Disney Wonder Cruise Review by dirtyheart

I want to start with a couple of little tips I thought might be helpful for the next cruiser.My first question was what time should we arrive at the port? I've been on cruises were they won't let you in early and some the earlier you get there the better..on this Disney cruise I say WAIT!! It seemed the majority of passengers (including us) arrived around 11/11:30, so the line to get the kids checked-in was over an hour and once you are on the ship your room isn't even ready until 2pm anyway. I noticed after our wait that the line for the check in was significantly shorter and even the line for food on the boat was shorter after 2pm. It really makes lot of sense to wait if you can, showing up early only means you will wait more.

We thought the food was fine. Nothing real exciting but not awful either. My kids are very picky and loved the chicken strips (even my husband liked them). My 8 year old son ate them every night. For me the fish dishes were really bad...overcooked and dry. I would stay away from the fish, but the salads and meat were good, and if something isn't right have your waiter take it back and get something else! I did that and they were very nice about it. The desserts were fine also...I'm a real sweet eater and felt like there was a huge shortage in this department. Honestly my favorite dessert was my sons Mickey Ice Cream Bar -yummy! The service however was FANTASTIC! Our waitress and asst. waiter were so kind to my kids, I think they actually like kids on this ship!

Speaking of kids...of course there are a ton of kids on this cruise. It's a Disney cruise after all, but I didn't feel like I heard tons of screaming or running into kids everywhere. Really the only time I noticed lots of kids was at the Mickey Pool - Holy Smokes are there a lot of kids in that pool, but the parents seemed more bothered by the amount of kids then the kids did. After I got over MY dislike of the crowd I realized it didn't matter one bit to the kids having fun in the pool! We had the late seating at dinner, so there were far fewer kids in the dining room, which was nice! Plus they offer a great eat and play for late diners where the "club" counselors come and pick up your kids after 45 minutes - awesome.

As for the lab and club, I was sure my 4 year old daughter would love it, but it was a bit too "crazy" for her. But my 8 year old son loved it! He never wanted to leave. He made cookies, flubber, found Stitch experiments and loved all the computer games. The wrist bands were annoying and drove both kids crazy but we were able to slip them on and off. Be ready for lines to get pictures and photos with the characters, but we only waited a long time for the princesses (get there early - they do close the line!!), everyone else was about 15 - 20 minutes.

All in all my group of six, two grandparents, two parents and two kids, had a really enjoyable time. We loved the ports (just wish we stayed longer at Cabo on the second date) HIGHLY recommend the dolphin adventure in Puerto Vallarta and parasailing in Cabo. Thought the food was fine and loved the Disney shows (don't miss a one!!!) and movies. The staff was above and beyond, always had smiles and made the kids feel special. Our room was awesome, loved the veranda with navigator window, felt like there was amble storage for a cruise room and liked the two room bathroom, very handy.

Oh and one last note(from the husband) very few men wear tuxs. On the formal and semi-formal night just about all men are in suits, the women got pretty fancy and all the little girls looked like princesses. Plus don't forget about Pirate Night - wish I had brought stuff to dress my kids and the adults.

I hope you make your cruise and enjoyable time! We did!!