I have always wanted to go on a Disney cruise with my family before my kids get "too old for Disney" and combined with my wish for them to see Europe and without my having to pack and unpack every day, this was going to be my ideal vacation! We embarked and disembarked in Barcelona. Day 2 (formal night on Day 2) and Day 7 were sailing days. We stopped at Naples (Sorrento, Amalfi Coast, Pompeii) on Day 3, Civitavechia (Rome) on Day 4, Livorno (Pisa/Florence) on Day 5 and Cannes on Day 6. We booked our own private tours with companies found on tripadvisor.com. Totally worth the extra research. We were able to save hundreds of dollars over Disney excursions with as much personal attention and flexibility we wanted and without having to travel in a pack with 30/40+ fellow passengers. The private vans were able to drive through narrow European streets that big tour buses were not permitted - i.e., see more and much less walking. We felt more like locals than tourists!

This is not our first cruise. We've sailed on Royal Caribbean (on the Oasis class) and Princess in the past. Disney has a reputation in the cruise industry to have amazing food, service and entertainment - we were told by the cruise director that all 4 Disney cruise ships made it onto a Top 10 list of best cruise ships for 2015. This made me wonder if most of the reviewers were Disney cruise-only loyalists or first time cruisers with nothing else to compare with in their cruising experience.

Let's start with the positives. I loved that our deluxe family ocean view stateroom with verandah was able to accommodate my brood of 5 without any major brawls among the siblings. The split bathrooms with 2 sinks was brilliant and a god-sent (esp. with a brooding teenager in the mix!). The Frete towels were unexpected and so very soft! The Disney characters photo sessions were a big draw for me and my tween kids. The 2 showcase musicals were well produced - Disney knows how to put on a show. The Magic was small enough that we were able to dock at Livorno (instead of Spezia) for Pisa/Florence which saved us a great deal of driving time. We were also able to anchor off the beach of Cannes that the mega ships otherwise wouldn't be allowed. We ate breakfast outside overlooking the French Rivera coastline and the picturesque city sky line! We even saw a dolphin in the distance. Read more