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Brandy Metzger
Cruise Room
Our stateroom
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Brandy Metzger
Sail Away Party
A big screen shows all the action at the sail away party.
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Brandy Metzger
Animator's Palate
Animator's Palate offers an interactive dining experience.
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Brandy Metzger
Snow White
First character meet and greet onboard
Today was our first day aboard the Disney Dream and it has been full of fun. Here's how the day went from the time we arrived at Port Canaveral until the time we headed off to bed.
12:45 Arrival at the port
We arrived via Disney Transport from the Grand Floridian Hotel. Upon arrival, we entered the terminal and cleared a security check. Then, we headed to check-in. We only waited in line for about 5 minutes before we were called to the check-in desk. Since I had completed my check-in online, I simply had to present a signature form and our proof of citizenship (passports for my husband and I and a birth certificate for our 5 year old). After answering a few additional questions and having our photo made, we were on our way to board the ship. Total check-in time was under 30 minutes.
1:15 Lunch at Cabanas
Most passengers seemed to make their way to the buffet area known as Cabanas for lunch. There were 6 different areas of prepared foods to choose from ranging from salads and sandwiches to stir fry and seafood. Everyone in my party enjoyed the large selection of choices.
2:00 Art of Theme Show Ship Tour
This tour highlighted the intentional design elements featured in each room on the Disney Cruise Lines. It was very interesting to learn some of the history behind the ship and the Disney Cruise Lines in general.
4:00 Mandatory Safety Drill
During this drill, everyone practiced safely getting to their designated zone in case of an emergency and procedures were reviewed.
4:30 Sail Away Party
After the safety drill, we headed to the pool deck for the lively sail-away party as the boat slowly drifted away from Port Canaveral. There was plenty of dancing and singing lead by Disney entertainers and favorite Disney characters. The finale was an explosion of streamers that the children on deck gladly caught and danced with.
5:45 Dinner at Animator's Palate
On Disney Cruise Lines, there are multiple dining rooms and guests are rotated through the dining rooms each night of their stay. Tonight, our dining room was Animator's Palate. Upon entering the dining room, the theme of animation was all around from the giant paintbrushes and pencil shaped columns to the artwork from Disney classics, the area is beautifully decorated. What we weren't prepared for was how entertaining this dining room became when the artwork magically transformed into screens that displayed an interactive show between diners and characters from Finding Nemo. In addition to that, we had an excellent waiter that drew a Mickey Mouse in ketchup for my daughter and delighted us with magic tricks and puzzles. The food was also quite delicious!
8:00 Meet and Greet
We just happened to bump into Snow White after dinner which delighted my daughter. She got to have a short chat with her and posed for a picture with one of her favorite princesses.
8:30 The Golden Mickeys
To end our evening, we headed to the large theater on the ship to see the evening show, The Golden Mickeys. It was a performance based on many popular awards show and highlighted some favorite Disney characters singing, dancing and performing acrobatics. The show was full of energy and the entertainers were very talented. There were even pyrotechnics involved which gave the show that extra pizazz. After the hour-long show, we headed back to our quiet stateroom for some down-time and a good-night's sleep.
