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[never2old]

I thought I would try doing a TR for our wonderful, wonderful cruise...

I had been wanting to do a Disney Cruise since I first found out they existed. We had looked at doing one in the Caribbean, and later a Transatlantic one, but each time the price of the flights held us back. So when DCL announced they were going to do the Norwegian fjords, we simply had to book it!! Later my parents got a bit jealous, and decided to join us as well. The more the merrier!!

The wait was a very long one... In the meantime I tried to find as much as I could about the Disney cruises, about our ship the Disney Magic, and of course about Norway and the fjords. And the more I read about everything, the more impatient I was becoming!!

The cruise left from Copenhagen on Saturday 6th on June. We got flights to get there on the Friday morning, so that we would have some time to discover Copenhagen (none of us had ever been there); and after the cruise we would have another couple of days to explore the city before flying back home.

The flight left Luxembourg very early, but at least it meant we had a full day ahead of us. We dropped the bags in our hotel (which was very close to the airport), before getting the Metro into the city centre. We hadn't really much of a plan, and we ended up just wondering around discovering the city like that. We visited Rosenborg Castle (beautiful inside and out) and the crown jewels, Nyhavn and the port area, the Little Mermaid (of course) and finally Tivoli Gardens, where we had dinner.

It was a very long and tiring day (we walked almost everywhere!), and a perfect start to our holiday.

If anyone's interested in the pictures, I have an album in Facebook: 

Next day it was embarkation day!!

You can check online before your cruise, and choose at what time you want to arrive to the port. I wanted to spend as much time as possible on-board, so we were due to arrive for check-in  between 12:00 and 12:30. We had breakfast in our hotel, then called in a couple of taxis to take us to the port. I'm sure it wasn't very long but for me it felt like the longest drive ever.... I just wanted to arrive and get my first look of our ship!!

Finally, there it was. Docked ahead of us, the gorgeous Disney Magic



Beyond excited now





We left our bags (Disney give you tags to attach to the bags, so they follow you to your cabin) then proceeded to the check-in counters.



There was a line for the first times, and a separate line for the Castaway Club members (i.e those that have cruised before). And as we were soon to find out, most of our fellow passengers had been on quite a few cruises... But for now it meant a shorter queue!! Once in the counter we showed all our documents, and received our Keys to the World. These keys are used as your ID when you enter and leave the ship, they're used to pay for everything you want onboard (from drinks in the bars to the soap in the laundry room!) and of course they open the cabin. Everyone gets one (including children). One of the first things I bought was a lanyard (a Norwegian Fjords themed lanyard of course) to carry mine

This being Disney of course you don't need to wait long before meeting your first character Before even boarding the ship, we got to meet Mr Mickey Mouse! My daughter was by now in full Disney mode



And here we go!!



We had to go in via deck 1. As soon as we got in, we were in Disney's very capable hands. All the cast members around were welcoming us onboard, there were some managing the crowds around the elevators, and ready to direct you to wherever you want to go. My first stop was Guest Services in deck 3, to get tickets for some characters meet 'n' greets (they had ticketed events for a Princesses gathering, for a Frozen meet 'n' greet and for a Marvel one; we skipped Marvel because our daughter is not into super heroes yet, but I have to say that after seeing Thor walking around the ship I think next time we'll have to try meeting them....)

Then it was time for lunch, and we went to Carioca's, one of the restaurants in the evening rotations, where they were serving a buffet lunch (there was another buffet in the Cabanas restaurant, in deck 9, and some fast food places).



Our first opinion about the food onboard?? Delicious. Everything we tried in the buffet was very good. It was busy in the restaurant but didn't feel crowded, the dishes in the buffet were always kept full, and everything was kept clean. I'm sure I'll repeat it many many times in this report, but the service here was like nothing I had ever seen. The cast members were simply amazing, everywhere (and the top reason the overall cruise experience was unbeatable)

After lunch, it was time to explore our ship! Of course I had seen all the youtube videos I could find, and searched forums and blogs and pinterest, but of course it's so much better in real life...

First stop, deck 5 and the kids clubs, Oceanners Lab and Oceaneers Club, where they had an open house (meaning we could all go and visit, and take pictures). When the clubs are working, adults are only allowed in to pick up their child, and of course you cannot take any photos. So this was our chance to go and explore, and feel very very jealous...



Children who register for the kids clubs get a wristband (a magic band, actually) that they use to check in and out of the clubs (and allows the CM to know where they are within the club). We got our daughter hers, and went in. First, the Oceaneers Lab...





And then the Oceaneers Club!



Andy's room, my personal favourite...













Pixie Hollow



Avengers







And of course, Mickey Mouse:



The two clubs are connected with each other through a corridor, and children are free to navigate between them (unless one of the two has an Open House, then parents must stay with them, or take them to the other club). Needless to say, my daughter loved them, and would have quite happily spent the whole week in there. And these were the clubs for the children aged 3-11 (I think). For the little ones there's the Small World Nursery, and for the older kids there are separate clubs.

We stayed and played with her a bit, before managing to convince her that we had a full week ahead of us, and that we should go and see more things!!

Continues soon!

[never2old]

And we continue!

The lobby atrium, from deck 5.





The rooms were ready now so we went down to see them. By chance my parents were just 2 doors down from us, which was very handy! Our bags were already there, so we took a bit of time to unpack, before going to the mandatory safety drill. By then our daughter had fallen asleep, so my husband took her to sleep in our room, and my parents and I continued our exploration of the ship.

Next stop, deck 10. I just loved it up here. It was all so beautiful!!





The pools are all in deck 9. Here's the adults only area, with Cove Cafe, and the adults pool:



The Aquadunk





The family pool (Goofy's pool) and the Funnel Vision screen. During the day they showed quite a few Disney films here!



And the kids pool





The pools were all heated, and they were all used throughout the cruise - though as you can imagine it was not getting in but out that was the difficult, chilly part... We didn't go in at all (except our daughter on the very last day, when it was quite warm), but they did look fun... On our next cruise

Before sailing there was a party on deck 9, the Adventure Away party The Goofy pool is completely covered and the whole area becomes the perfect setting for a deck party.







The entertainment team are the first to come out and get everyone in a party mood.



Brent, our Cruise Director. He was really good, and seemed to be the most excited person on board about our cruise and itinerary (it was the inaugural cruise to the fjords, and everyone was really excited about it?).



Time for some more familiar faces....











Here's a quick video, to give you an idea....



The bridge between Copenhagen and Sweden behind us:



Back to the room to change and prepare for the evening. First on the agenda, the evening show. It was a nice show, with plenty of Disney characters of course. The theatre itself (the Walt Disney Theatre) was much bigger than I expected. After the show we had about an hour before dinner (we had the second seating, so dinner was at 20:30). This was usually a great time to meet characters, with a few scheduled meet and greets. For these we usually showed up a few minutes before the characters were due to arrive, and waited in all maybe 5 minutes? I have to say, meeting characters in the cruise has ruined meet and greets in DLP forever.... 







Dinner time!

In the evening there are 3 restaurants in the rotation, meaning you are assigned to a particular restaurant each evening. Our was ACLACLA, meaning Animator's Palate, follwed, by Carioca's, then Lumiere's, then back to Animator's. The whole table has the same rotation, and your waiters follow each evening to the different restaurants. We shared table 56 with my parents and a family from Florida, a couple and their 3 daughters (on their 10th cruise, if I remember right). And our waitors were Vildon, from India, and Joao, from Portugal. They were absolutely amazing.

Animator's turned out to be my favourite restaurant, and I was very happy to have it 3 times in our rotation. The food is excellent in all of them, but the theming in Animator's is Disney at its best.





In our table they had coloring crayons all ready for our daughter (and a glass of water waiting for her)



In the menu you have several appetizers to chose from, then starters, then a main course. But if you want something that's not on the menu, you can ask. Or if you want 3 appetizers and 2 mains, you can ask. And it's all delicious... I had a salmon starter, then a tuna steak for mains. This was the best tuna steak I've ever eaten. It was all rosy inside, juicy, tasty, simply perfect.



Our daughter had a breaded chicken steak. Which our waiter Joao cut for her!!! And then he made a Mickey head with the ketchup for her.



Throughout the diner, the TV screens around us were first showing simple pencil drawn sketches, which slowly become animated, then colour...  At the end there's a little show where the whole restarant becomes fully animated and in full colour.






I have a video still to upload, I'll post the link here, but it was a really special moment. At the end of which Sorcerer Mickey came around.







Before going down to bed, we went for a look outside deck 4. This was probably my favourite outside deck. And it was a beautiful evening...



Continues soon!!

[norhel]

Doing good so far! :-)
The ship looks beautiful!

[DisneyRon]

That looks absolutely wonderful.

I wonder how going on a cruise solo would be received.
I've checked prices, but I have no idea what the experience as a single adult (male) would be like on a ship like that.

This looks very nice indeed, especially combined with a pair of recent EasyWDW articles about cruises.

Very curious about the rest of your report.

[daddyof2]

Love the pics, it looks like it was amazing

[never2old]

Thanks all

My mom was just telling me yesterday that she's forgotten it all and must go back immediately... We've been back over 2 weeks and are still suffering from serious withdrawal symptoms!! It was really an amazing experience.

That looks absolutely wonderful.

I wonder how going on a cruise solo would be received.
I've checked prices, but I have no idea what the experience as a single adult (male) would be like on a ship like that.

This looks very nice indeed, especially combined with a pair of recent EasyWDW articles about cruises.

Very curious about the rest of your report.

To be honest, I think it would be OK to do solo. Everyone was very friendly, and there's a good mix of all types of people: groups of friends, young (and young at heart )couples, families with young and/or older kids... If you're not shy I think it would be quite easy to make friends if you want to.

[never2old]

Here's a video of the show at the end of our dinner in Animator's.

Video is not very good, I warn you already... But it gives you an idea. Feel free to fast forward to the end to see Mickey

https://youtu.be/kG4LiDgjvBc

[never2old]

Day 2!



Sunday was our first full day on-board, and our first sea day. Meaning we had all day to enjoy the ship! We also had tickets for the princesses gathering (at 9:30) and for the Frozen meet 'n' greet (at 10:00)

We didn't set an alarm but maybe we should have... Because we woke up a bit before 9! Which meant we had very little time to get ready, and go and get some breakfast before going to see the princesses.

On the way to breakfast, however (around 9:10) we went past the Atrium lobby (where the princesses were doing their meet 'n' greet), and there was only 1 family waiting. So I asked the CM there if it was OK if we went to see them now (explained that we had tickets to meet them a bit later), and she said yes straight away Which was a good thing because of course our daughter had seen Belle, Cinderella and Rapunzel and was not going anywhere without meeting them first.

A few moments later she was talking with Rapunzel...





... then Cinderella (who loved Alicia's dress )





And finally Belle







The princesses were the highlight of the trip for my daughter, I have to say... We met them plenty of times after this, and every time they were wonderful with her.

After our royal start to the day, it was time to finally get some breakfast. The choice in Cabanas was excellent, everything from fruits and cereals to eggs and bacon. And now thanks to a slight change of schedule we had plenty of time to enjoy breakfast, before going to the Frozen meet 'n' greet. The food was excellent. The coffee, not so much...

After breakfast, Alicia changed her dress and it was down to Animator's Palate for the Frozen meet 'n' greet. One of the longest queues we ever did on-board here... Maybe 5 minutes   The restaurant was all set for Frozen with blue lights everywhere



First we got to meet Anna and Elsa





And then Olaf



All this, and it wasn't even 10:30 yet

We went back to the room to leave the princesses dresses, because next we were going to meet Princess Sofia and of course Alicia wanted to wear her Sofia dress....



And a bit later, Doc McStuffins



I hope she comes to DLP some day!!

After meeting Doc we run into my parents, who had been relaxing all morning! Meeting so many characters had made us a bit hungry, so we went back to Cabanas for lunch. It was really lovely outside, and because the restaurant is at the back of the ship (the aft) the terrace outside was very well protected from the wind, so we all sat outside to enjoy our meal.



It was a very good thing we walked so much during this holiday, otherwise we would have come back home with quite a few extra kilos.... Food in the buffet was really good. I didn't try everything, there was too much choice, but everything was very good.

After lunch my husband took our daughter back to the room for her to have a little nap, and I went for a tour of the ship. It was about the design of the ship, and focused on some imagineering details. Very good, and I wish I had had time to do it a second time. Our guide was Tom, one of the entertainment CM, and he was lots of fun. British, and one of the few CM on-board who'd actually been to DLP We learned about the story behind the theming of some areas, about the use of optical illusions and forced perspective... Very informative!

Our tour started in Palo, the adults-only restaurant. Since we were not going to have any meals there I was quite happy to get a look in there...



It's on deck 10, with windows everywhere. The view up there for dinner (or brunch) must be quite something....





After my tour I headed back to the room.





Tonight was Gala night, so we all got to dress up...

The show tonight was Twice Charmed, a re-imagining of the Cinderella story. Cinderella is one of my daughter's favourite princesses, so she loved it (we all did, to be honest.... it was really good!)

After the show it was time to meet Mickey (as my daughter pointed out, we hadn't seen him yet that day....). He was also all dressed up.



Back in the Atrium there was a cocktail with Commodore Tom and his officers. The Commodore was DCL's first ever captain, and he was the first captain to all 4 cruise ships. A few years ago he was name Commodore (and remains the first and only Commodore in DCL). Since he's himself from Norway, he had come back to the Disney Magic for the fjords inaugural sailing! He was really nice.





Dinner tonight was at Carioca's. I should have taken pictures of my meals every night because I remember only that it was really good... But I'm not sure what we ate... See, I need to go back Tonight our waiters had a bit of fun with us and the napkins



She took hers off to look at it, so they made her a new one:



My husband's turn



It was really good fun

After a delicious dinner it was time to head back to bed... Every night we had a towel animal, and some nice chocolates (my daughter loved those!)



Day 3 coming soon!

[jessief]

Your trip report is fantastic and making me wish even more that it was next year already !! A quick question about the dining arrangements, can you request to dine as a family of four or are you automatically set at a larger table with other guests ?

[never2old]

Your trip report is fantastic and making me wish even more that it was next year already !! A quick question about the dining arrangements, can you request to dine as a family of four or are you automatically set at a larger table with other guests ?

Thanks Just going through the pictures is making me wish I could do it again soon! Unfortunately dates are no good for us next year (hence we're doing the Mediterranean instead), maybe in 2017...

I saw smaller tables with even just 2 people, so I'm sure it's possible. The best you can do is send them a message (or call them) and ask. I sent a few requests via their contact form in the website and always got a reply, they really try to accommodate all of your requests

[never2old]

First port of call - Stavanger!

We had an excursion booked for today, but the meeting time was 11:00 - meaning we didn't need to wake up too early... However the nights in Norway are extremely short, so even with the curtains closed we ended up waking earlier than we'd liked... A bit after 8 we were ready for breakfast. We decided to try Lumiere's for breakfast (instead of Cabana's), where you have a table service breakfast.



As soon as you sit they bring you a menu, some water, then ask you if you want any juice, coffee or tea, and a bit later they came with a tray full of pastries and muffins. Then they come and take your order... I went for the "French Toast and Pineaple Stack". Yummy!!!



My daughter was starting to feel the effects of going to bed late and waking up early, and was in a quite grumpy mood... And she spilled her chocolate milk everywhere. Though obviously she's not the first child to spill a drink in the restaurant, because they were very quick at reacting, drying everything and getting her a new drink....  Still, not the best start of the day!!

We had plenty of time before our excursion, so after a quick change of clothes for my daughter we met up with my parents and went out to explore Stanvanger by ourselves.

When you leave the ship all you need is to scan your key to the world, and off you go (when you come back you do need to show a photo ID to the port authorities).

The back of our ship (I hadn't seen Goofy yet!!)



And into Stavanger we go!



Stavanger is one of Norway's oldest cities. And Old Stavanger (Gamle Stavanger) was right next to the ship!!











The port area



There was another cruise ship, French judging by the number of French tourists around...  In fact they kept following us all around Norway!



Burger King anyone?



(There was also a Starbucks....)

The Stavanger Cathedral (Stavanger domkirke) is Norway's oldest cathedral, it was built around 1150. Unfortunately it was closed so we couldn't visit it inside.







Right next to the cathedral there was a little park area, with a lake and lots and lots of pigeons and seagulls...









We continued our walk and found ourselves in a shopping street. Shops were starting to open (it was now 10am) and the sun was starting to come out!!







Next we went towards the Valberg Tower, and old watch tower from 1850. At that time it was the highest point in the town, and was used to alert people in case of fires - seeing all the wood houses everywhere, I can see how that would have been a concern...





We didn't go in (too many stairs for my mom) but the view from the foot of the tower was beautiful.









And back to the Disney Magic



Continues soon

[DisneyRon]

Lovely day 2 and 3.

[DisneyDuckLover]

This is a fantastic read, I'm really enjoying it.

I am so intrigued about a Disney Cruise, I would love to do it. Olaf being on there makes it very interesting for me

Were the characters good on the cruise?

[daddyof2]

...and the report has pushed me the last bit of the way. Mediterranean cruise booked for next year!

[never2old]

Thanks all I'm really enjoying re-living bits of our holiday through this report, so thank you for sharing it with me

Were the characters good on the cruise?

Yes. They were excellent. With a 4 year old girl calling the shots our focus was on the princesses, and they were really good. I wish however I'd gone to see the Marvel characters, hopefully next time But I saw pictures of Captain America, Thor and Spiderman. I saw Thor walking around the ship a couple of times, he looked REALLY good Mickey and the gang were good as always. Mickey particularly liked my daughter's t-shirts (she had a few from DLP) and he always made a fuss about them. All the characters took their time with our daughter, the princesses always had lots of questions for her, and plenty of hugs. Anna and Elsa were also very good, Anna was very happy to see Alicia in her coronation dress and was asking her if she also liked chocolate... In the kids club one day our daughter said Olaf came to see them, and another day when they were doing stuff in the Avengers Academy part of the club she said 'Superman' was there to see them  I'm still not sure if she meant Captain America or Spiderman  We didn't have time to take but a couple of times I saw in the planner that Belle was going to read a story to the children... Next time!!  As far as characters go, this was the best experience we've ever had. By far You know when they show the adverts and you see the characters just mingling with the guests, and playing together? Well that's how it really is!!

...and the report has pushed me the last bit of the way. Mediterranean cruise booked for next year!

Oh, excellent  Sorry I'm such a terrible influence.... 

When are you doing it?