The Pool Deck--Deck 11 on the Disney Dream

Want to know where almost everyone gathers on the Disney Dream?  It’s Deck11, the pool deck, between the funnels.  Going from aft to forward, you will find Nemo’s Reef, Mickey pool and slide (the drink stations are on both sides of the Mickey pool), hot tubs, Donald pool, and the Funnel Vision Screen with a stage.  And, the Aqua Duck surround the whole area—click here to read more.  Yep, you can pretty much find everyone here and the pools can disappear with the push of the button giving room for deck parties.  Cool!

On our first afternoon on board, we found some chairs on deck 11 and towels, which are located in the wooden cabinets between the pool deck and the walk-way.  Most often, they are labeled clean towels.  You will also find towel return areas for used towels.  No need to take towels from your stateroom or bring your own beach towels.  We also noticed that the pool deck chairs were very different from the white w/ stripe deck chairs found on the Magic and the Wonder.

 Nemo’s Reef is great for the not yet potty trained set, as swim diapers are not allowed in any of the pools.  At the same time, the boy just had to try it out and loved the fish shaped water guns.  He was allowed to go in the area.  There are steps leading into Nemo’s Reef from the pool deck, so step carefully.  Nemo’s Reef is a huge improvement over the splash zones near the Mickey pool on the Wonder and the Magic.  Nemo’s Reef is covered, adding protection from sun and wind for little ones and is surrounded by clear Plexiglas, which makes keeping an eye on your youngster even easier, as the area has two sides.

Mickey’s pool has the face of the beloved icon on the bottom of the pool, is kept a nice 86°, and is about 1 ½ feet deep.  The boy checked it out, but didn’t spend much time swimming there.  The Mickey slide is off to the side of the Mickey pool and can have very long waits.  Based on my observation, the slide is not as tall as it is on the Magic and the Wonder.  The Mickey slide empties into the Mickey pool on the Magic and the Wonder, but empties into its own splash area on the Dream.  

 The drink stations are located on either side of the Mickey pool and offer free soda, milk, water, coffee, etc. 24 hours a day.  Cups with lids and straws are available.  Tip:  Since slotted drink holders are not available, we would grab a plate from Luigi’s Pizza, as it is square, and use it as a tray for cups.  You can put 4 filled cups on a plate and stack another plate on top if you want/need.  On the Magic and the Wonder, you could grab a tray from Beach Blanket or Topsiders buffets to carry filled cups, but since Cabanas (click here to read more) only has plates, trays are not available.  We made our own trays using the square plates from Luigi’s.  It is okay to ask for just a plate.  When you return to Luigi’s to get a plate of pizza, already carrying your plate of drinks, they understand.  Trust me!

 

Speaking of the Mickey pool, one evening we were riding the Aqua Duck and I thought the Cast Member at the entrance steps looked familiar.  So on our next turn, I stopped and asked if he was the Cast Member that attended the Mickey pool on the Magic.  He looked surprised and said that he was.  I told him that I recognized him from our last cruise on the Magic.  He was pleased and hoped that we were enjoying our cruise on the Dream.  A similar thing happened with a Cast Member at Shutters—Grace—who recognized US from the Magic.

Back to Deck 11.  The Donald pool is next which has a depth of a little over 5 feet, so this pool is for swimmers.  The boy and the husband swam the first day on board and the boy swam again during our evening Aqua Duck adventures.  A fun thing to do in the Donald pool is watch a movie.  What?  Yep, the Funnel Vision Screen is near the Donald pool, so you can take a dip and take in a flick all at the same time!

 The hot tubs are on the side of the ship on Deck 11.  They have clear sides and clear window on the bottom for viewing out to sea, as they hang over the ship a bit.  There is also a clear window on the deck floor to the side of the hot tubs which intrigued the husband and the boy. 

Know that the hot tubs are HOT.  You could find at least one member of the Williams Family in a hot tub late in the evenings on our cruise.

 So, what’s beyond the funnels on Deck 11?  Well, aft is Cabanas—click here to read more.  And, as you go forward on the ship, you would find Luigi’s Pizza, Filmore’s Favorites, Tow Mater’s Grill, Flo’s Café, Eye Scream, and Frozone’s Treats.  The Cove Café and Adult pool are beyond the food locations and Senses Spa beyond that as you move forward on the ship.

For me, one the most appreciated inventions/additions to the Disney Dream were the automatic doors on Deck 11 at midship, just after the Donald pool, that lead to the midship elevators.  Inevitably, I would find my hands full of either drinks, food, or both, and trying to make my way back to our stateroom.  Navigating the elevators was easy with no hands as typically there is someone else going the same place or direction, or you can ask someone to push your deck number when you enter the elevator.  Note:  The hardest door to open on the entire ship?  The door from the Adult pool on Deck 11 to the forward elevators.  Even though taking that route would put me closer to our stateroom, handling the doors with my hands full was almost impossible.  Hence the new route using the automatic doors at midship. 

Deck 11 is certainly a hub of activity on the Disney Dream and offers something for every cruiser.