Disney Fantasy Review
Rating by category
Additional details
First a little background on myself
I started cruising when I was 8 and in the past 10 years (all of my cruising so far was done under the age of 18) I have been on various cruise lines but mostly Disney and I am now a gold member with them. This review will mostly be for the Fantasy (which I have sailed on twice both Eastern and Western Caribbean) but will include elements from all four ships which I have sailed on. Starting with my time in Cocoa Beach I would say that it is tradition for my family to arrive the night before (we drive) and to stay the night. Our hotel of choice is the Holiday Inn Express because it is extremely clean, offers a free breakfast (which comes in handy before embarkation) and that it is situated so close to the ocean where we spend some time the day before or of the cruise just relaxing and starting our deep relaxation. It is also a nice hotel because it is within walking distance of numerous restaurants as well as Ron Jon surf shop which is a must do if you have some time in Cocoa Beach (personally as a teenager it houses many of my favorite brands Billabong, Hurley etc...)
Embarkation: For us because we drive embarkation is extremely easy as all we have to do is drive the 3-4 miles from our hotel to the port. The second nice thing for us is that we are gold members and did the online check in so we were given the boarding number of 2. My family is always early everywhere we go so we were one of the first 200 or so people there and yet we might have waited 30-45 minutes to board. This was by far the easiest embarkation I have ever had. In the case that you are a new cruiser with children I hope that you come at your designated boarding time because waiting a very long time can be hard on exciting children. My recommendation for the waiting (because I was once an impatient child... I probably still am) is to take part in the festivities do the character photo ops watch the old cartoons they play look at the Disney Magic model they have set up and most importantly take the children to the viewing deck. The viewing deck probably situates you even with the cruises 3rd deck. And even for an experienced cruiser like me I can take 15 minutes and just stare in awe at the beauty and sheer size of the ship.
Cabin Review
Deluxe Family Oceanview Stateroom with Verandah
I have a personal view that homes, and in this case cabins are a place to sleep. The only time you will find me in my cabin is when I am changing before or after dinner or from about 3 am to 10 am when I am asleep. Compared to other cruise lines they are great the split bath is an amazing concept and my family of four, including a large father, have never had a problem getting ready at the same time for dinners. There are always other bathrooms very close to your cabin, maybe one or two floors up or down, which I prefer to use.
Port Reviews
San Juan
I am a history buff as well as an amateur photographer and I found both of the forts absolutely amazing. Highly recommended if you can appreciate the past.
Castaway Cay
Words cannot convey what Castaway Cay is. One day at Castaway is not enough (Five Day Cruises offer 2 stops at Castaway ;). They say Disney Land is the happiest place on Earth. Well then that means Castaway Cay is the most relaxing place on Earth.
St. Maarten
Beautiful beach but the day we stopped it was extremely warm and there were 5 cruise ships docked so the water taxi wait was about an hour. Got dehydrated not the best thing. Bring water.