This is certainly true on-board the Fantasy, from chance character encounters to always helpful crew members to the art-nouveau details throughout the ship. We just returned from our fourth Disney cruise, and our first on the beautiful Fantasy! My nine year old son, weaned on Disney (he was in the parks twice in utero,) cited as a cruise highlight our head waiter, Daniel, who performed magic tricks and treated all the children at our table to extra attention. He also loved the interactive detective agency game onboard. Happily, my husband goes in for the video and escorted him throughout the ship for the three separate rounds of play the game allows. One other father quipped that Disney could make a fortune selling cold beer at each stop!

Dining

With rotational dining, elaborately themed restaurants, the entertainment of Animator's Palate, and an eager-to-please wait staff, eating is always a pleasure. An absolute highlight of a Disney cruise for us adults is Palo's brunch. Do book early, the second you have paid in-full. This dining experience is simply not to be missed in terms of breathtaking views, attentive service, and a decadent abundance of every kind of delicious food imaginable, artfully presented. Leave room for dessert! This trip we also tried the champagne brunch at Remy's. The space itself (aft port) was airy and sun-filled. Service was impeccable, rivaling what you might find at the best restaurants on-land. Personally, I might have died happy drowning in a bowl of their corn emulsion soup. The sea bass was one of the best fish dishes of the entire week, and my hubby found the veal a knock-out. Finally, dinner at Palo never disappoints. The challenge for us is when to book it. My BFF swears by the first night, but I find that a bit rushed on a busy day. This time we opted for pirate's night, as it is our least favorite ding menu, with its emphasis on Caribbean flavors, at the regular restaurants. We dined relatively early (6:30 pm,) which left plenty of time to don an eye-patch or other buccaneer garb afterwards and still catch the terrific deck show and fireworks. Stand-outs on the Palo dinner menu included the scrumptious Grilled Portobello Mushroom and Polenta and Chianti Braised Beef Ravioli, as well as our favorite entrees, the lamb and veal osso buco. Read more