“Disney Cruise Dream” could refer to one of two things, and it depends on the phrase’s grammatical context. If one is speaking of a Disney cruise dream (note the lowercase letters), he or she is referring to a dream that involves a Disney cruise. We imagine that lots of people dream of Disney cruises, especially small children gearing up for their first cruise adventure. More likely, though, people are curious about the Disney Dream, one of the big new cruise ships of the Disney Cruise Line. For this reason, we’ll focus on the Disney Dream in this article and leave peoples’ Disney cruise dreams alone.
We reported when the Disney Dream first entered service, but on that occasion we weren’t able to get into the details of the ship itself. The first thing to note about the Disney Dream is that it is, like other cruise ships built in the last several years, quite large. With a gross tonnage of 129,690, it is about 40 percent larger than the two older ships in Disney’s fleet, the Disney Magic and Disney Wonder, which both have a gross tonnage of about 85,000. The Magic is slightly smaller, but holds as many passengers, 2,400. Because of its larger size, the Dream can hold far more people – 1,700 more than the Magic or the Wonder, or 4,100. It was the newest ship in the fleet until March 31, 2012, when the Dream was joined by its sister ship, the Disney Fantasy. These are huge ships; however, it is a testament to the increasing size of modern-day cruise ships that they are only the 19th largest cruise ships in the world.
As for the ship itself, the Dream has many of the amenities that the other major ships currently in operation have. There are of course a number of restaurants and other dining options on board, as well a spa, fitness center, and a few pools (including the AquaDuck water coaster, which is 765 feet long). The Disney Dream is obviously operated by Disney, so the entire ship is geared toward families – families with small children, more exactly. For this reason, there are a number of youth clubs, and most of the entertainment options – primarily live shows with Disney themes – are geared for children. There also aren’t any casinos on board Disney cruises, and while there are a few bars and night clubs, only about half are geared exclusively toward adults (that is, are adult-only).
If you are interested in taking a cruise on the Disney Dream, you’ll have to be content with a relatively short trip to the Bahamas. This is the only destination it sails to at the moment, and each voyage takes either three or four days. Although somewhat limiting, these quick voyages could make for a good addition to Florida vacation. Or, if you live in Port Canaveral, a voyage on the Disney Dream would be a good way to spend an extended weekend. In any case, it’s a nice ship that lots of people have raved about, so if you have the occasion to sail on it, give it go.
