously buffet style restaurants are serving food platters to your table family style instead but still all-you-can-eat.
  • Menu items at all restaurants may still be reduced, though starting to expand again, so check the posted menu on the actual Disney site or app for the latest n greatest to make sure your favorites are there.
  • Masks are optional for guests and cast members in all park areas besides the Disney monorail, buses, and Skyliners.
  • Social distancing restrictions and plexiglass dividers have been removed in most stores, queues, and ride cars.
  • Ride pre-shows are returning.
  • Disney rides and transportation are loading at full capacity, including multiple parties together.
  • Single rider lines are returning on most rides also.
  • Mobile ordering is strongly encouraged in most quick service restaurants. It’s great actually, cuts your wait time tremendously.
  • FastPasses and dining plans are still not back, so plan your ride and food strategy accordingly.
  • Rope drop is available at most parks again, where they are likely to let you in the parks almost an hour before park opening.
  • Parking lots may not let you in as early if you’re not using Disney transportation though, so use Disney transportation if you’re rope dropping.
  • Learn the strategies for getting boarding groups for rides with virtual queues beforehand – Rise of the Resistance in FL and CA and the new Spiderman ride in CA.
  • The new Marvel land, Avengers Campus, has opened in CA.
  • Disney World’s Magical Express will no longer mail you a confirmation letter for check-in. As long as you’ve added your flight info to your resort reservation, you can just use your magic band to scan into the Magical Express check-in at the airport. If you don’t have your magic band yet, they can look up your reservation there. If you have a magic band from a previous trip that you haven’t deactivated, then you can still use that.
  • Magical Express is ending at the end of 2021, but there will likely be another transportation option to the resorts.
  • Disney Cruise Lines has revealed more details about their newest ship, the Disney Wish. Inaugural sailings will start in June 2022 and sailings through Dec 2022 are open for booking now.

OK, this list got pretty long and there are more. See, there are just so many recent changes. Feel free to contact me if you want more info about any of these points, or anything else.

New Disney Wish Details

Disney Wish Atrium

Disney Cruise Lines has finally announced the sailing dates for their newest ship, the Disney Wish! We’ve been dyin’ to hear this and can’t wait to go! Drumroll…..

The maiden voyage will be a 5 night Bahamian cruise from Port Canaveral, Florida, on June 9, 2022! Ahhhhh!

That will be followed by their regular 3 and 4 night Bahamian sailings for the rest of that summer. Well, probably for the rest of time too, but they’ve only officially announced sailing dates through late September so far.

The sailings will open for booking in a few weeks, starting May 17, 2021, depending on your Castaway Club member level! Double Ahhhhh!

They also gave many cool details on the shows, restaurants, pools, water coaster!, entertainment areas, kids clubs, and cabin rooms! You have to watch the video below! It all looks amazing! I looooooove the gorgeous atrium design (above image), especially the wishing star concept of the chandelier!!

Watch the story behind the design concept of the Wish here.

Watch the official details video here. Fun fact, Ashley was the assistant cruise director on our Alaskan cruise many years ago, and the director of our Caribbean cruise a few years ago. She’s awesome! I hope this means that she will be the director of the Wish. Directors are the ones in charge of the entertainment, so they’re very important.

Read about the details of the Wish here. This has lots of still photos of what was revealed in the video above and was written by the owner of the travel agency I belong to.

Check the sailing itineraries for the Wish here.

Are you excited to sail on the new ship? Can you tell that I’m excited? Lol! Sorry for all the exclamations.

I would love to help you book it so that you can join us too! Email me!

Summer 2022 Disney Cruises

Disney cruise ships

Time to plan ahead! Disney Cruise Lines just released their next batch of sailings! You can now book any cruises through the end of September 2022. Hopefully, cruising will be somewhat back to normal by then. For now, you can just book with a deposit down, and can cancel for a full refund before your pay-in-full date. Just make sure to read the details to note the date and any restrictions. If you would like me to help with planning or to book your cruise, feel free to contact me.

View Disney Cruise Lines Summer 2022 sailings.

Future Disney trips

Things have been quiet here. We’re still hunkering down at home. Hopefully, you’re staying safe too.

If you want to plan for future Disney trips, Disney just announced some new openings. Disney resorts in Orlando can now be booked through the end of 2021, which encompasses the 50th anniversary of WDW in Oct if you want to be there for the celebration. Disney cruises are about to open bookings thru April 2022. Be aware of the new safety restrictions and cancellation policies before you book though.

Here are the links to the listings. Let me know if you want to discuss anything or would like me to help you book them.

More cruises cancelled

The Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), of which Disney and most other cruise lines are a member of, has decided to suspend cruises sailing from U.S. ports until October 31, 2020. If you have a cruise currently booked through early November, check with that cruise line to see how they’re handling cancellations. If you would like help with your cruise plans, please feel free to contact me.

Fall 2021 Disney Cruises announced

We may not be able to sail this Fall, but we can plan for next Fall. Hopefully, the conditions will improve enough by then for cruising to be safe.

Disney just announced the itineraries for their Fall 2021 sailings, and booking starts next week. It’s usually cheapest to book with initial release day prices. You just need to put down a deposit for now. Just be mindful of the cancellation deadlines.

We love Disney cruises and can’t wait to do another one. If you want help planning your next cruise, feel free to contact me.

View Disney Cruise Line Fall 2021 Itineraries.

Cruise Updates

Sadly, cruise sailings out of all U.S. ports have been suspended until September 15th for now. If you had a trip booked, check how your cruise line is handling the current situation. If you want any help with your cruise trips, feel free to contact me.