Maiden Voyage of the Disney Dream!

[Fairy Godmother Travel]

Cast of Characters: Myself and my cruise buddy Lisa

As soon as the Dream was announced Lisa and I decided we had to be on the maiden voyage! We had cruised on the Magic in the Med in nearby staterooms and thought that was not enough time, so we decided to bring her back from the Med on a Transatlantic and really enjoyed the relaxation cruising enables us to have.

I said goodbye to my hubby, kids and pups and left for Orlando on the 25th. I landed in wet weather and took the magical express to Old Key West

I attended a BBQ put on by past cruisers and got to see friends I had not seen in years (from the the Med and the Transatlantic voyages). We quickly decided to try to get the same table for our dining rotation (they were able to change to be with us--Hurrah!). I got a phone call while at the BBQ--a suite had become available and did we want to upgrade? We thought--There is only one maiden voyage, so why not? One of the perks is that it would enable us to board before the rest of the ship--this would come in very handy!! Lisa was stuck on a plane and did not make it to Orlando until the next morning. She literally got off a plane, got to the hotel and we left to get to the port.

Wow the Dream is big!

Yikes the line was long for check in at security! The cute couple in front of us had been on the Maiden Voyage of the Magic, Wonder and now the Dream!

It's time to board!

WOW there are a lot of people!!

We were welcomed aboard -

wow the lobby is GORGEOUS!
The crew members on the right are the ones announcing the people as they come on board

The main lobby

another view

Lovely Disney touches are hidden around every corner

Even the carpets have a part in the grand scheme of the show

The desk on the second floor at the far left is where you rebook while onboard--the line was usually to the fourth window!!

The bookcases on the second floor is Shutters--this where you look at the photos taken of you on the cruise.

A cool view of the chandelier reflected in the baby grand piano in the lobby

The Chandelier!
The pictures do not convey how lovely this is. There are thousands of crystals shimmering nonstop.

How pretty!

[Fairy Godmother Travel]

We went up to Concierge to check in and this is what was waiting for us:

The buffet

After a bite we went to find our room--oh here it is!

The entry way

The first bathroom--it has a rainforest shower

The desk with wave phones

The wall on the left is the murphy bed

The couch folds out into a bed--it was really comfy!!

A view from behind the table--and the first tv:

The balcony was nice and big!

The master bedroom

The Master Bedroom walls slide shut for privacy

The master bathroom has a tub and a rainforest shower

The mirror has a tv in it!!

[Fairy Godmother Travel]

We explored the concierge sun deck

and explored some of the upper decks

below is the outdoor portion of the teen lounge and a verandah for one of the Royal Suites

This is the adult pool--the coffee bar is the porthole on the right

We found the miniature golf course

and the Meridian Bar

The seats look like suitcase straps!

It was time for our required lifeboat drill (the crew member in charge of our group was Hades in the stage shows!) so we went to our station then when it was over shot back up to our room to get our mickey hand signs for the sailaway party.

We were all given champagne on the deck also

The party happens for every cruise but not to the extent that this cruise went to. There were signs, champagne, confetti, sky writers, planes with banners and media helicopters swarming about. There were thousands of people on the shore waving hello and good luck to the Dream. We had a tugboat that sprayed the big jets escort us out.

Plane with banner

Skywriter spelling out "Bon Voyage"--nice touch!

SOME of the people onshore

This was cool!

[mikeland]

Thanks for the TR!

[Fairy Godmother Travel]

Tonight was the first night in our rotation, which was RAAE (Royal Palace, Animators Palate, Animators Palate and Enchanted Garden). The show was a magic show and a little girl singing.

On the 7 night cruises there is a 'welcome aboard' show that is really cute.

When you cruise the shops cannot open until you are over open water, which was 6pm (we left at 5). There are more shops on the Dream than on the Magic or Wonder, and boy were they crowded with people wanting just about ANYTHING that said Maiden Voyage. Yeah it was kind of a free for all.

For this cruise Disney did MOST things "Maiden voyage" merchandise different than the MV of the Wonder and Magic, as they let you get in a pre order lottery, so you put an order in and when your number was pulled if they had it you could get what was on your list. You signed up for a pick up time for Day 2. The shirts and jackets were in the shops and not for pre order and that is what everyone wanted. I must commend ALL the cast members as they were all extremely gracious and polite with the mahem that went on the entire cruise--from the merchandise to people being confused to lines with whatever, they get two BIG thumbs up!

I confess, I never took pictures of the shops as I was shopping and not picture taking. . .

Royal Palace

The chandelier is very nice

And so is the food!

Double baked Spinach Souffle with a three-cream cheese

Double Cut Rack of Lamb with a Dijon Crust (with fine Green Beans, Gratin Potatoes and Rosemary Jus)

Roasted Wild Boar Tenderloin with Sweet Carrot and Onion Potato Cake with a Red Current Reduction (this was GREAT)

and for dessert. . .

a sampler

and my FAVORITE

Creme Brulee!!!

[Fairy Godmother Travel]

We walked by the Vista Cafe (a type of coffee bar) to check it out and then down to check out the clubs

We stopped by the D-Lounge first, it is the family club

The District

has five clubs

The District Lounge

It is kind of a piano bar

687
This is the Sports Bar

Pink
(with it's own personal champagne!)

Skyline Lounge
(the atmosphere changes between 5 cities each with their own music, backdrop and drink specialties)
This place is very cool

Evolution

[Fairy Godmother Travel]

A majority of cruisers on this voyage were Castaway Club members aka not their first Disney Cruise, and therefore they elected to stay on the ship in Nassau.

Atlantis!

A Marching Band officially welcomed the Dream to Nassau

Snazzy

Lisa went to the spa and really enjoyed it--I worked this morning--but I have a date with the spa on my next cruise!

We both went to a DVC meeting--they have these on every cruise, with special deals if you buy or add on to your points. They usually have fun giveaways too.

We then took the "Art of the Ship" tour--it was great! We learned how the tiniest decorations add to the ambiance and story for each part of the ship.

Animated Artwork

After that--lunch time! Cabana's is a really really long buffet with lots of choices. My camera battery died but before it did I got shots of these guys at Cabanas:

Mine Mine Mine!

After lunch it was time to pick up our pre ordered merchandise! I order some items for myself and a couple of fun things for a certain event in May. . . .

I am a gold castaway club member (more than 5 Disney cruises) and all the gold and platinum members (more than 10) were invited to a talk by Tom Staggs, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts (and presides over the company's worldwide vacation and travel businesses). It was very informative.

Tonight the show is "Villians tonight" and we chose to try to go to the 5pm show as that worked better with our schedule. there happened to be room for us--availability to do this will vary with each sailing.

Tonight is Pirate night-so some people do dress up--there is also a show with characters at 8 and Club Pirate with fireworks on the deck at 10:30

We ate in Animators Palate and instead of the regular show they are showing different pictures of Pirates

Mickey's Pirates in the Caribbean Party

The Aquaduck is ready for Pirate night

Club Pirate is more adult

with Captain Jack and fellows like this

There is always a buffet at night after the pirate party. One thing is for sure, you will not go hungry on a cruise!

[alphabassetgrrl]

Thank you for all the pictures- she's so pretty! Now I really really want to sail on the Dream. We've been on the Magic and the Wonder, but I don't think they compare to the Dream.

[cris77]

Thank you SO MUCH for sharing those beautiful pics! I am just in total and complete awe of the Disney Dream! Genius advertising, too.

[Fairy Godmother Travel]

Today is our sea day, which means some relaxation!

Platinum Castaway Club members get to do some cool stuff, and today was especially cool. There were some Disney bigwigs on board, and one of the talks you could attend was a question and answer session with Tom Wolberg, Vice President of operations for DCL. There were about 50 people in the room and it was very interesting.

After his talk we went to Flo's diner for lunch

It is located near the family pools

I had a hamburger, Lisa had a wrap

After that it was time for Donald Duck to make his inaguaral voyage on the Aquaduck!

Before it was official:

Donald and Daisy poured waters from Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach into the Aquaduck waters

And there he goes!

After that excitment we went to an art auction, which is always fun. We ran into an old friend from the transatlantic while we were there, which we were just thrilled with.

Tonight is Animators Palate!!

[DLandFansAZ]

Very nice, thanks for sharing. Looks like it was a great trip and you had a great time. I would love to do it sometime. Very nice ship.

[OC2Epcot]

Great trip report. Looking forward to going on the Dream when our son gets a little older.

[Fairy Godmother Travel]

Being at sea in the Bahamas, and not having much to do, the Dream moseyed on over to Castaway Cay to have a little fun. The Magic was docked there, so a horn battle took place--It was great!

The Magic

You can parasail at Castaway Cay

After the horn battle was over it was time for Golden Mickeys--this is a wonderful show and is absolutely a must see

Animators Palate!!
This restaurant is great, as there are screens all around the dining room that change throughout the meal. Sometimes an aquatic visitor might stop by your table for a chat
(yes I did dress up more for dinner!)

Food!!

ps they have cute knives--we were told they will be available in the gift store soon

[TriSarahtops]

I LOVE this trip report!!! Its definitely getting me excited for our Dream Cruise!!!

[Fairy Godmother Travel]

Today is our last full day of the cruise

Before we go ashore on Castaway Cay lets look around at the two restaurants we did not go to--Palo and Remy. Palo is an extra $20 per person and Remy is an extra $75 per person. The food at Palo and Remy is fine gourmet dining at its best.

First let's stop at Palo:

This is the private dining room in Palo--it is not open during brunch--and by the way, the brunch is fabulous!!

Remy

Private Dining room in Remy