5 Nights On the Disney Dream: 6/7 - 6/12/25

I'm not a paid shill, influencer, marketer, or anything, but I just need to say this: Disney Cruise Line is basically unimpeachable. Sailings on their ships remain my favorite vacations, and we were excited to be able to take another aboard the magnificent Disney Dream, the ship my family and I sailed for our first cruise a few years ago, and the first that we've now sailed more than once.

We opted for a five-night sailing on it out of Port Everglades. The price was more favorable than what we were finding on three- and four-night sailings out of nearby Port Canaveral, and you'll never hear me complain about extra nights. The itinerary involved stops in just Cozumel and Castaway Cay, but I'd have been content just going out to see and doing circles. The ports have never been the draw or really even of much interest to me outside of Castaway Cay as our young kids often don't meet the age requirements for the excursions we'd like to try, and the ships are always the main attraction, but I'm pleased to say that Cozumel was pleasantly surprising.

Disney has opened its own terminal in Port Everglades in recent years, which was a nice touch as they always put their own spin on things. The Port Everglades terminal is a bit more spartan than its Port Canaveral counterpart, going for a Finding Nemo thing that, while involving a few decorations, did little to make it feel like anything other than just a concrete box of a terminal compared to the gorgeous facility at their flagship port, but no matter. The staff were exceptional and efficient, cranking us through in no time at all. From entering the terminal to going onboard, it felt like we were only there for a matter of minutes.

Onboard, it was interesting going back in time as far as the design philosophy applied to the ships. Our last sailing was on the Wish, which was the first to more or less ditch the ship-first design of the earlier vessels. While I think it often gets a bit of unfair criticism for some of the choices, and I even found the tradeoffs to more or less make it a wash as to which ship is best, I do feel like I better understood why some people do consider the Dream and Fantasy to be the best in the fleet. I rather like the emphasis on the classic ocean liner look, and I do think certain things like a wrap-around promenade deck, more intuitive deck design, and especially three elevator banks and stairwells are all advantages held by the Dream and Fantasy over their successors. I also really like the restaurant selection, with Enchanted Garden being my favorite of all, and Royal Palace is pretty great in its own right. I also like some of the flourishes provided at Animator's Palate, such as the Mickey chairs and the paintbrush butter knives.

On the topic of restaurants, I really, really enjoyed the food. I enjoyed the breakfast buffet on this sailing more than I ever have before, but as a confession, it's because I took advantage of the omelette station. I was never really a fan of the scrambled eggs onboard, but the omelettes were fantastic, and combining those with some of the other great choices meant that every day was started off on the right foot. Lunch-wise, we never went to the buffet onboard. We took the sit-down option on embarkation day, we ate on land during the port days, and we opted for the quick-service options on the two sea days because, at least for me, the burgers there are actually pretty decent. They're constantly cooking them fresh, which is amazing considering the volume. The real hit seemed to be the new Mexican food station, added only very recently during the last dry-dock visit. I didn't go for it because I can be snobby about Mexican food, we were literally going to Cozumel, and I wanted to go for the burgers anyway, but it seemed to be popular, with them implementing a queue line for it. I also tried a turkey sandwich from the wrap/sandwich station, and it was also surprisingly good.

Dinner-wise, most of what I had were familiar selections from past sailings, but there were a few items I didn't recognize that ended up as additions to the ever-expanding list of can't-miss choices. There was a sticky fig pudding that was fantastic, as well as a pork tenderloin Wellington that I had on the first night. Some returning favorites, though, were the lamb shanks from Pirate Night and the sticky date pudding that is the single greatest culinary highlight of every sailing. That's no small praise, though, because there were all manner of other great options. I even went with two entrees on Pirate Night because it was hard to choose just one.

Even the Castaway Cay BBQ, for which I've read mixed reviews and have had a somewhat tempered opinion of my own, was more enjoyable than it has been in the past. That's not to say it was perfect, but I thought the ribs were respectable, and the chocolate chip cookies were excellent. I also like how they provided fresh fruit throughout the day.

We only had one meal provided by someone other than Disney, but I still want to mention it: La Choza in Cozumel. It's not far from the pier that we used and that I'm led to believe is commonly used by Disney (it's much farther north on the island, close to the airport, than the other piers that were occupied by three other ships the day we were there). I had really wanted to get tacos, but this place came recommended by a member of the crew, and it was a recommendation I'm glad we received. I'm someone who is often skeptical of how often people like to throw around the term freshness, but my goodness, you could really taste the quality of the ingredients. They were bursting with flavor, and I ate myself stupid on chips with guacamole and salsa verde, as well as some pork fajitas. Absolutely delicious.

That leads me to the two port days. Cozumel had some nice offerings, at least once you got off the main drag. Mind you, I try to steer clear of the main drag in most areas because it's obviously targeted at tourists, with the obligatory Senor Frog's, Diamond International, Starbucks, and other things you either didn't or shouldn't come to another country to visit. Only San Juan bested it, but it's enough to make me wonder if perhaps I need to venture deeper into Nassau on the next stop there (St. Maarten, the other port I've visited in the past but haven't mentioned, requires a car to get around due to the location of the port and the very mountainous terrain of the island). I'd be happy to stop at Cozumel again in the future and explore it further, and I'd definitely like to go seem some of the ruins or nature-focused areas of the island when the kids are older.

The other port day was the obligatory private beach stop. I do want to see Lighthouse Point for myself, but Castaway Cay is so logistically simple that I suspect it's going to be tough to beat. We decided to go a bit further down the beach before setting up shop to try and have fewer crowds, but I suspect the sailing overall was less crowded than at least the two previous ones. We had a great spot in the shade, and I never felt like it was slammed with people. I didn't go anywhere other than the beach, really, outside of grabbing food, but I didn't mind. The kids had a blast, and we stayed on the island longer than we probably ever have. It was a gorgeous day and, while hot, certainly not oppressively so. It's a beautiful island, and honestly, it's a deterrent from seeking out beaches at the other port stops. We even skipped the onboard Art Of the Theme tour that has been a tour we've enjoyed on past sailings simply because we were having such a great time.

As far as other experiences, in many ways, I felt that this sailing continued the streak I've been noticing of being able to experience more while being less and less stressed trying to get experiences in over the course of the trip. There are a lot of activities, of course, but over time, I've gotten better and better at learning what's important, and also better and better about starting early so as to space things out across the various days. Sea days can be a little tricky because everybody is onboard, and our in-port times being longer than in the past meant that trying to sneak things in while lots of guests were ashore wasn't as much of an option, but it was no trouble. We got the photos we wanted, we got the pool time we wanted, and my daughter got the time she really enjoyed in the kid's club.

Quick aside on that: as much fun as I have on these, it will never match seeing the joy in my kids. My son isn't quite old enough for kid's club yet, but he enjoys the characters, and my daughter, who is old enough for kid's club, eats it up along with the characters and some of the other special events. It was the usual tough balancing act of letting her have lots of time there without treating it like a babysitting service and causing her to miss out on other things, like the pool, that she loved, but that's not a problem as much as it's just a testament to how great of a job the youth team does onboard.

As for my wife and I, we didn't really get the date time we wanted, but we both still had an awful lot of fun. She got to take in a movie (the live action Lilo & Stitch), as well as the live production of Beauty and the Beast (I had to bail about halfway in as our son was just totally gassed), and some other activities, and I got to enjoy things like the lounges and walks around the ship. One new experience I tried this time was the mixology class. I had hoped it would be a class that taught us about things like ratios and ingredients that mix well together with the intention of guiding us in how to invent our own cocktails, but instead, it was just a rundown of different types of cocktails (muddled, built, shaken, etc.).

Friends, I tell you, that class is not for the faint of heart. I figured we'd be trying samples or something, but it was five full-sized drinks in very rapid succession. Thank goodness I had a hefty double-hamburger right before the class, or I may not be here to type this for you today. Miraculously, I survived without getting drunk, but to be on the safe side, I rounded up with my wife and grabbed a coffee with little delay. Quite a good time, and credit to the bartender who led the class that taught me a little bit about ratios afterward. As a side note, since I was by myself, I was placed in an area of the lounge with two others who were there by themselves, and I suspect we had the most fun of anyone. It was made much funnier by how much we'd underestimated the quantity and potency of the beverages, but it was also amusing to see the panic overcoming them because, unlike me, they'd barely eaten anything beforehand. Good times.

We also took in a class on cooking, where the executive pastry chef taught us how to make apple strudel. Things like this, as well as the lounge visits, were among my favorite activities, and I'm looking forward to spending more time engaging in these activities or visiting lounges as the kids get older and both can go to the kids' club. While I did miss Meridian, which is one of the best lounges on any of the ships, I did get to try Skyline for the first time during that mixology course, as well as a first visit to the Cove Cafe (a navigation-themed lounge up on deck eleven near the pools). I also tried the District Lounge, which I'd visited on my first sailing.

For entertainment, I've found myself doing less and less shows with time. The first half of Beauty and the Beast was the only theater production I experienced. I skipped the other two shows, and I also skipped the second Pirate Night event, which had the fireworks. While it's certainly a good show, I've seen it, and the one on the Wish blows the doors off of the other versions with the rock band. Besides, I figured the day would come where I'd probably end up missing it, and I decided that skipping it now would make it easier to do so in the future. Decisions like this contributed to the more relaxed feeling of this cruise compared to those in the past as it made it less about trying to cram in everything and more about just doing what we really enjoyed. We did take in other things like some dance parties and such, but generally speaking, we focused more on just seizing opportunities here and there than trying to go by a schedule.

Lastly, though, I must reference the crew. They are the heart and soul of cruise line, and they really deliver an unbeatable experience. We've never once had a member of our service team with whom we've been unimpressed, but I do want to commend our head server for nailing the food recommendations. He was honest not just about what was good, but he was also up front about certain dishes that weren't really getting rave reviews, and he never once steered us wrong.

Again, DCL is pretty much the gold standard of vacationing for us, and I can't wait to sail with them again.

**Footnote: I could go way beyond the length of this TR with my thoughts on the whole experience, so it's always a struggle to find the right narrative format that balances brevity and detail. Criticism of my writing style is most welcome in addition to any questions or comments on the content itself, because I don't know that I'm ever really satisfied with my writing of these.

On a per-night, per-person basis, the short itineraries out of Canaveral are pretty expensive, which sucks as a local. We used to get resident deals that were often less than $250 on that basis, but that ended a long time ago. When those were available, those were on the Dream, which we've sailed on 16 times, including an amazing itinerary in Northern Europe. (The last five words are different blog trip report links, if you're interested.) And I agree that the ports in the tropics are mostly "meh," with the exceptions being Castaway and the new poorly named "Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point."

The win on the new island is that it has a proper beach where the waves beat you up and there's coral and rays and stuff. Their food is better, too.

I am surprised that you liked Cozumel, because we spent at most 30 minutes there. Even my kid was like, "What's with the police on tanks with machine guns?" And the Hooters and diamond stores were kinda all I needed to know.

I do agree that the design change on the Triton class is kind of a wash, but on longer itineraries (i.e., longer than four nights), I very much would miss the lack of a full-circle promenade. I would also miss the central location of the adult venues (bars) that the pre-Triton ships offer. We did a 5-night in March on the Fantasy, and we tend to make our spot as the "mayors" of Skyline. Regardless, the exclusivity of the bars on any ship after 8 is pretty great while families either engage in deck parties or go to bed. There are just enough people to have amazing conversations with people from all over, including the bartenders themselves.

Food: I heard they added the Mexican option on the Dream... was it essentially equivalent to the thing offered on the Wish? That has become a favorite for me, while Diana enjoys the BBQ with the smoked meat. The only thing I wish they would do on Dream/Fantasy is offer a legit show (human musicians) for one night. That's where the legacy and Triton ships are better for dinner. I do loathe the Castaway lunch, because I only eat chicken for protein, and it's consistently terrible. I often camp out at Conched Out (across from Cookies 1) and get a late lunch around 2 onboard.

Who was your lead bartender for mixology? The more time you spend in the bars, the more time you get to know them, because it's so exclusive. We have a list. :) Also, pro tip, if there's any dish you really like, talk to the head server... they can probably get the recipe for you. We barely go to shows anymore, but that's because they don't change much on any given ship. I will say that the pirate show on the Wish is infinitely better because of the live band. So good.

In March we're doing a weird 5-night out of Ft. Lauderdale on the forthcoming Destiny, which stops only in Cozumel and Castaway. It'll be our first try out of that port (trying to figure out a Brightline train ride from Orlando). Excited for not only the new ship, but to see how it has evolved.

I feel like you're in the cult now.

I really wish I’d started sooner, because it would’ve been cool to catch the legacy ships when they were here (I notice the Magic is around for a short bit), and maybe have picked up some status. Granted, that would have meant missing out on other great trips of the past, but still. As someone who really wants to get on the Magic and Wonder, it would’ve been nice to get them when they were local and cheaper.

I recall you mentioning improved food on the new private beach, which makes me wonder why it hasn’t been copied over to Castaway Cay if it’s garnering greater reviews. I suspect there are logistical advantages to Lighthouse Point being on a regularly populated island with all the infrastructure that entails, but even so. I did notice that Castaway Cay has fried chicken sandwiches now that I didn’t recognize from past visits, but yeah, I do think that a few slight tweaks would really help out the menu there. As far as its beach not having the waves and such, for the age my kids are, I think that’s an advantage for Castaway Cay, but as they get older, I think the variety might be nice.

Regarding Cozumel, your criticisms are things that I noticed, but with regards to things like Hooters and the diamond stores, I expect those in every port. They’re not going to really negatively affect a review I have of a port simply because I expect them and a Señor Frog’s to be in every port. What sells a port to me, at least at this point in my life where excursions aren’t really an option, is the ability to take a short walk to get a proper local experience. Even though the restaurant we visited had some tourists, it was a couple blocks in from the main drag, and there seemed to be a number of locals there as well.

As far as police riding around with assault rifles, I admittedly didn’t enjoy that so much, but I also wasn’t exactly surprised by it, so it didn’t necessarily faze me. I want to explore more of the Spanish-speaking world, and I think the excitement of visiting a new part of it outweighed what few cons there might have been.

The lack of a wrap-around deck on the Triton class is a letdown that I consider balanced out by the ability to finally go to the bow of the ship, but my real problem with the promenade deck on the Tritons was how hard it was to find an entrance to it. I remember going all over deck four on the Wish trying to find a way out at one point. I also really, really don’t like that the Tritons went down to two elevator banks and stairwells. We tried to use the stairs pretty regularly, but sometimes, when you’re trying to get from a lower deck to deck eleven, it’s nice to have elevators at your disposal, and I felt like those banks were always crowded. The use of three on the Dream and Fantasy meant that you could often dart to the forward or aft and evade some of the crowds that often hit the one in the middle.

The lounge distribution, and I’d say even the decision to spread the three main restaurants, across three decks on the Tritons broke things up and dispersed crowds really well, with the only real drawback being that one coffee lounge way, way up on deck thirteen aft that’s hidden around the corner from the infinity pool and can be very difficult to find.

As to the bartender? I don’t remember his name and my folio doesn’t specify it even though I left some extra gratuity for that team, but he was a nice guy. I’ll just have to try the Dream again and hope he’s at Skyline, haha.

Port Everglades is a nice, short hop from Brightline, so that’s a really good way to do it. Also, the Lyfts we took to and from our parking to the port were WAY cheaper than parking there, so again, you’re making a good call. I’ll be really interested to hear about your thoughts on the Destiny. I suspect that, obviously assuming life circumstances don’t change and we can keep cruising, it’ll come up in the rotation in the next couple of years for us, but it’s the one for which I’m the least excited (outside of the Adventure, for which I have no real interest at all and which is too far away for me to even consider with small children) due to the heavy emphasis on Marvel. I hope it ends up surprising me whenever I do sail it, but the priority right now for me are the Magic and Wonder. Granted, I really, REALLY want to sail on the Treasure, too, but given how long cruise ships usually last in service, I do find myself wondering how many years the two oldest ones still have before they’re gone.

And being in the cult? Unless there are minimum requirements for admission, I was in the cult within minutes of my first sailing in 2022. Instantly hooked, and now I’m just finding ways to get more out of each subsequent sailing.

There is a perception about the elevators being a suboptimal arrangement, but mathematically it's better on the new ships. They have 16 elevators, whereas the Dream class has 14, Magic class 12. A crew member told me the they're faster, but I can't say that I've measured. Now the stairs, those can get busier, but I've only noticed it after the muster drill.

Look into the Alaska itinerary on the Wonder. It's generally a pretty good value per person per night, and the visuals are breathtaking. Also, who knows how long the glaciers will be there. 😥