Kids age 16 and 17. We had never cruised before and never been to Alaska. We love Disney so this seemed like a good fit. Spent a day in Vancouver both before and after the cruise. Took a guided tour, wonderful city. Embarkation was straightforward, we boarded with no waiting around 12:30pm. The ship is pristine, you would never guess it's 20 years old. Everything literally looks brand new. Cabin had a queen bed and a sofa bunk bed. Small but fine, we were never there except to sleep or change. No window, and we didn't miss it really. The nightly shows truly were spectacular. Great talent and sophisticated technical aspects like sound, special effects, props, and sets. Food was the center of the experience. The rotation dining is fun and the dedicated wait staff of three give you a nice consistency. Food quality was truly excellent. The ship constantly had activities going on, from nature talks to trivia contests. It was all fun, mostly because the cruise activity staff is fun. Cruise Director Natalie is super high energy. We arranged our own port call activities. The kids spent a lot of time in the Teen Club "Vibe" and loved it. We felt safe letting them run around the ship and they were fine. Overall we consider this the best vacation we've ever taken. Highly recommended!! Read Less

We previously sailed on the Disney Dream during a Bahamas cruise and loved the experience. When we decided to try Alaska this year, Disney was a no-brainer for our family. The Wonder, however, is a smaller ship than the Dream, as it is one of the two classic ships in Disney's fleet. Regardless, the Wonder was incredible, and we had an amazing time. SHIP - OVERALL The Wonder is a beautiful ship. For her age, she is in exceptionally great shape. The crew keeps her spotless. She is instantly recognizable in port with her white and navy color scheme. The interior is what a Disney fan would expect. Disney characters and art can be found throughout the ship, but it isn't overdone. Also, plenty of familiar Disney tunes are played in the common areas. The Wonder is on the luxury side of things in appearance and atmosphere. EMBARKATION Embarkation was really pretty easy from Canada Place in Vancouver. We hired a car to drop us off. Once we got there, it was easy getting our luggage to the porters, checked in, and on the ship. It is a bit noisy in there, so just come with a little patience. Don't forget your passport! DINING As with any ship in Disney's fleet, rotational dining is featured and included in the cruise fare. We had two nights at Triton's, two nights at Tiana's Place, and three nights at Animator's Palate. Of the three, Tiana's Place was our favorite. The food was the best on average, and the Mardi Gras party on our last night was just a lot of fun. In addition, Tiana's Place featured the Crawfish Crooners, and they were a very fun band that put a jazz spin on plenty of Disney classics. After Tiana's Place, we next enjoyed Animator's Palate the most. Our Frozen evening was there, and while that was fun, the night we got to create our own artwork that was animated as part of the evening's entertainment was the most fun we had during a dining experience. Triton's was fine, but we were seated in a corner near the kitchen. Our meals there were a little loud and it was on the warmer side. As with any Disney cruise, your wait staff follows you from restaurant to restaurant. Our servers, Nyoman and Jack, were amazing. They got to know us and our preferences. They knew what kind of recommendations to make when it came to food and drink at every meal. Typically, we had breakfast at Cabana's up on deck nine. This buffet style restaurant was wonderful. Each morning, everyone in my family was able to find plenty of options to choose from. I preferred the Mickey waffles with strawberry syrup, but my wife typically choose fresh fruit, oatmeal, and coffee. Our kids enjoyed the waffles, bacon, eggs, and other bakery items. For snacks, we typically went to Pinocchio's Pizza for a slice after returning from our shore excursions. Also located on deck nine, it is near the pool. My wife enjoyed Daisy's Delites, and the kids frequently got self-serve, soft serve ice cream when I would get a Dole Whip from Eye Scream Treats (the ice cream was included in the fare, the Dole Whip was extra). Boiler Bites, located near Pinocchio's, has some good burgers if that is what you are in the mood for. In short, there is always plenty to eat and it is easily accessible and almost always no extra charge. LOUNGES Even though the Disney Wonder is a family ship, it does cater to adults as well. After 5 p.m., the aft section of deck three becomes an adults only area. Many of the performers would have additional shows in this area that were a little more tailored for an adult audience. I typically hung out at Crown & Fin pub at the end of the evening. I'd usually buy a beer or cider, enjoy the complimentary nuts and mini-buffet, and watch Sports Center. A lot of others would gather there for cards and other games. I would be remiss if I didn't mention the Cove Cafe. Although they serve alcohol there in the evenings, we enjoyed it for the coffee. You can, of course, get plenty of coffee for free on the ship. However, if you want a mocha, latte, or other concoction outside of your meal time, you will want to head to the Cove Cafe. The coffee drinks there are for an additional charge, but they are worth it. Plus, they have a machine that will make designs in the foam of your latte. They had everything from Disney to Marvel and Star Wars characters. I highly recommend it. CABIN Our cabin was just right for us. We probably could have used the extra space with a Deluxe Family Verandah room as our kids are 12 and 15. But, it worked out for us. We spent plenty of time on the balcony. Honestly, a balcony is the way to go for Alaska. There is so much great scenery to see as you sail, and a balcony helps you get the most of it. Our first full day at sea featured plenty of time on the balcony just taking in the sights. Definitely worth it. We appreciated that the bathroom in the cabin was split into two parts. The shower and tub were in one part. That room also had a sink. The other half of the bathroom had its own sink and the toilet. With two boys, and four people total needing to take showers, that was essential. Our guestroom host was exceptional. He kept our room tidy and well supplied throughout the cruise. We didn't have too many occasions to make special requests, but he was on top of things. STORAGE SPACE AND LAUNDRY Storage space was plentiful. TIP: store your suitcases under the bed. The bed sits a little higher, and there is plenty of room. The closet had more than enough space to hang up our suits for formal night and my wife's dress. Around the desk and the closet there were plenty of drawers as well. We had enough room for all our clothes. I would mention that we brought about four days of clothes and we spent a few days in Vancouver prior to the cruise. So, we did do laundry a few times. It was fairly affordable, but there was a laundry service available. Also, the laundry machines will send a message to your phone through the Disney Cruise app when your laundry is done. ENTERTAINMENT - THE MAIN STAGE A number of productions were held in the main theater, which is known as the Walt Disney Theater. These were all included in the fare for your voyage. We didn't catch everything there, but we saw the production of Frozen and Disney Dreams. Both shows were innovative and fun. They are described as Broadway caliber shows, and for the most part that is true. The only real difference is the length of the shows (about an hour) and the understandable absence of an in-house orchestra. The Walt Disney Theater also hosted performances by comedians and magicians. We saw one of the comedians, and he was entertaining, but not a can't miss. The magician, however, was a must do. Shawn Farquhar is a two time World Champion. We saw him in the Disney Theater one evening, and then we made sure to catch his performances in Azure later in the week. ENTERTAINMENT - THE BUENA VISTA THEATER The Wonder played several movies every day. Everything was under the Disney umbrella. For instance, the live action Aladdin was out recently, and that was available in the theater most days. So was Avengers: Endgame and Captain Marvel. Endgame was presented in 3D in a few instances as well. The theaters have a concession stand outside. The popcorn, candy, and drinks are for an extra charge. TIP: buy a popcorn bucket. You may not want to keep it, but the refills are only $1.50. Also, you can bring in food from any of the restaurants on deck nine. Nobody will stop you. We also attended a presentation on the bears of Alaska in the Buena Vista Theater, and that was informative and entertaining. ENTERTAINMENT - OTHER Beyond the theaters, the Wonder has plenty of other entertainment opportunities. The Disney characters have regular meet and greets throughout the day. Mickey, Donald, Minnie, Daisy, Pluto, Goofy, Stitch, and others are regularly available. Also, Spider-Man and Thor made appearances for the Marvel fans. The D Lounge and the Promenade Lounger are also a good places for families to go for game shows. We regularly attended "The Wheel" (a take off on Wheel of Fortune), Who Wants to Be a Mousketeer?, and So You Think You Know Your Family? All were a good time and family appropriate. Plus, there were always servers available to bring drinks and refreshment if you so needed. There are three kids clubs on the ship. My boys are more introverted, and they didn't really enjoy them. That said, I saw countless kids that did. The counselors we met were very friendly. PORTS AND EXCURSIONS The ports and excursions on this cruise were phenomenal. Alaska is just beautiful, and there aren't any real exceptions. Our first day was a sea day. Day two was to Dawes Glacier. We took the tour with Allen Marine Tours. They brought a boat up to the Wonder, and we boarded. They then explored the fjords and got us up close to berglets, cascades, and some of the wildlife. We got to within a mile of Dawes Glacier compared to the three miles the Wonder got. The following day was Skagway. It is a small town. Our excursion was the White Pass & Yukon Route. This was a train ride from Skagway through the mountains into British Columbia. We then took the bus back. This is another great way to see some scenery and wildlife. Make sure to bring your passport! The next port was Juneau. This was our favorite day of the cruise. We booked the excursion that took us whale watching and then to the Mendenhall Glacier. Again, this was with Allen Marine Tours. We saw plenty of whales and glaciers during the tour. The real highlight was Mendenhall Glacier and Nugget Falls. The bus dropped us off near the visitor's center, and we walked the two mile round trip trail to get closer. Very worth it. The sights are breath taking. The last port was Ketchikan. We took a canoe tour of a nearby lake. It was a fun alternative to our earlier tours. That was also the only port where it rained on us. It was good, but not a must do. Be prepared for physical exercise as you do the rowing on the canoe trip. CONCLUSION Alaska on the Disney Wonder is a fantastic experience. We would consider doing it again. Our kids really enjoyed it. There are plenty of options for dining and excursions that you could do this cruise more than once and have very different experiences. Of course, with Disney, you are paying for the brand. So, if Disney is not important to you, consider an alternate cruise line to save some money. Disney fans, however, should love this. Read Less

About us: First time cruising as a family with 2 school age girls under 10 years old. My summary: Premium pricing is worth it for the premium service - especially if you have kids. TIP: Get the tickets for Frozen Gathering, Princess Gathering, and Character Breakfast as soon as the online activities open for you. - Entertainment - Extremely good quality of shows and performances. In order in which I woud rank: Frozen, Dreams, Golden Mickeys. Character meet and greets were awesome for kids. The lines were occasionally long, but mostly managed. - Dining/Food quality - Extremely good in Palo, quite good in regular restaurants, even buffet food quality was good. The rotation and entertainment for kids was really nice touches. They had activities or things in different restaurants that kept kids engaged during meals. In order of preference: Animator's Palate, Triton's, Tiana's - Kids club - my kids loved it both for the arts and crafts and activities that were there. Engaging staff, secure and very clean. They had handwashing stations. - Ship - clean, rooms were well designed with storage - we had a room with a veranda in the midship. Boat rocked quite a bit some evenings - I'm told more than bigger ships but I don't have a good comparison. - Disney service - Crew members generally seemed happy and had good attitudes about service. Excursions TIP: Morning excursions in Alaska sometimes got canceled because of fog (boat ride, helicopter, float plane) TIP: Bring your raincoat/umbrella and be prepared for the weather to not be that great. Skagway: White pass yukon railway train ride. Really nice because you could sit with kids and not worry about driving. Scenery was beautiful. Did not see much wildlife. Skagway itself was a small town and not very interesting to be in - lots of shopping. Juneau: We went to mendenhall glacier and went whalewatching. Bus tour to glacier, rained there and we did a short hike. We didn't make it to nugget falls because there was only 1 hour on the tour and my little one had to be carried. I would possibly look into a tour that lets you stay longer at the glacier or separate it out from whalewatching. On the whalewatching boat, they provided binoculars and donut holes and hot drinks. We saw two pods of humpback whales. 5 - 7 whales in total. We stayed with one pod for 30 minutes and then saw another for about 15 minutes. Went by sea lions on the way back to the dock. Ketchikan: Neets Bay Bear Watch (sans kids). Took a 30 minute float plane to Neets bay and then walked a little to a salmon hatchery and saw 3 bears eating salmon over about 1 hour and float planed back. It was awesome! If I had to do it again, I would! Read Less

In an effort to get our families to experience more of the world than just the Caribbean, we decided to book an Alaskan cruise. We are 2 families who cruise together regularly (moms are cousins) and this time we both invited our parents to come along and see what we've been raving about for so many Disney cruises now. One family has 5 kids (20, 19, 9, 6, and 3) and the other has 2 kids (11 and 8). Grandparents ranged in age from 66-84. Boarding the ship was simple. While the hotels very close to the port in Vancouver were CRAZY expensive, especially for a crew of our size, we were able to find an all suites hotel a few blocks inland that was VERY reasonable. We flew into Seattle (saved 50% on airfare), and took the train up to Vancouver Friday morning. We ended up having a 3+ hour delay, so the normally 4 hour trip took over 7. We were VERY comfortable on the train, kids were entertained and could move around, so all in all we didn't mind. I would NOT recommend trying to take the train on Monday as you're supposed to be at the port by 3pm. (We went early to get the kids acclimated to the time change.) The inside passage is VERY VERY VERY calm. No rocking at all like most other cruises. The first night we had fog, so the ship horn blasted every 2 minutes. ON THE DOT. Good to not crash into people or boats. Bad for sleeping. (Use white noise!!) We saw ample whales, seals, eagles, etc from the balcony. Many times, we just wanted to go back to the room to watch for whales!! (Side note: Orcas are WAY smaller than you think they're going to look in the wild from a big cruise ship!! FYI! Lots of splashing and they're FAST.) We saw MANY MANY humpbacks during this trip. The final sea day was the BEST whale watching of all. Don't take the Tracey Arm day lightly...it's BREATH TAKING!!!! SO much more than I was anticipating. The biggest let down of the cruise was the service and the food. Nothing huge. No glaring errors, but just small things like we'd bought a wine package and the unfinished bottles weren't waiting for us at our table when we arrived like they had on all our other Disney cruises. (4 to be specific.) The kid's didn't have drinks waiting for them on this cruise. Our party of 15 was supposed to be linked in the system, which we confirmed with DCL directly via the phone several weeks prior to sailing, yet half our party was on a completely DIFFERENT DINING ROTATION when we got on board. My cousin and I had to go fix it as soon as we were on board. Palo wouldn't let us make a reservation for the 10 adults we had, and made a huge deal about our party when we tried to fix our 2 separate reservations so we could all eat together....yet when we dined there the restaurant was only 1/4 full the entire time we were there. The kids enjoyed the muppet interactive scavenger hunt on the Fantasy MUCH more than the Anna and Elsa hunt on this ship. The kid's club crew wasn't as interactive and entertaining with the kids. If they wanted to do one activity in the club and then another activity in the lab later on, the crew didn't inform them the new activity was starting, so they missed it because they were doing something (like a small craft) filling the time. All of the younger kids were MUCH less impressed with the cast members in the kids club on this ship. The food is really rather blah. On every other sailing (Fantasy and Dream), I had multiple meals I could RAVE about....only Palo gets that note here. Tiana's was HIGHLY interactive, but the food was meh. I'm not sure if it was just the size of our party or not, but the photographers only took our pictures at dinner once at our table. When you pay $300 for the photo package, I'd like to see A LOT more of those types of photos at the end of my cruise. All in all, it was ALASKA!! It was amazing! BUT the Disney caliber cruises I've come to know and love just missed a bit on this one. I don't know if that's because it was Alaska, or because the staff on this ship just isn't being held to as high of a standard, but it was noticed. (Incidentally, another family we met on the train ride up had the exact same feelings.) We will absolutely sail again. Our kids LOVED Alaska and the fun adventures we took while we were gone. They are still talking about seeing all sorts of cool stuff from our balcony. These memories will last a life time (for everyone except the 3 year old), and all in all I'm very glad we went. Excursions: We did NOT do the extra boat in Tracy Arm (Acutally we went into Endcott Arm b/c there was too much ice in TA) and it was still amazing. OH OH OH and make time to go see the Naturalist's lectures!! They were fascinating and added so much understanding to what we were seeing. Ketchikan - cold and rainy that day - we did Zip lining....very fun but we were pretty wet in the end. We had plans of warm showers and then going back in to explore the town, but the rain wouldn't let up so we just continued to enjoy the ship. Juneau - we did the helicopter tour to the top of the glacier. (Booked via Viator.....saved several hundred $$) The dog sledding part was cancelled because it had been so warm that the snow melted and they had to close the dog camp. Walking on the glacier was AMAZING. Kids loved the helicopter ride as well. When else could we do that!!? We had to fork over the $. Skagway - grandparents, dad, and sons went Salmon fishing and LOVED LOVED LOVED it. It was the ONLY picture my 9 year old wanted to bring to show his class from his summer vacation. I took the girls on the Duck Boat tour and then we walked around town. Meh. it was ok. It was good to get out and get a little city tour. Before our cruise, we did a whale watching tour out of Vancouver harbor. That was great! (Also booked on viator) Alaska is definitely a bucket list place for most people. We are glad we sailed Disney with our families for all of the entertainment. All of us had things we wanted to do and didn't get to on our 7 day sailing. Read Less

We selected Disney as they have always provided the best service, food variety, entertainment and shore excursions. This was our second Disney Alaska cruise. This was a 9 day adventure and it took us to places we did not experience before. People ask us, "what about the kids?" Well, Disney has play & pool areas and entertainment set aside specifically for kids. Also, they have clubs and an area called the Quiet Cove, that are restricted to Adults. Kids that venture into those areas, with or without parents, are requested to immediately leave. When we went on shore excursions, just the mention that we were with Disney always seemed to get the guides, drivers etc attention. The entire crew, from the maintenance people to the ship's Captain, are all alert to their guests needs and requests. The was never a problem with the food offered, whether is was at a buffet, dining room or specialty restaurant. There are activities planned from 8:00 am until 1:00 am the next day.Disney is more expensive than some other cruise lines, But, here is where the old saying "you get what you pay for" comes into play. Read Less

We figured Disney would be great with kids considering the characters, shows and kids club. We have a 7, 5 and 2 year old. No previous cruise experience. Many kid friendly resorts though. So on the criteria of characters, shows and kids club. Characters, Disney comes through. No complaints. If you have kids who love princesses, ignore the rest of this review and just go. We have 3 boys, who were fine to meet Elsa, along with Spiderman, Woody and Mickey. Would have been nice if Disney could do more Cars stuff, not sure if its logistics or Pixar limitations but character meetings met expectations. Avoid that Bibidiboppity makeover if you want to save yourself a couple of hundred bucks but I can see how parents of princess fans spring for it. We did not buy the prince charming package. The shows, perhaps others will not have this problem but if your kids go to bed by 8, there are literally no shows they can go to. There are no matinees. There are 2 show times. One during early dinner and one during late dinner. Our kids would be eating during early dinner and could not stay up late for the next showing. That said, there were at least 2 entertaining dinners. Kids club, They put 3-12 year olds in same area. While loosely there is an older kids club and a younger, they are linked and kids can move freely between them. The kids club was disappointing as I was hoping for more of a camp where they would stratify by age and keep them busy. Although there was always a guided activity, it was optional and parents are not allowed in. My 7 year old naturally defaulted to playing video games and my 5 year old to watching videos. Technically the upside was that I spent more time with them outside of the kids club. Other things All the kids loved it, despite my views The nursery is good value Alaska is beautiful, with great weather which we had the first week of July. Kids got to use pool twice. Two year old in swim diapers are not allowed in the pool and restricted to kids splash pad. Waiters cutting the food (steak, chicken, fish) for kids was great service. Everywhere should do that Excursions are interesting Having a concierge (which we sprung for) can turn you into an overly demanding jackass As I write this I am upping my rating from poor to average Read Less

We landed in Vancouver on the Friday before the Monday departure. There was a long line for taxis at the airport. I should have ordered a car--lots of people had. But the taxi fare was a flat fee of $31 Canadian to downtown. We stayed at the Blue Horizon hotel. Big rooms and balconies. You could walk to the port (all downhill) but we took a taxi. It was easy to board the ship. They did itemize our two bottles per person wine but that was okay. I purchased the wine package pre-boat for dinner but it was the same price on the boat. We brought two corkscrews and we ordered cheese platters in the late afternoon so that we could have wine and cheese on our balconies with the wines we were allowed bring on board with us. Our room was very near the laundry and that was helpful. It was also nice to be on the starboard side of the boat. Predeparture, we were told that the verandah partitions could only be opened if there were connecting doors, but really you could open the deck partitions for about five rooms in a row depending on where the steel bulkheads were. So for example rooms 7584 all the way through 7592 could have had open verandah partitions, which we liked because we were a big family traveling together. The Disney coffee was awful. I brought my own. All the musical acts on board were excellent. We really liked the Cadillac lounge. The Crown and Fin pub was able to show the world cup games which were very popular. The Frozen show that we saw was pretty bad. Not equal to their other efforts. There were lots of first-run movies. We don't have little kids so we didn't have to worry about standing in line for characters and photo ops. I brought a swimsuit in case I want to go to the hot tub but I never did. Kids were able to swim in the pool because it was warm enough. The fitness area on the Wonder has enough machines, but doesn't have any dedicated group work out space although there were classes offered which were very popular and I'm sure on future cruises they are going to have to expand that area. We brought field glasses to view from our deck. Lots of whale tales and seals and birds. We did the white pass railway in Skagway. It was a little long but the views were great. In Juneau, we meant to take the bus to the glacier but milled about town and soaked up Wi-Fi instead. In Ketchikan we did the zodiac boat tour adventures and that was really fun. Our kids were able to book on the Tracy Arm boat and really liked it, although they liked the zodiac tour better. Getting off the boat was easier than expected. We did not give them our bags the night before. We did the 7:30 AM walk off and there was essentially no immigration/custom rigmarole and there were no lines for taxis; we could have been in a taxi by about 7:50 AM. By about 9 AM, there was a line for taxis. Unfortunately, I had ordered a noncancelable car to the airport for 9 am and it couldn't come earlier so I wish I had taken a taxi instead! At the airport, it took about half an hour to clear security and US immigration and customs which was done on the Canadian side. If you had Global entry, it would have been much much quicker. So for anyone who has time to apply for Global entry and do the interview prior to their cruise, it would definitely save you time at the airport. We thought that we would be pushing it to make a 12:50 PM flight on the same day that the ship docked but we had oodles of time. If anyone did the walk off at 7:30 am, you could probably make any flight starting at 11.30 AM. But if you let them take your bags the night before and you have to pick them up from baggage claim, you would very likely be getting off the boat at 9 AM and there might be a line for taxis by then, which would delay you. We had a beautiful scenery and great weather in Alaska. Very much enjoyed it. Because it's the inner passage, there was always mountains to look at. Not like a Caribbean cruise where there is just ocean all around you. Read Less

We took our 4 grandchildren ages 3,8,8 and 9 on a 7 day Alaska cruise on the Wonder. Our big worry was keeping track of all of them as they are “busy”. The wonder is truly a very safe ship for kids. They have plexiglass which does not detract from the view but does allow for added safety for the kids. No worry about climbing and falling over or through. Kids club issues a bracelet so they can track the children. If you lose your child they take them to the kids club and they call you. They allow kids 8 and over to check themselves in and out with your permission. We allowed them to check themselves in and they would message us to let us know they got there but you need to ask them to do that. One of the lessons learned: keep carry on light as embarkation is a “process” and with 4 kids and luggage it is a little more difficult. We had each kid with a carry on bag and getting them all through the scanners and such was not a totally easy process. A backpack each is plenty. Dress is much more casual and kids wear a lot of costumes. Layers for clothing is perfect! Another review suggested bathing suits under clothes for embarkation and we did that and it worked well. However the pool has a lot of chlorine and our little ones eyes burned a lot that night. I would suggest goggles. There really is a ton to do and there are several repeats so don’t stress if you miss things. The service is amazing and a little thoughtfulness from you goes a long way with the staff. I’m coffee picky so I took Folgers instant coffee and one of the waiters said he hadn’t seen those and that Folgers was popular where he came from so I gave him some of the packets and he was so excited. The staff is away from their homes and family for 4-6 months at a time so little touches from “home” goes a long way. I also took some candy to thank them as well. The ports were great. We found a great park in Juneau for the kids to run and play in as the kids just like to run. My husband and the 3 older kids did the dogsledding with Temsco and while expensive they all said it was totally worth it and they are still talking about it! We also went to the lumberjack show in Ketchikan which was very fun. Disney is expensive but we felt it was totally worth every cent. Everyone was very helpful and kind even when the kids were not at their best the staff tried to help without being intrusive. We would definitely cruise with Disney again!! Read Less

This was our first trip to Alaska, and from planning through our disembarkation it was a wonderful experience. The ship is beautiful, the crew were all friendly and helpful and we enjoyed just about all the amenities available. This ship is smaller than the Dream, and we met many wonderful families who we saw several times on the trip. We had a verandah room, which was in great shape, and well cared for by our room host. We love rotational dining, and our serving team worked their magic in making our meals, and our encounters with them outside of the restaurants very personal. I was delighted to see adjustments in the evening dining menus and themes, even when we returned to previous locations. Our Palo experience on the last night was also wonderful. The buffet options were always varied, and represented many cultures and choices. The entertainment was varied and excellent,, and we enjoyed many shows, movies and acts. Because of the way things are scheduled, we had personal experiences with the entertainers, including the headlining acts. The on board naturalist, helped all of us make the most of our time in Alaska Everyone seems to exude the same concern and interest in meeting you and learning your story. We booked 3 excursions through Disney, and each one was better than the last. The surprising treats, like hot soup on deck, or mulled wine, or hot chocolate when cold were welcoming. We needed a few extra items to make our cruise seamless for health reasons, and they were accommodated gracefully and consistently without any additional reminders. I used the gym every day and found it clean, well supported and well equipped. We are looking for our NEXT Disney cruise adventure. Read Less

My husband and I joined his family for a June 2018 cruise in southeastern Alaska on the Disney Wonder for a week of fun, with grandparents (65 years), brothers and wives (34-38 years), and kids (1-5 years). While the kids definitely got the most out of it, we all had an enjoyable time aboard. The Disney Wonder staff catered wonderfully to our niece and nephews - almost to a fault, since there were a few times at dinner the adults sat waiting past appetizers for drinks as the waiter did multiple magic tricks for the kids. The Wonder had three restaurants with five (I think) themes, so the menu was always changing and highlighting different foods (seafood at King Triton’s, for example). The food was decent, but usually light on seasoning and warm rather than hot. However, that suited the 3 and 5 year olds in our party quite nicely. For a private night, my husband and I did their specialty extra cost restaurant, but I wouldn’t say it was a necessary addition for the trip. The final night in Animator’s Palace where we saw our drawings come to life was the hit of the cruise for the kids, along with the abundance of character meet and greet opportunities. Be warned - get in line early for character photos since folks, especially adults, could get a little competitive and some characters only appeared in a themed costume once or twice (Mickey and Minnie had cute Alaskan winter outfits they wore one day, and had their fancy outfits for the final night). The princesses were incredibly gracious and kind to my shy 3 year-old niece, taking time to kneel down and beckon her over when she hid behind us shyly. Cinderella especially spent extra time with each child and made them feel special. Spring for the Princess High Tea onboard, and get your reservation early - it was worth it!! There were a lot of choices for shore excursions at all price and physical activity levels - more than the giant Allure of the Seas selection from 2013, so many I had to start an excel spreadsheet to narrow down our options! In the end, we picked the summer dog sled camp in Skagway, Juneau’s Mount Roberts Tramway, and the scenic cruise/beach bonfire picnic in Ketchikan, and we were not disappointed, especially when a humpback whale came to play beside us. Spring for the shore excursions - we paid between $75-170 per excursion each, and it was a great value! At times, once the kids went to bed, we found ourselves looking for something to do, and as fans but not super fans of Disney, sometimes it felt a little limiting and lacking adult diversions that didn’t involve booze. Our interior cabin was an average cabin with above average television selection! Much appreciated since I was ill the first rocky day at sea and stayed in with the lights off and tv on softly. The bathroom shower/tub combo was definitely child sized, and a struggle for my poor 6’1 husband. However, it was split so someone could use the toilet in one half while someone bathed in the other which seemed brilliant for people traveling with kids and more than 2 people in a cabin, like my brother in laws. Our cabin steward was friendly to the point of mildly irritating - every time we saw him, we’d need to update him on our day and comings and goings, which got tedious. Although I loved the shore excursions and restaurants onboard, the focus onboard is on the kids (as it should be!), so we’ll likely wait until after we have kids to do another Disney Cruise. Read Less

We chose this cruise (first time for us on a Disney cruise) because of 2 granddaughters and grandson which by the way was bored after 2 days with nothing to do for a 23yr old. Lots of problems concerning maintenance on this ship considering it has only been 1 1/2 years since a total refurb.. Window tint torn and coming loose and then taped up and the tape falling down in the "atrium" windows in Cabanas, multiple cabin problems, shutters photos department was a disaster. The food was the worst we have ever encountered on a cruise and this was our 34th cruise with other cruise lines! The food generally was lukewarm at best in all the dining rooms, Cabanas and the small deck places. One morning I was standing in line at Cabanas and one of the kitchen people was replacing the tray with hash with a fresh tray so I thought this has to be hot so I scooped up some and it was cold!!! The ONLY thing that was ever hot in Cabanas was the omelettes that they made to order. The only place we had a great experience was at the Palo adult dinig (extra cost) where the food was excellent, hot and we had a great server unlike the regular dining rooms where we constantly had to ask for anything like more water, butter etc. Pet peeve: they charge $8 for movie popcorn in a plastic refillable bucket and then $1.50 for any refills that is the height of cheapness on Disney's part in our opinion, also no butter or salt was available for the popcorn. Everything on this cruise was buy this buy that. Our family occupied 4 staterooms also. We will never cruise with Disney again. Read Less

Let me start by saying the majority of the crew aboard the Wonder were excellent! The food was nothing special and the fact that Pirate Night took place at 9:45 at night made me wonder if was for adults or children??? However, my review will focus on a 7-page, comprehensive, formal complaint I sent following the cruise which included solutions, with the Disney Cruise Line regarding numerous and dangerous accessibility issues that we experienced on our May 16, 2018 cruise with our disabled daughter. Our daughter requires the use of a transport-style wheelchair any time she is out of the her home or out of the stateroom. We also copied our formal complaint to Cruise Line International Association, Department of Justice ADA and The Open Doors organization. The serious accessibility issues that we encountered onboard the Wonder are as follows: 1: Elevators that are too small, doors that do not stay open long enough and door sensors that are inoperable. 2: Exterior to interior thresholds are impassible on Deck 9 without assistance. It took 3-4 adults to get our daughter over the threshold on Deck 9 (Pool, restaurants, coffee shop, movie theatre, etc): 2 people to lift her wheelchair, and 1-2 people to hold the doors open! 3: Severely limited number of automatic, ADA, entry doors. The one ADA door that we found did not stay open long enough to even push our daughter through it before it began closing. 4: A treacherous and narrow gangplank was used in Victoria BC, which had 2 very steep switchbacks. Prior to disembarking, we consulted with a crew member at the entry gangway, who assured us, that the gangplank was, "fine," for disembarking with our wheelchair. In reality, it was very dangerous, and took both my wife and I, and all of our strength, to safely get the wheelchair, and our daughter, to the bottom of the steep gangplank. Upon re-boarding the Wonder, there was no assistance available, or crew member present, to help us push our daughter back up the treacherous gangplank. We were forced to plead to a fellow passenger who we did not know to ask for help to push our daughter back onto the ship. 5: There is crucial accessibility information that is intentionally being omitted and hidden from Disney's Special Services Information form. In addition, there are NO warning signs, call buttons or crew members present to offer assistance in the areas of inaccessibility. Nor, are any of the major accessibility issues listed above "revealed" in any written, online or onboard materials. A representative from the Executive Offices of Disney Cruise Line, called me to respond to our complaint. The essence of the response was dismissive, to say the least. Instead of taking responsibility and caring about what happened to our daughter, and ourselves, onboard the Wonder,she, instead, chose to blame our travel agent, stating that she should have informed us that we needed to complete the Special Services Information form prior to our cruise. Fortunately, 100% of the time, we do not require any assistance when traveling with our daughter. We do not use accessible staterooms, require airport assistance, or any other type of assistance from anyone, at anytime. Nothing on the Special Services Information form applied to us so we did not complete it. Had the Special Services Information form disclosed the magnitude of the accessibility issues onboard the Wonder for persons with mobility issues, we would have had a reason to complete it. The only thing worse than the blatant negligence displayed onboard the Wonder in regards to accessibility, was how the Disney employee handled her response to our complaint. She took NO responsibility, whatsoever, for any of our complaint issues. Instead she blamed our travel agent and blamed us for not completing the Special Services Information form, inferring that had we completed it, assistance would have been available to us at all times. Absurd! Again, had the accessibility issues outlined above been "revealed" on the Special Services Information form, we would have "known" to complete it. A supervisor did call us before completing our review and smoothed things over and was very professional. That call does not excuse the accessibility issues but the issues were handled very professionally by the supervisor. We will NEVER entrust our disabled daughter's safety and security to a Disney Cruise Line ship ever again. IF YOU HAVE MOBILITY ISSUES, THINK TWICE BEFORE CHOOSING DISNEY CRUISE LINE FOR YOUR NEXT CRUISE. Read Less

This was a fantastic cruise, they made everything so magical, the weather for the whole trip was very cold and windy but that was out of their control but if you do the California cost from San Diego to a Vancouver just bringing warmer outfits. The shows are sooooo amazing and true to Disney magic we stayed in a concierge suite and they were so wonderful to us. My Son was so happy to know that the one girl knew Avengers and they sat and talked Super Hero’s for a while, it was also so cool to sit in a pool and watch a movie that was just so cool. The food was amazing and service top notch my son is Glutten Free and they were all over it and on top of it and making sure he always had food he could eat. The oceaneers club the kids never wanted to leave which was great cause my husband and I got to enjoy wine tasting and champagne tasting and a lovely couples spa. I would say it’s a trip worth saving for. Read Less

We wanted to do Disney again this summer - but we also wanted to avoid the heat & humidity of Orlando. What better way than a summer getaway to Alaska? First: Traveling with a family of four, three of which have food allergies (two dairy and a gluten - yup, we're that family). Our server team, Lito and Gerda, did an amazing job of ensuring my family's safety and comfort over the whole trip. I can't say enough good things about them - we actually ran into them both, upon separate occasions, off the ship - and both gave us pointers about where to go for a safe off-the-boat snack, where to pick up some essentials, tips about what to see, and more. The ship itself was great. Not too big, not too small - just the right size. Our stateroom attendant, Eric, constantly delighted us with his creations, and our stateroom was perfect. We opted for a large porthole stateroom, without a balcony, because we were nervous about having kids with access to a balcony. And our room was great. We were on deck 7 forward (just a few doors down from the access to crew senior officer staterooms and the bridge), and we found it was the ideal location - hotel floors above and below, so no noise issues - and forward, so the level of vibration from the ship's engines was unnoticeable. And, the youth staff was amazing. The oceaneer lab and oceaneer club were fantastic; Tavia from the club went above and beyond with my kids. When the prize for one of the contests turned out to be something that my kids were allergic to, Tavia took it upon herself to find a suitable substitute, and to deliver it to the fish outside our stateroom herself. Her above-and-beyond made my kids' day - and typified our experience with the cruise. Dining was great. My favorite, by far, was Tiana's Place. For folks who enjoy live jazz - even if it's mostly "Disneyed up" - you'll love the live band they have. The lead vocalist/guitar is really good, the trumpet player is fantastic - and wait 'til you hear the bassist's solo on Sweet Georgia Brown. These guys know how to play. We went up Endicott to Dawes glacier - for anyone concerned that Tracy Arm being packed with ice might take away from the experience, don't worry. Endicott was breathtaking, and the glacier calving (and rock slides) were amazing. Sea lions were sunning themselves on icebergs along the way - great photo ops. Skagway was nice (and rainy - it is southeast Alaska, and you will need raingear more often than not). It's a small town; the rail excursions seemed to be the favorite. There's a stream not far behind the rail station where we saw thousands of salmon swimming upstream - that was amazing. Here's a tip - if you need a few essentials while you're in Skagway, head over to the Fairway Market (only a few blocks from the docks) - I think it's on 4th street, and one street over from the main tourist strip. (Thanks, Lito!) On the way back to the ship, look for harbor seals right next to the ship - we were surprised to see them right there, maybe 30 feet away, taking advantage of feeding opportunities. Juneau was great, too - we went whale watching and saw at least 7 humpbacks, plus a massive sea lion colony. Wow, the sounds they make are amazing! The whales were great - so graceful, and the pictures of them coming out of the water were amazing. Ketchican was also good - this was the best weather of the whole trip, with the temperature up at least in the mid 60's and bright sunshine all day. Be sure to catch the lumberjack show - it's well worth it! A stroll up Creek Street should be on your must-do list. Also, make sure you find Ketchicandies. :) And, the last bonus... on the way back, our last sea day, in the afternoon, we saw a large number of whales from the ship; it was really phenomenal. One seemed to be waving at us for a good 10 minutes, on his back with flippers up. If you don't get a chance to go whale watching in Juneau, this is your best chance to see them. All in all, a great trip - we'd do it again in a heartbeat! Read Less

It is a very small and old ship and it is crowded everywhere: cabana, theatre, decks, hallways, gym shower area (only two showers). Not everyone staff, which should be polite, professional and efficient. There was a lady serviced in cabana, she is from Portugal, while she was talking with the guests at adjacent table of ours, her butt kept on bumping into my shoulder, so rude! In the end we have to move to another table. Entertainment shows are not high in artistic level at all, considering this is Disney we are talking about. You can tell these shows are put together corsely and have been played for many many years. We all think these actress should lose some weight for the job. Food quality is so so, nothing outstanding. The shops at ports of call sell faked diamond and replica watches. Disembarkation is so rushed just like kicking everyone out of the ship asap. Really not much good thing to say about this trip. Read Less

We are veteran Disney cruisers (have been on RC twice, but not for us) that choose the mostly more-interesting, longer cruises to places we've never been before. Hence, it was time this summer to get to Vancouver and do the SE Alaskan pan-handle thing. Only 7-days, getting back to the same port (we've done repositionings and the flight planning hassle is often worth it, due to the diversity of locations one gets to experience) meant that we only had 3 relatively short port days plus a drive-by of some glacier unfreezing into a fjord. We love the ship and the entire Disney-service experience. Food was excellent, not haute cuisine but comparable to any good-excellent restaurant that we usually visit. More importantly, my wife has a myriad of food allergies/restrictions and Disney and our servers could not have been better. I can eat salmon, while my wife next to me (who is allergic to fish oil) can have her chicken knowing that she won't be visiting the bathroom in 15 minutes. Shows are good, but we've seen most of them previously. Kind of wish they did a little more "edgy" comedy, but this is mostly family-fare, and we like the overall atmosphere just fine. Ports of Skagway, Juneau and Ketchikan were well-traveled, comfortable and worth the visits. We choose to do our own excursions after a bit of research on the various Boards and forums and DCL generally offers a free bus service into the downtown Juneau while letting the $2 bus ply its trade in Ketchikan. Very sensible. We like our Category 6/7 cabin which is the least expensive verandah typically near the stern. Not much vibration, except when going into port when they use their thrusters. Read Less

My daughter talked us into it. We did enjoy it very much. All the staff were kind, some were getting cranky by day 5 and many of their smiles and responses were forced (can't much blame them, as they do work hard). The entertainment director, Pierre, made us feel awkward. In the beginning he was so kind and took down our room number three times and said to count on him for anything we should need (we did not ask for anything, by the way). However, when we ran into him after that meeting, he not only ignored us, but swiftly turned away when my husband extended his hand for a handshake. Really awkward behavior, to say the least. The food was quite good in light of the fact that most everything is from frozen, except most of the vegetables and fruits. What really made our trip enjoyable was the fact that my daughter enjoyed it so much. Read Less

1st time on this ship but 8th time overall on Disney and it was excellent! Ship was smaller than what I'm used to on their other ships, but it after a day or two it felt normal and it was fine. Dining was excellent, Irish Pub was comfortable and homey, Cabannas was a little small in the dining area but food was fine...coffee house was excellent. Spa and staff were great. Cusotmer service was excellent. Only concern we had was with the weather- when you go to Alaska they tell you to be prepared for the rain and it was a misty rain in Skagway and Juneau, but a down pour in Ketchikan. the weather couldn't be helped and that was fine. The ports were clos to towns and that was great. I was happy finding indoor oriented activities and it was comfortable. Overall the exepreince was amazing and I'd recommend it to anyone. Nobody does it like Disney! Read Less

Traveling with a family group of 10- 2 seniors, 4 adults, and 4 children (8, 5, 2, 1). Everyone loved the Alaska scenery, but we truly loved the personalized service of Ricardo and others that made each dinner special despite the challenge of so many little ones and my allergy precautions. The servers knew each of us by name and quickly learned our preferences, and showed Exceeding patience with our little ones who were no always on best behavior. The Princesses - - particularlyTiana; the Characters- esp. Chip and Dale and Pluto, and the musicians -- particularly the Summerwinds duet and Ben on Saxophone at Tiana's place-- were super in engaging with customers graciously and providing marvelous entertainment. Bam made sure our cabin was always refreshed and ready; again, the people on our hall all recognized the kids by name, and they felt right at home-- and we loved it! We were expecting to love the characters and musical shows but were pleasantly surprised and impressed with the Naturalist presentations on board (glaciers, whales) and the service across the board! Wanted to book again as soon as we disembarked! Only wish on the glacier viewing day there would have been narration available live and that wildlife sightings were somehow broadcast/shared more. Also would have liked more info on what was or wasn't included in fitness options. Had impresssion all spa things were extra, but wonder if the cycling classes all cost, etc., because we learned afterwards you could use the spa showers without extra fees. It would have been nice to have use of stationary bike or to know if any fitness equipment or classes were available without buying extra passes/fees. Read Less

We are a family of three - my husband and myself are both 29 and we have a 3.5 year-old daughter. This is our 3rd cruise as a family (one previous with Carnival and another with Disney); my husband and I did a Carnival and Norwegian cruise prior to having a child. Of the three cruise lines, Disney had far exceeded any expectation each time. We sailed from Vancouver, which is only about a 2.5 hour drive from our hometown. Vancouver is a lovely city (we've been a few times before). We spent two nights prior to embarkation at Times Square Suites (great for families!), which located in West End near Stanley Park and the waterfront promenade (we spent most of our time strolling around the park and along the waterfront). I booked parking at Canada Place ahead of time through their website (West Park is the parking company) and it cost $215 for the length of the 7 night cruise. After booking online, I was able to print a barcode that allowed us entry into the garage and allowed us to exit at the end of our trip. I think some of the more expensive hotels on the waterfront have a cruise parking package, but we elected to stay at a different hotel and just park at the terminal. Embarkation was a breeze. We were slated to arrive at the port between 12 and 1230, but we arrived at 11 and had no problems (no one even checked our PAT). If you are parking your car, you need to drop off your bags down on P2 (we parked on P1 and ended up at the check-in area before realizing we never saw anywhere to drop our luggage with the porters, so had to take the elevator back down). The check-in line wasn't very long, we waited maybe 10 minutes to get our Key to the World Cards, boarding group number, and lanyards. We also checked in at the Oceaneer booth (I pre-registered for Youth activities online) to get our daughter's magic band for the kid's clubs. Once registration is complete, follow the cast members and port employees downstairs to the security and customs area before being ushered to the waiting area to board the ship. We were in boarding group 11 and were on the ship by 1210! I love that Disney announces each family as they enter the Atrium, it's so classy. Lunch is served at Cabanas (buffet) on Deck 9 Aft, we didn't have much problem finding a table, even though it was the first day. Cabanas is pretty much standard buffet food for lunch with a "specialty" station that changes daily (sometimes Asian, Indian, etc). After lunch we headed to the Oceaneer Club/Lab open house. Our previous Carnival (Dream) kid's club was pretty sad - one room for too many ages 2-5. The Oceaneer Club/Lab (ages 3-12) is legit! Each section is HUGE with multiple themed rooms in both the club and lab - a favorite for our daughter was "Andy's Room", which features a Slinky Dog slide. The Club/Lab serve lunch and dinner at set times throughout the cruise. There are bathrooms in the Club/Lab, but kids have to be able to do everything themselves (there are stools in each stall) - the counselors will send you a message if your child needs help in the bathroom and you can assist them in the family restroom. Additionally, the magic bands that each child wear have a tracking device in them, so when you go to pick up your kiddo, the staff at the front can tell you which room they are in (even if they're in the bathroom!); if your child won't leave the bracelet on, they have a device that can be attached to the wristband that is childproof. There are several hours of "open house" everyday, where kids of all ages can participate in activities with their parents. **Quick note: I read on one of the boards that the Club/Lab allow three-year-olds who are not toilet trained to wear pull-ups and diapers - this is NOT true. We were asked repeatedly if our daughter was completely toilet trained (she has been for at least 8 months and wears big-kid underwear) and told several times that pull-ups and diapers were not permitted even in kids who were at least three.** Our stateroom was ready at 1:30 pm exactly and our luggage arrived to our room by 2:30 pm (the earliest we've ever had luggage arrive). Dinner the first night was at Tiana's Place - there was a live jazz band (the Crawfish Crooners) and a special visit by Tiana and Louis! They even visited each table for photos. The food the first night was delicious - I had hot crab dip for my appetizer and a wonderful halibut fillet with whipped potatoes in a dill cream sauce for my entree - delicious!! The show was the "Be Our Guest" show, which was a good introduction to what the entertainment would bring on subsequent evenings, but there was a LOT of talking by the cruise director, which did little to hold our daughter's attention. Day 2: Sea Day We booked the VIP Character Breakfast online prior to the cruise (FREE!) - standard breakfast fare with table service in Animator's Palate. Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, and Goofy came to all the tables for photos and autographs. After breakfast, we went to go Good Morning, Disney Junior, which was a dance party geared more toward preschoolers (perfect for our daughter) featuring songs from Disney Junior shows. Our girl had a blast! And, surprise!, Doc McStuffins showed up to dance with the kids. The Oceaneer Activities our daughter attended that was Storytelling with Sofia (yes, Sofia made an appearance); our daughter also participating the Parachute Games activity - she had a great time then too. We booked tickets online for the Princess Gathering (FREE!) - Cinderella, Ariel, Belle, and Tiana were there. Other Character meet and greets (in the daily Navigator) were Doc McStuffins, Sofia, Chip/Dale. Echoing the "carry your camera everywhere" comments I've seen on the Disney Cruise Line threads --- we randomly met Cinderella in a hallway and she took the time to chat with our 3-year-old, pose for photos with her and then took her hand and went on a walk around the deck with her! She was so sweet and gracious with our daughter. It was truly a special experience. Dinner that night was at Triton's and it was "formal" night, but you see all manner of dress. Maybe 30% of folks were in true formal attire (tuxedos and evening gowns) - the other 60% ranged from casual dresses, slacks/polos to fairly casual attire. This was also the evening of the Captain's Reception located in the Atrium -- FREE drinks! offered by roaming waiters. Bonus! Stage show of the night was the Golden Mickeys - great show with many song and dance numbers to hold the attention of littler kids. Day 3: Tracy Arm and Dawes Glacier I went to Senses Spa in the morning to cash in a Mother's Day mani/pedi gift (booked in advance online). I had the Fire and Ice manicure and pedicure and it was wonderful! The nail area of the spa faces a large panoramic window - I got to relax and enjoy the scenery - I even saw some whales! The "ice" part of the treatment was a mint mask, followed by "fire", which was hot moist towels, warm oil, and a hot stone massage. Glorious. We booked tickets in advance for the Frozen Meet and Greet (FREE!) - Anna, Elsa, and Olaf were there. Other characters (listed in the Navigator) were Tinkerbell, Donald, Minnie, and Goofy. Take note that photos with the original Mickey characters include them in their "Alaska" gear, which was pretty fun. I booked the Royal Court Royal Tea for my daughter and I to attend together, and though expensive, so worth it! All the girls (and boy) were announced individually to the "court" and received their crown (a beautiful beaded Cinderella crown) and shown to their tables. Parents had a choice of teas (the herbal was delightful) and kids got apple juice in fancy tea cups. The food was scrumptious and ranged from savory finger sandwiches to sweets. Each child got to choose a princess to adorn their special cupcake. There was singing and dancing by the hosts, Chef Brulee and Lady Chamomile. Cinderella, Ariel, and Belle all attended the party as well and spent time with each child, posed for photos, and signed autographs. The gifts were the most spectacular part! - an 18 inch Cinderella doll, autograph book, princess pen, jewelry music box (with a charm necklace and bracelet), and beautiful photo portfolio with an photo of the child with all the princesses by one of the ship's photographers! Each princess brought an additional charm for each child when they arrived to the party. My only complaint is that the timing of the Tea Party was when our ship was stopped at the Glacier...so I didn't get to see much of it up close - the party should have been scheduled on an actual sea day. Dinner that night was at Animator's Palate. The effects in that restaurant are truly spectacular - Sorcerer Mickey even came for a show with the dining staff. The stageshow for the evening was a magic show by Kalin and Ginger. My husband and I enjoyed the show, but didn't do a whole lot to hold a young child's attention. Day 4: Skagway We arrived in Skagway early, so we walked off the ship and found a cute little coffee shop (Glacial Smoothie). Once we got our coffee, we walked to the trailhead for Yukatania Point (about a 10-15 minute walk from "downtown"). The hike was relatively easy, but if you rely on mobility equipment, it would be difficult as there are several steep sets of uneven rocky "stairs" and very uneven rocky footing (we had a stroller with us and ended up parking it in the bushes at the trailhead). Yukatania is beautiful and we were the ONLY ones there!! I highly recommend this option if sitting on a train all day is not your cup of tea (most of the excursions from Skagway involve a train ride on the White Pass/Yukon railroad). Skagway is a cute little town with souvenir shops and delectable popcorn shop (the white cheddar was so good!). We walked around town both in the morning and afternoon as we had 12 hours in port. It was Frozen Night on the ship, so our daughter attended Olaf's Summer Party in the Oceaneer Club (Anna, Elsa, and Olaf visited). There is one dinner for all restaurants on Frozen Night, so eventhough we dined in Tiana's Place again, everything was Frozen themed. The Freezing the Night Away party on deck was really fun and took place right as we were leaving Skagway (I can only imagine the jealousy those on the other three ships in port were experiencing!). The show included all the Frozen characters and SNOW! There was no stage show this evening as it was the "Disney Wonder Premier" of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. I went while my husband put our daughter to bed. I thought it was the perfect ending to the series (for those wondering, there were several showings per day for the rest of the cruise, so my husband went a couple days later). Day 5: Juneau It was Pixar Day on the Wonder! Prior to getting off the ship, we visited many Pixar characters we had never had the opportunity to meet before, such as Sulley, Mr Incredible, Elastigirl, Dug, Russell, Remy, Emile, Jessie, and Woody. To catch all the characters during their first appearance times, our daughter and I stood in a line for one (set of) character(s) and my husband stood in a different line - golden tip! :) Since were docked at the furthest pier from downtown, there was a free shuttle bus from the ship to downtown. We did not book an "excursion", but I did buy tickets from M&M Tours for the "Blue Glacier Bus" that took us to Mendenhall Glacier. This company was easy to work with and kids 3 and under are free. Mendenhall Glacier and Nugget Falls are beautiful and the approximately 1 mile out to the Glacier is easy and mobility friendly. We ate lunch in town at El Sombrero (good food, but a little overpriced) and then took the Mt Robert's aerial tram ride. We only had to wait about 5-10 minutes for a tram to arrive (two run simultaneously, one from the top and one from the bottom). The view was incredible!! I had wanted to do one of the hikes at the top of the mountain, but they really weren't as stroller friendly as some other reviews made them out to be. The Pixar Pals Party in the Atrium was a blast and every character had their own song and dance - each of the other characters danced in the crowd when it wasn't their turn to be on stage. Dinner at Triton's (semi-formal night) - this was the crab leg and lobster tail night, which is a night I look forward to on every cruise!! The Frozen Show on the main stage that evening was incredible! The special effects were mesmerizing and singing and dancing was top notch! Get there EARLY for this one as it was an absolutely full house about 15 minutes prior to show time. Day 6: Ketchikan We again participated in Good Morning, Disney Junior, which was the same activity as Day 2. Doc McStuffins showed up this day as well. During the Oceaneer Open House, the kiddo and I participated in Doc McStuffins Toy Hospital - all the kids go to be Toy Doctors in Training with Doc! We were originally going to hike to Carlana Lake in Ketchikan, but it would have ended up being much farther that anticipated from where the ship actually docked (I couldn't find docking information for this port prior to arrival). We ended up last minute booking the Great Alaskan Lumber Jack Show (I booked through the website for the Disney Exclusive show as opposed to going through the shore excursions desk on the ship). The show as fun and the Disney Exclusive show allowed for a lot of audience participation and even featured an appearance by Goofy. We walked around Ketchikan, which is a really cute little town, but the weather was cold, rainy, and very windy, so didn't offer a great experience for wandering around. Dinner at Animator's Palate - when we sat down at our tables, we all drew a character, which was collected by the dining staff. At the end of dinner, our characters were animated up on the screens and were seen dancing with some of everyone's favorite Disney Characters! It was quite enjoyable. The show that night was Comedian/Ventriloquist show, but we were certain our daughter were not be interested, so we saw Moana in the movie theater instead (we hadn't seen it before and it was great!) Day 7: Sea Day The morning saw really rough weather with sea spray and some waves coming up almost to deck 4 - the cruise director joked we were on the Deadliest Catch excursion. Our daughter spent time in the Oceaneer Club for some scheduled activities, such as parachute games and Once Upon a Time story time (Belle arrived in her "villager costume"). In the afternoon, the weather cleared (though still chilly) and my husband and daughter decided to check out the pool - they said the water was like bathwater, nice and warm. Our daughter also played in Dory's Reef for awhile, but this area is pretty sad on this ship (the one on the Dream is awesome!). Our last dinner was at Tiana's and it was Mardi Gras! Tiana and Louis led a Mardi Gras parade that included participation by all the kids and dining staff! All the waiters gather the smaller kids from their tables and kept the children with them during the parade, which was really sweet. That evening was Disney Dreams on stage...with all the hype about the show before hand, my expectations were set very high...unfortunately, they were not met. It was good, don't get me wrong, but I think it could have been better. Disembarkation: Early dinner seating was given a breakfast time of 0715 (in the last restaurant you dined in); late seating at 0830. However, we drove a car (DCL knew this as you declare how to you are getting home in your check-in information), so we were given Green Tinkberbell Luggage tags for our "checked" luggage. Unfortunately, since we had an early breakfast, needed to be out of our room by 0800 anyway, AND didn't have a flight/bus/train/excursion to catch, we were one of the last ones off the ship! Our tag color/character didn't get called until 0930! And we were done with breakfast at 0745. With much of the ship closed and no stateroom to wait in, it was a little frustrating. We found some seating on deck 4 midship, which was too crowded, but waiting for almost 2 hours with a 3-year-old is not exactly awesome. From what I could gather, this is the order of the luggage tags: Express Walk-off (meaning you didn't check luggage), started at 0730 Yellow - Chip & Dale White - Ariel Gray - Daisy Purple - Minnie Green - Tinkerbell Red - Mickey I'm not sure if there were additional colors after this, but the ship was pretty empty by the time green was called. Do NOT get off the ship before your tag color is called as your luggage may NOT be cleared by customs and available for pick-up yet and there's nowhere to wait in the terminal if you jump ship too soon! Customs was easy, all they did was collect our declaration form - we didn't even have to show our passports. By 10:00, we were in our car and on our way! General Notes and Tips: Dinner in the main dining rooms can last up to an hour and a half or longer! I bought some sticker activity books ahead of time for dinner entertainment for our daughter. I also always ordered her a "starter" (fruit is NOT on the menu, but several nights she was not interested in the soup option, so I asked for a bowl for fruit - DONE!) and requested that her main course come out with our entrees so we could eat in peace and not have to deal with a child who was finished and wanting to leave before we even got our meals. I rented a stroller on board on Day 3. This is a free service, but they will charge you $200 if you lose the stroller or don't bring it back. I got the last one, so I'm not sure how many they have. It was a rickety old version of a Peg Peraggio, but it worked fine for strolling around the ports. I still don't know why I didn't bring ours. There's chips and salsa every afternoon in the Promenade Lounge. There is also a toddler area there. There is ALWAYS music playing in the halls, even in stateroom locations, which gets a little annoying. Thankfully, it's all instrumental and not lyrical. Silver Level Castaway gift was a nice one-shoulder backpack and a silver lanyard for each member of our party. Cove Cafe (adult coffee shop) offers a five coffee punch card and then you get the sixth free. The photographers let you take your own photos with the characters and backgrounds, which is great since DIGITAL prints cost $21 each! We did not purchase any... Always remember, your vacation is what you make it. Yes, unanticipated circumstances occur, but fun can be had anyway. Don't let the little things ruin your trip! Read Less

We were given this cruise as a "gift" to celebrate a milestone birthday from a relative that belongs to the Disney Vacation Club (DVC). The cruise was a great getaway for adults - from our pairing at the dining tables to just being able to have "alone time." Want to relax? Find the padded windows on deck 3 outside of Azure to read a book or nap while watching the Canadian/Alaskan nature go by. Some real positives - HOT - hot chocolate available during the northern part of the trip - lentil soup served outside as well. As mentioned previously, food was just OK - the halibut was always overcooked (a shame for such an expensive piece of fish). And except for Palo, the food was never really hot. Service was 5-star from the hostess to the wait staff. Late movies were almost always in 3-D. The Pirates - Dead Men Tell No Tales premiere was in the Walt Disney theater the night it opened in the US. A the Frozen show is probably the best presentation we've seen this side of Disney-based Broadway shows. Cabin (standard/inside) was very comfortable except that the shower was a bit hard to get "all wet" due to the low height. Having a clock next to the bed was a nice touch. Excursions are expensive - and if you don't take one - walking around Skagway, Juneau and Ketchikan can get pretty tiring of jewelry and t-shirts (although the tram to Mt. Roberts is right by the docks). Not sure we would have picked Disney if this hadn't been a gift - but if you and/or your kids are Disney fanatics - this is a great cruise. Read Less

This was our first cruise and we started at the top! Disney does everything top notch. The ship was just the right size that didn’t feel overwhelmingly big or too crowded. We were on the first Alaskan sail of the season: the weather was cold so no fighting for lounge chairs in the decks. The cabin for our family of four adults was compact but surprisingly roomy. There was room for four big suitcases under the large bed. There was plenty of drawers and shelves for us to totally unpack. Each night, our cabin attendant made up the beds, which included turning the sofa into a bed and lowering a bunk bed from in the ceiling (clever use of space) and leaving an adorable animal on the bed made out of towels. Each night, we looked forward to seeing what it would be. After we left each morning, the same attendant would put away bunk, make the lower bed back into a sofa, and freshen up the room and bathrooms. The bathroom consisted of two small rooms. Both had sinks, one had a toilet, the other a tub/shower combo. One of the best parts of the cruise was the dining. Breakfast and lunch were an endless buffet, and dinner was one of three Disney themed dining rooms that families would rotate through, but keep the same servers. They knew us so well that by day 2, whatever beverages we needed came right away. One night, our kids told our Indian head server how much they liked curry. The next night, besides the regular menu, he surprised us with three Indian dishes that were amazing! Our only complaint is that one night, the adults wanted to skip the Cajun themed restaurant. Our kids went to our regular table. Instead of the buffet restaurant serving a buffet, they had the same menu we wanted to skip. This was Disney cruises before this one. An argument over the food started and the meal was a bust. To rectify the situation, chocolate covered strawberries were sent to our room and our friends' room. Entertainment was great-talented singers and dancers in the shows, as well as fun trivia games each night in the bar, comedians, and game shows. Jo, the show hostess for our week was outstanding!!! There was never a lack of things to do or see. If you have small kids, there's things to do and if your group is all adults as our was, you could easily bypass the kids and have fun. Our 19-25 year kids had a blast! There was also a formal and semi formal night for two different dinners. We all brought formal clothes and got dressed for dinner. Once we got down to the dining room, we realized that the majority of people didn’t dress up so it took away from the atmosphere. Wish there could’ve have been a separate dining room for those who wanted to dress up. Because of that, we didn’t bother to dress up for semi-formal night Read Less

Just got back from the first Alaska cruise of 2017. This was my husband'f first time ever on a cruise ship so I picked the Disney Wonder and we did Disney for Adults to celebrate our 41st wedding anniversary. Disney did it up right from the beginning with a Happy anniversary card inside our cabin to a special dessert at the first dinner to a special invite to meet and greet with the characters. This was my 2nd trip to Alaska on the Wonder, the first time with my twin sis. We were in an inside cabin #7063, it slept three but just the two of us. The cabin was in Midship on deck 7, and between two decks of staterooms. Very quiet and very steady. Really enjoyed the updates and refit of the new Disney Wonder after its dry dock. Just a few notes to those of you coming back, as I did, for the 2nd time to Alaska. With the changes that happened to Wonder in dry dock one of them is at the aft buffet Cabanas. The deck 7 aft deck is gone, now above it is the deck for Cabanas on deck 9 (don't know what was on 8)and an extended inside eating area. Also gone is the Tracy arm fjord day Bar-b-q on the aft eating deck. Asked why and they said with the outside eating area smaller not enough room for outdoor cooking. Never fear though, the hot soup in bread bowl still exists that day and is served by walking wait staff on deck 9 and 10. More about changes to Wonder--on open house time embarkation day got to see updates to kids and spa areas and can only say excellent!!! Deck 9 changes great too! The Adult deck as great as always. On our first night dinner we were in Animator's Palette seated with wonderful adult table mates, but at one of the back wall tables. If seated there expect service to take longer. why? Because the wait stations to pickup food and clear tables are in the corners of the back wall requiring the wait staff to backtrack over the one only route on each trip since they could only access the table from one end and not around the table as other locations in the room. Also these tables, we found out, were the farthest from the kitchen. No problem in Tiana's or Triton since we were at oval tables with full round access. We finished, with the same wait staff for all restaurants (Disney rotates you through all the restaurants for evening meals and your wait staff goes with you), a full 20 minutes later in Animator's Palette than in the other two. That's not to say that all of Animator's tables were slower just all those at the aft back wall. Not our wait staff's fault, just the layout of the room. Tiana's was Excellent! Really enjoyed the menu and the supper club atmosphere with live music throughout the entire dinning experience and the 2nd seating of the trip Mardi Gras night was a real hit. Triton's was excellent as always. Sea food aboard and the deck 9 buffet and quick eats were excellent. Not to mention the free ice cream and beverage dispensers on deck 9. And free room service daily. A nightly mickey ice cream bar was how we ended the day, all inclusive. An up point on Animator's Palette. With three seatings here on this trip since we were at Animator's palette the first night, we got the regular show the first night, which was great, on the middle night was also Frozen night and the the restaurant was decked out with Frozen artwork and colors, on the last night we got to become animators and see our own art work in the show that was more than excellent. We had great weather for most of the trip, thank you Disney. Had some fog and mist on first day at sea but cleared up to broken clouds. Had one night of high very high winds, but the captain and his crew did their best and kept us on top of each breaking wave for an easier ride. We got our sea legs quickly and were rocked to sleep that night. Next day we were due for Tracy Arm but too much blue ice in fjord so we went to the alternate Endicott Arm and Dawes Glaicer. It was fantastic. The ship had room in the fjord to turn broadside to the glacier for great views of the face. We had sun that day so calving was witnessed. Saw wildlife on the way out and had the deck 4 to ourselves. Had cold hard wind in Skagway but sunshine through clouds. It's Alaska, so you layer up and keep on going. We enjoyed the experience. In Skagway we did the National Park Walking tours through historic downtown Skagway--3 different tours and free as long as tickets last. Get your tickets first thing in the A.M. at the National Park Office at 2nd and Broadway. In Juenau we went to Mendenhall Glacier and the Glaicer Gardens. If we saw one eagle we saw 50 and one really close fly by. In Ketchikan we toured the totems at the Totem Heritage Center and shopped. Great sunny day, so came back on ship to enjoy the pool area and decks. The stage shows are not to be missed on this ship. You are seated by dinner rotation so the theatre is never overcrowded for seating. The new stage musical Frozen is fantastic as well as the last night show Dreams. Inbetween is excellent entertainment in the main theater as well as the adult only clubs at night. Got to see great first run movies--and early viewing of new Pirates movie.On last night went for quick trip back to stateroom after dinner and saw an envelope in the fish by our door. We got a special invite (after the Dreams show) to a special meet and greet in D lounge with the characters before the Till we Meet Again show in the lobby. This was a special treat and one on one with ALL the characters before the show. Thank you Wonder staff for the invite. Next morning they assign you to a breakfast seating according to your first restaurant seating time. We chose to do the express walk off after breakfast since we had the first breakfast seating and would be out of the room before 8:30am. We were walking off the ship and to Disney airport transportation by 8:10a.m. We had an excellent time and took advantage of the "hold my place" plan to book our next cruise. For $250.00 you can "hold my place" and have up to two years to book your next cruise and still receive the shipboard booking credits and discounts. It's a win-win. This allows you time to check your schedule and travel buddies names for reservation. We really liked that and took advantage of it. Looking forward to the next cruise. Read Less

We are a family of five. Three seniors and two adults. We are attracted to Disney because of the reputation of great food, entertainment, and service. We also wanted to see Alaska which this trip was perfect for. To start, we spent two days in Vancouver before going on the ship. Arriving to the port was easy. Cabs take you straight to the port and drops off right where the Disney staff are awaiting to direct you. Everyone was friendly and helpful. Check in was easy and there are staff everywhere to direct you where to go. We got on the ship without a hitch. We were amazed at how clean and well maintained this ship is. We have two rooms with windows. Figure it wasn't much use to have balconies going to Alaska. This is a smaller ship after having being on Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas. Our room attendant was great. In fact, all the staff seem happy and helpful. They always greet you with a warm smile and greeting. We ate mostly at the main dinning rooms. Our waiter and assistant waiter are totally awesome. They cater to us better than any restaurant we have been to. They know what you like or dislike by the second night and makes recommendation accordingly. The food quality was good and better than what we had on Allure. It is probably the best amongst all the cruise line in terms of main dinning room food. We went to Palo on the second night. This was awesome in food and service. The souffle was to die for! Never had such good service in any restaurant before. The view from Palo was great being in the aft of the ship. The shows were great. It is nearly impossible to produce shows that caters to everyone. Disney has mastered this. The Frozen musical is just unforgettable! The lady portraying Elsa sang Let It Go much better than Idina Menzel. The daily itinerary is not as packed as say on Allure but nicely organized. Everyone is able to make it to the shows on a daily basis. We went on three excursions. The magic of this trip is that there was no rain to ruin any day or shore excursions. This is almost unheard of in Alaska. If you are into nature, then this is a blessing. We took the White Pass train ride in Skagway. Then we went on the Mount Roberts tram and the Mendalhall Glacier. Last, we did the city tour of Ketchikan. We booked through Disney which is about the same cost wise as booking independently. Disney is expensive but this is totally worth it. You go on cruise expecting good food and service so you can enjoy yourself and relax. Disney nailed this perfectly. so the extra cost is justified in my mind. We are already booked on another Disney cruise to Caribbean in February! Read Less

My mom and I just finished our first Disney Cruise, and we cannot say enough positive things about our experience!!!!!!!!! (! X infinity and beyond) My mom had the opportunity to live out her life-long dream of visiting Alaska and seeing a glacier, and I had the honor to travel with her! I am pretty sure she cried from joy and gratitude almost every day. Majestic. That is the only word that can do an inkling of justice to the beauty and wonder that is Alaska. Neither words nor pictures can fully capture the majesty of this incredible part of the world—it is something that must be experienced in the flesh. There is no better way to experience Alaska than on a Disney Cruise! The staff and crew alone make the trip magical—not to mention the beautiful ship, pristine cleanliness, and delicious food. By the end of our trip, not only did my mom and I never want to leave the gorgeous sights of Alaska, but we also felt so attached to the Disney staff and crew that we didn’t want to leave them either! A huge thank you and shout out to our incredible stateroom host, Eric; our amazing servers Dede and Jorge; and crew members Tony and Yasmin! These men and women, along with their fellow Disney staff and crew really made dreams come true! Also-a huge thank you to Nathan and Jen of Gastineau Guiding for the most incredible glacier and whale watching tour! So many whales and so much beauty. Without a doubt we would both 100% recommend that anyone and everyone take a Disney Cruise to Alaska! And if you go, book it with Holly Bliss! She made the preparation simple and seamless. Holly made the entire process easy every step of the way for us. She was always available to answer questions and offer helpful advice. What it comes down to is this: Disney does it right. If you have yet to visit Alaska, then bump it to the top of your bucket list. This simple, yet magnificent part of the world is good for the soul. Thank you, Disney and thank you, Alaska—you have truly made dreams come true!!! Read Less